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THE

L IF E

JOHN,

Duke of Marlborough,

Prince of the Roman Empire ;

Illaftrated with

MAPS, Plans of BATTLES, SIEGES, and MEDALS,

And a great Number of ORIGINAL LETTERS and PAPERS

Never before Publiftied.

The SECOND EDITION. With Confiderable Additional Improvements.

By THOMAS LEDIARD, Efq; F. R. S. VOLUME I.

M A R L B R O's Exploits appear divinely bright, And proudly Jhine in their oivn native Light ; Raised of themfelves, their genuine Charms they boaft, And thofe ivho Paint them truejit Praife them mofl*

ADDISON.

LONDON:

Printed for J. WILCOX, againft the New Church in the Strand. MDCCXLIII.

TO THE

High, Puiflant, and moft Noble

PRINCE,

*

CHARLES SPENCER,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH.

SIR,

HE Subjeft of the follqw- ing Sheets will, I flatter myfelf, in a great Meafure, juftify my Prefumption, in offering them to YOUR GRACE'S Patronage, and atone for an Intruflon, which would, otherwife, be unpardonable : For to whofe Protection A 2 can

2000767 .-

iv DEDICATION.

can the Life, of the Great and Glorious JOHN, Duke 0/MARLBOROUGH, the HERO of latter Ages, haveRecourfe, with fo much Juftice and Propriety, as to that of the ILLUSTRIOUS PERSON, who has inherited as well his Virtues as his Honours ; and in whom GREAT BRI- TAIN may expect to fee a Series of Acti- ons, which alone can compare with thofe of his RENOWNED ANCESTOR ?

How happy fhould I efleem rny- felf, were I capable o£ obliging Pofteri- ty with a Character, but in fome De- gree, adequate to the GREAT MAN whofe Life I have attempted to write ! But as, with all my Endeavours, I fhould not be able to add one Tittle to our BRI- TISH HERO s Glory, which foars as much above the Reach of Praife, as it is a- bove that of Envy, I have aim'd at no more than a bare Skizzo of it in my Preface. Let SCHELLENBERG andHocn- STADT denounce his Fame ! Let RAMEL-

LIES, OUDENARDE, and MALPLACQUET,

and

DEDICATION.

and a Thoufand other extensive Scenes of Glory, trumpet out his juft Eu LOGIUM !

In the mean Time, a genuine, tho' plain Relation of fiich Atchievements, the greateft which ^ver embellifh'd any Hiilory, either Antient or Modern, is alone a Panegyrick fufficient, and can- not but be acceptable to YOUR GRACE, as they were perform'd by YOUR GREAT PREDECESSOR. The Services this won- derful Man did for Europe were fo ex- traordinary, and the Terrour he ftruck into the Enemies of GREAT BRITAIN, in particular, fo great, that they are not to be reflected upon but with an Afto- nifhment, which nothing can or ought to equal, but our grateful Acknowledg- ment of them. Pofterity will, indeed, with Indignation, read, that after an uninterrupted Series of Triumphs, be- yond Example, the blackeft Ingrati- tude could find its way into the Hearts of fome Men, who dar'd to endeavour the blafting of his Reputation : But as A 3 the

vi DEDICATION.

the Attempt was equally vain, and in- glorious, fo it foon met with the Fate it deferred, and true Merit again rode triumphant.

WOULD I purfue the ufual Method and Tenour of Dedications, I fhould now enter upon Your Grace's Cha- racter ; But the Tafk would be equally- arduous with the former, and would not fail to offend Your Grace's Mo- defty : I (hall, therefore, only concur with the Voice of the Publick, in ad- miring the wonderful Perfection, with which whatever is amiable in Life is center'd in YOUR ILLUSTRIOUS PERSON, and Ihines thro' all Your Actions.

THAT YOUR GRACE may long live, and continue to make thefe princely Accomplifhments beneficial to Your Country, (particularly in the feveral Noble Functions of a Brave Com- wander^ which you have now fo hap- pily > (allow me to fay, aufpicioufly,)

enter d

DEDICATION. vii

enter d upon ;) and that You may be blefled with a numerous OFFSPRING of HEROES, who, with their ILLUSTRIOUS FATHER, may trace the Foot-fteps of their GLORIOUS ANCESTOR, and with his Virtue, fhare his IMMORTAL NAME, for the univerfal Good of Mankind, are the hearty and fincere Wiflies of,

SIR,

YOUR GRACE'S Molt devoted, And moft obedient Humble Servant,

Old Palace-Yard, Wejlminftery March, z6» '743-

Tfao. Lediard.

PREFACE

Tothe FIRST EDITION.

S only fome faint Sketches of the Life of that ILLUSTRIOUS HERO, JOHN Duke of MARLBO-

BRITAIN, and one of the GREAT- EST MEN the Age he lived in -pro- duced, have hitherto appeared, it has long been the Admiration of the Publick, that fome or other of our ableft Writers has not employed his Pen on fo rich, fo noble a Subjeft : And that an earneft Defire of feeing fom'e thing more per fett of this Kind, has greatly pre- vail'd, is evident by the continual Demand there has been, fome Tears paft, for whatever is already pub- lijhed, to the Honour and Memory ef this GREAT PERSON.

THE Tajk muft, indeed, be allow* 'd fo be very arduous, not only on account of the Dif advantages* which every Writer is liable to, who attempts the Hiftory or Lives of Great Men, fo foon after their Death ; but becaufe A&ions fo Glorious, and withal fo Important, as thofe which compofe the Life of our HERO, require the utmoft Care and Skill of an able H&orian, not only to difplay them in their juft ana

true

PREFACE.

true Colours -, but to cloath his Relations in Words * thoj not equal (which none but an Addifon cottliffie- tend to fucceed in) yet, at haft, in fome Meafure* ap- proaching to the Dignity of his Subjeft. And tho\ with refpeft to the firft, no Pains have here been fparedto colleft and digeft Materials proper for the Ends required-, and for the latter, Perfpicuity and Order wight make fome Atonement for want of Eloquence : Tet Ifooidd have readily cohfifid myfelf altogether Un- equal to the Tajk, and not have dared to undertake it, had there not been fome Motives more than ordinary, which to me, at leaft* feem'd cf Weight to juflify me in the Attempt. How far theft Motives are really fo, or not, Imuft fubmit to the Judgment of the candid Reader: And

1. IT is not a Secret, that a very noted Writer cf thofe Times, in every Refpeti equal to the Under- taking, aftuallyfet about this defirable Work, not long after our IlJuftrious General^ Death ; and a moft ac- ceptable Work it would, without Doubt, have been to the Publick, had he lived to compleat his Deftgn : But Death took him away, and deprived England of the Satisfatiien, when he bad but juft form* d the Plan of it, and had made but very fmall Advances in the Superjlruaure. Part of the Materials, from which this noble Edifice was deftgn'd to have been raifed% fell, accidentally, Into my Hands, and I thought them too weighty as well as curious to be burfd in Oblivion.

2. HAVING myfelf been an Eye-witnefs of fome of the Tranfatlions I have recorded* and particularly* as I was at the Tme cf one of them, not the haft: a- mong the glorious Number, in the Duke's Retinue* (I mean in his Journey into Saxony, to influence- the King of Sweden, // not in Favour of the Allies, at leaft. to engage in nothing to their Prejudice, ) 1 imagitfd*

And

PREFACE. xi

and I heps my Imagination has mt yet been wholly groundless i I might be able to fet foms Matters in a* truer Light, than they have hitherto beenfoewn in.

3. A GENTLE MAN of great Worth, who h pvjjgfs'd of a conftderable Number of Original Let- ters, as well of the Duke's, as of many other Perfens of- Diftinftion, was jo generous to the Publick, and fo much a Favourer of my Undertaking, to offer me the Ufe of them ; andtho*, till then, a perfect Stranger to me, to confide them in my Hands for fever al Months : A noble Example cf publick Spirit, rarely to be found^ and therefore the more deferring of this open Acknow- ledgement, tho* his Mvdefty obliges me to conceal his Name ! Of thefe valuable Pieces, the Reader will Jind many Tranfiations at Length, Extracts of others, and from yet others I have borrowed Juch Intelligences as have enabled me to fet many dubious Matters in a true Light. The Advantage thefe Materials mufi neceffarily have been of in the compiling of this Worki, is too evident to need any Eltfiration. To thefe I may add,

4. THE Opportunity I have had, in above twenty Tears Travels, to converfe with a great Num- ber of Foreign Officers, fome of whom have commanded, and others ferved in, the Auxiliary Troops, under our incomparable Britifa Chief, as well as of reading what has been pubii/hed in fever al Languages, and in different Countries^ on this diffufive Sitbjeff.

THESE, I fay, were, among others, the Mo- tives which engaged me to undertake a V/ork, which, without thefe Hdt>s, I Jhould have been very unequal to -, And, with thefe, I have not been wanting to con- fult, and make the beft Ufe I could, of our own Hi- orians of thofe Climes.

FOREIG N Authors, and efpeaally Roufet, Dumont, and 'the Marquis de Qyincy, have like- not only be$n carefully conjulted ; but whatever

is

r sit P R E F A C E.

is contained in the two former, curious and remark* able, not found in other Hiftorians, has been faithfully tranflated and inferted in this Work.

PARTICULARLY as I am perfectly convinced tf the 'Truth of what Dean Swift advances (in his Pre- face to Sir William Temple* j Letters) " That no- " thing is fo capable of giving a true Account of Story, " as Letters are ; which defcribe AcJions while they " are alive and breathing : Whereas all other Rela^ <{ tions are of Attions paft and dead" I have built my Relations, as much as pcffible, on Original Letter s^ and their aut ben tick Copies : But as too prolix Accounts cf AcJions ', ibf never fo Glorious and Memorable, are generally tedious to moft Readers, I have endeavoured every where to bring them within as narrow a Com- pafs as the Circumftances of Affairs would admit, re- ferring to fuch Letters and other valuable Pieces* which immediately follow my Relations, as Vouchers cf the Truth of them.

TO all this, I have added as many Medals as I have been able to come at, which have been ftruck on Occafion of the great Events of this Glorious Life, as well engraven as explained: And that nothing might be wanting to give the Reader a perfect Idea of the great Actions that are here recorded, he will find exaft Plans of the principal Battles and Sieges. With refpett to Medals, it m&y not be amifs to obferve, that th? the Virtuofi, in this Way, generally fet a Value on fuch Monuments, in Proportion to their Antiquity 5 yet, it is to be confidered, that what is now Modern, will^ be Antique fome hundred Tears hence ; and that if ancient Hiftorians had been as careful to hand down to us the Medals and Coins of their refpeRive Times, we ftould now be at a greater Certainty than we are, as • to fome very important Points of Chronology.

I S HALL not fpend much Time, in informing the Reader of the Method I have obferved in writing

the

PREFACE. xiii

the following Sheets •, / /hall only fay, that, in gene- ral, I have endeavoured to follow the known Rules of Hi/lory, and that, as on the one fide, Adulation could have no Place in compiling the Life of a Man9 ivbofe every Action, juftly and fairly related, is a Panegyrickon himfelf-, fo, on the other hand, I may venture to fay, I have not, either to gratify any Party, cr to Jhsw any private Refcntment of my own, given an ill-natured Turn to the Attions, or libel fd the Per- fons, even of thofe Men, who have Jhewn themjelves the moft irreconcileable Enemies of my Hero. / have, indeed, Jhewn, wherein they have wrong'd his Perfon and CharacJer^ but I hope every where with fuch good Manners, at leaft, that I believe there is not one Line throughout the whole three Volumes, that can juftly give Offence to any reafonable Perfon whomfoever.

BUT as I have mentioned the Character of this Illuftrious Perfon, it may probably not be unaccept- able to the Reader, if I attempt to give, at leaft, a general Idea of it.

IT would be feip'erfluous to go about to prove here, that our Nation has produced as great and able Men, in every Faculty and State of Life, as any other : But we fa all fcarce find, in the Hiftory of any Nation, either ancient or modern, the two fs different Cha- racters, as thofe of a General and a Minifter, rijing by fo regular Steps, and wrought up to fo high a Pitch of Perfection, as in the Great Man ivbofe Life we have now before us. " // is (fays the Author of " the Tatler) a pleafing Reflection, to confider the " Difpenfation of Providence, in the Fortune of this •« Illuftrious Man, who, in the fpace of Forty Tears, " pafs'd thro* all the Gradations of human Life, till " he afcended the Character of a Prince, and became " the Scourge of a Tyrant, who Jate in one of the " great eft Thrones of Europe, before the Man who « was to have the greateft Part in his Downfall, had

" made

xvi PREFACE.

cation and Inclination a ftaunch Friend to tie efta- blifh'd Church, and by Reafon and Principle firmly attached to the Proteftant Succeflion : And as his Principles inclined him to fide with the Whigs, fo his Moderation led him fo favour the Dijf enters.

BUT let us now confider him in his two moft ejjen- tialCharaclers : I mean thofe of a Soldier and a Statef- men. As a SOLDIER, he was always a Man of the moft ftrift Honour , punRual, vigilant, indefatigable* and of a firm and fteady Refolution. Before he ar- rived to the Degree of a General, he had a Courage of the weft keen and enterprising fort, not free from a too great Eagernefs of running into Danger ; and in the woft perilous Encounters, he always /hew* d a moft extraordinary Chearfulnefs. When he was raifed to the Command of an Army, he was always ready to expofe his Perfon, as far as Neceffity, and even far- ther, fometimes, than Prudence, not bore down by a fervent Zeal for the common Good, feemed to require* with the fame Unconcernednefs, in regard to himfelf, as before. He fpared neither Pains nor Cqfts to get Intelligence, notwithftanding all his Enemies have in- vented to his Prejudice : For nothing is more evident, than that without this it would have been impoffible to be ever fuccefsful. When but young in this high Com- mand, a great Prince and experienced General was pleafed to fay of him ; That he faw into the Arts of a General, more in one Day, than others did in a great many Years. In the Day of Battle, he gave his Orders with all the Clearness and Compofednefs imaginable, leading on his Troops without the leaft Hurry or Perturbation, and rallying thofe 'Troops that were diforder'd, without tho/e harjh and fevere Reproaches, which rather damp than animate the Soldier's Courage. He had an excellent talent, firjl in discerning, and then in purfuing Advantages

upon

PREFACE.

upon his Enemy : And be conftantly went on, from Conqueft to Conqueft, in one uninterrupted Series of Succefs, every Step he advanced being a Kingdom, a Province, or, at leaft, a City fubdued. But what was as extraordinary, as it was Praift-worthy, amidft the Honours of the Field, Humanity had ever a Place in his Mind. He always endeavoured to reftrain the Slaughter, which ufually attends Vtttory, and never exprefs'd a greater Satisfaction, than when the Cir- cumftances of Things would admit of his /paring the Lives tf the Conquered. He never forfeited his Word or his Promife ; but was a ft riff Obferver of Juftice9 which he praftis'dmoft deliberately where he had the greattft Opportunity of doing wrong. He fecured the Affeftions of his Soldiers by his Good Nature, Care for their Provifions, and Vigilance not to expofe them to unneceffary Danger ; and gain1 'd thofe of his Officers by bis Affability : Both one and the other followed him to Aftion, with fuch a Chearfulnefs, Resolution, and Unanimity, as were fure Prefages of Succe/s. A cer- tain Joy and eager Impatience, which it would be dif* fcult to exprefs, vijibly appeared in their Countenances* whenever be was at their Head, and a ProfpeB offer- ed, of engaging under his aufpicious Condiicl : As on the other Hand, they were nevermore dej eft ed, than when any unforefeen Accident difappointed their Expecia-* tions: But when- they did fight under their GREAT LEADER, never did the Macedonian Phalanx, nor the Roman Legion,, (hew greater Intrepidity and Re* folution. May I be allowed to add to all this, that an exemplary Piety, and drift Morality, which he not only praftiftd himfelf, but endeavoured to inculcate thougbout his whole Army, were undoubtedly fuch Grounds for an A/urance of a Bleffing from Htaven, \ on his Endeavours, in a jttft Caufe, as could not but \ greath Jircngtben his Refolution, and excite a true ani B Cbrifii**

xviii P R *E E A C E.

Cfoiftian Courage /;/, at kaft, the thinking Part of his whole Army.

WHAT an Officer of Note has faid, on this Part of our General *s Behaviour, is worthy Observation. His own Example (fays he) gave a particular; Life to his Orders, and as no indecent Expreffion ever dropp'd from his Lips, fo he was- imitated by the genteel Part of trie Army. His Camps were like a quiet and well-govern'd City, and, perhaps, much more mannerly. Curfmg, Swearing, and Bhiftering were never heard among thofe who were reckon'd good Officers, and his Army was, beyond all CorK tradidion, the beft Academy in the World, to teach a young Gentleman Wit/and Breeding, a Sot and a, Drunkard being what they fcorn'd. The poor Sol-- diers, who were (too many of them) the Refufe anct Dregs of the Nation, became, after one or two Campaigns, by the Care of their Officers, and by good Order and Difcipline, traceable, civil, orderly, fenfible, and clean, and had an Air and a Spirit' above the Vulgar. The Service of GOES according, to the Order of the eftablifh'd Church, was ftri&ly. enjoined by the Duke's fpecial. Care. In all .nVd Camps, every Morning and Evening were Prayers ;. and on Sundays were -Sermons both in the Field and in Garrifons. It is farther memorable, and a corro- borating Proof of what Ifaid before -, That be ivasfo. great a Difcourager of Vice, as to give particular Di- rettions to the Provoft-Marfhal, to chafe away all lewd Women from about his Quarters ; and before a- Battle^ the Chaplains of the feveral Regiments, by-bif> efpecial Order, performed Divine Service, as aljo af- ter a ViSory obtained* folemn Thank/giving was ob- Jerked throughout the whole Army. \ •

? O conclude cur HeroV Character as a General, / foall only add what has been faid of him in£ompari~: fa. with other great Generals ef his Time, the Prince

PR E P ACE. *U

$f Vaudemont, before our General had long wielded the Staff of Command, obferved of him : 'That there Tbas fame thing in him that was inexprejfible : For (faid h«» Speaking to King William) the Fire of Kirk, the.- Thought of Lanier, the Skill of Mackay, and the Bravery of Colchefter, feem to be united in his Perfon : And I have loft my Knowledge in Phyfiognomy, which hitherto never deceived me, if any Subjeft your Ma- jtjly has, can ever attain to fu&b military Glory, as /^Combination of fublime Perfe&ions muft> o;ti£ Day i -advance him t&. •*i:i'j40b' '

A S . a S T A T E s M A .N , h& managed great Variety of Bufinefs, either alone, or in Concert with the Printf Mimjler, -with the greatefi Dexterity, E?.ft, and Suf- ficiency. • s He never w&s'fupcrcilious or ever-bearing m Count-it k kut could faff er Contradiction without Pdff.on* and always endeavoured, where bt thought he had Reafon to perjtft in his Opinion, to bring over others^ by cool, but convincing Arguments. He made ufe . oft few Words ) but rarely fpoke in vain ; and tbo9 he was not tlze greateft Mafter of Oratory, yet in important: Debates ^ be exprefs'dhinj elf 'very -pertinently j and, by his Temper and Refervednefs,.he always maintained the Reputation of a wife Man. What greater Tejlimony can we have of bis Capacity, than that givey him bv King William, when upon delivering the Duke of (jloilcefter to his Care, as Governour, he faid : My- Lord, teach him to be what you; are, .and my^ Nephew can't want Accomplifhmcnts., Andwitk all 'this, he had an .uncommon tfalent of jnfrnuatiftg) himfelf, and gaining upon the Minds of tbofc be dc with' : Of which, I think, . tbere can be no greater In?, fiance, than the Influence he always •'had .over -tfc&t <tvife Body, the jfffembly. of the States General -, and-tb$i be was ence fo ftongly cppofed by their Putt-Deputies, that a gr&nd Enter-prize was 'thereby frufirated, yet B 2 tke

..'

x* P R E F A C E.

the States difavow'd their Condutt, and gam. bis Grace- the utmoft Satisfaction he dejired*

IF we will, to conclude tbefe Parts of this Great Man's Character, unite the Soldier .and the Stated man, we may juftly fay ; 'that no General ever command- edTroops of fo many different Nations, with more Eafe, nor was ever any Politician more /uccefsful in the moft iveigkiy and arduous Negotiations. His wife andfuc- cefsful Management , as well of Civil as Military Af- fair's, with the Affiftance of his Friend, the Lord Go- dolphin, in the former, raifed th& Reign of Queen Ann to a higher Pitch of Glory * than any that ft an ds recorded in our EngJim Annals.

I MUST not fini/h this Sketch ef a Character hardly to be paralleled, without repeating the Words of the Grem and Glorious King William, which he is re~ parted to have /aid. on his Death-Bed, viz. That the Duke (then Earl) of Marlboroiigh, was the fitteft Perfon in all his Dominions, to condu& his Succef- for's Armies, and to prefide in her Councils ; as he was a Man of a cool Head, and warm Heart, pro- per to encounter the Genius of Franc e^ and fupprefs lier Defigns of fwallovving all Europe. This almofl pfopbetick Char after, from fo excellent a Judge-) might feem the greateft Elogy, that could be bejtowed on our Hero •, were it not, that in another Refpeff, what was moft true of tbt Duke jf Maryborough, cannot, I believe, be faid of any other General, either ancient or modem, viz. That in twenty Campaigns, ten of which were fucceflive, he pafled all the Rivers and Lines he attempted, took all the Towns he invert- ed, won all the Battles he fought, (this often with. inferiour, rarely with fuperiour Force,) was never furpriz'd by his Enemy, nor charg'd with one Aclion of Cruelty, was ever beloved by his own Soldiers, and dreaded by thofe of his Enemy. To conclude, mtr Hero had Room to fay, what Cicero tells us

Julius

PREFACE.

Julius Cx&efaid: Se fatis vel ad Naturam, vel ad Gloriam vixiffe. (He had lived to be fatisfied with bis Share of Life and Glory.) He died in a good old eld Age, blefs*d with Peace, Wealth, and Glory, the greateft SubjecJ of his Time in Chriftendorh, whom Jive facet/five Monarch* of Great Britain employ* d in their Armies and Councils, and delighted to honour. His rteroick Deeds were Caufe of Admiration to all Europe, and the Memory of them will be eternized in the Records of Fame.

THIS, I fay, may ferae as a Sketch of our IL- LUSTRIOUS HERO'S Character, //// a more able Pen Jhall undertake to finijh the beautiful Piece ; for the accomplijhing of which, in the Reading the following Sheets, he will find fuch Plenty of noble Images arife, to fire his Imagination, as will be more thanfufficient to employ his utmoft Skill. To point out, however, fame Pa/ages, more efpecially proper for this End, he will here find the Characters given this Great Men, by a Number of the moft Illuftrious Perfonages and Bodies of the Age he lived in. He will particularly fee thofe given him by three fuccejjive Emperours, Leo- pold, Jofeph, and his prefent Imperial Majefty Charles VI. by King William, and §>ueen Ann, by Lewis XIV. of France, and Charles the XHth of Sweden ; by the Elector of Bavaria, and feveral c- ther Sovereign Princes of the Empire ; by the States General, their Deputies, and the Grand Pen/tonary Heinfiusj by Prince Lewis of Baden, Prince Eugene, the Princes of Vaudemont and Waldeck ; by the Parliaments of England and Great Britain, in divers Addrejjes to the Throne, and in fever al Congratulations and Thanks directed to himfelf', by the City ^London, and many other Cities and Corporations; by the Mar- Jhal de Turenne, and the Marquis de Lefdiquieres -, "by the Duke of Monmouth, by the Bi/hops of Ely, St. Afaph, and Salisbury, and by many others.

B 3 /?"

PREFACE:

I T is hardly pojjible to conceive bow a greater atift mere noble Monument of Glory, can be raijed to the Memory of any One cf Human Race, than a judicious Combination of all thefe Char afters is capable cf pro- ducing.

I S H ALL not fwell this Preface, or fcreflatt the Reader's Curicfity, by enumerating the grtat and gloricus Scenes, which the Life cf tur Hero will na- turally, and without deviating, in the leaft, from my Subject, open to bis View : Itmayfujpcetofay, in ge» mral here, that the Reign of Queen Ann, which corn- frizes fit leaft feven Parts in eight of the following 'Sheets, was as fertile of great and glorious Events, jn moft of which our Hero had a large, or the largejl Share, as any Reign fine e that great and remarkable Epoch 0/Englifh Hijhry, the Conquejl. Here we fee a Grand Alliance formed, with the Defign of curbing the exorbitant Power of France, and wrcjling Spain and the Spanifh Weft- Indies out of the Hands of the Hcufe of Bourbon ; A War in Conference of that Alliance, full cf the moft extraordinary Events, and attended with fitch glorious Actions and Success, as no Hiftory, Ancient or Modern, can parallel '- Bjt as €ven this gloricus Reign had its Change of Scenes, fo we, likewije, fee, tliat after all this Succefs and Glory, acquired by the Britifh Arms, when the Houfe of Bour- bon was reduced to the loweft Ebb, and ready to give all or more than we had fought for : Under thefe happy Cir cum/lances, I fay, we Jh all fee the Decorations foift- ed, and, by what extraordinary Accidents I (hall not determine, the great Duke of Marl borough, who, un- der GOD , was the glorious Inftrument of all this Hap- pntfs, after all his yiftQriesandl'riumphs, dijgraced* 4be Duke of Ormond fent, unexpectedly, and againft the Advice and Opinion of the greater Part of the High Allies, topublijh a Ce/ation of Arms, the Gran4 Alliance thereupon broken^ and Spain, with the Spa*

ntth

P .R rE FA C E, xxiii

jrifli We ft -Indies, for which fo much Blooti and Ir'ea- i/vre had been expended, left?, or rather formally give\ tip, to the Houje of Bourbon : And, as a Consequence cf-tbis Change? we fliall laftlj fee, Great Britain, a Suiter, to France for a much worfe Peace than foe had •tver tht Ajjurance -to offer ; when? but a few Months :kefore? we might- have %iven Laws to our Enemies? and have fettled the Balance of the Power of Europe, on fo firm and lajling a Foundation, as could not eajily have been Jh/iken. 1"hefelfay? are feme of the Great Events? which the Reader will find faithfully andcirr -tumft ant tally . related? in the following Sheets ; #$ which? with many more? have an immediate Relation^ and properly belong? to The LIFE of JOHN Duke of MARLBOROUGH, fcfr .

I might very well have fent this Second Edition. into the World, without any Addition to it? had I not 1'ttn olligd? very much againft my Inclination? to ap- pear again in Justification of 'my former Work? from a gentle Reproof (I am unwilling to fay, Afperfion) 'tejt uponit?"byafuppofed Right Honourable Autbcr. This Lady (if the Author of The OTHER SIDE of the Queftiou, "fetid to be a Woman of Quality bs fo) is pleafed'tofay? p. 59. Bifhop Eitrnet and Mr. Lediard may be look'd upon rather as the Duke^ (the Duke of Marlborough's) Advocates than his 'Hiftorians : 'IJhall not take upon me to fay any thing in Defence of the Bijhof's Works , let them /pe ak for 'them/elves. I have? I think? Jhewn my Impartiality? tn fever al Parts of my Work \ by contradicting? and "Jhewing my Rea fans for differing in Opinion from?, him ; and? for myfelf? if-IJhould contradict this Affertioft^ by barely averring that I was under no tfye or Obli- gation to fhew the leafl Partiality? but on the contra- ry? have every where endeavoured to follow the re- fulgent Rays of All-powerful Truth (Magna eft Ve-

9 et prcvalebit !) it may be look'd upon as a meer

PREFACE:

Ipfe dixit \ I/hall however beg Leave to bring one neg& five Proof, to flew, at leaft ^ that there is no Reafon to found a Conjecture upon, that I have been biafs'd by any perfond Intereft : I- do, therefore, I jay, .aver (and defy all the Malice of my Enemies, if I have any, to contradict it,) that tho* I have all the Re- fpect and Deference, that is due to the Characters and Quality of the Noble Defendants and Right Honourable Relations of the TRULY GREAT MAN, whofe Life, I have, with the LEAVE and CONSENT of HIS MOST NOBLE SUCCESSOR, pre- fumed to publifh •, I never, either directly or indi- rectly, received the leaft Benefit or Advantage, ei- ther pecuniary or otherwife, from any one individu- al Perfon, of this Moft Noble and Right Honour- able Family ; and tho* I have mentioned in my Preface to the Firft Edition, that I had been an Eye- Witnefs of fome of the Tranfactions I have there recorded, and particularly that I was at the Time of one of them, not the leaft among the glorious Number, in the Duke's Retinue, (I mean in bh Jaunty to Saxony, to have an Interview with the King of Sweden,) yet I never was a menial Servant to the Duke, and confequently aw'd by any Influ- ence that Way ; but, tho* I had the Honour to at- tend him, in his Retinue, in fome of his Journys, yet it was always in the Character of a Gentleman, who travel'd, for his Pleafure, at his own Expence, without having or defiring any Reward or Gratifi- cation for it, in any Shape, or under any Denomi- nation whatsoever : And all this I am ready, at »ny Time, to confirm with an Oath.

HAM «W»^ tti*

Jfl' M/.

THE

THE

CONTENTS,

VOLUME I.

T

BOOK I.

H E Genealogy of John Duke ^Marl- borough, Pag. i

BOOK II.

TRANSACTIONS during the Reigns of King

CHARLES II. and King JAMES II. CHAPTER I. franfaSHons during the Reign of King

CHARLES II. 17

CHAP. II. yranfaftions during the Reign of King

JAMES II. ,/^>nA 34

BOOK III.

TRANSACTIONS during ibe Reigns of King WILLIAM and %ueen MARY, and King WILLIAM III,

S^i CHAP.

CONTENTS.

CHAP. I. %f0nfetfiflnf: during .th^ Rugn of King

William and Queen Mary, 57

CHIAP II. franfaStioni during the Reign of Rng

William III. 80

BOOK IV.

TRANSACTIONS during the frft Four Tears of the Reign of Queen ANN.

CHAP. I. franfaftiotis in ryoz. till the Siege of

Liege . QI

CHAP. II.' ftp' Siege of Liege, ioit% other <Tranf. :-wS to the Cdnctujidn of The Tear \ 702, iz6 CHAP. III. 1'ranf aft ions in 1703. till the Battle of

Eckere& 3 142

CH A P. IV. The Battle <?/Eckeren, with other Tranf-

a&iojis^to.tbe Con.dujion cf the Tear 1703, 159 CHAP. V. 'Tranfaffions in 1704, //// the forcing the

French Intrencbnientr tf/h/SQhettcnberg, 1 8 6

CH A P . VI. 'The Forcing of the Enemy's Intrenchments • at Schelfenberg ; With the Succefs which immfif-

atefy enfued, 209

CHAP. VII. fbe Battle (7/Hochftadt, or BlenEeim,

231 CH A P. VIII. Proceedings -of the Confederate Armies^

after the Battle of. Hochftadt^ with other Tranf-

afifions, to the Conclufion of f he' Tear 1704, 289 CHAP. IX. Vranfaftions in 1705. till the attacking

of the French Lines, 306

CHAP. X. Succefsful Attack of the French- Lines?

with other TranfaftionS) to the Conclujion of Jhe

Tear 1705, 319

.

BOOK V.

- !

TRANSACTIONS during the Years 1796, 1707, '708, ^

C O N T E N T S.

CHAP. I. The Baffle of Ramellies, and the Succefs which immediately enfued^ Pag. 342

CH A P. II. 3 be Siege of Oftend, 40 1

CHAP. III. fbe Sieges of Menin, Dendermondy Aeth, with other Tranjaflions, to the End of the Campaign, 413

CHAP. \Vs-8ome Occurrences between tbe Allies and the King of Sweden, with other Tranfattions, to the Conclujion of the Tear 1706, 434

CH A P. V. The Duke of MarlboroughV Journey into Saxony, and Conferences with the King of Sweden? there ; with the fecret Motives to* and Hiftory of that Journy; 449;

CHAP. VI. the Campaign in Flanders, with other Zranfaffions to tbe Condufion of the Tear 1707,

472

o o a

VOLUME

CONTENTS

VOLUME II.

BOOK V.

CHAP. VII. The Campaign in Flanders, with other TranfaRions before the Battle of Oudenarde, P. i .

CHAP. VIII. A particular Account of the famous Eat- tie and Vittory of Oudenarde, with the Confequences which- immediately attended if, 2 4

CHAP. IX. The Siege of Lifle, before the Battle of Wynendale, 52

CHAP. X. The Battle of Wynendale, 75

CH A p. XI. Continuation of the Siege of the Town and Citadel of Lifle, 80

CHAP. XII. ADeJtgn of the Enemy on Bruflels fru- firated, the Rear of their Army defeated, and the Citadel of Lifle fur rendered, 90

CHAP. XIII. We Siege and Surrender of Ghent, with other Tranfactions, to the Condition of the Tear 1708, in

CHAP. XIV. Several Tranfactions, at the Beginning cf the Tear 1709. especially with regard to a Ne- gotiation for a Genertd Peace, carried on at the Hague, 123

CHAP. XV. fbe Siege of the Town and Citadel of Tournay, 142

CHAP. XVI. fbt famous Battle of Blaregnies, or Malplaquet, 162

CHAP. XVII. The Siege <?/Mons, with other Tranf- attionj, to the Condufion of the Tear 1 709, 198

^ BOOK

ENT.8,

€ 0 N T

BOOK VI.

TRANSACTIONS during the Tears 1710, an$ 1711.

CHAP. I. Me State of Affairs in England: The Ne- gotiations for a Peace at Gertruydenburg ; and the Change of the Miniftry in England, ,218

CHAP. II. ?he Taking of the French Lines; the Siege <?/Douay, &c. 239

CHAP. III. The Taking of Bethune, St. Venant, and Aire, with other Iranfaftions to the Conclujion of the Tear 1710, 161

CHAP. IV. Tranfaffions at the Beginning of the Tear 1711. Relating to the Duke <?/" Maryborough, Ne- gotiations for a Peace, &c. 287

CHAP. V. The Entering of the Enemy's Lines, in Flanders, by Stratagem* ini'ju. with other Tranf- affions to the Siege of Bouchain,

CHAP. VI. The Siege of Bouchain, with other Tranf- actions, to the Conclufion of the Tear 1711. 322

BOOK VII.

The' Duke of MARLBOROUGH'S Difgrace and

Vindication, with other Iranfaftiom to the

Death of gueen&m. CHAP. I. The Duke of MarlboroughV Difgrace and

Vindication, with the Caufes of the former, and,

Circumftances attending the latter^ ^^ -358

CH A p. II. d brief Account cf the Campaign 0/1711.

CH A P. III. A brief Account of the Treaty and P> of Utrecht, r*3un£(g

CHAP. IV. Tranf actions after the Peace of Utrecht, to the Death of <%ueen Aw», 435

BOOK

CONTENTS;

. L BOOK VIII.

TRANSACTIONS during the -Reign tf King GEORGE I. to the-Dealh of JOHN, Duke of MARL-BOROUGH, Gfc. 4^£

•

BOO K

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?J!OO5

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I

BOOK I.

THE

LIFE

O F

JOHN,

Duke of Maryborough

THE GENE A LOG Y of JOHN Duke c/Marlborough.

E ILLUSTRIOUS and EVER-VICTORIOUS HERO, whofe Genealogy I am about to difplay, was equally confpicuous for his Great and Me- morable Aftions, by which he juflly merited thofe High Honours he attained to, and for his Kolle De/icnt, from as ILLUSTRIOUS AN- CESTOR s, who were of the beft Blood of France, and renowned long before the Norman Conaueft. .

A German Pangg\rifti who attempted an Epitome of the

Life of this Great Man, foon after the Battle of HochJIadt, pre-

VOL. I. B * tended

2 The Life of J O H N,

tended to give fome Account of his Progenitors, for above 200 Years before this famous Period : But, r.s he grounds his Rela- tions upon his own Authority only, and J do not find them cor- roborated, by any Hiilorkin or Genealogift of Note : And, be- fides, feveral Circumitances have pretty much the Appearance of being fabulous, and calculated for his Purpofe, I (hall not ven- ture to fol'o\v him; but fhall limit my .Account to that Time, and to thofe Circumftances, in which the bell Hiflorians, Englijb and Foreign are agreed .

Gitto de Gitto de Leon, one of our Hero's Anceftors, is allowed, at all

Ltc"' i Hands, to have been famous in Normandy, in the Year 1055. in the Regency of Duke William (afterwards King of England) Eleven Years before he invaded this Kingdom.

Wandnll de This Gitto de Leon had two Son?, Richard de Leon, Lord of Lto,,, t Lord Montalban, and Wandrill de Leen, Lord of Courdl. Richard, of Ccura/. thegjdeftj married To land, Countefs of Luxemburg, and, by her, had Iffue, Claud de Leon, Anceitor of the prefent noble Family of Leon, in France. Wandrill, his fecond Son, married Ifabella de Tuya, by whom he had two Sons, Roger de C.ourcily and Rouland de Cowciii the latter was the Anceltor of the Courtih of Poidou, from whom the Courcih of Normandy and Anjou. are defcended. ' Roger de Courcil, the elder Son of Wandrill, was our He- ro's Anceftor, from whom he was lineally defcended, as the Reader will fee below. Roger was one of thofe, who attended William Duke of Normandy, when he invaded this Kingdom, in the Year 1066. And, as a Reward for his Services, William (generally called the Conqueror) when he had made himfelf King of England, afligned him divers Lands in Sommerjetjhire, Dorfet- Jbire, and De*vonjkirr9 as appears by Doomfday-Book.

So our Gencalogifts give it; but it fhould probably be Wilt/hire inftead of Dvovnfinre ; for Jo we find it in an Epitome of Doomf- d*y-Book (Liber Domus Dei) in the Cotton Library, written in- Camden's own Hand-writing, as follows :

Fol. 28. Wiltefcbirt. Rog. dt Curcdle tenet de RegeFiferfove.

32. Dor fete. Rog. de Cur ce lie tenet de Rege Corf tone.

55. Sumerfete. Rog. de Curcelle tenet tie Rege Curi, Nu-

•ventone, Hatc--Mare, Peri, Cerdejlinge,

Curiepot, Limintone, — — 8c. Sciropfcire. Rog. de Curcelle tenet de Rog. Comite

Sudtone, Tetbrijlane, Edfjlai, Dodetune,

Stile.

Of thefe Lands, the Lordfhip of Ckurd-ill in Sommerfetjkire, which took its Name from him, was Part, nnd by him chofen for hi: Abode, as appears by ancient Record?, in which it is written Curiebil, Cbtunhil, Cbtrtbih, &c. in different Records They 2 are.

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

are plainly miftaken, who fay the Family took its N7ame from this Place of their Abode j fmce, as the Reader has Teen above, it had ihe Surname of Courcil, from the Lordfhip of Courcil in France, Icing before. This is farther confirmed by an ancient Epitaph, which I fhall give the Reader below.

This Roger married Gertrude, Daughter of Sir Guy de Torbay , by whom he had Iffue three Sons, (i.) John de Cottrcil, (or CuricbiL) (2.) Hugh Fitz-Roger, Lord of Corfeton, in Dorfet-

Jhire, who married the Sifter 'and Heirefs of ~ Bond, Lord of

Fijherton, and his Pofterity taking the \Surname of the Family of Bond, bore their Arms, <viz. Sable, a Fefs Or. (}.) Roger Fitz-Roger, who married Mabel; Heirefs of the Family of ->0- iariis, whofe Son, Roger, and his Pofterity, bore the Name of Solartis or Solers.

John de Courcil (or) Curicb j) the eldeft Son of Roger, mzr-Jobn & ried Joan de Kilrington, by whom he had Iffuc Sir Bartkolo- C™rc,t_ « menu de Cberckile, a great Warriour, and renowned in ancient urul}''' Songs. In the twelfth Century, he held the Cattle of Brifitl for King Stephen, and died fighting in that King's Caufe. That he was a Man of great Prowefs, we may fee by the following Epitaph.

Who eomon here into tbii Ifle,

Pray ye for the Spirit Of good Sir Barthol de Cherchile,

That mojl renowned Knight j Arrayed, in footb, as he was,

With Tabard in Faflion, A Sword bright as his burned Brafu

And eke a light Gipion. Into the Battait for to fight,

He then did make his Way ; Ne "Mas there founden any Wight,

So Jldut as might him flay : But as midft Gle<ves began to tbrike

And Glijames thick eft foone, He felt, I ids, a deadly Prick, , That pierc'd his Heart too foone. j

Now failed been bis Sprite and Breath,

And dujken been his Eye, Wo Worth that while, that in geud Faith}

Tis certes he nought dye. Wi booteth it be ivas fo good,

They left tholk Field, Wber> thick then his deareft Life-Blood

Was, I trou, fouh fpilfd.

B 2 Ant

Ellat de Cbetcbik.

4 &r lif.

And nigh thick Place, a tyxj Ville,

NO-TV ftandeth, and there is, Me clypetb it right foot h Cherchile,

After bis Name I ••v.'ijs.

Sir Bank;- Sir Bartholomew de Cherchile married Agnes the Daughter of Imew de Ralph Fitz- -Ralph of Tiverton, by whom he had Jltue Pagan de CherchHe. I do not find who was his Wife, but he had Iffue Roger de Cherchile, ililed the Son of Pagan de CJierchile, who had free Warren in his Lands of Che> chile, in the Reign of King Edward I.

With this Roger, the Son of Pagan, lived cotemporary, Richard de Cherchile, who Ann. 14. Ediu. I. was Witnefs to the Agreement made between the Brethren of the Hofpital of St. John Baptifi, in Bath, and Thomas de Hereford, one of the Burgeffes of Brijlol, about a Houfe in Reedclive, in the Suburbs of BriJIol, of the Fee of Berkley.

Who was the Wife of Roger, I likewife, do not find ; But his Succeffor was Elias de Cherchile. I find mention made of one Otho de Churchill, as.a Defendant of Sir Bartholomew de Cherchile, who was the Founder of a fpreading Family in De- rjonjbire, Scmmerfet/bire and Wiltjhire ; But by him mull proba- bly be meant this Elias, or elfe one of the nine Sons cf John Churchill, the Son of William Churchill of Mufton, Efq ; of \vhom, I fhall make farther Mention below. Of this Elias, we find, that Ann. 8. Ediv. II. he granted to John Bampfield, bis Meadow call'd Pleynfold, in Clifton. He married Dorothy, a Daughter of the ancient Family of the Columbers, by whom he had Iffue three Sons, (i.) 'John Churchille, of Litlar, of whom we find, that he was Witnefs to a Charter of Thomas Bampficld, Ann. 5. Richardi\\. and \\hoislikewifementioned in another Charter, Ann. 11. Henry IV. He married Jane (or, as fome Authors fay, Joan) Daughter and Coheirels cf Rog&r Dawny, of Norton, by Juliana his Wife, the Daughter and Coheirels of William de Widdebere. He had Iffue only two Daughters, his Coheireffes ; Margaret, the youngdt, was Wife of Andreiu Hil/erfdon, of Devon&iie, and Agnes, the eldeft, Wife of Thomas Gijfrrd, of The^borcugh, in Cornwal, who by that Marriage, became poffefs'd of the Lord (hip of Churchill, and other Lands. (2.) Giles Churchill, who had the Lordfhips of Tampion yoA. Linebam , inDevoifoire, which Eftates defcended, by a Daughter and Heirefa, to the Family of the C rakers, of Devon/hire, Lords of Lineham. 1 hefe two elder Brothers dying thus without Male-Heirs, (3.) William, the third, and youngeit Son of Elias, was the chief Male-Heir, whopropagated the Family. r This William Churchill Jud his Seiit at Rcckbcar, in Dwon- Wko his Wife was. I do no; find ; But he left Iffue Gilet

Chur-

'Cburcbitt of

Duke -of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 5

Churchill, Efq; who was Father of Charles Churchill, EfqjC^i Cb-Jr. This Charles Churchill WAS engaged by - Courtney, Earl^'/7» E<q i of Dewnjhire, in the Caufe of King Edward IV. And, when£^'";7/ 'Thomas Courtney , Earl ^Devon/hire, forfook the Interefts his£fq . Father had efpouied, continuing faithful, that Prince took him into his Favour," and advanced his Fortune, by procuring him, in Marriage, Margaret, only Daughter and Heirefs of Sir Wil- liam W'id-villf, who brought him a confiderable Eftate.

By this Margaret, Charles Churchill had IfTue, Thomas Thomas Churchill, Efq; who married Grace, Daughter and Coheirefs Churchill, of Thomas Tylle, of Tylle-Houfe, inCormva/. He was fucceeded Ef1 i by William, his Son and Heir, who married Mary, the eldeft laughter of Richard Cruefe, of Wicroft-CaJlle, in Devonjbire, Efq;

Williato Churchill had Iffae, by his Wife Mwj, three /p////** Sons, who divided this Family into as many principal Churcbill, Branches, (i.) Roger Churchill, of Catbo-Jlm, in Dw/ftflir*,EfV Efq; (2.) William Churchill, of Carton, in Dorfet/hire, Efq; And (3.) y<?A» Churchill, Efq; who fettled at Muffm, in JDw- fetfiire, and was Father of William Churchill, Efq; of Mufon, aforefaid, who by la ft Will, dated the twelfth of March, 1599, ordered his Body to be buried in £/. Peter s Church, at Dorchef- ter, and conftituted his Son and Heir, John Churchill, to be his fole Executor, and his Brother, Richard Sivaitt, and Thomas Freake, his Ccufin, to be Overfeers ; Which "John, by Eleanor his Wife, the Daughter of John Meller, of Kyme, in Dorfet- Jhirfy had Iffae, nine Sons, and four Daughters, from whom the feveral Families of the Chunhills now exilting, are de- fcended.

Rover Churchill, of Catberflon, in Dorfetflnre, E<q; above- Roger Clur. mentioned, the eldeft Son of William Churchill, narried^A E(S i 7«»#, the Widow of Nicholas Megr, and Daughter of W'^^°L^^ Peverell of Bradford, by whom he had JfTue, Matthew Chur- Dorf. chill, of Bradford, Efq ; who married Alice, the Daughter of Matthew James Gould, of Dnrchef.er; and had JfTue, by her, JaftarcburcMl of Churchill 'of Bradford, Efq; This.J^ar had to Wife, Eliza- 6rd> beth, the Daughter of 7"^« Chaplet, of HerringJIan, in Dorfet-

Jhire, Efq; and had Iffue, by her, two Sons, (i.) John Chur- Churchill chill, Efq; his Heir, and (2) Jatyar Churchill, Efq; the lat-of Bradford

ter was Father of Sir Jobn Churchil', Lord of Churchill, in inerfet/hlre, an eminent Council, in the Reign of King Charles II. who, by his Wife, Sufan, Daughter of Edmund Prtdeaux, Efq; left only four Daughters, Coheireffes, and fo this Branch is ex- tinft.

John Churchill, Efq; aforefaid, the elcfeft Son and Heir of John Char- J a/par Churchill, the Elder, was of the Society of the Middle- chi!l Ef< "ftttyU. and, by his great Proficiency In the Study of the Laws, B 3

6 Me Life of JOHN,

conflderably augmented his Eftate. He had his Seat, at Min- tern (Myntum, or Minthorti) in Do rft ; '/hire, and married Sarah, the Daughter and Coheirefs of Sir H -nry Winflon, of Standijlon, in Glouccfttrjhire, and of his Wife, Dionife, Daughter and Co- heirefs of Sir Thomas Bond Knight.

*VWinfton This John Churchill was Father of Winflon Churchill, of

Churchill, Wootton-Bajffet, in Wilt/hire ; He was born at Wotton-Glan<ville,

l^h^ff '" l^C *-ount>' °^ -Dorfet, in 1620, and, having made an early

chill" /^"r~ ^rQ^c'ency 'n Learning, was fent in 1636. before he had fully

Duke ef attained to the Age of Sixteen, to St. John's College in Oxford,

MarJbo- where he diftinguim'd himfelf in a very particular Manner, and

rough, &c. beyond what could be expefted, at his Age, by his Sedatenefs,

and great Application to his Studies : But, the Circumltances

of his Affairs foon requiring his Perfonal Care, he was obliged

to leave the Univerfity before he had taken any Degree. Some

Time after, he married Elizabeth, the Daughter of Sir John

Drake, of AJbe, in Devon/hire, and of Eleanor, his Wife, fecond

Daughter and Coheirefs of John, Lord Bolder, of Bramfeld,

in Hertford/hire, by Elizabeth, his Wife, Siller of George Fil-

liers, Duke of Buckingham, the great Favourite of King 'James

I. and King Charles I. During the Civil Wars, Mr. Churchill

(afterwards Sir Winflon} adhering to the King, was fo great a

Sufferer for His Caufe, that his Lady was obliged to retire, and

live, for fome Years, at AJhe, her Fathers Seat, where among

others of her Children, me happily bore her fecond Son, John,

the Glory of this Nat icy, and the Admiration of <z// Europe, whofe

Heroick Aciions will furnifh Subjeft for the greater Part of the

following Sheets. Some Accounts fay, all her Children were

born at Jljht ; But as the Difcuffion of that Point is not fo very

material to our prefent Purpofe, I pafs it by.

After Mr. Winjlon Churchill had cleared his Eftate, he ftoqd Candidate, and was returned, for the Borough of Weymouth, in Dorfetjkire, to the firft Parliament after the Reftoration, which met the eighth of May, i66». On the Eftablifhment of the Royal Society, he was one of the firft Fellows, and in the Year 1663, King Charles knighted him. In the Year 1664, he, with Sir Richard Rainsford, Sir Thomas Be<verley, Sir Ednuard Deering, Sir Edward Smith, Sir Allen Broderick, and Colonel Cook, were appointed Commiffioners of the Court of Claims, in Ireland, with Power to hear and adjudge the Qualifications of thofe who had forfeited their Eftates, where, at feveral Meet- ings, in the Months of February, March, April and May, they decided fix Hundred and thirty Claims.

Sir Winjlm, at his Return from Ireland, was appointed one of the Clerks Comptrollers of the Green-Cloth, from which, indeed, he was removed in 1678. But was, foon after, reftored ,p that Employ again, and was the deleft of thofe Clerks

Comp-

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. &

Comptrollers at King Charles's Death, in which he was aifo continued by King Jamesll. In the Year 1675, he publimcd a Book, entitled Qinii Britannhi, being Remarks upon the Lives of ail the Kings of this lj!et from A.M.z%^.to A. C. ;.'•;• which he dedicate4 to King Ckar'.e$ II. In King Ja Reign, he ferved in Parliament, for the Borough of Lynn /- , .„

He died the fix and twentieth of March, 1668, and w.is bv in the Farifh Church of St. Martini in the Fields, in Wejlminfler ; Having, on Account of his fignal Loyalty, and the particular Services he had done the Crown, been in great Favour with King Charles \l. and King Jamesll. \ But what will hand down, his Merit to the lateft Pofterity, i?, his being Father to the maft Renowned Soldier and Hero, that this, or perhaps any ether A^e has produced.

This Sir Winjlon Churchill had Iffue, by his Lady, Elizabeth, Wirf™ fevenSons, and four Daughters i Churchill,

(«.) Winjlon Churchill, who died young. , j*nCbur.

(2.) John Churchill, late Duke of Ma;lk>rou*bt Prince of the ,4,77, I2te Empire, &C. Duke of

(3.) George Churchill, born at Ajhe, in Dewonfiire, the nine ^'f°\ and twentieth of February, 1653. He took Delight in the Mi- j^'i^-p litary Art, from his Youth, and gained Applaufe by his Services, Of Marlbi- as well by Land as by Sea, in the Reigns of King Charles II. rcu*t>, &c. and King y awes II. He was bred, however, to the Sea-Ser- vice, became a Captain of a Man of War, and ferv'd with great i Reputation. He was in great Elleem and Favour with Prince y:hn Cbur. George of Denmark, whom he ferved upwards of twenty Years, <•&'//, !at:- D. as Gentleman of the Bed-Chamber. He was Member of Kingof M*^0' James II. firft Parliament, which met the nineteenth of Mar, 1685. for the Borough of Sf. Albans, and ferved for that Place, in every Parliament, till his Deceafe, excepting the lait, when he lerved for Portfmouth. In King WiU'ian?* Reign, he firit commanded a. Squadron, in 1689. on the Coaits of Ireland ; And in 1692. he behaved with great Conduct, Bravery, and Prefence of Mind, under Admiral RnlJ'cl, when the Trench Fleet was totally routed, put to Flight, and a great Part of it burnt, at Cherbourg and La Hague ; Being then Commander of the St. Andrew, a fecond Rate.

In the Year 1699. that King conftituted him one of the Lords Comraiflioners of the Admiralty ; In which Poil he con- tinued, 'till the Spring of the Year 1702. when King William* a little before his Death, continued the Earl of Pembroke Lord High Admiral. Queen Ann appointed him Admiral of the Blue Squadron of her Myjefly's Fleet, and named him to be one of the Council of His Royal Highnefs, Prince George of Denmark, as Lord High Adminil of England, &V. He became afterwards Admiral of the White, and» for a little while, B 4 Com-

S rhe L(fe cf JOHN,

Commander of the Fleet in Chief, during the Indifpofition of Sir George Rooke. Upon the Death of the Prince, in 1708. his Council's Commifiion ended with him : Whereupon Mr. Churchill retired from Bafineis, to which his ill State of Health, labouring frequently under violent Fits of the Gout, in a great Meafure induced him. He was not alone diftinguim'd by his Valour and Conduit, as a Commander ; Bur, in his Private Life, by his Piety, Humanity, Generofity, and Courteous Be- haviour. He discharged all his profitable Employments, with fo much Honour, Integrity and Difmtereftednefs, that at his Death, he left but a very inconfiderable F.ftate. He was very eafy of Accel's, and always ready to do what Offices of Friend- fhip were in his Power, to thofe who deferred them. He died unmarried, the eighth of May, 1710. at the Age of feven and fifty Years, two Months, and nine Days, and lies buried in the South Ifle of WeftminJler-Ably, where a Marble Monu> meat is erefted to his Memory, with the following Infcription.

P. S. E.

GEORGIUS CHURCHILL, Winftonii Equitis Aurati ex Agro Dorcejlrieufi

filius natu fecundus:

Inviftiffimi Ducis Marlburii

Frater non indignus.

A prlm4 juventute Militia; nomen dedit, Et fub Regibus Caro'.o et Jacolo

terra mariq; multa cum laude meruit.

Serenilfimo Principi Gem-gio de Dania Per viginti plus Annos a Cubkulis

fide, obfequio, moribus datum fe reddidit et Charum.

Regnante Gulielmo,

Quo die Claffis Gallica ab Anglis

Ad oraNeuftriae fugata & combufta eft

(£)jc i«mp€r memorabili) £o Animi vigore et fcrritudine pugnavif, Quo Docem dnglutn d*cuit.

Mox

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &JV.

Mox ab eodem Rege,

sequiilimo meritorum Judice,

Unas e CommuTariis Admiralliae conftitutus,

res maritimas, quarum erat peritiffimus,

Curavit diu, et Ornavit.

Sub fceliciffimo demum ANN.TE imperio Inftaurato iterum Bello contra Gallos Infeftiilimos hoftes Britanni Nominis,

ex Admirallis unus,

et Celfiflimo Principi Dani*

Magno totius Britannia Admirallo

faftus e confiliis,

Curarum omnium et laborum particeps jfc'lUQPtoit'l. Domino fuo

fceliciffimam navabat operam : Donee fraftx Gallorum vires

toto mari cefleranf. Inde principis optimi lateri adh.-crcns

Ad extremum ufq; diem

Omnia grati piiq; animi officia

perfolvic.

Laboribus tandem et morbis confeftus,

Inter complexus et lacrymas

Amicorum, Clientum, et Servorum,

Quos, humanus, officiofus, liberalis,

Gratos, devindos & fideles habuit,

Pius, tranquillus, animofus, coelebs,

Obiit VIII. Mali, &c.

Atat. LVIII.

MDCCX.

(4.) Charles Churchill was born at AJhet the fecond of Fe- Cbaries Iruary, 1656. He was likewise bred to Arms, and was noted Churchill, for feveral brave Aftions. At thirteen Years of Age, he^as^/U^ made Page of Honour to CbriJIian, King of Denmark ; and, at Churchill, fixteen, Gentleman of the Bedchamber to Ms Brother Prince late Duke of George. At the Revolution, he fucceeded Major .General Og!e- Marlb. tec. thorp, in his Regiment of Foot, and in 1692, at the Battle of Steenkirk, Augujl 23. he was Brigadier-General. The Brigade

under

Hie Vbe Life of J O H N,

under his Command behaved bravely, as they did, likewife, the Year following, at the Battle of' Louden, where he himfelf give the greateft Proofs of his Courage and Conduct, in the I)efenfe of the Villages of Lare and Nedir Winden, and where he took his Nephew, the Duke of Berwick, Prifoner. He died Anno 1714. and Was interred in the Parifh-Church of Mintborn^ in Dorfetfoifs, where a Monument is ere&ed to his Memory, with the following Inscription, which will fupply what I have emitted above.

' Near this Place, lies interred the Body of Charles Churchill, *Efq; fourth Son of Sir Winjlo* Churchill, pf the County of « Dor/et, Knight*

' He was, at the Age of Thirteen, made Page of Honour to 'Cbrijlian, King of Denmark, and, at fixteen, Gentleman ot •the. Bedchamber to his Brother, the renowned Prince George.

' Kis Martial Genius led him to the Wars, and his diftinguifh- ' ed Courage and Conduct made him foon tal^en Notice of by 'his Prince. He was made Major General of Foot, and Cover - " nor of King fah in Ireland, by King William, and, after many

* Battles fought, with great Bravery and Conduct, was efteem'd ' one of the beft Commanders of Foot in Europe,

4 By his royal and gracious Miftrefs Queen Anne, he was made

* Governor of the Tower of London, General cf the Army, and ' General in chief of Foot, and had a great and honourable 'Share in the memorable Battle of Blenheim: After which, for ' his many and great Services, he was made Governor of Brujfels,

* Colonel of the Caldjlream Regiment of Foot-Guards, and Go- ' vernor of her Majefty's Ifland of Guemfiy.

' In the Year 1-02. he married Mary, Daughter and fole Heir- 'efs of James Goutie, of Dorcbejler, Efq; who in Honour of 'his beloved Memory, caufed this Monument to be creeled.

' His known Bravery, generous Spirit, and friendly Temper, *made him efteem'd and beloved by all that knew him.

' And his unalterable AfFeftion lor the Church, his Fidelity to 'the Crown, and Love of his Country, -have juftly recommend- 'ed him to Eternity.

* He died, much lamented, the nine and twentieth of Dfcem- •far, 1714, in the eight and fiftieth Year of his Age.

His Lady, who had no Iffue by him, married again in Fi- bruaty, 1716-17. to Mountague Vtnablet Bertie, Earl of Abing-

J5* Mwtjoi Ctnr chill^ died in his Youth, as did likewife,

thill, late D, »f Mark.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. if

(7.) Theobald Churchill had his Academical Education in Wnbald Queen's College, in Oxford, where he commenced Mailer ^j^thff'of Arts, June 13. 1683. and entering into Holy Orders, died un- j0j^n cLur- married December 3. 1685. and was buried in the Parifh Church "chill, late Q. of St. Martins in the Fields, in H'efttniajlcr. of M^-lb. '

(8.) Arabella Churchill, eldcft Daughter of Sir William CI£cffa Churchill, was born at djhe* in De-<jwjhi>e, in March, 1648. Sifter of*

She was firft one of the Maids of Honour to the Duchefs ofjo/^ cbu,, York, and a Favourite of King James II. when Duke of Tqrk ; £W/,late p. by whom fhe had two Sons and two Daughters. oi MarU>>

\ . James Fitz-Javiis,

His Father created him Duke of Ber-ivick, &c. the nineteenth of March, 1687. and the thirtieth of June, of the fame Year, he left Windfor, and began his Journey for Hungary, where he ferved againil the Turks, as he had done the Year before, and, in particular fignalized himfelf at the Battle of Buda. He was elecled Knight of the Garter the 28th of September, 1688 : But going over to France with his Father, and not coming, within a Year, to be inftalled, his Election was declared void and null. He then ferved France againft England, and was, therefore, out- .lavv'd, in 1699. He was a Giandee of Spain, Marjhal of France, and Knight of the Golden Fleece. He had two Wives (i.) Honora Bourk, fecond Daughter of William Bourk, Earl of damickard, in Ireland, to whom he was married in 169;;, and. who died in Fmce in 1698. (2.) Ann Buckley, fecond Daugh- ter of Henry Buckle-;, Efq; and of his Wife "Sophia Stuart, Sif- ter of Francis, late Duchefs of Richmond and Lenox, to whom he was married in i 700. And who died at St. Gtrmains, Sept. 6. 1730. He himfelf died in the Bed of Honour, being killed by a Cannon Ball in the Service of France, at the Siege of Philifjburg, on the Rhine, in the Year 1734- being at that Time GeneraliJJimo of the French Army. By his firft Wife, he Jeft, James Duke of Liria, who ftil'd himfeif Earl of Tin- mouth, and fince his Father's Death, Duke of Berwick : By his fecond Wife, James, Henry, Francis, and other Children.

2. Henry Fitz-James, commonly called the Grand Prior, born in 1673. and was outlawed with his Brother in 1695. He was Lieutenant-Geneial and Admiral of the French Gallies, and died in France the fevonth of December, 1702. His Wife Was Mary Gabrielle, Daughter of the Marquis de LuJJan, to whom he was married in 1700, and by whom he had one Daughter, who is dead.

3. Henrietta, born in 1670. was married in 1683. to Sir Hen ry Waldegrave, of Chenton, who was created Lord Waldegrante, of Chentcn, the aoth of January, 1686. and made Comp- troller of the King's Houfhold, the ninth of February,

.f.0.

168,.

Toe Life of JOHN,

1687. He died at Paris, in 1698. and (hem 1730. They left Hue, two Sons, (i.) James, Lord Waldegra<ve, born in 1684. created Earl of Waldegrawe, and Vifcount Cbenton, the icjihof Sfptemler, 1729. His Wife was Mz/3', Daughter of Sir John Wtl.'b, of Hatherof, Baronet, who died in 1719. and left 1 flue ,• James, born I 5 March, 1715. Hen>-ietfa,bOTH 2 Jan. 1717. and .70^ born 28 y//r?7, 1718. (2.) //«o^y Wa!de?ra<ve., born 15 February, 1688. died unmarried.

4. N. N. a Nun.

She was afterwards married to Charles Godfrey, Efq; Colo- nel of a Regiment of Foot, who ferved under King William in F'p.nders, tiU the Peace of Ryfnuick. In the Reign of Queen Ann, he was conftituted Mafterof the Jewel OJfice, and one of the Clerks Comptrollers of the Green Cloth. He died, the twenty-third of February, \ 7 1 4. at Bath, and left Jffue, by the faid Arabella, two Daughters ; Charlotte, Wife of the Right Honourable Hugh Bofca-iven, afterwards Lord Vifcount Fal- moulh ; and Elizabeth, the Wife of Edmund Dunch, Efq; who, on the 6th of Oflober, 1708. was appointed Mailer of the Houfhold to her late Majefty Queen Ann.

(9.) Dorothy, ( 10.) Mary; and(n.) Barbara, died all three in their Infancy.

I (hall conclude this Book, with a Continuation of the Marl- £01 w££- Family, in the Descendants of John Duke of Marlbo- rougb.

By her Grace the Duchefs Dowager of Marlboroiigh, who is yet living, his Grace, John Duke of Marlboroitgh, had Iffue, that arrived to Maturity, one Son and four Daughters :

I. John, Marquis of Bfanafinl, born 13 Jan. 1685-6. who died at Cambridge, the zoth of February i/oz-3, univerfally lamented, being a young Nobleman of the greateil Hopes.

On a Monument, erefted to his Memory, in Kings College Chappef, is a very elegant Latin Infcription, which informs us, that he was born on the i ^th of Jan. 1686. and that, tho' he was amonofl. the firft in Degree, by the high Honours of his Parents, he was no lefs celebrated for his Virtues, having all the Embelliflifnents of Body and Mind, which were poflible to meet in one of fo tender an Age. A Youth of an uncommon Form, adorn'd, in equal Proportion, with Grandeur and Beau- ty. He had" a happy, eafy, lofty, penetrating and lively Ge- nius, and was remarkable for a ftrift Observance of Decorum, tfi.u rather feem'd inn;iw than acquired; he poffcfled a peculiar thveetnefs of Behaviour, and fhewed the greateil Condefcenfion, H 1° " amidfl

> ,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

amidft the greateft Affluence of Fortune. And, as a Crown to his other Virtues, Modefty was his infepanble Companion, fo that he feem'd, by Nature, wholly framed to attrad the Fa- vour, and deferve the Love of all Mankind.

While he was, in a very early Age, he, in three Years, ac* complifhed thefirft Rudiments of his Learning, -at Eaton. Froin thence, he was invited into the Court of His Royal Highnefs, the Duke of G!ouceJ?er, to whom his Illuftrious Father was Go- vernor. He was made his Matter of the Hoife, that lie might grow up with a Prince of the greateft Hopes, and riv^l iiis Virtues. Two Years after, that Prince being taken away by a too early Fate, his illuilrious Parents, unwilling that fuch an admirable Difpofition fhould fuffer for want of Culture, iin: mediately fent him to be educated iu AVwjj's College. From that Time, this Excellent Youth, as if he ret.iin'J nothing of the Court, except the highcil Politenefs, wonderfully conformed himfelf, in every Refpeft, different to his former Life. An Example rarely to be met With. The Chappel was a Witnefs of his early Piety, where he was a conftant Attendant, at Mor- ning and Evening Prayers, as alfo at the holy Sacrament, as often as it was adminiftred. Nor did he lefs faithfully imploy the Time fet apart for his Studies. By fuch Behaviour he at- tracted the Eyes and Hearts of all Men : Bat ;vhen he had thus fpent two Years, and fix Months, with the utmoft Approbation, in the Study of the liberal Sciences, and was on the Point of travelling into foreign Parts, to undertake greater Things, un- der the Conduftof his invincible Father; At that Time when Preparations were making for the Execution of thefe Things, he was fuddenly feized with a malignant Kind of Small-Pox, which raging with a Violence that exceeded human Skill, car- ried him off in a very few Days, to the ex t ream Regret of all who knew him, but more efpecially of his illuilrious Pa- rents.

After his Death, his Father's Honours and Eflates, were, by Aft of Parliament, pafled the 2 ill of Dece mber, 1706, entailed upon his four Sifters ; firft upon their Mah>ifiue, and failing Males, upon their Female-ifTue, for the perpetuating this illui- trious Prince's Name and Honours to all Generations.

II. Hfttrietta, born the igth of Julj, 16^2. and in 1692, was married to the Right Honourable Francis, Lord Vifcount Ria'ion, afterwards, on the Deceafe of his Father, Earl of ;Vu dolphin. By Aft of Parliament, fhe fucceeded his Grace, John Duke of Marlborougb, at his Deceafe, as Duchefs of Marlbo- , and to all his other Titles, except that of Prince of the

I4 We Life of JOHN,

Empire, and Baron of Aymnuth, which are become extinft, by his dying \\ithout Iflje-male.

Her Grace Henrietta, Junior Dachefs of Marlborou.gby &c. died in- 173,, and had I flue ;

(j.) William, Marquis of BlanJ/orJ, born Feb. 6, 1698-9. He had all the Advantages of Education at Home, and tra- velled thro' rnofl Parts of Europe for his greater Accomplim- jnent He was one of the Reprefentatives of the Borough of IFcodjlock. In the Year 1730, he was complimented by both the Univerfities of this Kingdom, with the Degree of Doftor of Laws, that of Cambridge being conferred on him at their public Commencement. On the 2,th of July, 1729, his Lordihip married Mary Catherine, Daughter of — — d' 'Jong, of the Province of Utrecht, and Siller to the Countefs of Den- bigh, by whom he had no iflue, departing this Life at Oxford, of an Apopleclic Fit, on the 24th of Augtift, 1731.

(2.) Henrietta^ born the i 2th of April, 1701. married to his Grace, 7/:omas Pclham Hoiks, Duke of Ne-ivcaft/e, April 2, 1717. But has £s yet no I flue :

(3.) Marj, yet unmarried.

(4.) (5.) A Son Henry j and a Daughter Margaret, who died young.

III. Ann, married to the Right Honourable Charles Spencer^ late Earl of Sunderland, being his fecond Wife, and deceafed in April, 1716, me had Iffue :

(i.) Robert I. born, 2d of November 1700, died the i 2th of September 1701.

(2.) Robert II. born the 24th of O&ober \jo\, Earl of Sun- dtrlahd, upon the Deceafe of his Father, the jgth of September 1722, died in France, the 1 7th of September 1729, unmarried, and was buried with his Anceftors at Brinton, the 1 7th of Oc- tober following.

(3.) Charles ; born the 22d of November 1706, Earl of Sun- derland, upon the Death of his elder Brother, the i7th of Sep- tember 1729, in France, who, by the Death of the late Mar- quis of Blandford, fucceeded to Sooo /. per Annum of the late Duke df Marlborou^h^ Eftate, and upon the Death of her Grace, Henrietta, Junior Duchefs of Marllorougb, fucceeded to the Titles of Duke and Earl of Maryborough, in the County of Wilts, Marquis of Blandford in the County of Dorfet, and Baron of Sandridge, in the County of Hertford. The 23d of May 1732, his Lordfhip, now his Grace, married Elizabeth, Daughter of Thomas Lord Trevor.

(4.) John, born the 1 3th of May, 1708, marred the third Daughter of John Lord Carters, and Sifter of the Countefs of Dyfnt, and the Vifcountefsof Wey mouth.

Is)

Duke of MARLBOHOUGH, &V.

(^.) Ann, born i6th of December, 1702, married to William Eateman, Efq; now Lord Vifcount Bateman, of the Kingdom of Ireland.

(6.) Diana, married the nth of OBober 1731, to his Grace,

John Duke of Bedford, by whom (he had a Son Marquis

of "Taviftock, born the 6th of November, 1732, and died the lame Day. Her Grace is likevvife deceafed.

IV. Elizabeth, born in 1687, married to his Gfrace Scroop Eggerton, Earl, now Duke of Bridgnvater, in 1703, and died March 22, 1713-14, in the z6th Year of her Age; She had Iffue, two Sons and one Daughter.

(i.) John Lord Vjfcount Brackley, born Feb. 3, 1703.4, who departed this Life at Eaton School, in the i4th Year of his Age, on the 3oth of January, 1718-19.

(2.) Another Son, who died foon after he was born.

(3.) Ann, firft married to his Grace, Wriothejly Ru/el, late Duke of Bedford, the 2 ad of April, 1725, by whom flic had no Iffue ; and, after his Deceafe, which happened the 23d of Oftober, 1732, married the 23d of June 1733, the Right Ho- nourable William, Earl of Jerfty.

V. Mary, born in 1689, married to his Grace John now Duke of Montague, the 31 ft of March, 1705, by whom fhe has had Iffue ;

(i.) John, Marquis of Mount Hermer, born the 8th of No- vember, 1706, and died the a6thof Auguft, 1711.

(2.) Ijabella, married to his Grace, William, Duke of Man* chejler, the 1 6th of April, 1723, by whom as yet, fhe has no Iffue.

(3.) Eleanor ', born March 9, 1708-9, who died an In- fant.

(4.) Mary, married the 7th of July, 1730, to George Lord Brudenely eldeft Son of George, Earl of Cardigan, and by the Death of his Father, July 5, 1732. Earl of Car- digan .

(5.) (6.) George and Edward Churchill, who died Infants.

His Grace, John Duke of Marllorougtis Paternal Arms, fcjV, were,

Sable, a Lion Rampant, Argent ; a Canton of St. George, of the fecond, viz. Argent, charg'd with a Crofs, Gules, being an Augmentation.

CREST.

On a Wreath, a Lion Gouchant guardant, Argen}, fuf- taining, with his Zk*ftr-paw, a Pennon, Gules, charged with

a '

tte Life of JOHN, &c.

a Dexter-main, coup'd at the Wrift, and ereft, Argent, Staff, Or.

SUPPORTERS.

Two Wwerns, Gules, each gorg'd with a plain Collar, Or, having Oval Shields, pendant therefrom, upon their Breafts, Azure, garniih'd Or } the Dexter charg'd with St. George's Badge, Argent, a Crofs, Gules, and the Sinister with St. An- dre-ivs, viz. Sable, a Saltier, Argentt alluding to his Scvtcb Title of Ajmouth.

MOTTO FIEL ?ERO DESDECADO.

His Grace, as Prince of the Empire, bore his Arms within * (jarter, on the Breaft of the Roman Eagle, with two Heads, Sa- t>h, armed Or, andenfign'd with an Imperial Crown, label Fd proper.

BOOK

BOOK II.

TRANSACTIONS during the Reigns of King CHARLES II. and King JAMES II.

CHAP. I.

TRANSACTIONS during the Reign of King CHARLES II.

Return now to John Churchill, who, tho1 the

fecond fon of Sir Winilon Churchill, as I

have faid already, was the eldeit that arrived

to maturity. He was born at Aihe, in the Birth of

parifh of Mulbury, in Devonfhire, the four John cilur-

and twentieth of June, i6co. about noon,chlll» a"'v

, c J ' . . , ... 'wards duke

and, two days after, was baptized, by Mr. Matthew Drake, reftor of that parifh. He had a liberal and polite education in his younger years, under the immediate care of his father, and the tuition of a clergyman of the church of He ij England ; who fo grounded him in the doctrines, and principles brought to of that church, that he ever after facrific'd all other interefts, ™g ; ™* when they came in competition with it ; as we mail fee in the ^honour6 fequel. As he grew up, he became tall, handfome, and of a to the duke noble appearance. He was brought young to court, where his of York. father got him to be made pao;e of honour to his royal highneis C the

the duke of York.; who, from the firft moment of hk entriog into his fervice, teftified a more than ordinary favour ana affeftion for him.

•Gets an rr- He foon difcovered his martial difpofition, upon which his

mfftonC°m* ^at^er' to humour I"3 inclination, procured him an enfign'^

mi , a. comrni(flon> in the royal regiment of foot-guards; an honou:

the duke of York was willing to grant him, to encourage hi.

tow'ring genius, tho' his youth, he being then but 16 years «f

age, might otherwife have been a bar to it.

Circumftan- A late author relates the circumftances of our young he'ro's c« of his grij. admiffion under the banners of Mars in the following man- ^r's Jtlner : The duke of York (fays he) who placed his chief delight in the exercife of arms, ufed to hold frequent reviews of the troops then on footing ; and, in particular, would often, to gratify his martial inclination, draw out the two regiments of foot-guards, in order of battle. Young Churchill was very affiduons in attending his royal, m after at thefe exefcifes, where he had frequent opportunities of admiring the regularity of their difcipline, and the warlike ardour which appeared, with the greateil luftre, in all their aftions. This infpir'd him with a vehement paflion to attain to a knowledge of this no- ble art, and his royal highnefs appearing almoft daily at the head of fome regiment or other, gave him as frequent occa- fion to gratify this growing pafiion. The duke foon difcerned this inclination in his page, and was charm'd with it ; and afk- ing him one day, what he ftould do for him, as the firft ftep to his fortune, Churchill took that opportunity to throw hirn- felf at the prince's feet, and, with great earneftncfs, to beg, he would honour him with a pair of colours in the guards, His royal highnefs was extremely fatisfied, to find he was not deceiv'd in the judgment he had form'd of his young favourite, and, foon after, gave him the poll he defired.

Here he, indeed, learnt the firft rudiments of military dif- cipline ; and laid the ground-work of that reputation, which was the wonder of his time. But his afpiring genius being impatient under that confinement, and eager to be in aftion, he laid hold of the firft opportunity to ferve his country, and Goes to embark'd for Tangier, where, during the time he was in that Taa&ier. garrifon, he was in feveral fkirmifhes with the Moors.

Some attribute our young fo'dier's firft enterprize to another caufe, which I fhall juft mention, tho' it does not feem to carry much probability with ir. When the court was at Oxford, in »66$p. it is faid, that the duchefs of York (hew'd more than or- dinary kindnefs and favour to mr. Churchill ; infbmuch that the duke grew jealous of it, and fought the firft opportunity of fending him abroad. This is the lefs probable, becaufe I never, heard the leaft 'infiauation to the prejudice of the duchefs's

repu-

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 19

reputation; and befides, in 1665. mr. Churchill was but 15 years of age.

In 1672. the duke of Monmouth gave him a captain's com- 1672. million in his own regiment in France, and he accompany 'd tht Is mads * duke thither ; where he ferved under him, with the 6cco men, "Ptain- Englifti troops, which king Charles {cut to the aifiilance of^;"°^** Lewis XIV. againft the Dutch. duke cf

Some attribute this fudden advancement of mr. Churchill's Monmouth fortune, from an enfign to the command of a company, at ^afr^tthe Cace, to' a fit of jealoufy in king Charles, who had difcovered ^. t£~ fome of his early intrigues with one of the royal miftreffes, Dutch. and embraced this opportunity of removing him from the be- A reafon af- loved .obj/eft. I (hall not pretend to aver this facl ; but certain fiped for it is, our young officer was form'd with all the ad vantages j^^/."1 imaginable, both of perfon and addrefs, to infpire love in the ment, tender breafts of the fair fex ; and, like Mars, had on . hia fide^ d heart fufceptible of the charms of a Venus. On the pther hand, the goddef. could not fo- llifle the immoderate af* feclion fhe had conceiv'd for her Adonis, but that it was vifible jo the whole court ; and it is certain Ihe contributed, among many other concurrent circumftances, very much to the celerity of his firft advancements. Her purf<? was ever as open to him as her arms, and as fhe never grudg'd the firit, to fupply his wants, and gratify his pleafures ; fo the height of her bliis was to enfold him ia the latter. The royal diadem had no luftre when view'd in competition with his enflaving eyes $ nor could me enjoy any thing with a tolerable guflo, that he Avas not a partaker .of. We mail indeed, rarely rind fo many advantages center in one perfon, capable of rendering him the minion of fortune. The early favour of his fovereign, and his royal brother, his immediate protedor and benefactor, a beautiful filter, favourite of the latter, his own charms of body and mind, his graceful perfon, and winning deportment, his prudent behaviour, and laudable ambition, all co-operated to that one happy end. What a noted author has faid of a namelefs lovely youth, may be aptly applied to our young hero. " He knew (fays my author) punctually how to im- " prove thofe firft and precious moments of good fortune, " whilft yet the glofs of novelty remain'd ; whilit defire was- " unfated, and love in the high fpring-tide of full delight: " having an early fore-caft, a chain of thought unufual ac " his years ; a length of view before him $ not born a flayg " to love, fo as to reckon the poffefEon of the charraingft *' woman of the court, as the zenith of his fortunes but ra- " ther as the firft aufpickms ruddy ilreaks of an early morn-ing, " an earneil to the meridian of the brighteft day."

Qz Tbs

26 tte Life -of JOHN",

1672. The French army, in which the troops I mention'd above, *— v—O ferved, confifted, if we may believe father Daniel, of very near 177,000 men, commanded by the king in perfon, and, under him, by two of the greateft generals of the age, the prince of Conde and the marfhal deTurenne. This proved of fingular ad- vantage to our young warrior, who had all the opportunity he could wifh to gain experience, and he improved beyond what could have been expected at his years. This was that memo- rable campaign, in which the French almoft over-run the United Provinces, with' a rapidity almoft beyond belief, and in which He behaves mr Churchill was prefent, with the duke, at; the taking Orfoy, bravely 3^ Rhineberg, Wefel, Emerick, Doe/burg, and Zutphen, and at the s furrender of Utrecht, but particularly at the fiege of Nimcguen. :inj This being the only place that made any grea-. defence, (<.nd it Particularly dfa a very handfome one, ur.der the command of monf.-de Wel- Nimeguen. deren,) it was here he laid the firft foundation, for attaining to thwart,' which he afterwards pofiefs'd in the higheft perfection, that of befieging a llrong town in form. His behaviour on all occafions was fo extraordinary for his;age, which but -juft ex- ceeded two and twenty, that fortune, which never after rbrfook Is verymu* i- hi.n, recommended him to the favour of the marfhai de Turerine, honoured by who took particular notice of him; and befides the honour the rnarfral jone j^m jn commending his condufl, paid him a compliment, ne" anddiftinguifh'd him by the title of the Handfome Engliihman ; by which name he was long known throughout the whole army.

Is very nfii- Mr. Churchill was, upon all occaficns, very afltduous to de- du.ms to de- ferve thefe diftinguiming marks of the favour of fo great a ge- fervc it. neral ; and it was 'under this renowned French officer, that he learned the art of fubduing the French nation, which he fo of- ten, and with fo great fuccels, put in practice afterwards. But it was not only at the head of his own company that he dif- tinguifh'd himfelf ; when that had no call to be in aftion, he was prefent at every enterprize of difficulty and danger, as a volunteer. Nothing was fo defperate, nor fo apparently given over, but what his courage and conduft knew how to repair ; Performs a of which monf. Rouflet gives us a memorable inftance : '? A " certain French lieutenant-colond, being commanded to de-' fend a pafs, was fo difhearcened at the approach of a detach- ment of the Dutch, which was fert to attack it, that he im- mediately quitted his poll. Advice being brought of it to monf. deTurenne, he turn'd to another general who flood near him, and offered to lay a wager, that his handfome Englilhman fhould retake the pafs with half the number of men the other had loft it : And he was not deceived in his opinion ; captain Churchill regain'd the pott, won the mar- fhal his wager, arid gaiu'd for himfelf the applaufe of the whole armv." The

brave and

memorable

adieu.

Diike <?/ M A R L B o R o rj o H , &? c.

'. , The year following, he again diftingajfhed himfelf, at .the fiege of Maeibicht, which had a garnibn of io,ocomen, and made a vigorous defence. Durjng;this fiege, there happened a. Hc 's P1'*'- thoufand glorious aftions, and here our young hero found op- ^nt at .the portunity to give many proofs of his undaunted courage, and in- Maeftri trepid refolution -} in particular, he >yas one of thofe brave AHifts Englilh officers, who accompanied the duke of Moumouth in ';• -J an one of the boldeit and moft defperate attempts', chat, perhaps, j^™" at" is recorded in hiitory. As we have a particular account of '^ ' .this brave action publifti'd by. authority, I ihall give it my' rea- ders in the very words of that relation*, adding only feme few circumftances.

The dyke of Monmouth, being commanding lieutenant- ^ art:cu]- general for the day, had the direction of the attack of the atcJunt "of' " counterfcarp of Maeftricht, .on the 24. and 25. of June N. S. traction. " the king of France being at the end of the trenches, to ob- *' ferve the conduct of the whole aaion. His grace had de- iired of the king, as a particular favour, that he might beat this,attack? for which a detachment was made of all the " grenadiers in the army. The duke having made a lodg- ment, and taken a half-moon, the next morning, on a fudden, before day, a dine fprung on the right hand (by " which a captain, an enfign, and fifty Ibldiers were killed) and, immediately the enemy (under the command of monf . " de Farjaux) made a fally, which they did with fo great fur- " prize, and in that number (of thechoiceft of their troop*> " that it was not poffible for the French and Swifs guards, who " were fent for the defence of the workmen, to fuftain the ^^ " fhock, but they were forced to give ground. Hereupon, " his grace fent away a party of the king's muflteteers, that . .-.-w.d " were defigned for the defence of his perfon, to go and malkje .^4^ •" good the poll ; but the enemy had already made themfclvts «* matters of the half- moon, and were not to be eafily diflodged ** nay they had prevailed fo far, as to bring the whole into " queftion; which his grace perceiving, fent to the king for " frelh fupplies, and himfelf, with a few volunteers, the king " of England's fubjefts, which were not above twelve in all ** (among whom our young hero was, one) leaped over the trench, " and, thro' a ftorm oflhot, that fell on.. all fides, marched, " with all the fpeed he could, to the half-moon, paffing thro1 "a fally -port of the enemy's, and fo all along, within twenty " yards of the pah'fadoes, being followed by monf. d'Artignan, '« and the king's mufketeers. 1'he foldiers were now quitting " their new polt, not being longer able- to maintain it, when the " duke's prefence encouraged them to return ; which they did '•' with new vigour, and being followed by what forces could C3 . bu

.

tte Life of J O H N,

' be rallied up in the trenches, the enemy was, the feeond " time, beaten off, and his grace again made mailer of the «' half-moon, which he delivered up to monf. de la Feuillade, «» who came to relieve him, at the ordinary hour."

Several perfons of note were killed and wounded in thefe at- tacks Among the former were fir Henry Jones, colonel of the Englifh regiment of light horfe, who was one of the volunteer?, that attended the duke in this bold action, and monf. cTArtig- nan, commander of the king's mufketeers. Among the latter was Mr. CLur- nir- Churchill himfelf, who was captain of the Englifh grena- -..d-dier1-, that (as fome authors fay) alone retook the half-moon. ". The brave captain Churchill (fays monf. Rouffet) animated

by the prefence of his general, feconded him, with his own company of grenadiers, mounted the breach, and notwith- i Handing all poffible refiftance of the enemy, planted the

Js articu- banner of France, on the lodgment he had made." His larlvho- courage and conduct, in this action, were, at leaft, fb con- poured by fpieuous. that the French king made a publick acknowledg- thcFrcjith ment of them, and did him the honour to thank him for ^cin&' ins fervices, at the head of his Army ; giving him, at the fame time, afiurance of his recommendations to the king The firft °f Great-Britain. And here we may reasonably fix our heio*6 ftep to his firft Hep to preferment ; for we find, that at iiis return to preterment. England, foon after, he became a great favouiite, both with the king and the duke ; and was in high eileeua with the whole court. The duke of Monmouth, in par:;c;:! /. wa; K> A nofele 'fenfible of his merit, and of his gallant behaviour, 11. u teftmony at Maeftricht, that he told the king, he owed his life to his of his bravery. A teftimony, than which nothing could do iim more bravery. honour, and which paved the way to his immediate advance- He is ad- mentj for he was, thereupon, made lieutenant- colonel of fir vanced to Charles Littleton's regiment, gentleman of the bed-chamber, feveral an(j mafter of th.e robes, to the duke of York. Pace$- Nor was mr. Churchill alone the darling of his own ftx.

Is in at 'The high reputation he had acquired abroad, fcr his valour, favour with knowledge and discretion, i.dded to the beauty and comelinefs the ladies, of his perfon, and his genteel and courteous behaviour, gained • him, at leait, the favour, if not the affection, of all the ladies of a court, which was then particularly remarkable fcr its gal- lantry. T° relate all theatchievments of our young adventurer in the caiife of Venus, which were the aniufement of the Beau Mond, and furaifh'd matter of difccurfe for the gallant af- femblies of thofe jovial dr.ys, would carry me too far from the main defign of this *ork. That I n,2y not, howtver, be A memo- taxed of being wholly filent in thefe matters, I mail only re- rabk- ad- count one memorable ftory, which was caufe.pf uieriimect in fcnturc. thofe days, without applying it nominally to the perfonj, it has generally been fuppofed to regard. I{

Duke of MARLBOROUGHJ &c.

It was faid, in thofe times, that the handfomeft of Charles's miilreffo, being importuned, by a gentleman of more fortune than difcretion, "tb^foeftow the laft favour upon him } fhe agreed to let him enjoy what he was fo follicitous for, at the moderate expence of locoo/. for one night. This the enamour'd fool paid down ; but, thinking to heighten the plea- fures of Venus, by thofe of Bacchus, took fo large a portion of the latter's favour, that when the happy hour came, he was not in a capacity, to take pofleffibn of the jewel he had fo dearly purchased. The gallant, having met with this difappoint- ment, thought the lady would be too confciencious not to admit him, a fecond time, to her favours, when able to enjoy them, for the fame fee ; but fhe had the modefty to infift on a new- bargain, and the fame Turn over again. Surprized at the unrea- fonable demand, rage took place of the paffion of love, and the gentleman left her in a fury, to fatiate her inclination for a more amiable perfon, then juftly call'd the hantrtbmeft and moll agreeable cavalier at court. To him fhe gave the entire fum left her by her cully, as a token of her future favour, which he took better care to deferve, and is fuppofed, in the fequi-I, to have had fo large a fhare of, as, in fome meafure, laid the foundation of his fortune.

A famous modern poet begins his imitation of the fecond fatyr of Horace, entitled, Sober advice from Horace to the young gentlemen about town, with the following lines, which are ap- plicable to this adventure :

The tribe of templers,.plny*r3, apothecaries, Pimps, poets, wits, lord Fanny's, lady Mary's, And all the court in tears, ana half the town,

Lament dear chaming O f Id, dead and gone!

Engaging O f Id ! who with grace and eafe,

Could join the arts, to ruin and to pleafe.

" Not fo, who of ten thoufand gull'd her knight, " Then afk'd ten thoufand for a fecond night: " The gallant too, to whom fhe paid it down, " Liv'd to refufe that rniftrefs half a crown.

The latter lines feem to argue an ingratitude in . the lover ; but may fhe not have lived to have deferv'd fuch ufage ? If com- mon report may be depended upon, fhe did. In the mean time, if the fame common fame is to be credited, he was her drudge, as long as any fhew of decency would allow of it ; 'till being about to enter into another ftate of life, he was forced to have recourfe to a itragatjem, to break off their forbidden intercouffe ; and, by palming another lover upon her, whom he took care to furprize with her, when his com- C* party

- 1 2> .L/y* c/ J O H N,

pany was. leaft expected or defired, .had at once an opportunity to upbraid her inconftancy, to free himfelf for ever from the arms of one he never really lov'd, nor had any farther regard for than as (he was iubfcrvient to. his intereft, to oblige a friend, who figh'd for the enjoyment of what he negle&ed, and to give the amorous nymph a fwain as lovely as his adored felf.

But to return to the political and military fteps, by which our The king hero continued to advance hi fortune: It was a Phenomenon fo makes peace entire.lv new, to fee England concur in augmenting the power with the and grandeur of France, that it was believed this extraordinary tc ' luminary would foon difappear, and the king reiolve to call back the fuccours he had lent the Grand Monarch ; and, in ef- feft, fo it happened ; for the parliament was no fooner sfTembled, than fuch refolutiom were taken, and the conduft of the court was cenfured, in fuch manner, that the king found' himfelf under a neceflity of recalling his troops. The peace, which jg_, enfued, at the beginning of the year 1674. deprived' lieute- nant-colonel Churchill of the opportunity of diiplaying his va- louj in the field ; but he let flip none, by which he could" ad- chili ^ows* vance *"s f°rtune- He grew daily mQre an^ more m tn-e favour, daily more* as we^ °f tne king as the duke, and, tho' one of the youngeft in favour officers, foon obtam'd, by the favour of the latter, the com- with the mand of a regiment, as the reader will fee below. king and f^ kingf being now freed from the cares of war, and the uneafinefTes caufed him by the parliament, gave himfelf up K. C -rVs entirely to a foft, indolent, and effeminate life. The duchefs fives himfelf Of Orleans, his filler, had brought him, at their interview at jje*fries.S ^over> ^e daughter of a gentleman of Bretagne, called de Querouaille,. who commanded the king's affections, beyond any of his'miflfrefles, and was created duchefs of Portfmouth : but his particular fondnefs for her did not hinder him from having many others ; tho' me had the greatefl influence over his actions ; and the giycty, or rather libertinifm of his court, rjthcr, encreas'd than decreas'd. Amidft the revels of this fplendid court, our young warrb'ir pafs'd his time as others, for fome yt-ir?, in mirth and jollitry, during which time, nothing, with regard to him, happen'd, worthy of our remark ; I mall therefore pafs by the years 1675. and 6. .. T /7- One of the moit remarkable and happy occurrences of the'princefs the year 1677. which I mud not pals by in fitence, was the Mary, with marriage of the princefs Mary, the duke of York's eldeft the prince daughter, wit!) the prince x>f Orange, on the fourth of Novem- efOrange. jj^ ^ prjnce's birth day ; from which thrice-Eufpicions day England may. date her prefent happy condition and Security, in a free enjoyment of her religion and liberties, as having given -birth te> her dei^crer from porcry and onpreffion, cejnented

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, 6?r. 25

that alliance which gave him a jull pretence, to be that happy 1677. initrument, and brought him on our coalts to compleat it. ^/"\-'">O

This happy alliance was not, however, brought to perfeftior . I * n without fome, and not very (mail, difficulty. It hr.d beenu!lkh •''- propofed in Holland ; and the prince of Orange obtainta leave ^(" . -oc of the king to come over and follicit his affairs in perion: but"' the duke of York was againft it, and the French naturally 6p- pofed it, as it would of courfe draw the king over to the interejl of Holland, and perhaps engage him to declare war ngainft France, as the nation was defirous he fhould, if a general pe.ice was not to be obtained. France, in the mean time, had a very powerful advocate with the king, the duchefs of Poi tfmouth. However, the greateit difficulty, which had very ne;.r render'd the prince's journey fruitlefs, was, that the king infiited upon it, as a condition of the marriage, that he, and the prince, mould previoufly agree upon the terms of a general peace : whereas the prince, on his fide, let the king know, by fir William Temple, that his allies, who were like to have hard terms of the peace, as things then flood, would be -apt to believe, that he had made his match at their coft ; and, for his part, he would never fell his, ho- nour fora wife. Both fides continued obltinate for fome time, till How n~ the prince, at length, declared, he would depart in two days, Jf move • the king did not alter his refolution , which, by the-afliduity of fjr William Temple, and the lord treafurer Danby, he was perfuaded to do, and the duke was obliged to obey the king's pleafure. Upon this occafion, king Charles is reported to have faid of the prince of Orange to fir William Temple : I never yet was deceiv'd in judging a man's honefty by his looks ; and if I am not deceiv'd in the prince's face, he is the honefteft man in the world ; and I will truft him, and he (hall have his wife, and you mail go immediately and tell my brother fo, and that it is a thing I am refolved on. The king's confent thus obtained, matters were fo managed, that he declar'd it in coun- cil, before the duchefs of Portfmouth could fpeak to him.

In the beginning of the year 1679. king Charles having if>ig. required his royal highnefs, the duke of York, by a letter di- Mr- chur- refted to him for that purpofe, to abfent himfelf, for fome jjjj| ^ d time, beyond the feas : he accordingly retir'd with his duchefs, ^yji^ t<i and the princefs 'Ann, the third of March, firit to the Hague, FlanJcis. and afterwards from thence to BrufTels. The king falling fick, the latter end of Auguft, and having a fit of a tertian ague, the duke, upon the firlt notice of it (given him by the king's order) came to Windfor : but finding his majeiiy in no danger, after having eftablimed himfelf, more than ever, in the king's favour, and procured the banimmenc of the duke of Mon- mouth, he return'd to Bruflels, from whence he came back T, ^ , again, the fecond time, with his family and retinue. return^

In

«uc

fbe Life of ] O H N,

In this retirement, mr. Churchill had the honour to ac- company his royal highnefs ; and it may not be improper to mention fome farther circumftances of this matter ; as the ™.richur- ftate-Jagg1es which were put in practice on this occafion, to chill's con- which mr. Churchill, being fo near tke duke's perfon, cannot but have been an eye-witne(s, may very probably have made fuch an impreflion on him, as had a great influence on his fu- ture conduft, in one of the mod critical junctures of his life, J mean at the revolution. Mr. Churchill was, however, fo far from believing, at this time, the duke of York to have any views or defigns to the prejudice of the proteftant religion^ that he is faid to have openly blamed the proceedings of the parliament againft his royal highnefs, and maintain'd it to be the greateft injuftice in the world, to deprive a perfon of hi; inheritance, upon the bare prefumption of his intending evil, when he had not aftually committed any, that could be a bar to his enjoying his right. But we mail fee in the fequel, that he was convinced of his miftake, and found that the grounds, upon which the party againft the duke proceeded, were jufl and reafonable. To juftify mr. Churchill's future conduft, it may not therefore (I lay) be amifs, to relate fome particulars of the duke's behaviour at this time.

The duke of York having improved the late happy juncture of the king's illnefs to his advantage, and being fecure of his brother's tendered affection, took that opportunity to reprefenl to his majefty, the danger of his being in the Low Countries, with regard to the fucceflion, in cafe of his fudden death, and thereby obtained his leave to retire into Scotland : fo that his fecond voyage to Flanders was only to bring over his family, in order to his journey to Scotland.

The return of the duke, from Flanders, the firfl time, was difcover'd by fir W;l!iam Temple, to be a political juggle of two chief minifters, to fave themfelves. " The fecret (fay» he) was this : upon the king's illnefs, the lords Efiex and Hal- ifax being about him, thought his danger great, and their own fo to ; and that if any thing happened to the king's life, the duke of Monraouth would he at the head of the nation, in oppofuion to the duke of York, upon pretence of popery, and in conjunction with the earl of Shaftfbury, who had threatned to have their heads, upon the proroga- tion of the laft parliament ; which threat was applied^ by the lords Efiex and Hallifax, to themfelve?, reckoning the lord Sunderland fafe, by his relation to the carl of Shaftfbu- ry, and the fair terms that had always been between them. This fright had fo ai&dled thefe two lords, that not flaying to fee what the king's fecond rtt would be, they propofed to <f the king to fend immediately for the dul«e ; which being re- i "folved,

An obfer- vationcnthe fluke's re- turn, by far •William Temple.

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

" folved, and thedifpatch made with nil the (ecrecy arid fpeed *' imaginable, the duke cr.mc ever ; but finding the king re ( «• covered, it was agreed to pafs for a journey of his own, and " that it Ihould he receiv'd by his majelly, and the three loids, " with allfigns of furprize."

The better to countenance it, the following report of his re- Some fur- turn was publifh'd by authority : " Windfor, September 2. Thisti"iCr obfer- " morning his' royal highnefs the duke of York arrived here, ^P0"5 on " contrary to expectation, and told his rnajefty, that hearing '« of his indifpofition, he thought he could do no lefs than *' come and wait on him, and fee how he did : adding, that " he was ready, as foon as his majefty pleas'd, to return to " Flanders, or any other part of the world, his msjefty mould " command him to." And the compromise afterwards made between the king and the duke, for the retirement of the latter into Scotland, had the following notice given of itbyau- - " thority : " Newmarket, October 7. His royal highnefs having reprefentcd to his majefty, that he conceives it, for many refpects, more proper for him to be in his majelty's domi- nions, rather than thofe of another prince, and made it his humble requefl to his majefly, to have his leave to go into Scotland ; his majefty has granted it : and it is prefumed his royal highnefs will, in .-\ fhort time, repair thither. Accordingly en the 2^th of October, their royal highnefles, The d. of attended by many of the nobility ar:d perfons of dilHndion, Yo^k^. fet out for Scotland. The journey lafted above a month, with fliort and pompous ftages ; they did not come to Edinburgh, till the fourth of December, where they were received with great fo- lemnity. The duke of York grew, however, foon weary of Scotland, and thought it fafer and propererto return to England: and to break the defign with more foftnefs to the people, on the eight and twentieth of January, his majefty was pleafed to l6Sc' declare, in council, That he had fent for his royal highnefj, not having found fuch an effect from his abfence, as mould incline him to keep him longer at a diftance : and his majefty added ; that he was fo well . allured of the duke's compliance, in every thing, that he could anfwer his return fhould have no influence on the publick. So, on the four and twentieth of February, their royal highnefles arrived from Scotland, by fea, at Deptford, Return? to went up the river in a barge, and were received by his majefty, EngUnd. at Whitehall, in the moft affectionate manner, and with great romp and fatisfaction. The king found it, however, neceflary, before the conclufion of the year, to order his brother to retire And goes a fccond time into Scotland, which he did, the twentieth of back again October, after having received repeated afiurances from his ma- to Scotia*!, jefly, (hat he would never forfake him.

Th«

2S ,-.Tkt. life of JOH-N,

o. ' The fix and twentieth of October, being the fir/I day ti^c J houfe of commons began upon their debates, they concluded of them that day, with the following refolution ; It is the opinion * of this houfe, that they ought in the firft place to proceed effectu-

ally to fupprefs popery, and prevent a popifh. fucccifor The duke of York fcem'd to expect a vote of this nature, and, there fore, would not itay to be.ir the affront of it ; but, the day be- fore the iellion, departed for Scotland, with his duchefs, and re- tinue. F. Orleans fays; that the duke of York prepared to main- tain his birth-right, in parliament, with frem vigour, when the jjiarquifs of Hallifax, and the earl of Sunderland, came to him, .from the king, to define him to abfent himfelf, for a while, an^ return into Scotland, during the feffion. This requeft flartled thje duke, Sec. And, after his departure, the bill cf excluficm was brought into the houfe.

Mr Clu. ^n onc'j ant^ probably in both, of thefe jonrnies or voyages difll attends to Scotland, mr. Churchill had the honour of attending hii. the duke tiroyaj highnefs, and, among fevcral other important trufls', Scotland, which i.e was honoured with, by this indulgent mailer, he wa> Is mad- ro- made colons; c.c a regiment of dragoons. During the duke'.s lonelofdra-ilay in England, he i!!:c\v:fe made a confiderable figure, among joons. jjjg ggau iviond of thofe luxurious times.

x6Si. In 1 68 1. colonel Churchill, -jmidft all the gallantry of 9

fplendid court, inflead of giving 'entirely into that high pitch of loofenefs and debauchery, whicii was then but too much coun- tenanced and in vogue, fixed his eyes upon one, more particu- lafly, among the numerous beauties, who fhor.e in that brillant circle, which daily {unrounded the royal prefence ; he fet h' affection I fay upon one, whom he refolved to make his owr and 'a partner in thofe glories, towards which he was advancir \\ith fo much celerity. Col Chur- Thklrdy, for whom our hero was willing to forego all the chili man-ies kcret enjoyments of forbidden gallantry, and lay himielf Habit mrs. Sarah to the d:re effects of jealotify and negledcd beauty, from thofe Jcnainns. ladies, with whom he had 'till then liv'd in a familiar converfation ; this excellent l.idy, who, this year, became his wife, was Sar,ah, the daughter and coheirefa (witi; her filter, the countefs of Tyt- conpel) of Richard Jennings cf San J ridge, in Hmfordmire, efq; and of Frances, his wif.-, daughter and heirefs of f»r Giffard Thornhuril, of Agne:.-coart, in Kent, liaronet.

Her father, Richard Jennings, efq; aforefaid, was the fon Her scnea- and heij. of fjj. pm Jenhfngs, knight of 'the Bath, at the crea- tion of Charts, prince of \Vale«, the fourth of November 1616, the fon and heir of John Jennings, efq; (and Ann, his wife, daughter of fir William Brounker) fon and heir of Ralph Jen- nings, of Church, in Sommerfetfliire, whofe wife was filter and cohprefs of Ralph Rcwlat, of 'St 'AlbinVj knight, whofe other

filter

Duke of MAULBOROITGH, &V. fifler was wife of John Maynard, efq; the anceftor of the pre- fent lord Maynard. '

Mrs. Sarah Jennings (now dowager duehefs of Marlborough and princefs of Nellenburg) was born the nine and twentieth of May, i 660. the very day her fovereign, king Charles II. was reftored to his rightful pofleffion of thele kingdoms: At the time of her marriage with colonel Churchill, (he was juftly accounted one of the moil accomplifhed ladies of the court, and was very much in the favour of the princefs Ann, the duke of York's youngeft daugh- ter, and afterwards our moft gracious fovereign, queen Ann. ' 1682.

The beginning of March, 1682. the duke of York returned The duke of froja Scotland, ;tnd was received by the king, with all poflible York <jomes marks of ;.fFcftion. After two months flay in England, he re- ^"f "n folved to return to Scotland by fea, in order to bring over his duohefs and family ; the arbitrary power, the king his brother had by this time eilablifhed, having removed all apprehenfions of his being obliged to retire out of the kingdom again, he em- bark'd accordingly, on the fourth of May, and colonel Chur-^^j'" chill again accompanied his royal highnefs, among other perfons oeain°with of diitin&ion, who were in his retinue. They went on board the duke u> the Gloucefter- frigate, at that time lying in Margate-road, com- Scotland. manded by fir John Berry, which was attended by the Dart- mouth, Ruby, and Happy Return. The next day, the Glou- cefter ilrfldk on the fand, call'd Lemon-Ore, about fixteen Is in Sreat leagues ftom the mouth of the Humber ; fhe had, in a very ^jn^cr ,, fhort time, feven foot water in the hold ; and the duke, with "r the colonel, and fome few more only, narrowly efcaped with their lives.

It was, upon this occafion, reported, that the duke flayed fome time, at the hazard of his own life, to take the colo- nel into his boat ; but this report feems to have no grounds; on j^e j . « . the contrary, there appears to be much more reafon to be- mental in lieve, that the colonel was very inftrumental in faving his ma- faving the fter's life, by hindering many from entering the boat, who were ^u^e<s 'i^- prefling into it, and would infallibly have Junk it.

We have very various accounts of this incident, in different Various nc- authors. " When the {hip (truck (fays one) the dukeorder'd thec°!'nts °/ " pinnace to put off, with as many perfons as it would hold, and1 ' '• laved himfelf on board the Mary-yacht : It is pretended, he " himfelf named the perfons, whom he would have in the boat " with him, and that fome prielb and jefuits were preferred to " feveral perfons of quality, who were unfortunately drowned, '* with i 30 feamen, the fhip finking foon after the duke put off: " but (adds he) I will not warrant this circurnftance, which, " perhaps is only a report fpread by his enemies." Another, however fays, " the duke got into a boat, and took care of his *' dogs, and fome unknown perfons, who \vere taken, for that

" earnelt

?be Life of J O H N,

earned care of his, to be his priefb. The long-boat went off with very few in her, tho' fhe might have carried off above eighty more than ihe did. The duke (adds this author) took no notice of this cruel negleft, which was chiefly laid to Legg's charge."

According to another account, " his royal highnefs went off in a boat, and took as many perfons of quality with him, as the boat could well bear. Other boats, were fent to take oat the men from the linking (hip ; but fhe funk fo fail, that fe- veral of the paifenger?, with many of the duke's fervants, and above i 30 of the feamen, were miferably loft ; the com- mander, fir John Berry, hardly efcaping by a rope, over the Hern, into captain Wyborne's boat."

A fourth fays, " the duke was afleep, when the (hip ftruck, but being awak'd, and perceiving the danger, ftill ftaid, a* long as he could fafely, on board, 'till, having notice given him, that there was above feven foot water in the hold, he put off in his pinnace, with as many of the bell perfons as ic could well hold, &C." Be this as it will, feveral perfons of dillin&ion loli their lives, in this misfortune, and, among fonTof no»"0t^ers' were C'ie ear^ °fR0;x borough, the lord Dorian, the laird drowned ^ °^ Hopcon, fir Joieph Douglo?, and mr. Hyde, the duke's bro- ther-ir.-law. The author of Churchill's Annals fays, '« That in " this voyage, the colonel was very.inftrumental, in faving his " mailer's life (which confirms what I have faid above) and after- " wards in preventing the ruin of many families, who were " ftverely perfecuted by the Epiicopalians, for fcruples of con- " fcience." Which, tho' (as I have faid above) he always flriclly adher'd to the Church of England, may very well be j for he never fufrer'd his zeal to get the mailery of his modera- tion.

This matter was afterwards examined before the council, where his majefly declared, that fir John Berry was no way faulty in the lofs of the Gloucelter ; and, therefore, was pleafed to give him the command of the Henrietta, a third rate, and of a fquadron defigned for the coail of Ireland : but captain Ayres, the pilot, was found guilty, and fentenced to perpetual impri- fonmer.t.

A remarkable medal was ftruck on occafion of this extraordi- nary eicape. On the face is a builo of his royal hjghnefs, with this infcription round it, JACOBUS Dux EBORACENSIS ET A L i: A j; E s s i s ; G. B. F. The reverfe reprefents a fhip fink- ing in the ocean, and a rock and caftle at a diilance, with thefe The duke words : I M p A v i DU M F H R i u N T ,

Sond' and The duke 8ot fafe to Scot!and' on the feventh of May, and, great expedition, came l>ack, by fea, to London, in

Churchill

with him. twenty days : colonel Churchill Aill accompanying him.

30 .

•

n: Hqrnuh2 ' n asw vnsr

•ooq fi/-

' io..rni(

' •

e •

.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &jV. 31

It has been obferved, that the duke of York governed Scot- 1682. land, at that time, in an arbitrary manner, and gave manifeft i/"V"XJ tokens of" his cruelty, and inveterate hatred to the Pi efby terians : and that he did fo, we find feveral inftances, " The duke, fays An obferva- " a late author, feemed now to triumph in Scotland : all ftooped ^0" °Vhe " to him. The Prefbyterian party was much deprefs'd. The -^or^"s bc_ " beft of the clergy were turned out ; yet with all this, he washaviour in " now more hated there than ever." In another place : *' The Scotland. " proceedings againft conventicles were now like to be feverec " than ever : all the fines which were fet fo high by law, that *' they were never before levied but in fome particular inftances^ " were now ordered to be levied without exception. All peo- " pie, upon that, faw, they muft either conform, or be quite *' undone." And again; " All the Prefbyterian party faw they " were now difinherited of a main part of their birth-right of " chafing their reprefentatives in parliament: and upon that " th£y faid, they would now feek a country (meaning Carolina) " wh^re they might live undifturbed, as freemen and chri- " ftians. The duke encouraged the motion : he was glad to " have fp many untoward people fent far away, who he reckon- " ed would be ready, upon the firft favourable conjuncture, to " break out into a rebellion."

Col. Churchill, having been an eye-witnefs of the duke of A reflc£Hon York's conduct in Scotland, on this, as well as other occa- thereupon lions, without doubt fortified his principles with reflections with regard thereupon : and from hence, together with the ftate-intrigues I ^LCoi<^ hinted at above, may, among many others, be drawn one good argument, to juftify his conduct at the revolution: for, if the duke of York, while he was only preemptive heir to the crown, and a great part of the nation was endeavouring to procure his exclufion from it, could fhew the fpirit of perfecution, and exert his power, in this arbitrary manner, what might not reafonably be expected from him, when feated on the throne, and very near arrived to that height of defpotick rule, which he had all along aimed at ? " By the duke's government in Scotland (fays the " fame author) all men faw what was to be expected from Co}- Chur-

" him :" but of this more in a proper place. ^}^aA*

... t V« «._!•« n. i> *• t •• flord Chur-

At his royal highnefs s return, to fhew his high opinion of chiii.

colonel Churchill's merit, and as a reward for his faithful fer- And 'col. of vices, he recommended him, in fo favourable a manner, to his the third royal brother, king Charles II. that he created him baron tr°°r^s°f Churchill, ofAymouth, in Scotland, by letters patent, bearing ,555. date the twenty-firft of December, of this year ; and made him Marriage of colonel of the third troop of guards. the princef*

Upon the princefs Mary's being given in marriage to the A"n' Wlth prince of Orange, to which, as I have obferved above, the c^rge Of 3uke of York gave his confertt, with fome reluctance, his royal Denmark,

high-

32 the Life of JOHN,

1683. hlghr.efs was very urgent with king Charles, to leave the dii (.y-yXJ Polal cf the hdy Ann wholly to him, fince his majelly had marrvd her filler, to a perfcn cf his own chufing. However, king Charles II. to quiet the minds of the people, who were then under juit apprehenfions of popery, thought it more ad- vih; ble to give ear to the remonftrances and importunities of his council and parliament, and to marry her likewife to a pro- teltar.t prince. .Among the feveral matches propofed, his ma- jelly, at length, made choice of prince George of Denmark, 'iecorfd'fon to Frederick III. and younger brother of Chriftian V. kings of Denmark ; who having no dominions of his own, to confult the interefl and advantage of, the king prudently confider'd, would have no interelt but that of the Englifh. na- fton at heart. This prince, in the month of July, 1679. had j>aid a vifit to the Englim court in his way from France ; and four years after, at the defire of his brother (then king of Den- mark) obtained leave of king Charles to come over to England, to make his addrefles to the princefs. He arrived at White- hall, the nineteenth of July, of this year, and by his noble, roodeil, and courteous deportment, fo gain'd the afFeclion of the princefs, and the whole court, that, on the eight and twen- tieth of the fame month, he was folemnly married to her, in the chappel royal of St. James's, by Henry lord bifhop cf Lon^ don, in the prefence of the king and queen, the duke and duchek of York, and the chief of the nobility. And they That gave ever after as lively an example of conjugal happinefs in prince's high life, x hiftory furnifhes us wi*h. The prince, tho' of a char-after, ^fpofitiot tne moft eafy, pleafant and familiar, did not want a good and found underilanding, tho' h;- j.-.tl er too great mo- defty, even to a fault, but too oft or; prevented hi., c.fpiaying the happy talents he was poffel'd of. He appear'd very little in any confiderable fcer.e of aftion, during this king's reign ; lior indeed d-_-ing that of his fucceffor, king James the feconJ, *till that unhappy prince, infatuated by the prieits, who in his ftiort reign fwarm'd at co.irt, and were but too much admitted to his cabinet councils, fliew'd, in all his a£lions, his tendency to promote the encreafc of popery, and thereby alarmed and put the whole nation in a ferment, with apprehenfions of die di'.r,ger their religion and liberties were expos'd to ; but then he heartily concurr'd with the proteftant nobility for the inviting and bringing over the prince of Orange ; and, as we mall fee in the fequci, left the court, with his princefe, and johVd that par- ty. During the reign of king William, he never had any fhare in the admimltratiou, which probably was owing to his living fo great a part of it in retirement, with his princefs, on occa- fion of the unhappy differences between the two roy \\ filler? ; yet he came pretty regularly to parlis^icnt, and frequently to

Duke ^fMARLBOtlOUGH, &C.

Court, tho' he never declar'd himfelf openly, either at one or 1683. the other, of any party ; unlefs it may be faid that he feem'd rather inclin'd to favour the high church party, as their pro- Fefiion and principles of religion and politicks, feem'd to him to approach neareft to Lutheranifm, and to a tendency to that form of defpotick government, with which he had been tHe molt converlant in his younger days. He diverted himfelf chief- ly with hunting, and thought himfelf happy in the coriverfatio'ri of his royal confort. He would fometimes take his bottle, but was fo referv'd in converfation, as gave a handle to the few enemies he had to report, that he knew but one anfwer to all that was faid to him ; viz. Eft it pojfib'e ! or, Is it pofiible ! an expreffion he feem'd fond of making ufe of.

On this marriage, the princefs, to mew a publick mark of the favour and affection which me had long born for the lady Churchill, earneltly requeued her father, that fne might be made one of the ladies of her bed-chamber, which fhe was ac- cordingly, and from that firlt ftep-, made her way to the height of power, to which, by the favour of her royal miitrefs, we fhall, in the fequel, fee her gradually advance.

But tho' the duke of York did not fucceed in preventing; this

,.,/-,. ° good under-

marriage, he, in otner cales, had a very great influence over Banding be- the adions and counfels of the king, his brother : And to him tween the is afcribed the rigour with which the king treated his enemies, king an(* er thofe he thought fo, the remaining part of his reign ; of ^ e< which the lord RufTel's cafe, to mention no more, is a plain evidence ; for, in the duke of Monmouth's journal, it is laid, that the king told him : " He inclined to have faved the lord Ruf- " fel ; but was forced to confent to his death, otherwifehe muft " have broke with his brother, the duke of York."

Moft hiftorians, I fay, afcribe all the rigours exercis'd in the laft year of king Charles's reign, and all the meafures taken by his majefty, for the advancement of his abfolute power, to the counfels of the duke, his brother ; who had gain'd fo great an afcendant over him, that he held him in a kind of fub- je&ion, and led him into meafures productive of others, and fo carried him farther than the king was inclined.

The beft part of the month of January, of the year, 1685. 168 was fpent either in profecuting delinquents againit the king and^ta?e ° duke, or in receiving the charters of the corporations not yetnatl°a furrender'd, or in granting new ones,' on iuch conditions as the court thought proper. All complaints were fupprd ;'d, and the whole kingdom fubdued, the city of London not excepted, which had always oppofed abfolute power.

In this flavifh condition was the nation, when Charles II. was taken away by death, (fome fay natural, others violent, fixrh of February,1 after a few clays fickr.efs.

VOL; I. D CHAP.

34 10* Life cf J O H N,

CHAP. II. fraafafisau during tie R^ign cf Klrg JAMES II.

*V j^^TOtwithftsnding matters feem'd to pafs cff fvvimmingly, fiSna^ J- 7 between the two royal brothers in the e-.e of the world on to king au™g the latter part of king Charles Il's reign, it was more James's than a whifper, that their good underftanding was onlv in sp- -.c-v.. pearance : it is faid, th« the king being one day importuned

by the duke, to undertake things which he thought very dan- gerous, told him: Brother, I am rrfok -:d r.c Vtr to travel a%air, ynt may do fa if you plfafe. And it might perhaps not be difficult to prove, that fome warm fpeeches had pafs'd between them : after which, king Charles was heard to fay, He had bee- tad that be ivas revived, if he /AyV a 'month Imtr, t9 wk\ bimfelf eafi with b;tfutjt3s, let the tmfnptnct fall at it wuti. This expreffion being carried to the duke of York, (:s there ever were, and probably ever will be, carriers air.org c as well as pigeons,) he, in his natural way, replied, "7 it was time to take care cf bimfelf. The Graces of Dei c always ambiguous, and fo was he, in his imnner cf ex Jumfelf : but to corroborate the common funnife, and ftrcngthen the conjecture, which was then no ways made a fecret, I have beenafiured from very gocd hard?, and fuch cs theirle it, that there was, at that time, handed about privately (and after the revolution prinrec) an account of the death cf king Charles, /aid to be written by the earl of Mulgrave, after- wards duke of Buckingham. In this paper, the author, afcer hinting at the reafons aforementioned, (among many others) adds his own, why it was not reafonable to believe that king Charles died a natural death. Dr. Short, an horeft and learned phyfician, of king James's own pemiafion, did not fcruple to give his opinion that king Charles had foul play done him, and tho' a papift, died a martyr, for his too forward declaration : and dodorKing, who was one of the phyficians that attended the opening of the royal corps (the' wife enough to conceal his fen- timents, in times of peril,) was not at all icrupulous, to declare himfelf amongft friends, and, at laft, to any who had ask'd him, that, in h:'s opinion, king Charles was poifoned. Thi?, without doubt, occafioned the legend of the ftrorg box, which was then in England (as it was, many years after, in Paris) tne jeft and ridicu'e of all who read it.

Xing However it was, James duke cf York fucceeded his brother,

Chalks II. and was proclaimed by the name of king

James

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

James II. He was acknowledged by a temper of the people, as furprizing as was that of his brother's 1-etloration. Bills of « cxclufion were no more heard nor talk'd of ; and yet the dif- Some re- fenters of all forts (the Quakers excepted) were full of their ap- ^ prehenfions and fears ; and the churchmen were at little more of^he"™- than fhort allowance in their hopes. As foon as proclaimed, hetion at that began to manifeft the obftinacy of his temper, and the royal time. vizor was hid afide, as of no longer ufe ; tho' it was the opini- on of wife men, that had he continued to keep it on, he had poftponed a great many jof the fubfequent inconveniencies, which broke in like a torrent upon him, and perhaps, to the danger of our conilitution, might have had a fairer chance for obtaining his main ends. But, in this, heaven feem'd to lay the grounds of an infitiration, which alone was able, without a miracle, to preferve the nation : for h-.d he not drove a Jehu's pace, we might probably have /lumber' d over our danger, till irrecoverable ruin had overwhelmed us. Bat of this, more below.

Neverthelefs, by this change of fovereigns, the lord Ghur- ^ jor(j chill was fo far from lofmg ground, in his royal matter's favour, Churchill that his affection and efteem for him fhone forth with continues ia greater luftre. He not only continued him one of the gentle- kinS JanKS s men of his bed-chamber, as he had been while duke of York, avl and colonel of the third troop of guards ; but made him a lieute- m^ nant-general, and fent him ambafladour to the court of France, u* J£* ^ to notify the death of the late king, and his majeity's acceffion and fent am- to the crown. bafiadourto

It was the fifth of March, N. S. that his lordfhip had audi- Fran«« ence of his moft Chriilian majefly, for this end, at Verfailles, as he had afterwards of the dauphin and dauphine/s, the duke of Burgundy, the duke of Anjou, and the duke and duchefs of Orleans. The eighth of the fame month he had audience of leave, in the fame manner, and, on the tenth, left Paris, to return to England.

A late author, fpeaking of this ambafly, fays : " In one Returns t» «' thing only, the king feemed to comply with the genius of England. " the nation, tho' it proved in the end to be only a mew. He *' feemed refolved not to be governed by French councils, but " to act in an equality with that haughty monarch in all things ; " and, as he entertained all the other foreign miniilers with " affurances, that he would maintain the balance of Europe,

with'a more fteady hand than had been done formerly; fo " when he fent over the lord Churchill to the court of France, " with the notice of his brother's death, he order'd him to ob- " ferve exactly the ceremony and ftate with which he was re- " ceiv'd, that he might treat the French ambafladour in the • " fame manner j this he obferved very punctually, when the D 2 w naarfhal

36 Me Life of JOHN,

1685. " marfhal de Lorge came over. He adds, That the courtiers fet {/•"V^O" this about, as a fign of another fpirit, that might be look'd " for in a reign Co begun, and that it made fome imprefuon OSL " the court of France ; but, not long after this, the French " king faid to the duke of Villeroy (who told it to the earl of " Galvvay, from whom this author lays he had it) That the " king of England, after all the high things given out in his " name, was willing to take his money, as well as his brother " had done."

Lord Chur- Upon the return of the lord Churchill from France, he was dull made conftituted on the fixteenth of March, high iteward of the bo- ^tft^--rd rough of St. Albar.s.

tan's". ' The twenty-third of April, at the coronation of king James

,, v II. he was particularly orderrd to attend, as gentleman of his nourable majefty's bed-chamber ; and, in the proceffion, he followed im- place in the mediately after the duke of Northumberland, captain of the procefiiori at horfe-guard (in v/aiting) between the earl of Huntington, cap- the -mg s t • £• t^ band of penfioners, and the vifcount Grandifon, coronation. ... . _ „

captain of the yeomen of the guard, being followed by two

grooms of the bed-chamber, and the yeomen of the bed-cham- ber.

Is created a The fourteenth of May following, his majefty, in confide- Peerof EnS- ration of his lorcfhip's faithful fervices, created him a peer of land. England, by the llile and title of lord Churchill, baron Chur-

chill of Sandridge, in the county of Hertford, a manor belong- ing to the family of Jennings, which devolved to him in right Takes his of his lady. The nineteenth, his lordfhip took his feat in the place ia thehoufe of peer5j being introduced between the lord Maynard, and

lo'ds! the lord Butler of Wefton.

In the month of June, when an infurredtion was raifed in the j amf" the" Weft, in favour of the duke of Monmouth, who was arrived rebels in the there from Holland, and laid claim to the crown, the lord Weft. Churchill commanded the firft forces, which were lent againft

him. Thefe troops were part of the earl of Oxford's regiment of horfe, with which he narrowly obferved the motions of the duke, and, by his prudent conduct, prevented many, who o- therwife would have joined him. In this expedition, he gave an early proof of his loyalty ; for being fummoncd by the duke of Monmouth, after he had affumed the royal title, to attend him, with his forces, with particular promifes of his fa- vour, and required to do it upon his allegiance, notwithilanding the obligation he had formerly had to that unfortunate prince, he rejected his offer with diidain, and anfwered, that he knew of no other foveieign, but James, brother of the late king. So certain it is, thai nothing but the moil evident and barefac'tl attack, upon our religion iUid libej tie-, could have llwkcn his allegiance.

Among

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

Among the feveral accounts of the proceedings of his majefty's Forces agiinft the rebels in the weft, which were publifli'd by authority, we find the following that regard his lordfhip : In an account publilh'd the 22d of June, it is faid, " The lord His prudent " Churchill, on his arrival at Chard, with his majefty's forces conduft- " under his command, fent out lieutenant Monaux, with a " detachment, confifting of twenty commanded men, and a " quarter-mailer, of the earl of Oxford's regiment, who, within " two miles of Taunton, met with a party of rebels, of the *' fame number, killed twelve on the fpot, and wounded moft " of the reft, and then retir'd, upon perceiving another' party " of the rebels. Lieutenant Monaux was mortally %vounded " in the head, and three of his men wounded. This party of " the rebels were very well armed, being their beil men." In another account, of the five and twentieth, " The rebels, ac- " cording to the laft account we have, were about Glaften- " bury ; the lord Churchill obferving them very narrowly, with " part of the king's forces; he fent out, the twenty-fecond " inftant, a party of forty horfe, from Longport, who met a " fquadron of the rebels, of double the number, and beat them " into their camp." And in another, of the nine and twen- tieth : " On the five and twentieth inftant, a party of 100 horfe, " commanded by colonel Oglethorp, felt upon the rebels at " Canifham bridge, between Briftol and Bath, and cut off two " troops of their horfe, killing between 80 and looofthem " upon the place ; and, on our fide, the earl of Neuburg had " the misfortune to be fhot in the belly ; but it is hoped, he " will recover. The parties fent out by the lord Churchill, " have killed many of the rebels, and many more are deferted. ' The fix and twentieth, in the evening, all the king's forces " joined near the Bath ; upon which, the rebels, who were " drawn up, on the "other fide of the town, march'd away, ' ' in much fear and diforder, and are followed by his majefty 's " forces."

But what does moft honour to his lordfhip's memory, is his The victory vigil mce the night before the battle of Sedgmore^ to which of Sedgmore the fortune and the viftory of that day was owing. °winS to the

To give the reader a clearer idea of this truth, it will be ne- JS^'con" cefAry to premife a brief account of the ftate of things before du£l. that decifive day. The duke of Monmouth, tho' he landed Circum- with very few troops, by the concourfe of the country people, &»"=« who came in to him, had foon the appearance of an army, with ^v jlj ^~ which he marched from Lyme to Taunton, where it increafed, victory of and fo on to Bridgwater, Bath, and within two miles of Briftol ; Scdg<n<,iC. but, unadvifedly, inftead of entering into that city (thb* fome authors fay, that notwithstanding the inhabitants of Briftol w,sre iuclin'd to receive him ; yet they were fo awed by the D 3 avike

fbe Life of JOHN,

dulce of Beaufort, their governour, that they durft not have ven- tured upon it) he retreated back again to Bridgwater, which falie ftep disheartened his party, and hindered his recruits. How the fmall number of troops, which the lord Churchill had under his comimnd, harrafs'd his little army, I have already ftiewn. The <luke of Albemarle headed the militia of Devonfhire ; the duke of Sommerfet the militia of that county, at Bath ; the duke of Beaufort the militia of Gloucefterfhire, at Eriftol ; the earl of Pembroke the militia of Wiltfhire, at Chippenham ; and the jnilitia of other counties were on their march towards the Weft: But the king, not havhig a perfect confidence in them, lent away all his regular troops and guards, to form an army under the command of the earl of Feveriham, nephew to the late monf. Turenne, who in the beginning of July, encamp'd 3t Sedgmcre, where the lord Churchill was fecond in command, as lieutenant-general.

The duke of Monrnouth being at Bridgwater, which was near adjoining, found himfelf in a manner, befieged, and his men, daily deierting, in great numbers ; he, therefore, refolved to hazird a bold ftroke, cnce for all, and attack the earl of Fe- veriham the firft night of his encampment. He was inform'd by the country- people, that the king's army was very remifs, the troopers in their beds, and the foot revelling in their camp : Upon which he told his people, to encourage them, that they nyou'd have no more to do, but to Ice k up the flable- doors, andjcize the trcojfrs in their beds. He began his march accordingly, about an hour before midnight, in all the filence imaginable, without drum or trumpet, and with orders not to fire a piece, till they were in the enemies camp, thinking thereby to furprize the king's troops, and fall upon them when unarm'd, and no ways prepared for a defence. Some of the rebels, having ftray'd from their guide, came fooner up to Dunbarton's regiment, which lay in an advanced poft, than the body of the duke's army. This regiment, confifting mollly of old r.nd experienced foldiers, had agreed, that IDC of them (hould keep guard, and lye upon their arms all night : Yet, notwithstanding all their caution, they had been furpnz'd, had not the duke% guide happen'd to lead his men above the ford ; and they not having patience to wait his motions, ran dilorderly over the ditch, to come at the enemy, by which means, they loft their gaide ; and a piftol accidentally going off, gave the firft: alarm to the royal army. Upon this, the lord Churchill, who, with his ufual vigilance, was fitting up that night, in order, if occafion required, to put himfelf at the head of that regiment, and fuftain the firft attack, headed what troops he could (coned get in order, and receiving the ene- my, without any figns of furprize, kept them in play till the whole body-of the king's troops had tame to form themfelves.

Thus,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V. 39

Thus, by his vigilance, thefurprize, which might probably have 1685. proved fatal, was prevented ; and to this difappointment, on u.»»w-« J the enemy's fide, was principally owing the enfuing viclory.

This beginning drew on the general battle, between the two A brief ac- little armies, cf which the duke's confided of about 5000 men, count of the horie and foot, and the king's of about the fame number, or a battle- fomewhat larger, and n ore regular troops. The fight, for the time it iafled, was very hot ; the duke's army laboured under many difadvantages ; but defpair fupplied every defe&, and, for a while, they made a gallant refiflance (and chiefly the infantry commanded by the duke) till, at length, his horfe, commanded by the lord Grey (confifting of imrfh mares and colts) which would not Itand the noiie ot drums and guns, and could never be brought into a charging order, quitted the field ; and ins in- fantry, having fpent what ammunition they had, and their bag- gage, by feme default, not being come up, w.is obliged, like- wne, to give ground. Thus, by four in the morning, the rebels were entirely routed, 300 killed on the fpot, 1000 in the pur- %

fuit, and as many more taken prifoners, as were the duke and the lord Grey, the latter the next day, and the former two days after.

The account which was publifhedofthisadionby authority, B havlcur fays, that the lord Churchill, who commanded nextui:der thelordof the lord Ftvermam, performed his part with all the courage and gallant) imaginable; but an anonymous writer fays, that the victory was owing to the vigilance, valour and conduit of the lord Churchill, more than to any one perfon, whomfoever. Monf. RoufTet goes yet farther, and affirms, that had it not been for the lord Churchill's vigilance, the king's whole army had been cut off; whereas by his conduct, in keeping the enemy at bay, till they got into order, the enfuing victory was obtained. Another author, tho' he does not mention the lord Churchill, in his re- lation of this tranfadtion, confirms what I have juft faid, by his account of the lord Feveriham's negligence, and evil condudl. This lord (fays he) was honeft, brave and good-natur'd, but weak to a degree not eafy to be conceived ; and he condudl- ed matters fo ill, that every ftep he made was like to prove fatal to the king's fervice. He had no parties abroad, he got no intelligence ; and was almoit furprized, and like to be defeated, when he feerrTd to be under no appreherriion, but

was a-bed, without any care or order. The duke of Mon-

mouth had almoft furprized lord Feverfham, and all about

hi;n, while they were a-bed. He got in between two bodies,

into which the army lay divided, &c." If, therefore, the

conduct of the commander in chief was fo bad, it follows ne-

cefiarily, that all the honour of that action was due to the lord

Churchill, who was next in command under him-

D 4 Th?

tte Lift cf J O H N,

The fuccefs king James had againft the duke of Monmouth, and his adherents, which, as I have faid above- was chiefly, Evil condu^ and perhaps wholly owing to the valour and conduct of our in- oftbekics. C0mparabie htm, deftroy'd aii the hopes his enemies had of prevailing againft him ; and had he made a j aft and moderate ufe of it, he might have reign'd the happy king of as happy fubje&s ; but it had a very different effect upon his majefty, from what might reafonably have been expected, ard his prieftg became io elate upon it, that they thought, as they govern'd the queen, who had but too great an influence on the king, nothing could now withftand them, and they might, with as mucheafe, govern the whole nation.

Some in. FlufiYd, I lay, with this victory, king James, as he had done ftances of It. by every piece of good fortune, which attended him before, re- folvcd to make an ill ufe of it. I hope, it will not be look'd upon as foreign to my purpofe, if I, in this place, juft hint at fome of the principal inllances of his rnajtiiy's evil and unhappy t conduct (I may fay unhappy, ;>s well with regard to the nation,

as himfclf, unlefs the happy effects, they produced, may make it. fcem a paradox) as they justify the conduct of .our hero, in the moit critical and difficult fcene of his whole life, nnd as the remembrance of them ought, upon all occafions, to be kept alive, as a proper incitive to a conllant vigilance againft all encroach- ments ujon our liberties, and innovations that can pofiibiy tend to the fubvcrfion of them. Jnitead of endeavouring to recover, or rather to fix the minds of his people to an unalterable affec- tion and loyalty, by ways of humanity, mercy and condefcen- fion ; revenge, that orthodox fpirit of Popery, took place, and prompted, or rather feduccd king James, to fend down that Cruelty cf cruel and wicked inftrumtnt of it, Jefferies, into the Weft ; not jefferics in to enquire into bare demerits, but to find every one guilty of the We-, treafon, whofe name or countenance cid not pleafe him. His majefty could not have pitched upon a perfon fitter for his pur- pofe; fmce his exquifite juilice&ip employ 'd, years after, the whole wifdora of the nation, to undo his vile undoings, and to fet that law ftreight again, which he had made to warp to his prince's humour. To mention no more, dame Alicia Lyfle was a woful inftance of the truth of this, who for only relieving a few poor wretches, and giving them bread, upon bare ftraw, in her barn, was condemnM and executed, as an accomplice in treafon, which nothing but her charity had made her acquaint- ed with.

The king ^ven tn^s &d not fatisfy king James's unprincely revenge : flbmes a his grandfather's and namefakc's itch after arbitrary and unli- mited power, had fo tainttd his mind, that it ftifled and fub- £ue(j every fpsrk of natural goodnefs that arofe in hun ; and his popifh counfeilours were fuqii quacks in politicks, that infkad 3 rf

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

of prefcribing medicines proper to aflwage the evil, they never defign'd to eradicate, they only adminiftred fuch as fpread the ' malady, and render1 d it more univerfal. By way of experiment, they ad vis d him to affume and begin with exercifing a difpenfing power, which was laying the ax to the root of our conftitution, inftead of ufmg a pruning knife : but moderate counfels were hardly to be expected from people unacquainted with modera- tion, except it be to carry on their own finifter defigns. Why elfe was liberty of confcience offer' d the difienters, but to bring an odium on that church which had ever been the ftrongeft bul- wark againft popery, or to make the diffenting party tools and accomplices, in the overthrow of our conftitution, which the king had moft at heart ?

But there was a more daring fet of people, with whom his knight-errantfhip had to encounter. Men, who, more than fif- teen hundred years after the times of primitive Chriftianity, could audacioufly pretend to purfue primitive patterns, and almoft offer themfelves a facrifice for that primitive Chriftianity ; a thing fo new, and therefore fo much above belief, that it put the popifh councils to their utmoft ftratagems to circumvent them. At length, however, they dreamt, they had found a noftrum, which would effectually aniwer their purpofes. This was a royal let- Forbids ter to the bifhops, charging them to take effectual care, that ckrgy of their refpeftive diocefes (without having regard to the^"n^h*" canons, or their conferences) mould not preach or write againft church of popery, while their priefts and Jefuits were countenanced in both, Rome, againft the eftab'.ifh'd church. Their fermons, difputes and pamphlets were cried about the ftreets, as publickly as the de- clamations and warnings of Tyburn-orators, and, indeed, with much the fame efifeft on the populace, whom only they could propofe to feduce, by fuch petty legerdemain. This effort was fo far from 'anfwering the hopeful expectations of it, that it ra- ther invigorated than deprels'd the zeal of the clergy ; and there were very few churches, in or about the city of London, where the errors of the church of Rome were not emphatically e:-:poied, and the purity of the doftrine of the church of Eng- land, more ftrenuoufly than ever, proved and afferted. King James was not without his emifl'aries and informers, in every congregation, and finding by their reports, that thefe his pious endeavours were like to prove abortive, a confultation of his ftate-furgeons was held, and an ecciefiaftical commiifion unani- moufly refolved upon.

This court had been conftJtuted in queen Elizabeth's reign, 1685. by 3& of parliament, and intended as a barrier to the reforma- ^ highec. tjon, . which was then in its infancy. This a<3 inverting her, ^^ ft^al and, in her, the crown, with the ancient ecciefiaftical jurifdic-biiflfd. ** uon> ir.e, by virtue of that power, to prevent the growth of

popery.

Toe Life of J O H N,

popery, and fecure the church of England, in her time eftabliili- ed, fet up a high commiffion-court, with power extending to fines and imprifonments. In the troublefome times of king Charles the firft's reign, many tender confciences (and what con- fciences are not fo when intereft is in queflion r) feeing them- felves liable to the like fines and penalties, made intereft in parliament, the feventeenth of that king, and got that branch of the laid aft of queen Elizabeth repealed, and a cUufe in- ferred, forbidding all ecclefiaftical judges to proceed to fine, or imprifon, the king's fubjeft?, or tender the oath, ex officio.

The handle the Jefuits made of this was Jefuitically logical ; for an aft having pnfled, the thirteenth of king Charles II. im- porting, that the aft of the feventeenth of )iis father does not, Or mall not t.<ke away the common powers of ecclefiaftical ju- rifdiftion, hut that ecclefirilical judges or courts may proceed to fentence, and execute in all cauies and matters ecclefiaftical, according to the laws ufed and praftifed in this realm ; the Jefuits founded a plea for this new high commilTion-court, from the very diflblution of the old one, and, by explaining only part away, r.-is'd a phoenix out of the afhes, unlike the mother, in every feature and quality ; the pile Ihe was burnt on having been ccmpofed of pernicious weeds inftead of fpices.

Their com- This ecclefuftical commiiTion, though granted in April, was ..million pot open'd till the third of Augult, and was directed to the arch- *pen d. bifhop of Canterbury, to Jefferies, now lord chancellour, the bifhops of Durham and Rochefter, the earl of Rochefter, lord high treafurcr, the earl of Sunderland, prefident of the council, And the lord chief juftice Herbert, or any three of them, of whom Jefferies, whofe Chriftian behaviour in the Weii had en- titled him to royal favour, on all future occafions, was digni- fied with the fpecifical charafteriftick to be always one to make aquo>-um. The archbifhop abfolutely refufed to aft, and the bifhop of Rochefter foon declined the fervice.

The character of Jefferies is too well known, and his un- chriftian behaviour, in the Weft, too notorious to fully this work with a recital of it : but the earl of Rochefter was too much concern 'd in the important tranfaftions of thefe times, to pafs his over wholly in filence ; I (hall, therefore, give the reader a ihort fketch of it :

g. of Ro-- " Lawrenc?, earl of Rochefter, was fecond fon to chancellour

chefter's '* Hyde, lord Clarendon, and uncle to the princefs of Denmark,

character. « afterwards i.ueen Ann. He had a very good natural capa-

" ciry, which was greatly improv'd by education and expert

f< ence. Kirg Charles II. employ'd him, whilft he was very

** young, in foreign neguciations ; and king James II. made

" him lord high treafurer, gave him the g rter, and created

*' him earl of Rochefter. At the revolution, he oppofed king

» William's

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 43

William's coming to the throne, and was generally in the op- 1686. pofition to the meafures taken by that court. Upon the <-•— V~"*^ breach of the partition-treaty, the king, to gain over him, and his party to further his defigns againlt France, made him lord lieutenant of Ireland, and call'd him to the cabinet } he was, indeed, foon thrown out again ; but is, neverthelefs, faid, to have enjoy'd a very large penfion, during the con- tinuance of that reign. Queen Ann, at her acceffion to the throne, again made him lord lieutenant of Ireland ; but when that princefs (as we fhall fee in thefequel,) made the lord Go- dolphin, lord high treafurer of England, an employ he was in expectation of, he foon quitted Ireland, and never appear' d more at court. In the houfe of peers, he was eafily wrought into paflion ; which the party oppofite to him, knew very well how to make advantage of, in debates ; and, by that means, frequently foil'd the great mare he had of know- " ledge."

The firft who fell under the clutches of this commiflion was The;r pro, dodor Compton, lord bifhop of London, who was fummon'd theceedings a- very day the commiflion was opened to appear the next. He gj> 'nft the had thwarted the court, in an addrefs of thanks voted in the houfe of lords to the king, by propofing a previous debate on the king's fpeech, and this was crime enough to lay him under the malignity of a popifh council, and the royal difpleafure. How- ever, to conceal the cloven foot, a crime (if it may be faid to be a crime) fomewhat more modern, was made the pretext, that is, his refufing to obey the king's letter, for the fufpenfion of doftor Sharp (one of the boldeft and moft learned defenders of the pro- teftant caufe) for daring to preach, contradictory to the king's Shai?' letters, in oppofition to the errors of the church of Rome. The bifhop had fent a fubmiflive and excufatory letter by the dodlor, who accompanied it with an humble petition of his own ; but to no purpofe ; for what can be an antidote againft popifh venom ? The good bifhop was obliged to make his appearance before the high commiffioners, where, tho' he tender'd a plea to the jurif- diclion of the court, it nothing availed ; there was little want-f ing befides a crown of thorns and a fcourging, to make his treat- ment like his mailer's. Jefferies (who was particularly infamous for his audacious talent, and whofe character given him by king Charles II. was, that he had more impudence than ten cartecl whore?) treated the good bifhop with all the ill manners and ill nature he was capab'e of j and after the moft fubmiflive beha- viour, that Christianity had the power to infpire into any breaft, accompanied, however, with all the freedom and boldnefs, that innocence could infufe in it's own defence, he was fentenced to lilence, and both himfelf, and doctor Sharp (without a judicial Bearing) illegally fufpended from their functions.

There.

44 &e Life of J O H N,

1 686. There is no Hopping a torrent, nor a bowl caft down hill, till L^VNJ it comes to the bottom. Thefe bold, but illegal, fucceffes, A camp therefore, only whetted the king's popifh counfellors on to Hounflow *heir own deftrudtion, and pufhed them forward to farther fatal heath. experiments. Such breaches of the law caufed, however, daily murmurings; and, notwithftanding every coffee-houfe was fur- niihed with fpies, there was hardly one found in the city, where people did not freely fpeak their mind, and ceniure thefe proceed- ings. To put a curb to thefe liberties of the fubjecl, it was held neccffary, by the king's popifh council, to make proper pro- vifions for the maintenance of that arbitrary power, they had fo illegally grafp'd into their hands. To that end, and the bet- ter to intimidate all fuch as might be willing and ready to op- eavo pofe their meafures, an army, of about 1600 Men, was drawn to feduce^the toget^er» and encamped on Hounflow-heath ; and to fcduce the foldiery in foldiery, with the greater eafe (for not a third part cf them were -vain, papifts) a chappel was creeled in the head-quarters, where mafs

was publickly held forth every day. This had, however, little tffed with the foldiery, nor did I ever hear that many pro- felytes were gained. The fear of infection was, neverthelefs ge- neral, and mr. Samuel Johnfon, a clergyman, to prevent the confcquences of it, as much as in him lay, drew up a plain, but pathetick addrefs, entitled, * An addrefs to the Englifh pro- * tenants in king James's army? which he printed, and took care to have diiperfed among the foldiers. This fo irritated the king, and his precipitate advifers, that, whatever effecT: it had on thofe it was directed to, it gave his majefty, and his favorites, Punifli a new °PP°rtunity °f gratifying their revenge : Johnfon was im- ef mr. mediately imprisoned, and arraigned at the king's bench bar, John/on, before fir Edward Herbert, who fentenc'd him to Hand thrice in the pillory, to pay a fine of 500 marks, and to be whip'd from Newgate to Tyburn; which latter, in particular, wasperform'd with to great feverity, and in fuch a deplorable manner, as was of no great fervice to their caufe : but before this fentence was exec ited, he was brought before the high commiffion-court, and formally degraded.

All thefe things, however indifcreet as well as iilegal, were but the bare earnefts of more egregious tyrannies and follies. Change of religion was now made the only ftep to preferment, and all who adhered to their old principles were foon difcharged the royal fervice ; and fo eager were the popifh party in the pur- fuit of their defign, that they now thought all obftacles removed, and began to raiie trcphies, before they had any real tokens of a victory. An ambaffadour was fent to Rome, in the name of king fcdour™fent !arnes> under pretence of reconciling England, Scotland, and to Rome. Ireland, to the obedience of the holy fee. Mafs-houfcs were ahnolt as numerous as panfh churches, and popifh fchools and

fcmir.aric.s.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

feminaries fwarm'd in and about the city. Colleges were at- tempted to be garbled, and immemorable foundations broken in upon, againft oath and confcience, to make room even for pro- fligates, if new converts -, without regard how deferving thecha- racler of the incumbent, or how vile the qualities of the intend- ed fucceffor were. To fay the latter had changed his religion, was fufficient to entitle him to a fellowfhip not vacant ; and to fay the former was a perion of piety, learning and fobriety, was enough to difpoflefs him of all he had legally in his poffefiion.

I have already hinted, that king James affumed a difpenfing The king power, in defiance of the laws. The fourth of April, of this difpenfes year, the king publifhed a declaration, allowing liberty of con- w^ ^ fcience to all his fubjefts, fufpending and difpenfing with the a^tcfts!* penal laws and tells, and even with the oaths of allegiance and fupremacy, on admiffion into offices, civil or military. Tho' this was certainly defigned to countenance his indulgences to • thofe of his own periuafion ; yet the difienters, of every deno- mination, being tempted by the golden hook, (wallowed the bait to their own deltruftion, and addreffes of thanks, for this liberty, were daily prefented by them, to the king. Thus far he may be allowed to have aded, in this point, upon a right principle in policy ; but whither will not the prejudicate paffions of man hurry him ? Not fatisfied with this, tho' much more than the laws allowed him, he back'd that declaration, the year fol- jgg_ lowing, in the month of May, by an order of council, com- An order ot manding it to be read in the time of divine fervice, in all churches council, and chappels, in London and Wellminfter, and ten miles diftance, t^reuPon» upon the twentieth, and feven and twentieth of that month, and^ ^d 4° in all other churches and chappels of the kingdom, on the all churches, third and tenth of June ; and that the bimops mould caufe the&c. faid declaration -and order of council, to be fent and diftributed in their refpeclive diocefes, to be read accordingly. This cer- tainly was outdoing all that had been done before. It was, in a manner, tying down the necks of the clergy to the very yoke itfelf. Or rather, if the clergy could havefpoken plain Eng'iflj, they might juftly have faid, his majefty would now no longer allow them to be accomplices only, in the intended ruin of the nation, but would take care they mould be principal?. This or- der, therefore, fufficiently alarmed the whole nation ; nor was there any iincere well-wifher to our conftitution,, that was not heartily convinc'd of the bad intention of the courr.

However, upon a meeting, at the archiepiicopal palace at A confulta- Lambeth, of molt of the eminent divines in and about London, ticn ofth-- after imploring the divine affiilance, by publick prayer, it wasclersy con-^ agreed, That the matter of the declaration was altogether illegal, ce™;n^ the foot upon which it itood, being a power not only to dilpenfe, in contingent and particular cafes, (which, if the leg^flator could .

have

tte Life of JOHN,

have forefeen, would have been provided againft ;} but the dif- penfing with all fort of laws, in cafes contrary to the very defign and end of making them : That fuch power was not properly a difpenfing, but a difannulling power, highly prejudicial to the king himfelf ; becaufe it took away that faith and truft, which the people repofe in him, when a law is made, and which they look upon as their fecurity : That tho' every bifhop and mini- fter might not be a competent judge in fuch cafes j neverthelefs, he was a judge competent for his own private confcience, a- gainft which he ought not to go ; however that this cafe was pub- lickly adjudged and difcufs'd in parliament, in 1672. Thefe and many other folid reafons were at that time ftarted and fettled : however, the bifhops prefent. wifely and confciencioufly coa- lidering, that an univerfal refufal might be attended with the woril Their refo- of confequences, and leave the flock without their ihepherds, re- lation, folved upon a glorious expedient, worthy of the imitation of all future ages, as it came up to the moft noble of the primitive pat- terns. The expedient was this, that fince fuch a general refufal might be very inconvenient and dangerous to the church, they would take the whole load upon their own moulders, and by making it an adl of omiffion of their own, alone iland the brunt of the royal difpleafure.

According to this com paffionate, and truly Chriilian refolution, The bifhops a petition to the king was drawn up by the archbifliop Sancrofr, petition the and flgn^ ty doftor Lloyd, bifhop of St. Afaph ; defter Kenn, kuig> bifhop of Bath and Wells ; doftor Turner, bifhop of Ely ; dodor

Lake, bifliop of Chichefter ; dodlor White, bimop of Peterbo • rough ; and fir Jonathan Trelawny , bifhop of Briftol ; fetting forth the bad confequence to himfelf and people, likely to attend their paying obedience to his order for reading the declaration in their churches, and therefore moil humbly befeeching his majefty not to infill upon it. But reafon was a thing, that had long for- faken him, and his councils. To go on, therefore, in the old train, king James, after having read their petition, wrathfully The king's exprefs'd himfelf in the following manner : " I heard of this be- anfwer. tl fore, but did not believe it ; I did not expeft this from the " church of England, efpecially from fome of you. If I change " my mind, you (ball hear from me, if not, I expedl my com- " mand mail be obeyed."

This was a fufficient indication of what they were to truft to, without farther waiting : for king James was very well known to be very little given to changing his mind, ever fince he turned papift. But tho' he had before broken in upon the laws and conftitution, in many egregious points, this may be faid to be the rock he fplit upon. Whether treachery in fome of his coun- fellors, or a hardened blindnefs in all, was the caufe, the pro-

fecutioa

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, ~&c. 47

-fecutionof the right reverend petitioners was csrried on, with 1688. the utmoit ie verity and rigour; which, however, after all the ^— — v—- •* virulence and infults heap'd upon them, by the co'^rt party, ter- And acquit •> minuted in a glorious triumph of the church, over popery, to tc * the inexpreflible joy of the whole nation. This a man of common umlerlhinding would iiave thought fufficient to have opened the eyes of the king's advifers, and reduced them to a it te of think- ing j but heaven had fo infatuated the whole pirty, that the failure of this, and other projects, did but fpur them on to think of new ones, and to wade deeper into the mire. The deiign of deducing the army having failed of fuccefs, the like was attempt- ed on the fleet, and mafs was ordered to be faid on board : but there the prieib narrowly efcaped being thrown over-board. A A Papal Papal Nuncio was not only admitted, but carefs'd, and a prince Nuncio ad- of Wales having been either born of the queen, or palm'd uponmit*ed* the nation (no matter which, according to our preient happy conftitution) this fame nuncio reprefented the pope at fcis elm- ilening, in the royal chappel of St. James's.

The itch of eilablifhing popery in England, had now fo for The princefs got the afcendant of the king, that it even {lifted all ties and of Denmark affections of nature. He had ever been an indulgent father JQ neglefted by all his children, and had even a peculiar fondnefs for the1 e n^* princefs Ann ; yet, as foon as the popifh counfels began to pre- vail, her royal highneis became no lefs, nay perhaps more ob- noxious to the court, than the prince and princefs of Orange, who not being blefs'd with iffue, were net fo likely to obflruct the defign of fetting up a popifli fucceffor, as the teeming princefs of Denmark. There was a current report, that whilit the queen either was, or pretended to be with child, the prin- cefs Ann, being, one day, at her majeily's toilet, too inquiiivfr about that matter, fhe received a fevere check from the im- perious queen (or, as fome fay, fhe threw her glove at her royal bighnels's face) upon which fhe retired from court.

Guided by thefe, and the like evil counfels, the king, jit Other irre- , length, wore out the patience of his moil faithful fubje&s. His gukrSties «-,f repeated illegal practices drew on remoniirances and petitions ^ £j"^.:j from every fide, which met with the harfheft and moft infulting a - amwers. He evidently manifefted, to the whole world, that his dviign was no lefs th n a total fubverfion of tke proteltant reli- gion, together with our liberties and conftitution ; and to intro- duce in the room of them, popery, flavery, and tyranny, by means of the army he had all along kept up, and which ie encreaitd, from time to time, chiefly with popiih officers and foidiers. He refufed to c.dl a parliament, put papiils into all polls, civi; and military, and particularly brought popifh lords, and ot:.crs of that perfuafion, into his privy council ; with a multitude of other irregularities, which the Englifh nation could

M

48 We Life of JOHN,

1688. no longer bear, and in which we fhall find oar herOj tho1 & {^/VNJ much his favourite, had no hand.

The Jord Many inftances might be given, how cautious the lord Chur- Churchill chill was, not to be involved in any of the king's evil coun- uo way con- {e\s ; but one may fuffice : His lordfhip was fent for to the cerne m queen's pretended labour, on the tenth of June, but he had re- Hi caution, ceiv'd fome intimations of what was to be tranfafted, and, therefore, kept out of the way. It is, indeed, difficult to con- ceive, how his lordfhip, who was fo near the king's perfon, and fo much in his intimacy and faVour, could poflibly avoid, with- out giving offence, being engaged in fome of thefe pernicious counfels ; and that he was not, is as certain, as his not being fo is an inconteftable mark of his great wifdom and prudent condudt.

A critical Having premis 'd thefe things, in which I have thought it junior" for neceffary to be, at leaft, fo particular, as they juftify our hero's the lord future behaviour, I now come to one of the moft critical fcenes CfciuchUl. of this great man's life: a fcene, in which he, at once, flood in need of all that fteady refolution, ftricl honour, and noble pre- fence of mind, which he poflefs'd in a great degree of per- fe&ion, and of which we (hall find many more inftances, in the fequel, to carry him thro' a boiflerous and tempeftuous fea, with rocks and hidden fhoals, on either fide of him, on which, by too near an approach, the fhip of his reputation or honour was in danger of fpliting On ore fide, the love, gratitude, and duty, which he bore to his prince and benefactor, might eafily have drawn him blindly to approve and countenance all his mea- fures. to the wronging of his confcience and honour ; and the fame motives of love, gratitude, and duty, which he owed to bis country, its laws and conliitution, which would prompt him to oppofe them, mull naturally load him with the imputation of the blackeft ingratitude : but amidfl this hard ftruggle in his mind, his duty to God, and his holy religion, had their juft weight, and, at length, determined him what courfe to take. The king's The lord Churchill, notwithftanding ihe many obligations

COI>du£Vhf" he had t0 his r°yal malter' had' * faX» to° innate a love for tSTlord ^'S countr)'» to enter *nto» mucn lefs to applaud and farther his Churchill, pernicious meafures. He was too well grounded in his religion, and had too great a value for our happy conftitution, not to look but with an evil eye, on the violent proceedings againft the feven biihops, and other no lefs arbitrary practices, which I have men- tioned above.

Afperfions ^'s enem'es have been very fevere in cenfuring his conduct,

thrown on on this account, and have not been contented with accufing him

hi» lord/hip, of ingratitude, but charge him alfo with treachery, to the kindeft,

the molt indulgent, and moll liberal of mafters. A late hiflo-

rian, if what he relates of his lordfhip be to be credited, en-

iirely

t)uke of M A R L & o RO u c H , &c. 49

'tfrel'y dears him of thefe afperfions : this author, after having 1688. obferved, that the lord Churchill was one of the earlieft, who u*-v-*-J came into the fcheme of inviting the prince of Orange to come His juftifi- over, goes on as follows : • cati°fl-

" But having now named the lord Churchill; I will fay a The lord " little more of him : he was a man of a noble and. graceful Churchill's " appearance, bred up in a court with no literature : but hechara<ftc*A «' had a folid and clear underftanding, with a conftant prefence '* of mind. He knew the arts of living in a court, beyond " any man in it. He carefs'd all people with a foft and obli- " gi°g deportment, and was always ready to do good offices. " He had no fortune to fet up on : this put him upon all thd •' methods of acquiring one ; and that went fo far into him* " that he did not fhake it off when he was in a much higher " elevation : nor was his expence fuited enough to his pofts. •" But, when allowances are made for that, it mull be acknow- rt ledg'd, that he nvas one of the Create ft men the a;e has pro- *' dufd. He ivas in high favour ivifb the king ; but his lady *' much more with the princefs Ann.

" She had an afcendant over her in every thing. She was The lafy "«' a lady of a clear apprehenfion, and a true judgment, u warm Churchill's «' and hearty friend, violent and fuddcn in her refoluiions, and charaiftcr* *' impetuous in her way of fpeaking. She was thought proud *J and infolent on her favour, tho' fhe us'd none of the common *< arts of a court to maintain it ; for (lie did not befat the prio- •' cefs, nor flatter her. She ftaid much nt hofne^ and looked ** very carefully after the education of her children.

" Having thus opened both their cham.cters (continues myTLe lord " author) 1 will now give an account of this lord's engage ments Churchill's. " in this matter, for which h£ has been fo feveroly cenfa/ed, fa"he.r Jufi " as guilty both of ingratitude and treachery, to u very kind atloni " and liberal niafter. He never dife <vcrc^ ar.-t _ of the' king*t " fecrets ; nor did he ever pujjy him on to any w'wlent prxetfc " ings: fo that he was in no contri/ance to ruin or m- tray *' him. On the contrary, whenfoever he fpoke to the king of " his affairs, which he did bat felcloih, btCaiiie he could not " fall in with the king's notions, he ativays f^sjhd mode > ate " coanfels. The e^rl of GalA'ay (Tiys ny author) told me, ** that when he- came over, with the firft. CM.ipiiini-nt, upon *' the king's coming to the crown, he fai-J then to hinv, Tiiat^ *' if the kixg <WP.S ever prevaii'd u->> :>n to alt>r our tf '/;> on.; he " would fir ve him no lotger, but ivirhdra-jj from him : jb early " teas this i-efohition fix' d in him. When he law Jiow the king *' was fet, he coald not be. contented to fee all ruin'd b) him ; " he was alfo vtry doubtful as to the preteatied birth .-o he " rejll-jed, i-:Len the prince Jhoutd come ov^r, to r-o in to him j •* l-ut ts betray no pojl,\nor do any thing more than the nuith- YOJU. 1, E «

Me Life ./JOHN,

drawing Inmfelf, withjucb officers as ke could trufi tvttb the "' fecret. He alfo undertook, that prince George, and the prin- " cefs Ann would leave the court, and come to the prince, as " foon as was poflible."

thTlori °f Thc hiilory of the Revolut5on is fo wel1 known, and has been c^ur^il: atfo fully treated of by many authors, that it would be fuperflu- the revolu- ous to &/ more of it here, than what is neceffary to illuftrate •ion, the conduct of the great man whofe actions I am writing.

The many provocations the king had given the nation, and the little piofpeft they could have of any remedy, on his fide, induced, at length, many of the heads of the nation, lords fpi- ritual and temporal, &c. to invite fecretly the prince of Orange, to come over from Holland to their aliiltance. To one of thefe invitation?, the lord Churchill is faid to have fct his hand, tho' rot without great reluftancy and ttruggle of mind. It is like- wife faid, that, upon this occafion, he confulted with dodlor Turner, then lord bifliopof Ely, and other eminent divines, who having allured him, that it was his duty to join with the many others who had invited the prince of Orange, their advice con- firm'd the motives, I have already mention 'd, and at lait, deter- mined him to do it ; though at that time, feemingly contrary to his intereft ; for he might at leaft reafonably Jiave expeftcd ftill greater honours by fiding with die court-party.

While the king was at Salifkiry, moft of the chief officers applied themfelves to the earl of Feveriham, defiring him to affure his majefty, " That upon any occafion, they uould be «' ready to fpill the lail drop of their blood in his fervice ; yet " they could not, in confcience, fight againft a prince, who " was come over with no other defign, than to procure the " calling of a free parliament, for the fecurity of their religion " and liberties." Our hiftorians do not pofuively fay, that the lord Churchill was one of thofe who made this remonftrance ; but the fequel makes it more than probable that he was. And if (as a late author fays) his lordfhip was one of thofe noblemen, uith whom the firft perfons of diftin&ion, who went over to the prince of Orange, to Holland, correfponded, he mull have been very early concerned in the great and glorious event of the revo- lution : this is confirm'd by a right reverend author, who round. ly afferts, that admiral Ruffel had adlually carried meffages be- tween the prince of Orange, and lord Churchill : '' Nor is it to *' be imagined (to ufe the words of a more recent author in a *' late memorable controverfy) that a perfon of his highnefs's " (the prince of Orange's) prudence and fagacity, woujd have " ventured on fuch an enterprize, unlefs he had firit confultod, «• hoih the prince of Denmark and lord Churchill, nay perhaps *' urjew lie had firft feen their hands and feals, at the bottom " cl the invitation, which was fast over under the title of a

" memorial

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. " memorial to the prince and princefs of Orange. This being " allowed (continues my author) we can fcarce avoid conclu- '* ding, that both the princefs and lady Churchill were in the " fecret." Nay it will even appear, in the fequcl, that the princefs made preparations for her efcape when her" perfon or liberty mould be in danger, many weeks before me left White- hall.

By this, the king might very well perceive, how little he was to depend on his army ; and his general, the lord Feverfliam, might well underftand, that none of the chief officers would ftand by him. Before all other, he, in a more efpecial manner fufpe&ed the lord Churchill, who then commanded a brigade of 5000 men ; he, therefore conjured his majefty, together with colonel Windham, to have him fecured, for a terror td the reft ; but could, by no means, prevail upon the king to do it j whether on account of the afreclion he ever bore him, and the hope he might thence conceive, that this lord would never for- fake him j or whether his majefty might be apprehenfive, that fuch a rigorous proceeding might occafion a mutiny in hii army, I (hall not pretend to determine.

His lordmip, whether he had any knowledge, or was unde'i' apprehenfion of any defign againft him, or whether he had be- fore concerted his meafures (which is moft probable) tho' this might haften them, went over, the next day, to the prince of Orange, with as many as were willing to follow him J among whom were the duke of Grafton, colonel Berkly, and four or five captains of his regiment of dragoons. At his going awayj he fent the following letter to the king, which, as it flietvs how* tender he was of his honour, and how much he had at heart the intereft of his country, I mall infert it at large ; only firft obferving, that the reafon he alledges for his condud is much the fame that Brutus gave for joining againft Caefar.

S I R,

{ OINCE men arefeldom fufpecledof iincerity,when they aft The iori! ' \^ contrary to their interefts : and tho' my dutiful behaviour ,^"^i[1.'*- ' to your majefty, in the1 worft of times (for which I acknowledge 1 my poor fervices much overpaid) may not be fufficient to in- ' ' cline you to a charitable interpretation of my actions ; yet, £ I hope, the great advantage I enjoy under* your majefty,

* which I can never expedl in any other change of government, ' may reafonably convince your majefty, and the world, that ' I am afted by a higher principle, when I offered that violence

* to my inclination and intereft, as to defert your majefty, at «* a time when your affairs feem to challenge the ftricleft obe^ " dience from all your fubje&s ', much more from one, who " lies under the greateft obligations to your majefty. This, fir,

E 3 " could

The Life of J O H N,

" could proceed From nothing, but the inviolable difhtcs of my '•' conrcience, and a neceffary concern for my religion (which no " good man can bppote) and with which, I am inftru&ed, no- «' thing ought to come in competition.' Heaven knows, with i: what partiality, my dutiful opinion of your majefty has hi. " the: to represented tbofe unhappy deftgns, which inconfiderate " and felf'interefted.men have framed againfl your nr.jefty's true '" int'ereft,' and the protcfrant religion : but as I can no longer .'n with fuch, to give a pretence", by conqueft, to -bring 7f them to efiift ; fo I will al'vays, with the Iv z .rd of my " ;ifl: :.:.d f_T:une (fo much \ our majefty's due}' endeavour to "'* preserve your royal perion, and lawful rights, with all the ^'" tender concern", and dutiful refpecl that becomes, &c."

':• defeaion (as it was call'd) of the lord Churchill's is faid ave furpriz'd and difhearten'd the kirg more than all that The kir.t': had h.:ppenM.to him before. At reading the lord Churchill's bc-Imieur .-.t;ctt<:r, tKe king could rot forbear fetching a djep figh, which r^AJh^'1"5 pr°bably' proceeded from a convidion of confcience, that the ietter.1P $ .rtafons alledg'd by his Ibrdfhip were but too well grounded. He turn'd to the lord Fevermam, who ftood near him, and faid : " Feverfham, I little expecled thi-- fevtre ftroke ; but you, my " lordj form'd a right judgment of the perfon, and his inten- " tiers, when you propofed to me yeAerday to fecure him, and " the reft of the fugitives. I have nothing to do now, but to " throw myfelf into the hands of providence ; fince I can have '" ro d^pendance on my troops, who, without doubt, are cor- " rupted by the evil inrtrutlions of their difloyal cfficers." His majefty's refufal of fecuring the lord Churchill, when urg'd to to it by the lord Fevermam, fhews he placed an entire confidence in him ; and his lordfhrp being a perfon on whom the king had beftowed diflmguifhing marks of his favour, ard whom (as we have1 feen above) he had raifed to be a lieu tenant- genera), a captain of a troop of life-guard;, and. a gentleman of his bed- chamber, his nvjefty might, with reafcn, expeft a more than ordinary flriclneis of lovaltv and fidelity on his fide. And, \vithoutdoubt, thefe tie.% adJed to the great advantages he en- joyed under fo indulgent a mafter, would have fufficiently fe- Cured him to his intere'H, had not ""the inviolable dicldtes of his "" confcience, and 'a nccefTary concern for religion, juftly over-

-iiced all other cct.f;derations."'

I hi.vebeen' the moie particular in re'atirg the circumnances

:1- tranfaclions, that I might thereby fd'.v juftify his lord-

"fhip's conduct, and clear him from 'all afperfibns ; efpecially

"from that groundlefs report, of which 'we find an recount in

Or!e:iiis, and which fome of his rankcft enernic:, by m^-

. inlinuations, raifcd : cecaufe Vve fhiill find, tHey 'were,

here-

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 53

hereafter, trump' d up, with the moll falfe and bale aggravations, 1688.

when he was in difgrace, viz. " That he had a deiign to have <— - v^-J

" feized, and carried off the king with him, to the prince of

fi Orange j" and that this defign was concerted with colonel

Kirk, who commanded at Warminfler ; but that the execution

of it had been prevented by his majefty's being hinder'd from

going to that place, as he intended, by a violent bleeding at

the nofe, which nothing could flop but the breathing one of

his veins. The lord Churchill, and his companions, joined the The lord

prince at Axminfter, twenty miles from Exeter. Churchill .

About the fame time, and, on the fame occafion, her royalJ0;™ the highnefs, princefs Ann of Denmark, withdrew herfelf ftoo^ThTprince court, under condudl of his lady, who, at that time, as long and princefs afterwards, was her greateft favorite, and groom of the Hole, °r IXmmarfc having, as I have faid above, ferved her before fhe was marn;;4^'thdra.w< to the prince of Denmark. Her royal highnefs, with the l^dycu,'T]ftancgS Churchill, and the lady Berkley, two ladies who made the Of the man- brighteft figure at her court, both for their wit and beauty, hadner of their privately taken coach, at the bifhop of London's houfe, inu" •'-'^ra'-1*'- Alderfgate-ftreet ; from whence they went dire&ty to Netting-'"3' ham, attended by that prelate, the earl of Dorfet, and about forty horlemen. At Nottingham, the earl of Devonfhire gave her a guard of two hundred men, by whom fhe wasfafely con- ducted to Oxford, where prince George, her royal confort, who had withdrawn before, foon after met her, with a detachment of the prince of Orange's forces.

This is the account that has generally been given of this mat- ter by pur hil'corians ; but as tnat given by a late author, tho*. it agrees in the main, differs in fome circumftances, I. fhall add. it : " Soon after (the lord Churchill left the king) prince George, Another ao <c the duke of Ormond, and the lord Drumlanqrick. eldeil fon^°«nt there- " of the duke of Queenfbary, left him, and came over to the>°** prince, whom they jqia'd, at the earl of Briitol's houfe, at Sherburn. When the news came to London, the princefs was fo ftruck with the apprehenfions of the king's difplea- fure, ?.nd the ill effe&s it might have, that fhe faid to the. lady Churchill, fhe could not bear the thoughts of it, and ' would leap out at window, rather than venture on it. The- ' bifhop of London was then lodg'd, very fecredy, in Suffolk- ' ftreet ; fo the lady Churchill, who knew wiierc he was, ' went to him, and concerted with him, , the method , of. the* ' princels's withdrawing from court. The pnnc^fs went fooncr ' to bed than ordinary ; ;'.nd, about midnight, fhe went uO'wn ' a back-flairs, from her clofet, attended only by the lady ' Churchill, in fuch haite, that they c, Tried nothing uith tht.n. • ' They were waited for, by the bifhop of London, way car- " ";"'' .them to the earl of Dorlet's, wiioft lady furnifhed them E 3 •« witk

The Life of J O H N,

with every thing ; and fo they went northward, as far as Northampton, where that earl attended en them, with all refpeft, and quickly brought a body of horfe, to ferve for a guard to the princefs. And in a little while, a fmall army was formed about her, who chofe to be commanded by the biihop of London ; of which (fays my author) he too eafily accepted."

The effeft The fudden retreat of her royal hlghnefs from London, and of their re- the fecrecy with which it was managed, gave occafion, at firft, treat. to various furmifes ; and if a letter, fuppofed to be written by

her to the queen, (hewing the reafons of her retreat,, had not been produced, it was believed the king's own guards would have joined with the enmged mob, and torn the Popifh party to pieces, upon a furmife, that they had either made away with her royal highnefs, or confined her in the Tower. This furmife gain'd the more credit, becaufe it had been reported, fome time before, that the queen had treated her very rudely, and proceeded fo far as to flrike her.

Borne far- The following farther circunvftances, not being fo generally ther^cir- kn0wri, and having fome regard to the lord Churchill and his ofThefiT" lacty» * fhall add, " About fix weeks, (fays my author) before matters. *' the princefs left Whitehall, fhe had order' d a private ftair- " cafe to be made, under pretence of a more commodious paf- " fage to the lady Churchill's lodgings, but in reality, that Ihe " might make her efcape that way, when her perfon or liber- " ty were in danger. Ihe night before her royal highnefs " withdrew, the lord chamberlain had orders to apprehend '< the ladies Churchill and Berkley ; but the princefs defiring " him to defer executing thofe orders, till fhe had fpoken to " the queen, the lord chamberlain did fo accordingly. (// was " therefore High time for t'be princefs to tlrink of ivithdraw- 11 ing) Not long after the news came, that the prince, with •' the duke of Ormond, was gone to the prince of Orange, " her royal highnefs's women, entring her chamber, to ac- " quaint her with it, in the morning, were furprized to find «' fhe was not in the bed, where they had left her the night " before. They thought, at firft, fome misfortune had befaln « » her ; and the people whom fhe was to make happy, in »' her moft glorious reign, and to whom her royal perfon was t* dear, threatned to pulldown Whitehall, fill they heard that " fhe was fafe, and gone Northward.

'• His highnefs, the prince, left the king at Andover. As *' foon as his departure was known, feveral parties were fent " after him, with orders to take him at any rate. The envoy M of Denmark, who was fummon'd to council, on that occa- V figfl, ar:d was no very great friend to the rcTolution, would,

" hav«

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 55

«( have it mention'd in thofe orders to take him deader alive; 1688.

•' telling the king, it nvas his own fault that he 'was gone ; for '«^-v»*O

" he had put no body about him but tray tors, and iuould not

'• let him have a foreigner, or any one elfe of his own chufinv.

'« The king replied, it ivas the lord Churchill's fault, <wbo

'• made him believe, that fucb and fuch would Le agreeable to

" him. As foon as it was known, that the lord Churchill was

'* gone to the prince of Orange, the king was advifed to have

f< mr. Griffin, the prince's fecretary feiz'd, he being his lord-

" fhip's great friend, and having an influence over the prince.

*' His majefly confenting to it, fpoke of it to his highnefs, who

" replied, that the king had given him to Him, and was the

*' majler : but orders for feizing him, being deferred till eve-

" ning, the prince gave mr. Griffin notice of it, and he made

« his efcape."

When king James If. left London, and went to Feverfham in order to embark for France, the prince of Orange, who. was advanced with his army, as far as Henly, difpatch'd the lord Churchill, for whom he profefs'd to have a particular efteem and value, thither, to reaffemble his troop of horle-guards : This commiffion he performed with a9 much prudence as readi- nefs, and he returned to the prince to give him an account there- of, and of the ftate of affairs in the city.

He was, likewife, among thofe peers, who met at Weftmin- The ^r<i fter, the twenty -firfl of December, and figned the affociation, ^^jjjf1^ " To Hand by one another, in purfuing the ends of the prince fociation, " of Orange's declaration ; and that, if any attempt mould be " made on his perfon, it mould be revenged on all, by whom, " or from whom, any fuch attempts mould be made." The number of lords fpiritual and temporal, who were aflembled on this occafion, was about feventy : all of whom figned it, ex- cepting four temporal lords, and all the bifhops, but the bifhop of London, who fet his hand to it. This afTociation was the fame as that which the nobility and gentry had already fign'd at Exeter. It was faid, that the bifhops refufed figning it chiefly on account of the word revenge t which was afterwards changed for that of punijbment.

He was alfo, one of the peers, who, on the 2jth of De- Ard c(m_ cember addrefs'd his highnefs, " To take upon him the admi- curs in ad~- " niftration of the publick affairs both civil and military, and drying the '* the difpofal of the publick revenue, for the prefervation ofP'inCe to " our religion, rights, laws, liberties and properties, ancTpf the mi'n^tVati^" " peace of the nation, &c." And to undertake and exerciie this adminiftration, till the meeting of the intended conven- tion? on the twenty-fecond of jahucvry enfaing ; at. which time -E4' ' 'they

6 , *<tbe Life of J O II N, &e'f ^_^

1688. tfeey doubted not, bv?t uich proper me<.fures would be takens *-/—»•*' as would abundantly conduce to the ellabliiliment of thefe thinj-, upon fuch fare ar.i 1 '^?J foundations, th::t they might not be in danger of berng again fubverted. This addrefs was- ftgn'd by above fixty (icnae accounts fey ninety) Peers. And was followed, the feven and twentieth, by the like addix-fsfrgm an affemblv of Commons, v>'lio had i'erved in parliament* and of the lord mayor, court of a!dcr;v.en, and common council of this city of London, \vhomet at the prince's defire, exprefled jn a paper ifTued out by him, for that purpofe.

END of the Second BOO K,

BOOK

BOOK III.

TRANSACTIONS during the Reigns of King WILLIAM and ^ueen. MA RY, andofKingW ILLI AM III.

CHAP. II.

TRANSACTIONS during the Reign of King WILLIAM and Queen MARY.

S lam not writing a hiftory of the reign r68o. of king William and queen Mary, I ihallc— v"—J only juit hint at two or three circumftances, Some cir- which happened previous to the meeting ofcumf*ances the convention which gave birth to it. f^cceiT*

Mony being wanted to difcharge the ar- Of few rears of the Englifh army, the city of Lon- William and don advanced 200,000 1. for that purpofe ; ^ueen M*1?* of which fir Samuel Dafnwood alone, to his eternal honour, lent 60,000 1.

The archbifliop of Canterbury, who at firft declined waiting on the prince of Orange, at laft fent a compliment to the prince, and with feven or eight bifhops more, fign'd the affociation, after fome words were ioftned in it, which had given them un- jeafmefs : and, about the fame time, ninety diflenting minifters attended the prince.

The

58 J^f.£#L'/ JOHN,

1689. The ele&ions for the members of the convention proceeded l^-y— .Jwith all imaginable freedom. The electors gave their votes ac- cording to their own inclinations, without any follicitations from the prince, or his friends : and to take away all pretence of compulfion or influence, the prince had removed all the foldiers, to a certain diftance from the places of election.

The prince, confidering, in the mean time, that the conven- tion was to fettle the government, thought proper to fend for the princefs, fince if, as it was very likely, the convention mould ^declare the throne vacant, no perfon had a jufter pretenfion to it than {he.

On the prince of Orange's taking the adminiflration upon him, in purfuance of the two addreffes mentioned in the fore- going book, he immediately made the lord Churchill lieutenant- general of his forces ; and, as his highnefs refolved to new- The Englift modei the army, he firft caufed a review to be made of all the »odei]edW* tt00?5* afi^ tnen gave direclions to the lord Ranelagh, their paymailer, to pay them their arrears, and to the lord Churchill, ta reform eight of the new-rais'd regiments , viz. five of horfe, and three of foot, as far as it extended to their officers ; but to keep in thofe who had ferved before, and were willing to be employ 'd by his highnefs. Befides this reform, the fourth troop of life-guards was difbinded, to make room for the Dutch life- guards ; and fome alterations being made in the command, the regiment of major -general Oglethorp was given to the lord Churchill's brother.

S£yi??!»f On occafion of this reform, the following flory is related, in Maedufield honour to the earl of Macclesfield. " The lord Churchill having en "this oc- " difbanded his fon's, the lord Brandon's, regiment, the earl cafion. " afking him the reafon, his lordfhip faid, It was one of the " new levies, and, befides, his fon had rais'd it, with a defign to ferve againft his highnefs. The earl of Macclesfield re- plied, That he had, indeed, pafs'd for a rebel, becaufe king James would have it fo : but God be thank'd, he had never been a tMytor, and if his ion had prov'd one, he himfelf would h-iVe been his hangman."

It was obferved, that, on the debates in the houfe of lords, from the eight and twentieth to the thirty-firft of January, about the wcancy of the throne, when, on the lait of thele days, the memorable queilion was put, " Whether king James, having " brake that o/iginal contract htwcen hivi and his people, and " defertid the government , the throve i>.-4* thereby vacant ;" the lord Churcljil was not preicnt, en r.ccouiit cf fome indifpcfition ; tfio' many believed the indiipcfuicn was or.iy feign'd, becaufe he had tjO.mind to give his vote in that grand and critical af- fair, wherein he mult either <Lfol>lige the prince cf Orar.gc, or the princeis of Denmark, tie came, however, afterwards, on

th?

Duze of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

the 6th of February , into the queftion, " That the throne was " vacant, and that the prince and princefs of Orange fhould " be declared king and queen of England, and of all the do- '* minions thereunto belonging." This me morable queftion was Carried by fixty-five voices againft forty-five, and it is highly probable, that his lord(hip and others, who had been for the princefs of Denmark's right and intereft, had her confent to come into this queftion ; her royal highnefs preferring the pub- lick good before her private intereft, out of the great concern me ever had for the prefervation of the Proteftant religion, and of the laws and liberties of England. One of our hiftorians does the lady Churchill (a perfon, fays he, diftinguifhed by her prevailing wit, and thofe perfonal accomplifhments for which her fex are generally admir'd) the honour of having, by her mediation, contributed not a little towards bringing her royal highnefs to this happy difpofition.

About the feventh of February, the lords fpiritual and tem- poral, and commons, aflembled at Weftminiter, prefented to the prince and princefs of Orange, by the right honourable the marquis of Hallifax, fpeaker to the houfe of Lords, a declara- tion concerning the miigovernment of king James, and filling up the throne ; in which they enumerate the complaints and griev- ances of the nation, by means of fuch mifgovernment of king James ; and then declaring the feveral aftions of the faid king which they deem'd to be illegal, and what ought or ought not to be done, to make the government of England legal, and ta procure redrefs of all grievances they proceed to claim, demand, and injtft upon all and fingular the premifes, as their undoubted rights and liberties, and that no declarations, judgments, doings or proceedings to the prejudice of the people, in any of the faid premifes, ought, in any wife, to be drawn hereafter into) confequence or example. To which demand of their rights, they are particalarly encouraged by the declaration of the prince of Orange : and having, therefore, an entire confidence, that his faid highnefs, the prince of Orange, will perfect the deli' verance fo far advanced by him, and will ftill preferve them, from the violation of their rights, which they have afferted, and from all other attempts upon their religion, rights and li- berties,

The faid lords fpiritual and temporal, and commons aflembled at Weftminfter, do refolve,

" That William and Mary, prince and princefs of Orange, ** be and be declared, king and queen of England, France and " Ireland, and the dominions thereunto belonging, to hold " the crown and royal dignity of the faid kingdoms and domi- '* nions, to them the faid prince and princefs, during their '* Ijves, and the life of the furvivor of them; 2nd that the

" fole

t ,

^689. «' fole and full exercife of the regal power be only in and exe- •*-; " cuted by the faid prince of Orange, in' the names of the faid

prince and princefs, during their joint lives : and after their " deceafes, the faid crown and royal dignity of the faid kir.g- " doms and dorriinions to be to the heirs of the body of the t( faid princefs, arid for default of fuch iffue, to the princefs " Ann of Denmark, and the heirs of her body, and for de- *' fault of fuch, iffue to the heirs of the body of the faid prince •• of Orange.

" And the faid lords Spiritual and temporal, and commons, *' do pray the faid prince and princefs of Orange to accept the f* iame accordingly."

To which declaration of both houfe?, his rrfajefty waspleas'd io give the following moft gracious anftver.

nd" 'gentlemen,

•" rT^ H I S is certainly the greateft proof of the truft you* " J| have in us, that can be given/ 'which is the thing that " maketh us to 'value" it the more, and we thankfully accept " of what you have offered.' And as' [ had no other intention " of coming hither, than to prtferve your religion, laws and ""liberties, ib you may be fure, I fhall er.de.. vcur to fupport " them, and {hall be willing to concur with any thing that mall " be for the good of the kingdom, anddo'r.ll that is in my '''to advance the welfare and glory of the nation."

King Wil- The. thirteenth of February, their majefties were acccrd- anc^ l^e following proclamation made pub-

Ty'saccduon 1C' to the

throne. " T TT H E R F A S it hath pleafcd Almfghty God, in his " VV gr£at mercy to this kingdom, to vouchsafe us a mi- ** r-iCL'iOus dr'i Topery and arbitrary power ; and

" thr.t our rrefefVation is dae, next under Gcd, to the refolu- " tion ?r uh'.efs the piince of Orange, whom

" God hath i e t'ie giorious irftrumcnt of fuch an in-

" ritinii.; ' and o-r nrileiity : and being highly

'* ftnfrbl . r the great and eminent vir-

" toe;' r.*' > f Orar.ge, wht-fe zeal for the

" Prctcl' . no doubt, bring a b,tflir.g along

" witii her up- : : ?nd wl.creas the lords anJ com-

" mons no^ ailemblga :>t Wtinvinf.cr, hr.ve mjde a declara- " ticn, ar.d pitfertcci the rame tc the L'.id prince and princds. '* of Or?.i gc, ar.d therein dcfired them to accept the crown,

*^ . __ >J

** who Accepted the f-.mc 'r.'-corJirgly : V.'e rh.nfjrc t; " fpiritual ard icr. .

" mayor anc citizens of London, and others the corun 3

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &5V.

" this realm, do, with a full confent, publifh and declare, ac-

r' cording to the faid declaration, William and Mary, prince and princefs of Orange, to be king and queen of England, France and Ireland, with all the dorniniQ.ns. pla.ces and ter- ritories thereunto belonging : who are accordingly fo to be owned, deemed, accepted and taken, by all the people of the aforefaid realms and dominions, who are from henceforth bound to acknowledge and pay unto them all faith and true allegiance, befeeching God, by whom kings reign, to bleis

*' king William and queen Maryj with long and happy years

" to reign over us.

"God fave king William and queen Mary.

The day following, the lord Churchill was fworn of their T^e lori* firft privy council, and made one of the gentlemen of the king's madeCprivy bed-chamber, together with the duke of Ormond, the earl of counfellour, Oxford, the lord Mordaunt (afterwards earl of Peterborough) and gent, of the lord Lumley (afterwards earl of Scarborough) and mr. Sid- ^ bf*~ ney, who was created earl of Romney. ,_,

The ninth of April, being two days before their majcfties co- ronation, among many other titles and honours beftow'd, about that time, on feveral noblemen and others, his lordfiiip's faith- ful fervices were rewarded, by his being advanced to the digni- Created earl ty of earl of Mar'borough, and, accordingly, he attended atot Marlb* their majefties coronation, in that quality.

As yet, there was no open war declared againfl France : but the reception of king James, in the French court, and. &s tranfporting French forces into Ireland, foon made it necelTary, and it was expeded abroad, as well as defired at home.. Un- der this difpolition, on the fix and twentieth of ApriL, jthp hbufe of commons waited on his majeity, in a body, at White- hall,, and humbly acldrefs'd him for a war with France, /The king, being well affjred of the affiftance of the commons,, ag- quainted the lords with his intention, of fpeedily declaring,. war againft France. Wrun eapon their lordlhip:,, on the feventfr ,pf May, unanii^oufly rcfolved to ferve and affiil his'majefly tl;ere- in, to their utmoit power. The fame day, their majc'jp^ 4f* claration of war againfc the French, king was folemnly; 'pro- claimed ; and a., it 13 in a mafterly form (faid to be drawp pf by mr. Sommers) and fiiews the grounds upon whic^ this {i^war was begun, I /hall give my readers a copy of it, at lav^..,

WILLIAM R.

,'c -T T having pleafed Alrrtighty God, to make us the happy Declaration '" J_ inftrument of refcuing thefe nations from imminent dan- of war a- .««. gers, and co place us upon the throne of thefe kingdoms •, yt£

_sal^M tte Life of JOHN, 1689. " think ourfelvcs obliged to endeavour, to the uttermoft, to pro* - - I" mote the welfare of our people : which can never be effeaual- " ly fecured, but by preventing the miferies that threaten them " from abroad.

*' When we confider the many unjuft methods the French '* king hath, of late years, taken, to gratify his ambition : " that he has not only invaded the territories of the Emperor, *' and the Empire, now in amity with us, laying wafte whole •' countries, and deftroying the inhabitants, by his armies ; but '* declared war againft our allies, without any provocation, in ** manifeft violation of the treaties confirm'd by the guaranty " of the crown of England ; we can do no lefs than join with " our allies, in oppoling the defigns of the French king, as the •' difturber of the peace, and the common enemy of the Chriftian •' world.

" And befides the obligations we lye under, by treaties with " our allies, which are a fufficient juftification of us, for taking " up arms, at this time, fince they have called upon us fo to do, " the many injuries done to us, and to our fubjecls, without " any reparation, by the French king, are fuch, that (however, " of late years, they were not taken notice of, for reafons well '* known to the world, neverthelefs) we will not pafs them over, *' without a publick and juft refentment of fuch outrages.

•' It is not long fince the French took licenfes from the En- " glifh governour of Newfoundland, to fifh in the feas upon " that coaft, and paid a tribute for fuch licenfes, as an acknow- *' ledgment of the fole right of the crown of England to that *' ifhnd : and yet, of late, the encroachments of the French " upon our faid ifland, and our fubje£ls trade and fifhery, have ** been more like the invafions of an enemy, than becoming " friends, who enjoyed the advantages of that trade only by " perrniffion.

" But that the French king mould invade our Caribbee iflands, " and pofiefs himfelf of our territories of the province of New- " York, and of Hudfon's-Bay, in a hoftile manner, feizing our " forts, burning our fubjefts houles, and enriching his people •-' with the fpoil of their goods and merchandizes, detaining fome " of our fubjecls under the hardlliip of imprifonment, caufing 4< others to be inhumanly killed, and driving the reft to fea, in *« a fmall veflel, without food and neceffaries to fupport them, •* Are adions not becoming even an enemy : and yet he was fo " far from declaring himfelf fo, that, at that very time, he was " negockiting Viere, in England, by his miniHers, a treaty of " neutrality and good correfpondence in America.

** The proceedings of the French king againft our fubjeds " in Europe are fo notorious, that we fliall not need to enlarge " on th«m : his countenancing the feizarc of F.nglilh fhips by

«« Frenck

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

" French privateers; forbidding the importation of great part *' of the product and manufactures of our kingdom, and im- " pofing exorbitant cuftoms upon the reft, notwithftanding the " vaft advantage, he, and the French nation, reap by their " commerce with England, are fufficient evidences of his de- *' fign to deftroy the trade, and confequently, to ruin the navi- " gation, upon which the wealth and fafety of this nation very " much depends.

*' The right of the flag, inherent in the crown of England, "- has been difputed by his orders, in violation of our fovereign- M ty of the narrow feas, which, in all ages, has been aflerted by " our predeceffors, and we are resolved to maintain, for the ho- " nour of our crown, and of the Englifh nation.

" But that which moft nearly touches us, is, his unchriflian " profecution of many of our Englifh proteflant fubjecls, in " France, for matters of relijion, contrary to the laws of na- " tions, and exprefs treaties j forcing them to abjure their re- " ligion, by ftrange and unufual cruelties ; and imprifoning *' fome of the maflers and feamen of our merchant fhips, and *< condemning others to the gallies, on pretence of having on " board, either fome of his own miferable protefhnt fubjedls, or " their effects. And laftly, as he has, for fome years laft pafl, *' endeavour'd, by infinuations and promifes of afliftance, to " overthrow the government of England ; fo now, by open and " violent methods, and the adlual invafion of our kingdom of " Ireland, in fupport of our fubjedls in arms, and in rebellion *' againfl us, he is promoting the utter extirpation of our good " and loyal fubjedls in that our kingdom.

" Being, therefore, thus neceflitated to take up arms, and " relying on the help of Almighty God, in our juft under- *' taking j we have thought fit to declare, and do, hereby, de» «' dare war againft the French king ; and that we will, in con- " junction with our allies, vigoroufly profecute the fame, by «' feaand land (fince he hath, fo unrighteoufly, begun it;) be- " ing affured of the hearty concurrence and afiiftance of our "' fubjecls, in fupport of fo good a caufe. Hereby willing " and requiring our general of our forces, our commiffioners- *' for executing the office of high admiral, our lieutenants of " our feveral counties, governours of our forts and garrifons, and " all other officers and Ibldiers under them, by fea and land, tq " do and execute all acls of hoflility in the profecution of this «' war, againft the French king, his vaflals and fubjefts, and to ' " oppoie their attempts. Willing and requiring all our fubjecls' •' to take notice of the fame, whom we henceforth ftriclly for- " bid to hold any correfpondence or communication with the " (aid French King, or his fubjecls. And becaufe there are

The earl of

Marlbro'

commands

the Nether- lands.

Battle of Walcourt.

The earl's gallant be- haviour there.

Noble tefti mony of th prince of Waldeck.

Tefiimony of the

enemy.

Me Life of J O H N,

' remaining in our kingdom, many of the fubje&s of the French

* king ; we do declare and give our royal wcrd, that a1! fnch ' of the French nation, as fLall demean themfelves dutifully to- ' wards us, and not correfpond with our enemies, fhall be fafe ' in their perfons and eftates, and free from all moleftation and

* trouble, of any kind.

" Given at our court at Hampton-court, the feventhda7of " May, 1689. in the firft year of our reign.

Soon after, the affairs of the nation, and the fitting of the parliament, requiring his majeftj-'s prdence in the kingdom, he thought the earl of Marlborough the moft proper perfon to head his forces in the Netherlands. His lordfhip landed at Rotter- dim, the feven arid twentieth of May, N. S. and proceeding to Maeitricht, arrived there the fecond of June. After having held a conference here, with the prince of Waldeck, on the operations of the campaign, they both fet out, the next day, for the camp.

The confederates, being much inferior to the enemy in ftrength, were obliged to aft only on the defenfive : they were encnmp'd near a little town call'd Walcourt, in fuch manner, that there was no attacking them without firft taking that place. The French having, therefore, attack'd Walcourt, the five and twen- tieth of Auguit, N. S. the earl of Marlboro ugh, who, with the Englifh troops under his command, made part of thofe, who guarded the main pafs, diftinguifh'd themfelves in a very parti- cular manner, and gave a great relief to the commander in chief of that poft. In fhort, they made fuch a continual and terrible fire on the French, in flank, as not only faved the whole army, and gave them an opportunity to make an orderly retreat ; but, at hit, obliged the enemy, who perceived they had engaged themfelves too far, to draw off their troops in great hafle and difordcr, and to leave behind them feme cannon and ammuni- tion, and near 2000 officers and foldiers, kill'd and wounded ; with the lofs of about 300 men only, on the fide of the allies. . The earl's conduct, on this occafion, vvssfo remarkably pruderf, ; that the prince of Waldeck made him the higheft compliments : thereupon, and told king William, " That he faw into the aft " of a general, more in one day, than others did in a great '* many years."

The French, \vho were not yet fo well acquainted with the courage and conducl of the earl, as they were • : . , to

their coft mention the courage of the Erglifh, in f one of their authors, in particular, takes notice of i.he and two Etglifh regiments, corr.mnruieci by liei: M^borck. They allow, ikit they found their dc;

Walcoun,

l)uke of MARYBOROUGH, fsc. 6$

Walcourt, in order to come at the confederate army, in open 1690. ield, impracticable, and that they were obliged to draw off their troops; but pretend they did it in the greateit order: and the author abovemcntioned, gives a long lilt of officers kill'd and wounded m this action. He likewife allows, that they had 400 ^common foldiers killed, and 600 wounded, and fays the allies owned they loft 300 men, in this action. Theloftof the French was probably greater ; for according to a letter written by the prince of Waldeck, fix battalions of French guards were al- moft wholly cut off.

I do not find that the earl of Marlborough was employed any where, in the former part of the year 1690. tho', at the unfortunate battle at Flerus, there were feveral battalions of En- ;glifh troops, particularly, one of the guards, one of " Marlbo- rough's, and one of Churchill's : but his lordfhip was fent, to fenttocOHV. wards the latter end of the feafon, general of the forces which mand in •were fent from Portfmouth into Ireland, where, notwithltanding Ireland the fuccefs, king William had, the foregoing year, at and after the battle of the Boyne, in perfon, feveral towns, and in parti- cular Limerick, Cork, and Kingfale, were yet in poffeffion of the French and Irilh, and their forces were ftill very numerous . This gave the friends of king James fome hopes of reducing that kingdom to his obedience ; but they were not a little furprized to hear, that the Englifh fleet arrived before Cork harbour, the twenty -firit of September, with fome forces under the command of the earl of Marlborough.

The project of taking the two latter of thefe important Thc pro-e^ .places, in winter, was firlt formed by the earl. Our fleet being formcd ^ out, and matters of the fea, and the French naval force being him. retired to Breft, the earl of Marlborough, who was never Ib well pleafed, as when in action, propofed to his majeity, who was then in that kingdom, that five thoufand men, who had lain idlr all the fummer, in England, mould be fent to Ireland ; and, with the affiltance of fuch men, as the king mould order to ^oin thfcm, attempt to take Cork and Kingfale. The king ap- proved of the motion, and ordered the earl to come over him- felf v»ith thefe troops; and he left orders for about fivethou- fand -"men more, that were there, to join him. Which done, -blended the campaign, and came over to Briftol, and thence to Lcndos, without haying ieen the earl, who was detained longer than w^as expected by contrary winds. Some have won- dered, why £jh.C£arl did not ierve, under the king, in Ireland before; and&&a£ been £iid, with wfeat truth, I ihall not pre- tend io .deter rai^e, that ids iordftxip had declin'd being b the fervice in that fekigdkHO. *s long as king James was there in per- •fan ; but that no looper ^as tbi$ ds.nibriunate monarch departed, than he was ready to ufe iay; j^ioft efforts, as we fhall fuid he

Vol.. JL F did,

Tbe Life of J O H N,

did, to reduce the remainder of that kingdom to the obedience i of his fucceflbr.

His lordfhip, being to aft, in this expedition* in concert with

fome other troops, which were tent before, towards that part of

Ireland, immediately acquainted the duke of Wirtemberg, and

major-gene; al Scravenmore, with his arrival ; and, the next

day, his lordihip finding, that the enemy had a battery of eight

Drives the gun?' to oppofe his entry into the harbour, he fent three boats

enemy from On fhoar, full of the moft refolute of his men, who, by a con-

a battery, tinual fire, obliged the Irilh to quit their battery.

The twenty-third, the greatelt part of the land-forces were

fent up the paffages, fix miles from Cork, headed by the duke of

Lays fiege to Grafton ; and being come, the next day, within a mile of the

the town, town, they began to mount their cannon, and to begin a formal

fiege. having near 600 feamen, gunners and carpenters, who did

them confiderable fervice.

There being a report, that the duke of Berwick defigned to raife the fiege, major-general Scravenmore lent a iriefienger to halten the duke of Wirtemberg's march, and, on the five and twentieth, order'd a party of horfe to go and cover the duke's foot. The fame afternoon, major-general Tettau, with a de- tachment of loou men having drawn fome cannon to the Fair- Jlil', refolved to attack one or both of the new forts, and new Shannon caflle ; but the Irifh no fooner obferved his men poft- ed, in order to that defign, than they fet fire to the luburbs, be- tween him and them, quitted both the forts and calHes, and re- Thc JKW t'r^ m halte into the town ; upon which he poffefs'd himfelf of i..rt; and Shannon-caftle, and planted fome guns there. About the fame Shannon- time, major-general Scravenmore came with 1 200 horfe and caftle taken, dragoons, and took up his quarters at Kill-Abby. On the fix and twentieth, the duke of Wirtemberg, with the German and Danifh forces under his command, and brigadier La Meloniere, with iome Fiench and Dutch foot, joined them, according to the orders they had received.

D fpute be- The duke of Wirtemberg, and the earl of Marlboroug^, being tweenthcD. both lieutenant-generals, a warm difpute aroie between them, ot Wirtfm- concerning the chief command. The duke laid claim, to it, berg and the wjth fome j^^ as a prince ; but the earl, with his ufuil gen- manlike temper, infifted upon its being his right, not only as he was the elder officer, but as he commanded the troops of h(s own nation, which were principals in the quarrel, whereas thft duke only commanded auxiliaries.

By the earl's The prudent monf. la Melonierc interpofing, the earl of prudence Marlborough, left this untimely difpute mould retard the opera- happily tions of the campaign, was induced, among other initances of cowp.fld. ]jjs wjfe ancj iiappy conduft^ to lhare the command with him, and, for the ieivice of his country, defifted from a part of his

juft.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

juft right. Accordingly, the earl of Marlborough commanded the firil day, and gave the word Wirtemberg ; and the duke of* that name commanding, the next day, gave the word Marl- borough.

This difference being thus adjufted, and the enemy having, on the twenty feventh, abandon'd their works at the Cat-fore, without a blow ftrack, the Englifli took poffeffion of it, and having raifed a battery there, they threw their bombs into the city, and play'd their cannon on the fort, from two batteries, at the fame time. Being, likewise, mailers of a church, Scraven- , more order 'd a party of men into it, who, from thence, gall'd the Irifti, within the fort : all which, together with another bat- tery, erefted by Red-abby, foon made a breach in the city- wall ; and thus, by the united conduct and bravery of the com- manders in chief, the befieged were foon obliged to demand a The towa parly, and to give hoftages for a truce ; but they not accepting °^ 9°J ^ of the terms offered them, the befiegers began to play again, ca?iru' with their cannon, very furioufly : and a conliderable breach in the walls being made, they were ready to ftorm the town. The Danes, from the North, and four regiments of Englim, from the South, under brigadier Churchill, pafs'd the river, up to ... -

their armpits. The grenadiers, under the lord Colchefter, led the van, and marched forward with incredible bravery, tho* expofed, all the while, to the enemy's fire. They were greatly encouraged by the gallant behaviour of the duke of Grafcon, the lord O Brian, colonel Granville, and fome other refolu'te volunteers. In this approach, however, the duke of GraftonThe duke1 received a wound in the moulder, of which he foon after ot 9raftori

died receives h.s J

All things being, now ready for a general aflault, the befieged w^und* thought fit to prevent it, by beating a fecond parly ; and at lait, Cork fiir- the earl of Tyrone, and colonel Rycaut, being fent from colo- renders, j < nel Makilicut, governour of the place, agreed to the earl of Marlborough's conditions, which, being fign'd, the 28th of September, were as follows.

" That the garrifon, confiding of 4000 men, iliould be all Articles of <f prifoners of war, both officers and foldiers. *apituUtion.

" That no prejudice mould be done to them, or the inha- •' bitants.

" That the general would ufe his endeavours to obtain his " majefty's clemency towards them.

" That all the arms, as well of the inhabitants, as of the " garrifon, {hould be fecured.

' That all the proteftaut prifoners mould be fet at liberty.

" That die old fort mould be deliver'd up within an hour, if and the two f^ates of the city the next morning.

r 2 « And

Vbe Life of J OH N,

" And that an exaft account fhould be given of the warlike " ammunitions and provisions in the magazines."

The prifoners of note taken at Cork, were the earls of Clan- carty and Tyrone, the governour of the place, colonel Ricaut, and feveral others.

The earl As the earl was refolved to purfue this good fuccefs, he im- prepares to mediately fent away a detachment of horfe and dragoons, un- Kin^ak ^cr l^e comman^ °? brigadier Villiers, to fummon the town and forts of Kingfale ; and his lordfhip fetting out himfelf, from Cork, the firft of Oftober, arrived the fame day, at Five-mile- bridge, and, the next, before the town ; which the Irifh, upon his approach had fet fire to, and were retired into the Old fort. He form'd his camp, the lame evening, and gave directions to make his approaches towards the New fort, while major-gene- ral Tettau was ordered to attack the Old fort.

He found thefe two forts, which commanded the port, to be much ftronger, than the plans had reprefented them to be j and it was reported, that his lordfhip himfelf was heard to fay, if he had known their true ftrength, he had never undertaken the expedition, in a feafon fo far advanced. Being, however, there, this did not difcourage his dauntlefs and enterprizing genius ; he refolved to pufh for it.

The Old General Tettau having pais'd the river, with the troops ap- Fort taken pointed for that fervice, in boats, the next morning, made a fcyaftrata- fe^ according to the orders given him, offtorming the fort, sem" in the weakeft place, where moft of the befieged were got to-

gether, and in a readinefs to receive him. In the mean time, another detachment made a bold aflault, in another place, where they were leaft expefted, and, by that means, foon be- came matters of a baftion. While this was doing, feveral bar- rels of powder, accidentally taking fire, blew up near forty of the Irifh ; upon which the reft retired into an old caftle, in the midft of the fort, and immediately fubmitted to be prifoners of war ; having loft about 200 men, out of 450.

The New The earl of Marlborough, refolved to improve this advan- Fort be- tage ; and the weather being now grown very bad, and provi- fiejcd, fions fcarce, the men withal beginning to be fickly, he fent, hereupon, to fummon the New Fort, which was much the ftronger of the two ; but the governour, fir Edward Scot, haugh- tily anfwered : // would be time enough to talk of that a month afterwards. Upon this, the trenches were open'd, the fifth of Oftober, r.»d, by the ninth, were advanced to the counter- fcarp ; but bad weather prevented the cannon from coming up till the eleventh. A considerable breach, and a falle attack, be- ing made, every thing was prepared for the itorm ; but the enemy thought fit to prevent it, by beating a parly. The fif- teenth, hoftages were exchanged, and the articles, being agreed

Duke of MARLBOR.OUGH, &c. 69

6n, were figned about midnight. The middle baftion was to 1690. be delivered up the next morning, and the garrifon, which con- *— — v— - •> fitted of about eleven hundred men, was to march our, the next And t.akcu day after, with arms and baggage, to be conducted to Lime- ^yt;",lntu" rick. They found in the fort a very confiderable magazine, and plenty of all forts of provifion and liquors.

The Irifh never attempted to raife the liege ; they drew, in- Good effbftg deed, their forces together ; and, as they durft not venture on of thef - a«l- raifmg it, in feme meafure to divert it, they put the country, stages. the bell built of any in Ireland, all around in a flame

This fea-port was called the Key of Ireland, and by the taking of this and that of Cork, an effe&ual Hop was put to the bringing of any fupplies from France, at leaft on the Southern coafts ; and the Irifh were confin'd almoft to the province of Ulfter, where they found more difficulties to fubfift, than in any other part of Ireland.

Another good effecl of this defign was vifible even before the troops were landed ; for, upon the fir ft news of the Englifh fleet failing for Ireland, count Lauzun, fearful of being block'd up at Galloway, and withal weary of the fervice, and glad of an opportunity to get out of it, departed thence, with the duke of Tyrconnel, monf. Boiflelau, and the miferable remains of his French troops, leaving the general command of the Iri(h to the duke of Berwick, which afterwards fell to monf. St. Ruth.

This glorious expedition being happily brought to a conclu- The carl of fion, with very little lofs, in almoft as fhort a time, as, at that Mar">°- feafon of the year, the voyage itfelf could reafonably be ex-^^,^" pedled to be made ; the earl of Marlborough, having left all the England. troops under the comma'nd of the duke of Wirtemberg, who was commander in chief of the German and Danifh troops, embarked again, and arrived at Kensington, the eight and twentieth of October. He was very favourably received by his majerty, who had the greateft opinion of his courage and con- King Wil-

duft, and was heard to fay ; That be knew no man fa fit for <zll:lm>s.0pi- .o • j i i ] r r r • J J J nion ot the

\jeneral, who had feen ft feiu campaigns. earj

The earl did not, however, make any long ftay in England ; He'retums but, having made a report to his majefty of the Itate of affairs10 Ireland, in Ireland, was immediately order'd back again thither, to con- tinue the fervices he had fo happily begun ; which he per- form'd with great vigour and fidelity. During the courfe of the whole winter, he prevented the excursions of the Irifh re- And does bels, who attempted to commit great ravages in the conquer'd c°nfiderable provinces ; and raifed feveral forts to put a Hop to tkeir fury.

The next year, his lordfhip made the campaign under king 1691. William. His majefty, who had before been in Holland this The earl" fpring, at the molt illuftrious congrefs, that ever had been feen fcrvcs. unde* at the Hague, and was return'd, after about three weeks ftay, FI^"? in F 3fG<b/3 fet

relieve Mons.

tte Life of J O H N,

fet out again from Kenfmgton, the firft of May, accompanied 1 by the lord Sidney, and the earls of Marlborough and Port- land. He went firft to Loo, where he again fhewed the favour- Is fent to ab]e opinion he hc.d of the earl of Maryborough's conduft, by arlembletlie fending him, and the count de Solmes, beforehand, from thence to Flanders, to pat all things in a readinefs for opening the campaign, and to draw the army together againft his arrival. Propofes Theie orders were given, upon the advice his majetty re- ceived of the defiojns of the French upon Mons, which his moft Chriftian majefty afterward befieg'd, in perfon, and took. The earl \vasfoaffiduousin preparing for the relief of this important But is place ; that, if the ftates-general had given ear to hispropofals, thwarted by jn a]j appearance, the enemy would have been obliged to have quitted their enterprise, and have thought themfelves happy, if they had come off fo, without an entire defeat : at leaft, this was the opinion of prince Vaudemont ; who being, fome time afterwards, at Loo, gave the following glorious character of his rrin<* Vau-iordfhip, to king William. " There is fomething (faid the charaft-rof Prmce) m the earl of Marlborough, that is inexpreffible ; for the earl. the fire of Kirk, the thought of Lanier, the fkill of Mackay,

and the bravery of Colchefter, feem to be united in his per- fon : and I have loft my knowledge in phyiiognomy, which hitherto never deceived me, if any fubjedt you have can ever attain to fuch military glory, as this combination of fublime perfections muft one day advance him to." The prince feems to have had a prophetick fpirit. His majefty, fmiling, anfwered, He belief d that Marlborough would do bis fart to make bis ivor ds good.

The thirty firft of May, N. S. h'is majefty left Loo him-

felf, and, paffirtg thro' Breda, headed the confederate army.

.As nothing happened very remarkable, during this campaign,

in which we find any mention made of the earl, I fhall only

in general ohferve, that our monarch difappoints Boufflers in his

attempt upon Liege; but, in v;iin, endeavoured to bring the

marfhal cle Luxembourg to an engagement ; fo that, after fe-

veral marches and countermarches, the king ended the cam-

Theearlrc-paign, with the taking of Beaumont, left the army« the feven-

tums \vi,ri teenth of September, and, on the nineteenth of October, land-

k'nt toed in England, beina; accompanied, among other noblemen, by

the ear! of MarlboroWh.

1692. The earl was, again nominated to ferve under the king, in the

IMII ° c-uality of a general officer, the next campaign ; but, as his

n-«"b in faithful fervices had endeared him to every well-wifher to ou,r

c,;-i.r'j. eilabliuYd religion and liberties, how great was the furpme and

mortification to the nation, to hear, foon after, that, when

fortune feem'd to fmile molt favourably upon him, he was, at

'.;! xc, removed from his employments of lieutenant general of

i the

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

the infantry, which was given to colonel Talmafh, colonel of the third troop of guards, that was conferr'd on the lord Col- ' chefter, and of a regiment of fufileers, which was bellowed upon the lord George Hamilton ; but his place of gentleman of his majefty's bed-chamber, tho' he was depriv'd of it, remain'd vacant for a time !

Various were the caufes which were affign'd for this fudden Several rea change, according to the affections people bore him ; and fomej°ns. a%ne ftories were divulged to his difadvantage, tho' with little or no or grounds. His lordfhip's loyalty could not well be arraign'd by his worft enemies ; he loved his country too well to be male- content with his king, tho' removed out of his favour, without his deferts : and it is evident, he'could be no ways engag'd in the intereft of his former mafter ; fince, in this very fame year, when king James was about to invade England, and a formal declaration was privately handed about in his / name, with a pardon annexed, for thofe whq mould return to their duty, the carl of Marlborough, by the title of lord Churchill, was ex- cepted out of this pardon. A late controversial writer, after having copied fix or feven pages of the various caufes mentioned by me, to have been affign'd for this fudden change, goes on, and attempts to contradict what I here affert with regard to the earl of Marlborough being excepted out of the pardon annex'd to the declaration privately handed about in king James's name, and does it in the following manner :

" It is well known (fays this author) that the very year in " which lord Marlborough was difgraced, it was uniwrfallj af- tf firmed abroad, and under/load at home, that certain great " men had made their peace with king James, on the condition " of inducing the nation to return to their former obedience : " it was even whifper'd, that a certain admiral (then believed to " be as much in the intereft of king William as lord Marlbor fl rough himfelf, and afterwards renown'd for a fignal victory " over the French) was likevvife one of the confederacy.

" Now, notwithftanding the exception to lord Marlborough " in the general pardon, quoted above, by mr. Lediard, his " lordfhip's name was faid lo be on this lift of converts, 35 " well as the admiral's ; and the lame thing was afterwards " averred by fir John Fenwick, who fell a facrifice to his own " indifcreet eonfeffions." But with great fubmiffion to this au- thor, who is faid to be a woman of quality, I humbly conceive, all this proves nothing in contradiction to what I afferted : It *was itni-verfally affirm* d abroad, and underjlood at h«me, &c. (Qu. by whom r) // ivas even fwhifperd, that £c. was likeiv'-fe we of the confederacy. (Were whilpers ever before admitted as evi- dence ?) His lordjkip's name <was faid to be on the I/ft, &c. (And fa were, at that and every other time, many other things faid, F 4 that

72 The Life*/ JOHN,

1692. that had not a jot more of truth in them, than there is iii thi> ipfe dixit. But, to crown the argument, the reader is told, that poor Jit- John. Fenvuick afterwards arverr'd the fame ; (and fo he did many other things, without offering the leaft appear- ance of proof, or even circiunllance to corroborate his aflertions ;}. io that he fell a facrifice to his prevarications and falfe accufa- tions, rather than to his indifcreet confeffions, as this fuppos'd lady would have it to be believed : and in what manner the houfe of commons treated thefe confeffions or prevarications we fiiall fee in. the fequel.

When my lord Marlborough retired, which was with the calmnefs of the old Roman dictator, he wifhed to be fucceeded by a better fervant, and one more concerned for his majefty's honour.

Some, who pretended to look narrowly into affairs, would have his difgrace owing to jealouiies certain foreigners had con- ceived, of his not being inclined to their intereits, and to make way for one of them (by fome faid to be count Solmes-). to com- mand in his room ; but this could only affect his employment abroad. The proofs he had given of his confummate know- ledge in military affairs {hewed, that his majeily's Englifh fub- jefts merited the higheil polls in the army ; tho', it has been, obferved, they were not enough countenanc'd by the king. It was faid, that all the refentment was, for the liberty he had taken to tell the king, That tho' him/elf had no reafon to com- flain, yet many of his good fubjetfs were forry to fee his royal munifcence conjuid to one or two foreign lords. Foreign hiflorians make no fcruple to name the earls of Portland and Roch- ford, both Dutchmen, to be the lords here aimed at : and add, that the king turned his back upon the earl, without making^ any anfwer, and foon after fent him a dimiffion of all his em- ploys, and forbid him the court. .Thole who afcribe the jea- loufy or envy of foreign officers as a reafon for his lordfhip's difgrace, think it a confirmation of their opinion, that the earl was not employ'd again, nor called to council, till this motive ceafed, and an end was put to the war, by the peace of Ryf- wick.

of A paffage of a late author feems likewife, to juftify this opi- rohis1"011' " ^e k^S (lays "^ author) was thought to love the furpofe. S" Dutch more than the Engiifh, to trull more to them, and to admit them to more freedom with him. He gave too much occafion to a general uifgull, which was fpread, both among the Englifh officers, and the nobility : he took little pains togaia the affe&ions of the nation ; nor did he conflrain himfelf enough to render his government more acceptable. He was ihut up all the day long ; and his filence, when he admitted any to __ anaudience, difefed the* as much, a, if they, had been de-

m

Duke cf MARLBOROUGH, &c. « nied it. The earl of Mar'iborough thought, that the great *« fervices he had done, were not acknowledged nor rewarded, ' « as they well deferved, and began to fpeak like a man dif- ' « contented. The (train of all the nation almolt was, that the *' Englifh were overlooked, and the Dutch were the only per- «« fons favoured or truited.

Notwithftanding this obfervation of our author, which was made upon another occafion, he afligns another reafon for the earl's difgrace: it may not be amiis to give my readers his ac- count of it in his own words :

" An incident (fays my author) happen'd, near the end «' the feffion of parliament, that had very ill effefts, which I tcrf 4< unwillingly mention, becaufe it cannot be told without fome reflections on the queen, whont I always honoured, beyond all the perfons I had ever known. The earl of Nottingham, came to the earl of Marlborough, with a mefiage from the king, telling him, that he had no more ufe for his fervice1, and therefore he demanded all his commiffions. What drew fo fudden and fo hard a meffage was not known ; for he had been with the king that morning, and had parted with him in the ordinary manner. It feemed fome letter was intercept- ed, which gave fufpicion. It is certain, that he thought he was too little confidered, and that he had, upon many occafions, cenfured the king's conducl, and reflected on the Dutch. But the original caufe of his difgrace arofe from another confideration : the princefs (Ann of Denmark) thought herfelf too much neglected by the king, whofe cold way to- wards her was foon obferved : after the king was on the throne, no propofitions were made to her of a fettlement, nor any advances of mony : fo me, thinking me was to be kept in a neceffitous dependance on the court, got fome to move in the Houfe of Commons, in the year 1690, when they were in the debate- concerning the revenue, that Jhe Jhould ba<ve alignments fuitable to her dignity. This both the king and queen took amifs from her ; the queen complained more particularly, that me was then ill, after her lying in of the duke of Gloucefler, at Hampton-court, and that me her- *' felf was treating her, and the young child, with the tender- " nefs of a mother, and that yet fuch a motion was made, be- " fore me had tried, in a private manner, what the king intend- «' ed to affign her. The princefs, on the other hand, faid, fhc " knew the queen was a good wife, fubmiffive and obedient to *' every thing that the king deftred ; fo me thought the beft " wa? to have a fettlement by aft of parliament. On the other " han4, the cuftom had always been, that the royal family (a '* prince of Wales not excepted) was kept in a dependance on « the king, and had no allowance, but from his meer favour

74 ?*>e Life of JOHN,

1692. '« and kindnefs ; yet, in this cafe, in which the princefs was put out of the fucceffion, during the Icing's life, it feemec! reafonable, that fomewhat more than ordinary fhould be done in confideration of that. The aft pafled, allowing her a fettlement of fifty thoufand pounds ; (which it was gene- rally believed, was chiefly owing to my loid Marlborough's indefatigable induftry :) but, upon this, a coldnefs fol- lowed, between, not only the king, but even the queen and the princefs ; and the blame of this motion was caft on the countefs of Marlborough, as moft in favour with the princefs : and this had contributed much to alienate the king from her hufband, and had difpofed him to receive ill impreflions of him.

" Upon his difgrace, his lady was forbid the court ; the princefs would not fubmit to this ; fhe thought, (he ought to be allowed to keep what perfons (he plealed about herfelf ; and when the queen infifted on the thing, fhe retired from the court. There were, no doubt, ill offices done on all hands, and there were fome that prefled the princefs to fub- mit to the queen, as well as others who prefled the queen to psfs it over ; but without effect: both had engaged them- felves, before they had well reflected on the confequtnces of fuch a breach: and the matter went fo far, that the queen ordered, that no publick honours fhould be fhewed the prin- cefs, befides many other lefs matters, which I unwillingly re- fleet on, becaufe I was much troubled to fee the queen carry fuch a matter fo far ; and the breach continued to the end of her life. The enemies of the government tried what could be made of this, to create diitractions among us; but the princefs gave no encouragement to them: fo that this mifunderflanding had no other effect, but that it gave ene- mies much ill-natur'd joy, and a fecret fpiteful diverfion." Thus this author makes the original caufe of the earl's dif- on his opi- grace, to be an incident which happened two years before ; tho' during thofe two years, the king fhewed no fign of it ; but, on the contrary, gave him all marks of his efteem, and of the high opinion he had of his capacity. Perhaps this might co-operate with the other reafbns alledged ; and tho' the king may, during that time, have ftifled his refentment on this ac- count, in confideration of his great fervices ; yet, when fired by new caufes of difpleafure, or, at leaft, what he thought fo, it might break a-new into a flame, and help to determine his jnajeity to proceed in this manner. The author of the continu- ation of Rapin, tho' he mentions another reafon, which I lhall, likewife, take notice of below, feems alfo, to be of opi- nion, that this was the real, or at leaft principal caufe of his Difgrace. His lady underwent the fame fate, and was likewife

(as

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &JV.

(as the author I juft now mention'd, has alfo obferved, forbid 'the court j which her royal highnefs, the princefs of Denmark, thought a great hardfhip upon her. She complain'd of it to the queen ; but, having no fatisfaclion given her, fhe retired herfelf from court, tiil after the death of the queen.

It was obferv'd, that the very morning before the earl's dif- grace, he waited upon the king, to introduce the lord George Hamilton, now earl of Orkney, to his majetty ; and met with a moft favourable reception : but that very afternoon, the fame lord George Hamilton was, as I have been inform'd by a gen- tleman of worth, not only fent to acquaint his lordfhip, that the king had no farther occafion for his fervice, but fucceeded him as a colonel of a regiment of fufileers. Notwithftanding all that has been faid above, this fudden change in the mind of the king, makes it reafonable to believe, that fome unforefeen incident at lead blew up the coals, at this time, if it was not the fole occafion of his majefty's difpleafure.

There has indeed been yet another reafon affigned for it ; but Another with what grounds I ihall not pretend to determine ; viz. That reafon af- the earl had revealed to his lady a fecret, which his majefty hadfi£ned- entrulted him with : the author of the continuation of Rapin names this fecret, and fays it was a private defign on Dunkirk : which it was pretended the countefs difcover'd to fir Theophilus Oglethorp's lady.

A late author, (fuppos'd to have been a woman of quality) whom I have had occafion to mention already, is more parti- cular in her relation of the circumftances of this fuppofed fadl. " Both tradition and fecret hiftory (fays {he) mew us, that a " defign had actually been form'd upon Dunkirk, which but " four perfons in England were privy to : the king, lord M -h, and two more ; that one of thefe four communi- cated the fecret to his wife, who, as it was faid, fold it to

lady for what fhe could get j that, in confequence, the

faid defign mifcarried, and thole concern'd in it abroad were hang'd : that, upon this, the king fent for his three confi- dents ; and having, with fome trouble, found out the leak, " exprefs'd himfelf, upon the occafion, in his dry way, as fol- *' lows ; My Lord, you ha*ve put a greater truft in your cwiff, " than I did in mine:" But by what authority, (for fhe affigns none) does this woman of quality fingle out any one of the four perfons who were privy to this deiign, more than any of the other three ? and why may not one of thofe concern'd a- broad, who fuffer'd for it, be fuppofed to betray the fecret, ra- ther than a nobleman, againft whom, for ought I have ever heard, not one probable circumftance, has fo much as been alledged, much lefs proved, to corroborate the affertion ?

7$ We Life of J O H N,

1692. That there was fuch a defign form'd about this time, which \_ — ,J- ' mifcarried, is not improbable : and, as it would not have been ib very decent, either for the king, or the miniftry, to have own'd either of the other reafons, which I have mention'd a- bove ; it may not be unnatural to fuppofe, that whether the earl, or his lady ever had, or had not, let drop any expreflion tending to a difcovery of this matter, that it may have been made ufe of as an excufe to cover the real reafona of their

»• /«

ihfgrace.

A late author (ays : this event might perhaps be well enough accounted for, by faying, that lord Portland had ever a great prejudice to my lord Marlborough, and that mrs. Villiers (after- wards lady Orkney) was an implacable enemy to his lady : but (continues my author) " I think it is not to be doubted, that the «' principal caufe of the king's meflage, was the court's dif- " like, that any body (hould have fo much intereft with the «' princefs as the lady Marlborough had, who would not im- 44 plicitly obey every command of the king and queen. The «' difgrace of the lord Marlborough, therefore, was deligned as " a ftep towards removing his lady from about her."

Having thus mention'd the various caufes which were aflign'd for this event, I leave the reader to form his own judgment thereupon, which feems to be the beft grounded, per- Tne earl, in the mean time, had his friends at court, and - |n ^ king's favour, who did not ceafe to reprefent to his ma- e. JeftX how little he defend fuch treatment. Admiral Ruflel, in fulves for particular, pat himfelf in ill terms with the king, on that ac- th« e«l. count, by prefling to know the grounds of the earl's difgrace. " He had not only (fays a late author) lived in great friendfhip «' with him, but had carried the firft meffages, that had pafled " between him and the king when he went over to Holland ; " he almolt upbraided the king with the earl of Marlborough's " fervices, who, as he faid, had fet the crown upon his head." It is eafy to conceive, that the countefs of Marlborough muft have been very fenfibly afte&ed by this fudden and unex- pected change ; but how fhe bore it cannot be better exprefled than in her own words, on a late memorable occafion ; Ifolemn- lyprotejl ((ays (he) that the fofi of my lord Marlborougtf s employ- ments would never have broke my reft one jingle night, upon account bf inters]} : but I confefs, the being turned out is fomethlng <very difagreeable to my temper ; and, I believe, it was three 'weeks be- fore my bejl friends could perfuade me, that it was fit for me to go to a court, which (as 2 thought) had ufed my lord Marlborough very ill. The earl < Not jong after> t^e earj of Marlborough, and fome other

in the Tow- Peers> were Put in rhe Tower, upon a falfe accufation of high «r, trcafon, which was evidently proved to be a confpiracy of fome

profligate

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. JJ

profligate wretches, who fancied that forgeries and falfe fwear- 1692. ing would be acceptable and rewarded. There was an affocia- O^/^VJ tion pretended to be drawn againft the government, to which On account the fubfcriptions were fet fo dexterouAy, that thofe very lords °|j-^.^ge* themfelves allow'd, they could not diftinguifh between their true fubfcriptions, and thofe which were forged for them. But the manner of the difcovery, with feveral other circumftances, carried fuch evident marks of impolture, that the lords of the The vlllany council ordered a ftrift profecution of all concerned in it, which dcteaod » ended in a full conviction of the forgery j and thofe who had combined in it where whipped and pilloried, a punifhment far And the au> from being adequate to their crime. ^'"•k'fi •'

As fome farther particulars of this villanous tranfa&ipn may ?un ? not be unacceptable to my readers, I fhall give them' in the words of a noble author, than whom no one can be fuppos'd to have had a more genuine account ; efpecially as it contains a farther jufti£cation of my lord Marlborough.

" Soon after the princefs's going to Sion, (fays my author) " a dreadful plot broke out, which was faid to have been hid " fomewhere, I don't know where, in a flower-pot, and 017 " lord Marlborough was fent to the Tower.

" To commit a peer to prifon, it was neceffary there mould *' be an affidavit from fomebody of the treafon. My lord

" R y, therefore, f y of f— — e, had fent to one

" Young, who was then in goal for perjury and forgery, and " paid his fine, in order to make him what they call a legal

evidence : For as the C rt L rs faid, Young, not

having loft his ears, was an irreproachable witnefs. 1 fhall not (continues my author) dwell on the ftory of this fellow's

villany, the b p of R r having given a full account of

it in print."

Thefe two paragraphs are treated by this noble author's pro- fefTed antagonift of her own fex, as happy foeers, which (adds fhe) " if they raife a laugh, I fuppofe it is all they were infert- ed for ; and if (continues fhe) one bifhop, for his own fake, as accufed of being one of the confpirators, has difcul- pated lord Marlborough, together with the other peers, faid to be in the fame aflbciation ; and if another, (Burnet) for the fake of truth, has done the fame, neither of them has been hardy enough to make this forgery of Young's a device of ' the government's, or reprefent it was countenanced by a fe- ' cretary of ftate ;" from whence fhe would have it inferred, that this is a ftrange circumftance, refting folely on a fingle au- thority ; but how far this way of reafoning will bear the teft, I fubmit to the judgment of every unprejudiced reader, gut to return to our noble author, fhe goes on :

" Lord

The Life of J O H N,

" Lord Romney was a third fon of the Earl of Leicefter's Family, and Brother to the unfortunate Algernon Sidney, who loit hi? Head on the Scaffold. He was reckoned one of the fineft Gentlemen at King Charles IPs Court. That King fent him Envoy to the Prince of Orange, at whofe Court he " was in very great Eileem ; but return'd when the Popifh " Party began to prevail, to look after the private Concerns of " his Family, which began to fuffer in England. About a " Year before the Revolution, he made a Trip to Italy, for the " intereft of the Prince of Orange, and carried on divers in- " trigues with the Princes who were then entering into that " Confederacy, under the Pretence of via" ting the Carnival of " Venice ; and made two or three Journies in Difguife, into " England. He <vcas, indeed, fuppos d to be the great Wheelcn " ivbich the Revolution rolled. He was very much in the Fa- " vour of King William, who made him a Colonel of his Foot- " Guards, Secretary of State, Gentleman of his Bedchamber, " and Warden of the Cinque Ports : He likewife once fent him *' Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, and afterwards made him Groom *' of the Stole, Matter of the Ordnance, and Lieutenant-Gene- " ral of his Army. He always lived up to his Employment, " and was look'd upon as a very upright Man, tho' not of the " greateft Capacity. He was hkewiie fuppofed to be a Perfon " of ftridt Honour ; but his known Faculty of promifing every " body, and doing nothing for any body, does not fo perfeft- " ly befpeak this Character in his Favour ; and he is likewife faid " to have been very much addicted to Drinking, infomuch that, " for many Year?, he hardly pafs'd a Day without difguifing " himfelf. At the Queen's Acceffion he loll all his Employs "• but that of the Foot-Guards, which he kept till his Death." But to return to our noble Author. She goes on :

" Whether my Lord Marlborough's Confpiracy with this

" Young was what the Q^ n meant in her Letter to the

P (s, where (he fpeaks of the caufe my Lord Marlborougb

had yvcn the K g to do --what he had done, and of bis Un-

^.viHingnefs to come to fuch Extremities, tho1 People did dcferite it, I know not. Nor indeed could 1 ever learn what Caufe the King aflign'd for his Difpleai'ure. But it is natural to think, he would give the bell reafon he could for ufing in that Manner a Man who had done fo much for the Revolution. Every one knows that my Lord Marlborough had confidera- ble Employments under King J.imes, and might have hoped to be as great a Favourite as any body, could he have affiited in bringing about that unhappy Prince'* Scheme of fixing Popery and arbitrary Power in England. It was highly im- probable, therefore, that he, who had done fo much, and fa - crificed fo much, for the Prefervation of the Religion and

" Liberty

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

'* Liberty of his Country, fhotild, on a fudden, engage in a ** Confpiracy to deftroy them. And tho' thefe Considerations ' " had no Weight with the King, they had fo much with my

'* Lord D re, my Lord Br rd, and the late Duke of

" M u, that they thought it inf » s to fend my Lord

" Maryborough to Prifon upon fuch Evidence ; and therefore, *' when the Warrant for his Commitment come to be fign'd at ** the Council- Table, they refufed to put their Hands to it, tho* '* at that Time, they had no particular Friendfhip for him.

" My Lord Br rd's Behaviour was very remarkable, for

" he made my Lord Marlborough a Vifit in the Tower, while " others were fearful of doing themfelves hurt at Court, if they " appear'd but to be known to his Lordfhip."

" The Parliament was, on this account, opened under great Some Re- " Difadvantages. The Peers, who had been falfely accufed ,™arks on " were, indeed, difcharged from their Imprifonment, but it* " was upon Bail only -, fo it was faid to/be contrary to the " Nature and Freedom of Parliaments, fpr Prifoners to fit in it. " It was confefled, that in times of Danger, and fuch was the " foregoing Summer, it mult be trufted tp the Difcretion of a " Government, to commit fuch Perfons a$ were fufpefted : But " when the Danger was over, by our Vi&ory at Sea, thofe a- " gainft whom there lay nothing befides Sufpicions, ought to *' have been fet at Liberty, and this was thought reafonable. " The Lords parted fome Votes, afierting their Privileges ; and " were offended with the Judges, for detaining fome in Prifon, *' tho' there was no Reafon nor Colour for their Difpleafuie. " But where the Privilege, or the Dignity of Peerage is in " Queftion, it is not eafy to keep the Houfe within Bounds.

" The Debate went off in a Bill, that indemnified the Mi- " niftry for thofe Commitments ; but limited them, for the fu- " ture, by feveral Rules ; all which Rules were rejedled by the " Commons. They believed thofe Limitations gave a legal " Power to commit, in fuch Cafes where they were obferved j " Whereas they thought, the fafer Way was, to indemnify the '* Miniltry, when it was vifible they did not commit any but " upon a real Danger, and not to fet them any Rules ; fince, " as to the committing of fufpe&ed Perfons, where the Danger *' is real and vifible, the publick Safety mull be firil look'd to, " and fuperfede all particular Laws.

The earl of Marlborough having pafs'd the Remainder of 1694.

Queen Mary. This amiable, virtuous Princefs died of Small Pox, tie eight and twcatieih of December, , 1 694 .

CHAP.

So the Life of JOHN*

CHAP. II.

Vranfaftions during the Reign of Ring Wi L L i A M III.

t69<;. T""^ H E Death of Qnecn Mary, tho' it gave Occafion to

Oppofition J^ what we may call a new Reign ; yet made no Alteration

made to the but in the Royal Title, which now, inftead of that of William

5nS£ and Mary» was changed to William III. There were not, indeed

Title, after wanting, reftlefs Spirits, who, notwithftanding the Ordei^of Suc-

the Queen's ceflion, fettled and eftablimed at the Revolution, pretended to

I)eath i infmuate, that the Princefs of Denmark ought immediately to

fucceed her Sifter, who alone had a Right to the Throne ; and

as King William acceeded to it, in her Right only, that Right

ceafed by her Death, and of courfe devolved to the next

Heir. Thefe Pretences being direftly oppofite to an exprefs Aft

of Parliament fell away of Courfe : But the fame Party, which,

And to the made this Oppofirion to King William's Right, being defeated

Eflence of in tnejr Expectations, rais'd another Objection, which, at firft

j"^C lament •^r'ew' ^eeme^ to carry fomething more of Reafon with it, viz.

' That the prefent Parliament, having been conven'd in the Name

«f William and Mary, was of Courfe diffolved, by the Death

of this Princefs. This Pofition, had it taken Place, might, at

this Time, have been of infinite Prejudice to the King and

Nation. All publick Affairs muft have been fufpended, at a

Time when every Interruption would have been pernicious.

New Elections might have caufed great Diforders, throughout

the whole Kingdom, and a new Parliament might have been of

yet worfe Conlequence : But it happily appear' d, that the fame

Aft, which vefted King William and Queen Mary with the

Royal Dignity, vefted King William with the fole and whole

Adminiftration of the Government, which fully anfwered this

Bat in vain. Obje&ion, and put an End to that pernicious Project.

The Earl of Marlborough having been difgrac'd by King

The Earl William, in the Manner I have defcribed above, without any

of Marlbro' particular Casfe being affign'd ; and as well he, as his Countcfs,

eern'T^in ^"g *° immediately attach'd to the Intereft of the Princefs

thefeGppo-of Denmark; it might have been expe&ed, that he would

fitioas. have been at die-Head of theie Oppofitions : But tjhe Good of

his Country wa$falways a Confideration with him, primary to

all other, and .Ildo not fo much as find him mentioned on this

Occafion.

Tfee Earl In the Year 1696. the Earl of Marlborough was again falfely accured of ^"g in KinS Jaraes's Intereft, by Sir John Fenwick > w&di happened in the following Manner. Fenwick i 2 •

Duke of MA RL BO ROUGH, &c.

When Fenwick was firft taken, he wrote a Letter to his Lady, to inform her of his Misfortune, and acquainting her, that he looked on himfelf as a dead man, unlefs powerful Appli- cation could be made for him, or fome of the Jury could be bribed to ftarve out the reft. This Letter was intercepted. At his firft Examination, before the Lords Juftices, he flatly 'denied every thing ; but, when this Letter was fhewn him, he was confounded. In his private Treaty with the Duke of Devon- fhire, he infifted upon an Affurance of Life, upon his Promffe of difcovering all he knew. This the King refufed, and would have it left to himfelf to judge of the Intregrity and Importance of thefe Difcoveries. Fenwick refolving, therefore, to throw himfelf on the King's Mercy, fent his Majefty a Paperj in which, after a bare Account of the Consultations among the Jacobites, he faid in general, there was in England, a fettled Number of Perfons to manage the Affairs of King James : And being afterwards put upon to name thofe Perfons, and to defcend to Particulars, he gave in another Writing, wherein, among o- ther Things, he pretended, that King James, and thofe who were employed by him, had affured the Jacobites, that the Earls of Shrewfbury, Bath, and Marlborough, the Lord Go- dolphin, and Admiral Ruflel, were reconciled to him, and were now in his Intereits, and acling for him ; That Shrewfbury came again into the Office of Secretary of State, by the Operation and Confent of King James ; and that his Grace was in Treaty with that Monarch, before he laid down the Seals ; That the Lord Marlborough had promis'd King James fome Service, which had inclin'd his Majefty to promife him his Pardon ; That the Earl of Bath was to betrary Plymouth, into the Hands of the French King ; That Admiral Ruflel and the Lord Godolphin had likewife undertaken particular Services ; And that Commiflary Crawford had fent over to France a Lilt of the Forces in England. Thefe Informations, at firit, fhrtled not only the Court, but the King himfelf, and gained Sir John Fenwick fome Time : But as he did not offer the leaft Appearance of Proof, or Circuir.itance, to corroborate his Affertions, not even that could amount to a Pre- fumption, to fupport his Accufation, this pretended Difcoveiy could, at moft; go no farther than to raife the King's Jealouiy of thofe perfons ; but, with every impartial Perfon, it could be look'd on as no more than a mean Prevarication, without any Grounds. And his muffling Behaviour afterwords, before the Houfe of Commons, was more than a fufficient Proof .of it. As fuch, likewife, that Houfe treated it ; and, to do Juftice to the Loyalty of thefe injured Noblemen, and entirely to clear them, from thefe falfe Accufations, voted.; That the Papers which hiid]3ut ac(,,,:{. . been read, entitled, Sir Joim FenwicRs Informations, accufmg ted by the feveral Peers of the Realm, of Difloyalty, were falie and fcan- PaHwmenr.

VOL. I. G dalous.

82 Me Life of J O H N,

1696. dalous, tending to the Subverfion of the Government, to raife

t^V^U * Jealoufy between the King and his Subjects, and to ftifle the

Truth of the Controverfy. And thefe Prevarications are fuppofed

) have been one great Inducement, with many Members to

Scaffold m °f Attainder> Which brouSht him to the

ft ^ !atTe.,Author ,%«• Fenwick was put upon this Artifice to * his Life, or at leaft to gain Time, by the Earl of Monmouth, formerly known by the Name of Lord Mordaunt ; who (he adds ™ ^epC°ntriver °f £ more out of Spleen or Revenge againfl certain Perfons, who he thought were more favoured than he thantoferveFenwick. To this End, he drew up certain In- ftruaions which he put into the Hands of the Duchefs of Nor- tolk> to !? conveyed to thePrifoner; who finding it accom- panied with Threats and Promifes, according to the Ufe he ftoudmakeof thofe Inftrudions, he thereupon formed th Ac! cufation I have given an Account of above

eatohh.p n > ™* after the

made Go- ath fj& bel°ved Confort, Queen Mary, of blefled Me-

vernour to mory; had fhewn a more than ordinary Fondnefs for the Duke

So0!6 °f iJPSnSl "h° T ?OW entCrinS on the tenth Year of his Gloucester, Age and had g.ven fuch Proofs of a forward Genius, that it

tttlS?^'0^6 hVm °Ut °f the Hands of ^ Lady Fitzhardmg his Governefs. The King, therefore, applied himfelf to the forming of a Family, and a Court for this

who wey°^g ^Tp ^ WaS then' that feveral g^at Men 2h^E^ trueft Patriots about the King, again iprefen ted

of iSirih 3 ^\ % 'uT?"7 that f° able a ^an> ^heEarl of Ma Iborough, ftould be laid by, as ufelefs and forgotten, and

rS uad ^M"? Fin £° thC Ki"S'S nearer Converfltion, by perfuadmg his Majefty to conftitute him Governour to hi Hlghnefs, the Duke of Gloucefler. Others, indeed fay that .twasmeerly to oblige his afFedionate Mother, the Prin efs. Be this as it will the King was pleafed, on the nineteenth of June, tho many others had made Intereft for this important born^ < ^T* thC Rlght Honourable, John Earl of MS-

fteiaid. My Lord, teach him but to be what you are and mt Mpk™ cannot want Jccomplijkments: Than which hT/Maieftv could not have bellowed a greater EUCOmum upoi hJL The

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

fame Evening, his Lordfhip was fworn of the Privy Council, and took his Place there, accordingly.

What Senfe the Nation in general" had of the Earl of Marl-And Privy- borough's Qualifications for fo high a Truft, as Governour to^"^10^ the Prince, who was next to the prefumptive Heir to the Crown, Houfe of we may fee by the following Inltance of the Approbation the Commons, Houfe of Commons exprefs'd on this Occafion. Bifhop Burnetwith regard was appointed, at the fame Time, to be his Highnefs's Pre-J^rS ceptor, with which her Royal Highnefs, the Princefs, was not altogether fatisfied ; but the Houfe of Commons {hewed a greater Blfll°P Bur- Diflike of the Choice, when it being moved, whether a Scotch- p^™^ to man, and a Perfon who had fuch Notions of Government (fome th^ Duke of added Religion too) as the Bifhop had publifhed, in a Paftoral Gloucefter. Letter, which had been cenfured by that Hoafe, was qualified „, p •. to be near a Prince, who was next to the prefumptive Heir of the ment j^g Crown '? Tho', indeed, the Affirmative carried it, in Favour of him. the Prelate ; yet it was with this Proviib, that the Archbifhop of Canterbury, the Earl of Marlborough, and the Earl of Dor- fet, mould overlook his Conduct.

The Author of Bifhop Burnet's Life, affix'd to the fecond Volume of his Hiftory of his own Times, gives, however, a very different Account of this Matter, as far as regards the Bifhop, back'd by the Authority of fome Letters, of which, he fays, he has the Originals in his hands. To avoid the Cenfure of Partiality, as the above feems to caft fome Reflection on the Bi- Jhop, I (hall add that Account.

In the Year 1698, when it became neceffary to fettle the Duke of Gloucefter's Family, the king fent the Earl of Sunderland, with a Meffage to the Princefs of Denmark, acquainting her, " That he put the whole Management of her Son's Houfhold " into her Hands ; but that he owed the Care of his Education, His Son's *' to himfelf, and his People, and therefore would name the Per- Account of «' fons for that Purpofe." Accordingly, the Earl of Marlbo- this Matter* rough being nominated his Governour, the Bifhop of Silifbury was appointed his Preceptor. He was then retired into his Diocefe, having lately loft his Wife by the fmall Pox. He took that Occafion, therefore, to wave the Offer of this important Charge; tho' he was affured, the Princefs had teilify'd her Approbation of the King's Choice. He wrote to the Earl of Which he Sanderland, to ufe his Intereft, that he might be excufed, and *d^dST in return received from him the following Letter.

My Lord, June 29. A Letter

" T Am extremely troubled for your Lofs., it being, by all that EarfofSon- " J_ 1 have heard, a very great one : But you muft not leave derland to " Irving the Publick, upon any private Coniideration. I in- JjJ10? Bur" G 2 tend""1'

4 the Life of JOHN,

1698. " tend to be in Town next Week, and if I have any Credit ••—V* ••*" at all, you may be allured, that you fhall be fent for, and " fhall come thither, unlels you will fall out with all your " Friends, and with the King- in the firft Place. I am, with " great Truth,

My Lord,

Your molt faithful humble Servant,

SUNDER LAND.

The Bifhop wrote, likewife, to his Friend, Archbifhop Ten- nifon, defiring him to wait on the King, in his Name, and in- treat his Majefty, to allow him to decline this Employment : The Archbifhop replied, ?.nd offered many Arguments to per- fwade him to accept of it ; which only produced a fecond Let- ter, itronger than the former, and to ' the fame Purpofe : To which his Grace, by King William's Direction, returned the following Anfwer.

Lambeth, June 28. 1698, My Lord,

I Received your Second, in which you feem to infift on the Contents of the Firft ; upon that Account I waited on the King, not being willing to decline doing, what you fb earneflly prefs'd. The King exprefs'd himfelf, with great Tendernefs upon this Subjecl ; he commanded me to let you underftand, that he had fent for you, before this Time, if this Misfortune had not happened, and that he ftill defires you to come, as foon as with Decency you can. He looks up- on you, as a Divine, who in fuch Cafes had comforted many, and thinks it will look beft, not to fuffer fuch a Crofs to get fuch Power over you, as to make you decline fo publick a Service. He fpoke to this Effeft, without my urging my private Opinion, which is, what it was in my Firft. I heartily pray for you, I pity you as my own Brother, but I cannot bring myfelf in this to be of your Lordfhip's Opi- nion. It is true, if no Steps had been made in this Affair, your Excufe would the eafier have made its Way ; but Things are fo far advanc'd, it feems not proper to go back. If upon this, that hopeful Prince fhall fall into fuch Hands, as are unfit, your Lordfhip would then refleft, upon your having declined the Service, \\ith Pain and Grief. Pray, next Port, let me have fome Anfwer, our good Mailer, «' the King, may be pleafed with. I am,

My Lord,

Your affectionate Brother,

THO. CANTUAR.

At

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. As the reft of the Bifhop's Friends concurred iu the fame Strain, earneftly preffing him, not to refufe a Station, wherein he might do his Country fuch fmgular Service, as in the right Education of the Duke of Gloucefter ; he thought it might be accounted Obftinacy not to fubmit. He, therefore, fignified his Compliance, in his Anfwer to the Archbimop of Canterbury ; who thereupon wrote him another Letter, which I ihall here infert.

Kenfmgton, July 4. 169^.

My Lord,

" T ATE laft Night, the King fpoke again about your A f.-cond " \_j coming up; the Time you mention (Friday Fortnight) Letter from " he thinks much too long ; he, therefore, commanded me to t!'c laine- " fend an Exprefs to you, in order to your coming up as foon *' as poffibly you can : He having Time little enough to fettle '* that Matter, before his going beyond the Sea, which will " not now be long ; becaule the Parliament may fpeedily end, " perhaps this Day. He confiders very gracioufly the Com- " mendablenefs of your~Submiffion, in chefs Circumitances, ft which is indeed worthy of you. Pray haften as much as " poffibly you can, and may God bring you fafely hither. " I am,

Your affectionate Brother,

THO. CANTUAR.

P. S. The Parliament rife s To-morrow, and the King goes fcoK to Windfor ; luhene you may wai! on bis MajeJIy.

When our Prelate, upon his Arrival at Windfor, had his firft BP. J3 Audience of the King, he a flu red his Majefty, it was no longer accepts of his Intention to decline fo honourable an Employment, as the the Employ. educating a Prince fo nearly related to the Crown ; fince his Royal Matter thought him worthy of that Truft ; but as the Discharge of his Duty in this Station muil confine him con!! nt]y to Court, which was inconfiftent with his epifcopalFunftion, he defired Leave to refign his Bifhoprick. The King was much furprized at this Propofal, to which he would by no Means confent : However, finding our Author perfifted in it, he was, at length, prevailed on, to agree, that the Duke fhould refide all the Summer at Windfor, and that the Bimop mould have ten Weeks allowed him every Year, to vifit the other Parts of his Diocefc.

The fixteenth of July, his Majefty declared in Council, thatThe Ear{ he intended to go over to Holland, for a fhort Time, and hadof Marlhro' nominated nine Lords Juftices for the Adminillration of the made one of Government, during his Abfence, of whom the Earl of Mnrl-*^.Lords was one. This fudden Change of Scene, in Favour of £ Lj^t° G 3 a Noble-

86 We Life of J O H N,

a Nobleman, who had been fo long abfent from Court, and was look'd on as, in a Manner, forgotten, gave Occaficn to many Reflections, As it was a Thing not done without the Chan e in Sreateft Deliberation, no doubt his Majefty had his folid Rea- r«rvour'of ^ons ^or ^ ' an^ confidering the Earl's known Integrity and the Earl Capacity, in the Management either of Civil or Military Affairs, cfMarlbro'.it is rather Matter of Wonder, how the King could let him re- main fo long in Obfcurity, and uielefs to his Country, which it ever was his utmoft Endeavour to ferve. What Prince Henry faid to his Father, King James the Firft, concerning Sir Walter The Earl Raleigh, might, in feme Meafure, be applied to this Cafe. of Marlbro' . The thirty firft of May, 1699, his Majefty, being again go- Time°one ofin? for Holland, named Lords Juftices of England, for the Ad- the Lord's miniftration of the Government, during his Abfence, among Juftices ; whom the Earl of Marlborough was again one.

1700. The Publick Affairs requiring the King's Prefence in Holland,

And a third jn the Year 1700, on the 2yth of June, his Majefty, among o-

Time. therSj again, in Council, declared the Earl of Marlborough,

one of the Lords Juftices of England, for the Adminiftration of

Puke°of C ^e Government, during his Abfence : And, the fame Year, he

Gloucefter. had the Affliction, in common with the Nation (tho' on Ac-

count of his being fo near his Perfon, in a heavier Degree) to

lofe his Royal Pupil, the Duke of Gloucefter, who died the

nine and twentieth of July, a Prince of as great Hopes, as any

Age had produc'd, having before his Death, under his Lord-

fhip's Tuition, difcovered fo manly a Genius, and fuch excel-

lent Qualities, as would have verified the favourable Opinion the

The Earl of^'nS had conceived of his Lordfhip, for this important Poft.

Marlbro' Upon the Death of the King of Spain, and the French King's

declared receding from the Treaty of Partition of the Spanifh Monarchy,

General of EurOpe being threatned with a new War, and the King being

and Com- ^en^^e °^ his own declining State of Health, his Majelty was juander in pleafed, on the firft of June, to declare the Earl of Marlbo- Chief in rough, General of tke Foot, and Commander in Chief of bis Ma- Holland. jffij por(es in Holland.

And ap- The 2 8th of the fame Month, his Majefty was, likewife, pointedAm- pleafed to appoint his Lordfhip, Arnbafiadour Extraordinary and bafladour k plenipotentiary, for the Negotiations at the Hague. Evident inhere- Marks» that his Majefty was fully convinced of his Lordfhip's

extraordinary Capacity, as well in Civil as Military Affairs. jje departs His Lordfhip embark'd with his Majefty at Margate, the firft with the Of jujj^ an<j came two DayS after, to the Hague. He took his King for Refidence in Prince Morrice's Houfe, near the Court, which

the States, out of a peculiar Refpeft to his Majefty, and

Efteem for his Lordfhip, lent him, where he received the Vifits

of all the Foreign Minifters.

Tho

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V. $7

The nine and twentieth of Auguft, his Lordfhip fet out, to 1701. view the Englifh Forces at Breda, and in other Garrifons, which <— -v-O had been fent, that Summer, from England, purfuant to Trea- Views the ties fubfifting between England and Holland. *n%m .

The firft of September, his Lordfhip returned to the Hague, GaSn? and, the twenty-fecond of the fame month, having fome im- Returns 'to portant Matters to confult with the King, he waited on him at the Hague. Loo, where his Majefty then refided. He left that place, a few Days after, and went to Breda, to prepare every Thing in the Camp, near that Place, for his Majefty 's Reception. The thir- Entertains tieth of September, the King reviewed the Forces, and with the King at his chief Officers, were entertained, at Dinner, by the Earl Of his ^artcr$- Marlborough, at his Lordfhip' s Quarters.

The third of October, the Earl fet out from the Camp, and, after he had conferred with the States-general, and the foreign Return9 to Minifters, at the Hague, returned to England, on the fitting of England. the Parliament.

The War, with which England was threatned, began now The Death to approach daily, and, indeed, to become inevitable. For, of K.James, upon the Death of King James II. the fixth of September, O. S. the French King took the impolitick Step (as it was generally thought to be, at that Time) to declare the young pretended Prince of Wales to be King of England, Scotland and Ireland j The French by which he'drew upon himfelf, immediately, that Swarm of Ene- King pro- mies, which, foon after, compos'd the Grand Alliance, and cl*™nfcd which he {hould rather have endeavoured to keep at Bay, till pnnce of the Duke d'Anjou was fix'd more firmly on the Throne of Wales, King Spain. of Engl. &c.

This hafty and unexpected Proceeding of France was fo re- The tngiifli fented by the King, that he immediately fent an Exprefs to the Ambafladour Lord Manchefter, his Ambafladour in France, to come direftly away, without taking Leave ; and his Lordfhip, having re- ceived thefe Orders, fent the following Letter to M. de Torcy, Secretary of State for foreign Affairs.

My Lord,

THE King my Matter, being inform' d, that His moft His Letter Chriftian Majefty had acknowledg'd another King of to M- de Great Britain, thinks that his Glory and Honour permits iorcy« him no more to have an Ambafladour near the King, your Mafter ; and has fent me Orders to depart immediately; whereof I do myfelf the Honour to acquaint you, by this Letter ; and, withal, to affure you, that I am, &c .

The French King, who was then at Fontainbleau, tho' he

could reafonably expect no other Proceeding on King WillianVa

Side, feemed furpriz'd at this fudden Refolution ; he aflembled

G 4 hfc

Me Life cf J O H N,

his Council, and was two or three Days deliberating, before M. de Torcy fent the Ambafiadour an/ Anfwer ; but then he re- ceived the following.

My Lord,

M. de Tor- « T HAVE nothing more to add, to what I had the Honour ey lAwwer, if J^ to tejj yCU^ eig^t j)avs agO? of the fincere Defire the King " has always had, to preferve, with the King, your Mailer, " the Peace confirmed by the Treaty of Ryfwick. I pray you «' only, as to me in particular, to be perfuaded, that in what «* Place foever you be, you will have none that lhallbe with " more Sincerity, than I fhall be all my Life-time, ^.

& Remark By this evafive Anfwer, it is plain, the French King was llpon it, fenfible his Proceeding would not bear a Difcuffion ; but his mentioning the Peace of Ryfwick, and his Mailer's Inclination to preferve the Peace confirmed by it, is a Mafler-piece of Af- furance : For could any thing be more contrary to his moft Chriilian Majefty's folemn Engagements at tkat Treaty, than his quickly after promifing the late King James, on his Death- bed, never to abandon the Pretender ; but always to acknow- ledge and entertain him as a King of England, and declaring, that he hoped to fee him treated after the fame Manner, by the whole World ?

The French The Lord Manchefter, having, hereupon, obtained his Paff- ^(TrcdTo Ports> ro^6 h^ to leave tnat intriguing Court, and, before the depart Eng- twenty-third of September, Notice was given, by his Majefty's JaaJ, Command, to Monf. Pouflin, the French Secretary here, that

he mould immediately leave the Kingdom. Much about the fame Time, that this beggarly Frenchman (as a certain Author calls him) departed, there was a fcsridalous Paper printed, as it was fuppofed, by his Orders, entitled, The French Kings Rea- Jbns for owning the pretended Prince of Wales, for King of Eng- land.

The Indig- The Nation, in the mean Time, was highly enraged at this nity offered Indignity offered by France, and mewed their Refentment, in refented"' ^ numerous Addreffes directed, en this Occafion, to the Throne, tluNation. ^rom a^ ^ar£s °^ tne Kingdom, full of Loyalty and Affeclion.

That from the City ofr London, which fet the firfl Example, may ferve as a Specimen or the reft, and was as follows.

Great Sir,

Addrefsof " "¥"V TE are deeply fenfible, how much we are in Duty

Ldrira °f " VY b°und» higWy to refent that great Indignity and Af-

" front, offered to your moft facred Majefty, by the French

*< King, in giving the Title of King of England, Scotland and

" Ireland*

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

ee Ireland, to the pretended Prince of Wales, contrary to your " Majefty's moft juft and lawful Title, and to the feveral Acls " of Parliament for fettling the Succeffion to the Crown, in * • the Proteftant Line.

" By this, it is apparent, he defigns, as much as in hirn " lies, to dethrone your Majefty, to extirpate the Proteftant " Religion, out of thefe your Majefty's Kingdoms, and to in- *' vade our Liberties and Properties ; for the maintaining " whereof, your Majefty hath fignalized your Zeal, by the ' ' often hazarding your precious Life.

" We, therefore, your Majefty's loyal Subjects, do fincerely, " unanimoufly, and chearfully, affure your Majefty, that we " will, at all Times, and upon all Occafions, exert the utmoft " of our Abilities, and contribute whatever lies in our Power, " for the Prefervation of your Perfon (whom God long pre- " ferve) and the Defence of your juft Rights, in Oppofition *'. to all Invaders of your Crown and Dignity."

This Addrefs having been tranfmitted to the King to Hol- land, his Majeity gave fpecial Directions to the Lords Juftices, to acquaint his loyal City of London, with the great Satisfaction he had upon receiving it.

The King, all this while, beftowed his Application, to per- Treaty be- fell the Alliances he was negotiating abroad, and particularly twcen the that between the Emperour, England and Holland, which was En^iamTand concluded in September. This Treaty was framed in the Na- Holland, ture of Propofals, upon which France might come in, and ac- cordingly the fame were communicated to the Spanifh Am- baftadour ; but, in cafe of Refufal, it was agreed, that Satif- fadlion fhould be given to the Houfe of Auftria, in relacion to the Spanifti Succeffion, to recover Flanders out of f he Hands of the French, and that the Englifh and Dutch mould keep what- ever they could conquer in the Weft- Indies.

At the opening of the New Parliament, the laft Day of the Opening and Year, his Majefty made his laft moft memorable Speech from Rcfolutions the Throne, which was extremely grateful to both Houfes (as p^J)* J^ well as the whole Nation) and was anfwered the following I70i> Days, by Addreftes and Refolutions, which mewed how unani- mous they were, in their Sentiments for revenging the Affront offer'd the Nation by France. I fhall mention only one Refolution of the Houfe of Commons, of the tenth of January, viz. " That " an humble Addrefs be prefented to his Majefty, that he will *' be gracioufly pleafed to take Care, that it be an Article in 41 the feveral Treaties of Alliance, with his Majefty and other " Potentates, That no Peace Jball be made with France, until his " Majefty t and the Nation, ba<ve Reparation for the great Indig- " vity offend fy the French King in vxniHg and declaring the pre~

«« tended

90 The Life of J O H N, &V.

1702. " teadeJ Prince of Wales, King of England, Scotland and Ire-

<~— v '" load."

Preparations in purfuance of the feveral loyal Resolutions of both Houfes, or a ar. C0rrefp0n(jent to njs Majefty's molt gracious Intentions, for the Honour, Intereft and Security of the Nation, all neceffary Pre- parations were making for a necefTiry War ; but, before it

IJeathof brake out, it pleafed GOD to takeaway his Majefty, on the

K. William, eighth of March.

Cbnclufion This was the State and Difpofition of the Nation, at the

of the III. J)eath of King William ; and I have been the more particular

^)ojt* in thefe Circumftances, becaufe they were the Groundwork of that great War, which broke out, at the Beginning of the en- fuing Reign, and in which our Hero performed fuch great and glorious Services for the Nation, and its Allies, and defervedly attained to that high Pitch of Honour and Rank, as was the Admiration of the whole World.

E N D of the Third BOOK.

BOOK

BOOK IV.

TRANSACTIONS during the jirft four Tears of the Reign of i^ueen ANN.

C H A F. I.

1'ranfafftons in 1702, till the Siege of Liege.

NOW come to the Period of this great Man's introdudion Life, in which he fhone forth with an aftonifh- to Queen ing Luftre and Glory, and in which will ap. Ann'sReign. pear fuch a Succeffion of noble Aftions, pur- fued with an unparallel'd Intrepidity, and matchlefs Conduct, wife Undertakings, crown'd with deferved Succefs, and inconteftable Vi&o- ries, in fuch Numbers, as will fcarce be found in any Hiftory, ancient or modern, recorded of the moft illuftrious Hero, within the fhort Space of fo few Years. I mall, therefore, difplay them in the cleareft and trueft Light, and wifh nothing more, than that I may be able to find Expreffions, in fome Meafure, at leaft> adequate to the Greatnefs of the Subjedl.

It will, however, be previoufly neceflary, in order to give Recapitula- the Reader a clearer Idea of the Caufes of this War, which tion of fome furnifh'd our Hero, with fo many glorious Opportunities °f ex'Aj^S re ercifing his Courage and Condufl, to recapitulate, in as brief^d'ecd ^" a Manner as poflible, fome few Events of the preceding Reign, Death of K.

after William.

Me Life of J O H N,

after the Peace of Ryfwick. * The great Bone of Contention, ) which threaten'd to fet all Europe into a Flame again, was the Succeffion to the Crown of Spain, after the Death of Charles II. who was in an ill State of Health, and cut of all Hopes of leaving Ifiae. The firft Step taken to prevent it was by his Bri- tannick Majefty, in engaging the King of Spain, to declare the eledoral Prince of Bavaria, to be his Heir and Succeffor, to the Exclufion of the Princes of France. This caufed great Un- eafinefs at the French Court, where nothing was thought of tut the Means of revenging this Indignity ; till the Count <ie Tallard (then Ambaffadour at the Engliih Court) contrived the famous Projeft of a Partition-Treaty, which was, at length, agreed to. By this Treaty, Naples and Sicil", the Towns de- pending upon the Monarchy of Spain, on the Coafts of Tuf- cany, and the Marquifate of Final, on that Side of Spain, and the Province of Guipufcoa, with Fontarabia, St, Sebaftian, and Port Paffage, on the other Side of Spain, were allotted to the Dauphin, in Confideration of his Claim to the Crown of Spain. That Crown, and the other Kingdoms and Places, both within and without Europe, were to defcend to the ele&oral Prince of £avam ; and the Duchy of Milan, was allotted to the Arch- duke Charles, the Emperour's fecond Son.

Death having, however, taken away the young Succeflbr to the Monarchy of Spain, who departed this Life, the fixth of February, 1699, N. S. a fecond Treaty of Partition was con- cluded between England, France and Holland ; by which, in- ilead of the electoral Prince of Bavaria, the Archduke, Charles of Auftria, was to have the Dominions allotted that Prince by the former Treaty, the Duchy of Milan was to devolve to the Duke of Lorrain, in lieu of his own Country, which was to be given to France, and the Prince de Vaucemont was to have the Country of Bilche. But this, as well as the former Treaty, were defign'd by France, no otherwife than as prefent Amufe- ments, while he was pufhing on the Intereft of Philip, Duke of Anjou, fecond Son of the Dauphin of France. And the King of Spain dying the firft of November, N. S. following, a Will was trump'd up, by Cardinal Portecarrero, by which the deceas'd King is faid to have declar'd this Prince Succeflbr to all his Dominions. Accordingly, the fixteenth of the fame Month, the Duke of Anjou was declared and faluted King of Spain, at the Court of France, notvvithftanding the Treaty of Partition, fo lately made. Nor did the French King Hop here ; for he foon after, caufed his own Troops to take PcfTeffion of thei,Spanifh Netherlands, and, by Stratagem, and the Conni- vance of the Eleclor of Bavaria, to feize feveral ftrong Towns^ partly garrifon'd by the Dutch, for the Defence and Security of their Country j whereby the States were brought under a

Neceffity

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c'.

Neceffity of acknowledging the Duke of Anjou's Title to Spain, as King William, tho' highly exafperated at this flagrant Breach of the French King's Faith and Honour, was, likewife obliged, for the prefenr, to do, not being then in a Condition to mew a Refentment.

However, to be in a Condition, as foon as poffible, to de- mand and exact Satisfaction from the faithlefs Monarch of France, King William immediately fet about to form that grand Alliance, which afterwards brought Lewis the XlVth to his lowed Ebb. To this End it was, that the Lord Marlborough was fent to Hol- land, in June 1701, with the Character of Ambaffadour ex- traordinary, and Plenipotentiary ; and the Death of King James II. in September, with what enfued thereupon, in France,, haftened the Negotiations ; the Treaty between the Emperour, England and Holland being fign'd a few Days after, as I have mentioned in the foregoing Chapter.

King William having perfected his Alliances abroad, returned to England, the fourth of November, and having diffolved-the Parliament, fummon'd a new one, to meet the thirtieth of De* cember : but while they were fhewing their Zeal for the com- mon Good, by declaring their Refolutions to ftand by and defend his Majefty's Title to the Crown, and to make good all the Alliances he had enter'd into, for reducing the exorbitant Power of France, the King was taken away by Death, as I have re- lated at the Conclufion of the foregoing Book.

This was the State of Affairs, and thus was the Nation dif- pos'd, at the Death of King William ; and the Acceffion of her Majefty Queen Ann to the Throne made no great Alteration in them ; both me and the Parliament continuing to purfue thofe Meafures, the late King had to happily begun, effectually to fecure the Liberties of Europe. The Circumltances which at- tended her Majeily's Acceffion and Proclamation, her firft Speech to both Houfes of Parliament, and the feveral Addreffes which enfued, being rather Subjects for general Hiftory, than for this, I pafs them by, and (hall only infert the Speech me deliver'd, the Day of her Acceffion (March 8th) to her Council, as it mews how early ftie refolved to purfue the Meafures, I have juft mentioned, and particularly to oppofe the great Power of France ; and as it justifies the Steps fhe took in Purfuance of this her early Re- folution.

My Lords,

* "I" AM extremely fenfible of the general Misfortune to thefe " JL Kingdoms, in the unfpeakable Lofs of the King, aiuLpf " the great Weight and Burden it brings in particular to roytelf, " which nothing would encourage me to undergo, but the great " Concern I have for the Prefervation of our Religion, and the

" Laws

The Life of J O H N,

" Laws and Liberties of my Country; all thefe being as deaf " to me, as they can be to any Perfon whatfoever. You may " depend upon it, that no Pains, no Diligence, ftiall be want- " ing, on my Part, to defend and fupport them ; to maintain " the Succeffion in the Proteftant-Line, and the Government " in Church and State, as it is by Law eftablifiVd. / think it ff proper, upon this Occajion of my fir ft fpeaking to you, to declare " my own Opinion of the Importance of carrying on all the Pre- lt parations *vje are making to oppofe the great Power of Francs : " And IJhall lofe no Time in giving our Allies all AJfurances, that " nothing Jh all be wanting, on my Part, to pur Jut the Inter eft of •* England, together with theirs, for the Support of the common " Caufe.

" In order to thefe Ends, I mail be always ready to afk the " Advice of my Council, and of both Houfes of Parliament ; " and defirous to countenance and employ all thofe who fhali " heartily concur, and join with me in fupporting and main- " taining the prefent Eftablimment, againft all Enemies and '• Oppofers whatfoever.

I proceed now to Matters which more immediately regard our Hero.

Teftimonies It has been reported, that King William, but a fhort Time given by the before his Death, in the moft earneft and affeftionate Manner, Jj£ l^f'J recommended the Earl of Marlborough to the Princefs ofDen- Marlbo, mark, who was to fucceed him, as the propereji Perfon to row- rough's mand her Armies, in the War, which iioas upon the very Point Capacity. Of lreaking out, but of which, he plainly for efaw, Death would prevent his having any Share in the Glory. Some fay» the King recommended him to her Majefty, on his Death-bed, as the Jitteft Perfon, in all her Dominions, to conduct her Armies, and prefede in her Councils ; as being a Man of a cool Head, and a twarm Heart, proper to encounter the Genius of France, and fupprefs far Defigns of fwallowing all Europe. How far this Recom- mendation co-operated with her Majefty's own Judgment and Choice is not material ; but, upon her Acceffion to the Throne, ftie caft an early Eye of Favour upon him, and made him Par- taker of the firft Honours me beftowed ; for within a few Days after, (viz. the fourteenth of March) he was elected into tha The Earl of Moft noble Order of the Garter, into which Order, he was after- Marlb.elea- wards inftalled, by his Proxy, Sir Benjamin Bathurft. The Day the^rtef foll°wing' he was declared Captain General of all her Maje/lfs and declared F°rces *n England, or ivhich were implojed abroad, in Conjunction Captain- w/'*6 the Troops of her Allies.

General. Her Majefty's earlieft Care was to cultivate the Harmony and good Intelligence which her glorious Predeceflbr had eftablifhed with the States General of the United Provinces ; to which

End,

Duke cf MARLBOROUGH, &c. 95

End,, the third Day after his Deceafe, fhe wrote a Letter to 1702, them, to inform them of this melancholy Event, and of her Sentiments in that critical Juncture, of which, as it was the Fore-runner of the Earl's Ambafly thither, I mall give my Rea- ders a Copy :

High and Mighty Lords, our moft dear Friends, Allies, and Confederates.

•* T T is not without a fenfible Grief, that we " J_ obliged to acquaint you with the afflicting News of the Letter to « Death of the moft High, and moft Mighty Prince, William ^ *** « III. King of England, Scotland, France and Ireland, our e «' moft dear Brother, of glorious Memory. He was feized on *' Wednefday laft, with a Fever, which fo much encreafed the following Days, that notwithftanding all the Remedies that were made ufe of, he expired on Sunday at eight 6'Clock in the Morning. This is certainly a very great Lofs to all Europe, and in particular to your State, whofe Intereft he always maintained, with fo much Valour, Prudence, Zeal and Conduft. And as it has pleafed God, that we Ihould fucceed him in thefe Kingdoms, we fhall, alfo, fucceed him in the fame Inclination, to preferve a conftant Union and Amity " with you, and maintain all the Alliances that have been y 11 made with your State, by our faid moft dear Brother, and "' " other our Predeceflbrs ; and likewife to concur with you, in '« all the Meafures that fhall be, neceflary, for the Prefervation '* of the common Liberty of Europe, and for reducing the " Power of France within due Bounds. This we defire you " to be fully affured of, and that we {hall always, look upon " the Interefts of England, and thofe of your State, as infepara- *< We, and united, by fuch Ties, as cannot be broke, without *' the greateft Prejudices to both Nations. We pray God to " keep you, High and Mighty Lords, our moft dear Friends '* and Confederates, in his holy Protection.

" Given at our Court, at St. James's, March 10, Aun« " Dora. 1702. and the firft of our Reign."

This Letter was fent to Mr. Stanhope, with new Credentials, Gooa as her Majefty's Envoy extraordinary, who immediately deli- it had in vered both to the States General. The News of the King's Holland. Death had caft a terrible Damp on their High Mightinefles, arid occafioned great and juft Alarms throughout all their Provinces ; they, therefore, made her Majefty's Letter publick, to diffipate the Reports which had been induftrioufly fpread abroad, by the Emiffaries of France, that England would not profecute the Meafures agreed upon, betweea the late King, and his Confe-

derates,

96 We Life of J OH N,

1702. derates, to reduce the exorbitant Power of France ; and it had X/VNJ the defn'd Effect, in removing, in a great meafure, thofe Fears,

which fome had too haftily imbibed.

Refolutions This Letter, likev/ife, made fo lively an Impreffion on the of the States Minds of the States themfejves, and fo far recovered their drooping Spirits, that on the five and twentieth of March, N. S. the States of Holland and Weft-Friefland went in a Body- to the AfTembly of the States General, where having condoled their irreparable Lofs, they reprefented ; " That in this dan- " gerous Conjuncture, nothing could prove more effectual, for " their Prefervation, than a perfect Unity, mutual Confidence, " and a vigorous Refolution, for the Defence of their Country, " and by adhering firmly to thofe Meafures already entered " into, and fuch as fhould be judg'd farther expedient for the " Good of the common Caufe ; declaring withall, that they were " ready to perform their Part, and rather to facrifice all their •' Blood and Treafure, than to fee their State, their Liberty, " and their Religion dcftroyed."

This Reprefentation was highly applauded by the States Ge- neral, who returned Thanks to the States of Holland and Weft- Friefland, for their zealous Refolutions in that perilous Con- jecture, and affured them of their hearty Concurrence therein, for the Safety and Welfare of the State, and ftrenuoufly carry- ing on the common Caufe ; and they ordered Letters to be fent to the other Provinces, to invite them to give the fame Affu- rances. The City of Amfterdam, to fignalize themfelves more particularly on that Occafion, fignified to the States-General that they would not only confent to fuch Refolutions as mould be thought neceffary, at that Time, but would advance Mony to thofe Provinces, which could not fo readily furnifh out their £>uota'$ that mould be granted. Their High Mightinefles, foon after, publifh'd their Refolutions, at large in print, to the fame Effect, and concluded ; " That they were refolved reHgioufly " to maintain their Treaties and Alliances enter'd into with " their Confederates, fteadfaftly to purfue the Contents thereof, " vigoroufly and cordially to put them in Execution, to perfe- •* vere in the Meafures already taken, and agree to fuch other " Meafures as mould be thought convenient ; and that Notice " fh<&uld be given of this their true Meaning and Intention, to " all their Allies and Confederates."

The Earl of The Queen, in the mean' Time, juftly confidering of how

Ambb*andntSreat Importance it would be to the common Caufe, to have all

Plenipoten- Apprehenfions and Jealoufies entirely removed, refolved to fend

tiary to Hoi- an Ambaffy to Holland, which would leave no farther Grounds

land. for them. For this weighty Truft, fhe, following the Example

of her great PredecefTor, thought none more proper than the

Earl of Marlborough, whofe cor.fummate Genius had already

approved

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, .&c.

approved him as great a Minifter, as a Commander j Qualities rarely to be found in one and the fame Perfon. Her Majefty, there-fore, fent the Karl to Holland, with the Character of dm- laJjTddour Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the States General. ,

His Excellency arrived at the Hague, the eight and twentieth Arrives at 1 of March, N . S. and alter having had feveral Conferences with l^e HaS"e« the Grand Penfionary, and other Minifters, on the thirty-firft, he was conduced to his publick Audience of the States General, Has apub- with great Solemnity, and a numerous Attendance, where he lick Audi- made the following Speech to their High Mightineffes. ence*

High and Mighty Lords,

fe T T having pleafed God, in his divine Providence, to take His Speech

" JL to himfelf his Majefly, King William, of glorious Me- to the states

" mory, to the great Lofs of his kingdom, the State of your General.

" High and Mighty Lordfhips, and of all Europe ; the Queen,

" my Miftrefs, who, as it has pleafed the fame Providence,

" fucceeds on the Throne of her Anceflors, as your High and

" Mighty Lordfhips have been informed by her Majefty's Let-

" ter, has commanded me, at the fame Time, 1 exprefs to

" your Lordfhips, her Majefty's great Affliction upori this Sub-

" jecl, to make known to you the Intercft her Majefty takes

" in that which this great Misfortune occafions to your Lord- ^ij

" (hips in particular.

" The firft of her Majefty's Cares was, to let your High " and Mighty Lordfhips uriderftand her fincere Defire and In- l< clination to entertain, with you, the fame Union, Friendfhip, " and ftrift Correfpondence, as has fubfifled,. during the Courf? " of the preceding Reign, as being perfuaded, that nothing in " the World can be more ufeful and beneficial, for the Good " of both Nations, whofe Intereib are the fame.

" Her Majefly has, therefore, commanded me to acquaint " your High and Mighty Lordfhips, that fhe is firmly reiblved " to contribute all that lies in her Power towards the advanc- " ing and increafmg the faid Union, Friendfhip, and Corre- " fpondence, and to make that a conftant Maxim of her Go- " vernment.

" Her Majefty has farther ordered me to afture your High ^ \

" and Mighty Lor Jjhips, that fhe will not only exadtly and faith- " fully obferve and execute the Treaties and Alliances, made " between the Kings her Predeceffors and your High and Mighty *' Lordfhips, but that fhe is likewife ready to renew and con- *' firm them : As alfo to concur with you in all the Meafures, *' which have been taken by the late King of glorious Mcmp- " ry, in Purfuance of the faid Alliances.

VOL. I. H ""

•tte Life of JOHN,

* Her Majefty is likewife difpofed to enter into fuch other ftri&er Alliances and Engagements, which fhall conduce to the fnterefts of both Nations, the Prefervation of the Liberty of Europe, and reducing, within juft Bounds, the exorbitant " Power of France.

" In the mean time, her Majefty is' ready, from this Mo- " ment, and without any Delay, to concur with your high and " mighty Lordmips and the other Allies, to this End, with all " her Forces, as well by Sea as by Land.

" And her Majefty, 'to fhew her Zeal the more, has been *' pleafed to authorize me to concert, with your high and " mighty Lordmips the neceffary Operations.

" Thefe Motives obliged her Majefty to order me to depart, " with all Diligence, in order to come hither, and give your " high and mighty Lordlhips all poflible Affurances thereof, «' without flopping at the ordinary Formalities.

" And I look upon it as an extraordinary Happinefs, that c: her Majefty has aorte me the Honour, to employ me in this " Commiffion, fmce it gives me the Opportunity of expreffing " to your high and mighty Lordmips the Zeal I have for your * , Service. '

The Prefi- To this Speech, Monfieur Dyckvelt, Prefident of the Aflem- State's bly, made an Anfwer, in the Name of the States; " Expreffing Anfwer. " their great Affliction for the Death of the late King j their " Congratulation of her Majefty's.Succeffion to the Throne ; " their hearty Thanks for the AfTurance of her Friendfhip ; " and their own Refolution,' readily to concur with her Ma- " jefty in a vigorous Profecution of the common Intereft :" To which he added ; " That his Perfon would be highly ac- *' ceptable to them, not only for the Queen's Choice of him, " and for the Sake of King William, who firft inverted him <c with that Character, but for his own Merit.

Intrigues tt The French King, being not a little furprizw "*at thefe Pro- France: ceedings of the Queen of Great Britain, and finding that the Death of King William would not have the Efreft he had vainly imagin'd, put all the ,neans in agitation he could poffibly contrive, to break the growing Union between England and Holland (which was the only humane means left to put a Stop to thofe great and pernicious Defigns-he had formed.) A- mong' others, the very day the Earl or" Marlborough had his publick Audience, the Sieur de Barre, who was left at the Hague, by Count d'Avaux, as Secretary of the Ambafly, to take Care of the Affairs of France, and had now the Title of Refident, prefented a long Memorial to the States, to endea- Proveofno vour to ^ravv tnemo^ fro"1 their Engagements with England. Effefl. This jnemorial, however, had a contrary Effcdt to what France

hop'd

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

hop'd from it. The States look'd, with Indignation, on the contumelious Infinuations with which this Memorial was ftuiPd, as if they had a&ed only by the conftraining Influence of the late King, and received, with the like Difdain, the infuiting Menaces contained in it ; they, therefore, returned an Anfwer, fo pertinent and becoming them, as dafh'd all Hopes of France on that Side. In this Memorial they fet forth, how exaft they had been in obferving their Treaties and Alliances, and juftly re- torted on France, that if fhe had been really inclined to efta- blifh the Peace of Europe, and re-enter into their ancient Ami- ty with the Rcpublick, me would not have recall'd the Count d'Avaux, without, at leaft, making fome Propofals towards a Peace. French Writers, and particularly Monfieur de Quincy, attribute this Stedfaftnefs of the States General, to the .Declara- tion made to them by the Earl of Marlborough, in the Name of the Queen, and fay, that was the caufe of their reje&ing every Propoial made by their Grand Monarch.

The Earl of Marlborough ftaid but few days in Holland, tho' The Earl of to very good Purpofe ; and having fettled feveral important Af- Marlb. re- fairs, with the Deputies of the State, efpecially for the Opening ^rn?*| -* of the Campaign, and the intended Siege of Keyferfwaert, ng which, by his Lordihip's Advice, was to be the firlt Scene of A&ion, he left the Hague, in order to embark for England, where he arrived in Safety, the fifth of April. During his Ex- cellency's Stay at the Hague, their High Mightinefles, and eve- The great ry one, expreffed a more than ordinary Satisfaction in his Con- Eftecai the duft, and, notwithstanding the ill-grounded Jealoufies fome had St3pS, "" ' conceived againft him, but a few Years before, feemed to place £^s an entire Confidence in him, as if they forefaw the great Ser- vices he would do them, in the Courfe of the War. In fhort, His Dexte- he managed all Affairs with fuch Dexterity and Prudence, that r]^ in th<s all he propofed was readily enter'd into, the Confederacy was ^^" confirmed, the Quotas of the feveral Allies adjufted, and an Ar- Affairs. mament agreed to, by Sea and Land, before it was known, in fome Parts of this Kingdom, that he was entered upon thofe Negotiations. An almoft infallible Prefage of the great Succefs which was to follow them : For Meufures fo prudently concert- ed could not fail of an adequate Support, from the Perfon who was the principal Contriver of them ; and an Alliance fo well cemented, and fo ft ricT.lv united, by the indiffoluble Bonds of Friendfhip and Intereil, could not but furnifh unquettionable Hopes of attaining t,o the Ends propofed.

Among other Matters of great Importance, which were T^ie Dutch brought upon the Carpet, during the Earl's Stay at the Hague, make him was that of choofing a Commander in thief, who might proper- 9°^*f" ly be placed at the Head of an Army, composed of fo many fe- £vir ^rn^ veral Nations. This was determined,, by .the Earl's prudent Hz , Manage-

ioo * 'The Life of JOHN,

1702. Management, in his own Favour, and this, as important 'as hO«

I, m^v*m.^j nourable, Poft, with a Salary of 10,00 1. per Ann. was con -

ferr'd upon him, partly on Account of the high Confideration

due to his Royal Miftrefs, and .partly in Regard to the great

Experience, which all the World allowed him to have in the

Art of War ; of which the Recommendation of the late King

could not but enhance the Idea, among the Foreign Powers,

who were Parties in the Grand Alliance. Having gained this

Point, and being fenftble, that nothing could be of fo bad Con-

fequence to the common Caufe, as a Mifunderftanding among

The Point tne General Officers, he took Care, before his Departure from

of Pre-emi- -Holland, to fettle the Point of Pre-eminence, or Rank, in fuch

nence fet- Manner, as conduced to his Sovereign's, as well as his ovs^i

tled- Honour.

The Earl The twelfth of the fame Month, the Funeral-Ofequies of the

afilfts at K. late King were performed, in a very private Manner ; the Royal

William s corpfe being carried, late at Night, from Kenfington, to the

ra ' Collegiate Church of Weftminfter, and dcpofited in the Royal

Vault in King Henry Vll's. Chapel. His Royal Highnefs,

Prince George of Denmark, followed, as chief Mourner, fup-

ported by two Dukes, and attended by fmeen of the firil Earls

of England, among whom the Earl of Marlborough was one, as

Affiftants.

The Earl A Report having been induftrioufly fpread, That a Dejign had ofMarlbnro' been formed (with the Knowledge and Approbation of the late with other £jng) fg exc^e the Queen from fucceeding to the Crown ; fome fpeftS>the" added, to imprifon the Queen, and to bring the Houfe of Han- late King's nover immediately into the Succeffion, among other Peers, the Papers. Earl was one, who was authorized by her Majefty, to infpeft King William's Papers ; it having been faid, that fome Wri- tings were in his ftrong Box, which difcovered the Scheme : But to the Honour of their late Sovereign, they feverally declared, Their Re- to the Houfe of Peers, That, amonv-the late Kings Papers, they port. ju not jjn(j any papers, in the leajl tending to the Prejudice of her

Majefty, or her SucceJJion to the Crown, or to her Prejudice in any Refpeft, rL(jhatfoervcr, or which might give any Ground or Colour, for fuch Report, Upon which, a Vote patted in the the Houfe of Lords, that thefe Reports were groundlefs, falfe, villanotis and fcandalous to the late King's Memory, and highly tending to .the Differvice of her prefent Majeity : And it was ordered, that \ the Matter of Faft, and the Refolmion of the Houfe thereupon,

be laid before her Majefty, with their humble Defire, that me would be pleafed to order Mr. Attorney-General to profecute, with the utmoft Severity of Law, the Authors or Publiihers of fuch fcandalous Reports. To which her Majefty anfwered, that Jhe was <uery ready to do any Thing of this Kind, and would give

* he

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. ior

The twenty-third of April, being St. George's Day, her Ma- 1702. jefty's Coronation was performed, with the ufual Solemnity, "at *—v-^J Weftminfter-Abby, at which the Earl, and his Countefs affifted, The Earl in their proper Rank. •. :»^£^£

This Ceremony being over, the Queen fet about to form her" Queers Co- Miniftry. The Coldnefs, of which I made Mention above, .be- ronation. tween the late King and her Majefty, continued to the Death of The Queen that Monarch ; for tho' a feeming Reconciliation was made, jJ£m.^' after Queen Mary's Death, yet it went little farther than what Civility and Decency required. She was not made ac- quainted with publick Affairs, nor was me encouraged to re- commend any to Places of Truft and Advantage : The Mi- niftry had even no Orders to inform her how Matters went, nor to oblige thofe about her. The Earl of Marlborough was the only Perfon, about her Majefty, whom Care had been taken to pleafe, with which in the latter Part of the King's Reign, he was fully fatisfied. Her Majefty's Court, as Princefs, was then very thin : me lived in a due Abftradlion from Bunnefs ; fo that fhe neither gave Jealoufy, nor encouraged Faction : Yet thefe Things (fays a late Author) had made thole Impreffions on her, that had, at firft, ill Effects, which were foon obferved and remedied. I mall not enter into a particular Detail of what Al- terations the Queen made, nor of the Motives which may pro- bably have induced her to fome Things ; but mail confine my- felf to what more immediately concerned the Earl of Marl- borough. Among other Changes, the Lord Godolphin was -j^ Lor(j made Lord-Treafurer, at which he jhewed an Uneafmefs, and Godolphin long refifted the Acceptance of it ; but the Earl prefs'd it in fo madc Lor<1 pofitive a Manner, that he infifted upon it, he could not go l rea'urer« beyond Sea, to command the Army, unlefs the Treafury was in his Hands j by which he might be fare that Remittances would be punctually made him.

« Sidney, Lord Godolphin, was the fecond Son of a very His Cha- " good Family in Cornwal, and was Page to King Charles the rafter. " Second : He always applied himfelf, with great Affiduity, to " the Improvement of Knowledge, and took Care to be perfect " Mafter of whatever he undertook. King Charles employ'd «' him, in his very early Years, in publick Affairs, andfenthim " to Holland, on a Negotiation, preceding the Treaty of Nimweguen ; and likewife created him a Baron. During that and the two fucceeding Reigns, he was frequently em- ployed in the Management of the Revenue, which no Man in England knew better than himfelf; In King Jamesls Reign, he was Qhamberlain to the Queen, and in King William's was frequently call'd to the Cabinet, and made one of the Lords Juftices, in his Abfence. He* had a wonderful clear Undemanding ; but was flow of Speech, with a ferious H 3 and

fbe Life of JOHN,

and awfal Deportment, and ftern Countenance : He was an Enemy to Flattery, Oftentarion, and Violence, and generally did more than hepfomis'd : He was, indeed, of pretty difficult Accefs ; but as that was equally denied to Perfons of all De- grees of Life, it was the lefs regarded. The Lord Marl- " borough made a moft judicious Choice in recommending him " to the Queen's Favour, to be Lord High Treafurer ; and the " Queen, being fenfible of his Merit, defervedly vefted him with " that Office, in which, as we fliall fee in the Sequel, he great- •' ly improv'd the Revenue, and brought it into an excellent " Method, notwithftanding the great Debts with which the *' Nation was burden'd.

The Prince I have already faid, that the Earl was declar'd Captain-Gene- of Denmark ral ; but the Prince had the Title of General iffimo of all the faid to de- Queen's Forces, by Sea and Land, and foon after was made fign com- Lo^ High Admiral ; and the Duke of Ormond was appointed

jnanding the e - . „, . r T . . , r-

Army. to command in Chier a Land-Army, which was to be put on Board the Fleet. It was, for fome Time, reported, that the Prince would command the Armies of the Allies, in Perfon ; but this foon fell away, and it was faid, on the contrary, that r l^e ^utc^ were not wiling to truft ^ie'r Forces to the Command of a Prince, who might be above being limited by their Jn- ftruftions, or bound to obey their Commands.

The Queen made the Earl of Nottingham, and Sir Charles Hedges, Secretaries of State j but Ihe continued moil of the great Officers 'of the Houfliold, all the Judges, except two, and moft of the Lords Lieutenants of Counties ; nor did me make any Change in the foreign Miniftry. It was generally thought, that the Earl of Rochefter (who was continued Lord Lieutenant of Ireland) and his Party, were for fevere Methods, and for a more entire Change, to be carried quite thro' all Subaltern Employ- ments ; but that the Earl of Marlborough, and the Lord Go- of Marlbro1. dolphin, were for more moderate Proceedings. But to return to

other Affairs.

Debates, in The fecond of May, it was moved in Council, to declare Council, -War againft France and Spain. Some Members of that illuftri- a. out JL~ ous Body reprefented the Inconveniences which would attend it, "' and moved, that it would be fafer for the Engiifh to aft in this Conjuncture, as Auxiliaries only: Of thefe my Lord Rochefter appear'd to be one of the moft rtrenuous, and, as he represented thefe fuppofed Inconveniences in a particular Manner, an Ab- ftraft of what he faid on this Occafion, will give the Reader an Idea of what was urg'd againft the then favorite Scheme of de- claring War againft France and Spain.

He particularly fet forth. " That the Caufes alledged in fup- *' port of this (as he call'd it) dangerous Meafure, did not fo ^ nearly affcft us : That as to the French King's feizing theMo-

*' narchy

Duke of MA R L BOROUGH, &c.

<c narchy of Spain, we had, in fome Meafure, juiUfied his Con- '* du,d therein, by acknowledging his Grandfon to be King " thereof; and that, after this, his feizing Cadiz, Milan, the " Spanifli Netherlands and the Weil-Indies, could be looked up- " on in no other Light, than as neceflary Steps to fecure the " Poffeffion of that Crown to him. That thefe were indeed "..Steps that greatly concern'd both the Emperour and the " Dutch, but that they affefted us very little, or rot at all, " if thefe Powers could but themfelves make good their Fron- " tiers; and that if, to. prevent the Confequence, we mould " think curfelves oblig'd to become Parties, the 10,000 Men, " which, by Virtue of a Treaty ftill fubfiiting between us, we ", were obliged to furuilh the Dutch, would be, to all Intents " and Purpoies, a fufficient Aid, and fully equal to our Con- " cern in the Quarrel ; which, in Facl and ftri&ly fpeaking, " was no more than his Moft Chriftian Majefty's declaring the " Pretender to be King of England, &c. and that a little Ma- tf nagement, at this important Crifis, would eaiily procure us " any Satisfaction we mould infiit upon, for the Affront : That, " nevert^eleft, if we were determined to embroil ourfefves '* again, .we ought rather to do it as Auxiliaries than as Prin- '* cipals, and rather with a Sea than a Land-Force. To fup- " port thefe his Arguments, he reprefented the exorbitant Ex- " pence, and the Succefs of our laft Enterprizes on the Con- " tinent ; which bore no Proportion thereto ; but plainly ap- *' peared to be calculated for the Advantage of the Dutch more " than ourfelves : He mentioned the Difficulties and Animofities, i( which every Year were occafion'd thereby, the Grievance <f they were etfeem'd, and the vaft Debt they had burden'd '* the Nation withu He fliewed farther, that a Land-War " would coft us twice as much, as it would coft any other " Prince .or State in the Confederacy ; and that, therefore, " if we would be meddling on the Continent, which he thought " neither neceflary nor expedient, it would be better for us " to furnim our Contingent in Mony: But what, he chiefly " aim'd at, was to ihew, that Land- Wars were none of our *' Province, and that the Sea vvae our only Element ; that there *' indeed we might make it a common Caufe, and, by the fame " Means, both benefit ourieives, and difirefs the Enemy." Thefe fuppofed Inconveniences were generally refuted by feveral "great Men, on the other Side of the Queftion, particularly by the Dukes of Sommerfet and Devonfhire, and the Earls of Marl- borough and Pembroke.

" Charles, Duke of Sommerfet, of the ancient Family of Charaftcr *' Seymour, fo much taken Notice of by our Hiltorians in the of the " Reign of King Edward VI. was made Knight of the Garter, ™ 1* in the Reign of King Charles II. He married the Meirefs of H4 «' Piercy

Charatfer of the Duke of Devon • ftire.

io4 Vbe Life of J O H N,

1 702. " Piercy of Northumberland, and thereby acquir'd a great Aug- mentation to hia EState. In the Reign of King James, being in Waiting in the Bed-chamber, at the Arrival of the Pope's Nuncio in England, and refuSing to affiSt at the Ceremony of the Introduction, he was difmiSTed from all his Employments. At the Revolution he did not, indeed, enter into the Mea- Sures wnich werepurfued ; but, for a Time, warmly oppos'd King William's Ministry ; was concern'd in Impeaching the Partition, and protefted againft acquitting thofe who advis'd it. However, when Lewis XIV. fent the Duke of Anjou to Spain, he returned to the Service of his Country, and was made Prefident of the Council, in which Office, he joined with re- maikable Zeal, in the Means that were there concerted, for putting a Stop to the encreafing Power of France. On the Queen's Acceffion to the Throne he was made MaSler of the Horfe.

" William, Duke of Devonshire, always Shew'd himfelfa ' itrenuous ASTertor of the Liberties of his Country, and the •' Proteftant Religion, for which he underwent many Hardships " in King James's Reign. At the Revolution, ' he took up " Arms, for the fame Caufe, and by King William was created " a Duke, honoured with the Garter, and made Lord Steward *' of the HouShold, in which Office he continued all that Reign, " and yet enjoys the fame."

I (hall not need to fay any Thing here of the Character of my Lord -Marlborough, having fo frequent Opportunities of display- ing it, by his Actions, in every Part of his Life. " Thomas " Earl of Pembroke, a Representative of the ancient Family of

* the Herberts, in Wales, was made Lord Privy-Seal, by Kinc ' William, and foon after Prefident of the Council. He was SirSt ' Plenipotentiary at the Treaty of Ryfwick. He prefided fome ' Years at the Board df Admiralty, and the molt able Seamen

* generally faid, that he wanted nothing but the Experience •' gained only by going frequently: to Sea, to make the beSt of " Admirals. He was a very good Judge of all the Sciences, *' and a great Encoutftger of Learning and Learned Men. He *' was a profefs'd Lover of the Constitution of his Country,- but " without dclaring hirofelf of any Party, was equally eSteemed *' by all Parties. He was meek and courteous in his Behaviour, *' plain in his Drefs, and, tho' of found Judgment; and good " Understanding, was' of few Words.''

TheSe were the Noblemen (and thefe the Characters of thofe} who were the moit itrenuous in maintaining the Opposition to the Lord Rochester and his Adherents, and they Shewed, not orily,that it was befeeming the Honour of the Nation, to make good the late King's Alliances ; but that France would never be reduc'd within due Bounds, unleis the EneliSh acted as Principals in this

War*

Earl of Pembroke's

Character. '

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, fcfr. War ; and they, at length, brought the Majority of the Board to their Opinion $ upon which, her Majefty gave Orders for drawing up a Declaration of War againlt K ranee and Spain. Her Majefty was, However, gracioufly pleafed to communicate her Intention to both Houfes of Parliament, together with a Con- ~'e vention between her Majefty, the Emperour, and the States Ge- neral, to that End : Which they approved of, and the Queen, And is ap- being affured of the Concurrence and Support of the Commons, |,ro*fd by caufed the Declaration, which (he had before given Directions to be drawn up, to be folemnly proclaimed, before the Gate of the Royal Palace of St. James, at Cuancery-Lane End, and at the Royal Exchange ; of which Declaration, as it fhews the Motives which induced her Majeity to enter into this War, it will be neceffary to give my Readers a Copy.

ANN R.

" TTTHereas it -has pleafed Almighty God, to call us to Her Ma- " \\ *he <3overnment of thefe Realms, at a Time, when 'jefty's De- *' our late dear Brother, William III. of glorious Memory, had ^ratl°"i°^ " in purfuance of the repeated Advices of the Parliament of tnis f^*/*1** " Kingdom, entered into folemn Treaties of Alliance with the Spain. *' Emperour of Germany, the States General of the united *' Provinces, and other Princes and Potentates, for preferving " the Liberty and Balance of Eurc^e, and for reducing the " exorbitant Power of France; which Treaties were grounded *' upon the unjuft Ufurpations and Encroachments of the French " King, who had taken, and ftill keeps PoffefHon of a great Part " of the Spanim Dominions, exercifing an abfolute Authority *' over all that Monarchy, haying feized Milan, and the Spanim " Low Countries, by his Armies, and made hlmfelf M Aer of " Cadiz, of the Entrance into the Mediterranean, and of the Ports in the Spaniflv Weft- Indies, by his Fleets, every where defigning to invade the Liberties of Europe, and to obftrufl the Freedom of Navigation and Commerce. And it being provided, by the third and fourth Articles of the foremen- tioned Alliance, That, if in the Space of two Months, which are fometime fince expired, the Injuries complained of " were not remedied, the Parties concerned fhould mutually *'• affift each other, with their whole Strength : And whereas, " inftead of giving the Satisfaction, that ought juftly to be ex- " pefted, the French King has not only proceeded to farther " Violences, but has added thereunto a great Affront and In- " dignity to us, and our Kingdoms, in taking upon him to de- " clare the pretended Prince of Wales, King of England, Scot- *< land, and Ireland, and has alfo influenced Spain to concur «' in the fame Affront and Indignity, as well as in his other " Oppreffions; we find ourfelves obliged^ for maintaining the

" publick

o6 ne Life of JOHN,

1702. " publick Faith, for Vindicating the Honour of our Crown, — - \~-~J " and for preventing the Mifchiefs, which all Europe is " threatned with, to declare, and we do, hereby, declare War •' againil France and Spain. And placing our entire Confidence " in the Help of Almighty God, in fo juft and neceflary an " Undertaking, \ve will, in Conjunction with our .Allies, vigo- " roufly profecute the fame, by Sea and Land, being affured " of the ready Concurrence and Affiftance of our Subjects, in " a Caufe they have fo openly, and fo heartily, efpoufed. And we do, hereby, will and require our Lord High Admiral of England, our General of our Forces, our Lieutenants ofx>ur feveral Counties, Governours of our Forts and Garrifons, and all other Officers and Soldiers under them, by Sea and Land, to do and execute all Ads of Hoftility, in the Profecution of this War, againft France and Spain, their Vaffals and Sub- jedfa, and to oppofe their Attempts; willing and requiring all our Subjects, to take Notice of the fame, whom we hence- forth itriftly forbid to hold any Correfpondence or Com- munication with France or Spain, or their Subjects. But be- caufe there are remaining in our Kingdoms many of the Subje&s of France and Spain, we do declare our Royal In- ** tention to be, that all the Subjects of France or Spain, who ", fhall demean themfelves dutifully towards us, {hall be faf« ."' in their Perfons and fifties.

" Given at our Court at St. James's, the fourth Day of • " May, 1 702, in the Firfl Year of our Reign.

The Emperour and the States General publiihed their Decla- rations of War the fame Day : But the French King did not , publilh his till the third of July.

An Addrefs War being declared, both Houfes joined in an Addrefs to the

of both Queen, in which they reprefented ; " That nothing would more

Hon.fes °f " contribute to the effectual carrying it on, and reducing her

' " Enemies to the greateft Streights, than an entire Prohibition

" of all Correfpondence with France and Spain, on the Part of

** the Allies ; and therefore, they humbly advifed her Majeily,

" to engage the Emperour, the States General, and her other

" Allies, to join with her, in prohibiting all Intercourfe, be-

" tween the Subjects of her Majefty, and her Allies, and the

" Subjecls of France and Spain ; and atfo to concert fuch Me-

•*' thods with the States General, as might moil efte&ually fe-

" cure the Trade of her Subjects and her Allies." To all

Her Ma- WQicn» ner Majeity readily promiied to comply ; adding, that

jefty's A~n- fl>e ivas too much concerned far the pubiuk Welfare, to omit any

Vwer, neceffary Precaution, for the Protection of our Trade. But not-

withftanding this Matter was, afterwards, ftrenuouily urg'd by

the

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. .

the Lord Marlborough, the Dutch were too felf-interefted to engage in a total Prohibition of Commerce and Correfpondence with France and Spain.

As the Earl of Marlborough was detained fome Time in England, in concerting the neceflary Measures with the Mini- ftry, before he could crofs the Sea, to take upon him the Com- mand of the confederate Army, I mall be obliged to give a brief Account, of what was doing in the mean time, that the Reader may thereby form a more accurate Idea of the State of the Campaign, when his Lordftiip arrived at the Army.

The French King being fenfible wha't a formidable Alliance Defeaion of was making againft him, left no Stone unturned to draw over feme of the fome of the German Princes to his Intereft ; and in this At- German tempt, he fucceeded, not only with the Electors of Bavaria and Prmces- Cologn, but with the two Dukes of Wolfem buttle, Rudolph and Anthony, who held the Regency together, to raife Forces In the Empire, in his Favour. The Duke of Zell was, here- upon, directed, by the Emperour, to make an Incurfion into their Country, and to oblige them, by Force of Arms, to a- bandon the Intereft of France.

This had its defired Effect j for after the Duke of Zell had made himfelf Mafter of feveral ftrong Holds, in the iaid Princi- pality, and block'd up the Capital of Wolrembuttle itfelf, Ru- dolph refolved, notwithstanding the Obftinacy of his Brother, to come to an Accommodation j and , whether terrified by the impending Danger, or defirous of having the Regency folely in his own Hands, fet a Treaty on Foot. This Treaty ended in an Agreement, between the Elector of Hannover, and thev Duke of Zell, on one Side, and Rudolph of Wolfembuttle, on the other, that Anthony Ihould be excluded the Regency, which Rudolph, upon quitting all his Engagements with France, fhould take into his own Hands ; and that the Eledtor and Duke mould take into their Service 1,000 Horfe, and 2,400 Foot, of the Wolfembuttle Troops, which were raifed with French Mony, and mould thereupon withdraw their Forces out of that Principality.

All Germany was now united, in Favour of the Emperour, state of Af- excepting the Electors of Bavaria and Cologn, the latter of fairs before whom had put Liege, and all the Places he had on the Rhine, Jjjjj^?*' excepting Benn (which afterwards followed) into the Hands of headedThe the French. Among thefe, was the flrong Town of Keyfer- confederate fwaert, which, while in the Hands of the Enemy, expofed not Army, only the Circle of Weftphalia, but the Dominions of the States General ; for their Places on the Wahl, not being in the beft Condition of Defence, were laid open to the Excurfions of that Garrifon,

It

We Life of JOHN,

It may not be improper to remark here, under what Difad vantages the Confederates begun this War ; as it inhances the Glory of thofe Heroes who, notwithftanding fo many Difficul- ties, carried it on with fo much Succefs and Advantage. In Confederates the former War, not only Spain, but the united Force of the begun this whole Empire, and for a confiderable Time, the Duke of Savoy, acled in Concert with England and Holland, againft the common Enemy. On the contrary, now a Prince of the Houfe of Bourbon fat on the Spanifh Throne, a French Ar- my had over- run the State of Milan, and, to this Army, the Duke of Savoy (who was allied to France, by the double Mar- riage of his two Daughters) had join'd his Forces. Of the nine principal Members of the Empire, Two, the Electors of Bivaria and Cologn, had declared for France, and the latter, as I have fa id above, had admitted French Forces into all his for- tified Towns, under the fpecious Name of Troops of the Circle of Burgundy. A Third, the Eleftor of Saxony, Kingof Poland, was at War with Sweden and the difaffefted Poles, for his tottering Crown, and could not, therefore, fend his full Pro- portion of Troops againft France. The Emperour had fent his Veteran Forces, under the Command of Prince Eugene, to keep the French at a Bay in Italy ; and all the Spanifh Towns, on the Frontiers of Holland, were garrifon'd with French Troops. But, notwithftanding all thefe vifible Difadvantages, by the wife and fteady Councils of England, the prudent Management of her Majefty's Treafury, the jujl Meafures concerted by the Earl ef Mar thorough, "joitb foreign Powers, the Valour ;md Refolu- tion of the Confederate Troops, and the Experience and good Conduft of their Commander, it was foon concluded, by all who were Judges of thefe Matters, that the Allies would, in the End, by an Over-match for France.

Dlvifiot. and At the End of April, the Dutch formed three Ajmies ; one ?f£co°n. -commanded by the Prince of Naffau-Saarbruck, which under- federate to°k the Siege -of Keyferfwaert, in the Name of the Elector Army. Palatine, for the.Fmperour ; under whom the Dutch ferved as Auxiliaries, they having not yet declared War againft France and Spain. Another Army was formed under the Earl of Ath- lone, which ley in the Duchy of Cleves, to cover that Siege"; and a third, confifting of 10,000 Men under the Command of Succefs of General Cohorn, that broke into Flanders, forced and demolifti- ec! the Line% between the tvvo F°rts of St- Donat and Ifabella, which the Enemy had been many Months raifing, with great Lebour and E*xpence, and laid the greatcft Part of the Chate- lenie of Bruges, under Contribution. However, after thefe Succefies, upon the Approach of the Marquis de Bedmar, and the Count de la Motte, with the French Troops under ih«;ir Command (who were fuperiour in Number to him) he was forced I tQ

Duke 'of- MARLBokouGrt, &c. 109

to retire under the Walls of Sluys ; but to prevent the Enemy's 1702. taking Fort Donat, he firft laid the Country under Water, and {^\^\J forc'd the Spaniards to retire towards Ghent.

The Marquis de Quincy gives a particular Relation of a De- He forms a fign General Cohorn had formed of iurprizing the Caftle of Na- Defign on inur, by means of a Gentleman in the Neighbourhood, whom ^e Caftle of he had brought over to his Purpofe, and who having a Rela- amur: lion, an Officer, in the Place, by Means of him, and two of the Burghers, who engaged in the Defign, an Agreement was made with a Spanifh Captain of the Garrifon, who, in Confi- deration of 10,000 Piftoles, a confiderable Part of which he actually received, and the Command of a Regiment promis'd him, undertook to deliver the Caitle into the Hands of the Dutch Troops ; but after having got as much Mony as he could, But is be- he betray'd the Defign $o the Governour, which put an End to tray'd. the Attempt.

Marlhai de Bouflers drew his Troops together, and having Motions of laid up great Magazines, in Ruremond and Venlo, pafs'd the the French Maefe, with his whole Army. The Duke of Burgundy (the Army* prefent King of France's Father) was .come Poft from Paris to command it, and to learn the Art of War, under the Direc- tion of the Marfhal de Bouflers. The States were apprehen- five, that fo great a Prince would, at his firft Appearance in the Field, have undertaken fomething worthy of himfelf, and believing the Defign might be upon Maeftricht, threw 12,000 Men into that Place.

The fending away fo large a Detachment, the auxiliary Troops from Germany not coming fo foon as were expefted, and contrary Winds having ftopp'd a good Part of our Army, were the Occaiions, that the Earl of Athlone was not ftrong enough to enter into Adlion with the Marfhal de Bouflers. So he encamp'd at Clarenbeck, between Nimeguen and Cleve, to watch his Motions ; while he lay encamp'd at Santen, near Cleves, they were very watchful of each other, and the Earl of Athlone, having detach 'd Major- General Dompre, with 1000 Horfe, towards the Enemy, he happened to meet a Party of about 600 French Horfe, wham he attack'd and totally defeated, A French killing 200 on the Spot, and taking near as many Prifoners ; Party de- with the Lofs of not above 30 Troopers and Dragoons kill'd. feated*

The Siege of Keyferfwaert went on but flowly ; the Trench es.sieg* of were open'd the eighteenth of April, with little Lof, and, the Keyfrr- twentieth, the Befiegers did great Execution, by the vaft Num- fw* ':t~~ her of Bombs, which they threw into the Town ; but the Ene- my made a vigorous Sally, and tho1 they were twice repuls'd, with great Bravery, by the Dutch, not being fuccour'd in Time, and being inferiour to the Enemy, in Number, they were forced to quit their Pgft, and make a retreating Fight ;

till,

Me Life of J O H N,

till, at length, the Cavalry coming up, the Enemy were, in their Turn, conftrain'd to retire with great Precipitation. The twenty-firft and twenty-fecond, the Enemy made two Sallies more ; bat with much the fame Succefs : And, in the latter, were parfued to the Counterfcarp. As the Earl of Marlborough had no Part in this Siege, I {hall not continue to give the far- ther Circumftances of it ; but only, in general, obferve, that Cho' the Befiegers propofed, at firft, to be Matters of the Place in three Weeks, they were miftaken in their Calculation, the Garrifon having made a vigorous Defence, for about two Months : And it had like to have proved but a bad Beginning of a new War, and the firft Campaign ; yet all the Wit and Fore- light of Man could not have prevented it ; for who can con- tend with the Elements ? It was owjng, in great Part, to ihe Badnefs of the Weather, but morey the Obftru&ions caufed the Befiegers by Count Tallard, who, with a flying Camp, hav- ing hovered, for fome Days, about Duffeldorp, potted himfelf on the other Side of the Rhine, over-againft the Camp before Keyferfwaert, from whence he, in particular, very much an- Keyfer- noyed the Pruffian Quarters. Keyferfwaert is a little Town, fwaert de- fifuate on the North Banks of the Rhine, about two Leagues * below Duffeldorp, belonging to the Elector of Cologn. It is an Oblong, of one Street only, defended on the Land-fide, by three Baftions and four Ravelins, and, towards the Rhine, by two Baftions. The Extremity or Point of an Ifland, 'below the Place, may either be of Advantage or Prejudice to it, accord- ing to the Ufe, that is made of it. The French poflefs'd themfclves of this Place for Cardinal Furftemburg, in 1688; but the Eleftor of Brandenburg retook it, in 1689, and de- liver'd it to the Eleftor of Cologn, who received a French Gar- rifon into it, in 1701. The Ifland I mentioned above was tfrft poffefs'd by the French and fortified ; but taken afterwards by the Pruffians. As the Rhine is very broad and deep in that Place, Count Tallard found it eafy, in the Night-time, by Means of Boats, to throw as many frefti Men, and as great a Quantity of Provifions and Ammunition into the Town, as he thought fit, which the Befiegers were not able to prevent. On the other hand, the King of Pruffia, who was in Wefel, fur- nifhed the Befiegers, with all they wanted, from thence.

The Confederates had reduced Keyferfwaert to a Heap of Rubbifh, and battered the Outworks with 48 large Cannon, and 30 Mortars, when, on the ninth of June N. S. they re- folved to make a general Attack on the Counterfcarp and Ravelin. This they executed with unparallel'd Bravery : The Conflift was very bloody and obftinate, for two Hours toge- ther ; during which Time, nothing was to be feen but Fire and Smoak, and many brave Officers lolt their Lives, on both Sides.

At

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. in

At length, however, the Befieged were obliged to give Ground, 1702. and leave the Affailants Mailers of both, and they lodged \_i— ^— J themfelves accordingly. Among the Officers, who diftinguim'd themfelves on this Occafion, none behaved with more remark- able Conduct and Bravery, than the Prince of Naflau-Saarbmg, who commanded, and who performed Prodigies, giving his Or- ders, with great Contempt of Danger, and wonderful Prefence of Mind : And the Earl ef Huntington, who gave no leis Proofs of his Valour, tho' but as Volunteer, and was dangeroufly wounded : Nor did they alone diftingujfh. themfelves ; for all the other Officers, and even the common Soldiers, behaved, iu this Adion, beyond Expectation. This Advantage coft the Con- federates, however, very dear, for they had above 2500 Men killed or wounded in the. Aft ion ; but it, likewife, fo much weaken'd the Garrifon, tfet they were forced to capitulate, And the the fifteenth. They obtained honourable Terms, and march'd Tovm b7 oat, the Seventeenth, after a Siege of two Months ; and the :aplt Place was razed according to Agreement.

If we will believe F. Daniel, the Marquis de Quincy, and other French Writers, this Place coft the: Allies more Men, than they might probably have loft in a pitch' d Battle, the Number of the Slain amounting, according to them, to 7 or 8000 Men. ft is certain the Befiegers loft a great many Men, considering the Smallnefs of the Place ; but I never found that the Number amounted to half what the French Hiftorians would make ns believe.

Upon the taking of the Counterfcarp, Count Tallard, find-

ing he could be of no farther Service to the Befieged, join'd the

grand Army, under the Command of the Duke of Burgundy,

which, by the calling in of all their other Detachments, be-

came greatly fuperiour to that of the Confederates, under the

Earl of Athlone ; and they were fo fenfible of it, that they

: ed to put in Execution, without Delay, the Grand Coup

/.•;* (or bold, furprizing Stroke) which they had, for forae

TJme before, boailed of; and of

which I mail now give mj Readers an Account. . ^

The Duke of Burgundy's Army having been*re-inforced, as A bold At- i have obferved above, by feveral Detachments, and particu- ^mPf of tfae I-T -v by the Troops of the French King's Houfoold, the Marfhal JJ^i, . '' B o-iflers decamp'd from Santen, the tenth of June, N. S. : eight o'Clock in the Morning, without Sound of Trumpet, o) 5eat of Drum, and directed his March thro' the Plains of Gock, feeming to encline towards the Mocker-Heyde, clofe by "Nimeguen, as if his Defign was to get between the Confederate Army, under the Command of the Earl of Athlone, and Ni- meguen, and by that Means to cut them off from their Pro- viuons, Ammunition and Forrage, which would have very much

expofed

Toe Life of J O H N,

expofed that City, as well as feverd other neighbouring Towns.

Difpofition The Earl of Athlone, having timely Notice of the Enemy 'a federatc°Ar ^arcn> an(* r'ghtly judging what their Defign was, called a my there- Council of the General Officers, in which ic was unanimoufly re- upon. folved, that the Confederates mould begin their March, about

eight the fame Evening, in the following Order. The Baggage was fent away to Nimeguen, leaving Cranenburg, on the Right ; and four Battalions were detached to Grave ; the firft Line marched in one Column, between the Woods, at the Head of the confederate C~.mp, at Cranenburg ; in which Woods, the French had, by that Time, polled a numerous Body of Foot and Dragoons ; while the fecond Line march'd between the firft Line and Cranenburg, leaving the t Town on the right Hand. The Prince of Wirtemberg was dqffcch'd, with a great Body of Horfe, upon the Left of the Confederate's March ; and Colo- nel Frederick Hamilton, with three Batalions of Englim, under the Lord Cuts, was, likewife, detach'd to fecure the Prince's Retreat, and to take Care of the High-way of Norgina, by which the Enemy might, otherwiie, have eafily fallen on the Confederates, in their March, which two Detachments both re- joined the Karl upon his Entrance into the Mocker-Heyde. A- bout Day-breallj the Earl made a Halt, and receiving farther In- telligence of the Strength of the Enemy, it was refolved, that the Cavalry mould be drawn up, in Order of Battle, to cover the March of the Infantry, which, at the fame time, was directed to keep along the rifmg Grounds, making Halts, and putting themfelves in Battle- Array from time to time, as the Generals, who led them, mould think n't, and keeping always in Sight of the Horle, that they might be ready to lupport them, it they mould be attack'd.' About eleven, in the Morning, the Foot had gained the narrow Paffes, and lined the Hedges ; and the French Horfe advancing, in great Numbers, with the Troops of the Houmoid at their Head, prefs'd hard upon the Earl, who was at the Head of the Horfe, and behaved with great Resolution ; how- ever, he made^his Retreat in good Order, paffing thro' the Lane, along which th*e Foot were polled, and keeping at the fameTime, as broad a Front as the Ground would permit. In the mean Time, a co&fiderable Body of Horfe was ordered to the rifmg Ground on the right Hand ; whereupon, the Troops of the French King's Houfliold, charging fome of the Dutch Squadrons, juil as they were wheeling, in Purfuance of their Orders, pufh'd TheJX-iign them upon the Foot, and put two or three Battalions intoCon- fruftnted. fufion ; but, by the Conduct of the General Officers, no farther Mifchief enfued, and the Enemy were foon repulfed. On the other Side, there happened a rude Encounter between fome of the Squadrons of the French Houihold, and fome Danilh Horfe,

with

Duke of MARLBOROCGH, &c. 113

wi&fbrhe of the End's Carabineers, who Co vigoroufly main- 1702. tained their Ground, that the French were beaten back, tho' <_— v-»^l with equal Lofs ; and the French themfelves were oblig'd to o\vn, that they could not enough admire the Courage of thde Troops : Both Parties having charged, Hand to Hand, without firing. By this time the Confederates were got under the Can* nDn of Nimeguen, which, foon after* began to play upon the Enemy ; and the Burghers of thatCity fignaliz'd themfelves, on this Occafion, in an extraordinary Manner ; for tho' they had not a Gunner in the Town, they manag'd their Artillery with a furprizing Succefs. The Englifh, who had the Honour to clofe the Retreat,- maintain'd their Poft in excellent Order, being af- fifted by the Prince .of Wi: temberg, who put a Stop to the Troops of the Houfhold, which were advanced very near them, and preparing to charge them, towards the End of their March. Twenty Battalions of Foot were thereupon ported in the Out- works of Nimeguen, and the whole Army was under Arms, all that Night, as the Enemy was likewife.

The next Morning, a great Body of French Horfe and Foot advanced towards the Allies, as if they intended to attack them ; but this they did only to cover the March of their own Army, which filed off towards Cleves, venting their Rage at their Difappointment, upon the defenfelefs Country, which they rifled and laid wafte ; deitroying the Park, and all the delicious Walks and Avenues to that charming Place. If we will give Credit to the Marquis de Quincy, the French made a Booty, upon this Occafion, of the Value of above 500,000 Crowns, and rear 20,000 Oxen. Thus was the important City of Nime- guen (which, if taken, would have afforded the French an Op- portunity to penetrate into the very Heart of the United Pro- vinces) almolt miraculoufly preserved, being bat in an indiffe- rent Condition, and the Enemy miffing but half an Hour of arriving in the Outworks, before the Earl of Athlone. The Defign was well laid, ^ndj as we fee, wanted very little of being as well executed. It muft have had fatal Eftefts, had it fucceeded ; for the French would either have got into Nime- guen, or have forced the Earl of Athlone to fight, at a great Difadvantage ; but the Earl fo carefully watched their Motions, that he got before them ; tho*, by this Means, as we have feen, he was obliged to abandon Cleves, to the Fury of the Enemy. The Burghers, feeing their imminent Danger, did Wonders, upon this Occafion, it being they themfelves, who, at the firft Approach of the Enemy, broke open the Doors of the Arfena], and bringing out the Cannon, Bullets, and Ammunition, haul'd the fame, without Horfes, and planted them on the Ramparts and Outworks ; fo that, in a little Time, they fired upon the Enemy, with 1 60 Pieces.

VOL. I. I I have

the Life of JOHN,

I have not found any certain Account, what was the Lofs, 'on either Side, in this Aftion. If we will believe the Marquis de Quincy, the French loft, at rooft, but 150 Men, and 50 Horfes, and the Allies, at lead, 1 1 or i 200. But, all Circum- ftances confidered, this Computation is too extravagant to gain Credit.

Prudent The prudent Conduct of the Earl of Athlone, on this Occa-

Conduct of fion, raifed his Credit, as much as it funk that of Bouflers, who,

the Earl of tho' he had a fuperiour Army, animated by the Prefenceoffo

great a Prince, yet was able to do nothing. Every Thing he

undertook was unfuccefsfiil, and his Parties, which engaged with

thofe of the Earl of Athlone, were almoft always beaten.

' J-andau be- while thefe Things were tranfafting on the Lower Rhine,

lt;Se ' Prince Lewis of Baden decamped, on the fifteenth of June,

N. S. from Langencandel, and ported his Army before Landau,

where he Ipent the reft of the Month, in raifing Batteries, and

making his Approaches. Landau is a fmall, but ftrong City

of Germany, in the Lower Circle, and Palatinate of the Rhine*

once Imperial ; but fubjeft to the French ever fince the Treaty

of Munfter. It ftands on the River Quiech, about eight Miles

South of Neuftadt, about thirteen Weft of Philip/burg, and a*

bout fixteen South- Weft of Spires. Of this Siege I {hall only

mention, that the King of the Romans was prefent at it, and

that it furrender'd the twelfth of September*

The Earl of Thus was the State of the Campaign, before the Earl of Marib.madeMarlborough (to whom I lhall now return) left England. He MaftCr-Ge-fet f Holland, the twelfth of May, her Majefty having,

neralofther , , - . •" r i y i- $:

Ordnance. *or l"e better Support of his Dignity, conferred upon him the Arrives at ^ace °*" Mafter-General of the Ordnance. His Lordftiip, upon the Hague, his Arrival at the Hague, having the Character of Ambaffa- dour as well as Captain-General, had feveral Conferences with the Deputies of the States, before he departed for the Army ; in vhich he gave them all poffible Affurances of her Majefty 's Affeftion, and Refolution to fupport them in all Emergencies. The Earl of Athlone, was fet on, by the other Dutch Gene- rals, to infift on his Quality of Velt-Marfhal, and, as fuch, to fhare the Command with the Earl of Marlborough, by Turns. His late Conduit had brought him into a high Reputation ; Is declared ^oweverj tne States obliged him, in this, to yield to the Earl, Ceneraliffi- whom, notwithftanding this Oppofition, they declared, as I mo of the have faid above, Generaliffimo of all their Forces, and fent Or- Dutch For- ders to all their Generals, and other Officers, to obey him. tcit Their Prudence and Policy in this was generally applauded ;

for as, on the one hand, no Perfbn was better qualified for the fupreme Command, than his Lordmip ; fo, on the other fide, nothing could endear them more to her Majefty, to whom this additional Honour, conferred on her General could not but be

highly

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. 115

highly acceptable, as it was, likewife, to the Englilh Nation in 1702. general. <•-— • v*""*^

The Earl, on his Side, made fo modeft and becoming aUfe His prudent -of the Power put into his Hands, as icon gain'd him the Hearts Conduft« of all the General Officers who were under him; and, to the Earl of Athlone, in particular, he behaved in fo courteous and obliging a Manner, that the Command feemed to be equal be- tween them.

All Things being now regulated with the Deputies of the **e Soes tt» States, his Lordfhip left the Hague, the thirtieth of June, N. S. a JXT' and went to Breda, from whence he fent what Detachments upon him could be fpared, from that Place, and other Garrifons, to the the Cora- Camp at Nimeguen. He followM thither himfelf, the fecond mand of ** of July, where the next Day, the Earl of Athlone, Lieutenant- Army* General Dopf, and the other General Officers, made him a Vifit. At an Interview with them, he gave the neceffary Or- ders for -drawing the Army together. Nineteen Battalions of the Troops which had been employ'd at the Siege of JCeyfer- iwaert, the Troops of HefTe and Lunenburg, the linglifh Forces from Breda, under Major General Lumley, and other Troops, having joined the Army, a Camp was formed at Deckemberg, and Budweick, confitting of feventy-fix Battalions of Foot, and Force of 1 20 Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, amounting together, the Confe- to about 60,000 Men* with fixty-two Cannon, eight Mortars, derate Ar^ and Hawbitzers, and four and twenty Pontons. Thither the Earl went, likewife, and, on the eighth, he called a Council of War, of all the General Officers, to concert the farther Opera- tions of the Campaign.

I cannot forbear obferving, upon this Occafion, the Difinge- D tauity of a French Officer and Author (the Marquis de Quincy) ^u who, fpeaking of the Earl of Marlboro ugh's Arrival, to com- mand the Army, to depreciate his Capacity, fays ; " This new '*' General, who had not yet appear'd at the Head of an Army, '" attain'd to this high Pitch of Honour, by the Influence i.is " Lady had with the Queen of England." But in this he ihews himfelf an imperfect, as well as partial Hiitorian. The Author of the Continuation of Rapin fhews he was better ac- quainted with this great Man's Character, when, fpeaking of the Wifdom of the Queen's Choice of him, to be her General, he fays j " Never was there a better Choice of a General ; by this Choice alone, Queen Ann outdid all her Predeceffor had ever done for the Glory and Advantage of the Nation : This great Man (adds he) was born to acquire an immortal Glory at the Head of Armies. It was a Happinefs to France, and a Misfortune to England, and her Allies, that King Wil- liam {who was almoft always unfortunate) did not place him M the Head df Jus Troops. This Hero was of a noble and I z " martial

n6 The Life of J O H N,

1702. " martial Prefence, and of a ready and penetrating Underftand- *n£- ^*'s Intrepidity rendered him incapable of being either difturb'd or deceived, in the Meafures he took ; he was not, however, fo attach'd to them, but that he could change them, when Circumrtances requir'd it. He was quick-f'ghted to a Miracle ; he no fooner call his Eye on an Army, an Intrenchmeat, or a Place, but he knew the Fort and the Foible, the good and the bad State of it : He was a&ive, vigilant, bold in his Defigrss, but bolder, yet always with Prudence and Circumfpeaion, in the Execution of them ; and what is more, he was infpired with a certain Confidence, a fort of AiTurance of Victory, that he knew how to infufe into his Soldiers ; to all thefe great Talents we may add Hu- manity and Courtefy. So far from infulting the Vanquilh'd, he had a fincere Companion for them, and endeavour'd to '* alleviate their Misfortunes, &rV."

The Earl of Athlone was always inclined to cautious and fure, tho', at the fame Time, feeble Counfels ; but the Earl of Marlbo rough > when the Army was thus brought together, find- ing his Force if not fuperiour in Number to that of the Duke of Burgundy, yet juftly fo by other Advantages, march'd his The Earl Army, on the fixteenth, over the Maefe, and tncamp'd at Over-

Strf to" Affelt> near Grave> within tvvo Leagues and a half of the Ene' Enemy. mY> w^° had entrench'd themfelves between Gock and Gen- nep.

Upon this Occafion, he is reported to have faid to the Field- Deputies of the States-General, That the French Jbauld be no longer their lad Neighbours, and that he would oblige them t4 march farther of from that Country, <witk a Witnefi : Whether our Hero did give the Deputies this Affurance, I mall not pre- tend to determine, and the lefs, becaufe it feems, in fome mea- fure, to exceed the Bounds of his accuftomed Modefly j but that he performed what is here infinuatedj we mall foon fee. Force of the I have not any where found the Force of the Enemy's Army, Enemy's at thjs Time, certainly determin'd. One Author, upon Hear- Army. ^^ computes it at 80 Batta'lions of Foot, and 150 Squadrons of Horfe, having with them 92 Cannons, 21 Mortars and Hawbitzers, and 32 Pontons : But fure, with fo great a Su- periority, they would have flood their Ground, their Troops not being yet difcourag'd by any very ill Succefs.

The late D. The Earl had a great Number of illullrious Volunteers in his of York Army, who were defirous of improving in the Art of War, fervcs under under fo renowned a General ; among thefe was Prince Erneft the Earl. AUgUftus of Hannover (afterwards Duke of York, and Bifhop of Ofnabrug, the late King's younger Brother) whom he de- clared Major-General of the Army, which his Highnefs was pleafed to accept of. At the fame Time his LordJhip appointed

Colonel

'Duke cf MARL BOROUGH, &V. H7

Colonel Withers, Colonel Stanley, and Colonel Frederick Ha- 1702. jnilton, Brigadiers of three Englifh Brigades. *— •—v "4

The fix and twentieth, the Confederate Army repafb'd the The Earl Maefe, below the Grave, and on the eight and twentieth, en- con^ni!es to camp'd at Geldorp, upon which Motion, the French went over pvinch! the fame River, about Venlo, Two Days after, the Allies re- moved from Geldorp to Gravenbroeclz, where finding a French Garrifon, in the Catfle, feated in a Morafs, and furrounded by a double Ditch, and good Pailifadoes, a Detachment under the Command of the Lord Cuts, brifkly attack'd it, and with the Afliftance of four Cannon and two Hawbitzers, after a fhort Refiitance, obliged the Garrifon, confifting of a Captain and Q'^ 0\- ' 100 Men, to furrender at Difcretion. The fame Day the Bri- davenbro- tim Artillery arrived in the Camp from Holland, under Convoy eck, of two Englifh Regiments of Horfe, and two of Englilh Foot, which had left England the Beginning of June.

The fecond of Augufl, N. S. they advanced to Petit Brugel, The French following the French, who retreated as they advanced, fo clofe, retreat. that they were obliged to abandon the Spanifh Guelderland, which was thereby left to the Difcretion of the Confederates. The Earl was for venturing, upon any Terms, on a decifive 1" . K

Action, for which End, the whole Army was order'd to their them"^ Arms, the next Morning early : But the Dutch were fearful of gut th'e putting things to fuch a Hazard, and would not confent to it. Dutch are The Penuonary, and thofe who were at the Helm, at the again* it. Hague, proceeded with the more Caution, becaufe, upon the Kind's Death, thofe who had always oppofed himj begun to form Parties in feveral of their Towns, and were, defigning a Change of Government ; fo that any publick Misfortune in their Conduit, would have given great .Advantages to thofe who lay upon the watch for them. The Penfionary was more particularly aimed at, and this made him the mo re ytn will ing to run any Rifqu'e. Thofe who pretended to be good judges thought, that if the Earl of Marlborough's Advice had been fol- lowed, Matters might have been brought to a happy Dccifion ; and the more, as it afterwards appeared, that ;he French Army was not above half got to their Camp, greatly fatigued by an almoft continual March, of two Days and two Nights, and in the greateft Confternation : But as the Earl was prudent in his Conducl of the Army, fo he was careful not to take too much, upon himfelf.

From Petit-Brugel, the Army march' d, in order to demolifh Farth'erMo- the Walls of Peer and Bray, in the Bifhoprick of Liege, two SSwent? fmall Towns which had been of great Service to the Enemy, Army.0" in fecuring their Convoys. The twelfth, the Confederate Army encamp'd at Everbeck ; and, on the twenty-fecond, at Holch- te^en, where' they found the French feemingly preparing to re- I T, ceive

Me Life of J O H N,

ccivc them, being very advantagecufly polled, and having re- ceived divers Re-infcrcements, making about 18 or zo,ooo Men : So that they were now in a Condition, if Courage had not been wanting, to venture an Engagement. The Earl of Marlborough rangxd his Troops in Order of Battle, and in that Manner continued his March. The Duke of Burgundy, and the French Generals, ranged their Army, likewife, in Order of Battle ; tho' they very well knew there could be no Aftion ; the two Armies being feparated by Marfhes and Defikes, infuch Manner that it was impoffible for either to attack the other, without a very great Hazard. In this Pofture both Armies re- mained two Days cannonading each ether, and expecting which would begin the Attack : But the French, not willing to run the Rifque, tho' they were fo well fecured, decamp'd Clently in the Night, and took Poft at Bsrringen.

The French to do fome Honour, at leafr, to the Duke of Bur- gundy, for this his firft Campaign, pretended it was the Allies who declined the Battle. " The Enemy (fays a late Author) ••' continued in Order of Battle, during the whole Time the two •' Armies cannonaded one another, and if they had but advanced " never fo little towards us, an Engagement would have enfued j *' but they would not come out of their advantageous Camp. " The Duke of Burgundy took a View of this Situation, the •* next Morning, at Break of Day ; but he found it impoffible ** to attack them. The Enemy having, however, made a " Motion, the 24th, we were in Hopes then, we ihould have ' been able to have come at them ; but having Intelligence, by ' feveral Ways, that they had, on their Left, a Morafs that ' was unpayable, and a Water on their Right, fo that it would ' have been very dificult to come near them ; it was determined ' to retreat, in order to fecure a Convoy, which was expefted

* to join the Army." The fame Author, with equal Juftice, pretends, that the Allies had 7 or 8co Men kill'd or wounded by their Cannon; but that, on their Side, they had only 106 kill'd, and 140 wounded. A very pretty Glofs to cover a pre- cipitate Retreat ! A Retreat (I fav) fo precipitate, that the Bag- gage not being able to follow quick enough, the Duke of Bur- gundy, according to their own Accounts, was obliged to fleep in the open Air.

• Brigadier Rofs, with fome Squadrons, fell in with their Rear, and charg'd them, in their Flight, for upwards of a League together ; but without any confiderable Advantage, with fuch Precipitation they fled before him : A great Number of theE- nemy's Troops took, however, this Occafion to defert. The Confederate Army was at this Time encreas'd to 84 Battalions, gnd 150 Squadrons, having with :hem 92 Cannon, 21 Mortars

and

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, £sV. and Hawbitzers, and 40 Pontons ; but the French Army was, Jikewife, by this Time, augmented more than in Proportion.

The Duke of Burgundy, in the mean Time, finding himfelf The thus obliged to retreat, as the Confederate Army advanced, " thought it very unbecoming his Dignity to continue i:i the Campaign. French Army under thefe Difadvantages ; fo he left the M -r- fhal to command, and ended his firft Campaign very ingloriouf- Jy ; and, it is plain, the French King was diflatibfied with tae Conduft of Bouflers ; for he never repos'd any Confidence in him afterwards. This may be faid of the Marihal de Bouflers, Character of in general, that as long as he only commanded a flying Camp, Ve« ,V. to furprize a Port, bombard a City, or perform any other ' .x- u" pedition of that Nature, he juftiy acquired a Reputation : But the Office of a General, which requires great Judgment, as well as Valour, was too much for him, and he foon iunk under the Weight of it.

The Dutch, who were in the deepeft Condensation, but a Happinefs of few Weeks before, on the Retreat of their Army, under the tiu Cannon of Nimeguen (before the Earl of Marl borough ar- Q.ndu^of rived) had now the Pleafureto fee the Enemy flee in their Turn; tho ^ of and thus were the United Provinces preferv'd by the Earl's Marlboro'. Prudence and Vigilance, whilft the Duke of Burgundy, who, as 1 have faid above, qame to the Army to be taught how to fight, learnt nothing from the Marfhal de Bouflers, but how to avoid an Engagement.

The Earl of Marlborough went on, taking feveral Places, His Succcft« which made little or no Refinance ; but finding, at length, that the French were not to be brought to an Engagement, on equal Terms, and the Deputies of the States General, who followed the Army, having reprefented to him, that it was much more for the Advantage of Holland, to difpoflefs the Enemy of the Places they yet held in the Spanifh Guelderland, whereby the free Navigation on the Maefe was interrupted, and the impor- tant Town of Maeftricht, in a manner block'd up, he therefore, difpos'd all Things for the Siege of Venlo. General Schultz, in the mean Time, with a fmall Detachment, fix Cannon, and two Hawbitzers, took the Town and Caftle of Wert, which The Caft,e capitulated after a mort Refiftance. of Wert ta»

Some Accounts fay, that when the Confederate Army march- ken, ed, the twenty-fecond of Auguft, N. S. from Everbeck to Holch- teren, the Earl was refolved to force the French to quit their Camp at Bergeick, or cut off their Convoys. That when the former came to their Ground, the Enemy appear 'd, as I have faid above, in Battle Array, behind feveral Morafles and De- filees; whereupon the Confederates actually advanced againft them ; but their Eagernefs to fight was put a Stop to by the Badnefs of the Ground, upon which Account, they could not *4

*20 Vbe Life of J O H N,

1702. come at the French without great Difadvantage ; tho' theAr- «_X"VNJ mies were once fo near together, as to cannonade one another a ^d ^ench whole Day together. The Earl of Marlborough faw now very aroi , t- pjajniV) tjiat tjjey were as a{fiduous to avoid a Battle, as he to

engage them to it ; for they always retired before him, or.poft- The Earl of ec^ themfelves m unacceflible Places : He therefore thought fit Marlboro' to decamp from thence, the nine and twentieth, and march'd decamps. to Afch ; refolving to drive the Enemy from their Holds on the

M-iefe, and fecure the Navigation of that River, and the Corn- Some OfT- munication with Maeftricht.

cers difguft- Several Officers, fhew'd however, a Diflike at the Earl's De- cd at lt% camping, and thought the Enemy might have been attack'd,

without too great a Hazard ; but the Earl knew, by what had

paffed before, that the Deputies would never have confented to

leSflnm ' ThC L°rd Albemarle> in a Letter tO M°nf' * * * * at Zell,

th^Ear/of1 °f ^ fifth 'of September, has the following Expreffions, on this

Albemarle Occafion ; Voila notre brave Ptince Eugene, qui a fait des Mer-

to Monf.* * wellies ; 'Je me mange le Caeur de Chagrin, de ce queje «jois, q'ue

at Zell. nous profoons id fi peu d°. .lotre A-vantage ; car luit ou dix jours

pafses, l'j)-f(fue nous etions en prefence de Ennemis, nous ne de<vions,

pas Ics avoir laifsc echaper, tomme Jious a<vons fait, & on aura

<elte negligence a fe reprocher long terns. (That is, " Our brave

*' Prince Eugene has done Wonders ; I could altnoft die with

" Vexation to fee we are fo little the better here, for our Ad-

*' vantage; for when we were, eight or ten Days ago, within

*l Sight of the Enemy, we ought not to have let them efcape,

'* as we did ; and we (hall have Reafoy, a long while, to blame

" ourfelves for this Negleft."

Siege of - The fame Day, the Town of Venlo was inverted by Monf. yenlo. Obdam, with a Detachment of Engliib and Dutch, command- ed under him by the Lord Cuts, on one Side of the Maefe, by Fort St. Michael, and by the Margrave of Brandenburg, the late King of Pruffia's Brother, with his Pruffian Majefty's For- ces, commanded, under him, by the Baron de Heyde, on the other. General Cohorn had the Direction of the Attacks, and the Prince of Naffau Saarbrug had the Command of the Siege. Upon this, the Duke of Burgundy, who had before quitted the French Army, returned to Paris, to avoid being Witnefs of the Taking of that Place. The French, however, pretend, that the Reafon of the Duke of Burgundy's leaving the Army was, becauie he had been obliged to make Detachments from it, to reinforce all the Ga'rrifons of the Spanifh Netherlands, the Bifhoprick of Liege, and Electorate of Cologn, which had fo weakened his Troops, that there were no more Laurels to be gather'd in this Campaign. But it would be very difficult to fey where he gather'd any before.

. ' Venlo

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 121

Vcnlo is a very ftrong Town in the Low Countries, in the 1702. Territory of Ruremond, in Spanifti Guelderland. It flands on * -„— _f the River Miefe, near the Biflioprick of Juliers, ten Miles A D-.fcrip- South Weft of Guelders, and eleven North of Ruremond. The tion of the Troops em ploy 'd in this Siege, at both Attacks, confifted of p two and thirty Battalions, and fix and thirty Squadrons, with 64. Cannon, 24 Mortars, and Hawbitzers, and a great Number of Co horn-Mortars. The Towu and Fort were commanded by the Count de Varo, Major-General L'Abadie, and two Bri- gadiers, having under their Command fix Battalions of Foot, and two Squadrons of Horfe, with 38 Cannon, and 12 Mortars mounted, and great Store of Ammunition.

The feventhof September, N. S. the Trenches were opened, The Tren- on both Sides the Maefe, without any Lofs, the Confederates ches open'd. having cait up fuch high Works as almoft covered them, before they were perceived by the Enemy. The eighth, the Befiegers were reinforced, by a Body of Munfter Troops, confilli^ of 2000 Foot, and 500 Horfe ; and, the following Days, the At- tacks were carried on with great Vigour : But the moft memo- Table Adtion, which happened during^his Siege, was perform'd by the Lord Cuts.

" This Lord Cuts was a Cambridgettvire Gentleman, who Character of entered early into the Service of the Duke of Monmouth, Cuts> and attended his Fortunes abroad. He ferved the Duke of Lorrain in Hungary, as Aid-de-Camrx At the Revolution, he came over with King William, had a Regiment of Foot given him, and was afterwards made an Irim Peer. He was likewife, in the Sequel, made Governour of the Ifle of Wight, had thefecond Regiment of Foot-Guards, and was firft pro- moted to the Poft of Major-General ; but afterwards, on the Acceffion of Queen Ann to the Throne, me made him Lieu- tenant-General of the Forces in Holland. He was affable, familiar, and truly brave. He had a Flow of Wit, which, however, was too much temperM with Vanity and Self- Con- ceit. Few confiderable Aclions happened, in which he had not a Share, and he was wounded in every Aftion in which he ferved. He had always the Character of a vigilant Offi- cer, and he was famous for carrying military Orders into Execution : With all this he was an agreeable Companion ; but fo very expenlive, that tho' he had a very good Eftate, he was always in Debt." On the eighteenth, his Lordfhip was commanded to attack Fort St< M!~ Fort St. Michael, -between theBaftion, which is next the Plain, jjb fET" and the Ravelin, which lies on the North-fide of it, having Lora CUM under his Command Brigadier General Hamilton, with the and the Ea- Royal Regiment of Ireland, and General Hukelom's Regiment, £lifll» and a Lieutenant Colonel, with 172 Grenadiers and 100 Fu-

'filecrs,

122 The Life of J O H N,

fileers (forne Accounts fay zoo of the former, and 150 of the latter) moft Englifh, under a Lieutenant- Colonel ; as alfo 300 Workmen, with a competent Number of Engineers, under Co- lonel Blood. His Lordfhip's Orders were to make a Lodgment, from the Point of the Ravelin to the Baftion, leaving him at Li- berty to proceed farther, if he found it practicable ; and, at the fame Time, the Prince of Anhalt, with tha fame Number of Troops, was to make an Attack, between the Baftion and the Ravelin, on the North Side, with the like difcretionary Orders, either to lodge himfelf, or to advance, as lie fhould fee Occafion. The Signal for both Attacks, which was to be the Blowing up a Barrel of Powder, and the Difcharge of all the Batteries of the Befiegers, both Cannon and Mortars, was accordingly made a little before fix in the Evening.

The Lord Cuts, who, at firft, had no Thoughts of taking the main Fort, had given Orders, on his Attack, to the Officers ISc«Se wh*Ied the Grenadiers, firft to clear the Covered Way of the Enemy ; and, if they faw it practicable, when that was done, to attack the Ravelin, Sword in Hand, affuring them, in the If earing of all the Grenadiers, that, as foon as he fata ffty cf the latter, upon the Top of the Rave tin, he would facrifte him- felf and hii Trwps, rather than not fuflain them ; and that, there- foie, they might go on with Undauntednefs, if they found it poffible to pate : His Lord/hip heightned their Courage and Alacrity, by prcmifing Rewards, in her Majefy's Name, to ail txrhs Jbould fignalize tbemfelves. His Lordfhip's Orders were executed, with inexpreffible Vigour and Chearfulnefs, and, as fbon as the Grenadiers, whom his Lordfhip, with diitinguifh'd -Intrepidity, and admirable Prefence of Mind, fuftained with frefh Numbers, had cleared the Counterfcarp, with their Fire, and avoided a Mine, which was unfuccesfully fprung by the Enemy, they boldly attacked the Ravelin, Sword in Hand, encouraging and affiftingone another, upon the Affurance of being feconded. This the Lord Cuts perceiving, he according to his Promife, fc Btj-cry. march'd with all his Forces, engag'd the Enemy, and was foon Mafter of the Ravelin. The French then made a great Fire upon the Englifh, from the Rampart of the Fort ; upon which, the Lord Cuts fent Orders to the Officers, that were at the Head of the Grenadiers, to throw in their Grenadoes, and attack the Fort, Sword in Hand, if it were pofllble to find a Paflage ; which they did, by charging and following the Enemy fo clofe, that they had not Time to break the Bridge, tho' it was hotly difputed by Fire, and Pufh of Pike, efpecially by the Enemy's Grenadiers from the Flank of one of their Baftions : But the Bra- very of the Englim Grenadiers furmounted all Difficulties, by fol- lowing'the Example of their Officers, and fome brave Englim and other Voluntiers of Diftinftion, as the Prince Erncfl'Auguftus, late

Puke

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V. 12

Duke of York, the Earl of Huntington, the Lord Lorn (now 1702. Duke of Argyle) the Lord Mark Kerr, the Prince d'Avergne, Sir Richard Temple Baronet (now Lord Viicount Cobham) Co- lonel Webb, and Mr. Dalrimple. Some of them attacked the Bridge, and others clamber'd op the Ramparts, after haying thrown in their Grenadoes, and forced their Way into the Fort. The Earl of Huntingdon cali'd to the Soldiers, who had got over the Pallifadoes, to help him over, and promis'd all the Money he had about him, which he gave them very generoufly, 2ar ofQe and led them on with much Bravery and Succefs. The Enemy Hunting, Continued to defend themfelves, till the Englifti pour'd in fo faft do«- upon them, that they were no longer able to refifl ; which as foon as the Lord Cuts perceived, he cbeck'd the Fury of the ^£e rort Soldiers, and put a Stop to the Slaughter. The Englim tool? a en* about 200 Prisoners, of whom, 30 were Officers, with a Bri., gadier-General, and the Governour ; but all the reft, that were in the Fort, to the Number of 600, were killed, or drowned, in endeavouring to efcape, except twelve (the French &y eighty) who pafsM the Mafefe in fmall Boats.

The French, to depreciate the Honour gain'd by the Allies, Pretences of and more particularly by the Englifh, in this Attion, pretend, the French that being fenfible of the Weaknefs of the Garrifon of the Fort, g^J J6 Orders had been given them, that Morning, to abandon the it. Cover'd-way and Half-moons, to cut off the Draw bridges, and to make what Fire they could from the Body of the Place ; that they were juft about executing thefe Orders, when the Allies attacked the Covefd-way of the Fort ; and that the whole Garrifon confifted only of Men, juft come out of the Hofpitals of Ruremond and Venlo, not perfectly recovered.

When the Lord Cuts found himfelf entirely in Pofleffion of the Forts, having left 400 Men in the Out-works, he pofted a Guard at the great Port towards the Town, and a fmall Guard at each Sally-Port, feized the Magazines, fent out a Hundred Grenadiers to<lifcover, on the Side of the Maefe, if any of the Enemy were there, drew up the reft of his Troops, upon the Rampart, towards the Town, turned the Enemy's Cannon upon themfelves, made a Difcharge to give Notice to the Camp that all was well, and continued under Arms all Night. In the Magazine of the Fort, and round the Rampart, were found 30 fine Brafs Cannon, fix Mortars, and a large Quantity of Powder, Ball, Corn, Meal, Brandy, and other Provifions.

Of the Englifli, in this Aftion, two Captains were wounded, j^ of At two Lieutenants, and one Enfign killed, and three wounded ; Er.gli/h in one Serjeant killed, and three wounded, 1 30 Men kill'd, and this Action. 32 wounded j and the Lord Cuts's Aid de Camp, Captain Bolas, with Mr. Eley, an Englilh Voluntier, kill'd on the Spot. 3 Thp

The Life of JOHN,

1702. Th« Lofs of the Dutch was no lefs than that of the Englifb. *-«nr«te> Never was more Bravery fhewn, than on this Occafion, by all, both Officers and Soldiers, of the refpedlive Nations, under Bravery of h's Lordfhip's Command, but efpecially the Englifh. Among the late the reft, the Prince of Hannover, a Voluntier at this Siege, Duke of pafs'd tjje Night before the Attack in the Trenches, with the or ' Lord Cuts, behaved himfeif with a great deal of Gallantry,

and ftaid moft of the Night with his Lordfhip in the Fort.

l< Colonel Blood» who aaed as firft Eng'neer, under General Cohorn, and was to have made the Lodgment, when he faw that the Lord Cuts had quitted that Defign, to pufh on farther, as we have feen, fhew'd the Part of a brave Officer, charging with the Men, Sword in Hand, and killing an Officer of the Enemy's Grenadiers, who made a vigorous Oppofuion with his

sSlTynd Part>r * and Monl~- de la Martinerie» a French Proteftant En- Monf. de h gineer, lately fent from England by his Royal Highnefs, was Martincrie. alfo very ferviceable in this Aftion, as well by his Bravery as his Skill : For it was partly thro' his Advice, that the Lord Cuts refolved to make himfeif Matter of the Fort ; rightly con- jecturing, that if the Enemy made a vigorous Refiftance at the Ravelin, and were beaten off, as, indeed, they were, they would be fo fatigued, as not to be able to hold out long in the Fort ; and it happened fo accordingly. This was a bold and glorious Aflion, chiefly owing to the Bravery and Conduft of the Lord Cuts, who himfeif behaved in fo gallant a Manner, as juftly defer ved a generaj Applaufe.

G-Ilant Whilft thefe glorious A&ions were performing on the Side

Coaduft of of the Lord Cuts's Attack, the Prince of Anhalt behaved him,- the Prince felf with Gallantry fuitable to his Birth, and his Troops, en- of Anfialt. couraged by his Example, attack'd the Enemy with all ima- ginable Vigour, and carried the Ravelin, on their Side, Sword in Hand ; but the French having broke the Bridge, between that Ravelin and the Fort, tho' fome of the Pruffians leap'd into the Ditch and fwam over, it was impoffible for the reft of the;;- Troops to pafs.

Vrnlo fu-- T*16 B^fiegers employed the four following Days in firing raiders. furioufly from their Batteries upon the Wall of the Town, ia order to widen the Breaches ; and all other neceflary Prepara- tions were made for a general Affault, to which the Soldiers Ihew'd an eager Defire. The twenty-third, the Confederates, having received Advice of the Surrender of Landau, exprefs'd their Joy for the News, in Order of Battle, with the triple Dif- charge of all their Cannon and fmall Arms. This the Befieged, as it was reported, took' to be a Signal for the approaching Storm upon the Town ; becaufe the Attack of Fort St. Michael, which had very much intimidated the Garrifon, begun in tj,e 2 fame

t- (f lVlARLBOI*QUGK, &C. I2£

fame Manner; they, therefore, immediately beat a Parley, and 1702. furrender'd the Place, on the five and twentieth. French Wri- C— y«^ ters them/elves allow, that the great Motions they obferved in the Camp of the Befiegers, the 23d in the Evening, which they apprehended was in order to a general Affault, determin'd them to beat a Parley, "and defire to capitulate. Purfuant to the Capi- tulation, they were conducted to Antwerp, with their Arms and Baggage ; but without any Cannon or Mortars, as they at firil infifted on, and which the Prince of Naflau Saarbrug would, upon no Account allow them. -During this Siege, which lafled four Weeks, the Befieged are computed to have loft as many Men, and more commiffion'd Officers, than the Befiegers.

The Earl of Marlborough was no fooner informed of the Sur- RuremonJ, render of Venlo, than his <aclive Genius put him upon making the belt of the Remainder of the Seafon, and pufhing on to new Conquers. Heb therefore, ordered thofe Englifh, Dutch and Pruflian Forces, which had taken Venlo, to invert Ruremond (or Roermond) another Town of Spanifh Girelderland, of equal, or more confiderable Importance, tho' not fo well fortified as Venlo ; a place generally reckoned the fecond City of Guelder- land, {landing upon the Maefe, at the Confluence of that River and the Roer ; eleven Miles South of Venlo, and one and twenty South of Guelders : It has feveral ftately Monafteries, among which, that of the Carthufians is the moil confiderable. The Town was inverted, the nine and twentieth of September^ N. S. and the Confederates, as foon as the Trenches were o- pened, attacking it with a more than common Vigour, or rather Fury, the Garrifon, confiiling of four Battalions of Foot, com- manded by the Prince de Hoorn, found it was to no Purpofe to attempt a long Refiftance. They, therefore, beat a Parley* the fixth of October, and, the next Day, furrendered the Town upon Articles, the Garrifon being conducted to Lovain.

During this fhort Siege, Stevenfwaert, a fmall, but very ArdStCTflv_ flrong Town, or rather Fortrefs, feated on a fmall Ifland, in the fwafrt \,c, Middle of the Maefe, above five Miles to the South of Rure- fkged and mond, defended by a Colonel, with 400 Men, being likewife taken, vigoroufly attack'd, by General Schultz, with a Detachment, and taken by Capitulation) the Navigation of the Maefe was thereby opened, and made free, between Maeftricht and Hol- land : And, all this while, the Marfhal de Bouflers fate ftill, without making any Motion for the Relief of thefe important Places, or even fo much as to aim at Offering the Allies any Diverfion.

CHAP.

2& Me Life of JOHN,

CHAP. II.

tte Siege of Liege, with other 'TranfaftionSy to t*hi! Conclufion of the Tear 1702.

1702. \\T I T H thefe confiderable Conquefts, the Deputies of the VV

States would very willingly have fate down contented ; The Siege but the Earl of Marlborough, wifely forefeeing how valuable a of Liege Conqueft the fine and noble City of Liege would be, and how refohred highly it would redound to the Reputation of the Confederate Arms ; and, befides, the great Importance of it, as he might put a great Part of his Army in Winter there, refolved to at- tempt it, and thereby put a glorious End to the Campaign. A ftort AC- This Place, which is numbered among the great Cities of Europe^ " kas, in the City and Suburbs, above a Hundred Churches^

eight of which are Collegiate, and 3 2 Parochial ; and the Place is beiides very rich and populous. It is fituated in a pleafant Valley, environed with Hills, the River Maefe entering it, in two Branches, accompanied with lefler Streams, which form many delightful Iflands. On the Brow of a Hill, which hangs over it, is a Citadel of great Strength, which commands it. it has a famous Univerfity, endow'd with large Ecdefiaftical Revenues.

Motions of Marfhal de Bouflers, who foon fufpeded the EarPs Defign^

the Marfhal was, at length, roufed from his Lethargy, and thought it high.

de Bouflers Time to do fomething, for the Security of that important Place,

tLfsJege* which, he juftly apprehended, was in no fmall Danger. Being*

therefore, accompanied by the Duke de Maine, and fome En-

gineers, they took with them, he went twice to view the Forti-

fications of the Citadel, viz. the feven and twentieth of Septem-

ber, and the fecond of Oftober. He likewife vifited the moft

confiderable Pofts, between that City and Maeftricht, making

Shew at leaft, thereby, as if he intended to encamp there ; but

finding it impracticable, and being informed, that the Confede-

H.e rrtreats rate Army was marching towards Liege, he retreated to Ton-

PrccUta^ 2rcn> w"^ S1"631 Precipitati°n» an^» en trench' d himfelf there 5

tlon. but upon the farther Motions of the Confederate Army, not

thinking himfeU fafe enough there, he decamp'd, with his

Army, from thence, and went towards Brabant, to defend fuch

Places, as, at that Time, our brave General had no Thoughts

W/lnft °"e~ to attack. And here, it was obfervable, how much the Earl of

of the EarJ Marlborough's Intelligence and Conduct was fuperiour to that of

of M^rlbo- the Marfhal's, how he out-did him in every March, and how

rough's active he was in circumventing all his Defigns, of which we have

great Con- ^ foi;owiDg verv memorable Inftance : His ExtelUna, baling

Nefiff

Duke of MARL BO ROUGH, &c. 127

Nat iff where the Marjhal dejlgned to be one Day at Noon, tnarthed 1702, fo early, and was fo fajled, that Bouflers, ivith his Army? came •within Shot of the Confederate Troops, before be kne--w ivhere he was, and would, in all Probability, have bun ruined, Eorfe and Foot, if the too cautious Dutch Generals (who were influenced by the Deputies of the States, attending the Army] could have been pre- vailed upsn to venture a Battle : But that being prevented, the Marfhal ftole out of the Trap, by Favour of a dark Night./*|

Nor was the indefatigable Vigilance of our great Commander Tlie lefs confpicuous, in the extraordinary March he made from his derat Camp at Soutendale to Liege, before which Place he fate comr* be- down, with his Army, the twelfth of Odober, N. S. The foK Dake decamped, with the Grand Army, about one in the Morning, and march'd, in two Columns, towards that impor- tant Place. He crofs'd the Jecker, a little above Maeftrich^ leaving the Maefe to the Left. About four, in the Afternoon, he came within Cannon Shot of the Citadel ; and, about Sun-fetting, both Columns joining, the Camp was formed along the Hill» near it, on the North Side ; by which Means, the City, Cita- del, and Lower Fort, were, in a manner, all block'd up. Tine Governour, and Commander in Chief, was Lieutenant-General Violane, who had twelve Battalions of Foot under his Command, and had, in the two Citadels, near <;o Pieces of Cannon and Mortars mounted, with great Store of Ammunition, and ail other Neceffaries.

The thirteenth, the whole Array decamp'd, and advanced a little nearer to the City : At their Approach they found the Suburb of St. Walburg fet on Fire by the French GarrUbn ; and the Governour retired, with eight Battalions, into the great Citadel, having put the Remainder into the {mailer Ci- tadel, called the Chartreufe. The Chapter and Magiftracy, having, the Evening before, fent Commiffioners to the Earl of Marlborough, defiring to treat, and their Requeft being rea- dily granted, this Day, three of the Chapter, and as many of the Magiftracy, came out again, and the Articles being agreed on, they were figned by his Excellency, by the Deputies of the States General, and by the Commiffioners from the Chapter and Magiftracy. In Purfuance of thefe Articles, one of the Gates of the City was delivered up to the Confederates, the fame Night, at ten o'Clock, and, on the fourteenth, they took Pof- feffion of the whole Town, with three Englifh Regiments of Horfe, and as many Battalions of Foot, under the Command of the Lord Cuts ; the Keys having been delivered to the Earl of Marlborough with great Submiffion.

The eighteenth of October, N. S. in the Evening, the TheCMo Trenches were opened before the Great Citadel, by four En- glifh Battalions, on the Right, commanded by Lieutenant- Ge- neral

The Life */ J 0 H N,

neral Sommerfelt, and the like Number of Dutch, on the Left, commanded by Lieu tenant-General Fagel. The very fame Evening, the Allies attacked an Entrenchment of the Enemy's, which occafioned a great Fire, on both Sides ; but, at length, the French were beaten off, and, having attempted to regain that Poft, they were repulfed, with confiderable Lofs.

The twentieth, at Sun-rifing, the Batteries of the Befiegers ! being all ere&ed and compleat, and mounted with 44. Cannon,

and i 2 Mortars, they began to play againft the Citadel with great Fury, and thereby blew up a Magazine of the Enemy's, with upwards of 1000 loaded Bombs and Grenadoes, and feve- ral Barrels of Powder.

The twenty-firft, the Befiegers continued to cannonade the Ci- tadel more furioufly than the Day before, and difmounted all the Enemy's Batteries, except two Pieces of Cannon, and two Mortars. The fame Evening, the Confederates throwing in fome Bombs into the Place, fet on Fire another of the Enemy's Magazines, in which were 6000 Grenadoes ready fill'd, and a great Quan- tity of Powder, which blew up, with a frightful Noife. The Attack was carried on that Night, with great Succefs, not- withflanding the French made a Shew of falling upon the Be- fiegers ; but fo thick a Fire was poured upon them, that they were glad to retreat, without effecting their Defign.

The twenty-fecond, the Befiegers Batteries, which they had now confiderably augmented, continued to batter the Citadel, with great Fury, and two more Magazines were fet on Fire, by their Bombs. The fame Evening, their fmall Mortars for Gre- nadoes (an Invention afcrib'd to Monf. Cohorn) being ready, all the Batteries began to play, with To much Order, Difpatch, and Succefs, that the like was hardly ever before feen.

The twenty-third, Monf. Cohorn perceiving that the Bat- teries had made a confiderable Breach, refolved, with the Ap- probation of the Earl of Marlborough, to attack the Counter- fcarp, that Evening : And, accordingly, four Battalions, with a Detachment of 500 Grenadiers, on the Right, commanded by Lieutenant-General Sommerfelt, and the like Number on the Left, headed by Lieutenant-General Fagel, were appointed for that Attack, which began a little before four o'Clock, in the Afternoon. The Cannon and Mortars having plaid, till that Time, with fo gooa Succefs, that four other Magazines were f blown up.

TbeCoun- The Signal being given, the Confederates advanced, with terfcarp great Boldnefs and Unconcern, towards the Enemy : So ftrift ftorra » an Order was likewife obferved, that not a Mufket was fired, tho' the French fufficiently provoked them to it, by the con- tinual Fire on their Side. Being advanced to a proper Diftance, they attacked the Counterfcarp with f« much Fury, that the i French

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

French could not defend their Port, but foon abandon'd it. The Allies, in the mean time, inftead of lodging themfelves upon it, got into the Cover'd- way, pafs'd the Ditch, mounted the Andi Breach, at once, and took the Place by dint of Sword. ther with

In the Heat of the Aftion, the Lord Cuts, who was in the City, with ten Battalions, detach'd 1 200 Men, to the Afiiftance of the Aflailants : Thefe mih'c! fuddenly and unexpectedly into the Citadel, on that Side near the City ; which contributed not a little to the Succefs of the Attack ; for the Enemy were fo furprized and daunted, to find themfelves fallen upon, in this Manner, on every Side, that they quitted the Breach much fooner than there was otherwife Reafon to expecl they would have done.

Monf. de Violaine, the Governour, who, but five Days be- fore, upon a Summons fent him to furrender, gave the Earl of Marlborough the haughty Anfwer, that it would be Time enough to think of that fix Weeks after , was fo furprized at this vigorous Attack, and unexpected Boldnefs, that he immediately beat a Parley : But the victorious Allies, being already in the Place, would hear nothing of it, and had killed all they met, if the French had not thrown drown their Arms and beg'd Quarter, which they obtained. At the Conclufion of this glorious Aclion, An a fmall Miftake happened, which was fatal to fome of the Vic- tors, who, firing fome fmall Arms after they were in Pofleffion of the Place, gave Occafion to thofe who were in the Batteries to believe, that the Enemy had rallied again, on the farther Side of the Citadel } upon which, they poured in a whole Shower of Bombs, at random, which falling among Friends and Foes, did fome Damage, before the Miftake was dif- covered.

All the Troops, and particularly the Englilh, behaved them- A large felves to Admiration, and, befides Honour, got a very confi- Booty found derable Booty ; for, befides 36 Pieces of Cannon, and a great Citadel Quantity of Arms and Ammunition, in the Cam of Treafure a- lone, they found 300,000 Florins in Gold and Silver, and Notes for 1,200,000 Florins upon fubftantial Merchants at Liege, which was as good as Money ; befides a valuable Parcel of Plate belonging to the Governour ; and it was affirmed, that one of our Grenadiers got IOOO Louis d'Ors in a Bag, A- mong the reft, the extraordinary Bravery of the Hereditary ?r Prince of Heffe Caffel, deferves to be recorded ; for his High- c°e™. nefs went Voluntier in the Attack, at the Head of the Grena- diers, and mounting the Breach, the very firft, fnatch'd the Colours from the French Officer. The Lofs of the Englifh (be- fides Mr. Wentworth, Brother to the Lord Raby, and formerly Page to King William, who went Voluntier in the faid Attack) was i Lieutenant-Colonel, i Major, 3 Captains, and 6 Subal- Voi.. I. £ terns

Me Life of JOHN,

terns flain, 24 Officers wounded, 143 private Soldiers kill' d, and 360 wounded. What the Enemy loft was computed at double that Number ; over and above which, the Governour and the Duke of Charoil (who were carried to the Earl of Marlborough's Quarters) with the Remainder of eight Battalions, whereof three were French, which were in the Citadel, were made Prifoners at Difcretion.

The Citadel being thus taken, after a Fight of about three Quarters of an Hour, the Victory of the Confederates was, foon after, compleated, by the Surrender of the Chartreufe, which they defign'd to have attack'd two Days fooner, had not the ftormy Weather, which happened, the fix and twentieth, and (even and twentieth, damaged their Bridge of Boats. The Char- Qn the nine and twentieth, about ten in the Morning, their Anders M°rtar3 began to play, which having fet the greateft Part of the Building in Flames, and, about two in the Afternoon, the Cannon of the Befiegers having begun to play, and batter the Place, the Garrifon immediately deiired to capitulate. Hofla- ges being, hereupon, exchanged, it was agreed, that one of the Gates fhould be delivered to the Confederates, in the Morning, and that the Garrifon, which infilled to go directly to Namur, fhould march out, the thirty-firft, in the Evening, with their Arm?, Colours fU ing, Drums beating, and two fmail Pieces of Cannon, and be conducted, by Tongres, Vogelfanck, and He- renthal, to Antwerp.

The Confederates being thus become Mafters of the City of Liege, together with the great Citadel, his Excellency, the Earl of Marlborough, wrote the following Letter to the States General.

High and Mighty Lords,

TkeHailof" T WRITE this to congratulate your High and Mighty Marlboro's « J^ Lordfhips, upon the happy Succefs of the Arms of the Static Allies, who, notwithftanding the great Number of the Sol-

neral " diers in Garrifon, have taken the Citadel, this Evening, by Aflault, with the greateil Gallantry imaginable, and made the Governour, and thofe who remained, Prifoners at Dif- cretion. Mcnfieur de Cohorn is going this Moment to give Orders for carrying the Cannon on the ether Side, in order to attack the Chartreufe, and make Ufe of this good Wea- ther while it lails. I cannot give your High and Mighti- nefles the Particulars of this glorious Aftion, being not wil- ling' to flay the Courier, who is going to you with this

" News,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 131

News, longer than only to allure you, that I am, with the 1702. greateftRefpedt, ^ /-—I

High and Mighty Lords,

At' the Camp before Your moft humble, and

Liege, OB. 23d, Moil obedient Servant,

1702. MARYBOROUGH.

To which the States returned the following Anfwer.

•

My Lord,

" \\T E believe it would be fuperfluous to tell your Excel- The Anfwer " VV Jenc7> that the good News which you have been ot " pleafed to fend us, in your Letter of the 23d Inftant, " was agreeable to us; fince an Action fo well laid, fo vigo- roufly executed, and attended with that good and glorious Succefs, cannot but be fo in the higheft Degree ; we like- wife, on our Part, congratulate with you, fmce this great Ac- tion adds no lefs. to the Glory of your Excellency, and to the Reputation of the Arms of the Allies, under your prudent Conduct, than it is advantageous to the common Gaufe, and to our State in particular. We wifh your Excellency the fame good Succefs before the Chartreufe, and in all your En- terprizes ; and we defire, you will believe, that we are truly,

Your Excellency's

At the Hague, Moil affedionate to ferve you,

ORob. 26. The STATES GENERAL

1702, of the United Provinces

of the Low Countries.

With fuch Succefs, ended this profperous Campaign, in which The Earl of many Places were taken, with an inconsiderable Lofs of Time Marlb. be- and Men. The Earl of Marlborough's Conducl and Deport- k>Vd by the ment had entirely gain'd him the Afteclion of the Army : The ArmJ> and States were highly Satisfied, as they had Reafon to be, with all he JJ' Tstates. had done ; and what heighten'd the Honour he had gain'd the more was, the Earl of Athlone did him the Juftic^ to confefs, that the Succefs was wholly owing to him ; fince he had differ- ed in his Opinion from the Earl in every thing, that was under- taken : This, indeed, is faying much to the Advantage of our Hero ; but to compleat his Glory, I fliall add one Obfervation more : When he came to take the Command of the Army, he found it flying before the Enemy ; and hardly thought fecure, tho' under the Cannon of a considerable Eortrefs : But no fooner had he taken that Command, than the pale-fac'd Goddefs, K2 FEAR,

'The Life of J O H N,

FEAR, took up her Abode with the Enemy. They were a<r afliduous to avoid a Battle, as he to feek it ; they even negle&ed Advantages they might have taken, and fuffered him to un- dertake and execute, juft what he hrmfelf would,

A Medal The Succefs of this firft Campaign, of her Majefty's glorious

flruckonthe Reign, occafioned the ftriking of a handfome Medal, according to the following Defcription.

On ^6 Face ^ a %u&Q °f the Queen crowned, with her ufual Title.

On the Reverfe, a Town befieged, and battered with Can- non and Mortars, with this Motto, VIRES. AN i MUM QJJE Mi- K IST RAT. That is, She gfoti Strength and Courage.

In the Exergue, CAPTIS. COIONIA. TRAJANA. VENLOA. RUREMUXDA. STEPHANVERDA. LEODIO MDCCII. That is, Ktyferfooaert, Venlo, Stevenf<waert, and Liege taken, 1702. The Confe- The third of November, N. S. the Confederate Army fepa- derateArmy rated near Liege, and fo put an End to a Campaign, glorious ieparates. beyond Expectation ; which was, however, fucceeded by art Accident, that had almoft, at once, loft the Advantages and The Earl of Honour got in it. The Day the Army feparated, the Earl of Marlboro' Marlborough went to Maeftricht, where, thinking it the eafieft taken by a an(j qaickeft, as well as* the fafeft Way of returning to the Trench Par- jjagtie^ he embarked the very fame Evening, on the Maefe, for Holland. He had a Detachment of 25 Soldiers, commanded by a Lieutenant, in the Boat with him, to ferve as a Convoy. The next Morning he came to Ruremond, where he joined Monf. Cohorn : And having dined with the Prince of Holilein- Beck, Governour of that Place ; they continued their Voyage together, having a Company of fixty Men in a larger Boat, which went before theirs. There was likewiie a Troop of fifty Horfe ordered, to- ride along the Banks of the River, for his Ex- cellency's Guard, About feven, that Evening, they came to Venlo, where the Party of Horfe being relieved, by a like Num- ber, out of that Garrifon, they purfued their Way down the River. The great Boat, in which General Cohorn was, outfail- ed the other, and the Troopers on Shoar miflook their Way in the Night. The French had yet the Town of Guelders in their Hands, which was, indeed, the only Place they had left in Spanifh Guelderland. A Party of five and thirty Men, from thence, was lurking on the Banks of the River, near three Leagues below Venlo, waiting for an Adventure ; and the Com- pany being all afleep, they feized, by Surprize, between eleven and twelve at Night, the Rope by which the Boat was drawn, and hauled it on Shoar. They immediately made a Difcharge of their fmall Arms, and threw feveral Grenadoes into the Boat, by which fome of the Soldiers were wounded. This

3.

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. , they enter'd and feiz'd the Boat, with all who were in it, before they could get in any Order to make an Oppofition.

Thus had a fmall Number of Men the Fortune to take that General Prifoner, whom the whole French Army had not the Courage to look in the Face, the whole Summer. With the Earl, were Monf. Obdam, one of the Dutch Generals, and Monf. Gueldermalfen, one of the Deputies of the States Gene- ral. They did not know the Earl, but the other two they knew ; who both had Paffes, according to a Civility, ufually praaifed by the Generals on both Sides. The Earl of Marlbo- rough's Brother had one ; but, his ill State of Health having made him leave the Campaign, it remained in the Hands of his Secretary, and now ferved the Earl. The Date, indeed, was expired ; but the Calmnefs, and wonderful Prefence of Mind, with which he produced it, together with the Hurry they were in, and the Night, happily prevented that from being difcover- cd. They, therefore, only rifled the Boat, fearched the Trunks and Baggage, emptied them of what Plate and Things of Value they found, and took Prefents from thofe whom they believed to be proteded by their Paffes ; and then, after having ftopp'd them feveral Hours, and taken his Excellency's Guard of Foot Bnt getj Prifoners, letting them go, they happily efcaped the Danger. Out of their

The Governour of Venlo having early Notice, that his Ex- Haadsagain, cellency was taken j but not being informed of the Circum- ftances which followed, prefumed he was carried Prifoner to Guelders : He, therefore, march'd out immediately, with his whole Garrifon, to inveft that Place. The News of it coming, confternatl- likewife, to the Hague, in the fame imperfect Manner, put the on of the States under no fmall Condensation. They immediately affem- Dutch onthi« bled, and refolved to fend Orders to all their Forces, to march ^c lon > immediately to Guelders, to threaten the Garrifon with the ut- moft Extremities, unlefs they mould deliver the Prifoners, and never to leave the Place, till either they had taken it, or the Generals were fet free. But, before thefe Orders could be dif- patch'd, the Earl of Marlborough came to the Hague, where Removed fay- he was received with inexpreffible Joy, not only by the States, ™ Arrival but by the Inhabitants, who begun to look upon him as their Hague, Guardian Angel, and, upon that Occafion, fo crouded the Streets, to give his Excellency a hearty Welcome, that it was not without great Difficulty, he could get through them to his Lodgings j to fuch a Degree was he beloved, and of fohigh Efteem was the Name of Marlborough, with People of every Condition.

The Grand Penfionary Heinfius, when he complimented him, The Grand in the Name of the States, on his happy Efcape, faid : That Penfioiury'g Us Captivity had well nigh enflaved, not only their Provinces, but Comp Umsnt Hut it is the Power of France, to have extended 'her uncontroulabU £ Dominio?

134 Me Life cf JOHN,

\-~i. Dominion ever ell Europe, by detaining his Perfon, whom thej

^..»-v- mJ could not lut look upon as defiirf d by PROVIDDNCE, to be its Inflru-

ment, in afcertaining the Liberty of tb? better Part of the Cbrifliatf

His modeft World. To which his Excellency made the following mcdeft

Anfwer. Anfvver ; That he fiould always take Pride in being J-ri'iceatle ta

t';e Common Caufe, and their High MightinefTes ' in particular :

Hut he thought iveaf had been applied to him, in Jufiice, belonged

to the ^ueen, his Miflrefs, who, by GOD'J djjiflance, might be the

Injlrument of the divine Will ; but, for his Part, it was Glory

fufficient for him, to be her Majcjly^s Agent.

To keep up the Connexion of my Hiftory, it will be necef- fary, before I mention the Earl's Return to England, juit to hint at what had pafs'd, during this Campaign, in feveral other Parts of Europe ; without the Knowledge of which, the Reader may not be ab!e fo well to account for feme Things which follow. Affairs of * mentioned above, that the Siege of Landau had been under- the Empire, taken by the Imperialifts, and that very ftrong and important Place obliged to furrender, after a Siege of almoft three Months : But, to counterbalance this Advantage, a few Days before that Place furref.dered, the Eleclor of Bavaria, who had been a long Time fufpefted by the Allies, of being in the Intereft of

France, furprized and took Ulm, a large and ftrong Imperial

fe feTuim 9'^' the CaPitaI of the Circle of Suabia- This City, which is £C> ' rich and populous, as well as large and ftrong, is adou/d with many {lately Edifices, and particularly with a Cathedral, reck- oned the fineft in Germany. It ftands on the Rivers Danube and Iller, near forty Miles Weft of Augfburg, about fifty almoft South-Eaft of Stutgard, and near fixty almolt Nprth-Eaft of Con- fonce. The I'.ledtor, being thus poffefs'd of this important Place, declared cpenly againft the Confederates, threaten'd the Circles of Suabia and Franconia, in Cafe they did not obferve an exaft Neutrality, and, by his Adlions and Declarations, ftruck Terror and Amszement, throughout the whole Empire. However, by the Diligence and Valour of Prince Lewis of Ba- den, and the other Imperial Generals, efpecially at the bloody and unequal Battk of Friedlingen, where the French were rout- ed, all the Endeavours of the French and Bavarians, to join each other, were frustrated, for this Winter, and the French obliged to pafs the Rhine. In this, it is certain, a very great Point was gain'd, in Favour of the Allies j notwithstanding which, Monf. de Villars had the Vanity to claim the Vidlory, and affign'd a Reafon for it, viz. the Taking of Friedlingen the next Day, which, however infignificant, had an Air of Plaufi- bility i arid it anfwered his End, as it procured him the Mar- fhal's Staff. I think it the more neceffary to mention this E- vent, as being the Fore-runner of one of the greateft Scenes of Action, which will, in the Sequel, be recorded in this Hiftory.

The

Duke of MARL BO ROUGH, &c. 135

The Diet of the Empire was fo incens'd at the Treachery of 1702. the Elector of Bavaria, in feizing Ulm, that, after a warm De- u- -v-*J bate thereupon, it was refolved by a Plurality of Voices, to The Empire declare War againft the French King, and the Duke d'Anjou, decjares War which was done accordingly ; and a Memorial .was order'd to be prenchKing, drawn up, requefting his Imperial Majefty, to proceed againft an(j tile D. the Eledtor, according to the Conftitutions of the Empire. The d'Anjou. Minifters of the Elector of Bavaria and Cologn were, hereupon, forbid appearing any more in the general Diet ; notwithftanding which, the Eledtor of Bavaria protefted againft thefe Proceed- ings of the Diet, and particularly againft their Declaration of War; he alledg'd, " That an offenfive War like this, ought to be refolv'd upon by common Confent, and not by Plurality of Voices." To which it was anfwer'd j «' That the King of France had attack'd the Empire, by invading, not only in his own Name, but in the Name of the Duke d'Anjou, his Grandfon, feveral Fiefs of the Empire, in Italy, the Arch- bifhcprick of Cologn, and the Diocefe of Liege, as alfo by difturbing the Trade of the Rhine, and committing feveral other Hoftilities, which render'd this War defenitve and not offenfive, on the Side of the Empire." But no Regard was had to his Proteft. And as for the Empire's Declaration of War, it was publifh'd and notified to the Cardinal of Lamberg, the Emperour's Commilfioner, on the 3Oth of September, N. S. by the Direction of the Eledtor of Mentz, in the Name of the Diet of Ratifbon.

The Occafion of this Defection of the Electors of Bavaria and

Cologn has been differently reported ; but the Continuator of

Rapin, in French, gives us one fo very fingular, that I cannot

forbear mentioning it. He not only fuppofes it to proceed

from a Difcontent at the Crown of Spain's being loft to their

Family, by the Death of the Prince of Bavaria ; but iniinu-

ates, as if they thought there was fomething myfterious in"

that Prince's premature Death, and imagin'd foul Play in the

Cafe, to make Way for the Houfe of Auilria ; and that they

thereupon conceiv'd fuch a Prejudice againft the Imperial

Family."

Towards the latter End of the Year, Count Tallard took the ftro'ng Caftle of Traerbach, upon the River Mofel, after a ftout Refiihnce ; and, on the other Side, the hereditary Prince of Hefle-Caftel took Zinch, Lintz, Brizich and Audernach, all fmall Places which the French had poflefs'd themfelves of upoa the Rhine. Thus flood Matters, at this Time, in Germany.

In Italy was, this Year, fought the fierce and bloody Battle Affairs in of Luzzira, near which Place, Prince Eugene of Savoy at- Italy, tack'd, with 25,000 Men, the Army of the French and Spa- niards, which confilted of about 40,000, commanded by King K 4 Philip

136 &e Life of J O H N,

1702. Philip of Spain, in Perfon, and the Duke de Vendome, but

<— "V— ^ without any great Advantage on either Side ; tho' Prince Eu- gene did far more, than could be expe&ed from him, all Cir. cumftances confidered. Some Accounts, however, give the Prince the Victory, and fay the French were defeated. The Truth is, Night put an End to the Engagement, and the French thought fit to retreat, under Favour of it. The French and Spaniards, being much more numerous, dulodged the Germans, afterwards, at Times, from feveral fmall Places, Prince Eugene being ftrangely neglecied by the Court of Vienna : Which was all that p?. fled, on that Side, worthy of a general Remark.

The Earl of Marlborough was look'd upon, from the very Beginning of her Majefty's Reign, both at home and abroad, as the chief Favorite, and defign'd Head of Affairs, as well in the Army, as in the Council, or in the latter, to have, at leaft, the greateft Influence. It would be fuperfluous, to give any Inftances of this being the general Opinion at home, I mall, therefore, confine myfelf to one from abroad.

It was very much apprehended, at the Hague, and the Pro- teftant Courts of Germany, and efpecially that of Hannover, that her Majefty had a Defign of propofing to her Parliament the Royal Dignity, for the Prince of Denmark. Monf. d'Al- ionnej then at the Hague, in a Letter of the eight and twentieth of October, to a Perfon very much in the late King's Favour, at

Ixtradl of a Hannover, has the following Words : Je <vois, par <votre prece-

J*"1^ r d£nte Leltre, Monf. du I o, que la Cour fHannovre na point trouve

from Monf. j n-/r t ' ^ 'At'"* / it ji M f

d'Alonne at **' '-'ijjicultt a menager jufqu a cet beure tellt f Angleterre, matt

the Hague, qu elle fe trouvera dans un grand embarrat, Ji la Reine propofe, en Parlement, la Royaute du Prince, et qiSaltrs Elle tie pourra pas Je refoudre a pafler fous Silence une pareille atteinte a. Jon droit. Celaferoit ajjurement facbeux, et il y a meme grand Apparence que cela arrivera, Ji fon en peut croire tout le Parti Tory, qui ne le dijjimule aucunement : Etf en ce cas, il ne ferott pas etonnant, que fvousparlajjiis,&c. (That is, " I fee, by your former Letter, Sir, " of the i gth, that the Court of Hannover has found no great Difficulty, to keep up a good Intelligence, hitherto, with that of England ; but that would caufe a very great Unealinefs there, if the Queen mould propofe to the Parliament, the Royal Dignity, for the Prince, and that your Court could not then re- folve to pafs by an Attempt fo prejudicial to their Right, in Silence. It would, indeed, be very difagreable, and it feems very probable, that there is iuch a Defign, on the Carpet, i f we may give Credit to the whole Tory-Party, who are far *' from feeking to conceal it. In this Cafe, it would not be ' ' thought ftraoge, if your Court mould begin to open their f A£ncT, *£.") ifei£ tTAlkone ti*agc«s on, to gi*e his O-

pinion.

Apprehen- fions of the Queen's aiming at the Royal Dignity for the Priaee.

to Monf. * ** at Hannover

Duke of MARLBOROITGH, &c. 137

pinion, when, and in what Mariner, it might be proper for the Court of Hannover to open their Mind, with what he thought might be alledg'd, and propos'd on this Occafion : And then adds, // faut fonger qu'il n\y a point du terns a perdre, & qtte le menageant bien, fonpourra encore j'^» aider a<vant rOiwerture du Parlement, C5" meme enfaire parler icy a My Lard Marlborougb, Regard had par Monf. de Botbmar, d'un air de Confiance, par Rapport a. fes to the Earl droites Intentions, &, en meme terns, d'un Ton honnetement ferme a ° Marlbo- fegard du Sujet. (That is, "You muft confider, there is no fl^nce^n"" " Time to lofe, and that, by improving it, fome Advantage thisRefpea. " may be made before the Opening of the Parliament, and " Monf. de Bothmar may fpeak to my Lord Marlborough here, " with an Air of Confidence in him, as far as regards his up- *' right Intentions, and, at the fame Time, in a decent Strain " of unfhaken Refolution, with refpedl to the Subject.") Itt the Poftfcript, Monf. d'Alonne adds, En par/ant a my Lord Marl- borough de cette Affaire, & aux Miniflres de Londres, il ne fera, pas difficile de menager toujours delicatement la Perfonne de la Reine, en faifant femblant /jue Pan ne croit pas, que ceftle deffein de fa Majefle, mats bien celui d'un parti conjidsrabk, qui le veut a mau- •vais dejfiin, Sa Majejie etant trap jujle a pouvoir penfer, mains encore de <uonloir rien au prejudice du plus prccbe Suaejftur. (That is, " In fpeaking of this Matter to my Lord Marlbo- " rough, and to the Miniiters.at London, it will be no difficult " Matter always to mew the moft tender Regard for the Queen's " Perfon, by appearing not to believe this to be a Defign of ** her Majeity's, but of a confiderable Party, who defire it for " no good End ; her Majefty being too juft, but to think, " much lefs to intend, any Thing, to the Prejudice of her im- *' mediate Succeffor."

Thus we fee what was thought abroad of the Influence our The Appre-. Hero might have, in an Affair of fo great Importance : But all henfinns ap . this Precaution was probably unneceffary ; the Matter was never Pe.aj" tn. be propos'd, and perhaps never thought of. Monf. d'Allonne was Grounds, likewife miftaken, as to what he advis'd to be done before the Opening of the Parliament ; for it was opened two Days after the Date of that Letter; as he acknowledged in another Let- ter, to the fame Perfon, of the fourth of November, N. S. And nothing of that Nature, as I have already obferved, be- ing propofed, or fo much as hinted at, either in the Queen's Speech, or otherwife, by any Member of either Houfe, thefe Apprehenfions were entirely diffipated ; and Monf. d'Allonne,, an another Letter, to that Gentleman, of the eleventh of No- vember, N. S. allows they were ill-grounded, and adds,that a Perfon of very good Knowledge and Intelligence had, among atber Things, wrote him thefe Words : We are not much

13$ We Lip-if JOHN,

1702. in Pain, for any Attifkibat iitay be intended by fame Perfons, upon

' -V— ~ ' the Bill of Succe/nn.

The Earl^of j return now to the Earl of Marlborough, who having finiftied Marlboro ^js Negotiations at the Hague, and concerted Matters with the England!0 Deputies of the States, for the Operations of the future Cam- paign, departed thence, and arrived at London, the eight and twentieth of November.

The Houfe Before his Return, the new Parliament met, the twentieth of tSatc O&ober, and, three Days after, the Houfe of Lords waited on Be^Ma'pfty, ^er Majefty with their Addrefs, wherein They congratulated the on his Sue- profperous and glorious Succefs, 'with which it had pleafed God to cefs- blefs -her Majejiy 's Arms, in Conjunction 'with her Allies, under the

Command of the Earl of Marlborough. And the Houfe of Com- mons, in their Addrefs, which they preferred a few Days after, had the following remarkable Paragraph : This Misfortune (viz. A remark- the Difappointment at Cadiz) cannot make us forget, That tb; able Para- Protection and Security of our Trade, the vigorous Support of your Addref" of** MaJeftf* Allies, and « the wonderful Progrefs of your Maje/tfs the Houfe of " -Arms, under the Condutt of the Earl of Mar -thorough ," have Commons. Jignally retrieved the ancient Honour and Glory of the EngUJh Na- tion.

The Word retrieved, in this Addrefs, occsfion'd a Debate in the Houfe of Commons, it being alledg'd, that itfeem'd to caft a Reflection on the Memory of King William, and the Wrord maintained was propofed to be inferted in the room of it ; but, upon a Divifion, it was carried for retrievd, by a very great Majority.

A Thankf- The fourth of November, Mr. Secretary Hedges, by her

giving ap- Majefty's Command acquainted the Houfe of Commons, That

pointed for her Majejiy had appointed Thurfday, the twelfth of the fame Month t

f h MC1;S ** ^e °ljfereufd in London and Wejlminjler, and the Places adjacent,

ity's Arms as a ^a}' °f publick Thank/giving to Almighty God, on Qccajion

under the of the great SucceJ/es of her AJajeJiy's Arms, and th'fe of her Allies,

Ear\ of and particularly that of her Troops, under the Conduft of the Earl

h° & °f Marll>9> ough, faff, and that her Majefly would be plea fed to go

'" that Day to St. Paul's Church. ' Whither the Houfe refolve to

attend her.

The Queen TIie appointed Day being come, her Majefty went, accord- goes to ingJy, to St. Paul's, in great State, attended by both Houfes of St. Paul's. Parliament j and the publick Demonftrations, given by the In- habitants of London and Weftminfter were fuitable to fo great and folemn an Occafion.

There was a pyramidal Illumination hung up at Ludgate, and the following Infcription affix'd to one Side of the Gate :

ANNA

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

ANNA

Britannife Magn& Regina, Et csnjux were illujiris, G E O R G I U S

Daniee Princeps ;

Nee non inclyti Heroes ;

Tyranni Gallici Debel/atores,

Jacobus Dux O R M O N D,

Joannes Comes MARLBOROUGH,

Georgius ROOK Miles,

Claffis Triumphantis Prafefius,

Vivant Q£? F/oreant.

As threat'ning Spain did to Eliza bow ; So France and Spain fhall do to ANNA now : France that protects falfe Claims t' another's Throne, Shall find enough to do to keep her own.

The thirtieth of November, Sir Edward Seymour, Comp- The Earl of troller of her Majefty's Houfhold, reported to the Houfe of Marlboro' Commons, that the Committee appointed by the Houfe, had ^eivfs thf attended the Earl of Marlborough with their Thanks, for the the^oufeof great and fignal Services, by him performed for this Nation, and Commons, that, thereupon, his Lordfhip had exprefs'd himfelf to the fol- lowing Effeft : viz. That nothing could add to the Satisfafiion he His Anfwer. took in the Queen's mojt gracious Acceptance of his hearty and jincere Endeavours for the pub/ickService, Lut the obliging and favourable Senje which that Houfe was pleased to exprefs of them, of which Hor.our, no Man could be more truly fenfible than himfelf, That our Succefs 'was chiefly to be imputed to God's Blejjing upon her Ma- jejifs happy Conduct, and the great Bravery if her own Troops , and thofe cf her Allies .

Upon the zd of December, the Queen (to fhew what a Senfe me had of the Earl of Marlborough's Service) was pleafed to declare, before a Committee of Council, That Jbeivas fofatif- Jied of the eminent Servi'es of my Lord Marlborough to thepublick, and to herfelf, both in the Command of the Army, and the entire The Earl of Confidence he had fettled between her and the States General, that Marlboro' Jhe intended to make him a Duke: Which fhe did, accordingly, |TafG a by the Title of Marquis of Blandford and' Duke of Marlborough ; ^nd one of and his Grace was, likewife, this Year appointed one of the 'the Com- Commiffioners for treating of a Union with Scotland. On the miffioners. loth, her Majefty fent the following Meflage to the Commons, f°r tr"t].ns in his Lordfhip's Favour.

ANN

14.0

170*.

JVfeflage 4o the Com- mons in his

favour,

B&ates tkereupOB.

The Dake •defires tte <}ueen to

forego her Aleflage.

A v ; n|

Me Lift cf J O H N,

A N N R.

<HE Earl of Marlboro ugh1 s Services to her Majefty, and

to thePublick, have been fo eminent, both in his Com-

" inand of the Army, and in his having eftablifhed an entire ** Confidence, and good Correfpondence, between her Majefty, •" and the States General, that fhe has thought fit to grant the :t Title of a Duke of this Kingdom to him, and to the Heirs •" Male of his Body, and alfo a Penfion of 5000 Pounds per *" Ann. upon the Revenue of the Poft-Office, for the Support ff of this Honour, during her Majefty's natural Life. If it had ** been in her Majefty's Power, fhe would have granted the ** lame Term in the Penfion, as in the Honour, and fhe hopes ** you will think it fo reafonable, in this Cafe, as to find fome ** proper Methods of doing it."

A .Report was fpread, on this Occafion, that the Queen in- tended to give the Duke of Marlborough all the Gold taken by the Duke of Orraond at Vigo. This would indeed, have been a very fignal Mark of her Majefty's royal Favour, and of the Opinion fhe had of his extraordinary Merit j but as very few gave any Credit to this Report, it is very eafy to furmife with what Intention fo idle a Story v/as propagated.

This Meffage occasioned great Debates in the Houfe. Be this as at will, the Duke of Marlborough, as ibon as he was informed thereof, waited on her Majefty, and pray'd her, rather to foregt her gracious Meffage, en bit Behalf, than to create any •Unesftnefs on bit Acaunt i jince it mi^bt embarrafi her Affairs, tail be •cf ill Confequcnce to the Publitk : And there being no Likelihood, that the Commons would comply with her Maje- fty's Defire, the fifteenth., fhe fent them another Meflage, where- by fhe acquainted them, That the Duke of Marlborough bad de- clined her Majefy^s Meffage to them. " It has, indeed, been faid, that, after the Reading of it, the Houfe feemed, for fome

* Time, to be in a Maze, and kept fo long filent, that die < Speaker flood up, and look'd round, to fee if any Body would

* fpeak to it: And, at length, Sir Edward Seymour having ' broke the Ice, the Debate run very high upon the Occafion ; ' and, amongft others, common Fame gave out, that Sir ' Chriftopher Mufgrave fhould fay, that tho1 he had accepted

* of an Employment at Court, yet he never did it withaDe- ' fign that his Mouth fhould be fewed up in that Houfe, when

* any Thing was offer'd that he thought detrimental to his Country ; diathe would not derogate from the Duke's eminent Services, but that he was very well paid for them, &c."

Neverthelefs, the Commons being in a grand Committee, the Motion was made, (he facie Pay, that an Addrels be prefented

to

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, CsV. 141

to her Majefly, fetting forth the Reafons why they could not 1702. comply with her Majefty's firft Meflage. This Motion was a- <— -v— • •* greed to, on the fixteenth, and a Committee appointed to draw up the Addrefs, which was as follows :

Moft gracious Sovereign,

" \T7"£ y°ur Majefty's moft dutiful and loyal Subjects, the Th- Com- " \1 Commons in Parliament affembled, humbly beg Leave mons Arf- " to declare our unanimous Satisfaftion in the juft Efteem Jefs to the your Majefty has been pleafed to exprefs, of the eminent ^een' Services, performed by the Duke of Maryborough, who has, not only by his Conduft of the Army, retrieved the ancient Honour and Glory of the Englifh Nation, but, by his Ne- gotiations, eftablilh'd an entire Confidence, and good Corre- " fpondence between your Majefty, and the States General, and " therein vindicated the Gentlemen of England, who had, by " the vile Practices of defigning Men, been traduced, and in- " duftrioufly reprefented, as falfe to your Majefty's Allies, be- " caufe they were true to the Intereft of their Country.

" It is to their unexpreffible Grief, that your Majefty's moft " dutiful Commons find any Inftances where they are unable to " comply with what your Majefty propofes to them ; but they " beg Leave humbly to lay before your Majefty, the Apprehen- " fions they have of making a Precedent, for the Alienation " of the Revenue of the Crown, which has been fo much re- " duced by the exorbitant Grants of the laft Reign, and which " has been fo lately fettled and fecured, by your Majefty's un- " parallel'd Grace and Goodnefs.

" We are infinitely pleafed to obferve, by your Majefty's late " gracious Acceptance of the Duke of Marlborough's Services, " that the only Way to obtain your Majefty's Favour, is to " deferve well from the Publick; and we beg Leave to affure " your Majefty, that whenever you mall think fit to reward " fuch Merit, it will be to the entire Satisfaction of your " People."

This Addrefs being, prefented to the Queen, the twenty-firft of December, by the whole Houfe, her Majefty was pleafed to return this Anfwer.

SHALL always think myfelf much concerned to reward TheQueen's dwfe who deferve well of me, and of the Publick. On Al " this Account I beftowed fome Favours on the Duke of Marl- " borough, and I am glad to find you think they are well ? placed.';

CHAP.

142 Ite Life of J O H N,

CHAP. III. franf&ftiotis in 1703, //'// the Battle of Eckeren.

1703. r 1 ^ H E Houfe of Commons agreed to all the Demands of <— -V-»J _§_ the Court, with great Unanimity and Difpatch, and voted TheSupplies all the Supplies which were neceffary for carrying on the War.

on the\VaSr ^P°n ^e Duke °f Marlborougn's Return, a new Demand for

an additional Force was made, fince the King of France had

granted. given out Commifiions, for a great Encreafe of his Armies : And

An Aug- thereupon, the States moved the Queen, for ten thoufand Men

™ern^°^ofmore. This was confented to; but with a Condition, which

rT'uired^b however reasonable it might be in itfelf ; yet the Manner in

the Dutch : which it was managed, mewed (fays a late Author) a very ill

Difpofition towards the Dutch, and in the Debate (continues he)

they were treated very indecently. It was infilled on (and

And granted fome thought very juftly) that before the Pay of theie new

with a Con- Troops mould begin, the States fhould prohibit all Trade with

tion. France, and break off all Correfpondence with that Kingdom.

Our Author owns, it was true, that France could/ not have fup-

plied their Armies in Italy, but by the Means of this fecret

Trade, fo it was reafonable to break ic ; but he thought the im-

A late Au- pofmg it on the Dutch, in the Manner in which this was prefled,

thor's Dpi- carried in it too high a Strain of Authority over them. I muft

nionofthis beg leave to diflent from this Author. It was a Favour they

Matter, defired of us ; and, in Return, we infilled on no more, than

what we had a Right to demand, even without this CoEfidera-

ticn ; where then is the Hardfhip ? The Argument this Aathor

makes ufe of in their Favour, viz. 1'hat their Country fukfified

by their Trade, jvill hold as good with Regard to our Nation.

The State, however, refolved to comply with England, in every

Thing ; and tho' (as the fame Author /ays) they did not like the

Manner of demanding this, yet they readily confented to it:

(And, if they are not wrong dt as readily broke it again.)

The Matter was tranfafted, in Parliament, in the following Manner : The fourth of January, the Queen fent the following Meffage to the lioufe of Commons :

ANN R.

TheQjieen's Meffage to the H. of

on this Oc- eafion.

H

E R Majefty having received fever nl Letters from the _ States General of the United Province?, as alfo feveral Memorials from their Ambaffadour?, fetting forth the great Apprehenfions they ly under, from the extraordinary Prepa- rations of France, to attack them early in the Spring, and the Neceffity, as they conceived, of making an Augmenta- tion of the Forces, in England and Holland, as the only i " Means

Duke cf MARLBOROUGH, &c.

Means to prevent the immediate Ruin which threatened their Country, was pleafed, thereupon, to propofe fome Expedient to the States General, which (he hoped might have been of Advantage to the common Intereft, and relieved them, in fome Meafure, from their juft Apprehenfions, without having Recourfe to Parliament. But thefe Expedients, propofed by her Majefty, to the States General, not' having produced the Effect fhe hoped for, and the States having again renewed their Applications to her Majefty, with more Earneftnefs than - before, to affift them, in this Time of their Danger, with an Augmentation of her Forces, as the only Means to difap- pbint the EfFeft of thofe great and early Preparations, which the French are making againft them : Her Majefty has com- manded the feveral Letters and Representations which have pafled between her, and the States General, upon this Sub- jeft, to be herewith tranfmitted to you, that you may die better judge of the Danger which threatens them. " Her Majefty conceives this Matter to be of fuch great Con- fequence, as indifpenfably obliges her to acquaint you with theprefent State of it, that fhe may have your Advice upon it; not doubting but you will take fuch Meafures, upon this Oc- cafion, as may be moft for the Honour and Advantage of her Majefty, the Safety of her Kingdoms, and the neceflkry Support of her Allies.'*

The Commons having taken her Majefty's Meflage into Con- fideration, the next Day, agreed, that 10,000 Foreigners be hired, for an Augmentation of the Forces, to aft in Conjunction with the Allies ; but upon Condition, that an immediate Stop be put to all Commerce and Correfpondence with France and Spain, which they refolved to lay before the Queen, in the fol- lowing Addrefs.

Moft gracious Sovereign,

WE your Majefty's moft dutiful and loyal Subjefts, The Ad- the Commons, in Parliament aflembled, do beg Leave drefs of the to return your Majefty our humble Thanks, for your Maje- commons fly's moft gracious Cor.defcenfion, in communicating to your jn Anfwer Commons the feveral Memorials, Tranfadlions, and Letters, to it. c that have patted between your Majefty and the States Gene- ' ral, for the Augmentation of your Majefty's Forces, which ' are to aft in Conjunction with the Forces of the States Gene- ' ral ; by all which your Commons are entirely convinced of ' your Majefty's great Tendernefs of your Subjeds, in notlay- ' ing a greater Burden upon them, than the Neceffity of Affairs . ' does abfolutely require.

«< And

144 ™* Life of J Op N,

" And your Commons do humbly affure your Majefty, that in cafe your Majefty fhouid think it neceffary to enter into any farther Negotiation, for encreafmg the Forces, which '* are to aft in Conjunction with the Forces of the States Gene- " ral (for whofe Intereft and Prefervation, we fhall always have " the greareft Regard} your Commons will enable your Majefty " to make good the fame.

" And your Commons do farther crave leave, humbly to be- " feech your Majefty, that you will pleafe to infift upon it, with " the States General, that there be an immediate Stop of all *' Pcfts, and of all Letters. Bills, and otherCorrefpondence.Trade, " and Commerce with France and Spain, which your Com- " mons are humbly of Opinion is fo abfolutely neceffary for *' carrying on the juft and neceffary War wherein your Ma- " jeity is engag'd, to the interrupting the Trade of your Ene- " mies, and reducing them to the greateft Streights, that your " Commons do humbly defire, that England may not be " charged with the Pay of fuch additional Troops, but from " the Day, when fuch Stop fhall be made by the States Geeeial.

This Addrefs having been prefented to the Queen by the whole Houfe, the eighth of January, her Majefty was pleated to anfwer :

Gentlemen,

The Queen's " TT is with great Satisfaction, that I receive this Addrefs, Aniwer. «« J| which enables me to join with the States General, in aug- " menting our Forces, according to their Defire.

" I make no Doubt, but the Condition you mention will " be approved, lince it is abfolutely necefiary for the Good of " the whole Alliance ; and I fhall, this Night, fend Directions " to my Minifters in Holland, to concur with the States in " providing the Troops accordingly.

The Lords The fame Papers having been laid, by her Majefty's Com-

Addrels on mands, before the Houfe of Lords, the thirteenth, their Lord-

thefame (hips prefented an Addrefs to the Queen, in which they returned

her Majefty Thanks for communicating the feveral Letters and

Memorials of the States General to that Houfe ; adding,

That having taken Notice how much Time had been already

' fpent in this Negotiation, and with what repeated and preffing

Forces,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Forces, as might difappoint the great and early Preparations of France, and effectually fupport and defend the common Caufe ; and they, farther, humbly acquainted her iVLjefty, that it was the Opinion of that Houfe, that her Majefty's furniihing her Quota of the Augmentation of Troops in the Low- Countries, would be ineffectual, unlefs all Correfpond- ence with France and Spain, by Letters, or otherwife, be totally prohibited by the States General, and all other her IVLjefty's Allies."

Her Majefty's Anfwer to this Addrefs was :

r< '"T^HAT no Time mould be loft, in relation to the Aug- TheQueoi's " mentation of Troops, and the Prohibition of the Com- Anfwer-

*' merce by Letters, recommended in this Addrefs.

Notwithftanding all the above Author has faid to make this Reafpns tor Proceeding appear too harm and ill-natured, with regard to the jjj^p^* Dutch, the Parliament had certainly very cogent and justifiable °

Reafons for it. Among other Motives which induced that illuftri- ous Body to iniift fo itrenuoufly on this Prohibition, the Chief may probably have been, the great Difficulty the Court of France labour'd under, at this Time, to make Remittances of Mony, to maintain their Army in Italy, and to fend Subsidies to the Elector of Bavaria in Germany j which the Parliament of England (ind indeed every Body elfe) juftly prefumed, the French could not do, without the Affiftance of Englifh and Dutch Merchants. This Opinion was, likewife, confirmed, by a late Difcovery made by the Earl of Nottingham, one of her Majefty's principal Secretaries of State, of an unlawful Inter- courfe of Bills of Exchange, between fome French Bankers at Paris, and fome Citizens of London.

This illicit and clandeftine Correfpondence and Trade, car- ried on openly by the Dutch, with the common Enemy, (and which, notwithftanding this Notice taken of, was, as it has been faid, continued during the whole War, even to the farnifh- ing them with Arms and Ammunition,) was of fo great an Ad- vantage to them, that fome have ventur'd to fay, they were Gainers by the War ; while we, out of an Excefs of Generofity (but too common with us) were plunging ourfelves into Debts and Difficulties to fupport the common Caufe, and fcornM to take Advantage of thefe underhand Practices to the Detriment of it, tho' to our own Impoverifhment, and notwithftanding we had the fame Right to it as they : For tho' there were, perhaps, fome few here, who underhand were concern'd in thefe unlawful Practices ; yet all Commerce with France was ftrictly forbid by the Government, and all Meafures taken to prevent it.

VOL. I. L -But

the Life of J O H N,

But to return to the Duke of Maryborough ; while his Grace was bufied, with his ufual Application, in making the neceffary Preparations for opening the Campaign, he had a very pungent 15 domeftick Affliction to encounter with, I mean the Lofs of his ford*"1 only Son, the Marquis of Blandford, a promifing Youth, of . eighteen Years of Age, graceful in Perfon, affable in Temper, a*id of excellent natural Parts. He died, the twentieth of Fe- bruary, of the famll Pox, at Cambridge, to the inexpreflible Grief of his Illuftrious Parents and Relations, and indeed the Lofs of the whole Nation ; fmce, in him, we had Reafon to hope we might fee thofe moral, political and military Virtues continued, which mone in fo eminent a Degree, in his great Fa- ther. This Misfortune happening juft as his Grace was upon hic. Departure for Holland, put a Stop, as we may reafonably ima- gine, to his croffmg the Sea?, for fome Days, longer than he in- tended. However, nothing was negkcled, in the mean Time, on the other Side.

Rhineburg, which had been block'd up by Count Lottum taken. (General of the Pruflian Troopc) furrendered by Capitulation, - the ninth of February ; after which that Count blcck'd up Guelders.

The Duke ^"ne Duke of Marlborough anived at the Hague, the feven- cfMarlbo- teenth of March, N. S. and was met there by Monf. d'Auver- rough ar- querque, the Generals Dopf and Cohcrn, Lord Paget, and fe- riv" '" veral foreign Miniiters ; and, the next Day, all the General Holland. officers dined with him. The twenty -feventh, he fet out from thence, in order to review the Englifli Forces, in their refpe&ive Garrifons, and order'd the Troops near Liege, to be immediate- ly in a Readinefs to take the Field, and alfo difpatchti General Cohorn, to make all Preparations for opening the Campaign, with a Siege. The fecond of April, his Grace returned to the Hague, and having held forne Conferences with the Deputies of the States, he went from thence again, the ninth, toNimeguen, where he met General Cohorn, and the i ith, fet out for Venlo. The next Day he pafs'd thro1 Ruremond, Stevenfwaert and Maefeyck to Maeftricht ; and was received, in every Place, with the Refpeft due to his Rank, the Garrifons being drawn out, and Cannons difcharged. The I4th, he vifited Liege, and had a Conference with Count Sinzendorf, the Governour ; and from thence returned again to Maeilricht, having given the ne- ceffary Orders every where.

Upon his Grace's Arrival, the Dutch immediately brought

their Armies into the Field, and, by his prudent Management,

Opens the the Confederates were enabled to open the Campaign early, with

Campaign. tjie Siege of Bonn, a very ahtient, ftrong City, in the Circle of

the Lower-Rhine, and Archbilhoprick of Cologn, formerly an

Imperial City, butttow fubjeft to the Elector of Colcgn, and

ufually

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, £sV.

ufually the Refidence of that Prince, who had put that, with the reft of his Dominions, into the Hands of the French, at the Beginning of the War. It is fituate on the River Rhine, 14 JMiles almoft South of Cologn, 24 South-Eaft of Juliers, 55 al- moft North-Bail of Triers, and 60 Novtn-Weft of Mentz. It was antiently a Roman Colony, call'd Colonia Julia Bonna.

Tho' the Duke had been detain'd, as I have obferv'd, longer His great in England, than he expefled ; yet he had not been backward, Care to have even daring that Time, to prefs thofe foreign Princes, who had 5he Tl°°Ps Troops in our Pay, to take Care they might fpeedily be in a Qrd|° Condition to do Service ; of which, among many, I fliall give only one Inftance :

Monf. d' Alonne, in a Letter to Monf. * * * at Zell, of the Extraft of four and twentieth of March, wrote him, that the Duke of a Letter Marlborough had given him Orders to .complain, of the bad JSmneto Condition of the Troops of Zell, in Englilh Pay, infomuch Monf.*** that they were not able to affift at the Siege of Bonn ; which was at Zell. a great Uneafinefs to his Grace ; bec^uie he feared, he ihould be obliged to abandon the Siege, on that Account, at a Time when fuch a Diveriion was highly neceffiiry.

This early Care of the Duke of Marlborough's, to put the The Ene- Confederate Army in a Condition to aft ofFenfively, broke all .ml'sfPt?* the Projects laid by the Enemy, who defigned to have afted, tjjte£™ on their Side, ofFenfively, and to have open'd the Campaign, the 29th of April, with the Siege of Liege, for which they had aflually provided 15,000 Pioneers, 3,000 Waggons, and other NecefTaries j not dreaming that the Confederates would be fo early ready to oppofe them. According to the Marquis de Force of, Quincy's Account, and Order of Battle, the French Army then confirmed of 54 Battalions, and 103 Squadrons, befides a flying Camp of 6 Battalions and 1 1 Squadrons, under Prince Tferclaes de Tilly, 20 Battalions under the Command of the Marquis de Uedmar, and another flying Camp under the Count de la Motte, of which he does not mention the Number. The fame Author, Hkewife obferves, that they had 40 Battalions in Garrifon, in Gueklerland and Flanders ; and that the two Crowns had then, in Flanders, 1 80 Battalions of Foot, 40 of which were Spa- niards.

All neceflary Preparations, for the expeditious carrying on of Bonn in- the Siege of Bonn, being made, the Duke ordered that Place to vefted j be invelted, the four and twentieth of April, by thePruffian and Lunenburg Cavalry, under Lieutenant-General Bulau. The next Day, his Grace went to Cologn, whilft the Infantry, com- manded by Lieutenant'General Fagel, was drawing up to the Camp. The fix and twentieth, Lieutenant-General Cohorn arrived, by Water, with the Veflels- and Pontons, and, there- upon, a Bridge was immediately laid over the Rhine, at Rhinef- L z JcrrF,

Difpofition «f the Attacks.

3%e Life of J O H N,

dorff, from which Place the Camp of the Befiegers extended as far as Kruitfberg.

After fome Confutations among the Generals, upon the Duke's Return from Cologn, the Town was ordered to be at- tack'd in three Places. The Duke himfelf gave the Direction for making out the Quarters for the feveral Troops ; and form'd a Plan for the three Attacks. The firft was againft the Fort, on the other Side of the Rhine, and the other two againft the City, and the Out-works that fecured it. The firft of thefe At- tacks was commanded by Lieutenant- General Cohorn, having under him the Major-Generals Freimeim, and Erbervelt, with Monf. La Rocque for chief Engineer ; the fecond, by the He- reditary Prince of Hefle-Caflel, having under him, the Prince of Anhalt-Zerbft, and Monf. Tettau, with Monf. Hazard, as chief Engineer } and, the third, by Lieutenant- General Fagel, with whom were joined the Major-Generals Dedem, and St. Paul, with Colonel Reinchard, for chief Engineer. The Troops appointed for the Service of this Siege confifted, in all, of forty Battalions of Foot, and fixty Squadrons of Horfe and Dra- goons, with an Artillery of upwards of 100 large Cannon, and 36 Mortars. Thefe Troops took their Pofts accordingly, the twenty-feventh ; and, the third of May, the Trenches were opened, and carried on with great Succefs, and very inconfider- able Lofs, by the great Care of the Generals and Engineers.

The Preparations for this Siege were fo very extraordinary, that I mail for once, give the Reader the Bill of Fare, that he may form an Idea, by the Provifion made for this fmall Banquet, how liberal our General was of them in larger Entertainments, and how afliduous he was in having Neceffaries brought together, from all Parts, for that Purpofe.

The City of Cologn fent their Proportion of Cannon and Fare for the Mortars, with forty Gunners, four Fire-workers, one Lieutenant, Garrifon of one Mailer of the Artillery, feveral Carpenters, with Powder Bom. and Ball for 1000 Difcharges. The Artillery delivered by the

Eleftor Palatine, confifted of 3 Demi-Culverins, fix Mortars, fix Quarter-Pieces, 200 Hand-Mortars, with Ammunition for 30 Difcharges a Day, for the great Guns, 20 for the great Mor- tars, and 25 for the little ones ; 27,000 Balls of 24 Pounds each, 5400 Twelve-Pounders, 36 Cartouches of 1 2 Pounds each, 600 Bombs of 100 Pounds each, 1 800 of 60 Pounds each, 120 of 40 Pounds each, 6000 Grenadoes for Hand-mortars, 150 Grenadoes of 100 Pounds each, 450 of 60 Pounds each, and 300 of 40 Pounds each; 600 Pounds of Tow, 1 7,700 Pounds of Muflcet-Powder, 1 23,008 Pounds of Powder for Great Guns, 600 Pounds of Priming-powder, two Tuns of ordinary Powder, 1 500 Pounds of Match, three Tuns of Pitch, twenty of Talk, half a Tun of Tar, 80 Pounds of Lime, 30 Ells of Canvas,

109

The

Trenches

open'd.

A Bill of

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c'. 149

I oo Pounds of Hemp, three Lime-Kettles, ten Lanthorns, eight 1703. large Hair Coverlets, 20 Sheeps-flcins, 600 Truffes of Straw, ^/V"VJ Engines for raifing great Weights, <j Pitch-Barrels, broken Copper for Shot, 70 Earth -Bafkets of feven Foot high, and three and a half broad, 100 (null ones, 5000 Fafcines, 7500 ,

Head-blocks, 15 Foot long, and 15,000 half that length, 130 Battery-nails, i oo Bills, with great Quantities of other Mate- rials neceffary for a Siege, and Officers proportionable to attend them. The Landrave of Hefle-Caflel contributed two Demi- Culverins, two fixteen Pounders, two 75 Pound Mortars, four 100 Pound Mortars, two Idler Guns, with Ammunition for 500 Charges each, and Officers in Proportion. A few Dai s after came from Coblentz, fix Demi-Culverins, four Quarter- Pieces, i oo Carriages, four Mortars, fix leffer Guns, 7000 Can- non Balls, for 24 and 12 Pounders, 200 Bombs, from 75 to 30 Pounds each, 800 great Grenadoes,. 1200 lefler, 10,000 Hand Grenadoes, 2000 Pounds of Powder, with a great Number of Spades, great Bills, and Fafcines of ten Foot each : And all this may be properly called a Bill of Extraordinaries j the Ordinary of the Army was at the Enemy's Service befides : Of which I fhall only mention the Dutch Artillery, confifting of 90 Demi- Culverins, 50 Quarter-Pieces, 50 Brafs Guns, a good Number of fmall Guns, a great Number of 12 Pounders, and 500 fmall Mortars for throwing Grenadoes,

When the Governour faw the terrible Preparations, which were making againft him, by the Allies, who had a prodigious Train of Artillery (F. Daniel reckons, befides Cannon, ninety Mortars, and 500 other fmaller Pieces of a new Invention) he fent a Letter to the Duke of Marlborough, importing :

" That an Agreement had been made, the lait Year, be- The GO. tween the Electors Palatine and of Cologn, that the Cities of vcmour's Dufleldorp and Bonn mould not be bombarded, in order to Letter t° preferve the Churches, Palaces, and other publick Buildings ; the Dukc* the Performance of which he was ordered to requeft from his Grace : And to declare withal], unlefs the fame were ob- ferved, the Eleftor of Bavaria would deftroy the City of Nieuburg, belonging to the Eleftor Palatine. The Duke, after having communicated this Letter to the Eleftor Palatine, and the Generals, returned this Anfwer :

*' That it was not his Cuftom or Inclination to deftroy Cities " or publick Buildings, out of prepenfe Malice or Defign, pro- " vided the Enemy's Conduct did not put him upon fuch a Ne- •' ceffity.

The very Day the Trenches were opened, the Batteries were The s; begun to be raifed, with great Alacrity, and, being rimmed by carried on the eighth, the Befiegers begun to fire with fuch good Succefs, fuccei&fully. againft both the Town and Fort, that, the fame Day, the Chain L'3 which

1 50 Me Life of JOHN,

1703. which held the fi/ing Bridge, by Means of which the Fort held Cii -v "•«...< a Communication with the Town, was broken by a Cannon- Shot, and the Bridge, which was ttaved to Pieces, carried away with the Stream, notwithftanding the Enemy's utmoft Endeavours to fave it, with the Lofs of feveral Men killed and wounded. The fame Evening, a very unlucky Accident happened, in \ Major-General Dedem's Attack, where i 50 Bombs, and as

many Grenadoes took Fire, and blew up, together with a Lieu- tenant and five Workmen. French Hiitorians aggrandize this Misfortune, and pretend there were 300 Bombs, 3 or 4000 Gre- nadoes, and a great Number of People, as well of thofe who were at Work there, as others at a greater Diftance.

The Fort The next Day, the Battery which play'd upon the Fort having taken, made a large Breach, and the Befiegers being informed that the Garrifon was not numerous, the General refolved to fiorm it in the Evening ; this was executed by 400 Grenadiers, fupported by four Battalions. During the Attack, the Enemy fet Fire to all the Barracks, and other Buildings, that they might retire in- to the City, in Boats, by Favour of the Smoak : But molt of them were fb clofely pnrfued into the Ravelin, that they had not Time to effecT. their Defign. Some Piifoners, who were taken on this Occafion, reported, that there were 50 Men yet remain- ing in a Redoubt within the Fort ; upon which the Ramparts .were immediately fcal'd, and the Redoubt taken, Sword in Hand, after a fhort Refinance : The greater Part of the Men who defended it were put to the Sword, and feveral were taken Prifoners, endeavouring to efcape, in a Boat. The Diligence and Valour of the Befiegers having thus prevented the Defign of the Befieged ; the Commander of the Fort, with thirty of his Men, were made Prifoners, and all the reft either killed or drowned. This Succefs was fo unexpected, that the Duke of Marlboroogh and General Obdam fent Expreffes to the States General to acquaint them with it. Being now Matters of the Fort, a great Battery was rai.'ed in it, which, on the twelfth, began to play on the Town, from feveuty Pieces of heavy Cannon, and eighteen Mortars, in order to make two Breaches, that the Place might be ftormed from the Prince of Hefle's and General Dedem's Attacks. The Marquis xk Quincy pretends, that, after the taking the Fort, the Allies rais'd Bat- teries for 80 Pieces of Cannon, 40 Mortars, and 500 Hand- Grenado-Mortars, at the Attack, at the Lower Rhine alone. The Be- The next Day, about Noon, the Befieged, with about icoo

ficgid mak'e Foot, fupported by all their Horfe and Dragoons, made a a Sally i , Sally upon General Dedem's Attack ; the Befiegers, in the Trenches, were, at firft, put into fome Diforder ; but Toon re- Butsre covering themfelves, they repulfed the French, with the Lofs of repuls'd. about ioo Men killed, and as many wounded, betides a Major

and

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

and three Captains taken Prifoners j whereas the Lofs, on the Side of the Allies, did not amount to half the Number. French Accounts pretend to a great Advantage, on their Side, in this Sally ; of which the Marquis de Quincy, in particular, gives die following Account. •' About two, in the Afternoon, the French Ac- " Marquis d'Alegre made a Sally, with 1200 Men Infantry, count there - " and 400 Horfe, at General Dedem's Attack. They at firft.of. " did very considerable Damage to the Works, and killed all " before them ; but the Allies having caus'd a great Number of " Troops to advance, they retired in very good Order, having " loft but 30 Men, a' Captain of the Royal Grenadiers, and an " Aid Major of the Crown : Monf. de Polartron, Colonel of that Regiment, with fome other Officers, being wounded. They nail'd up ten of the Befiegers Cannon, and fix of their Mortars, kill'd fourfcore of their Men, wounded 1 60, and took Colonel Mallburg, and federal other Officers, Prifoners : In ftiort (continues my Author) more than 400 Rods of their Works were deitroy'd. All Things being now in a Readinefs, to aflault the Counter- Ths Coun-] fcarp, and Covered Way, on. the Side of the Prince of Hefie's te'fcarp Attack, the Onfet began about eight o'Clock the fame Night, takv:a* under the Command of Major-General Tettau, and Brigadier Palandt ; and the Prince, being there in Perfon, animated the Soldiers, with fo much Courage and Refolution, that being feconded by the continual Fire, both from the Cannon and Mor- tars of feveral Attacks, they forced their Way forwards, drove the Befieged from their Works, and, in lefs than an Hour's Time, lodged themfelves there. In this warm A&ion, General Tettau was wounded, with about ten other Officers, and 150 Soldiers killed and wounded, together with the Engineer, who commanded in the Works. The French pretend the Allies had 300 Men kill'd, and 200 wounded in this Action.

The Confederate Troops mewed, upon this Occafion, fo much Bravery, and fuch an aftonifhing Tempeft of artificial Fire was pour'd in upon the Befiegers, that rather than fhnd another At- tack, the next Day, they beat a Parly, and, on the fifteenth of May, N. S. furrendered the Place, on honourable Conditions, which were fign'd by the Duke of Marlborough, and the French 7 S'L

/"> TV * r 11 A t " *uiienaer a.

Governour, Monf. d Alegre.

According to Father Daniel's Account, Monf. d'Alegre de- F Daniel's fended the Place, till the Town and all the Defences were de- Account of molifh'd by the dreadful Artillery of the Confederates, and the the Sur- whole Circumference was no more than one continued Breach. render'

A Medal was ftruck, on this Occafion, of which the fqllow- A M^\ ine is a Defcriptioji. ftiuc:c o:i

this Oc-

L4 Qncaflon-

rbe Life of JOHN,

On the Face is reprefented a Buftp of her Majerty, with h«r ufual Title ; and, on the Reverfe, a Plan of the Siege, with the following Infcription continued in the Exergue.

BONA A MALIS EREPTA, SOCIAL1BUS ARMIS, IDIBUS MAI I, 1703.

BONN taken from the Wicked t by the Arms of the ALLIES, Ma 15. 1703.

Daring this Siege, the French Marfluls, Villeroy and Bou- ^ flers, who commanded in Flanders, embracing the Opportum- fluls Vil- tv °f ^e Duke's being employed there, thought to have fur- lerv and prized the Confederates, that lay difperfed about Maeftricht, Bouflers and after having bombarded that Place, to have fallen upon jiuftmed. Liege.

To this End, they advanc'd, the ninth of May, N. S. at Night, unexpectedly, into the Neighbourhood of Tongeren, with an Army of about 40,000 Men. This Town is in the Bifhoprick of Liege, and fubjeft to that Prince. It is fituate on the River Jecker, eight Miles almoft Weft of Maeftricht, and thirteen North-weft of Liege. Monf. de Quincy fays, the two Marfhals had the whole French Army with them, excepting one Man out of every Company, and all the Guards, which they left behind to fecure their Camp. Part of thefe Forces came up, under the Command of Bouflers, on one Side of the , Town, while the Remainder, commanded by Villeroy, came

on the other ; fo that the Confederates, who were marching with a Defign to have ported themfelves in that Place, were for- ced to retreat, with all the Hafte they could, under the Cannon The French of Maeftricht. The Enemy, in the mean Time, fell upon take Ton- Tongeren, where two Battalions of Foot, one of Elft, and the other of Portmore, were quartered : They defended themfelves with extraordinary Bravery, for 28 Hours ; but then were forced to yield at Difcretion. This vigorous Oppofition gave the Con- federates Time and Opportunity, to draw together before Mae- ftricht ; fo that when the Enemy advanced forward, defigning, as it was fuppofed, to have forced the Confederate Cavalry to repafs the Maefe at Nimeguen, and the Foot to retire under the Out-works of Maeftricht, and there to have plied them with their Bombs, they found, to their great Surprize and Difappoint- ment, the Confederate Army, under General d'Auverquerque drawn up, in Order of Battle, advantageoufly ported, and ready to engage, them, though they were much inferiour in Number.

This put the two Marfhals to a Stand, not knowing what Courfe to take, and the Confederates could eafily perceive how undetermined they were in their Refolutions. Firft they appear'd,

about

•

. ,(tIB3 93K-?t)

,tcmB salii

.-CI «ui u tnoonfi^ sd3 lo sjti.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 153

about feven in the Morning, upon the Hill called Duyfburg, 1 703 . with the greateft Part of their Army, in Order of Battle : From "LQJ-^LJ whence they made feveral infignificant Motions, as if they de- fign'd to attack the Right Wing of the Confederates ; which they observing, pofted an Englifh Brigade in the Hedges of Lonaken, to cover their Right Flank, and a Regiment of Dra- goons was planted near the Church of Lonaken, to fupport 1 50 Foot, placed in the Church-yard, to defend the Pafs from the Heath of Beffmere : And, indeed, wherever the Enemy feemed to bend their Strength, the Confederate Generals were careful to double their Oppofition.

About ten, the fame Forenoon, the Enemy made a general Motion of all their Forces, fending down feveral Brigades of Foot, in two Columns, from between Duyfburg-Hill, and the Village of Veltweffen : Upon this, the Confederate Generals concluded, that they were marching dire&ly towards them i but when they came within Reach of the Cannon, they made a Halt, both with their Brigades, and the main Body of their Army, the Brigades ftretching themfelves out, with their Right towards Duylburg, and their Left towards Veltweflen.

In this Pofture, both Armies flood gazing at one another, till three in the Afternoon ; but then, the two Marfhals, finding all their Motions were to no Purpofe, and not daring to attack the Confederates, marched back the fame Way they came, to Ton- geren, leaving the whole Honour of the Day, to General d'Au- verquerque, who, by his Prudence, Experience and Valour, prevented the total Ruin of this Part of the Confederate Army.

Bonn being foon after taken, as I have already related, the The Duke Duke of Marlborough rejoined the Army of the Confederates, Of MarU which now confuted of 1 36 Squadrons, and 66 Battalions (or, borough te- as fome Accounts fay, of but 130 of the former, and 59 of the j^fc*^ j. latter) and march'd them towards Liege, with a Defign not only Army,6" to fecure that Place, but to oblige the Enemy to decamp from Tongeren, where their Army, which was computed to confiit of about 70 Battalions, and 140 Squadrons (tho\ if we will believe their Accounts, they were HO more than 60 Battalions, and little more than i oo Squadrons) feemed to be pofted, in a very advantageous Situation.

The Duke of Marlborough had left the Army before Bonn, Circumftaa- the i yth of May, N. S. under the Command of Monf. d'Ob- ces of his dam, who remained there, to fee the Articles of the Capitula- March< tion of that Place put in Execution. His Grace came, that Night to Juliers, where he was received by the whole Garrifon, under their Arms, and faluted with a triple Difcharge of the Cannon round the Place. He was condufted to the Governour's Houfe, where he lay ; and his Grace, was, in like Manner, fa^uted again, by a Discharge of the Cannon, at his Departure

i54 5& Life of JOH N,

1703. from thence, the next Morning, That Afternoon, his Grace arrived, at Maeftricht, where Monf. d'Auverquerque, and the other General Officers, attended his coming, He continued there that Night, and came, the next Day, to the Camp, which extended from Lonaken, where the Right Wing was pofted, into the Neighbourhood of Maeftricht, where the Left was, the Head-Quarters being at the Cloifter of Hocht. Upon his Grace's coming out of Maeftricht, the i Qth, in the Morning, the Cannon was difcharged round the Town, and, in the Even- ing the Army, with the Artillery, was drawn out, and a triple Difcharge was made of all the Cannon and fmall Shot, on ac- count of the Surrender of Bonn. The 21 ft and 226. his Grace review'd all the Horfe and Foot, as well Englifh, as Foreigners, and found them all in very good Condition. ]Purfues To purfue the Ends, I have mention'd above, the Duke

ArnfrenCh marc^e^' tne ^ve ar"d twentieth, from Hocht near Maeftricht, and, having pafled the River Jecker, advanced to Hautin, where the Enemy defigned to have foraged that Morning ; but, upon Notice of the Duke's Approach, they removed to a greater Di- ftance, and continued upon their Arms that Night. However, the next Day, when the Confederates advanced to Nieudorp, they retreated, with great Precipitation, to Bockworn, not c Baring to hazard a B.ittle ; and the Duke of Berwick, after hav-

Tongeren 'mS blown up the Walls and Tower of Tongeren, where he corn- again, manded, quitted that Place likewife.

The Duke followed them, and advanced within half a League

Retire be- of their Camp ; but the Jecker parted the two Armies, and the

fore the French had fecured all the Bridges and Paffes of that River ;

Confederate notwitnftanding which, they were far from thinking themfelves

rmy> fecure, till they got to Hannuye. Upon the Duke's advancing

to Thys and Lamvn, they did, indeed, draw up in Order of

And flicker Battle, and fent away their Bagage, as if they were refolved to

s. try their Fortune in a Battle ; but their .Courage again failed

Lines? ' T them, and they thought it their fafeit Courfe, to retire within

their Lines.

In this Manner was fpent the bfft Part of the Month of fane, the Duke endeavouring" to draw the Enemy to a Battle, and they as c?.refully avoiding it ; as, therefore, nothing very remarkable happened during that Time, I omit giving an Ac- court of the feveral Motions of both Armies, from Day to Day. The Duke The j)uke of Marlborough, finding, at length, it was to force their no F>urP°''e to tn'nk of drawing the French to a Battle, on intrench- equal 1 erms, took the Refolution to attack them in their In - merits j trenchments. The Execution of this Defign was entrufted to General Cohorn, and Baron Spar, who performed it fuccefs- fully, in the Country of Waes: While General Obdam (with another part of the Army) ilaid on this Side the Scheld, in

orde^1

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 155

order to make an Attempt on the Lines before Antwerp. The 703. French, at that Time, had two flying Camps, one command- jj^-yxj ed by the Marquis de Bedmar, and the other, which hover'd about Bruges, by the Count de la Motte. The Attack was under- taken in two different Places ; that under the Command of Ge- Which is neral Cohorn, was at a Place called Hoeck van Callo, where he effcfted by made himfelf Mailer of a Redoubt called St. Anthony's Hoeck, £f£era and of the Pearl-Fort, with little Refinance, and an inconfider- able Lofs. The particular Circumftances of this Aclion, the Reader will find, in the two following Letters.

A Letter fiom Mon-f. Hop, to — — — . SIR, Lillo, June 27, 1703.

" "TK 7 Efterday Morning, General Cohorn had Advice, by A Letter " JL an Exprefs from B.iron Spar, of his Defign, that Day, from Monf- " to attack the Enemy's Lines, near Steeken ; upon which, -f» t0"" " Orders were immediately given to the Regiments of Torfay " and Polland, to march hither, from the Camp at Stabroeck, " to be tranfported to the Polder of Namen ; which was done, " accordingly, Yeiterday Noon, by the Favour of the Tide and "• Wind; lo that thefe Regiments got thither eaily in the Even- " ing, and marching all Night, arrived this Morning, betimes, " near Hulft, and joined the Body of Troops, commanded by " Brigadier Schratemback. Yefterday Morning, the Regiment " of Dragoons of Schulemburg, and Heuckelom's of Foot, " were decach'd towards Santvliet, to block up the Garrifon of " that Place. On their Approach, the Enemy fired fome Cannon-fhot at them, but without Effect. In the Afternoon, a Detachment of z,-oo Men was drawn out of the Battalions of Salis, Dedem, Birckenfelt, Linitan, Ranck, Tcharner and Starler, who, the lame Evening, were carried over the Scheld, toward Liefkenfchock ; and, in the Night, were followed by the reit of thofe Battalions, Mefrs. Cohorn and Dedem pafs'd over, with thofe Troop? ; and lait Night, the Veffels that lay here for a Guard, went up with the Tide, to incommode the Enemy, in and about Fort Pearl. Early this Morning, the Enemy's Lines, at the Point of Callo, were attacked, and, after a little Refiftance, forced ; on which Occafion, one of the Enemy's Captains was taken. The Redoubt of the Point of St. Anthony was likewife at- tacked. The Enemy feem'd refolv'd, at nrlt, to defend that Redoubt ; but feeing that we were getting ready our Cannon, they furrendered on Discretion. On this good Succefs, Fire was put to fome Houfes, for a Signal (as was before agreed) for the Army commanded by General Qbdam, and the Body

" under

fbe Life of J O H N,

** under Baron Spar. During thefe Motions and Attacks, we* heard great firing of fmall Shot, from about Hulft, and the playing of Hand-Grcnado- Mortars ; whence it is prefum'd, an Attack has, likewife, been made, on that Side, but with what Succefs we are yet to learn. At two, this Morning, the Troops commanded by General Obdam broke up, and march'd towards Eckeren (which is intended for their Head- Quarters) with defign to fhew themfelves, to Day, before the Lines of Antwerp, to alarm the Enemy on that Side, and hinder them from fending any Detachment, over the Bridge of Antwerp, into Flanders."

J. HOP.

A Letter from Mcnf. <3e Coh"rn ti> the States,

The I^neJ

forced by Baron Spar.

A Letter from Man/, de Coborfr, to the States General.

High and Mighty Lords,

HAVING made all the neceffary Difpofitions for at- tacking the Lines, in the Country of Waes, we made our Attack, yellerday Mormng, and I forced the Lines, on this Side, with the Lofs of three or four Men ; but General Spar had a harder Tafk, and loll a great many Men, of which I do not quefiion but he will give your High Mighti- neffes a particular Account. I am at prefent bufy in difpo- fing -afl Things, in order to join the Body commanded by Monf. Spar,\r to take fuch other Meafures as mall be necef- fary, according to the Advices I fhail receive from him. lam, &c.

From the Camp at Callo'e-Hoeck, June aJ, 0-703.

M. B. COHORK.

The other Attack, commanded by Baron Spar, was made near the Village of Steeken. The Baron perceiving, that the Count de la Motte obferved him diligently, feign'd a March to- wards Bruges, in order to deceive him ; but returning, march'd direftly towards the Lines, where a vigorous Opposition was made, by eight Battalions of regular Foot, and 6,coo of the Country-People, who made a ftouter Defenfe than the difciplined Troops, and by their Fire, from the Houfes of that Village, very much gauled the Confederates, after they were Mailers of the Lines : Which obliged Baron Spar to give Orders, that no Quarters fhould be given them. This warm Adlion coft Baron Spar 1 200 Men of his Detachment, killed and wounded, feve- ral of whom were Officers of Note j in particular two Bri- gadier-Generals were wounded, and Monf. de Vafly, Governour of Sas van Ghent, killed. What Number of Slain the Enemy had I do not find, but about eighty of thek common Soldiers

were

iDuke of MARYBOROUGH, t£c. 157

taken Prifoners. This A&ion happened the leveri and 1-03. twentieth of June, e— y—

Baron Spar gave the following Account of this Aftion, " in a Letter to the States General,

From the Camp in the Lines, in the Country of Wats, between

Krickenhage and Steenbrugge^ June 27, 1703. High and mighty Lords,

«' 4 FTER having endeavour'd to deceive Count de la A Letter *« J\^ Motte, I thought, this Morning, to have, at laft, met from Bar *' with an Opportunity to attack the Etiemy'$ Lines, which I fpar to «« did between fix and feven o'Clock. The Attack was very *' hot and (harp, and I cannot fufficiently expreis the Zeal and *' Bravery of the Officers and Soldiers, but this will better ap- *' pear hereafter. J have loft many brave Man ; two Briga- «' dier-Generals are wounded, Colonel Vaffey, Commander of «« the Saz, killed. Colonel Maliburg wounded, two Lieutenant- *' Colonels, two Majors, and about ten Captains, killed and «' wounded, I have receiv'd but a flight Wound ; my Purfe, *' though there was but one Piftole in it, has fav'd my Thigh. «* I have promis'd each Grenadier a Piftole, and half a Piftole *' to each Pioneer, which they have very well deferv'd, and '*' with the Leave of your High Mightineffes, I (hall pay them, *' out of the firft Mony the Inhabitants of the Country of Waes " Hull bring me. I cannot yet exaftly learn how many Men I '« have loft i but I (hall know it to Night. I have to deal with '* Count de la Motte, with fourteen Battalions, and four Regi- ** ments of Horfe and Dragoons ; but I cannot fancy he has a *« Mind to fight me. J expecl this Evening, Brigadier Schra- ** temback, with three Battalions, and BO Doubt but I (hall ** receive Orders from Monf. Cohorn. All that I can do now, " is to maintain myfelf in this Poft, till I have fent back the ** wounded Soldiers, receiv'd the Baggage, and know what *' Monf. Cohorn defigns to do. I recommend to the Favour of ••*' your High Mightineffes all the Officers, and in particular " fuch as have diftinguim'd themfelves, in order to their Pre- " ferment, they deferve it very well. The Troops have be- " haved themfelves even beyond Expectation. The Line we *' attack'd was guarded by feven Battalions, and covered by a " River, inftead of a Ditch, which we were obliged to nil and ** pafs, and attack a Fortification, by a narrow Way. I beg «' your High Mightineffes Pardon, for the Confufion of this •' Letter ; for befides the Bufmefs I have upon my Hands, I ** am obliged to write it upon a Cloak. I congratulate this «« good Succefs of your Arms, and remain, &c.

L.W.SPAR. •

Th«

?be Life of J O H N,

The Reader will obferve, that Baron Spar only mentions feven Battalions that oppofed him, but tikes no Notice of the 6000 Peaiants, and with this the French Relations agree ; but all the Englifh Accounts which have come to my Hands, agree in eight Battalions, and 6000 Peafants.

The Duke The Duke's Defign was, after the forcing of the Lines, to

of Marlboro' make himfelf Mafter of Antwerp, which was garrifon'd by fome

forms a.^f" Spanifh Troops, under the Command of the Marquis de Bed-

fi|rn agam^ ^^ . ^^ ^ ^^ guccefs macje every one, as well at the

Hague, as in the Confederate Army, fo fanguine upon it, that

it was hardly doubted but that important Place would foon fall

into the Hands of the Allies : But as nothing is more precarious,

than the Events of War, they foon found tLemfelves deceiv'd in

their Expectations. The grand Army of the Confederates,

under the Command of his Grace, and of Monf. d'Auverquerque,

was to attack the Lines, on the Side of Louvain and Mechlin ;

Monf. de Cohorn, with his flying Camp, was on the Right of

the Scheld, towards Dutch Flanders, to draw the Attention cf

.the Marquis de Bedmar, on. that Side; while Baron Obdam,

.with another Detachment of the Army, of about 10 or 12,000

(fome Accounts, and particularly the French, fay 15,000) Men,

went to encamp between Eckeren and Capelle, near Antwerp ;

defigning to aft, on that Side, againft the Lines, which were

Wh-ch is guarded by the Spaniards. The two French Generals imagined

fruftratedby there would be no other Means to fruftrate this Projeft, but by

hnc^ofthe' attackinS the Body of Troops under Monf. Obdam, and, if pof-

Encmy. * ^ ^e* cutt'ng °^ I"5 Retreat. To conceal this Defign, the

Marmalde.Vilieroy made a Motion, with the Army of the two

Crowns, and advanced towards Diefte, upon the Intelligence he

had of the Duke's marching towards Antwerp.

Refclntions His Grace was no fooner advib'd of this, than he held a of a Council Council of War, which, was unanimoufly of Opinion, that the of War. Confederate Camp at Eckeren, confining only of thirteen Bat- tallion?, and fix and twenty Squadrons, which were hardly co- vered on the Right, and it being eafy for the Enemy, with a fuperiour Force, not only to cut oft" their Communication with Bergen-op-Zoom and Breda, but, likewife, that with Lillo, the bell Thing they could do, would be to fend (as they did the H°ti°ns very fame Night) their heavy Baggage to Bergen-op-Zoom, pr£«ding and upon the firit Intelligence they ihould have of the Motion Eckerni of the Enemy, to change the Situation of their Camp, and re- tire nearer towards Lillo : Which was accordingly done, upon Advice, that the Enemy were come out of their Lines, the thir- tieth of June, with, a confiderable Body of Troops, and it was not long before the Vanguard of their Left Wing perceiv'd them. This Body of Trocps, as it appeared afterwards, con- fitted of 33 BattaJion?, 32 Squadrons, and 47 Companies of

Grena-

Duke of MARLBORoucy, "&c. 159

Grenadiers, under the Command of the Marquis de Bedmar, 1703. who was afterwards joined, and affifted by Monf. de Bouflers, and Prince Tferclaes, with 30 Squadrons, and 30 Companies of Grenadiers, from the Marfhal de Villeroy's grand Camp. Thefe Motions brought on the famous Battle of Eckeren, of which I foa.ll give a particular Account in the enfuing Chapter.

C II A P. IV.

fbe Battle of Eckeren, with other ^ranfattions^ to the Condufion of the Tear, 1703.

^ • ^ H E confiderable Advantages, a Relation whereof I have The Battl«

J^ given the Reader in the foregoing Chapter, caus'd an univerfal Joy at the Hague, which was, however, damped, for a fhort Time, by the Arrival of an Exprefs from General Ob- dam, giving the States an Account, " That the French, near Antwerp, having received a confiderable Reinforcement, from their main Army, came out of their Line?, the thirtieth of June, N. S. and furrounded the Body of the Confederate Forces, under his Command, and had entirely routed them } and that he -had efcaped to Breda, with only thirty Horfes, and could give no farther Account of thofe Troops. The Cafe, in fhort, was this : The Motions of the Dutch Army, after the forcing of the Enemy's Intrenchments, made it be believed, that there was a Defign on Antwerp. General Cohorn was making Advances in the Dutch Flanders, and Gene- ral Obdam commanded a fmall Army on the other Side of the Scheld, while the Duke of Marlborough lay with the Body of the Army, near the Lines in Brabant. Marlhal Bouflers was detach'd from Marfhal Villeroy's Army, with a Body, double in Number to Obdam's, to fall on him j and he marched fo quick, that the Dutch were furprizedat Eckeren, a Village a- bout four Miles North of Antwerp, 23 Miles South-South- Weft of Breda, and 16 South-South-Ealt of Bergen-op-Zoom, where they were put into great Diforder, and Obdam, appre- hending all was Ifft, fled, with a fmall Body of his Men, to Breda ; but the Dutch rallied, and maintained their Ground with fuch Firmneft, that the French retir'd, very much to .their Dimonour ; fince, tho' they were much fuperiour in Num- ber, yet. they let the Dutch recover, out of their firft Confu- fion, and keep their Ground, tho' forfaken by their General. Upon the Arrival of this Exprefs from Obdam, all the Hague the utmoil Cqnfternation. The States immediately af- i fembled,

i6o

1 703.

General Schlangen- burg's Ac- rount of the Battle of Eckeren.

ne Life of ] O H N,

fembled, and after they had fat in Confutation, till One in the Morning, difpatched away Monf. Gueldermalfen, and two Deputies more, with Mony and Initruftions, to prevent, as much as might be, the ill Confequences of this fuppofed Dif* after. Bat thefe Deputies, in their Way towards the Frontiers^ met with a MefTenger difpatch'd by Monf. Hop, Treafurer* General to the States, and their Deputy in that Army, with a Letter to the States, which they opened, and, finding in it a quite different Account, returned to the Hague.

This Aftion being. a very remarkable as well as brave one, and redounding much to the Honour of the Allies, I fhall give my Readers the molt particular Account of it I have feent which is in a Letter from General Schlangenburg to the States, the Day after the Battle, as follows :

High and Mighty Lords,

" AFTER that, by Order of your Highneftes, the Army " </\ commanded by General Obdam was lefTened to 1 3 Bat- talions, and 26 Squadrons, and it was refolved, that this fmall Army fhould march from Stabroeck towards Eckeren, Count Tilly and I reprefented the bad Conftitution of that Camp, with fo fmall a Number of Troops, within three Quarters of a League of the Enemy, who, according to Ge- neral Cohorn's Report, could affemble fifty Battalions, from, Lier to Oilend, and be re-inforced from their great Army ; whereas we could expect no Affiflance in Time, nay, not from General Cohorn. Moreover, I and Count Tilly farther remon- ftrated, that the Enemy, being fuperiour in Number, might al- ways cut off our Retreat ; and we had underftood, by feveral Ways, that the Enemy were ftronger in their Lines, than we were in our Army, and that our great Army had pafled the Jecker, and that of the Enemy advanced as far as Tirlemont ; and befides, that we had Advice, of the Enemy's expecting more Troops in their Lines j but we could obtain nothing by our Re- monftrance, excepting a Refolution to fend our heavy Baggage to Bergen-op-Zoom. This was done, at the fame Time, when M. de Bouflers arrived in the French Lines, with a confider- able Body of Horfe and Dragoons, and, as Prifoners fay, with 7* Companies of Grenadiers. Upon this, without Lofs of Time, the Enemy fent all their Troops out of their Lines, with the Marquis of Bedmar, Prince Tferclaes, M. deVil- leroy's Son, and many other General Officers, and having march'd with incredible Diligence, they pofted an Ambufcade of their Dragoons before our Left, and advanced, with the Main of their Army, to Capelle, behind our Camp, before <c we had the lead Advice of their Defign or March. Nor had « we been informed then, before we had been eneompafs'd, but

that

"Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. *« that I, and Count Tilly, and fome of our Major-Generafs, " making the Tour of our Camp, met their Ambuicade of " Dragoons, about one o'Clock, near our grand Horfe-Guard. f( Having discovered this Ambufcade, we judged the Enemy " defigned to attack us, and immediately put our Troops in *' Arms, and acquainted General Obdam, with what we had •' done. One of ocr Guards, on the Steeple of the Church of " Eckeren, acquainted us, at the fame Time, that the Enemy " came with a great Body of Troops, towards Capelle, and *f advanced continually ; upon which, General Obdam refolved " to retire under Lillo, and ordered two Squadrons of Dragoons •* to poffefs themfelves of the Foil of Houwen, to cover the '* March of our Army.

" Whilft General Obdam was bufy'd in ordering their March, " we underftood, that the Enemy was advanced to Houwen^ *' and had repuls'd the two Squadrons of Dragoons, whereby *' the Road to Lillo was ftopp'd. Brigadier Schulemberg was " detach'd, at firft, to poft hJmfelf at Muifbroeck, and Gehug, " below Houwen, to cover our Retreat ; but when he came " there, he found that Poft very well guarded, by French Dra- " goons and Grenadiers ; whereupon he began to charge them ; " but, they being much fuperiour in Number, he judged a Re- *' treat neceflary, and tried to feize the Poft of Houteren, but " he found the Enemy alfo poffefled of that. This obliged him, " to draw up at Watering, betwixt Houceren and Muifbroeck, " and it was refplved to attack the French there, and to make " them retire, if poflible ; but they were fo advantageoufly " pofted, that it was impracticable. On the other hand, the " Enemy advanced upon us, made a vigorous Charge on the *' Troops of Munfter, and began a fharp Battle wkh the Foot, " about three o'Clock.

" Perceiving the Enemy to be much fuperiour in Number, ft we were obliged to change onr Defign, and to endure a terri- " ble Fire of their Mufkets. General Obdam, and Count *' Tilly, who were upon the Road, with the Horfe, upon the " Dike that goes to Willemerdonck, tried to continue their *' March oppofite to Houteren, along the Dikes of the Scheld, " to Lillo, and when they arrived, found the Enemy pofFefled " of Houteren, but they were afterwards chafed from thence *-' by our Troops. Mean while, the Foot continued the Fighr, " betwixt Houwen and Eckeren, with a terrible Fire, on both •*' Sides, till eight at Night, efpecially about, and upon the " Dike, betwixt Fxkeren and Willemerdonck, where Lieu- *' tenant-General Fagel, and Major-Generals Friefheim, and •" Erberfeld, gave fuch Proof of their Condud and Valour', •** as cannot be enough admired. Lieutenant-General Fagel be- >' ing wounded, ip the Head and Foot, we not being able tp

VOL, I. M " fuftain

i ne Life of JO H N,

1703. " fuftain his Regiment, .and the Enemy, perceiving we wanted , — y- _j f> Foot, took the Opportunity to force our Troops at Houteren ' ' to retire, and pofted themfelves there, and at forne Sluices " betwixt tliat Village and Fort La Croix, and, by that Means, we were encompafs'd on all oides, haying the Enemy's Lines, and Antwerp, on our Rear, and Fort Philippine, and the Scheld, on our Left, which obliged me fend to General Obdam, and Count Tiliy, for their Advice, how to get out of that Labyrinth. Word was brought me, that General Obdam had not been feen for fome Time, and that Count Tilly faid, he believed him either to be killed or taken. " Upon this, we refolved to try all Courfes, with the utmoft " Vigour. Count Tilly detached fome Cavalry, under General " Hompeich, to fuftain the Foot, who maintained a bloody " Fight, for a long Time, upon the Dike : The French alib " fent Horfe to fuilain their Foot, on this Occafion. General " Hompefch led on his Horfe, with fo much Conduct and " Courage, that he broke feveral French Squadrons, took fome «' of their Standards and Drums, routed feveral Battalions of " their Foot, and drove the Enemy back, a Quarter of a •* League.

" Brigadier Wyke, and the other Brigadiers and 'JColonels, *•' having fpent all their Powder and Lead, ordered their Men to '* put their Bayonets in their Mufkets, and purfue the Enemy, " and the Batile being fharp and bloody, the Dike was covered «' with the Slain and Wounded.

** I had then taken Poft on the Key of a Canal that joined " the Dike, where I placed two Battalions, and the Cavalry bc- " hind them, to maintain that Poft to the laft Extremity, if our " firlt Troops happened to be broke, and for the Security of the " reft of the Regiments, that we expected in the Night j but ' ' the Enemy were fo difordered, that they had no Mind to " renew the Fight,' in that Poft. They endeavoured, during " the Heat of the Charge above mentioned, to fall upon our " Rear, having, for that End, charged u?, with four Batta- " lions from Antwerp, and Fort La Croix, along the Village, *' and another Dike of Willemerdonck, but found that Poft " well guarded, and their Men were forced to retire, by the " dreadful Fire of our Troops. Night coming on, and finding " ourfelves ftill encompafs'd on all Sides, we were forced to open a Paffage by Dint of Sword. The French had feized the Poft of Houteren, and feveral others towards the Sluices, which cut off our Communication with Lillo; upon .which Count Tilly, Monf. Hop, and 1, refolved to attack that Poft, with the utmolt Vigour, and, our Infantry wanting Powder and Lead, we ordered them to advance with their Bayonets in their Mufkets.

" Major-

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 163

" Major- General Friefheim and Brigadier Dona were de- 1703. ' tached, with four Battalions, and marching thro' a Ground v-^—^j ' full of Ditches, waded up to their Middle, to attack the 1 Enemy, in th:it Poft, on Flank and Rear. \Ve marched alib ! fome Regiments along the Dike, and Coum Tilly advanced 1 with fome Dragoons, and after firing fome Cannon, on that ; Poft, we attacked the Enemy, in Flank, Front and Rear, '• chafed them from Houteren, took their Cannon, and beat ; them from the Sluices, where they were intrench'd. We pur- ( fued them fighting, as far as Fort La Cioix, which opened ; our Paffage along the Dikes to Lillo, where we arriv'd this Morning, and are now encamp'd.

" I can affure your Highneffes, that all your Troops, Horfe, Foot arid Dragoons, fought with a furprizing Valour, and that Lieutenant-General Fagel, and all the other Generals, Majors and Brigadiers, behaved themfelves, in this dangerous Action, with admirable Conduct, being only forry that we have loll feveral brave Men. There are fome taken Pri- foners, and many wounded, of whom I. cannot fend a Lift till the next. We have taken fome Standards, Drums and Colours, and my Regiment has taken'onjs Piece of Cannon, and a Pair of Colours. I hope your Highnefles will confider the fmall Number of our Troops ; that the Enemy Was twice as ftrong as we ; that their Lofs is much greater than ours ; and that almott all of them retired in Con&fion, and left us the Field of Battle ; whereas we came hither in good Order. It was my Opinion, Count Tilly's, and that of all the Gene- rals who were prefent, that we ought never to have expofed ourfelves, in fuch a difadvuntageous Camp ; however, I hope it will be no fmall Satisfaction to your Highneffes, that this Action will certainly advance the Reputation of your Troops.

" I forgot to tell you, that the Count of Eaft Friefland, and Count Vander Nat, diilinguimed themfelves, on this Occa- fion, and that Colonel Ivois affifted me with his Care, Va- lour and good Advice ; fo that, I doubt not but your High- neffes will confider their Merit. General Fagel is embark'd to D;iy, for the H,:gue, to have his Wounds better look'd after. General Cohorn came to Lillo in the Night, with fome Regiment?, after the Battle ; but fent them back im- mediately, under Mnjor-General Dedem. All our Regi- ments, efpecially the Foot, are extreamty weaken'd, fo that they cannot act in a Body, except your Highnefles change thofe that fuffered moil, with others that are in Garrifons^ This Poft is not fafc, except the Sluices of Fort Frederick- Henry be opened, which cannot be while we are here, be- caufe the Salt-water would occafion Difeafes. Monf. Ob-

Mz " dam ;

<tt>e Life of J O H N,

dam not being prefent, I have taken upon me the General Command, till I receive your Highneffes Order."

Lillo, July 2, i 703.

The States, having perufed this Letter, came to a Resolution, that Thanks ihould be given to Lieutenant General Schlangen- burg, for the great Conduct, Zeal and Courage, which he had {hewn in the Battle of Eckeren i and that he fhould be made ac- quainted how well fatisfied their High-Mightineffe?, likewife, were, with the good Conduct and Valour of the other General Officers, as alfo, with the extraordinary Courage and Bravery, dHcover'd, as well by the Superiour and Subaltern Officers, as by the private Soldiers, for having maintained the Honour of the Troops of that State, and performed their Duty, in the Ser- vice of their Country : And Monf. Schlangenburg mould (on the Part of their High-MightinefTes) fignify to every one of them, in the bell and propereu Form, the Satisfaction they had given, upon that Occafion.

General Schlangenburg, hereupon, drew up his Troops, and gave them Thanks, in Behalf of the States, in the following Terms.

" Their High-Mightinefles, the States-General, and their " MightinefTes, the Nobles of the Council of State, have order- ' ed me in their Names, to thank the Officers, high and low, ' and the Soldiers, for the Bravery, Courage and Zeal, which ' you have demonftrated in the Battle fo particularly known to * you all. I have Orders to tell you, that they will, upon all ' Occafions, teftify their Acknowledgments to you for the « fame."

According to the beft Computation, the Dutch loft, in this Engagement, 7 1 7 Men kill'd, 1003 wounded, 694 Prifoners or cleferted. and 376 Horfes : And the French own'd, they had near 1 600 Men kill'd and wounded, befides 150 Officers: And, notwithitanding Monf. Obdam went off in the midft of the Action, yet the other Dutch Generals maintained the Fight, with fuch admirable Prefence of Mind, that the Enemy were obliged to abandon the Field of Battle, and march off by Night, without Beat of Drum, or Sound of Trumpet, towards their Lines. The Marlhal de Bowlers had, at leafl, 30,000 Men under his Command ; the greau-il Part, of their choien Troops : And a great many General Officers, and young French. Lords, accompanied him : The firii to afiift him, and the latter to acquire Glory, and fignalize themfelves : Whereas the Con- federate Army did not far exceed 10,000 Men.

Notwithstanding all thefe Circum fiances, which the French, in their Account of this Action, printed at Nainur, in a great

Meaiure

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Meafure confirm, and evidently prove the Advantage to have

been on the Side of the Allies ; and tho' they there own their

Lofs was, at leaft, equal to that of the Allies (which was fup- The French

pofed to be about 2,500 Men) yet the French King was made to ca°fe ^°*

believe, that his Troops got the Vi&ory, and caufed Te Deum Deum to

to befung in the Cathedral Church of Paris } and that upon the be fung for

bare and only Circumftance of the Retreat of General Obdam. a v^«ry.

The French Court, to make this A&ion appear with the Luftre of a compleat Viftory, did not fcruple to affirm, that the Allies were fuperiour in Infantry, and advantageoufly poft- ed, and yet were obliged to abandon the Field of Battle, as alfo, their Wounded, Tents, Baggage, fix Pieces of Cannon, 44. Mortars, (Cohorn I fuppofe) their Ammunition, Provifions, 154 Artillery-Waggons, feveral Colours and Drums, with the Lofs (according to fome) of 3000 Men on the Spot, and 500 made Prifoners.

F. Daniel goes yet farther, and not only pofitively avers, that F. Daniel's the Marftial de Boufters, and the Marquis de Bedmar, defeated Account the Army under General Obdam, but makes the Lofs of the ^*Jjj^ofi Allies confiderably greater, than that of the two Crowns. The g"des° ' Confederates (fays he) by their own Confeflion, had 1200 Sol- diers, kill'd or wounded, eight Colonels, as many Lieutenant- Colonels, fix Majors, feven and thirty Captains, and a hundred and fixty-fix Subalterns ; feven hundred were made Prifoners, fix Pieces of Cannon taken, two large Mortars, forty fmall ones, all their Tents, and Abundance of Military Furniture. To all this the Marquis de Quincy adds, 300 Artillery and Baggage- Waggons, with a pretty large Quantity of Plate and Coin : And, to the Prifoners, he adds Madam de Tilly, who came to dine with her Hufband that Day. The French (according to both) had but 500 flain, and 840 wounded. The Allies were purfued in their Retreat, till eleven at Night, and retired in Confufion under the Fort of Lillo.

Thefe Circumllances are not only contradicted by General Schlan- genburg's Account, but by many others : Mouf. RoufTet lays, the Enemy took four Pieces of Cannon at firft, but were oblig'd to abandon them again, with one of their own, fome Ammu- nition, feveral Pair of Kettle-drums, two Standards of the Gens d'Arms, feveral Colours, and a good Number of Prifoners. The Army continued in the Field of Battle all Night, under their Arms, and marched, the next Morning, from Houteren, to Lillo, without any Difturbance or Attempt from the Enemy.

We have the following fhort Account of this Aftion, and of the Vanity of the French, from Mr. Cardonnel, the Duke's Secretary.

M*

'.

1 66 tte Life of J O H N,

'7°3-

VX"Y->O Extra ft of a Letter from Afr. Cardonnel, to Monf. * * at Zell, tranjlated from the Original in French, dated Teilen, July 6, 1703.

fxtraaofa" XT" O U have, without Doubt, received particular Advice Letter from " j[ from the Hag;ie, of the Adtion between our Troops, Mr Sp"re" " and Part of the Army of France, under the Command of donnel "o *' Monf. de Boufiers ; and as the former, the', not near half fo JVJonf. *** " numerous, not only repuls'd them, with a very great Lofs, at Zell. " but remained Matters of the Field of Battle, and took from " them one Piece of Cannon, with feveral Standards, Colours,

• Kettle- Drums, and a great Number of Prifoners ; and never- thelefs thefe Gentlemen, according to Cuftom, have made

* .great Rejoicings, as well in their Towns, as in their Camp, ' as if they had obtained a compleat Vidory ; they probably

have taken it from the Letter, which Monf. d'Obdam wrote to my Lord Duke, as fcon as he arrived at Breda, in which " he informed his Excellency, as he, iikewife, had done the " States, that all was loft, and he alone, faved, as it were, by a " Miracle, which Letter had the Misfortune to fall into the " Hands of the French.

" We are going to have a Conference with the Generals of " the other Army, and the Deputies of the States General, to " concert the Meafures proper to be taken, now the two Armies " are fo near orie another. All I can fay of it is, that my *' Lord Duke will endeavour to perfuade them to attack the " Enemy's Lines, to get to Antwerp, tho' their whole Army is " encamp'd behind them, &c.

General As for General Olxfam, he afterwards wrote a Letter to the

ObtLnTs States, from Lillo, wherein he acknowledges, " That he had

ca- " made too hafty a Judgment upon the imminent Danger the

to.Cn. ,11/1 tit* T. rr • i

• wnoJe Army was in; and that the Jbnemy preiling on, with " an irrefiftable .Superiority, within Piitol-fhot of the Place " where he was prefent, and where no Succour could come up, " to enable hina to keep his Ground moved him toretire : Add- " *ng» '1'hat ^e would have re-a {Turned the Command of the " Army, and that the Generals, and other Officers, made no .*' Scruple to obey his Orders ; but thnt finding himfelf leffened " in general Efteem, and look'd upon as unworthy to command " the Forces of tlie States, he begg'd Leave of their High " and Mighrineffes Deputies, fo go to the Hague, for a few " Days, in order to clear himfelf before their High and Mighti- " nefies, from the Imputations he lay under.

Accordingly, General Obdam arrived at the Hague, the of July, N. S. where, fhortly after, by Command of i the

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, We. 167

the States General, he delivered to them in Writing, his Apo- 1703. logy for himfelf, which was much to the fame Purpofe, wich ^/\^\J the Letter, of which I have given an Extract above.

About a Month after, fevcral Officers of the Dutch Army, which was now commanded by Lieutenant-Genera 1 Schlangen- burg, wrote a Letter to Monf. d'Obdam, importing; " That notwithftanding there run a Report, in Holland, as if, fince the Accident that befel him, of being intercepted from the Army, at the Battle of Eckeren, they had fcrupled to ferve under his Orders, which was far from their Thoughts ; they, therefore, took a Refolution, to affure him, that they mould be extreamly glad to fee him, at the Head of the Army again.

There feems to be a Hardfhip in this Gentleman's Cafe, which The Hard- deferves Compaffion. It is certain, that he ferv'd his Country, fl»pot %« ' above thirty Years, with unblemifh'd Fidelity, Zeal, and Cou- * e" rage; nor does there feem to have been a Want of either in this laft Action, if the Circumftances he relates, in his Justification, be true, and [ never found they were contradicted. If he was really cut off by the F.nemy, .and not able to regain his Troops, what better Courfe could he take, than to keep out of the Ene- my's Power? If he had been (lain or taken, one of which muft have been the Alternative, what Benefit could the Allies have reaped by it ? What a ticklifh Thing is Honour ! How hardly- obtained, and how eafily forfeited in the Eye of the World ! That the Merit of thirty Years painful Service mould be funk in one Error of Judgment, by which no one was a Suffeier! It is the Misfortune of great Men, that their Actions lye open to the Cenfures of the meaneft, and are but too often judged of, not by their true Motive, but by the Succefe of them. But it was not General Obdam's Fate alone, to faffer in his Repu- tation, on Account of this Action. Marfhal Bouflers's Conduct \vasjuftly cenfured, and it was thought this funmed his Difgrace. Nor was the Duke of Marlborough without fome Share .of The Duke Cenfure on this Occafion ; .for it was pretended, that he ough"- v'Marlbo- to have fent a Force to fupport Obdam, or hive made an At- T°"Sh un" tempt on Villeroy's Army, when it was weakened by the De- ^^red. tachment fent with Bouflers. It would be an eafy Matter to clear his Grace's Character from this Afperfion, if it were not eftablifhed above the Neceflity of a Juftiiication. I have, how- ever, on this Account, been the more particular above, in re- lating the Circumftances of this Action/ which, with what fol- lows, fpeak pretty plain ; I mail only add, that Monf, Hop, begins the Letter to the States, in which he gives them an Ac- count of this Action, by. informing them, that the Duke of Marlborough had wrote to him, two Days before, to advife them to be upon their Guard ; and that his Grace had Reafon M 4 to

fbe Life of J O H N,

to e>fpe& from thefe brave Commanders, when forewarnedy aU that Men could do, the very Circumftances of this Aftion them- f«lves fufficiently evince. Jf'his Aaion The States, in the mean time, tho' their Troops gained great is the Occa- Honour, and fome Advantage, in this Action, had the Mortifi-

Smeftoof! eation to lofe the ftnure Services of two brave Generals by it ; ingtheSer- that of General Obdam, for the Reafons already affigned ; and vice of two that of General Schlangenburg ; becaufe, having given Offence Oeaerak; |O the Duke of Mai borough, by being too free of his Cenfure, pn this Occafion, they were obliged, foon after, to difpenfe with his Service rather than difoblige his Grace, whofe Service they flood more in need of : Thus this brave Officer, who certainly behaved gallantly in this Aclion, loft by his Tongue, the Ad- vantage he had gained by the Sword.

Motions of The Allies, being willing to repair the Difadvan.tages they the Oonfe- had lain under, by the Aftion at Eckeren, join'd all their Forces derate Ar- t0gether, with the Intent to come to an Engagement with the M«:ihal de Villeroy, who, encamping near St. Job, rang'd all hio Forces in Order of Battlej and g^ve out, that he was refolved to Aay there for the Duke of Marlborough. His Grace, and Monf. d'Auverquerque, hoping he would be as good as his Word, I; .rch'd with the Army under their Command, in feveral Co- lumns, to Hoogftraet, within half a League of the Enemy's Ca. p, who, to all Appearance, were making great Prepara- t'o ior a vigorous Aftion. General Schlangenburg, decamp- ing from Lillo, march'd all Night, and arriv'd, early in the Iv.- rning, between Eckeren and Capeile, to attack them on that Su!e ; and the Duke of Marlborough, with his Army, advanc'd in a great Plain, over againil the Enemy, and caufed four Pieces of Cinnon to be discharged, for a Signal to General Sclangen- burg, in order lor him to begin the Attack. Bur, a« he ad- vanced, the Marfhal declined the Engagement, and, having fet fire to his Camp, order'd his Army to retire within their Lines ; which they accordingly did, with great Precipitation. By this Means they covered the City of Antwerp, which was exaftly in their Rear, and thereby fruftrated the Duke's Defign. TheDukeof The Dukt, failing thus in his Hopes of bringing them to aft vkwsb°h°' Engagementj being attended with fevera! General Officers, and rr-nch * a Guard of 4000 Horfe and, Dragoons, went, the 27th of July, i-ines* \° view the Enemy's Lines. Lieutenant Benfon, of the Englifh.

Royal Regiment of Dragoons, with about thirty Englifh, being detach'd, fell in with one of the Enemy's Out-guards, of forty Horfe, who, after one Difcharge, retired, and were chafed, by Forms a PC- the Englifh, to the very Barrier of their Entrenchments, which fign to force gave the Confederate Generals an Opportunity to view them,' TklTbutch within Mufket-Shot ; and from that Day, the Duke laid a Scheme L to force them ; but the Execution of that Projcdt was induftri- z oufty

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

ut off, from time to time, by the Deputies of the States General, of which more in the Sequel.

The Duke probably took a View of thefe Lines more than once ; for Monf. Rouffet mentions, particularly, that the fifth of July, being join'd by the little Army, which had been under the to t},e Command of General Obdam, his Grace marched towards the my's n-s Enemy's Lines, with eighty four Battalions, and 145 Squadrons, 5^°jjer of in Order of Battle ; hoping to bring them to a general Engage- d ment, but in vain ; for they would not venture out of their Lines.

The fixteenth of Auguft, N. S. Count Noyelles, withaDe- Huy inveft- {achment from the grand Army, arrived before Huy, a confi- td. derable Town of the Bifhoprick of Liege, on the Maefe, hav- ing a ftrong Caftle, three Forts, and four Churches. It Hands on the River Maefe, 1 4 Miles almoft South of Liege, and 1 7 almoft North-Eaft of Namur. Upon his Approach the Gover- nour broke down the Bridge between the two Towns, and re- tired, with his Garrifon,' into the Caftle, and the Fort S. Jofeph, Fort Picard, and Fort Rouge, or the Red Fort. Notwithftand- ing the Fatigues the Confederate Troops had undergone, in a molt difficult March, all poffible Diligence was ufed for opening the Trenches, which was done, the leventeenth, in the Night. The The Attack againft Fort S. Jofeph was commanded by the Prince J"^* of Anhalt, and that againft Fort Picard, by Colonel Frederick Hamilton, the only Englifh Brigadier in the Army. The Trenches againft the former were carried on 190 Paces, but the Engineer, who was to condud the Workmen to Fort Picard, by Reafon of jhe Darknefs of the Night, fell into a hollow Way, which carrief! off from the faid Fort, and was the Occafion, that the Opening of the Trenches, on that Side, was deferM till the next Night. The Approaches were continued, with a great deal of Succ^fs, and fome of the Befiegers Batteries being ready, the twenty-firft, began to throw fome Bombs into the Works of the Enemy, and, the next Morning, to fire, with Cannon and Mortars upon Fort Picard, Fort St. Jofeph, and the Caftle, f which continued till three in the Afternoon, when Fort St. Jofeph beat a Parly, as did alfo Fort Picard, and the Red Fort, about feven in the Evening. The Garrifons defired to retire to Na- mur, with their Arms and Baggage ; but that being denied, and ^ no other Terms offered them, than either to furrender Prisoners "at Difcretion, or retire into the Caftle, the continual Fire of the Befiegers obliged them, at length, to abandon the Forts, of which the Confederates took Poffeflton the twenty-third : And The Forts Monf. Millon, Governour of the Caftle, rcfufing to admit his taken* own Men into it, they were forced to return into the Town, where they were immediately feized and difarmed.

Upon the taking of the Forts, the Batteries, that had been raifcd againft them, were removed, and they began to play upon

the

rbe Life of J O H N,

the Caftle, 'where they did great Damage to the Enemy. The five and twentieth, the Difpofitions were made for an Attack, and all the Batteries firing, without Intermiffion, in the After- noon, the Befieged had above 100 Men killed and wounded, in which laft Number were reckoned many Officers, and the Governoar hirnfelf. Our Troops advanced, in the mean Time, and placed feveral Ladders at the Foot of the Caftle. This was defigned only for a Feint ; bat the Enemy, believing we were in Earned, beat a Parly, about fix, in the Evening, offering to furrender, upon Condition that they ftiould be allowed to march to Namur, with the ufual Marks of Honour. The Marquis de Quincy gives a long and circumftanml Account of this After- noon's Action, and pretends that the Allies mounted the Breach twice with incredible Fury ; but were repuls'd with great Slaughter, on both Sides ; and that the Officers would have flood a third Attack, but were oblig'd by the Soldiers to beat a Parly : Bat the fmall Number of Men killed on either Side is a Contradiction to this.

His- Grace, the Duke of Marlborough, thereupon fent a Mef- fage to the Governour, That notwithstanding the Advantage he had, if they would lay down their Arms, all th.it belonged to the Officers and Soldiers fhould be left them, and they fhould be exchanged for a like Number of our Men, whenever the Marfhal de Villeroy fhould defire it; and Time was allowed them, till three, rae next Morning, to fend a pofitiva Anfwer. Upon theGovernour's Refufal, Orders were given for renewing theAffault; whereupon, the Soldiers, in the Garrifon, refufing to defend the Place any longer, the Governour accepted the Terms offered him, whereby he, and his Garrifon, which, in- cluding thofe who were in the Forts, confuted of 900 Men, commanded by two Brigadiers General, were to remain Prifon- ers of War, till the two Regiments, taken fome Months before, The Caflle by the French, in Tongeren, were released. On the feven and furrendere at twentieth of Auguft, in the Morning, the Garrifon march'd out Difcretion. ofthe Q^^ arkj w?re a]j difarm'd. except the Officers, who, by the Generofity of the Duke of Marlborough, were allowed to keep their Swords.

token both There was found, in the Caftle, a confiderable Quantity of

Sides. Ammunition and Provifions ; of the chief of which, we find

the following Specification : 10,100 Pounds of Powder, 254

empty Bombs, 159 fill'd Bomb?,- 400 Hand- Grenado- Shells, 200

fill'd Grenadoes, 10 Iron-Guns, i Mcrtar, 750 Sacks of Meal,

1 20 Barrels of Beer, 7 HogfheacJs cf Wine, 900 Loaves of

Bread, &c. During the whole Siege, the Confederates had not

above 20 Men kiil'd, and 35 wounded : Whereas the Lofs of

the Enemy was very confiderably above that Number. The

, Comrtiand of the Caftle was given to the B iron de Trogne, who

not

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &JV. 171

not only perform'd the Part of Chief Engineer perfe&ly well; 1703. but when the Ladders were carried to be fet up againft the V— - V"— "* Call's- Wall (as I have related above) he led the 25 Grena- diers, who were order1 d on that Service, carrying a Ladder on his Shoulder.

i hree Days before, a grand Council of War was held, at A great the confederate Camp, at Val notre Dame, in which were pre- ^"hddf fent the Duke of Marlborough, the Deputies of the States Ge- nera/, Monf. d'Auverquerque, Monf. Schlangenburg, the Lieu- tenant-Generils, and feveral Major-Generals . The Queftiou in Debate was, what Undertaking fhould be gone upon, gifter Huv mould be taken ? And, the Siege of Limburg being pro- pefed, tiie Dake of Marlborough, who {us I have obferv'd be- fore) had, with g-eat Cire and Diligence, informed him (elf of the Condition of the Enemy's Lines, and got the beft Intelli- gence he could, where they might be forced, with moll: Proba- bility of Saccefs, was againft that Propofal ; and he, together with the other Generals whofe Nimes are fubfcnbed, gave the following Opinion, rather for attacking the Enemy's Lines, be- The Duke t\veen the Mehaigne, and Leuwe, as an Enterprize that would of Marlb. Contribute much more to the Glory and Advantage of the other^eM.. Arms of the High- Allies : Being alfo of Opinion, that Lim- rals are for* burg might be attack'd, by a Detachment, wiien the Seafon forcing the was more advanced. ' Liaes-

The Opinion cf the Duke of Marlbonugb and federal other Generals.

" '• *nr"*HE Enemies having great Magazines at Namur, Their Re*, " ._§_ for the Sublirtance of their Army, and we being, ^ons for it. " by our Superiority in Number, in a Condition to give thern " Umbrage, on that Side, they will be oblig'd, after we are oiTefs'd of Huy, to put a Garrifon into that Place, for the " Security of their Magazines ; our Superiority will be then <• fomuch the greater, and they will be tke kfs able to oppofe «« our Efforts.

" 2. We having here a level Ground before us, of above. " two Leagues and a balfin Extent, where thaEnemies Lines " are weakeil, it feems to be the only Place where we fiiould " chafe t6 attack tKem ; and feeing our whole Army may '•' aft, it is to be believed, if the Enemy mould ftand us, it " would .he impoffible for them to defend fuch an Extent.

" 3. In cafe they Ihould venture an Engagement with us, *c feeing 'tis what we have been feeking all this Campaign, " we are of Opinion, we ought gladly to embrace the Occa- " fion-, -becaufe we have a greater Superiority at this Time, " than ever.

" 4- If

fife Life of J O H N,

*' 4. If we do not attack the Enemy in this Place, with the fined Troops that can be feen, and fuch Superiority as we cannot expe£l to have next Year, it will be evident, not only to our Allies (to their Difcouragement) but the Enemy may with Reafon boaft, that thefe Lines, which they will make ftronger every Day, are an invincible Easier againft the Troops of the Allies.

" 5. In cafe we do not attack the Lines, there is no other Courfe to be taken, than either to retire to the other Side of the Maefe, or to march away to the Right, to be near to tne Majory ofBolduc, there being no Forage left in thefe Parts : The firft wou'd be difhonourable to the Arms of the Allies j for their getting the River between them and the Enemy, would look as if they durlt not Hand them, and the latter might be very dangerous to the States ; and be- tides, the Enemy, by means of their Magazines, wou'd be in a Condition to undertake any Thing ; Whereas, if we attempt their Lines, mould they pretend to defend them, we may, with the Affiftance of the ALMIGHTY, hope to gain a complete Viftory, the Confequence of which may be of more Importance than can be forefeen; and fliould they think beft to retire, there is ground to hope we might pufh forward very fuccefsfully, and draw mighty Advantages from it.

" 6. We confider, likewife, that the Enemy being fuperior in Italy, and in the Empire, and being out-number'd no where but here, the Eyes of all the Allies are fixed upon us, and they will have Caufe juftly to blame our Conduct, if we do not do all that is poffible to relieve them, by obliging the Enemy to call back fuch Succours into thefe Parts, which is not to be done but by pufhing boldly.

Signed by the Duke of Maryborough,

Generals of the Danes,

Generals of the Lonenb.

fCha.. Rudolph, Duke JL of Wirtemburg, and I F. Sho'ten. C. Somerfelt, M. Bu- lau, E. Auguft. D. of Brunfwisk, and the Count de Noyelles, Frederick Prince of

(. Tettau.

Having

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Having given the Reafons alledg'd by the Duke of Marlbo-

rough, and the Generals who were of the fame Opinion with

him, for forcing the Lines, it will but be juit to give thofe of The Dutch

the contrary Party, who oppofed them. are againft

Reafotts opposed ly the Dutch Deputies and Generals, againft at- tempting the Enemy's Lines.

N the Council of War held yeflerday, the 24th, two Their Rea« _ Things were debated, viz. Whether, to attack the Lines, fons. " or befiege Limburg ? Without Doubt, the firil would be the '* more glorious Attempt ; but, before it bk determined, we ** judge it neceffary to examine all the Difficulties of executing ** it, and afterwards the Advantage that may accrue from fuc- *' ceeding in it.

"" That Part of the Lines, that feems eafieft to be attack'd, ** reaches from Wafeige, on the Mehaigne, as far as Janche, '* which is an Extent of tw® Leagues and a half. It lies crofs " a Plain, but takes in a riling Ground, at Meerdorp : And it " is to be enquired, whether the Enemies are really inferiour in ** Number to -us, and whether their Lines are not flronger and " better repaired, than is reported.

" Suppofing the Lines forced, it is next to be confider'd, '* what will come of it, and whether then we mail be able to " penetrate into the Country, and to march to Tirlemont and " Louvain. What gives Ground to apprehend we fhall not, is, •" that the Enemy, a little within their Lines (of which a Plan, ** lies before us) have Pofts to retire to, that are more deferrable. " than their Lines ; for Inftance, that of Ramillies, where their ** Right, being extended to the Mehaigne, near Taviers, and ** their Left towards Ramillies, and Autreglife, they will have " a narrow Aperture of but i zoo Paces to defend.

" Should the Enemy abandon their Lines, and take Poft in " that Camp it will not be in our Power to march towards Tir- " lemont, till we have forced them to decamp ; becaufe we " fhall be obliged to pafs near the Head of the River Gheet, " between the Enemy's Army and Janche, which will be im- " poffible to be done, without rifquing our Rear-Guard.

•" If, after the Lines fhall be either forced by us, or abandon'd •' by the Enemy, it mould be thought advifable for our Army " to pafs the Gheet lower, about Heilerfheim, the Enemy " would move down along that River to obferve us, and by " extending their Left to Heilerfheim, would have a ftronger " Part of die Line before them, than that between the Mehaigne " .and Janche, and, by that Means, hiader us from advancing to " TjrlemoBt and Louvain.

" If

174

^ Lfi of J O H N,

'« If the Enemy poft themfelves, as we have faid, about Hei- lerfrieim, the Ground between Ramillies and the-Mehaigne would lye open to us, and we might pafc above the Head of the Gheet, and fo cut them off from afl Communication with Namur ; but it is not poffible for us, when \v€ sre got with the Army within the Lines, in the Part neareft the Hanuye, " to march with Expedition fufficient to prevent the Enemy " from felzing the Polt of Judoigne, where they will have no " more than ^bout 600 P-tces of Ground to defend.

" If we had, in our Places on the Maefe, all Things neceflary " for the Siege of Namur, it is not credible, that they would " fuffer us to cut off their Communication with that Town : " But the Body commanded by Monf. de Pracontal, and cur " Difpofition upon the Maefe, put the Enemy out of Fear of *' a Siege ; and the Works which Monf. Cohorn formerly add- " ed, iufficiently fecure them againft the Effeds of Bombs.

" We cannot pofitively affirm, that the Enemy will do as we " have faid ; but they may do fo, or may repair and ftrengtheri " their Lines, before we can be in a Condition to attack them.

" Prudence alfo requires us to make the moft ferious Reflec- " tions, in an Affair of fo great Importance, and to difpofe " Things in fuch Manner, if we determine to march towards " the Line?, that what Courfe foever the Enemy takes, we may " be in a Condition of purfuing our Defjgns : And as the Good " of the common Caufe mainly depends on the Refolution we " fhall take on this Occafion, it becomes us to examine, with I " the greatell Deliberation, whether we ought rather to attack " the Lines, or befiegc Limburg, which is not a Place of fo " little Confequence as Men imagine : For when we are Maf- " ters of that Place, which ought to be attack'd in a favour- " able Seafon, and not in the Decline of the Year, by Reafon «' the Ways will then be impracticable, we not only acquire a *' whole Province, but cover our own Country, and the Coun- " tries of Juliers and Guelder ; we cut off from them al! Com - *' munication with or Country, and extend and fecure our " own Quarters, which will make it eafy to clear the whole " Country bet\veen the Maefe and the Rhine.

" Whatever Refolution (hall be taken, we whofe Names are «•' underwritten, will not Lil to contribute all we can, to facili- " tutc the Execution of it.

Dene in the Camp at Vignamont, dug. 25, 1 70 3 * Auverquerque. Count de Noyelles* Albemarle. W. V. Heackelom. DeSt. Pol. O'Anhalt,

D. Dorf. Dompre. Oxenftiern. - I>. Rantaau.

Dukeof MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Thefe were the Reafons oppofed by the Deputies of the States, and the Dutch Generals, who would not content to hazard their Troops, in what they called a defperate Aftion, which, they faid, was, at beft, very dubious, and which if attended with Suceefs, would yield no farther Advantage, than t.o find the E- ^ nemy retired into their fortify'd Towns ; whereas, on the con- trary, fhould the French get the Victory, the United Provinces would remain expofed to their Incurfions. However, the Ar- guments offered above by the Duke and his Party were very cogent, and, befides thefe, the Duke had his private Reafons, founded upon very good Intelligence, which he had by his Spies, of whom, an Officer, who ferved under him, has av«r'd, he had no lefs than three introduced to him in one Night (after the Fatigue of a hard Day's March) in his Tent, the Officer of his Guard having Orders to wake him when they came.

The Preyed! of attacking the Lines being thus laid afide, the The siege of Refolution was taken to befiege Limburg, a very ftrong, tho' ^mburg not large City, and the Capital of the Duchy and Territory of rel that Name. It is fituate on a Rock, among frady Woods, on the River Wefdret, 1 6 Miles South-Eaft of Aix la Chapelle, 19 almoft Eaft of Liege, 43 almoft South- Welt of Cologne, 54 tyorth of Luxemburg, and 70 almoft Eaft of Brufftls.

The fifth of September, by break of Day, the Duke and March ofthe Monf. d'Auverquerque march'd, with the grand Army, from Confederate the Neighbourhood of Huy, and pitch'd their Camp at Hanuye, ^rdT/ within about two Leagues of the French grand Army, confift- Uut0. ing then of feventy-four Battalions, and 1 40 Squadrons, with upwards of 120 Pieces of Cannon, and 24 Mortars, all mounted on their Intrenchments and Lines, in the Front. The Confede- rate Army then confuted of 80 Battalions and 142 Squadrons. The Duke, with feveral other Generals, with a Guard of 40 Squadrons, advanced out of the Front of the Camp, within, almoft Cannon-mot of the Enemy's Lines, to view their Situa- tion, which put the Enemy in fo great a Confirmation, that they immediately mann'd their Lines, expe&ir.g nothing lefs, thajithat it was the Duke's Defign to attack them : But how earneftly foever his Grace might defire it, his Hands were tied ; he, therefore, returned in the Evening, to the Camp. The French would have us believe, they were fo little apprehenfive of the Allies attacking them, at this Time, that only the com- mon Guards of the Lines flood to their Arms j but that the reft of their Troops made no Motion at all : Till, at length, fome Troops advancing within Mulket-ihot of their Lines, and con- tinuing to provoke them, Manf. de Villeroy, ordered a Detach- ment .of Carabineers, and of the King's Guards, out of the Lines, to attack them ; which (fay they) they did with Suceefs, kill- ing and wounding a great Number of them, and even difperfmg • thofe

Limburg in-

The Duke

commands the Siege,

The

Trenches opened.

Capitulates :

Me Life

thofe Troops which were about the Duke's Perfon : But this Story does not feem to carry a very great Probability with it. The fixth, the Army encamp1 d at St. Tron ; from whence on the eighth, the Duke detach'd Lieu tenant- General Bulau, with, a Body of Troops, towards Limburg.

The feventh, the Enemy made a Detachment, in order to intercept a Convoy of the Allies ; but perceiving two Coaches with fix Horfes, they imagined it to be the Duke of Marlbo- rough, quitted their Defign to purfue thefe Coaches ; but to their Mortification found it was Duke Hamilton, going to Aix ia Chapelle, with a Pafs. In the mean time the Convoy efcaped, ajed left them the Shadow for the Subftance.

Limburg was inverted, the tenth, by the faid Lieutenant-Ge» neral Bulau, with four and twenty Squadrons of Horfe and Dra- goons. The Officer, who commanded in the Place, had Orders to abandon it at the Approach of the Allies, but firft to blow up the Caftle : However, being furpriz'd, he was obliged to make ibme Defenfe, for his Honour's Sake : and this F. Daniel likewife confirms. The Garrifon in the Town and Caftle, con- fided of four Battalions, and they had twelve Pieces of Cannon, and four Mortars mounted.

The twelfth, the Duke of Marlborough, with the hereditary Prince of Hefle-Caflel, march'd from the Camp at St. Tron, with 15 Squadrons, and 24 Battalions, in order to command the Siege, in Perfon, and he arrived there, accordingly, two Days after. The Befiegers, then confiiled of 24 Battalions of Foot, and 39 Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons. The twentieth, the Artillery, with all other Neceffaries, for the expeditious carrying on of the Siege, arrived from Liege ; and the next Day was chiefly employ 'd in making and bringing together a great Quan- tity ofFafcines.

The Befiegers, in the mean time, having taken the refpe&ive Pofts affign'd them, and all the Artillery and other Neceflaries being come up, a Lieutenant- Colonel, with 300 Men, was or- dered to attack the Lower Town, from whence the Enemy re- tir'd, upon their Approach, without making any Refiftance. The Trenches being opened, and the Batteries finim'd, on the five and twentieth, they play'd, Night and Day, with four an4 twenty Pieces of Cannon, and eight Mortars, upon the Upper Town.

The feven and twentieth, the Breach was fp wide, that the Confederates were preparing to give a general Aflkult, which the French perceiving, beat a Parly ; but the Duke would grant them no better Conditions, than " That the Garrifon mould re- " rr.ain Prifcners of War; that the Officers and Soldiers might " keep what was their own, and that the Officers mould be air ••'•' low'd twelve Waggons to carry their Baggage, provided they

" dcliver'4

T)uke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

** delivered up one of their Gates, within half an Hour afar ** this Agreement."

This being confented to by the Befieged, the Garrifon, con- And furren- iifting of 1400 Men (the French Accounts fay but 700) having ders* laid down their Arms, and being march'd out, the Befiegers took Pofleffion of the Place, and the Duke of Marlborough Ap- pointed the Baron Van Rechteren to be Governour of it. By the taking of this Place, the Allies not only became entire Matters of the Duchy of Limburg -, but fecured the Country of Liege, and the Electorate of Cologne, from the' Incurfions of the French ; and before the Conclufion of the Year, they were, tkewife, Matters of the whole Spanifh Guelderland, by the Gueldera Surrender of the City of Guelders, on the i yth of December, Surrendered, after it had been long blockaded and bombarded by the Pruffian General Lottum ; and was reduced almoft to a Heap of Ruin?.

The Duke of Marlborough gave immediate Notice, of the taking of this important Place, to the States General, by the following Letter :

High and Mighty Lords,

I" Congratulate you, by this, upon taking of the City and. A Letter '* JL C.iftle of Limburg, the Garrifon of which was obliged from the " to furrender themfelves Prifoners of War, according to the P"Ke of, " Capitulation, which I have the Honour to fend you, hereunto the'statei*0 " annex'd. I (hall remain here two or three Days, to give Or- General. " ders, and provide for the Security of the Place ; after which " I fliall return to the grand Army, where I mall expect the " Honour of your Commands, being with an entire Refpei\ *4' and perfect Affeftion,

High and Mighty Lords, Your moft humble, And obedient Servant,

The Duke of MA R. L BOP.OU c n. -.3W1

P. S. " I have, with the Confent of the Deputies, fign'd a " Commiffion to the Baron of Rechteren, to be Govemour of •' Limburg, which, I hope, your High Mightinefles will ap- s< prove. \^

The Capitulation.

*' Since it is our Intention to treat the Garrifon of L'mburg, The Cap!.. *' as Soldiers and Men of Honour, notwithstanding what has tulation of 4- pafs'd, we will leave to the Officers and Soldiers what is their LimburS- *•' own, provided they lay down their Amis, and furreader " themfelves Prifoners of War, and that they deliver up one of

V.ot. J. N " their

!/$ the Life of JOHN,

1703. « their Gates t^the Befiegers. We alfo allow twelve Wag- *— - v— - ' " gons to carry the Equipage of the Officers.

Marlborough.

Randwiick, Wiilen, Reede,

Agulus, Rechtern, Hop.

On Occafion of thefc Succefles, the following Medal wa*

Jlruck :

A Medal On the Face, a Bufto of her Majefty, with her Title, as ufual ;

Occafionnof and On ^ Reverfe> *e Duke of Marlborough, on Horfeback, thefe Sue- a Nymph, crown'd with a Mural Crown, kneeling before him, cedes. and presenting him three Keys, in a Bafon : With the following

Infcription, continued in the Exergue :

SINE CLADE VICTOR, CAPTIS BONNA. HUO LIMBURGO, 1703.

faclorious without Slaughter, fy the Taking of BONN, HUY* end LIMBURG, 1703. '

With thefe Conquefts ended the Campaign in the Nether- lands ; which it muft be allowed was glorious to the Duke of Marlborough ; but it might have been much more fo, had his Grace been allowed to purfue his own reafonable and well* grounded Meafures. He had the fuperiour Army ; but what by reafon of the cautious Maxims of the States, what by reafon of the Factions among them, which, at that Time, were rifing very high, between thofe, who had been of the late King's Par- ty, and were now for having a Captain-General, and thofe of the Loveftein-Party, who were for governing all by a Deputa- tion from the States, no great Defign could be undertaken by an Army fo much diftrafted.

The French make it a Merit in their Generals, and heap Ap- plaufes upon them, for having, with fo much Conduft, prevent- ed the Allies from making any farther Conquefts, this Cam- ••f^ign ; and pretend, notwithftanding what they had attempted at the Opening of it, that they never defign'd any thing more, than to be on the Defenfive in Flanders, that they might aft with the greater Vigour in Germany and Italy.

The French Continuator of Rapin, who is very ready upon all Occafions, to depreciate the Aftions of the Duke of Marlbo. rough, will hardly allow this Campaign to be glorious ; *« One " might (fays he) reafonably have expefted fomething more 4 from fuch a Superiority of Force, as the Intrigues of the «' Englim General, fupported by the re-iterated Solicitations of •' the States General, had procured. Without this Augmenta-

*' tipn.

of MARL BOROUGH, &V. 179

*' tlon, he would have been in a Condition to have befieged and \ 703. " ta^en the three Places which fell, this Campaign, into his (-/"V"\J " Hands :" But all this while, he conceals the real Reafons, why nothing more was done ; the Non-compliance of the Dutch ivitb the Dukis Meafitres.

As I took Occafion, at the Conclufion of the foregoing Year, Affairs of juft to mention what happen'd in other Parts, and especially in .Germany, during the Time of the War in the Netherlands ; fo it will be highly neceflary to do the fame here, as an Intro- duction to the glorious Adlions of the enfuing Campaign.

The French, and their new Confederates, the Bavarians, had, «he whole Summer, miferably harrafs'd the Emperour and the Empire. The French, on their Side, took Fort-Kiehl, Old Bri- fac, and Landau, all confiderable Fortrefles, on the Upper Rhine, and defeated the Dutch and Germans, under the Com- mand of the hereditary Prince of Heffe-Caflel, at the Battle of Spirebach, where they furprized the German Camp, while the Officers were celebrating the Feftival of St. Leopold, in Honour «o the Enaperour, in Mirth and Jollitry.

" This Place (fays the French Continuator of Rapin, fpeaking " of Old Brifac) tho' very ftrong before, was render' d Ib much ** the more fo, by the FortijEcations, which the famous Monf. -< de Vauban added, during i&e laft War, that it was render'd " almoft impregnable : Yet the French were Matters of it in *f fourteen Days after they open'd the Trenches. The Emr •*' perour to (hew his Refentment caus'd the Count d'Arco, who *' was Governour, tp be beheaded, and the Deputy Governour^ *' Count Marfigli to be degraded with Diftonour ; and yet *' (fays my Author) they could dp no more than they did, the •*' Place not being provided with Neceffaries for a Defenfe, (4 *' Thing <veiy common ivitb the Emperour find the Empire ;) and be- " fides, the French General having made a Feint of befieging Friburg, they had been oblig'd to detach ten Men out of every Company of the Garrifon, for the Security of that Place : But the Emperour was oblig'd to do fomething, to ex- cufe his own Negligence to his Allies, tho' at the Expence of the Life of the Governour, and the Honour of his Deputy." The Bavarians, on the other hand, having been joined, in the of Bav Spring, by the Marlhal de Villars, poffefs'd themielves (tho' not tak.es Pof' without great Difficulty) of Ratiffcon. ' RatTibon*

Ratifbon is a very large, rich, and ftrong City of Germany, A brirfAs- in the Circle and Dukedom of Bavaria ; and in a Bifhoprick of count of tho the fame Name, under the Archbimop of Saltzburg. It is fa- 9ity of Ra' mous for the General Diets of the Empire, which have been tllbon« held there ever fince the Year 1662. It was formerly the Ca- ,pital of Bavaria, and afterwards the Refidence of the Franconian ^mpeipurs; but was, at length, taken from the Bavarians, by tf 2 the

Me Life of J O H N,

the Emperour Frederick I. in the Year 1180, and made a free Imperial City, as it now remains. It has a very fine Stone* Bridge over the Danube, 1091 Foot long, and 32 broad, fup- ported by Pillars, and adorn' d with three Towers. It has, like- wife, a magnificent old Cathedral, and a ftately Caftle, where the Imperial Diets are generally held. The River Regen, which falls into the Danube, on one Side of it, has given it the Name of Regenfpurg, by which alone it is known in Germany.

The Emperour having not only refufed to confent to the Neu- trality of Ratifbon, propofed by the Eleftor of Bavaria ; but, inftead of that, required the Sovereign Princes and States of Germany, to furnifh their Quota's, and to enable him to pre- vent the Mifchiefs that threatned the Empire ; their Deputies at the Diet, who were, indeed, no better than the Eleftor of Ba- varia's Prifoners, infifted upon their Securities, alledging, that the Imperial Court's Refufal was out of Seafon, and prejudicial to the Authority of the Princes and States of the Empire.

The Queen of England, and the States General of the United Provinces, prefs'd, with all poffible Earneltnefs, that unweildy and lethargick Body, by their Ministers, to take effectual Mea- fures, to prevent the fatal Confequences of the Conjunction of the French and Bavarians. But when fome of the Deputies would have taken into prefent Confideration, the Ways and Means for every Circle to furnifh out their Shares of Men, Ar- tillery, and Ammunition, for the Army of 1 20,000 Men, which the Diet had, the Year before, refolved to fet on Foot, for the Defenfe of the Empire, others replied, That the Confideration of thefe Things was too late for. this Campaign, and too foon for the next.

This fupine Negligence of the Diet, the Caufe of all the fuc- The Eleftor ceeding Diftra&ions of the Empire, encourag'd the Eleftor of " ]^ria's Bavaria, to publifh a Manifeflo, wherein he complains, in the firft Place, " Againft the Emperour and his Allies, accufing them of exorbitant Plundering, extorting Contributions, and burn- ing his Country, from hence inimuating, that he took up law- ful Arms, in his own Defenfe. He denies his having had any Defign (as the Houfe of Auftria gives out) of joining with France to attack the Empire : And avers, that he left the Netherlands, and retired to his own Country, meerly to keep himfelf out of this new War, and to join his Endeavours, with thofe of the Circles of Suabia and Franconia, firmly to efta- blifh the Peace obtain'd by the Treaty of Ryfwick. He adds, that the Miniiters of the Crown of France, having not only by Memorials, but verbally, reprefented to the Diet at Ra- tifbon, and the Circles of the Empire, that their Matter was difpofed to keep the Treaty of Ryfwick inviolably, and the Circles, in their Anfwers, expreflinjj a like Inclination, he

Manifefto

Jublifhed unej.N.S.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. JSi

•* had conformably declared on the Side of France, and entered 17°3- «' into a Treaty with that Crown. That he wifhed, the Im-'—'V——' " perial Court, when they began the War in Italy, for the Suc- " ceffion to the Spanifh Monarchy, had had the Confent of the ** Empire, at leaft of the Electoral College : As alfo, when they " declared againft the Dukes of Savoy and Mantua, and a- ** gainlt the Elector of Cologne, whofe only Crime was, that '•' he would not be fubfervient to the Defigns of the Houfe of Auftria. That his Eleftoral Highnefs had Caufe fufficient to complain of fuch Proceedings of the Imperial Council, but fmother'd his Refentments, out of Ref£e& to the Emperour ; but when the Circles of Auftria, Suabia and Franconia, with- out waiting for the Refolutions of the Diet of the Empire, entered into the War, and confequently became unqualified, to give an impartial Vote in the Diet, his Electoral High, nefs, finding his Country left naked and expofed, his Enemy grown more formidable, and the Houfe of Bavaria in Danger of being opprefled, he judged it high Time, for his own Secu- rity, and for the Prefervation of his Country, to pofiefs himfelf of fome advantageous Pofts, particularly Ulm and Memmin- " gen, to prevent being crufh'd by the monarchical Adminiftra- " tion,.tiil now unheard of in the Empire." This Manifeftowas prefented to the Diet at Ratifbon, by the Bavarian Minifter, with another Writing, importing : " That the Elector would think •' himfelf no longer oblig'd to evacuate that Town, tho' the " Refolve of the Diet, for a Neutrality, fhould be ratified by " his Imperial Majelty. However, he aflur'd the publick Mi- " nifters refiding there, that they fhould enjoy all Freedom and " Security in the faid Place, with which AfTurance he hoped " they would reft contented, and demand nothing farther."

The Marfhal de Villars then remain'd on the Danube, whileHe invades the Elector of Bavaria invaded Tirol, and poffefs'd himfelf ofTiro1 ; Infpruck, and other Places, with fuch Rapidity, as amazed all Germany, and very much alarmed the Court of Vienna. He made his publick Entry into Infpruck, from which he demanded Homage, and a monthly Contribution of i 20,000 Florins, be- lides a great Quantity of Ammunition and Provifions.

The Emperour's Force was fo broken into fmall Armies, in different Places, that he had not one good one any where. He had none at all in Tirol ; and all that the Prince of Baden could do, was to watch the Motions of the Marfhal de Villars ; but he did not dare to attack him, even during this Separation. His Conduct was very much blamed ; fome called his Courage, and others his Fidelity in Queftion ; while many excufed him, by faying, his Army was not only weak, but ill-furnifhed, in every RefpecT:. The Duke de Vendofme had Orders to march from the Milanefe to Tirol, in order to join the Eleclor of Ba- N 3 va;ii

i§4 fbe Life of JOHN,

,1703. varia,- which, if he had effected it, would have reduced the

O-Y-O Houfe of Auftria to the loweft Extremity. The Elector had/

at firfty as I have obferved,. made him felt" Mafter of the greateft

But is obli- Part of Tirol : But the Boors rifing; attack'd his Forces, with

£ed to quit fo much Refolutfon, that he was forced to retire out of the

Country, with confiderable Lofs, before the Duke de Vendofme

could join him. Vendofme feemed t6' have a Defign on Trent :

but the Boors were now animated with their Succels againlt the

Eleftor, and were well fupported, by Officers and Troops fent

them by the Emperour ; fo that he was forced to return back

without effecting any thing.

The Elector afterwards rejoined the Marlhal de Villars, and defigned immediately to have feized on Augfburg, in whichy however, he was then prevented, by Prince Lewis of Baden ; but the French and Bavarians having, afterwards, defeated Count Stirum, near Hochftadt, with a conilderable Body of Ger- The Eleftor mans, the Pfince could no longer hinder the Elector of Bavaria

of Bavaria frorn attacking Augfburg, which he foon took, and deliver'd takes Augf- inw the Hands of the Ffench

A brief De. Aug/burg (the Augufta Vindelicorum of the Antients) is a very fcription <>f large, populous, and rich City, one of the moft celebrated of that Place. Germany, and a free imperial City, adorn'd with magnificent Churches, Palaces, Magazines exceedingly well furnifhed, and feveral excellent Hofpitals. It is famous for feveral Imperial Diets held there, and particularly, in the i6th Century, after the Reformation in Germany, by Luther; Here, likewife, the then King of the Romans, Jofeph (afterwards Emperour) waseleded and crown'd in 1689. It is fituate at the Confluence of the Rivers Lech and Wertach, near the Borders of Bavaria. farther Snc- The Eieftor, not long after this, turned Eailward, took Paflau, of the march'd into' Auftria, and made himfelf Mailer of Lintz, a very confiderable City, and Capital of the Upper Auftria. He even threatned to, join Ragotzki, and the Hungarian Rebels, who ravaged Auftria, Stiria, and Moravia, and made Incurftons al- molt to the very Gates of Vienna, his Imperial Majefty's Seat Miferable and Capital. To this fatal Dilemma Was the Houfe of Auftria, State of tae at that Time, brought ; and what would have been the End of Auftria °f "» if our illuftr'ous Hero, the Duke of Marlborough, had not come to their Relief, the cnfuing Campaign, as we fhall fee be- low, is eafy to guefe.

The King of Some Alleviation it was, of the Lofe the Allies fuftain'd, by Portugal and thefe Misfortunes, which befel the Houfe of Auftria, that the Sa^weed Kin? of Portugal» and the Duke of Sav°y» acceeded, about

to the grand this Time, to the grand Alliance. The French King having

Alliance. fome Intimation of the latter, beforehand, commanded the Duke

de Vendome, to feize and difarm the Troops of Savoy, that

%vere in his Army. The Duke of Savoy, by Way of Reprifdl,

com-

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &fr.

commanded feveral French Officers, who were in Turin, and the French Ambafladour himfelf, to be arrefted. The Duke de Vendome was hereupon commanded, immediately to invade the Frontiers of Savoy, and to tranfmit the following Letter to his Royal. Highnefs:

SIR,

" QINCE neither Religion, Honour, Intereft, Alliance, nor e- " l^ ven your own Hand-writing, are of any Force between us, " I fend my Coufin, the Duke de Vendome, at the Head of my "' Armies, to make known to you my Intentions : He will allow *' you but twenty-four Hours to refolve what you have to do.

LEWIS.

The Duke of Savoy, however, continued firm to the Allies, and publifh'd a Manifeito, fetting forth thfc Neceflity and Juftice of his Proceedings, and fenl Exprefies to the Emperour, and the reft of the Confederated Powers, to follicit their Affiftance to enable him to weather the impending Storm.

" The Emperour (fays the French Continuator of Rapin) had, *f indeed his Share, in thefe Negotiations ; but England and " Holland (or rather England alone) much more. The vaft " Sums which were lavilh'd away, on the Duke of Savoy, cer- " tainly never came out of the Emperour' s Coffers. He pro- " mifed him nothing more than the Inveftiture of Montferrat ; " but left him the Care of getting Pofleffion of it. It mull " have been fomething more than Promifes that could determine " this Prince to give up thirty thoufand Crowns a Month, which, " he received of France and Spain, for the fmall Aid they had '* from him. Queen Ann (continues my Author) made a liberal " Ufe of the Power given her by Parliament, to fpare nothing " in procuring fuch new Alliances, as (he might judge advanta- " geous and neceflary for the common Caufe.

The Affairs of Italy were this Year fo inconfiderable, that they had no Influence on any thing in which the Duke of Maryborough was concern'd, I therefore pafs them by, to re- turn to his Grace.

The Campaign in the Netherlands being at an End, as I Thc Cam- have obfervM above, the Duke of Marlborough, having given paign cntkd> the neceflary Orders for the Difpofition of the Troops, was preparing to return to England. In the mean Time, the Arch- duke Charles, of Auftria, having been declared King of Spain, The Arch- at Vienna, by the Refignation of his Father and his Brother, duke of had taken the Title of Charles III. King of Spain, fefc . and A1uftr,iaKdc- was arrived at Duffeldorp, in his Way, thro' Holland and Eng- C0f Spain "S land, for that Kingdom.

N4 As

1 84 tie 'Life of J O H N,

1703. As foon as the Duke of Marlborough was informed of the" </V^O iving of Spain's Arrival at Dufleldorp, his Grace went thither, TWtJuEe to congratulate his Majefty, on his AcceiTion to the Spanifh rou^hwaits T}lrone» in the Name of the Q.ueen of G^i Britain. The «ii him. Duke, among other Things, toid him ; He iuas juft come from putting bis Majejly in Poffejfion of Limburg : To which the young Monarch anfwered ; That he hoped to be much more tndebt* ed to bis Grace's Valour, in the Redud ion of other Places and Terri- tories to his Obedience. The King having had Notice of the Duke's Coming, put on, the Day he expected his Vifit, a fine fce makes TIC^ Sword, that he defigned to make a Prefent of to his Grace, fire Duke which he did, in the following polite Manner : While they were an We Pie- difcourfing together, his Majefty totfk it from h Is Side, and fen:. gfyiflg it into the Duke's Hand, with a graceful Air, My Lord

(faid he, in French) I am not ajhamed to fay, I am but a poor Prince, (Je n'ai que la Cape & 1'Epee) 1 have only my Cloak and toy Snvora; [alluding to his being a Younger Brother] the latter may le of Ufe to your Grace, and I hope you will not think it tht fjjorfe for my 'wearing it one Day. So far from it (replied the Duke) T'.-at it Jhall always put me in Mind of your Majefty s jujt Right and 'Title, and of the Obligations I lye under to hazard my Life, and all thafs dear to me, to make you the greateji Prince in Clprif.endom . And we mail find, in the Sequel, his Grace was ever mindful of his Promife, as far as in him lay. His Grace The Duke accomPanied his Majefty to the Hague, where he arrived the cf Marlboro* fecond of November, N. S» and the Duke, after fome Stay arrives in there, to concert proper Mealures, for the enfuing Campaign, England. went over to England, where he arrived the thirteenth of Ofto-

ber, O. S.

The King The King of Spain followed him, the twenty-third of De-

of Spain ar- cember, N. S. and arrived at Spithead, the fix and twentieth,

England from whence he was invited, by the Queen, to Windfor ; and

being conduced thither by the Duke of Mariborough, who was

fent to Spiihead, to compliment him, on his Arrival, and by

Prince George, who met him by the Way, he was entertained

with great Splendour, and royal M-gnificence. His Majefty

The Duke ftay'd but two Nights at Windfor, and then returned to Portf-

rougL"-" mouth, and went on Board the Royal Catharine, commanded by

pointed Go- Sir George Rooke, who was appointed to carry his Majefty to

vernour of Lifbon.

Greenwich- This'Year, likewife, the Duke of Marlborough was appoint- HofpttaL ed Governour of Greenwich-Hofpital.

The Con- Before I conclude my Account of the Tranfaftions of this ftrcTthe Year' r rauft mention one> which happened after the Duke of French Marlborough left the Army under his Command : When the Lines in Troops on both Sides were thought to be very quiet in their FJaoders. Winter Quarters, unexpectedly, on the 26th of December, in

the

of MAKLBOROT/GF?, &c. i

the Evening, the Count de Noyellcs march'd from Liege, with 170$. a Detachment, confifting of 30 Men out cf each Company of i_,— y— L Foot, in Garrifon there, notwithftanding the Inclemency of the Weather, which was very bad and foggy, to Marche en Famine, where he was join'd by a good Number of Troops, drawfl out of Maeftricht, Vifet, Ruremond, Aix la Chappelle, Venlo, and other Places, which together made a Body of 13,500 Men, befides loco Men more drawn out of Huy, who were command- ed by the Baron de Trongue, Governour of that Place. They continued their March, the next Day, and, on the 2 8th, be- times in the Morning, arrived before the Enemy's Lines, be- tween the Villages of Wafeige and Merdo.

The Baron de Trongue, with his Detachment, was fent be- fore, and was the firlt that forced the Lines } and when the Count came up, he found him ported in the Church-yard of Wafeige ; the French Forces which were there having been oblig'd to retire, after a fhort Refiftance, and many of them having been kill'd or taken Prifoners. The Count de Noyelles immediately gave Orders for demolilhing the Lines, which was done in lefs than 24 Hours, for the Space of a League and a half, tho' they confirted of a Ditch 20 Foot deep, and 24 broad, and a Parapet proportionable. In the mean Time, a Detachment was fent out to put the neighbouring Country undei, Contribution, who brought away the principal Inhabitants as Hoftages, for the Payment of the Sum of 300,000 Guilders, which were demanded of them, and which they engaged to make good in three Weeks Time. The zgth, they marched to HanefF, whence the Count de Noyelles return'd to Liege, with the Forces he took with him from thence, as the reft did to their refpeftive Garrifons. This Expedition, which was managed with the greateft Secrecy, very much alarm'd the Enemy, who expected nothing lefs, at this Time of the Year : And the Mar- fhal de Villeroy went thereupon from Bruffels to Leewe, with a fmall Detachment of Horfe and Dragoons, being followed by- the Sieur de Ximenes, with a Body of Troops drawn out of fe- veral of their Garrifons, between the Sambre and the Maefe ; but the Allies being returned to their Winter-Quarters, they did the like, leaving the Repairing of their Lines to a more favour- able Seafoa.

CHAP.

Tee Life of J O H N,

CHAP. V.

HS in 1 704. //'// /^^ Forcing of the French Intrencbments at Schellemberg.

1704.

The Duke ofMarlbo- rough goes for Holland,

A Plan fcrm'd for the enfuing Campaign.

The Duke return*.

TCome now to the ever-memorable Year 1-04, a Year as noted, in the Britifh Chronicles of the Reign of Queen Ann, ior the wondrous and happy SuccelTcs it produced, as the Year 1588 is, in thofe of the Reign of her Aiajefty's great Predecef- for, Q^een Elisabeth.

While our Modern Hero, the Duke of Marlborough, who would have been a Glory even to that fertile Reign, was bufying himfclf in Parliament, for the Good of the Common Caufe, the States General were fo highly fenfible of his prudent Conduft, and fo defirous of his Prefer.ce among them, that they reprefented to her Majefly, by««*hfcflr Envoy Extraordinary in London, Of hvw great Ad-vantage his Excellences coming to the Hague would be to thf Confederacy, by concerting there nvith them, the Meafuns proper to be taken at that 'Jun-fwe ; and defired her Majefty to give his Grace Leave to pafs the Seas, for a few Days. Her Majetty was, therefore, pleafed. on the fecond of January, to give Di- reclions for that Purpofe. Accordingly, the fifteenth of the fame Month, the Duke embark'd on Board the Mary Yacht, in the River, in order to fail for Holland, and arrived, in three Days, at the Hague, where he received the Compliments of all the publick Miniiters, the General Officers, and other Perfons of Quality.

He had feveral Conferences, with the Deputies of the States General, in which there was a Scheme formed for the Operations of the next Campaign. It was refolved, that, inrtead of a fruitlefs one, in the Netherlands, they would have only a fmall Army there, to lye on the Defeniive, which was to be commanded by Monf. d'Auverquerque ; but that, fince the Rhine was open, by the taking of Bonn, all up to the Mofel, their main Army, which was to be commanded by the Duke of Marlborough, fhould aft there. More was not underftood to be defigned, ex- tept by thofe few, who were let into the Secret.

Upon this, all the Preparations for the Campaign were order- ed to be carried up to the Rhine, that every thing might be in a Readinefs againlt the Duke's Return The true Secret was in few Hands, and the French had fo little Scent of it, that they feemed to have no Manner of Apprehenfions, that tended that Way. All thefe Matters being fettled, his Grace left the Hague,

the

Duke of MARLBORotrtfri, &V. itf'7

the eleventh of February, and on the fourteenth, arrived at 1704. London. <~- ~.y~ *j

The Affairs of the Empire were, at this Time, in a very Deplorable defperate Condition ; the Emperour was reduced to the lull Ex- State of the tremities ; the Eledor of Bavaria was Matter of the Danube, E™Pf °« all down to Paffau, and the Malcontents in Hungary were mak- and mPirc* ing a formidable Progrefs. The Emperour was not in a Condi- tion to maintain a defenfive War long, on both Sides , nor was he able to make any Oppofition againlt them at all, mould they have once come to adl by Concert.

Thus his Affairs had a very dark Appearance, and utter Ruin was to be apprehended : Vienna was in an apparent Danger of being befieged, on both Sides ; and it was not in a Condition to make a long Defenfe j fo the Houfe of Auftria feemed loft, be- yond all Profpeft of a Recovery. Prince Eugene wifely pro- ™* f™^~ pofed, that the Emperour mould implore the Queen of Great p-jores ^e Britain's Prote&ion ; this was agreed to, and Count Wratiflm Prote&ion managed the Matter at our Court, with great Application and cf'tf.eQuee* Secrecy ; the Duke of Maryborough faw theNeceffity of under- of Great taking his Relief, and refolved to ufe all poffible Endeavours, to put it in Execution When he went into Holland, as I have faid above, he propofed it to the Penfionary, and (as fome fay) other Perfons of the greateft Confidence : They approved it 3 but it was not advifeable to propofe it to the States ; at that Time, many would not have thought their Country fafe, if their Army Ihould be fent fo far from them : Nothing could be long a Secret, that was propofed to fuch an Affembly, and the main Hope of fucceeding in this Defign lay in the Secrecy, with which it was conducted. Therefore, under the Pretext of carrying the War to the Mofel, every thing was prepared* that was neceiTary for executing the true Defign.

Things being in this Condition, Count Wratiflau, the Em- perour's Envoy Extraordinary to the Queen of Great Britain, did, on the ad of April; 1704, prefent a Memorial to her Ma- jefty, importing;

" 'TT^HAT having at feveral times reprefented to her Count tVYa-

" J| Majefty's Minifters, by Word of Mouth, the preffing tin'u>s Me-

** Neceffities of the Empire, by the breaking in of a confider- J

*' able Army of French into Bavaria ; xvhich, together with the

" Infurredion in Hungary, had reduced the Imperial Here-

" ditary Countries into an incredible Perplexity and Confufion j

" fo that it was to be feared, an entire Revolution and De-

«' folation of all Germany would follow, if fome fpeedy Af-

*' fiftance were not applied, proportionable to the great Dan-

" ger they were threatned with : He was extreamly well fatis-

*\ fied with the Zeal her Majeily's Miniilers had for the Com-

i88 tte Life of J O H N,

1704. (t mcn Caufe, and with the Attention they gave to his Repne- tX"V"Nj " fcuMtions 5 but nothing being as yet refolved on, tho' the " Se.ifon was far advanced ; and the final Refolution, on the «« fever- 1 Schemes th.it h~d been prefented, being deferr'd til? «{ the Arrival of the Dake of Marlboroagh at the Hague, " this Envoy thought himfelf obliged, before his Grace's De- *' parture, to do his lait Endeavour, by reprefenting, in Wri- " ting, the Danger wherein the Emperour and Empire were '' at prefent involved. That her Majefty, out of the fame " Zeal for preferving the Liberties of Europe, for which me '* w^s fo much fam'd, among the Potentates in Alliance with " her Majefty, would be pleafed to order the Duke of Marl- t( borough, her Captain General, ferioufly to confult with the " S;:atei General, of the fpeedieft Method for affifting the " Empire ; or, at leaft, to conducl Part of the Troops in her " Majefty "s Pay beyond the Sea, taprefer-ve Germany from a total. '• Sub-vet fan'; it not being juft in itfelf, nor any Ways advan- * " ngeous to the Common Caufe, that her Majefty 's Troops

" ihould tarry on the Frontiers of Holland; which were not " in the leait threatned by the Enemy, and were defended by " great Rivers and ftrong Places, whilll the Empire was de- " ftroyed b/ the French Troops, by Fire and Sword. In the •' Conc'.ufion, Count Wfatiflau faid, that the Def:re he moft *' humbly prefented was grounded on the Alliance concluded *< between the Emperour, England and Holfand ; purfuant to " which he hoped, that her Majefty would give thofe Or- " ders, which were neceflhry for the Afliftance of Germany ; " by the Wunt of which, he forefaw the Mifchiefs which " would enfue to the common Caufe ; efpecially, it the Or- '* ders of the States General, to recall their Troops from the " Empire, mould take Place, in a Time when France endea- 44 voured to fend a powerful AfTtftance to their Army in «« Bavaria,,^

TheQaeen's ^° *^'s Memorial, the Queen was pleafed to return an

Aafwer. Anfwer, by Mr. Secretary Hedges, importing, " That the

" Duke of Marlboiough, Captain General of her Armies, had

'* received Orders iroin her M.'jefty, to take the moft effectual

" Methods with the States General- of the United Provinces,

" her good Allies and Confederates, to fend a fpeedy Succour

" to his Imperial M\jtfty, and the Empire, and to prefs the

*' States to take the r.eceflary Meafures to refcue Germany,

" from the imminent Dsnger it was now expofed to.

~ t SP Either the foregoing Memorial was but Matter of Form, or

«r»cy"of the tne Emperoui's Envoy was then unacquainted with the great

Duke of Projed, whirh the Duke of Marlborough had a7ready formed to

Jdarlboro.' deliver the Empire ; and which, it is fald, he hr,d -communicated

to

Dukeof MARYBOROUGH, '&c. ,189

Jo three PeHbns in England only, viz. the Queen, the Pcinc« of 1704. Denmark, and die Lord Treafurer ; not to above two Perfons i_s^\~\J more in Holland ; and not to any of the Imperial Court, before he was ready to put it in Execution.

In order to this, his Grace embark' d at Harwich, the Sth of He embarks April, O. S. with his Brother, General Churchill, Lieutenant- for Holland. General Luraley, the Earl of Orkney, and other General-Offi- cers, landed fafely, at Maeflandt-Sluys, the twenty-firft of the fame Month, N. S. and came the fame Evening to the Hague ; Arrives at where he received the Compliments of the Foieign Miniuers, the Hague. General-Officers, and other Perfons of Distinction.

On the twenty-third of April, N. S. he was attended by a Has a Con. Deputation of the States-General, with whom he had a Preli- fcrence with minary Conference about the Meafures he thought moil proper ^ Deputies JO be profecuted this Summer. The fame Day, part of the ^J] Garrifons of Liege and Maeltricht, with the Troops which had been canton'd, for fome Time, in tint Neighbourhood, con- iiiting of feventy-thres Squadrons, and about forty 'Bittalions, \vere ordered to affemble, on the rifing Ground of Leon, and to encamp, with the Left, at the Village of Harcourt, and their Right near the River Jaer.

About the fame Time, the States General regulated the fe- Thc State* yeral Pofts of their General Officeis : Monf. d'Auverquerque, p^JJ^ their Field Marfnal, was appointed to command their Force; on their Ge- the Maefe, having under him the Counts de Tilly and Noyelies, nerals. as Generals : General Schlangenburg, thofe on the Mofel : Lieu- tenant-General Saljfch, in Brabant; Lieutenant-General Spar, and Lieutenant-General Fagel, in Flanders ; and Major-Gene- ral Belcaftel, in Savoy.

On the fecond of May, his Grace had another long Con- T.lls Dalc« Terence with the Deputies of the States General, wherein he de- ^^JJJ0" clared to them the Project he had concerted long before, and of pr0jeft to which he had only given fome Hints, to fuch of them as he had the State* mofl Confidence in, when, at the Defire of .the States, he went GiaciaJ. laft to the Hague. He told them withal, that he thought his marching into permany would moil .conduce to the Advantage of the Confederacy, and the Annoyance of the Common Ene- my ; and therefore he doubted unt, upon their Repprt of this Matter to the States General, but they would readily concur with him, and join their Forces with her Majefty's of Great Britain, in fo glorious a Caufe. The States fpent a whole Day's Confultation upon the Duke's Propofal, to which fome Member;* of that vvifj and potent Affembly, were fomewlr.it backward .to give their Concurrence ; being apprehenfive, that by dividing .their Forces, in this Manner, they might lofe, in one Summer, #11 the Advantages they had gained, by his Graces Conduct and Valour, in the two former .Campaig«xs.

ttf

ne Life of J O H N,

The next Morning, the Duke had a Conference with the States General themielves, and the Council of State, to whom he made a very lively Reprefentation of the imminent Danger that threafned the whole Empire, and indeed all Europe, if an imr mediate Che.ck where not given to the Progrefs of the French and Bavarians, in Germany j adding, That being now entire Mailers of the Maefe, and all the Spanifh Guelderland, a fmall The States Number of Forces were able to fecure their Frontiers. Thefe /concur with Reafons, fupported by the Reputation of him that delivered the Duke'* thern, and by the Influence of thofe whom the Duke had trulted ropolals. wjtn hjs Secret, made fo great Impreffion on the Minds of the whole Aflembly, that all Affairs relating to the Operations of His Grace tne enfuing Campaign, were, in this Conference, happily deter- •ftts out min'd and adjufted ; after which his Grace took his Leave of from the them, and on the cth of May, at Night, went in a Yatch to

Hague. Utrecbt.

The confummate Wifdom of the Duke of Marlborough, in the Managemcnt of this important Affair, on which the Fate of umin he a*' Germany, I may fay, of all Europe depended, cannot be fuf- Manage- ficiently admirM. The Plan of it was entirely his own, and it ment of thjs was long treafur'd up in his own Breaft only. When Matters Affair. were rjpe for tjiat purp0fej anci the \vay prepared, he opened his Defign to his Sovereign, whofe Approbation and Confent was primarily neceffary ; but trufted none elfe with the Secret, but the Lord Treafurer, in whom he knew he could jconfide, and who muft neceflarily have a Knowledge of it. Having the Queen's Confent, he was fenfible that of the States was likewife requifite, as fo large a Body of their Troops were, under him, to be initrumer.tal in the Execution of it. He then open'd fome Part of his Mind to one or two only of the Affembly of the States, in his firft Voyage to Holland, but prudently kept the main De- fign yet a Secret. At his Return to Holland, thefe his Confi- dants having prepared the Way, he open'd fo far of his Mind to. the whole Aflembly of the States, and by Force of Argument obtained their Confent to aft with their Troops, in Germany, that is, on the Mofel ; but they had no Knowledge of his real Defign to march into the Heart of the Empire, and ftrike at the Root of the Evil, which threatned, and muft have brough£ to pafs its entire Ruin, without this feafonable and falutary Relief..

Arrives at The next Day, his Grace's Coaches met him at Utrecht, and

Utrecht » carried him, that Evening, to Vortz, a Seat belonging to the

Earl of Albemarle * from whence he proceeded towards Rure-

mond, giving Orders for the Englifh Troops, and other Forces

pofted thereabouts, to join and march towards Coblentz. The

Rartmond ; ejgnth, the Duke came to Ruremond, where he was falute<J

with, a triple Difcharge of the Cannon, and complimented by

m

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. the Bifhopand Magiftrates of the Place, who met 'him fome Di- ftance from the Town. His Grace gave, the lame Evening, the neceffary Orders for the building of a Bridge, over which the Englifh, and other Troops defigned, as ic was indurtrioufly given out (for all that had been hitherto propofed in publick, related only to the Motions, that Way) for the Mofel, were to pafs : Thofe Forces being, in the mean time, drawing together, to- wards BoifLeduc, under the Command of General Churchill, in, order to proceed on their March to Ruremond.

The tenth, the Duke went to Mueltricht, where he had the And MaeC- fame Honours paid him as at Ruremond j and Monf. d'Auver- tric"t- querque, with feveral other General Officers, having waited up- on his Grace, the Duke accompanied them to the Lamp, and, having reviewed the Dutch Army, was entertained by them at j^J'^j^ Dinner, and then returned to Maeftricht. 1 he Sixteenth, his £my" c Grace fet put from thence ; and, the fame Evening, joined the Detachment, commanded by Brigadier- General Fergufon, with five Squadrons of Dutch Horfe, and eleven Pieces of Cannon of the Dutch Train. The eighteenth, the Duke marched to Bed- J^"^^ burg, and was there joined by General Churchill, with the En- Forces a«4 glim Forces and Train of Artillery, and the Army encamp'd, Artillery. with the Left, at that Place, and the Right at Caller. The nineteenth, the Prince of Saxe-Zeits, Bifhop of Raab, and the Prince of Hefle, with other Canons of the Chapter of Cologne, came from thence to the Camp, to wait upon his Grace ; as did alfo Count Briancon, Envoy Extraordinary from the Duke of Savoy, to her Majefty of Great Britain.

The French, in Flanders, began, by this Time, to be The Frcndk alarm1 d j tho* they were far from fufpecling the Duke's real n,i:flQkc, . Defign. His marching towards Coblentz, and the great Prc: pjngn. ' parations which were making in that Place, made them believe, that his Grace defigned to open the Campaign, with the Siege of Traerbach, and endeavour to advance, along the Mofel, into France. Upon this Suppofition, they detach'd eight Battalions, and fixteen Squadrons, towards that River, and gave out, that they intended the Siege of Huy, vainly imagining, that, by this Report, they might flop the Progrefs of the, Englifh Ge- Attempt, I* neral. This feint was too thinly glofs'd over, to have any Ef- J^p,.*0,!^ fed on the Duke ; and befides, he very well knew, that the j,y * F Jut. * Forces he had left in Flanders, under the Command of Monf. d'Auverquerque, were fufficient to fruftrate any Attempt the French could make on that Side ; his Grace, therefore, continued his March, according to the Relblution he had too firmly taken, to be diverted from, by fuch weak Stratagems, and, on the twentieth of May, advanced from Bedburg to Kerpen. T)v, Dij!{e

The next Day, his Grace advanced as far as Kalfecken, where continues . he received an. E*pre& from Prince Lewis of Baden, giving it as his March.

his

Sfe Life of J O H N,

his Opinion, that the French might force their Paflage through the Black Foreit, and bring a new Addition of Strength to the Elector of Bavaria, which was confirmed by Letters from the Prince of Heffe, Monf. Bulau, and Baron Hompefch, who all ag*"66^ in the ^ame Opinion. About the fame Time, his Grace inforcemcnts received Advice from the Netherlands, that the Court of France into Bavaria, had fent poiitive Orders to the Marihal de Villeroy, to march towards the Mofel, with fire and thirty Battalions, and fix and forty Squadrons ; being Hill firmly perfuaded, that his Grace " 5"s.ut" would a<S on that Side. He thereupon, gave immediate Orders

moft Dili- r i_- T- i. r j- •

gence to for his Forces to march, and, for the greater Expedition, to prevent it. prevent the ill Confequences, that might attend a Conjunciion of the French and Bavarians, he himfelf advanced with the Horfe, end left the Infantry to march after him, with the Ar- tillery and Baggage, under the Command of his Brother, Lieu- tenant-General Churchill .; who, likewife, was very expeditious in following the Duke ; tho% in fuch Manner, as not to over- fatigue the Troops. The Method he took, fcr this End, was, to begin his March, every Morning, by Break of Day, and en- ramping in their new Camp, before the Heat of the Meridian Sun incommoded them ; fo that the remaining Part of the Day's Reft, till the next Morning, at Day-break ag;un, was almoft as refrefhing as a Day's Halt.

Vifits the ^ ^e twenty-th'rc^ his Grace left his Troops, on a full March, Fortifica- an<^ went to ta^e aView of the Fortifications of Bonn, where hav- tions of ing given his Directions to the Go vernour of thajt Place, he return- Bonn. €(j, jn the Evening, to the Army ', and here, he received certain NewTofthe News, f^at l^e Recri"ts for the French Army, in Bavaria, with trench and farther Re-inforcements, had actually join'd the Eledor of that Bavarians Name, three Days before, at Villingen.

As this Incident greatly encreas'd the Difficulties our illuftrious General had to encounter with, tho' it could not make his iteady Refoluticn, nor abate his dauntlefs Courage ; I mult beg Leave to make a fmall Digrefllon, to give a fuccmdt Account of this no lefs important than difficult Enterprize, which, on the Side of the French, was executed with great Order, Diligence, and Succefs, notwith&anding all the Precautions taken by the Germans to prevent it ; the Neceffity of which previous Ac- count, to fet the Aliens of our Hero, and the Honour done to his Intrepidity and Cocducl, in a true Light, the Reader will fee in the Sequel.

!n~K The Marmal de Tailed had fent into the Lower Alface five J^§ and forty Boats, nt to make a Bridge: The Sieur Laubanie, «ffefted. Governour of Landau, polled himfelf at Germermeim, with 7 or Scoo Men, and a great Train of Artillery : The Troopi brought from the Mofel, by the Count de Coigny, feemed to march that W>y ; and the Army of the Mai^al de Tallard

Duke

W*s likewife ordered to march thither. Thefe Prt r>arations oblig'd the Germans to withdraw Part of the Forces, which they had beyond the Mountains, to re-inforce thofe appointed to guard the Lines of Stolhoffen, and the Banks of the Rhine.

The Recruits defigned for Germany, to the Number of 12,000 Foot, 3,000 Horfe, and 1,000 Officers, were drawn to- gether at Neuburg, and the Marquis of Courtebonne was poit- ed, on the ofher Side of the Rhine, near Hunninghen, with a flying Camp, to give the Germans fome Jealoufy for the Foreft^ Towns, and the Lake of Conftance. In the mean Time, ths Eleaor of Bavaria marchnd from Ulm, die fourth of May, N. S. with an Army of near 30,000 Men, and ufed fo much Diligence, that, on the thirteenth, he arrived within eight Leagues of the Source of the Danube, the Germans, who were fur prized, quit- ting their Lines, and retiring, as that Prince advanced. The fame Day, (the thirteenth) the Troops commanded by the Mar- quis de Gourtebonne, and the Recruits, defcended along the Rhine ; and the Armies of the Marfhal de Tallard, and Count Coigny, advanced that Day to the Bridges laid at Brifac and Rheinau, where they pafs'd the Rhine. The former arrived,, the fourteenth, at Langendentzling, at the Entry of the Vally of Waldkirch, thro' which there was likewife a Pafs. The fame Day, the MaHnal de Tallard caufed a Road to be made, en his Right, leading into the Vally of St. Peter, and on the fif- teenth, he commanded a Detachment of Grenadiers, with ten Men out of each Troop of Horfe and Dragoons, and 1 10 out of each Battalion, under the Command of the Sieur de Zurlau- ben, to poft themfelves at Kirchzarten. The fixteenth, the Right Wing of the Cavalry, with two Brigades of Foot, march'd to poflefs the Camp of the Sieur de Zurlauben, who advanced towards the Mountain of Torner, fituate in the Middle of the. Paffage. The Germans had built a Fort upon that Mountain, but had abandoned it, as well as feveral Redoubts and Intrench- ments ; and two Regiments which they had pofted in the Abby of St. Peter, quitted that PoJft, likewife, with great Precipita- tion.

The Marfhal de Tallard, who had joined the Detachment of the Sieur de Zurlauben, planted fome Troops, in thofe Polb, for the Security of 500 Waggons, which followed the Recruits, and to favour their Paflage. The Marquis de Courtebonne march'd to encamp at Capel, at the Entry of the VaHy of Friburg, and was, the feventeenth, at Faulkenfteigh, wiiere the Equipages and Waggons met together, having pafs'd, in the Night, under rhe Cannon of Friburg. Thefe Waggons were 'loaded with Ammunition, Arms, Provifions and Mony, for the Army ; and the Eledior of Bavaria, who arrived, the ikteenth, 3at DViau Efchingen, the Source of the Danube, where the Mat -

>cu. I. O ftal

tfbe Life of J O H N,

fhal de Tallard went to pay him a Yifit. He continued there* the eighteenth, to confer with him, and, on the nineteenth, rejoined his Army, near Friburg. Having given his Army two or three Days Reft there, he decamped from the Neighbourhood of Friburg, and march'd back towards Offenburg, as if his In- tention was to attack the Lines of Biehl.

n- The Conduct of the laiperialifts, on this Occafion, was very

the much cenfur'd, as well in trufling the Guard of the important

Paffes of the Black-Foreit> to the Militia alone, as becaufe they

did not take the Opportunity of fighting the Ele&or of Bavaria,

when they might have done it with a vifible Advantage.

The Eledor of Bavaria, and the Marfhal de Marfm, being advanc'd towards Dutlingen, General Thungen thought fit to withdraw the Confederate Troops from the Lines, between the Danube, and the Lake of Conftance, and ported himfelf at Rot- vveiler, the thirteenth, with eight Regiments of Horfe, nine Bat- talions of the Dutch, and two of Wolfembuttel. He was re- inforced, the fourteenth, with another Dutch Battalion, and three others, befides three Regiments of Horfe, of the DukeofWir- temberg. The fifteenth, the Margrave of Bareith and Count Stirum arrived in the Camp, with 1 2,000 Men, befides four Battalions, and nine Squadrons, of the King of Pruflia's Forces.

Thefe Generals, feeing they had a fine Army, confiding of ninety-nine Squadrons, and two and forty Battalions, were re- folved to attack the Eledor of Bavaria, the feventeenth, near .Villengen ; but Prince Lewis of Baden fent them particular Or- ders, not to ftir from their Camp till his Arrival. The nine- teenth, that Prince arrived in his Camp, and having held a Council of War, it was refolved to attack the Enemy, the next Day : But it was then too late, the Opportunity was neglefted ; the Army broke up, indeed, according to the Refolution of the Council of War ; but the Bavarians having Advice of their Mo- tion, quitted their Camp, with great Precipitation, leaving fe- veral Things behind, and retired to Donau Efchingen, the Ar- mies being fo near, that fome Bavarians were obliged to pafs al- jnoft within Mulket-fhot of the Imperialifts, who faluted them \vith feveral Vollies of Cannon. The twenty-firft, the Elector march'd to Hufingen, and advanced, on the twenty-fecond, to Furftemberg, and, the twenty -third, to Engen,

Prince Lewis not being able to attack the Bavarians, becaufe they were parted by a deep River, and a Morafs, march'd to Dutlingen, the twenty-firft, and having pafs'd the Danube, ad- vanced to Liptingen, the twenty-third, to ftreighten the Ba- varians, between the Lake of Conftance, and his Army, and oblige them to fight. The twenty-fourth, General Bibra join- ed Prince Lewis of Baden, with 7000 Men, from the Lines of Stolhoffen, and both Armies moved toward Stokacb, the only Pafs thro' which the Bavarians could make, their Retreat. The

five

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, fcfr. 19

five and .twentieth, they cannonaded each other; but during; 1704. that Cannonading, the Bavarians march'd thro' a Defilee, which ^/~y~\ was To narrow, that only two Men could go thro' it in Front, and, the fix and twentieth, in the Morning, their whole Army was gone thro% and march'd to Pfuhlenclorff, and from thence to Saulgen, having found a great Quantity of Provifions, at the firft, which they had ordered to be hid up there, in their March to Donau-Efchingen. They then burnt that Place, and feveral others. The Impemlifts hnving thus fuffered the Bavarians to efcape, march'd towards Mofchkircken, and, the eight and twentieth, in the Evening, arrived at Riedlingen. The Bava- rians were three Days without Bread, and had the Imperialifts fecured the Pafs of Stockach, they muft of Neceffity have laid down their Arms, and difbanded themfelves. Some have laid the Fault upon the Guides, who led the Army a great Way a- bout ; tho' more ;:fcribed it to the Heavinefs and ill Conduct of the Germans, and Prince Lewis of Baden, who were much blamed on this Account. But, whoever was to blame, 'tis certain the Prlnce Eu Imperialifts loft a very favorable Opportunity, which, as it oc- g,.ne CQinej cafioned great Marmurings in the Army, fo it rendered the Ar- to the Im- rival of Prince Eugene amongft them very defirable. - pcrialArmy.

I return now to the Duke of Marlborough, upon whofe Mo- The Duke tions, by this Time, the Eyes of all Europe were fix'd, and of Marlboro' who, notwithftanding this Junction of the French and Bavarians, continues was, on account of the Number of the Troops, which the hl3 March- French left behind them, and by the Marmal's marching back, with the reft of his Army, towards the Rhine, confirmed in his. Opinion, That the Enemy ivere as yet wholly ignorant of his true Detign. He therefore continued his March, with unwearied Diligence, and advanced, by the five and twentieth, to the Camp of Neudorff, near Coblentz, where, befides Mr. Dave- nant, the Queen's Agent at Frankfort, and Monf. d'Amelo, Envoy Extraordinary from the States General, who came to compliment his Grace, Count Wratiflau, late Envoy from the Emperour to her Majefty of Great-Britain, likewife waited on the Duke, to fettle all Things for his Grace's farther March, and his Conjunction with the Imperial Army.

The fix and twentieth, while the Horfe and Dragoons were paffing over the Rhine, his Grace paid a Vifit to the Eledor of ^S,, *f Triers, at his Caille of Ehrenbreitftein, where he was &IueediTriers. with a triple Difcharge of the Cannon round the Place, and ; having dined with the Eleclor, in the Afternoon, marched, with his Troops to Braubach, a Town belonging to the Land- grave of HefTe-Darmftadt.. Th£ next Day, that Prince gave a And isvifit- Vifit to the Duke, who encamp'd that Night, at Neuitetten, ^rbj ^e and, the eight and twentieth, removed to Schwalbach. In the o{. HeiTe- mean Time, the Foot march'd, the feven and twentieth, from D.irmftadt. Coblentz to Braubach, and the next Daj\ to Neuftetten, having O z Oi'ders

the Life of JOHN,

Orders to follow the Horfe and Dragoons, as dofe as was con- fident with the March of the Artillery and Baggage. During the Time the Army encamp'd at Neuftetten, Mr. Cardorihel, the Duke's Secretary, wrote the following Letter to Monf. * * * * at Zell.

Iranflat'um of a Letter from Mr. Cardonnel to Monf.*** atZetl. From tie Camp at Neuflett, May 28. ^704.

SIR,

A .Letter «« "J^^Y Lord Duke difpatch'd his Elcftoral Highnefs's Mef-

from .Mr. « lV_|. fenger, laft Night, in order for his Departure early

to MM".' " this Moming> as I believe he did ^ore nve- Not having

*** at Zell. " Time then to write to you, I would not detain him, but fhalt

" fend this to your Agent at Frankfort, to be forwarded to you.

" This ferves chiefly to thank you for your two Letters, which

" accompanied Monf. de Chamillard's Memorial, and Du

11 Breuil's Examination. With regard to the former, you know

" already, that the moft confiderable Point they concerted, viz.

*' the Junction, has had its Effeft, without a Blow being ftruck,

" before the Prince of Baden had joined the Troops, and while

" he had given pofitive Orders, that they fhould not aft before

" his Arrival : We find, however, the utmoft Defigns of the

" Enemy, in this Memorial, and I hope we mall be able to tra-

" verfe them.

" We have been thefe two Days in Expectation of another " Courier from the Prince of Baden, to inform us of the Sue - f{ cefs of fome Aftion between him, and the Eledtor (of Bavaria) " as he gives us Reafon to hope, by his Letter, of which the " enclofed is a Copy ; but, to tell you the Truth, I expeft no «' great Matter from the Management of this Prince. My Lord " Duke has likewife fent a Copy of it, to his Highnefs the " Eledor of Hannover.

" Upon Monf. deVilleroy's March, we wrote to the Hague, " for a Re-inforcement of Troops, *nd if it come quickly, I •" flatter myfelf, with the Afliflance of the ALMIGHTY, we *' mail have a happy Campaign.

«' We continue our March to-day, and mail be to-morrow at " Mayntz, where we fhall halt but one Day, and then march " on to join our Troops, which are about Philipfkirg ; but our " Englim Infantry, which marches with the Artillery, could not " be quite fo expeditious.

I am, fcrV.

A. CAR DOWN EL.

Tho'

Duke of MA PL BOROUGH, 6JV.

Tho' Mr. Cardonnel, in this Letter, is pretty modeft in his Cenfure of Prince Lewis, and he did not indeed then know all that had pafs'd ; yet he gives fufficiently to uttderftand, that little or nothing was to be expected from the Imperialists.

While the Duke was encamp'd at Schwalbach, Lieufenant- General Bulau, Commander in chief of the Lunenburg Forces, came to pay his Refpe&s to his Grace, who, the fame Day, re- ceived Letters, from the hereditary Prince of Heffe, and Gene- ral Hompefch, acquainting him that they ivere come to Mentz, expelling his Orders. The Duke had fcarce read thefe Letters, when he received another Exprefs from the States General, to aflure him, that according to his Dejire, they had given Orders The Dutch for a Re-inforcement of eight Battalions, and one and twenty $ qua- promife liim drom, to be Jent after his Grace, with all Speed, from the ~ Army on £ e~jn- the Maefe, and that Monf. d1 Au<verquerque had appointed Jlxteen Squadrons of Horfe, fae of Dragoons, feven Battalions of Danijb Forces, and cne of Heffe for that Service.

The nine and twentieth, the Duke continued his March from The Duke Schwalbach to CafTel, a Village on the Rhine, over againft *

Mentz ; and, immediately upon his Arrival, went to irukc a Vifit to the Elector of that Name. At the Landing-place, pn the other Side of the River, feveral of the Elector's Coaches at- tended, to carry his Grace and his Retinue, to the Palace ; and, in the mean time, he was faluted, by a Difcharge of the Cannon round the City. His Grace, with his Retinue, were magnificently entertained by the Elector, and, after Dinner, a Conference was held, between the Generals, about the farther .Motions of the Confederate Armies in Germany. The next Day, the Duke allowed his Troops fome Reft, and, in the mean time, being attended by the principal Officers of the Ar- my, he vifited the Fortifications of Mentz, was again laluted by a Difcharge of the Cannon, and dined with the Elector, who intended to have gone over the River, to return his Grace's Vifit, and view his Troops, but was prevented by bad Weather.

The laft Day of May, the foreign Minifters, who had waited The Army on the Duke from Cobientzto Mentz, having taken their Leaves P!'" th- of him, the neceflary Orders were given, for the Troops to pafs AIayn » the Mayn, which being done, with all Diligence, the Duke continued his March towards the Neckar, encamp'd, that Nighr, at Grootgerhout, and advanced, the firft of June, to Quingen- berg. The next Day, his Grace march'd, with the Army, to Weinheim, and the following, to Ladenburg, where he, and the other Generals, took their Quarters, and the Troops palVd the Neckar, over a Bridge of Boats, and encamp'd on the River And ^ Side, oppofite to the Town. Here the Duke thought fit to halt NecStar two whole Days, as well to give his wearied Troops fome Kefrefhment, as that .the reft of the auxiliary Troops, which O 3 were

We Life 0/JOH.N,

were to ferve under his Grace, might not be left too far be- hind. The Duke ^ From Ladenburg, the Duke (who had now gained the Ad-

frforml'the' vanCC °f fome Davs March of the French Troops) wrote to the StateTof his States, and thought he might now let them know the whole whole DC- Secret, that he had the Queen's Order, to march to the Relief fign } of the Empire, with which he hoped they would agree, and al-

low of his carrying their Troops to mare in the Honour of that Expedition. He had their Anfwer as quick as the Courier could Which they carry it, by which they approved (and, indeed, they could not approve of. now well do otherwife) of the Defign, and of his carrying their Troops with him ; fo that now the whole Army was at his Dif- pofition without Controul.

The French The Duke's bending his March towards the Danube, was a again mif- terrible Surprize to the French, who, after their firil Miftake in their Ccnjeftures, that the Field of his Grace's Action was to be on tne Mo/el, had furmifed that he would advance to the Upper Rhine, and that he might have a Defign on Landau. This Jealoufy was confirm'd, both by his Grace's March to Mentz, and by the Governour of Philipfburg's mak:ng a Bridge over the Rhine. Upon this Sufpicion, Marfhal Tallaid repafled the Rhine, the fecond of June, at Ahenheim, in order, either to join the Marfhal de Villeroy, or to oppofe tL- Duke of Marlborough's Paffage over that River j of which his Grace was informed, the fourth, by an Exprefs from Count de Vehlen, Ge- neral of the Palatine Horfe, who commanded the Forces of the Lines of Stolhoffen.

,5u«iUyIn- The fifth of June, N. S. the Count de Friefe came to the telligences- J)uke's Army, to acquaint his Grace, from Prince Lewis of Ba- thTouke? den' whom he had left' with his Forces» at Ehingen, on this . ' Side the Danube, that the Eleclor of Bavaria was itrongly en- camp'd near Ulm, on the other Side. His Grace, likewise, re- ceived Intelligence, that Prince Eugene of Savoy was arrived, in the Imperial Camp ; and that the hereditary Prince, of HefTe- Caflel was marching, with the Troops of Hefle and Lunenburg, prudent Be- towards the Danube. Upon this, Count Wratiflau, who, during haviour cf all this Campaign, had made it his Bufuiefs, with indefatigable V'.u"tWra" Afiiduity, and admirable Conduct, to create and cherifh a good Correfpondence, and mutual Confidence, between the Duke, and the Emperour's Generals, went from his Grace, to confer v,ith Prince Lewis of Baden, upon Occafion of the Motions of the Enemy, on the other Side of the Rhine ; as likewife to manage an Interview between his Grace and Prince Eugene, which was equally defired by both thofe ilhulrious Generals. The Duke The Duke of Marlborough having given Orders to his Foot oi'Muriboro* and Artillery, which pafs'd the Mayn, the fourth, to follow, f nrfucs his with the Reinforcement of Horfe and Foot, which was march-

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 199

ing from the Maefe. under the Duke of Wirtemberg, his Grace 1704. decamp'd from Ladenburg, the lixth of the fame Month, and ^-—v~ "«* march'd to Wiftock. The feventh, he came to Eppingen; and, the next Day, continued his March to Great Gardach ; And en- during which, feveral of the Auxiliary Troops joined his Grace ; camPs at the reft, particularly the Foot and Artillery, which, that Day, G«at Gar~ pafs'd the Neckar, at Heidelberg, under the Condud of Gene- a( ral Churchill, receiving Orders to meet his Grace, at the Ren- dezvous at Gielingen.

Upon this, the Marfhal de Villeroy march'd, with all poffible Monf. de Speed, towards the Upper Rhine ; and, at the fame Time, a Villeroy Detachment of feven Battalions, and twenty-one Squadrons, ^aa^sh^°" from the Confederate Army in Flanders, under the Duke of UpperRhine. Wirtemberg, follow'd the Duke of Marlborough.

While the Duke was encamp' d at Great Gardach, the Baron The Duke de Staftarol, Grand Marmal to the Duke of Wirtemberg, came ™™jjd~b to compliment the Duke of Marlborough, in the Name of the th^DujJ'of Duke his Mailer, and affure him, that all poffible Affiitance Wirtemberg. mould be given to the Troops under his Grace's Command, in their March thro' his Matter's Territories.

The ninth, the Duke march'd, with the Horfe, from Great pirft Inter. Gardach, to Mondelfheim, where he halted the next Day, and, view be- in the Morning, received Advice, by an Adjutant-General, that ^veenePr* , Prince Eugene of Savoy, with Count Wratiflau, were on the ^ p'uke'of Road to his Camp, intending to dine with his Grace. About Marlboro', three in the Afternoon, his Highnefs arrived, at the Duke's Quarters, at Mondelfheim, where he was received with all the Marks of Honour and Civility due to his Rank and Quality.

Pofterity, as well as the prefent Age, will, without doubt, A Sketch Of be curious to know, what paffed at the firft Interview of thefe th^ir cha- Twin-Conftellations in Glory, the two greateft Generals of this ra"er3> Age, equal in their Merit and Fame, as well for their Courage and Conduct in military Exploits, as their Prudence in Council ; their Dexterity and Addrefs,. in the Management of Affairs ; and their Politenefs, Temper and Affability : What is come to my Knowledge, I mail faithfully relate, and wifti it were in my Power to gratify my Readers farther. After Dinner, which was as magnificent as the Circumftances of Time and Place could ad- mit of, the remaining Part of the Day was fpent in Confultations They hold * on the prefent Pofture of Affairs, which laited feveral Hours to- Confulta- gether ; and the mutual Satisfaction and Opinion they, at that tlon'- Time conceived, at and of each other's Prudence and Capacity, muft have been very great ; fmce the reciprocal Efteem, they before had, grew, from thenceforward, into fo ftricl a Friend - ihip and Confidence, as very much contributed to the glorious Succefles, which attended the Arms of the Allies, during the whole War. The Refult of their Confultations then was, that Refult of it. O^ the

Sfc Lift of J 0 H K,

1 704. the two Armies mould join, and that the Duke of Marlbordagir C—v-—' and Prince Lewis of Baden, fliould command, each Day, alter- nately, and that Prince Eugene fliould head a feparate Army en the Rhine.

ftoncwrs Thus the Dukej to his own, and his Country's tjonour, ob-

VM*! D' tain'dal>oft' which equalPd him to the firft General ih Chriften- boroi/h" ^om,viz. to command alternately with Prince Lewis, and af- terwards with Prince Eugene, and that in the Heart of Ger- many, where; always till then, the Forces of the Empire had the Precedence.

Compli- The next Day, his Highnefs marched with the Duke to

joints pafs d Great Heppach, where his Grace having ordered his Army to TrincTa^ be drawn up in Battalia, before the Prince, his Highnefs ex- eat Duke, prefs'd his Surprize, to find them in fo excellent a Condition, after fo long and fpeedy a March : Upon which Occnfion, he is reported to have faidj My Lord, I never fa<vo letter Horfes, better Chalks, finer Belts and Accoutrements ', yet all thefe may be had for Mony ; but there is a Spirit in the Looks of your Men, winch I •never yet favj in any, in my Life. His Grace, who could not but be extremely pleas'd with the Compliment, was not, how- ever, behind-hand with his Highnefs in Politenefs, but is faid to. have anfwered : Sir, if it be as you fay, that Spirit is infpired in than by your Prefence.

Pr. Lewis of The twelfth, Advice was brought from the Army commanded Baden comes by Prince Lewis of Baden, that three Regiments oTHorfemarch-

ke ed from thence' the e'ghth» to the Lines of StolhofFen ; and 0' that, the tenth, they were follow'd by 9000 Men of the Pruf- fian Forces, in order to oppofe the French, on that Side. The thirteenth, in the Morning, the Duke was inform'd by Count Wrajiflau, that Prince Lewis of Baden was coming Poft to meet his Grace ; upon which the Duke lent Colonel Cadogan, with a Compliment to his Highnefs, whom he found at Eftingen,. with Prince Lobcowitz, his Nephew, and conducted them to Great Heppach.

Expfeflions Among other F.xprefiions of Civility, which pafs'd between

ot,9V'ility, Prince Lewis and the Duke of Marlborough, his Highnefs faid ;

tetWixr^ d ^al *J'S Grace was come to fave the Empire, and give him an

them. ^Opportunity to vindicate his Honour, tvoith he was fenfible ivas, in

fame Manner, at the lajl Stake, in the Opinion of fame People.

To which his Grace is faid to have replied : That he ca?ne to

learn fro?n him, how to do the Empire Service ; for they muji want

Judgment ivhb did not khc to, that the Prince of Baden had not

only, nuken his Health -would permit him, preferred the Empire,

A Confer- fat extended its Confuejti, as well as ff cured its own. Mutual Com-

*nce be- pHrnents being over, a Conference was held between the Gene-

cSSk1 rals> wherein it: was refolved, That the Auxiliary Troops, in the

The RefiiJt NfighkQurhood, Jheuld join the Army on the Danube, for fame Days^

ef it. and

Dukeof MARL BOROUGH, fcfc. 2

and that Prince Lewis, and the Duke of Mar thorough, Jhould have 1 704. each his Day of Command alternatively, as long as they continued together ; while Prince Eugene Jhould repair towards PbiHpjburg, to defend the Paffage on the Rhine, the Lines of Stolhoffen, the Country of Wirtemberg, or aft otheriuife, according to- the Motions tf the French.

The next Morning early, the Horfe march'd frofn Great Hep- Farther pach, while his Grace ftaid there to entertain Prince Lewis, and Prince Eugene, at Dinner, after which, the former returned to his Army on the Danube, and Prince Eugene went Poft for Philipfburg, to command the Army on the Rhine. In the Even- ing, the Duke joined the Troops under his Command, in the Camp at Eberfpach, where the Prince of Hefle, with Monf. Bu- lau, and Baron Hompefch attended, to give his Grace an Ac- count, that the Troops were all in the Neighbourhood, ready to march to their appointed Rendezvous. The fixteenth, the Duke march'd with the Horfe, from Eberfpach, to Grofz Seinf- fen ; the other Auxiliary Troops marching, at the fame Time, in two Bodies, under the Command of the Prince of Hefle, and Monf. Bulau, and encamp'd at fome Diftance from the Duke, but difpofed in fuch Manner, that the whole might be able to join Prince Lewis in one Day's March, as foon as he mould make a Motion, with his Army, towards his Grace.

The fame Day, the Duke had Advice from Ulm, that the Eleftor of Bavaria march'd, the fifteenth, with a confiderable Detachment ; and a Deferter, who came in, the eighteenth, re- ported, that fome Regiments of his Forces were daily pafling the Danube, This was confirmed, by the Information the grand Marlhal to the Duke of Wirtemberg received from Ulm, that the reft of the Elector's Army had pals' d the Danube, and that he had put his heavy Baggage into that City. The twentieth^ the Duke of Marlborough had an Account, from the Rhine, that, fix Days before, the Marshals de Villeroy and Tallard had a Conference at Landau ; but had not undertaken any thing as, yet; and that, the twentieth of June, Prince Eugene was joined by the Pruffian Troops, which made up his Army, on the Rhine, near 30,000 Men. The twenty-firftof June, the Duke of Marl- borough decamp'd, with the Horfe, from Grofz Seinffen, and, in his March, was joined by the Auxiliary Troops of Lunen- burg, Hannover and Hefle.

Two Days before, Mr. Cardonnel, the Duke's Secretary, wrote a Letter, of which the underneath is a Tranflation, to Monf. * * * at Zell.

Tram

202 tte Life of JOHN,

1 704.

< — -V— "^ From tie Camp at Grofz Scinffen, June iQtk, 1704.

Tar. •

from Mr. "^ H E Letter you did me the Honour of writing to me,

Cardonnel " J[ the fourth inftant, did not come to my Hands till

to Monf. " yeiterday. I hope you are, in fome meafure, recover' d from

at Ze , (, vour Apprehenfions for the Rhine, fmce you are informed

«' that Prince Eugene is there. I afiure you, I depend much

«' more upon him, than if the other Perfon you mention had

«' went thither. This Prince is to be join'd to-morrow, by the

*' Pruffian Troops, and will then have an Army of 30,000

" Men, good Troops, with which we may hope to be in Safety

" on that Side.

" We have been here four Days, and expeft, every Moment, *e Advices from the Prince of Baden, that we may join him; " but the continual Rains will hinder us from entering into Ac- " tion, fo foon as it were to be. wifhed. When we are join'd, «' my Lord Duke, and the Prince of Baden, will command al- " ternadvely, from Day to Day, till all the Troops are join'd, " which may be about the latter End of this Month, and then " we lhall form the two Armies.

" The Elector of Bavaria has repafs'd the Danube, with all c< his Troops, and has put his heavy Baggage into Ulrn.

" Deferters, who come over to our Army, report unani- " moufly, that the French Battalions are very weak, notvVith- " Handing the Recruits they have received; and that Sickneis '* reigns very much among thefe new Comers, infomuch that " 150 have been buried at Ulm, in one Week. No Body " knows what is become of the Elector's Chancery, which was " faid to be taken.

J am, &c.

A. CARDONNEL.

TheDuJce^ The Army encamp'd, the zifl, between Launlheim and Ur- LcwisofBa- P'n£» anc^ ou tiie 22C^» made a Motion, in order to join Prince den. Lewis of Baden, at Wefterftetten, at which Place, the Right

of his Grace's Camp then lay. Prince Eugene of Savoy having defired of the Duke a farther .Re- inforcement of Troops, for the Security of the Rhine, and the Lines of Stolhoffen, his Grace, thereupon, fent Orders to Lieutenant General Scholten, to march to the Rhine, with the feven Battalions of Danifti Foot, which were coming from the Maefc, and. by this Time, were advanced as far as Frankfort, and to receive Orders from his Highnefs.

There muft, about this Time, fome Overtures have been made, for an Accommodation between the Eroperour, and the

Elcftor

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

" Eleftor of Bavaria, the latter having made Come Demands in order thereunto, the SubftanCe of which were, as follows :

Subftance of the Demands of the Eleftor of Bavaria.

" Befides the Duchy of Nieuburg, and the Marquifate of Demands of " Bourgue ; the Elector

1. The Upper Auftria. of Bavaria

2. The County of Nienburg, on the Inn. *

3. Fort Koffilein, with its Dependences. .

4. The four Imperial Cities of Ulm, Augfburg, Memmin- gen and Ratifbon.

5. A Subfidy from England and Holland, of 1 00,000 Crowns per Month.

6. The Reftoration of the Eleftor of Cologne, with an In- demnifation for all his' Lofles.

" If the Emperor (hould not care to part with the Upper " Auftria and Koffttein, the Ele&or demands as an Equivalent "for them, all thofe Countries which are fituated between the " Mountains of Tyrol, the Iller, the Lech, and the Danube '* (excepting the Bifhoprick of Augfburg, and theAbby of Kemp- " ten) comprehending the County of Nellenburg, with the four " Cities on the Danube, belonging to the Houfe of Auitria, " viz. Ellingen, Bitlengen, &c.

" N. B. All thefe to be pofiefs'd, with a fovereign Power, «« and the Title of King. Dated, June 21, 1704.

If thefe Propofals were ever offered, as the Bafis of an Ac- commodation, they were, without doubt, treated as they de- fer ved, with Scorn.

In the mean time, the Eledlor of Bavaria fent a confiderable Detachment, to Dillengen and Lawingen, with Intent, that upon the Advance of the Confederate Army, towards the Da- nube, his whole Army might poflefs themfelves of that Camp. The twenty-third, Prince Lewis and the Duke continued in the Camp, near Launfheim, to form the Line of Battle ; and, the fame Day, his Grace reviewed 'the twelve Regiments of Foot, which came into thofe Parts, the preceding Year, under the Command of Lieutenant-General Goor, with the four Bat- talions of the Duke of Wirtemberg's Troops, in the Pay of the States, which appear'd compleat, and in very good Order. The Motions of next Day, the Army march'd from Launmeim and Wefterftet- 'he J7"1^

j »j't_i_r»'L T>II_- L Confederate

ten, and encamp d, with the Right, at Elchmgen, near the Army. Danube, and the Left at Languenau, where they halted three Pays j the eight and twentieth, they march'd again, and en-

camp'd

04 fbe Life of JOHN,

1 704. camp'd, with the Right, at Herbrechting, and the Left, at Gin- ' gen, on the River Brentz, within two Leagues of the Eledlor of Bavaria's Army, which lay between Dillingen and Lawingen, with the Brentz between the two Armies.

The nine and twentieth, the Englifh Foot and Artillery, un- der the Command of General Churchill, who had been joined, in their March, by a Battalion of the King of Pruffia's Forces, arrived in the Camp, and took their Poft in the Line, where an Interval had been left for them : So that all the Forces the Duke of Marlborough expefted, had now joinM him, excepting the Danifh Horfe, which were detach'd after him, from the Ne- therlands. The whole Army then confifled of 96 Battalions of Foot, and 202 Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, having with them 44 Field cannon, 4 Hawbitzers, and 24 Pontons.

The fame Day, the Generals held a Council of War, where- in it was refolved to draw near Donawert ; whereupon, the lail Day of June, the Confederate Army march'd from Gingen, and Herbrechting, and encamp'd, with their Right, at Lan- thaufen, and their Left, /at Balmerfhoffen : They march'd fo near the Enemy's Camp, that Lieutenant- General Bulau was fent out, the Night before, with a Detachment of 2000 Horfe and Dragoon*, to fecure the Avenues, by which they might , have difturb'd the March of the Allies, who, by thefe means, proceeded without any Oppofition. The Enemy's Army was then computed to confift of 88 Battalions and 160 Squadrons, having 90 Pieces of Cannon, 40 Mortars and Hawbitzers, and 30 Pontons.

The firft of July, the Con federates, continued their March, in Sight of the Elector of Bavaria's Army at Dillengen, and en- camp'd, with their Right, at Amerdingen, and their Left, at Onderingen. The Camp being pitched, the Duke of Marlbo- rough, with a Guard of fixty Squadrons, advanc'd a little in the Front of his Army, to take a View of the ftrong Situation of the Enemy, and returning foon after, gave the neceffary Orders for preparing every thing during the Night, in order to attack the Enemy 'slntrenchments the next Day. Some Officers were of Opinion, that after fo tirefome a March, the Troops Ihould have fome Reft before the Attack ; but the Duke would hear of no Delay.

While the Camp was at Langenau, Mr. Cardonn*!, the Puke's Secretary wrote the following Letter to Monf.** at ZelL

Tra*Jtation

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 205

1704.

a Letter from Mr. Cardonnel to Monf. * * at V— v— »/ Zell.

From the Camp at Langenaut June 25, I7°4«

S I R,

" O I N C E my laft, I have been honoured with your two ^ Lette* '* 1^ Letters of the izth and iijth inftant, which I read to from Mr. tl my Lord Duke, and can affure you, that his Excellency is Cardonnel *c entirely of your Sentiments : He has, likewife, caus'd all the ^° j " Danifh Infantry, which was on the March to join us, from th« " Maefe, to go to the Rhine, to ferve under Prince Eugene* ~*f and they may join him in fix or feven Days; fo that, as w« *' have no News of the Motion of the French, we are under no " Apprehenfions of them on that Side. We join'd the Prince? " of Baden two Days ago, and there feems to be a pretty good '* Harmony, between him and my Lord Duke. Our Infantry, •' with the Artillery, will join us to-morrow at Gingen, to which " Place we mail advance, in order to bfe nearer the Enemy, " who are retired with the greater Part of their Troops, to " their former Camp of Lawingen, and Dillengen ; but they " have another Body, on the other Side of the Danube, at Leip- " heim, confifting chiefly of Cavalry, and they feem to be un- " der feme Confternation. I do not fee, that we can pretend ** to attempt any thing, till we are join'd by the Duke of Wir- " temberg, with the Danifli Cavalry, who march very flowly, " notwithftanding the reiterated Orders fent them by my Lord * ' Duke, to make all the Expedition poffible. He hardly d«- " parted from Frankfort till yefterday, and cannot join us in '*• lefs than fix or feven Days ; tho' my Lord Duke difpatch'd an " Exprefs to him yefterday, with Orders to leave his heavy *' Baggage behind him, that he might march with the greater " Diligence. As foon as thefe Troops join us, we mail form " the two Armies, and, as far as I can perceive of our Defigns, " my Lord Duke will march diredlly to Donawert, to open, by " the taking of that Place, a free Paffage for our Army into- " Bavaria. It is very probable, as you obferve, that the E- " ledor will foon be attempting to amufe us by a Negotiation ; " but I dare venture to affure you, that no fuch Endeavours *' will, in the leaft, flacken oar Efforts to reduce him to Reafon, " by Force of Arms. The continual Rains, which have fallen, " for a Fortnight paft, h.ive very much incommoded our Infan- *' try, and caus'd fome Diftempers among them : But we fend *f our Sick to Heydenheim, where they foon recover. As for '* our Cavalry, and, in general, all our other Troops, in the ^' Pay of England and Holland, they are in a very good Con- 2 " dition.

206 Me Life of JOHN,

1704. " dition. I reckon my Lord Duke's Army will confift of about

5_— v— _» "50 Battalions, and 80 Squadrons, all very good Troop? ;

" when the Line of Battle is form'd, I will fend you a Copy

«' of it. The hereditary Prince, and Monf. de Spiegel fhew

" fome Signs of Dilcontent, and talk of ferving as VoluTitiers,

, " becaufe they are not advanced ; but I hope it will pafs over."

I am, &c.

A. CARDONNEI,^

P. S. " With regard to the General you mention, I have «' lor.g fmce had not the beft Opinion of him, and cannot alter " nay Mind yet ; I wifh I may have Reafon to do it, before " the End of the Campaign.

The Duke While the Duke of Marlborough was thus exerting himfelf in of Marlbro' the Field, and ufmg his utmoit, I may fay, uncommon Dili- traduced at gence> for the Good of the Common Caufe, there was not dome. Banting a Set of People in England, who being his profeffed

Enemies, were putting the worft Construction upon his Actions, and were forming Parties to ruin both his Reputation and Inter- eft, if his great Projects for this Campaign had mifcarried. I fhall have Occafion to fay more on this Head below : In the mean Time, the following Copies of a Couple of Letters, re- lating to this Matter, the Originals of which have fallen into my Hands, being dated about this Time, may not, improperly, find Place at the Conclufion of this Chapter.

Copy of a letter, from the Lord Stamford to Monf. * * * at ZelL

June 2, 1704. SIR,

A Letter " *TH H O' I am forry to find by yours of the third Initant,

from the " that five of our Mails came to you together ; becaufe

Lord Stam- «« my Letters were by that, delayed, and that efpecially to

Jtfonf0* * " herRoval Highnefs, the ^drice ; yet fmce fhe will have

at Zei. " ^' anc* *s to° 8°°^ a Judge to impute it to my Neglect, I

" cannot but be pleafed, it efcaped the Fare, that of the 25th

" of the fame Month met with, which was taken by the

" French. That you have mine, and fo good an Account of

" our Proceedings in Parliament, and that they are fo highly

" approved, and rightly understood, does very much rejoice

"me. I can affure you, it has been a very great Mortification

" to the Party to be fo crofs'd and expos'd : When nothing

«' could Hand again ft them in the Houfe of Commons.

" I muft own, your Reafonings, upon the Changes at Court, *< to be the fame with our mo.ft judicious honeft Men here, that

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 6?<r. 207'

rt i% to be very cliimerical, and will not, in all human Pro- I7~4-

* bability, attain the Ends aimed ar, but may have a contrary v^f-y^^ 1 Effeft : Whatever my Lord Marlborou'gh does abroad (which,

' for the Sake of Europe, I heartily \vifh may be well) yet

c his Foundation being rotten here, and his not encreaiing his

' Friends, may exafperate his Enemies to that Height, that it

1 may pulh them on beyond the Rules and Mealures, which

e have been kept aniongil them hitherto. You know, when

' two Sets of People agree in a third Defign, tho' they perfon-

* ally hate one another, and have Hill concurr'd in the main,

' to prevent a third reaping any Benefit ; yet fuch Things may - ' be done, that may occafion an entire Breach, that fb thofe ' Rules may be no more thought of. This I look upon to be ' our Cafe. My Lord Jerfey being out, has difcovered fuch ' Things, that rather occafion Contempt and Railing, than ' any Sort of Pity ; which I believe will be out of the Power of. Mr. Prior's Poetry or Eloquence to allay. Alas poor Ma;i, y he is himfelf at low Ebb ! - Believe me to be, &c.

STAMFORD.

An Englim Gentleman, then at the Court of Hannover, in a Letter to a Gentleman of Note in the Court of another Prince of Germany, dated the eighteenth of June, has the following remarkable Paffage on this Occafion :

— " I am fure, that there is a greater Party forming againft my A Letter

" Lord Treafurer and my Lord Marlborough, than ever there fr°m an £n.

" was againft King William's Minifters, and what the Confe-

" quence may be, I cannot tell. Affairs will yet go worfe,

*' if their Enemies prevail; but much will depend upon my

" Lord's Succefs in Germany, and no King could itoljh for a

*' more -aoble Opportunity to relieve not only Germany, but Europe,

" than this that he is employed upon, or that could be more glorious

" for himfelf. If the Eleftor of Bavaria is reduc'd, it will

" ftop the Mouths of his Enemi^g and they will not be able to

*' hurt him in England ; but if he fails, he will be railed at in

" Holland, and accufed in England, for the Lofs he muft faf-

" fer in fuch an Expedition, and I much apprehend the Confe-

'* quence every where.

And, in another Letter to the fame Perfbn, of the 25th of June, this Gentleman fays : " My Lord Marlborough has " joined the Troops under Prince Lewis of Biden, pot far *' from Ulm, and the Succefs of this Affair will either gain '* him a great Reputation, and very much fhelter him from " his Enemies (which are not few) or be his Ruin. *"

I/

fame Gen- tleman.

2oS Me Life of J O H N,

i 7°4- tf this was the Cafe, the Duke flood a very ticklifli Chance> *—*V— •* at that Time ; for tho', beyond all Doubt, his Enterprizes were grounded upon Reafon, and formed with the moft mature Judgment ; yet fo many Things might have occafioned their Mifcarriage, that I ftiudder at the Thoughts of what might probably have been the Confequence, with regard to the Duke, had they turn'd out otherwife than fuccefsfully.

In another Letter of the fifth of July, the fame Gentleman has the following Paflages :

another Let- " There is no doubt, but a very great deal depends upon ter from the ** the Succefs that my Lord Marlborough will have in Germa- "' ny, and I wifli him the belt Succefs ; but I muft tell you, ' that both h€, and my Lord Treafurer, have very much pro- ' voked all thofe who are for the Succeflion, by their never ' doing any one Thing, that declared to the World, that they ' were againft the Prince of Wales.

" I am of your Opinion, to fupport them by all our Friends, ' and when the Campaign is over, I will do any thing towards it, that they deferve, before the Parliament meets. I muft fay, that I think they have afted a more nice than wife " Game, and committed very grofc Faults.

The Gentleman who wrote the above Letter, whom I had the Honour to know particularly, both in Profperity, and when Fortune frown' d on him, did not want a difcerning Judgment: But, I muft confefe, I fhould be very much at a Lofs, were I to point out thefe Faults, he thinks fo grofs. But notwithftand- ing this difcerning Judgment, there has been a Time when he has been miftaken in his Politicks, or at leaft had the Misfor- tune to expofe them at an improper Seafon, or he would* not have incurr'd the Cenfure to have his Letter to the noble Peer above-mention'd, relating to the Motion for the Princefs So- phia's being invited to refide in England, be voted a malicious Libel, &c. which brought, as well upon himfelf, as the Perfon who ulher'd it into the World, a Chain of Misfortunes after wards.

of MARYBOROUGH, CHAP. VI.

¥be Forcing of the Enemy's Intrenchments at ScheJ- Jenberg : With the Succeffes which immediately enfued.

JH E Elector of Bavaria, judging rightly, from the Duke's The Fight March, that he intended to attack Donawert, fent a con- ^ Schellen- b!e Detachment of his bed Troops, to re-inforce Count rj^^I d'Arco, who was pofted at Schellenberg, a rifing Ground, near that Place, on the North Side, where he had already call up great Intrenchments, andemploy'd fonie Thoufands of Pioneers, for feveral Days, to perfect thofe Works, which cover Donawert, on that Point between the R.ivers Brentz and Danube ; but not- withft^nding that great Advantage, the Duke of Marlborough refolved to drive the Enemy from that important Poft. Accord- ingly, the neceilary Orders being given to the Army, his Grace advanced, the fecond of July, at three in the Morning, with a Detach.nent of 6000 Foot, commanded by Lieutenant-General Goor, and thirty Squadrons of Englim and Dutch Cavalry, be- fides three Battalions of Imperial Grenadiers : The reft of the Army, under Prince Lewis, following, with all poffible Dili- gence ; but the Way being very bad and long, the Detachment led by his Gjace, could not come to the River Werntz (or Wer- nitz) which runs by Donawert, till about Noon, and it was three of the Clock, before the Bridges were finim'd, that they could get over that River, with their Artillery.

The Duke having pais'd the fame, at the Head of the Ca- valry, about five o'Clock, rode up as near to the Intrenchments, as was nece&ary, and, having viewed them, made the neceffary Difpofition for the Attack. In the mean time, the Englifh and Dutch Artillery began to thunder againit the Enemy ; who an- fwered it brifkly from, their Batteries, for about an Hour, and made it judged, by their Difpofuions, that the Action would be ver/ hot.

Theie Preparations being over, the Englim and Dutch Foot, fupported by the Horfe and Dragoons, commanded by Lieu- tenant General Goor, and Brigadier Fergufon, began the At- tack, with unparallel'd Valour and Intrepidity, before the Im- perialists came up, and met with fuch a vigorous Defenfe, that, having the greateft Part of the Enemy's Forces to deal with, they were twice repulfed ; but, after an Engagement of near an Hour r«,ie « and a half, che Impemiifts being by that Time come up, the m'y's in_ Imperial Cavalry broke into the Intrenchments, and the Englim trenchments and Dutch, breaking in, about the fame Time, the Confederates forced.

VOL. I, P made

o ne Life of J O H N,

1704. made a terrible Slaughter of the Enemy, purfuing them to the very Danube,, where a great Part of them follow'd t

the Example

of Count d'Arco, and other General Officers, who faved them- A rich Boo- felves by fwimming over that River. They took fixteen Pieces °f the Enemy's Cannon, with all their Ammunition, Tents, and Baggage, and thirteen Colours, befides Count d'Arco's Plate, with other rich Booty, which was diilributed among the viftori- ous Soldiers.

All the Confederate Troops, thatcngag'd, behaved themfelves with a great deal of Bravery and RefoJution, and the Horfe and Dragoons fhar'd the Glory of the Day v/ith the Infantry : But the £rft Attack being begun with a Battalion of theEnglifh Faot- Guards, and the Regiments of Orkney and Ingoldfby, they fuf- fered more than any others. It is to be recorded, to the Im- mortal Glory of the Lord Mordaunt, only Son to the Earl of Peterborough, that a Detachment of fifty Grenadiers, of Englifh Guards, which he led on to the Attack, he efcaped unhurt, with only ten of his Men. The Forces of the Enemy confided of two Battalions of the Elector's Life-Guard, one of Grenadiers, thir- teen other Bavarian Battalions, five French, four Regiments of Cuirafiiers, of 800 Men each, and three Squadrons of Dragoons, making in all about 18,000 (fome Accounts make them 32,000) Men, all choice Troops, commanded by Count d'Arco, Field- Marfhal of the Elector of Bavaria's Forces, Lieutenant-General Lutzemburg, and Count Maffey, Generals of Battalia, befides two French Lieutenant-Generals. The Duke of Marlborough gain'd great Honour in this Action, giving his Orders with the greateft Prefence of Mind imaginable, and expofing his Perfon to the greateft Danger. Nor was Prince Lewis of Baden wanting, in performing the Part of a brave and great General. The Loft of the Enemy, Killed, Wounded, Prifoners, and JDeferted, was computed at 5000 (fome Accounts fay 6000) Men ; nor was that of the Confederates much lefs, which, however, was abun- dantly made up, by the gaining fo compleat a Viclory, as gave them a free Entrance into the Duke of Bavaria's Country, and forc'd that Elector to retire under the Cannon of Augfburg. Prince Lewis of Baden, General Thungen, the Hereditary Prince of Hefle Caflel, Prince Alexander of Wirtemberg, the Prince of Saxony, Count'Horn, Lieutenant General, theMajor- Generals Wood and Palland, and Brigadier Bedmar, were ilight- ly wounded : Lieutenant-General Goor, the Prince of Homburg, the Prince of Beveren, the Counts Van Erbach, and Schulemburg, and Major-General Beinheim were killed, and count Stirum died, not many Days after, of his Wounds.

The next Day, the Bavarian Garrifon quitted Donawert, up- on the Approach of the Confederates, and broke down the

Bridges:

Duke of MA R-L BOROUGH, £sV» ll*

Bridges: But had not Time to deftroy their Ammunition and 1704. Provifions, as they had intended. *— — V— *

Donavvert is a City of Germany, on the Confines of Suabia, A Defcrip- Neuburg, and Bavaria, once Imperial, fituate on the River tion of that Danube, 25 Miles North of Augfburg, 17 Weft of Neuburg, Pla«- and 44 North-Eaft of IJlm.

The Eleftor of Bavaria no fooner heard of the Defeat of his Troops, than he repafs'd the Danube with the utmoft Precipita- tion, and march1 d towards the Lech.

The Negleft of the Officer, who commanded in Donawert, A Neglefit made,, this Conqueft the more eafy ; for he might have put the of the threc^attalions, which were in that Place, in the Cover'd Way, Frenc«« thai joined the Left of the Intrenchment ; and as the Allies made their firft Attack on that Side, he might have gauled them terribly, from that Poft. French Writers lay great Strefs upon this Negleft, as the Occafion of their Misfortune ; and Count d'Arco, the Bavarian General, in his Letter to the Ele&or, at- tributes it folely and wholly thereunto.

During the whole Time of the Aftion, the Confederates ftood to their Arms, in a Readinefs, either to affift the Aflailants, ;f Occafion had required, or to oppofe the Bavarian Army, if they had attempted any Thing againft the Camp, in the mean Time ; and the whole Army, excepting thofe Troops that ha^ ,been employed in the Attack, refted on their Arms all Night.

The Next Day, the Duke of Marlborough gave an Account of this important and victorious Aftion to the States General, i?i .a Letter, of which the following is a Tranflation.

Letter from the Duke of Marlborough, to their High and Migbti- nefjes, dated from the Camp at Ubermargen, July 3, 1704.

High and Mighty Lords,

" T T PON our Arrival at Onderingen, on Tuefday, I un- *' \^J derftood, that theEledor of Bavaria had detached the °f ' belt of his Foot, to guard the Poft at Schellenberg, where he ""Ol ' had been cafting up Intrenchments for ibme Days, becaufe it was of great Importance ^ therefore I refolved to attack him there; and march'd, yefterday Morning, by three o'Clock, at the Head of a Detachment of 6000 Foot, asd thirty Squa- drons of our Troops, and three Battalions of Imperial Grena- diers ; whereupon the Army begun their March, to follow us : >e But the Way being very long and bad, we .could not get to -" the River Wernitz, till about Noon, and it was full three •*' o'Clock before we could lay Bridges, for transporting our " Troops and Cannons ; fo that all Things being ready, we at- " tack'd them about fix in the Evening. The Attack lafted a " full Hour ; the Enemies defended themfelves very vigoroufly, •" and were very itrongly entrench'd; but, at laft, were obliged Pz " to

212 fbe Life of JO H N,

1704. " to retire, by the Valour of our Men, and the good God has ' ' given us a compleat Victory.

" We have taken fifteen Cannons, with all their Tents and " Baggage? The Count d'Arco and the other Generals that " commanded them, were obliged to fave themfelves by i\vim- " ming over the Danube. I heartily wim your High and Migh- " tinefles good Succefs from this happy Beginning, which,is fo *' glorious for ine Arms of the Allies, and from which, I hope, " by the Affiftance of Heaven, we may reap many Advantages. " We have loft very many brave Officers, and we cannot enough bewail the Lofs of the Heern Goor, &nd who were Filled in the Action. The Prince of

' General Thungen were flightly wounded ; Count Stirum' rrtrs ' received a Wound a-crdis his Body, but, 'tis hoped, he will ' recover. The Hereditary Prince of Heffe Caffel, Count Horn, 1 a Lieulenan:- General, and Major-General Wcod, and the ' Heer Palland, are alfo wounded. I can, at preient, give '•your High and Mightineffes no more Particulars j but will not ' fail to do it the firft Opportunity.

" A little before the Attack begun, the Baron of Molten- " burg, Adjutant General to Prince Eugene, was fen t to me by " his Highnefs, with Advice, that the Marfhals de Villeroy, " and Tallard, were xnarch'd to Str?.fburg, having promis'd a " great Re-inforcement to the El eftor of Bavaria, by Way of " the Black Foreft : And I had Advice, by another Hand, that "" they defign'd to fend him fifty Battalions, and fixty Squa- " drons, of their beft Troops. Since I was Witnefs how " much the Heer Mortagne diftinguim'd himfelf, in this whole " Aftion, I could rot omit doing him the Juftice, to recom- " mend him to your High and Mightineffes, to make up to him " the Lofs of his General ; wherefore I have pitch'd upon him, *' to bring this to your High and Mightineffes, and to inform " you of the Particulars.

I remain, &c.

Duke of MARLBOROUCH.

P. S. " The Detachment above-faid, was fupported by fif- " teeen "Battalion: from thel^eft, and as many from the Right.

General Hompefch gave likewife an Account of this Aftion, in a Letter ;o the States, which as it not only confirms the above, and contains fome Circumftances, not mentioned before, and does A Letter great Honour to our General, I fha!l add :

from Gene-

"t h°to" Hish and M'ghty Lords>

5be States- " T Cannot omit giving you an Account of the Advantage we CcasraJ, *' J[ have gained by the Bkfljng of God, over our Enemies,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

" at Donawert j and fending the Aid de Camp, who was with " me, upon this Occafion, to give your High Mightineffes a t " more fatisfaftory Relation of the Particulars.

" Our Army march'd yefterday, from Amerdingen (which "lies fix Miles from Donawert ;) and, altho' we had march'd

* 2 or 3 Days fucceflively, and had not Time before, to clear the ' Roads ; neverthelefs, by the Diligence and Care of the Duke of ' Marlborough, the Army made, the. fame Day, the intended ' March, and pafs'd it yeiterday, at Ubermargen, by the River ' Wernitz. The Cavalry and Dragoons pafs'd upon a Bridge, and ' by a Ford, and we made ule of Pontons, which ,we brought

• with us, to make another Bridge, upon which the Infantry ' pafs'd with all Expedition. The Van-Guard, where my ' Lord Duke was in Perfon, with the Hereditary Prince of 1 Hefie-Caffel, Lieutenant General Lumley, my felf, Generals ' Bonafan and Wood, the Prince of Homburg, the Count d'Er- ' bach, and Monf. Schulemburg, was compos'd of thirty uvo ' Squadrons.

" The Lifantry, confifting of 5 850 Men, were led according to " the Duke's Order, by Lieut. Gen. Goor, and 30 Battalions, " under Lieut. Gen. Horn, who had with him the Major-Gene- t " rals Withers, Luyck, Pollard and Beinheim, with Orders to " fupport them.

" The Cavalry having pafs'd the River, the Duke of Marlbo- *' rough took them with him, to view, as near as poffible, tlfe " Enemy's Camp and Intrenchments. The ^nfantry, being " arriv'd, on the other Side of the River, and ready for the " Attack, march'd before the Cavalry ; and was led to the At- " tack by Lieutenaat-General Goor, fupported by, the reit of *' the Foot, which the Duke of Marlborough had ordered to re- " inforce him, under the Command of Lieutenant General «' Horn. The whole was follow'd and fupported, by the afore- " faid thirty two Squadrons.

" The Attack being thus difpos'd, the Englifli and Dutch " Troops drew nearer the Intrenchments, having, on one Side " the Town, and, on the other, a Wood. They, and the " Enemy, cannonaded each other about an Hour, whilii they «' waited the coming up of the Imperialifts. As foon as they " arrived, the Enghfti and Dutch began the Attack with great " Vigour, and the Enemy defended themfelves with Abundance " of Bravery. The Imperialifts advanced as expsditioufly .as '* they could, in good Order ; and the Prince of Baden having '* alfo attacked them, the Intrenchmetts were forc'd, after a " very ftubborn Fight, of about an Hour and a half. The Dra- " goons were at the Head, to fuitain the Infantry, under the " Command of the Hereditary Prince of Hefle, and he con- <f tinued expos'd to the Enemy's Fire, till he was \yout ded in P3 the

2 14 Me Life of.. JOHN,

1704. "the Side. Lieutenant- General Lumiey, and my fe1f, witfr General Wood, the Prince of Homburg, Count d'Erbacb> and Monf. Schulemburg commanded the Cavalry. Lieutenant- " General Goor (who commanded the Infantry) was kill'd, and " alfo Major General Beinheim.

" Thofe who are wounded, among the Infantry, are Lieuf. " Gen. Horn, in the Leg, Maj. Gen. Palland, in the Groin (with- *' oat Danger) and Brig. Tobias in the Belly. Thofe that are " wounded, among the Cavalry, are the Hereditary Prince of " Hefle-Ganel and General Wood. The Count d'Erbach had one " Horfe kiil'd, and another wounded. The Prince of Saxony is *' wounded in the Arm (without Danger) and Brigadier Bcdmar. •" Of the Imperialifts, the Prince of Baden is wounded in the *' Foot; he had alfo a Horfe killed. Count Stirum has had a " Shot crofs his Body. The Velt-Marfhal Thungen is wounded " in the Hand j Prince Alexander of Wirtemberg is wounded iu " the Leg ; and the Prince of Beveren, a Major-General, is kiil'd.

" As foon as we have a Lift of the Officers and Soldiers kiil'd ' " and wounded,- I fhall not fail to give your High MightinefTes ' " an Account thereof. I conjecture we have about 6 or 700 •" Men kiil'd (of the Dutch on/,, I prefume he means] and 1000 *' dangeroufly wounded. The Duke of Marlborough gave Or- •" ders, throughout the whole Action, with the greateft Pru- •' dence and Prefence of Mind. The Prince of Baden, every " Body muft own, has done all that could be expe&ed, from a " great and brave General } fo far, that we owe him, upon this *' Occafion, all poflible Praife and Honour.

I am, &c.

R. V. Baron Van HOMPESCH,

P, S. " We have taken 16 Brafs Field-Piece?, the greateft of •' them Six- Pounders, and thirteen of the Enemy's Colours.

By one Part of this Letter, it would almoft feem, as if the

Eng'lifli and Dutch did not begin the Attack, till the Imperialifk

came up ; but the Faft (as I have been informed by an Officer

who was prefent) was this. The Englifh and Dutch began, on

the Left, half an Hour before the Imperialifts could come up to

fall on the Right. And the Enemy's Forces being almoft all

employed againit the former, the latter found but little Refiftance.

..,..• The French, tho' they could not deny the Confederates the

Trench Ac- Honour of this Victory, endeavour'd to leffen the Advantage of

count or tne . . » ___ . r . n * •

Lofsonboth ^ by pretending their Works were not near finifhed, and exag- Sides. gerating the Lofs of Men and Officers this Action coft the

Allies. The Allies (fay their Writers) tho' we loft but 1000 Men, in the A&ion, had 6000 Men kiil'd, in their feveral At- tacks,

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. tacks, and a far greater Number wounded, and fome of their Regiments were almoft entirely cue off. Several of their Gene- rals were kilPd or wounded, and the Count de Stirum died rr his Wounds after the Battle. In the former Part of their Ac- count, they go exceedingly beyond the Truth. But for the lat- ter, it is certain, the Confederates loft a great Number of brave Officers; and, indeed, it could not naturally be otherwife, in fo defperate an Attempt. What the Englifti, in particular, fuf- fer'd, the Reader will fee by the following Lift.

'The Lift of the EngVjb, killed or wounded at Scbellenberg, as the refpeflive Colonels delivered it to the Duke ofMarlborougb, is

FOOT.

Of the Foot Guards, Lieut. Col.Blount, Capt. Raleigh, Capt. Lift of the Weft, Quarter-Matter Bibey, kill'd. Lieut. Col. Primroie, Lieut. English Col. Farrars, Capt, Adams, Capt. Pooock, Enf. Smith, Enf. ki!1>d and Pearfon, Enf. Rich, Enf. Denys Pujolas, wounded. Sergeants, J kill'd 7, wounded 8. Centinels killM 75, wounded 127.

General Churchill's Regiment, Enf. Harrifon, Enf. Caldicut, kill'd. Centinels kill'd 3, wounded 37.

Of the Earl of Orkney's firft Battalion of Scotch Royal, Capt. Murray, Enf. Mac Dugal, Enf. Mac Ilroy, kili'd. Col. White, Major Cockburn, Capt. Hume, Capt. Irvvinn, Capt. Brown, Lieut. Kid, Lieut. Balatine, Enf. Stratton, Enf. Cunningham, Enf. Stuart, wounded. Sergeants kill'd i, wounded 3. Cen- tinels kill'd 38, wounded 103.

Of the Earl of Orkney's fecond Battalion, Capt. Bailey, Lieu. tenant Levingfton kill'd. Major Kerr, Capt. Carr, Lieutenant Pearfon, Lieut. Moor, Lieut. Vernel, Lieut. Hay, Lieut. Dick- fon, Lieut Hamilton, Enf. White, Enf. Mac Queen, Enf. Mac Onway, Enf. Moremere, Enf. Elliot, Enf. Inglis, Enf. Moor, wounded. Sergeants kill'd i, wounded 12. Centinels kill'd 76, wounded 1 84.

Of the Lord North and Gray's Regiment, Capt. Croy, kill'd. Sergeants wounded 3. Centinels kiil'd 13, wounded 36.

Of Brigadier Webb's Regiment, Enf. Savage, kill'd. Enfign Bezier, Enf. Mafon, wounded. Serjeants wounded 2. Ceri- tinels kill'd 5, wounded 31.

Of the Earl of Darby's Regiment, Major Mordaunt, Enfign Charleton, kill'd, Lient. Col. Hamilton, Capt. Coghlan, Enf. Key, wounded. Serjeants kill'd i , wounded i. Centinels kill'd 19, wounded 34.

Of Brigadier Hamilton's Regiment, Capt. Lea. Enf. Giilman, Enf. Walfh, Enf. Penfant, wounded. Sergeants kill'd i, wound - . ed 3. Centinels kill'd IN wounded 32.

P4 Of

Me Z^^/

Of Brigadier How's Regiment, Capt. Bolton, Capt. Lefley, Lieut. Morris, wounded. Sergeants kill'd i, wounded 3. Cen- tinels kill'd 9, wounded 19.

Of Brigaaier Row's Regiment, Capt Rygoe, Lieut. John- fton, Lieut. John Cambell wounded.

Of Brigadier Ferguson's Regiment, Captain Lawfon, Lieut. Seaton, wounded. Sergeants kili'd i, wounded 3. Centinels kill'd 1 8, wounded 57.

Of Lieut. Gen. Ingoldfby's Regiment, Capt. Harman, Captain Ogilvy, Lieut. Fraizer, Lieut. Agan, Lieut. Price, kill'd. Col. Sabin, Lieut. Col. Jones, Major Ingoldfby, Capt. Lyir.e, Lieut. Jeverau, Lieut. Patrick, Lieut. Richards, Lieut. Cadroy, Lieut. Piggot, Lieut. Aldy, Lieut. Jones, wounded. Sergeants kili'd Cfr wounded 6. Centinels kill'd 60, wounded 165.

Of the Duke of Marlborough's Regiment, Captain Powell kill'd, Capt. Bally, Lieut. Stapletcn, Lieut. Wally, Lieutenant Gardiner, wounded. Sergeants killed i. Centinels killed 2?, wounded 44.

Of Col. Meredith's Regiment, Lieut. Cornwal, Lieutenant Boukam, Enf. Billing, Enf. Jackfon kill'd. Colonel Meredith, Lieutenant Cairns, Lieut. Neale, Lieut. Biron, Lieut Scutner- by, Enf. Wclih, Enf. Onflow, Enf. Wood, Enf. Ogilby, Enf. Kent, wounded; Sergeants kill'd i. wounded 3. Centinels kill'd 1 8, wounded 5 7.

DRAGOONS.

Of the Lord Haye's Regiment, Capt. Douglas kill'd . Capt. Young, Lieutenant Maltary, wounded. Private Men kill'd j, wounded 17.

Of Brigadier Rofi's Regiment, Major Caldwejl, Corn«t Ha- milton wounded. Private Men kiu'J 4, wounded 19.

HORSE.

Of the five Regiments of Horfe, Capt. Carrington, Adjutant

Skelton, kili'u. ;vi j<w General Wood, Col. Palmer, Major

. , Lieutenant Tettefolle, Lieut. Kyrle, Cornet Charles

Laues, Corn- 1 V» V.rd, Cornet Clarke, wounded. Private Men

kili'd . 3, wouudf-i>

Mr. OT; .thorp, ^ojutant to the Duke of Marlboroogb, re- ceived a ] i,tol Siio: thro-L .rA had a Contuhon on one of his Thighs, b\ a Mu.qu-: L.L:. , and is fince dead of his Wound,.

:V;tal c. GiEcers Ikiii'd :Q, wounded 86 } of Sergeants and private Men, kill'd 407, wounded 1031.

An

Kill'd. Wound. Another Lift by anOfficer.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 217

An Officer, then in the Army, has given us che following Lift 1 704. of the Kill'd and Wounded, in this Adlion : t^~-^

Lieutenant- Generals Major-Generals

Brigadiers

Colonels .

Lieutenant-Colonels

Majors

Captains —— — — —

Subalterns ~~

Soldiers

1423

Total kill'd and wounded, 5474

To thefe feveral Accounts I fhall add a few Particulars from Monf. de an Author of Reputation, wrote upon making fome Obfervations B'^inville' on the Spot, the next Year after the Aftion, which I never had Al'count< an Opportunity of ieeing before his Travels and his own judi- cious Remarks, in the Courfe of them, having but very lately appear'd in Publick.

" Continuing our Journey (fays my Author, who dates his *' Account, June 30, 1705.) we crofs'd the Lines, where one of " the Generals of the Troops of Franconia, named Janus (whom " we had Occafion to fee at the Pruffian Refident's Houfe ; at " Nurenburg I prefume he means) with 3000 Men, flopped " Marfhal de Marfm in his March, tho' he commanded 10,000 : " This happened (continues my Author) a little before the Battle " of HocMatt. Several of the Redoubts fubfift to this Mo- " ment.

" A little after, we arrived at Trichling, a Town fituatedon " the River Altmuhl, and, having left Papenheim to our Left, " came to Monheim, to Dinner ; after we had left Monheim, " we came to a large Abbey of Bernardins call'd Kayferfheim, " about a League from Donawert, where we arrived about fix <' onClock.

«' Tho' we were miferably Ihook and bruifed by the Joltings " of our Vehicle, yet the firft Thing we did, at our Arrival, was '< to vifit the famous SCHELLENBERG, which is about a Quar- " ter of a League diftant from the Town. We took a. View " of all the Intrenchments that were made here ; and a Ger- " man Officer, in Company wi;h us, who had been at this Ac- I «< tion,

Toe Life of J O H N,

tion, as well as that of Hoc HST ATT, fhew'd us all t he Places where the Duke of Marlborough and the Prince Lewis of Ba- den, attacked the French and Bavarians. He affured us, that they had never been able to force this important Pott, had not they came upon them before their Intrenchments were finifh'd, they not being, when the Allies began the At- " tack, carried up to half the Height the French intended to " raife them." (An evident and glaring Proof of the Duke's Vigilance and Intrepidity, after fo long and painful a March of 7 Weeks, in attacking them immediately, as foon as the Bridges were finifhed, and the Cavalry pafs'd over them, about five of the Clock in the Evening ; and tho' the Troops had begun their March that Morning at Three.) " We found ftill remaining *'" fome difmal Traces of this Action, which was very vigorous, and in which a great Number of brave Men on both Sides perifhed, vaft Quantities of Sculls and Bones in the Ditches; and amidft a Heap of old Rags, we obferved a Fragment of an Englifh Grenadier's Cap, upon which the Queen's Motto, Semper Eadem, was ftill legible.

The Dutch, on this Occafion, ftruck a Medal, on the Face of which is a Bufto of Prince Lewis of Baden ; (tho' they might, with much greater Propriety, as well asjuftice, have put that^ of the Duke of Marlborough ;) on the Reverie is reprefented x the Intrenchments of Schellenberg, and a Plan of the City of Donawert, the Antiquity of which is denoted by an antient Man leaning on an Urn, to fignify, at the fame Time, the Danube, on which River it is lituate ; with the following In- fcription, continued on the Exergue.

HOSTE CffiSO, FUGATO, CASTRIS DIREPTIS, AD SCHELLENBERGAM DONAVERDAM, .1704.

The Enemy defeated, put to Flight, and their Camp plundered, at Schellenberg, near Donaivert, 1704-

An Extraft The great Mr. Addifon gives us the following poetical De- from Mr. fcription of this bold Aftion, in his incomparable Poem, call'd the Campaign :

A Medal iuuck on this Occa- lion.

Addifon' s Campaign.

The March concludes, the various Realms are paft, Th' immortal Schellenberg appears at laft : Like Hills th' afpiring Ramparts rife on high, Like Vallies, at their Feet, the Trenches lye ; Batt'ries on Batt'ries guard each fatal Pafs, Threatening Deftruftion ; Rows of hollow Brafs, Tube behind Tube, the dreadful Entrance keep, Whilft in their Wombs ten thoufand Thunders deep :

2 Great

rot. z.

128.

•

'

.

Dukeof MARLBQROUGH, &V. 219

Great Churchill owns, charm'd with the glorious Sight, 1704.

Kis March o'er-paid, by fuch a promis'd Fight,

The Weftern Sun now fhot a feeble Ray, And faintly fcatter'd the Remains of Day, Ev'ning approach' d ; but oh ! what Hofts of Foes Were never to behold that Ev'ning clofe! Thick'ning their Ranks, and wedg'd in firm Array, The clofe compacted Britons wing their Way ; ,

In vain the Cannon their throng'd War defac'd With Traces of Death, and laid the Battle wafte ; Still preffing forward, to the Fight, they broke Thro' Flames of Sulphur, and a Night of Smoak ; Till flaughter'd Legions fill'd the Trench below, And bore their fierce Avengers to the Foe.

High on the Works, the mingling Hofts engage ; The Battle, kindled into tenfold Rage, With Shovv'rs of Bullets, and with Storms of Fire, Burns in full Fury, Heaps on Heaps expire j Nations with Nations mix'd confus'dly dye, And loft in one promifcuous Carnage lye.

How many gen'rous Britons meet their Doom, New to the Field, and Heroes in the Bloom ! Th' illuftrious Youths, that left their native Shoar, To march where Britons never march'd before. (O fatal Love of Fame ! O glorious Heat, Only deftruclive to the Brave and Great !} After fuch Toils o'ercome, fuch Dangers paft, Stretch'd on Bavarian Ramparts breathe their laft. But hold, my Mufe, may no Complaints appear, Nor blot the Day with an ungrateful Tear : While Marlbro' lives, Britannia's Star dil'penfe A friendly Light, and mine in Innocence. Plunging thro' Seas of Blood his fiery Steed, Where-e'er his Friends retire, or Foes fucceed ; Thofe he fupports, thefe drives to fudden Flight, And turns the various Fortune of the Fight.

Forbear, great Man, renown'd in Arms, forbear, To brave the thickeft Terrors of the War j Nor hazard thus, confus'd in Crowds of Foes, Britannia's Safety, and the World's Repofe j Let Nations, anxious for thy Life, abate This Scorn of Danger, and Contempt of Fate : Thou liv'ft not for thyfelf ; thy Queen demands Conqueft and Peace, from thy victorious Hands ; Kingdoms and Empires in thy Fortune join, And Europe's Deftiny depends on thine.

At

220 the Life of J O H N,

1 704. At length the long-difputed Pafs they gain,

*•*•>'"*••' By crowded Armies fortified in vain ;

The War breaks in, the fierce Bavarians yield, And fee their Camp with Britim Legions Ali'd. So Belgian Mounds bear on their fhatter'd Sides The Sea's whole Weight, encreas'd with fwelling Tides. But if the rulhing Wave aPaflage finds, Ehrag'd by watry Moons, and warring Winds, The trembling Peafant fees his Country round Cover'd with Tempefls, and in Oceans drown'd.

The few furviving Foes difpers'd in Flight, (Refufe of Swords, and Glean ings of a Flight) In ev'ry. ruffling Wind the Viclor hear, And Marlbro's Form in every SJiadow fear, Till the dark Cope of Night, with kind Embrace, Befriends the Rout, and covers their Difgrace.

The Eleftor Thc Eleftor of Bavaria (as -I have faid above) was no fooner

of Bavaria informed of the Defeat of hi* Troops at Schellenberg, than he

quits his ad- quitted his advantageous Camp, between Dillingen and Lawin-

vantageous gen> an(j QQ^Q to tne other Side of the Danube, over-againft

aa^' Donawert, the third, in his March to the River Lech, to prevent

the Confederates cutting off his Retreat to his own Country. The

fame Night, he fent Orders to his Garrifon at Donawert, to fet

Fire to the Town, to burn their Bridges and Magazines, and

then to retire ; for which End, they had put Straw in every

Houfe ; but the Confederates being advanced into the Suburbs,

and laying their Bridge to p.ifs into the Town, the Garrifon durft

not flay, for fear of having their Retreat cut off, and therefore,

preferr'd their own Safety, before the Execution of their Mailer's

cruel Order?, by which Means the Townfmen faved their Houfes.

Donawert The Enemy burnt only their Bridges, and fome Magazines, and

taken by the retired, in great. Hr.fle, early the next Day. At the fame time,

the Confederates entered the Tpwn, without any Oppofition,

With 'a con- and found in it 2000 Sacks of Meal, great Store of Oats, and

fiderable all Sorts of Provjfioas and Ammunition, which the Enemy had

JBooty. nct Time to ci

This Day, tU :3uke cf ?Jarlborough wrote another Letter to the States Gcnr/ai, with an Account of this farther S.uccefs ; but as ;t contains nothing but what I havealready mentipji'd, I pafs it by.

Farther The whole Confederate Array pak'd the Danube, the fifth of

Motions of July, over fevers! Bridges of Pontons, made for th;t Purpofe,

of Augfburg. The fixth was obferved, by the Duke' of Marl- borough's

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, 6fr. 221

borough's Orders, as a Day of Thankfgiving for the late Vidlo- 1 7-04. ry, throughout his whole Army ; and Prince Lewis alfo direfted Te Dcum to be fung, on this Occafion, in his Camp, and in all the Towns adjoining. . The Danifh Horfe, commanded by the Duke of Wirtemberg, encamp'd, the fifth, on the Schellenberg, Prince En- and having paffed the Danube, on the fixth, marched to the Sene &nds a Ground appointed for them in the Camp, where Count Palfi ar- to°£?itk? rived the fame Day with a Compliment from Prince Eugene to on his Vic-' the Duke of Marlborough. tory.

The Duke, whofs conftant Cuftom it was, to make the moft The Duke of every Advantage, was refolved to improve this, and to pur- improves his fue the Enemy, before they recovered out of the Confternation AdvantagC' they were under. He, therefore, ordered the Count de Prize, with a Detachment of 4,000 Men, and twelve Pieces of Cannon, to prepare Bridges to pafs over the Lech, at Kinderkingen, which were finiflied the fame Evening, without any Oppofition from the Enemy. The Detachment thereupon, immediately march'd over, and took Poft in the Country of Bavaria, where Takes poft they were re-inforced, the eighth, in the Afternoon, by 6000 in the Elec- Men more. The whole Army march'd at the fame Time, and t°r °fBi- encamp'd, with the Right, at Hamler, and the Left, at Kinder- ™ria's kingen, near the River. Upon the firft Notice of our Troops having begun to pafs the Lech, the Garrifon of Neuburg aban- don'd that Place, and retired to Ingolftadt. A Detachment Neuburg was, hereupon, fent, by the Duke of Marlborough, to takePof- taken, feffion of Neuburg, and Prince Lewis of Baden order'd General Herbeville, who commanded a feparate Body of between 3 or 4000 Men, on the other Side of the Danube, to remain there, for the Security of a Place of fo much Importance for the draw- ing of Provifions out of Frahconia, to fubfiil the Confederate Army, while they continued in Bavaria. /

The Enemy having left a Garrifon in Rain, a fmall Town, Rain be- 'in the Circle of Bavaria, about half a League on the other Side of the Lech, fix Miles Eaft of Donawert, and nine Weft of Neuburg, the Confederate Generals refolved to attack it. The Army, therefore, decamp'd from Kinderkingen, the loth of July, N. S. pafs'd the Lech, and came with the Right, to Standa, and, with the Left, to Berchein. The 10,000 Men, which had pafs'd the River, two Days before, were at the fame Time, relieved, by nine Battalions, and fifteen Squadrons, which were to carry on the Siege of Rain, under the Command of the Count de Prize, to favour which Enterprize, the Army made a Motion to the Right, on the twelfth. The next Day, the Count de Vehlen, General of the Palatine Hcrfe, came to the Con- federate Camp, with Advice from Prince Eugene, that the Mar- fhals Villeroy and Tallard, with an Army of five and forty thoufand Men, had paffed the Rfcine, about Fort Ki^J, giving

ne Life of J O H N,

out, that they were refolved to fuccour the Eleftor of Bavaria, and it was not doubted, but one of them would, at leaft, make the Attempt ; his Highnefs, therefore, defired a Reinforcement of Horfe might be fent him, to enable him the better to obferve A Re-in- the Enemy's Motions. Prince Maximilian of Hannover (the late 5rif "p^ ce King George's Brother) was thereupon detach'd, with thirty .Eugene rnCC Squadrons of Imperial Horfe, with Orders to join prince Eugene, with all poffible Diligence ; and the Duke of Marlborough fent, likewife, an Exprefs to acquaint the latter, that, if he thought it neceflary, a larger Number Ihould follow.

£ain taken. The fame Night, the Trenches were opened before Rain : The Garrifon, at firft, feenrd refolved to defend it to the laft Extremity ; but theBefiegers playing upon the Town, with 27 Pieces of Cannon ; and the Approaches being carried on, with goodSuccefs, the fixteenth, in the Morning, the Garrifon de- fir'd to capitulate, and, the Articles being agreed on, they marched out the next Day, being about 400 Foot, commanded by Count de Mercy, a Brigadier-General, and were conduced, by a Party of Horfe, to the Ele&or of Bavaria's Camp, near Augfburg.

Farthet A Detachment of 400 of the Allies took Pofleflion of the

the°CoSede Place' at thefame Tinie» and found there four and twenty Brafs me Army!" Cannon, with feme Ammunition, befides a confiderable Quan- tity of other Provifions, which were order'd to be applied to the Uie of the Troops. Orders having, likewife, been given to pro- vide Magazines at Rain andNeuburg, for the Subfillence of the Forces, the Army decamp'd, the fame Day, from Berchein, and came, with the Right, to Holtz, and the Left, to Ofterhaufen, The eighteenth, the Allies being encouraged by the Profperity of their Arms, and willing to pufh forward their Conquefts, continued their March, and encamp'd, with the Right, at Kue- pach, and the Left, at Aicha, a very fine Town. Here the E- nemy had a Garrifon of 8 or 900 Bavarian Boors, who, refu- Akha fing to fubmit, were Part of them put to the Sword, the reft taken. made Prifoners of War, and the Town permitted to be plun- der'd by the Soldiers. Here, likewife, the Generals took their Quarters, and caufed a Magazine to be erefted.

Th« Empe- The Emperour, no fooner received Advice of this Succefs of rour writes the Confederate Army, which might juflly be called His Deli- to the D. of every from apparent Ruin and J)efolai:on, than he was thoughtful Marlboro'. JIQW to ftjew the grateful Senfe he had, of the fignal Service done him by the Duke of Marlborough ; and, therefore wrote a Letr ter of Thanks to his Grace, an Occafion of the Vidlory of Schellenberg, a Copy and Tranflation of which are the follow- ing:

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 223

The EmperouSs Letter to the Duke of Marllorougb upon the Victory near Donavaert.

ft TLLUSTRIS fincere Dilede. Multa funt & eximia 1704. " JL ve^ra m me» Domum meam & rern communem merita, i_— •y— J *' interque ea non poftremo loco cenfenda, fingulare Studium, The Empe- " Cura & Diligentia, qua: in promovendo, feftinandoque vali- ror' J'e"er « diffimo Auxilio a Sereniffitna & Potentiflima Magnae Britanniae °f " Regina, & Generalibus Fcederati Belgii Ordinibus, mihi ad rough. ' Danubium fub miffo teftati eftis. Nullum vero adhuc duco ' illuflrius, quam quod illico poft exercitus veftri cum meo con- ' junclionem in celerrima fortiffimaque Caftrorum hofiilium ad ' Donaverdam aggreflione expugnationeque, die hujus labentis ' Menfis fecunda, vobis comparaftis ; hujus enim Succeffus,

* quo mihi vix gratius, atque hoc quidem tern pore opportunius ' quicquam accidere potuit, potiffimam partem Confilio, Pru- ' dentia? & Executioni veftras, nee non Copiarum fub Duftu ' veftro militantium, miro Ardori & Conflantia deberi, ipfimet ' Belli Duces mei & Miniftri aflerunt.

" Prseterquam igitur, quod tarn praeclara fortium & egregio- ' rum Virorum Teltimonia, atque ipfa adeo publicorum fado-

* rum Remuneratrix Fama, Nomini veftro laudes rependant ' ampliflimas, me quoque, quem commoda ex ilia vidoria in ' publicam rem profluentia imprimis afficiunt, id vobis debere 4 exiftimavi, ut hoc literarum mearum calculo partam vobis ( gloriam condecorarem, fimulque certos vos redderem nullam •' me dimifluram occafionem reipfa vobis declarandi, quam gra- ' tam & propenfam erga vos Voluntatem geram.

" Vos interim, ut quae tam ftrenue fortiterque ccepiftis, pari ' Alacritate & Induftria profequamini, omnique animi & viri-

* um impetu, uria cum fuprenffc meo Locumtenente General], ' Marchione Badenfi, aliifque Belli Ducibus meis in id incumba-

* tis, quo contexatis extrema cum primis, Bellumque hoc in vii- ' ceribus Germanic, a Bavaro feditiose excitatum, quam ce- ' lerrime conficiatis, not! tam vos hortor, quam certe expedo ; ' in hoc enim fummam Laudem & Gloriam effe, idque-&ipfi- ' met Sereniffimaj Reginse veftras in Superiori Germania, ubi ' poft Hominum Memoriam Vidricia Anglicani Nomir.is Ar- ( ma vifa haud funt, fempiterni inftar Trophasi fore, abunde ' agnofcetis-

" ()uod fupereft Deum precor, ut Confilia Aufufque veftros *' fecundis eventibus beet, & propenfiffimum Animi mei afFeduna " vobis iterum, iteruinque confirmo,

Dabam in Urbe mea Viennae, 1 2mo Julii, 1 704,

This

A Tranfla- tion of it.

The Life of JOHN,

This Letter was written with the Emperour's own Hand, an Honour rarely (hewn to any but Sovereign Princes : And, in- deed, as fuch he, in a Manner, treats the Duke, by beginning as he does.

The Tratt/lation of the foregoing Letter.

ILLUSTRIOUS, fincerely Beloved . Your Deferts towards me, my Houfe, and the Common Caufe, are

• great and many, and the fingular Application, Care, and Di-

• ligence, which you have exprefied, in bringing up and haft- ' ening the powerful Succours, which the moft Serene and Po. ' tent Queen of Great Britain, and the States General of the ' United Netherlands, have fent me to the Danube, are not 1 to be rank'd in the laft Place ; but nothing can be more glo- ' rious, than what you have done, after the Conjunction of

" your Army with mine, in the moft fpeedy and vigorous " Attack, and forcing of the Enemy's Camp near Donawert, " the fecond of this Month ; fince my Generals themfelves, " and Minifters, declare, that the Succefs of that Enterprize " which is more acceptable and advantageous to me, in this '' prefent Time, than almoft any thing elfe that could befall " me) is chiefly owing to your Councils, Prudence, and Execii- " tion, and the wonderful Bravery and Conftancy of the Troops, " who have fought under your Co nmand.

" Therefore, altho' the Teilimony of thofe great Men, and " Fame itfelf, the Rewarder of noble Actions, do highly and " juftly extol your Name ; I, who reap the firft Advantage, *« which this Viftory bring5 to the Common Caufe, have thought " mylelf obliged to honour and illuftrate the Glory you have " gain'd, by the Teftimony oLmy Letter, and to affare you, " that I mall lofe no Opportunity to fhew you by Effects, how " grateful and well-ficlin'd I am towards you. Mean time, " that you carry on, with the fame Alacrity and Tnduftry " what you have fo valiantly and vigoroufly begun, and that in Conjunction with the Markgrave of Baden, my Lieutenant- General, and other Commanders of my Troops, you ufe your utmoft Endeavours and Force, that the End may an- fwer the Beginning, and that the War, which the Bavarians have feditioufly rarfed in the Bowels of Germany, may be brought to a moft fpeedy Conclufion ; I do not fo much ex- hort you to, as I am confident of it ; for you cannot but be fully fatisfied, thru there is the higheft Glory and Honour therein, and that this will be an eternal Trophy to your moft ferene Queen, in the Upper Germany, where the victorious Arms of the Englim Nation were never feen, in the Memory " of Man. I pray Goo to blefs, with a profperous Succefs,

" your

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &?ir. 225

" your Councils and Enterprizes, and I confirm to you, again 1704. < «' and again, the moft favourable Inclination and Affedlion of <— • "V"**1 <s my Mind towards you."

«« Given in my City of Vienna, July 12, 1704- Upon the delivering this Letter to the Duke, Count Wra- tiflaw told his Grace, That the Emperour defired he would accept The Duke of the Honour, intended him, of the Title and Dignity of a Prince Of Marlbro* of the Empire-, whereupon his Grace pray'd the Count to re- ~ prefent to the Emperour ; That he was extreamly fenjible of his p^ Imperial Majejiy^s Goodnefs towards him, beyond any thing he could deferve, but that his Ambition was entirely bounded in the Queen's Grace and Favour, wkofe abundant Kindnejs had already been extended towards him, beyond whatever he could have aim a at ; and that he muji rejer himfelf wholly to her Majejly's Plea- fare. Thereupon, the Emperour wrote, with his own Hand, a Letter to the Queen, wherein, after a Congratulation for the late Viclory againft the French and Bavarians, near Donawert, afcriVd, principally, to the Valour of the Englfo Troops, by the Courage and Conduft of her Majejly* s General, the Duke of Marlbo- rough ; his Imperial Majejly dejired the Queen to lay her Commands on my Lord Marlborough^ to accept a Tejlimony of his Imperial Ma- jejly^s Acknowledgment of his Services, Jince the Duke himfelf, when Count Wratljlaw intimated to him his Majler'1 s Intention, made fame Difficulty to admit it. Moniieur Hoffman, the Emperour's Reft- dent at the Court of England, (July 23d. O. S.) feconded thjs Letter with a fhort Speech, to acquaint the Queen, That be had Orders from his Majler, earnejlly to prefs, with all Refpcfl, ikat her Majejly would be pleafed to require his Grace to make no farther Scruple in that Matter.

The Queen was, at length, prevailed upon, to comply with The Queen the Emperour's Defire ; but before her Pleafure could be made ^lij["e ™f known to the Duke of Marlborough, his Grace had truly ;t> ,

and fufficiently merited the Honour his Imperial Majefty in- tended him, by an Aftion that will immortalize his Name, and which raifed him to a Level with the moft celebrated He- roes of this or former Ages.

The Confederate Army, under Prince Lewis, and the Duke Farther of Marlborough, having refted two Days at Aicha, made a j^Confe- fmall March from thence, the Right advancing about half a rate Army. League, on this Side that Town, and the Left to a Village called Roerbach. The next Morning, (the twenty-fecond of July, N. S.) the Duke of Marlborough, with the Piquet of the Cavalry of the Left, and a Detachment of 500 Foot, crof- fed the Paer, and marched to view the Ground for a Camp, near Friedburg, where the Enemy had put a Garrifon of 200 Foot, and as many Horfe, who, as foon as his Grace came upon the Friedburg Plain, within Sight of the Town, retired towards their Army, taken-

VOL. I. (^ driving

226 Me Life of JOHN,

1704. driving their Horfes, which were grazing near the Town, and t/W) which they had not Time to mount, before them. Three Squadrons of Dragoons were, thereupon, order'd to cut off their Rear; but by reafon of the Ways thro' which they were to pafs, they could not come up Time enough to prevent their Efcape. However they tock above i oo Horfes in the Town, and purfaed the reft to their grand Guard, which, upon their Approach, retired under the Protection of their Camp. His Grace went into the Town, where he left 400 Foot, and j co Horfe, under the Command of the Lord North and Gray, and then returned to the Camp.

The twenty-third, the Army marched again, and encamp'd, with the Right, at Wolfurtfhaufen, and the Left, at Ooftma- ring ; the Town of Friedburg being in the Center of the Line, and within a League of Auglburg,. under the Cannon of which the Elector of Bavaria had fo advantageoufly pofted the Re- mains of his Army, that it was impoflible to attack him, or to force him out of his Shelter ; however, by this March, the All Com- £)uke Of Marlboroueh had entirely cut off all Communication munication , ,. , . . * >_• i. i • /-> LJ

between the between him and his Country, which his Grace had now wholly Ekaor of in his Power.

, Bavaria and When the Duke had the Elector of Bavaria at this Difad- hlS ^"cft" vantaSe> he entered into a Treaty with him, and it was reafon- ° ''.able to believe he would have embraced the favourable Difpofi- (tlpns his Grace exprefs'd towards him ; fmce he took no other ^AU vantage of hb late Succefles, and great Superiority, than to Propofals of 'offer him fuch Terms of Accommodation, as, confidering the Accommo- prefent Condition of his Affairs, he had no Reafon to expect, fcrtTtheV both for himrdf and his Brother- A late Hiftorian fays, he Jeaor of " went even *° far as- to °ffer Pavmg him the whole Charge of Bavaria. the War, if he would immediately break with the French, and fend his Army to join the Imperialills in Italy. His Subjects, who were now at the Mercy of the Confederates, urged him vehemently to comply with thefe favourable Terms, and there- by prevent the Ruin and Defolation which threatned them. He feemed inclined" to give Ear to them, and Meffengers were fre- quently fent between the two Camps ; but he was far from be- ing in Earned, and only made this Shew of Compliance to gain Time, while he fent Courier after Courier, with the moft pref- fing Jnftances to haften the Advance of the French Army. When he found he could gain no more Time, without coming to an actual Agreement, he feemingly approved of the Articles ace te of3; tiipukted between C9ant Wratiflaw and Monf. Prilmeyer, and promifed to come, in Perfon, to the Confederate Camp, to But rcfufes fign them ; yet he recall'd his Word, upon Advice, that Mar- to ratify the fhal Tallard had pafb'd the Black Forett, to join him, and fent Article.-. kack hjs Miniiter, to acquaint Count Wraiiflaw, nut face tie

Ki*z

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 227

Kj vg of France had made fuch powerful Efforts to fuppi>t him, ^704 he thought hitnfe'f obliged, in Honour, to remain firm in his Al- '- '"v™ ^ fiance.

This Breach of Promife, in the Eleclor, was highly, and, His Breach indeed, juitly refented, by the Duke of Marlborough, and of Faith re- Prince Lewis of Baden, who, feeing there was no working, by fentedi fair Means, on his Electoral Highnefs, fupported, as he was, by the French King ; who had not only promis'd, to make good to him all the Damages he had fuftain'd, or mighc fuflain ; but, as it was then reported every where, that he would fet him on the Imperial Throne : They, therefore, ordered the. Count de la Tour, General of the Imperial Horfe, and the And OrJefs Count d'Ooit-Frieze, Lieutenant-General in the Service of the ^ve",^°s,ra States General, with thirty Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, e'c^ury. to plunder and bu--n the Country of Bavaria, as far as Munich, the Capital of the r.lecl: orate ; hoping, that either a generous Companion for his diitrefl'ed Subjects, or the Want of Sublift- ence, would, at length, conquer the Elector's Obitinacy.

Upon Notice of the Coaimiffion given to General de la Tour, the whole Country was in the utmoil Confirmation ; the Inhabitants of feveral Places fent Deputies to the Duke of Marl- borough, offering to pay large Contributions to prevent milita- Contributl- ry Execution; but his Grace generoufly refufed an Offer, by on oftered* which he might eafily have amaffed great Riches for himfelf, But are no- and, confulting nothing but the Good of the Common Caufe, b;y ictukd. anfwered, That the Forces of the Queen of England were not come into Ba-iiaria to yet Money ; but to bring their Prince to Reafon : So that thofe Generals put their Commifficyi into Execution, with the utmoil Severity, bringing away every thing that came within their Reach, that was worth taking, and burning or ru- ining thereil: And, in this Manner, were deflroyed upwards of 300 Towns, Villages and Caitles. The Eleftor of Bavaria, and the Marihal de Marfin, having evacuated Ratiibon, were forc'd, in the mean time, to keep dole within their flrong Camp .and latrenchments at Augfburg, in Expectation of ano- ther. Army from France, under Marihal de Tallard. I

The Defolation of fo fine a Country could not but very much ^efE^c" affect the Elector, tho' it was not an ef&aual Cure for his Ob- ri°a writes^ ib'nacy : He wrote a Letter to the Duke of Maryborough, en- the Duke of treating him to put a Stop to thefe Ravages : He faid, He could Marlboro'. not believe fucb Violences, fo oppof.te to true Glory, --were committed by his Grace's Orders, or thofe of Prince Leviis of Baden, and that, if they were continued, he Jbould bf obliged to make Repri- sals. The Duke anfwer'd ; // was in his Power to put an end n;5 (;r-,ce'j to theui, by afpeedy Accommodation : But the Elector being buoy- cd up, by the near Approach of the Marihal de 'fa.li.ud, repli- 0^2 «

228 ne Life of J O M N,

1 704. ed haughtily ; That Jince they had obliged him to draw the S<vcordt V. —y" "^ he had thrtrwn away the Seal/bard.

The Eke- While thefe Things were tranfafting, the Duke received Ad- . tv*Rehr v'cc from Prince Eugene» that the Marihal de Tallard was ar- Marfhal'de Twcd, the eighteenth, at Villingen ; and that, thereupon, his Tallard ad- Highnefs was marched, with twenty Battalions, and fixty Squa- vancestothc drons, including the thirty lately lent from the Duke's Army, Eleftor's to Obferve his Motions, having left the reft of the Troops, under The°Duke tne Command of Count Nafl'au-Weilburg, to defend the Lines of Marlbo- of StolhofFen. The hereditary Prince of Heffe-Caffel (now King rough dc- of Sweden) being returned from Donawert to the Army, tho' clares the P. j,e was not yet perfectly recovered of the Wound he received CaflM in tne Afti°n at Schellenberg, the Duke of Marlborough de-

General of clared him General of the Englifh and Dutch Horfe. Horfe. The fix and twentieth of July N. S. the Confederate Army

Farther Ad- made a general Forage, within Sight of the Enemy's Camp, lial TaUard" w'tnout an7 ^ofs ; and, the fame Evening, Advice was brought, that the Marfhal de Tallard, after he had been battering the Town of Villingen, fix Days, had been obliged, upon Prince Eugene's advancing the twenty-third, to Rotweil, to raife the Siege ; that he marched two Leagues the fame Day, and was, the four and twentieth at Dutlingen ; and that Prince Eugene would march, on the other Side of the Danube, to obferve him.

Farther Mo- The eight and twentieth, the Duke of Marlborough reviewed tionsof the the Troops of the left Wing of his Army, and found them in Confederate verv g^ Qrder ; feveral of the Officers and Soldiers, who were wounded, at the Aftion of Schellenberg, being returned to their - Regiments. The thirty-firft, upon Advice, that the Eleftor of Bavaria had fent a Detachment of Horfe towards Landfperg, the Duke of Wirtemberg was immediately fent out, with 2,000 Horfe and Dragoons, to obferve them ; but the Duke had, foon after, Intelligence, that the Enemy's Detachment confifted only of four Squadons, which were fent to re-inforce the Garrifon of Munich. Orders were thereupon difpatched to the Duke of Wirtemberg, to join with the Count de la Tour, in the Execu- tion of his Commifllon, which being performed, with great Se- verity, to the very Walls of Munich, and the Enemy, thereby, deprived of all Manner of Subfiftence, on that Side, thofe Gene- rals rejoined the Army, the third ofAuguft.

The befieg- The Duke of Marlborough, and Prince Lewis of Baden, find- ing of the ing that the Eleftor of Bavaria was ilill inflexible, and that it ilrong Place? was nO( poflible to attack him in his fortified Camp, under the jdoked"13 Cannon of Augfburg, without infinite Difadvantage ; and con- u?onv. fidering, befides, that Marftial de Tallard was advancing, with And parti- a large Body of Troops, they refolved to attempt the reducing cularly in- of the ftrong Places of Bavaria, and to begin with ingoliladt, goJftadt, the

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 6JV. 229

the moft important Place the Eleclor had, in which his great 1704. Magazines were laid up. Prince Lewis took upon him to com- \*~^>u mand and carry on the Siege, with the Imperial Troops, and the Duke of Marlborough undertook to cover it, with the auxi- liary Forces, which, in cafe of Need, might be joined by thofe under Prince Eugene, who, by this Time, was advanced to Dil- lingen. The Confederate Army, thereupon, marched back (the Difpofition fourth of Auguft, N. S.) from their Camp at Friedberg, to- f-deAe A"" wards Aicha, burning all the Villages they had fpared before, be- my on that" tween thofe two Towns, and, having pafled the Paer, encamp'd, Account. that Night, at Kuepach, their Left Wing reaching to Aicha, and the Right, beyond the Caftle of Winden.

The next Day, the Army again pafled the Paer, near the Town of Schrobbenhaufen, leaving that Place to their Right, and encamp'd the Left Wing, at a Place cali'd Clolier-Berg, above the little Town of Hochenwaert, and the Right behind the Town of Schrobbenhaufen. The fame Day, Prince Lewis of Baden went to Neuburg, to view the Artillery, and other Preparations for the Siege of Ingolftadt.

On the other hand, the Marfhal de Tallard, with about The Mar- 22,000 Horfe and Foot, being come to Biberach, the fourth of ^l .d<; Tal- Auguft, N. S. in the Morning, he left his Troops, and went to E<j:c{ornof C the Eledor's Camp. His Eledoral Highnefs, after having left Bavaria/ Monf. Chamarante in Augfburg, with eight Battalions, and four Squadrons of French Troops, marched, the fifth, with the reft of his Forces, to join the new Auxiliaries of that Nation, at Biberach, as if his Intent was to pafs the Lech, at that Place, in order to attack the Confederate Army : But this was only a Feint to cover his true Defign, which was to pafs the Danube, at Lawingen, and to fall on the Army, which Prince Eugene had brought from the Lines of Biehl, and which was then en- camped at Hochftadt, before his Highnefs could be rc-inforced.

The fixth of Auguft, Prince Eugene, having left his Troops at Prince Eu- Hochftadt, went to the main Army, to confer with the Prince genc ,comes of Baden, and the Duke of Marlborough j and taking Notice, Derate "" in his Way, of a Trad of Ground very proper for a Camp, c.>.mp. being an Eminence, which reached from the Villages of Munfter and Erlinghoven, to the Wood near Appenhoven, with a Rivu- let before it, he thereupon fent Orders to his Army, to come and poflefs themfelves of that advantageous Poft ; which was put in Execution that very Night.

The feventh, a great Council of War was held, in the Mar- ihal de Tallard's Camp, at which all the General Officers of both Armies affifted. The grand Queftion was, whether they mould pafs the Danube, and if they fhould pafs it, where to encamp ? It was unanimoufly agreed, that, in order to draw the Allies out of Bavaria, it would be neceflary to pafs that River at La~ Q 3 wingen;

rThe Life of J O H N, ?

wingen ; but that Choice muft be made of a Camp, where Fo- rage would be plenty, and where they might; reft fecure from any Attack of the Allies, till all the Bavariaa. Troops, which were difperfed in feveral Places, mould join the united Army. The General Officers, in Monf. de Marfm's Arrfty, propos'd the Camp of Blenheim, as a fecure Poll, where they would have Forage in Abundance ; the Propofal being made bv thofe who knew, or mould have known the Country, was agreed to, as well by the Marfhal de Tallard, a:, Monf. de Marfin, and the Refolution was taken accordingly.

The fame Day, the Duke of Marlborough having received Intelligence, that the Elector of Bavaria was come out of his Intrenchments, and was encamped by Tirhaupten, on the other Side of the Lech, between Biberach and Kofterhoits, it was refolved to obferve him, and, to that End, to advance towards Donawert. On the feventh, likewife, 800 Imperial Horfe were detach'd, under Cc&nt Merci, Major General, to ftreighten the Town of Ingolftadt, on one Side, whilft Brigadier Baldwin, who uivejk. had been commanded out towards Rain, with 500 Horfe, ever fince the fourteenth of July, received Orders to invert it on ano- ther Side. The fame Day, Prince Lewis returned to the Camp, where he held a Council of War, with Prince Eugene, and the Duke of Marlborough ; in which it was agreed, to remain by the late Refolution of Prince Lewis's befieging Ingolftadt, whilft the other two fhould obferve the Eleftor of Bavaria. The eighth, the Army under the Duke of Marlborough marched from Hochenwaert, to Zanditzell, and that of the Emperour, under Prince Lewis, on the other Side of the little Town of Pot- mes, or Behmen, which was already reduced to Afhes. The ninth, the Duke advanced, within two Hours March of Rain, and polled his Left Wing near Enheim, and his Right at Tillin- Prince Lewis gen ; and from hence Prince Lewis bent his March direftly to joes to be- Neuburg, to repair from thence before Igolftadt. He took with fege ingol- ^m jwo ancj twenty Battalions of Foot, the Regiments of Hcrfe of Hohen Zollern and Cronsfeld ; the Cuiraffiers of Merci, and the Dragoons of Caltelli, leaving, in the Duke of Marlbo- rough's Army, under the Command of the Duke-Regent of Wirtemberg, General of Horfe, the Cuirafliers of Zanthen and Cufani, the Dragoons of Stifum and Auffftatz, Franconian Troops, two Squadrons of Horfe-Grenadiers of Wirtemberg, apd three others, in all eight and twenty Squadrons.

CHAP.

qfthfBallicaf H OCHSTET uh

to hisGrace loHN DUKE

ktf his Grace's devoted ' faimMe /e

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. • sjr

CHAP. VII.

¥be Battle of Hochfladt, or Blenheim.

I AM now entering upon the Defcription of the greateft andjh; 1704." moil memorable A&ion, which this Age has produc'd, ind JL — ^— »_J which raifed the Honour and Fame of our Illuilrious Hero to the higheft Pitch of Glory Mankind is perhaps capable of, and ', above .what any Subjed of England, not of the Royal Blood, ever attained to before. I mall, therefore, be as particular in my Relation of it, as all the Affiftance I have been able to pro- cure, from authendck Pieces, Letters, &c. could enable me to be ; to which Pieces, Letters, &c. I mail refer, in my Relation, and add them at the End of it. Befides all thefe, I have had an Eye to whatever has been written by our Hiitorians, and by Moniieur Dumont, Monf. RoufTet, and other foreign Authors, on the one Side, and by the Marquis de Quincy, F. Daniel, and other French Hiitorians, on the other, which can ferve to illuitrate thefe Pieces.

The ninth, of Auguft, N. S. the Duke of Marlbprough was^Advice of informed, that the Enemy was marching from Biberach to La- t^le Enemy's / wingen, in order to pafs the Danube there. Prince Eugene, APProacil- who, but a few Hours before had taken his Leave of the Duke, in order to return to his Army, came back, to tell his Grace, that he had received the fame Advice j upon which, having Pr. Eugene confulted together, near two Hours, the Prince went back again, and theD. of and re-join' d his Army, the tenth, by break of Day. The JJ*^™* Duke, in the mean time, with his accuftomed Vigilance, order- gather ed the Duke-Regent of Wirtemberg, at two, in the Morning, to march before, with the eight and twenty- Squadrons under his Command, and a few Hours after, caufed him to be followed i»y' twenty Battalions, under the Command of General Churchill,, He direfted them both, to ufe all imaginable Diligence, to join See Letter Prince Eugene, and promis'd, that he would foen be after them c- and D- with the red ot the Army.

Accordingly, his Grace continued his March, the tenth, to- The Duke wards Rain, and encamp'd, with his Right, at Mittelftadt, and m.arches his Left at Pluckingen, having the Town of Rain in their Front, ™ ^^" and the Quarters-General at Neder Schonevelt, where Bridges the prince" were already-laid over the Danube. The fame Day, the Prince of Wirtemberg, with the Horfe and Dragoons, and after him General Churchill, with the Foot and Artillery, pafled that Ri- ver, on the Bridge that was at Merxen.

When Prince Eugene came, the tenth, early in the Morning, to his Army, he found them in Motion, and going to poffefs the

Q.,^. ihemfelves Army.

fLe Life of J O H N,

themfelves of the Intrenchments of Schellenberg, whither the » Officers, who commanded in his Abfence, had already fent Pio- neers, to put them again into a State of Defcnfe ; not judging it fafe to wait the coming of the Enemy upon them, in the Camp of Munfter, with an Army, which did not exceed 18,000 Men. The Prince, however, caufed the Tents to be immediately fet up again, contenting himfelf with fending the Baggage to Do- nawert ; rightly conjecturing, that the Enemy, who paffed the Dannbe, that Day, at Lawingen, could not come near his Ar- my the fame Evening, and that it would not be an Impoffibility for him to maintain the important Poft of Muniter, till the Duke mould join him.

Father In- In the mean time, to be thoroughly informed of the Motions tdlipence of of the Enemy, he fent out five Squadrons towards Hochitadt, the Enemy, which, being returned, reported, that the Enemy, after having paffed the Danube, had not retaken their antient Camp, be- tween Lawingen and Dillingen, but that their Right extended as far as Steinheim, and their Left was at Lawingen. The Prince, hereupon, difpatch'd an Exprefs to the Duke, to ac- quaint him with it, and to prefs him to hallen his March : And, becaufe it was moft evident, that the Enemy, who were well informed of the Weaknefs of the Prince's Army, were fo far advanced, that Day, only with a Defign to attack his Highnefs Pr-parations the next, the Prince caufed all his Infantry, and Part of hie made by the Cavalry, to march to the Camp of Schellenberg, keeping only Prince. wjtn him two and twenty Squadrons of Dragoons, of his own Army, with the eight and twenty Squadrons, which the Duke- Regent of Wirtemberg had brought to him. He pafs'd the Night, with thofe few Troops, in the Camp of Munfter, keep- ing the Horfes ready faddled, with a Refolution to preierve that Poft, if poffible, tho' without coming to an Engagement, till joined by the Duke of Marlborough.

The eleventh, the Expreis fent to the Duke came back, and informed the Prince, that his Grace had been upon the March, ^ever fmce two o'Clock in the Morning, with Defign to join his Highnefs, that very Evening, at the Camp of Munfler. He added, that the twenty Battalions, under General Churchill, were very near. Upon this, the Prince, who, on the other hand, was informed by his Parties, that the Enemy made no Motion that Day, caufed all the Troops, which he had fent, the Day before, to Schellenberg, to return to the Camp of The Duke Munfter. General Churchill came thither early, with his twenty •jt Marlbo- Battalions, and, in the Evening, the Duke arrived, with his

Pr" EugeTe. Wh°le Al"my' the firft Li"e °f whidl Had Pafs'd the LecH> neai> -See Letter ' Rain, the Danube, at Donawert, and the Wernitz, near this C. and D. laft Place ; and the fecond Line had paffed the Danube, at •-..low. fcchonfield, and the Wernitz, at Opperimorgen. All the Troops

being

Dukeof MARLBOROUCH, &7V. 233

being thus joined, they encamp'd between the Villages of Mun- 1704. iter, and Erlinghoven, and that of Apperfhoven. »— -v— — •*

The twelfth, the Troops being too much harafb'd with the They taken foregoing Day's March, the Generals refolved to make a Halt, ,w °, and only to take a View of the Enemy's Camp. Accordingly, ArinyT * at break of Day, the Generals advanced towards Schweiningen, to view the Enemy's Army, taking with them the whole Piquet, confiding of eight and twenty Squadrons. They had Thoughts of caufmg the Army to advance as far as Greinheim and Wol- perftette ; but that they perceived twenty Squadrons of the Ene- my in the Plain of Oberklau ; and, from the Eminence, which is by the Corner of the Wood, near Wolperilette, they faw by Means of Perfpedlive-Glafles, that the Enemy's whole Army was in Motion, and their Horfe marching forward. The Prince and the Duke went up to the Top of the Tower of Thiffingen (or Daapf heim) the better to view the Enemy, and they obferv- ed, that the advanc'd Squadrons ilopp'd fliort, after they had perceived ours. At one in the Afternoon, they faw the Quarter- mailers of the Enemy's Army fet up their Camp-Standards, and mark the Camp from Blenheim to Lutzingen.

It will be highly neceflkry here, in order to give the Reader Situation of a better Idea of what follows, to give a particular Account of |-he Grou"d the Situation, and Circumftances, of the Spot of Ground which t "cwc' was then between the two Armies, and upon which the two Armies were encamp'd. It is a Plain of near two Leagues long, but of an unequal Bread rh, the Entrance into it not being above the Breadth of a Cannoi Shot, but widening foon after to the Breadth of about a League. It is border'd, on one Side, by the Wood of Schellenberg, and, on the other, by the Danube, and three or fouf Rivulets crofs this Plain, in their Courfe to the Danube. This, with the Inconvenience of feveral Marihes, together with the Villages and Hamlets, which are fcatter'd here and there, in this Plain, to the Number of above twenty, render'd the March of the Confederate Army, to attack the Enemy, very troublefome. The little Town of Hochiladt (which gave Name to this Battle) is fituate at the other Extre- mity of the Plain, oppofite to the Confederate Army, on the North Side of the Danube, and at the Mouth of a Rivulet, which, running by the Village of Oberwemingen, there falls into this River. Here it was, the Confederate Generals intended to have formed their Camp, but the Enemy were before-hand with them, and had taken Poffeffion of the whole Space be- tween Blenheim and Lutzingen, and had placed their advanc'd Guard on th« other Side of the Rivulet, which was on the Front of their Camp,

Sa

The Life of J O H N, '

So foon as the Generals returned to the Army, they ordered the neceffary Paiiages to be made ; and the Pjoneers were fent near Thiffingen, to make Bridges of Communication on a Ri- vulet, which, indeed, was narrow, but had high Banks. They were hardly got to their Works, when the advanced Guards of the Enemy came fo near as between Schweiningen and Thiffingen, and their Huffars, obliging the Pioneers to retire, as far as the advanced Guards of the Confederate Army, gave a Sort of Alarm to the whole Camp.

The Duke of Marlborough returned that Way, with the whole Piquet, (even Squadrons of Dragoons, which were en- camp'd before the Quarters-General, and five Engliih Battalions of Row's Brigade, with the Battalion of Englifli Guards, which were followed by a Brigade of Hefle, and a good Party of the The En,=- Army : But being come to the Rivulet, where the Pioneers had ray's ad- been repuls'd, they foand that the Enemy not only retired, but Cnard retire *eturnecl ful1 Gal^P *° their main Army. The Confederate ad- wiX Pre-re vanced Guard was re-inforced, and left under the Command of a cipltatioi>. Major-General; and the two Brigades of Foot, which were in the Village of Thiffingen, were alfo left under the Command ef a like Officer, who polled his Men in the Hedges there- abouts.

At four in the Afternoon, they plainly difcovered, from the Tower of Thiffingen, the Enemy's Camp, their Tents being fet up ; and faw, that they were poffefs'd of a very advantageous ™°" °! Foil, on a Hill ; that their Right Flank was covered by the A,^ ' Danube, and the Village of Blenheim, and their Left by the Village of Lutzingen ; and that they had before them, a Rivulet, whole Banks were high, and the Bottom marfhy ; fo that it was believed at firft to be unpayable, as, indeed, if was afterwards found to be, in fever?! Places. They had, befides, the Village of Oberklau, in the Center of their Army, and the Village of Unterklau, on the oppofite Side of the Rivulet ; and two Mills, towards the Mouth of the Rivulet, which fecured the Paffage on that Side, and ferved as Redoubts for the Defenfe of the River of Blenheim.

Reafons Jn thefe CiVcumftances, it was thought a very hazardous En-

which in- terprize, to< attack fo numerous an Army, in fo advantageous a &iced the Polt, which the Confederates could -not approach, bat by Fi- Dake of^ Kng off, and -by Faffing, in View of the Enemy* a marfhy Ri- awTpdn' '» Vu^et» whicn could not be done in good Order. Bur, on the Eugene to Dtner hand, there feemed to be an indifpen fable Neceflity of attack the falling immediately upon the Enemy, before they had Time to Enemy in fortify themfelves, in * that Poft : For riot only the Confederate ArmX would have wanted Forage, much fooner than Ingol- ' ftadt could have been taken, but the Generals had very good

Informa-

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

Information, from intercepted Letters, that the Marflial de Villeroy had Orders to leave Monf. de Coigni, in the Camp near Offenburg, with a Body of Troops, fufficient to keep thofe of the Allies within the Lines of Biehl, and was ready, with the Remainder of his Army, to make an Irruption into the Country of Wirtemberg. That Army might then have afted in Concert with the Elector of Bavaria, and have been re-inforced by Detachments from that Prince's Army, to fall afterwards on theRearof the Lines of Biehl ; fo that, thereby, the French Armies would have efta- blifhed the free Communication, from the Rhine to the Danube, and have forced all to fubmit to them, as far as the Mayn. In the mean Time, the Elector, from his Camp at Hochftadt, might have ruined a great Part of the Circle of Franconia, and have brought things to that pafs, that the Auxiliaries, under the Duke of Maryborough, would not have been able to find, either Subfiftence, or Winter-Quarters, on the Danube, and in the Upper Germany ; tho', on the other hand, that great and feafonable Supply, could not have left the Empire, in the Winter, without expofing it to the Brink of Ruin, from which they had fo lately, and fo happily retrieved it, and without leaving a very great Superiority to the Enemy. Some pledge another Reaf<5h ; viz. That in Cafe of a Viclory, of which his Grace was pretty confident, he was now out of Danger of any Part of the Honour of it being attributed to Prince Lewis's Conduct ; that of the Viftory of Schellenberg having been (tho' unjuftly) al- moft wholly afcribed to him, by fome, who made it their Bufi- nefs to leflen the Duke's Merit, where the leaft Pretence was to be found, tho' never fo far fetch'd.

Thefe (without confidering the laft mentioned) were prevalent TheRefoIu- Arguments to engage the Duke of Marlborough and Prince tion taken. Eugene to hazard a Battle, tho' under greater Difadvantages • yet there were not wanting thofe, who accus'd thefe two Great fe0r^ti^" Generals of Rafhnefs in the Attempt, and infmuated that they thereupon. would not have been fufficient to have excufed them, had Suc- cefs been wanting. The Englifh (fay they in particular) would not have pardoned the Duke, for hazarding the Lives of their Countrymen, in Favour of the Imperialifts : But here thefe Re- markers feem to be under an undeniable Miftake ; for we cer- tainly were in an Humour, at that Time, to have facrificed more in Favour of that Court, which, in the Opinion of many, has not fince fhewn the greatett Marks of Gratitude, in Return. It is, indeed, true, that Succefs generally covers a rafh Aftion, and on the Contrary, a Mifcarriage is as often the Caufe, that Temerity is not forgiven. The Grounds, however, upon which thefe Arguments were founded, feem inconteftable ; and they had their due Weight with .our Generals. For. that very '

Night,

The Duke's nnfhaken Stead in -fs of Miad.

Gives Ala- crity to the whole Army.

The Duke of Marlbo- rough's ex- emplar)' Piety.

tte Life of J O H N,

Nfghr, all the necdTary Difpofitions were made for the Attack, and the Bagago was lent to Rietlingen, a Village between Mun- iler and Donawert.

In the mean time, feveral General Officers came, and repre- fented to the Duke of Mirlborough the Difficulties of the DC- fign, in their moft lively Colours ; but they had no Effect on his Heady Rcfolution, which he had not fix'd, without weighing every Circumttance, and the Confluences which might, or could poffibly, attend thorn. He knew, that the Poit which the Enemv poffe&'d was capable of being put, in a very fhort Time, out of all Danger ot future Attacks ; he duly considered, that even a Defeat itfelf could hardly be more fatal than lying liill and doing nothing : On the other hand, the Glory of a Victory, which he had in View, and which, from an Experience of the Bravery of the Troops under his Command, led by Ofti- cers of the molt confummate Judgment and Valour, was alone capable to difpel thefe Clouds of Diffidence, however juft, in the Minds of Men of a lels enlighten'd Genius and Underftand- ing : He, therefore, only told them, that he was fenfible of all thefe Difficulties ; but the Attempt was absolutely neceffary : Upon which thp Orders, which were diftributed throughout the whole Army, were received with fuch Alacrity and Chearful- nefs, as gave a happy Preiage of the glorious Succefs that fol- lowed.

It plainly appsared, by every Circumftance of the Duke's Behaviour, antecedent to this glorious Aftion, that he was re- folved, either to conquer, or dve in the Attempt ; And (to his eternal Honour be it faid) a little before the Battle, be devoted himfflf to /£<? ALMIGHTY LORD AND RULER OF HOSTS, in Prs fence of his Chaplain, and received the Sacrament. And no lefs memorable and Praife-worthy is what his Grace is reported to have faid, after the Battle, viz. That he believed he had pay* d mare that Day, than all the Chaplains of the Army.

The Battle of Blenheim, or Hochftadi.

The B The- Confederate Army had 52 Pieces of Cannon, and con-

of Blen- C fiftcd of 66 Battalions and 178 Squadrons, which might amount heim. to 50 or 52,00x3 Men. That of the Enemy was near 60,000

Force of ftrong, coniifting of 82 Battalions and 160 Squadrons, with 90 bothArmie£- (or, as fome fay, ico) Pieces of Cannon, 8 whereof were 24 pounders. Their Right Wing was commanded by the Marfhal deTallard, and made up of the Army he had brought to the Elector's Affirtance, confifting in 60 Squadrons, and 40 Batta- lions, of the belt Troops of France. On the Left, was the Elector, with the Bavarians, and the Marfhal de Marfm, with the French Troops under his Command. The Prifoners which

See Lette: £. below.

Duke of MAR i. BOROUGH, £sV. 237

were taken, owned, after the Battle, that they had 82 Batta- 1704. lions ; but would confefs only 147 Squadrons. Some Accounts c^-v^ idimir.ifti the Number of the Enemy's Squadrops to 140, and their B ittalions to 80 ; whilit another Account fays, our Army con- iilled of no more than 64 Battalions, and 166 Squadrons, ( of which Number, 1500 Horfe were detach'd, with Prince Lewis of Baden. I have feen an Order of Battle, of the Confederate Army, (faid to be) as it flood juft before the Engagement, ac- cording to which, it confifted of 67 Battalions, and 181 Squa- drons. This, however, is certain, that the united Army, of French and Bavarians, was confiderably more numerous, than that of the Allies, under the Duke, and Prince Eugene ; and the Marfhal de Tallard himfelf confefs'd them to be fo, by about 4000 Men.

Having thus given my Readers an Account of the Force, State, and Situation of both Armies ; of the Hazards that necei- farily mull attend the Engagement, which were fuch as required the utmoft Vigilance, Conduct and Courage, even of thofe in- comparable Generals, who were to lead it on, and direct it ; and of the unavoidable Dangers which muft have followed the Neglect of this favourable, this only Opportunity ; I come now to the Great, the Important Day (to borrow an Expreffion of Mr. Addifon's) bi% ivith the Fate, not of the German Empire only, but of All Europe. A Day, the Remembrance of which <wiil endure, as long a: Hiftory Jhall be wrote or read ; or, e<veit, till lime Jball be no more : A Day, <wbicb, in particular, decided the Dejliny of the EleSor of Bavaria, by the Lojs of all his Country.

The General was beat about an. Hour after Midnight, the The whole AfTembly at half an Hour after one, the March at two, upon £™ch , which the whole Confederate Army was in Motion, and, by three, they began to pafs the Rivulet call'd Keffel, on feveral Bridges, which had been prepared the Night before. They filled off in eight Columns, of which two, of Imperial Foot, marched quite to the Right of all, towards the Height, along the Wood, having two Columns of Imperial Cavalry to their Left. The Left Wing, which was compofed of the Auxiliaries* inarched, likewife, in four Columns, viz. two of Foot, on the Left of the Imperial Horfe, and two of Horfe, on the Left of all. Thus the whole Army advanced as far as the Rivulet, near Thiffingen, where the advanced Guards were ordered to return to their refpective Bodies, and the two Brigades of Heffian In- fantry, which had been left, in that Village, under the Com- mand of Major-General Wilks, with fifteen Squadrons, which the Duke of Marlborough commanded out, formed, on the Left of all, a ninth Column, and thus they marched towards Sch weiningen.

As

the Life of JOHN,

As foon as the nine Columns were arrived, between that Vil- lage and the Wood, they made a Halt, to obferve the Enemy, who feemed unconcerned, and did not mike any great Motion. The Duke About fix, the Dake of Marlborough, and Prince Eugene, who a"vde^"ecce had polled themfelves on a rifmg Ground, called to them all the rions farth? Generals, to give them the neceflary Directions for the Attack, Attack. and then the Army advanced to the Plain, where they were drawn up, in Order of Battle. The Left Wing, which was un- der the immediate Care of the Duke of Mariborough, confided in eight and forty Battalions and eighty-fix Squadrons, where- of fourteen Battalions, and thirteen Squadrons, were Enghfh Troops ; two and twenty Squadrons, Danifti ; fourteen Batta- lions and nineteen Squadrons, Dutch ; thirteen Battalions, and five and twenty Squadrons, of the Forces of Lunenberg ; feven Squadrons of the Troops of Heffe ; and fbme Troops of Wir- temberg.

About feven, before the Confederate Army was quite drawn begins "o"b" UP m Battalia, the Enemy, at the Approach of their Van- in Motion. guard, gave a Signal, by firing two Pieces of Cannon, to call in their Foragers. They likewife fet Fire to the Villages of Un- terklau, Wolperftette,.Weiier, Berghagfen, and Schwemenbach, and their whole Army was perceived to be in Motion. They then beat the General, afterwards the Aiiembly, and the Confederates iaw them in Arms before their Camp, their Generals, with their Aids de Camps, galloping to and fro, to put all Things in Order. The DT .-< '^e Marthal de TalJard, in particular, having made all his fiti,enofP°" D;fpofition5, on the Enemy's Right, where he commanded, their Army, gave Orders to Monf. de Surlauben, who commanded the Right of the Cavalry, to have a watchful Eye on the Motions of the Confederates,, and that, as foon as a certain Number of them had pals'd the Rivulet, he mould charge them. Monfieur de Cierambault had Orders to remain in the Village of Blenheim, and there to withftand the Enemy's Attack with all his Might. This, done the Marlhal gallop'd to the Center, where he found the Elector, and the Marihal de Martin, who had juit been making the neceffary Difpofitions on their Left, and were rang- ing their Infantry in the beft Poilure they could, to withiland the Attack of the Allies. Monf. de Tallard gave his Electoral Highnefs an Account of what Difpofitions he had made, with which he feem'd perfectly fatisfy'd, and embracing him, told him, he hop'd he fhould do it, with a yet greater Satisfaction, in the Evening. The Marfhal ftaid in the Center to obferve the Difpofition of the Confederates ; and took that Time to dine, with three or four General Officers who were with him. He was prevail'd upon (as Monf. de Q^incy fays, much againft his Will, and in a very wrong Time) to go to the Left, that he might be the better Judge of tas Difpofuions made there.

i Co

Duke cf MARL BOROUGH, &c. On the Confederate Side, two Brigades of Foot, commanded by the Lord Cutts, Lieutenant-General, the Major-Generals St. Paul and Wilks, and the Brigadiers Row and Fergufon, and A Detach- fupported by fifteen Squadrons, under the Command of Major- ™™fef ** General Wood, were ordered, on the Left, to poflefs themtelves r^tes ^ of the two Water-mills, near Blenlieim, which the Enemy im- vancc. mediately fet on Fire.

The Confederate Army, in the mean time, advanced into Bridges laiJ the Plain ; four Columns march' d to the Left, towards the Vil- over tl>e lage of Greynheim, and four of the Imperial Troops, took the Mora&- Right, towards the Village of Schweinenbach, leaving Wolper- ilette and Berghaufen to the Left. Being come to the Rivulet, they found it difficult for the Cavalry to pafs, the Banks being, on each Side, high, the Water Handing, and, befides, it was marfhy to the Right of Oberklau, as alfo between Unterklau and the Mills ; it was tberefrre refolved to facilitate the Paffage, by Means of the Planks of their Pontons.

About eleven o' Clock, the whole Army being in Battalia, in two Lines, except lome Squadrons which made a Body of Re- ferve, and the Morafs being found marfhy, and unpaffable for the Infantry, they quickly made five Bridges, with the Planks of their Pontons, and repaired the Bridge on the High Road, which the Enemy had deftroyed. At the fame Time, Prince Eugene caufed the Right Wing to march along the Wood, to full on the Flank of the Elector, who extended his Left in Propor- tion, to prevent Prince Eugene's gaining his Flank, and in Order to face him. The Enemy fearing allo, left the Confederates fhould gain the Flank of their Right Wing, by penciling themfelves of the Village of Blenheim, fent feveral Detachments of Foot that Way, and pofted eight and twenty Battalions, and twelve Squadrons of Dragoons, in the Place : They alfo pofted fome Infantry in the Villages of Oberklau and Lutzingen, which A P"eat °- extreamly weakened their main Battalia, and was thought to be ^e Enemr one of the principal Caufes of their Defeat.

To favour the Paffage of the Left Wing, the two Brigades of Foot, commanded by the Lord Cutts, were ordered to go over the Rivulet (which had been founded, by the Duke's Order) firft : which done, they pofted themielves in a Bottom near the Village of Blenheim, and, for feveral Hours, flood the Fire of fix Pieces of Cannon, planted on the Eminence, near the Village, with wonderful Resolution. At the fame Time, the Enemy Cannonad* fired very brifkly on the Bridges, that were laid for the Paffage ing begun cf their Infantry ; but the Confederates foon returned the Com- ^s°tb pliment, from two of their Batteries, one Englifh, and the other Dutch ; and the Execution was confiderable, on both Sides.

The French, who own that they had 90 Pieces of Cannon, ad- yamageoufly placed in a Line, before the whole Front of their

Army

tte Life of J O H N,

Army, pretend they did great Execution from their Batteries, and that the Allies loll 2000 Men before the Battle begun : But if it had been fo, it redounds to their own Shame, to be fo to* tally routed as they were, in the End, after fo advantageous a Be- ginning.

About Noon, every Thing was ready, on the Left Wing, for the Attack 5 and, becaufe it was found, that, in feveral Places, the iiorfe would want Fafcines, to pafe the Morafs, Or- ders were given, that the Horfe of the fecond Line fhould pro- vide themfelves, each Squadron with twenty. By this Time, a good Part of the Infantry, of the main Battalia, of the Confe- derate Army, had ported themfelves in and about the Village of Unterklau, and the Prince of Holftein- Beck poffefs'd himfelf of that of Weiler or Schonbach, and caufed a Counter-battery to be ereded there.

The Gene- Thefe Preparations being all made, the Duke of Marlborough ral Attack gave Orders for a General Attack, which was begun, on the madc- Left, a Quarter before one. Major-General Wilks made the

firll Onfet, with the five Englim Battalions of How, Ingoldfby, Marlborough, Row, and North and Gray, and four Battalions of Heflians, fupported by the Lord Cutts, and Major-General St. Paul, with eleven other Battalions ; and the fifteen Squa- drons of Horfe, under the Command of Major-General Wood. The five Englifh Battalions, led on by Brigadier Row, who charg'd, on Foot, at the Head of his own Regiment, with an unparallel'd Intrepidity, afiaulted the Village of Blenheim, ad- vancing to the very Muzzles of the Enemies Mufkets ; and fome of the Officers exchanging Thrufts of Swords, with the French, thro' the Pallifadoes : But being expos'd to a Fire much fu- periour to theirs, they were foon forced to retire, leaving behind them near one third Part of their Men, either killed or mortally wounded, and amongil the latter, Brigadier Row himfelf. The Englifti I" this Retreat, they were purfued by thirteen Squadrons of Infantry on the French Gendarmerie and Carabiniers, who would have en- the Lett tirely cut them in Pieces, had not the Heffian Infantry ftopp'd lied< their Career, by the great Fire they made upon them. The The French French being repulfed, and forced to flee in their Turn, wer* flK their chafed bv five sq.uadrons of Englim Horfe, who, by this Time Turn. had pafs'd the Rivulet : But whilft they rallied themfelves, fome frefti Brigades of the Enemy, fuperiour in Number, charged the Englim Horfe, with great V igour, and obliged many of them to Notable repafs the Rivulet, with Precipitation. Here the Heflians again Service of perfonned notable Service, putting the Enemy to the Rout, by the Heflians. their COQt|nual Fire> anj regajnjng a pajr of Colours, which they had taken from Row's Regiment. Whilft Row's Brigade rallied themfelves, that of Fergufon, commanded by himfelf, attack' d the Village of Blenheim, on the Left ; but with no z better

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

better Succefs ; and, tho' both return'd, three or four times to

the Charge, with equal Vigour, yet they were both (till repuls'd,

with like Difadvantage ; fo that it was found impoffible to force g,orcj"? of

the Enemy, in that Poll, without entirely facrificing the In- fo™d"™.

fantry. practicable.

The Englifh Foot having thus begun the Engagement, on the The whole Left, the Horfe of the fame Wing pafs'd the Rivulet, pell-mell, Army pate, over againft the Center, or main Battalia, of the Enemy. The ™ j^™ Horfe of the Right Wing, likewife, pafs'd the Rivulet, having *

made feveral Railages, with divers Pieces of Wood, which they found at hand, and a good Number of Falcines. In a Word, all pafs'd and drew up, in Order of Battle, as well as the Ground would permit, on the other Side of the Rivulet. The Enemy gave them all the Time they could defire, for that Purpofe, keep- ing themfelves very quiet, on the Hill they were poffeiVd of, without defcending into the Meadow, towards the Rivulet, info- much, that even the fecond Line of their Horie had Time to form themfelves : And to this Capital Fault of the French, f: principally afcribe the Victory 'which enfued. French.

It has been faid, with what Truth or Grounds I fhall leave undetermined, that this Negledl proceeded from an ill- timed Haughtinefs and Preemption of the Marfhal de Tallard, who being informed, that the Allies were laying Bridges on the jviarfl,ai ^ Rivulet, ufed this Expreffion ; If thei have not Bridges enough, Tallard. / -will lend them fame ; and when they told him, that our Troops were actually coming over the Rivulet, is reported vain- ly to have faid, Let them pafs, the more there comes over, the more <we Jhall ha<ve to kill and take Prifoners. But others, who make it their Bufinefs to excufe that General, afTure us, on the con- trary, That he had gi-ven pofiti<ve Orders, not to let the Enemy pafe See ^ the Rivulet, but to charge them as they pafid, which Orders Letter Q^ were not executed. Monf. de Quincy fays, Orders were given to below. Monf. de Surlauben (as I have obferved above) to charge when a certain Number of them were pafs'd, and that Monf. de Cleram- bault fhoold remain in Blenheim, which feems in fome Meafure, to favour the Report of the Marfhal's Prefumption.

At length, the Cavalry of the Confederates Left Wing The two marching up, towards the Hill, that of the Enemy began to Armies move, and charged them, with a great deal of Fury. The come to* French Infantry, which was in the Village of Blenheim, made, *

at the fame Time, a terrible Fire, from behind fome Hedges of that Village, on the Flank of the Confederate Cavalry, which were advanced too near ; fo that the firft Line of Horfe, of their Left, from the Head of the Line, to the three Regiments of the Troops of Hannover, viz. the Electoral Regiment, that of Voigt, and that of Noyelles, was put into fuch Diforder, that jPart of them retired even beyon4 the Rivulet. Hereupon,

VOL.!, ' R Lieut.

The Life of J O H N,

Lieutenant-General Bulau, Commander in chief of the Troops of Lunenburg, brought up his own Regiment of Dragoons, and two of the Tjrpops of Zell, viz. that of Major-General Vil- lers, and that of Brigadier Bothrnar, from the fecond Line, which charged the Enemy's Horfe, with fo much Vigour, that they broke them, and drove them beyond the fecond Rivulet, called Meulweyer, and from thence to the very Hedges of the Village of Blenheim. This gave Time to thofe who had given Ground, to repafs the Rivuler, and to form a fecond Line, be- hind thofe Regiments of Dragoons, and fome others that had joined them ; To that thofe Dragoons remained in the firft Line, all the remaining Time of the Action.

Part of the The Cavalry of the Confederates Left Wing, having by this Enemy's Succefs, gained the Advantage of forming themfelves entirely, keTarddT in Order of Battk> advanced leifurely to the Top of the Hill, liged to re- and charged feveral times the Enemy's Horfe, who were al- tire. ways routed ; but who, neverchelefs, rallied every time, tho*

at a confiderable Diftance, and thereby gave the Allies an Op- portunity of gaining Ground. The latter preparing to make a frem Attack, the Marfhal de Tallard caufed ten of his Batta- lions to advance, to fill the Intervals of his Cavalry, in order to make a- laft Effort ; which the Prince of Hefie-Cafiel, Gene- ral of the Horfe, and the Lieutenant-Generals Lumley, Bu- lau, Hompefch and Ingoldfby, perceiving, they caufed three Battalions of the Troops of Zell, to come up to fuftain the Horfe. They then returned to the Charge ; but the fuperiour Fire of the Enemy's Infantry put their firft Line into fome Diforder ; fo that it fhrunk back, and remained, for fome Time, at or about fixty Paces Diftance from the Enemy, nei- ther Party advancing againft the other.

More of the At length, the Allies renewed the Charge, and they did it Enemy's with fo much V igour and Succefs, that having broke and routed Horfe broke the Enemy's Horfe, the ten Battalions, who found themfelves and routed. aban(jone(i by them, were entirely cut in Pieces -, none efcaping Ten of the but a Vei7 few Soldiers, who threw themfelves on the Ground, Enemy's as dead, to fave their Lives.

Battalions It may not be improper to obferve, in this Place, that the cutinPieccs. French themfelves are obliged to allow thefoperiour Conduct of Superlour our Britifh Hero. " During all thefe Charges, fays Monf. de of Quincy (and we find the lame Remark, in other French Hiftorians) the Duke of Marlborough, having found the Pott of Blenheim impracticable, only made a bhew (of at- tacking that Poft) with a Front of Battalions, out of Muf- ket-ihot. Thefe he caus'd to advance by Platoons only, who, having difcharged their Fire- Arms, retired, and gave Way to others who reliev'd them, and did the fame. This was done, during the feveral Charges of their Cavalry, in

«« order

the Duke otMarlbro'

Duke of MARLBOROITGH, &V. 245

*f brder to keep all the Troops, which were in the Village, in 1 704. " Aftion, while the Duke of Marlborough march'd the Strength " of his Troops, oppofite to the Center of Monf. de Tallard's '* Army, where, he had obferved, there was no Infantry. If " this had been perceived (continues my Author, and that it " was not, is an inconteftible Proof of our General's fuperiour " Conduft) it would have been eafy to have prevented it, by " marching thither all the Troops which were in the fecond *' Line of the Village, where they were of no Manner of Ser- " vice ; but unhappily for us, we did not difcover it, and the " Allies knew how to take Advantage of our Negleft.

Marfhal de Tallard rallied his broken Cavalry, behind fome Tents, which were ftill Handing in his Camp, but feeing Things in this defperate Condition, he refolved to draw off his Dragoons ^

and Infantry, out of the Village of Blenheim. He thereupon this Enem fent one of his Aids.de Camp, to the Marfhal de Marfin, to dejire him to face the Enemy 'with fome Troops, on the Right of the See Letter Village of Qberklau, to keep them in Play, and favour the Retreat Q^ below. of the Infantry that was in Blenheim : But Monf. de Marfm informed this Meflenger, thai he had too much on his Hands, i i the Front rf his Village (where he had to deal with the Duke of Marlborough in Perfon) and the reft of the Line, to fpare any Troops ; for he ivas fo far from being <vi<3orious, that all he could do was to maintain his Ground.

In the mean time, Lieutenant-General IngoldfLy made th6 TI,0 Frencjj' Prince of Hefle, and the Lieutenant Generals Lumley and Horn- entirely pefch fenfible, how eafy it would be entirely to defeat the rc-utsd. French Cavalry, by charging them on their Right Flank : Which Advice being put in Execution, with a great deal of Vigour, the Enemy were foon brought into Diforder, and put to Flight, and their Rout was entire. Part of them endeavour'd to gain the Bridge they had on the Danube, between Blenheim and Hochfladt : The other Part, among whom were the Gens d'Armes, were clofcly purfued by the Dragoons of Bothmar, and thofe who efcap'd the Slaughter, threw therafelves into the Danube, where moft of them were drowned.

In this Particular it is, that the French Accounts differ the moft from ours : They allow but a very few to have been drowned in the Danube ; (Monf. de Qijincy reduces the Num- ber to lefs than fifty ;) but they, at the fame time, own, that" Part of the Gens d'Armes, with feveral General Officers, were furrounded by the Confederate Cavalry, and that of thofe, who attempted to fight their Way through, a great many were taken Prifoners.

Thofe who fled towards Hochftadt rallied once .more, and

made a Shew as if they defign'd to fuccour the reft ; but the

.Regiment of Bothmar faced them, and kept them in Awe,

R 2 for

244

Marfhal de

taken.

See Letter Qj>elow.

The great Power of Fear and Confterna- tion.

the Life of ] O H N,

for fome Time, till being, at length, joined, by fome other Regiments, the Enemy fled full Gallop to Hochftadt.

The Marfhal de Tallard was furrounded by the Fugitives, and taken near a Mill, behind the Village of Sonderen, not far from the Danube, by Monf. de Boinenburg, a Lieutenant-Colo- nel of the Troop of Hefle, and Aid de Camp to the Prince of Hefle Caflel : He chofe rather to furrender, than to run the Hazard of Drowning, as had been the Fate of moil of his Ca- valry, which had taken to the Danube, to eicape from the Purfuit of the victorious Confederate Troops. He was taken in Sight of the Prince of Hefle-Caflel, as his Highnefs him- felf obferv'd, in a Letter written to the States General, the Other Offi- Night after the Battle. The Marquis de Montperoux, General ccrs of ate Q{ Horfgj de Seppevilie) fe silly, and de la Valiere, Major- Generals ; Monfieur de la MeflUicre, St. Pouange, de Ligon- dais, and feveral other Officers of Note, were likewife made Prifoners, in this Defeat.

And here it may not be an improper Digreflion, to obferve what a Power Fear and Confternation can have over a Body of Troops, when they are once poflefs'd with it, of which we have a flagrant Inftance before us. Thefe Troops, which compos' d the Right of the French Army, not only fled before the victo- rious Englifh, but did it in the utmoft Confufion and Diforder, without any Regard to the Command of their Superiours, or obferving whither or which Way they fled. They look'd upon themfelves as loft, beyond Hopes of Recovery, and giving Way to Defpair, fuffer'd themfelves to be drove to Perdition, like a Flock of Sheep to the Slaughter. A whole Body of their Ca- valry, the beft and moft renown'd of their whole Army, feiz'd with the fame Panick, hurried away the Marfhal de Tallard with them, in their Flight, and, void of all Thought, threw themfelves, by whole Squadrons, into the Danube, Men and Horfes, Officers and Troopers. Some few had the good For- tune to eicape, but much the greater Part, to avoid an uncer- tain Death, which at worft could but have overtaken them in the Field of Battle, and laid them down in the Bed of Ho- nour, rufh'd upon a certain and ignominious Death in the Ri- ver. The impotent Marfhal, not capable of ftemming this Torrent of Defpair, was obliged to furrender Prifoner of War, with feveral other General Officers, who were in his Com- pany.

The Village During thefe Tranfaftions, at the Village of Blenheim, and atfta°k'd in tlieCenter> the Duke of Marlborough caufed the Village o Oberklau, which was Marfhal de Marfm's Quarters, to be at tacked, by the Brigade of Berenfdorff, confifting of ten Batf talions. The Prince of Holftein-Beck, who commanded them a& Major-General, and who came to the Army but the Day be .

fere,

with Sue-

«fs.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &Pr.' 245

fore, pafsM the Rivulet, at the Head of two Battalions, with 1 704. great Refolution ; but, as the Imperial Cavalry, which was to wy^» have fupported him, were wanting in their Duty, and kept Mufket-ftiot from him, he was hardly got over, when feven or eight of the Enemy's Battalions fell upon him, with great Fury, before he could form his two Battalions ; fo that one of them, that of Goor, was almoil entirely cut in Pieces, -and the Prince himfelf defperately wounded and taken Prifoner. They put the Prince, wounded as he was, upon a Waggon, in order to carry him away ; but Fortune afterwards fhifting Hands, he was retaken, in that Condition, with three or four bleeding Wounds on him, of which he afterwards died.

Notwithftanding this fir ft Shock, thefe Battalions were no fooner fupported, by fome Danim and Hannoverian Cavalry, than they charged a fecond time ; but with no better Succefs. Till, upon the third Charge, the Duke of Marlborough ha- The Enemy ving himfelf brought up fome Squadrons, which were fupport- obliged by ed by others of the Body of Referve, made them advance ^Jf^*0 with fome Battalions beyond the Rivulet ; whereupon the Ene- ukewiu. my began to retire.

His Grace thought it now Time to repair towards the At- tack of the Horfe, where he, indeed, found the Adion already decided in his Favour, as we have feen above ; yet he came Time enough to have his Share of pufhing the thirty Squa- drons of French Horfe, and, among them, molt of the Gens d'Armes, into the Danube.

Asfoonas the Duke had perfarm'd thefe confiderable Services, FartherSuc- the Action in the Center being now decided, in Favour of the "fs of.the Confederates, his Grace caufed Part of his victorious Cavalry M^iboro' to halt, to obferve the Motion of that Part of the Enemy, which, by this time, was drawn up beyond the Morafs of Hochftadt. During this Halt, the Elector of Bavaria was per- ceiv'd making his Retreat from the Village of Lutzingen ; up- on which, a Meflenger was dilpatch'd to General Hompefch, (who, with feveral Squadrons, was purfuing the Enemy towards Morfelingen, and who had already overtaken two of their Bat- talions, and forced them to lay down their Arms) with Orders to face about, and march to join thofe who halted ; as well to prevent the Elector's failing upon Hompefch's Rear, as to form a Body, in order to charge that Prince, who march' d in great Hafte, but in pretty good Order, with his Squadrons on the Left, and his Battalions on the Right. *

Before General Hompefch returned from his Chace, the Right His great Wing of the Confederate Army was perceived at lome Diftance Prudence, behind the Elector; and appearing to be Part of his Army, inarching in fuch Manner as might eafily have flank' d them, had the Duke of Marlborough immediately charged him, his R 3 Grace,

24 6 tte Life of JO H-N,

1704. Grice, with great Prudence, Cent out a Party to view them,

<LI -"y— J During this Time, the Eledlor continued marching off, with

great Precipitation, till he reach'd the M-orafs of Morfelinsen.

The French The French Horfe being entirely defeated, and the Confe-

in Blenheim derates Mafters of all the Ground, which was between the E-

furrender nemy's Left, and the Village of Blenheim, the eight andtwen-

5 oner" ty Battalions, and twelve Squadrons of Dragoons, which were

See Letters *n l^at VillagCj found themfelves cut off from the reft of their

L. 4Q.be- Array ; and defpairing of being able to make their Elcape, after

kw. - a weak Attempt to repulfe the whole Infantry which furround-

ed the Village, they, at length, capitulated, .ibout eight, in

the Evening, laid down their Arms, deliver'd their Colours

and Standards, and furrender'd themfelves Prifoners of War,

on Condition that the Officers ftiould not be fearch'd. The

Duke, who qpon all Occafions, fhew'd a generous and tender

Difpofition to his Prifoners, not only granted this Condition,

but, as an additional Favour, fuffer'd the Officers to wear their

Swords ; And, -Night coming on, the Englifh Troops, to whom

this little Army had furrender'd, form'd a Lane at Blenheim, in

which the Prifoners were enclos'd, while they continued on their

Arms, all Night, to fecure them.

o/i^y two By this, it appears, that of the whole French Infantry, which Battalions of the Marflial de Tallard had brought to the Affiilance of the E- ^ Bavaria, confifting of forty Battalions, all Veterans,

rn

fantry ef- an<^ f^e verT Qn°ice of the French Infantry, only two Battali- cape. ons efcaped ; fince eight and twenty were here made Prifoners,

and ten were entirely cut in Pieces, as we have feen above. SotneRe- The Fate of the ten Battalions, which were entirely cut off, flexions on an£J whofe Slaughter thofe in Blenheim could not but know, of'it"31^ witnout doubt brought a Panick upon them, which, in fome Meafure,' caufed this tame Surrender, for which their Com- N l~r' T manders were feverely (and, indeed, juftly) cenfured, even by their own Countrymen, as having fo quietly given up the choiceft Infantry of France, and brought fuch a Stain upon the Nation, as the gaining of ten Battles willfcarce wipe off again. One of their own Generals, fpeaking of their Pufillanimity, fays, Monj. de Clerambault (who commanded thofe Dragoons and Infantry in chief) without taking a Refutation iuorthy of his Name-i with a powerful Bcdy, which was yet entire ', as foon as hf faiv the Rout of our Cavalry, caufed his Pojlilian to found the Da- nube, and throwing Mmfelf into it, was drowned. The Mar- quis de Quincy, to excufe this Pufillanimity of Monf. de Cle- jambault, fays, it was reported, that his Horfe, being fright- en'd by a Cannon-ball which pafs'd near him, threw his Rider into the Danube, where he was drowned. The fame Author draws, likewife, from hence, an Argument to excufe the tame Surrender of thefe Troops, " who (fays he) if they had not

"loft

Duke of MARLEOROUGH, &JV.

4 ' loft their Commander, might eafily have retreated ; but the *' Marquis de Blanzac, who commanded under him. knowing no- " thing of this Misfortune, waited for his Orders." The fameGe- rseral farther adds : 'The Duke of Marlborvugh judging rightly, that there ivere old Troops in that Place, the overcoming of which ^ujould cnfl him dear, made life ofMonf. Defdonville, his Prifmer, to exhort them to accept of their Lives. This (the Truth of which we have no Reafon to doubt, the French themfelves allowing it, in their Accounts,) is another Mark of the Duke's confummate Pru- dence, in not unneceffarily hazarding the Lives of the Troops under his Command, and expofing them to apparent Danger, when the fame End was to be attained by other Means : For, it is certain, fo large a Body, pofted in a Village fo well forti- fied, that it had been able to refift the feveral ftrenuous At- tacks, which the Confederates had, that Day, already made upon it (as we have feen above) if they had continued to defend themfelves, with the fame Refolution, might have given the Confederates a great deal of Trouble, and would not have been fubdued without great Bloodfhed and Slaughter : Whereas, see Letter now, that Infantry (to ufe the Expreffion of a French Officer) Q^ below. is the Laughing-Stock of Nations.

Having given an Account of the Succefs of the Confederates, on the Left Wing, I come now to give an Account, what pafs'd on the Right under the Command of Prince Eugene, who la- Pr;nce EU. bour'd under great Difficulties, having to deal with the Elector gene's Sue-. of Bavaria, and the Marftial de Marfin, both old Generals, of cefs on the great Courage, Conduft, and Experience ; efpecially the for- RlSllt- rner, who had commanded in all the Wars of Flanders, in King William's Time, and had, before that, commanded the Impe- rial Army, in Hungary, and particularly in the Year 1688, took the famous City of Belgrade, from the Turks. Such Ge- nerals, I fay^ Prince Eugene had to deal with. The Infantry of this Wing, confided only in feven Battalions of Danim, and Force of the eleven of Pruffian Forces ; but his Cavalry was ninety-two Confe^<r". Squadrons of the Troops of the Emperour, the KingofPruffia, and" the E! the Circle of Suabia, Wirtemberg, and other Princes and States nemy's Left of the Empire; tho' his Foot, in the End, proved moft viclo- Wing. rious, as we (hall fee below. The Enemy,, on their Side, had, in their left Wing, thirty Battalions, and tho' I do not any where find the precife Number of Squadrons they had in this Wing ; yet, by the Number we find Marftial de Tallard had in the other Wing, and the general Account we have of their whole Force, their Number, on this Side, muft have been a- bout feventy or eighty ; and they had pofted fourteen Battalions .in the Village of Oberklau, the Attack of which, the Duke of Marlborough had taken upon him (as I have faid above) with his Infantry.

"The Life of JOHN,

The Horfe of the Right Wing of the Confederates were poft- ed, moft: of them, over-againft Oberklau ; but the e:ghteei> Battalions, who were to the Right of all, had a great Way to inarch before they could get up the Hill ; and, befides, the Paffage of the Rivulet being very difficult, the Attack could not begin, on that Side, fo foon as Prince Eugene could have wifh'd. Moreover, the Troops of the Right, which ported themfelves in a Bottom, not far from Lutzingen, were obliged to remain expos'd, during three Hours, to the cannonading of the Enemy, without being able to ufe their Artillery, till, at length, a Counter-battery was raifed near the Wood. The Infan. Tho' the Right could not charge till half an Hour after the try of the Left had begun the Attack, yet they were pretty fuccefsful at f '6 f f I1"6 ^r^ ; ^or t^e InfentrY, notwithstanding they were much inferiour See Letter m Number to that of the Enemy, itood their Ground againft <r. below, them, with great Firmnefs and Refoiution, and the Cavalry broke The Cavalry that of the Enemy's firft Line; but they were fo vigoroufly repulfed repulftd. j-j,, tnat Of their fecond Line, that Part of them were driven, in great Confufion, beyond the Rivulet ; and the Infantry, having no more Horfe to fuftain them, was obliged, notwithitanding the great Refiftance they made, to retreat, 3 or 400 Paces, with con- iiderable Lofs, efpecially the two Battalions, which were in the Flank ; infomuch that Things were, at that Time, in a very bad Condition, on that Side. The Infantry flood firm near the Wood, and Prince Eugene having rallied the Horfe, brought them up again to the Charge ; but they were repulfed a fecond time. They were rallied once more, and, for near three Quar- ters of an Hour, they flood within about fixty Paces of the E- The Cavalry nemy, neither Side making any Motion. The Confederates repulfed a- made ufe of that Time to poft the Troops advantageoufly, and gain. to put tnem jn Order, after which they charged a third time.

The Cavalry had, at firit, fome Advantage over that of the Ene- The Infan- my ; but were afterwards repulfed by them : Whereas their In- try vjftori- fantry broke and overthrew that with which they were engaged, tho' they could not march up to them, but thro' a moft difficult Ground, where a fmall Number of Troops was fufficient to flop a greater. Upon thi?, Prince Eugene left his Cavalry, feeing little Likelihood of being able to rally them again, and put himfelf at the Head of the Infantry, who improving the Difor- der, into which they had pat that of the Enemy, purfued them Set Letter over Hills, Dales, Rocks, and Woods, and, having charged C.andD. them again, entirely routed them, and continued the Chace for ow* above an Hour's March, as far as the Village of Lutzingen. Here Prince Eugene caufed his victorious Foot to make a Stand, to give Time to his CavaJry, which had rallied a great Way behind, to rejoin them.

• It

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 249

It is very remarkable, that at this laft Charge, when Prince 1704. Eugene's Infantry defeated, with fo much Vigour, that of the Enemy, but two of their Squadrons flood by them, notwith- ftanding which, they purfued their Advantage, and gave the Enemy no Time to recover themfelves. The French Horfe, daunted by their Succefs, retir'd leifurely. Prince Eugene's Tj]e Cavalry Horfe followed them, the fame Pace, till having joined their ^JJJJJ ^ Foot, the whole Wing continued the Chace, for the Space of Foot. an Hour, with all the Chearfulnefs, which could be expected The whole from Troops wearied with an Action of above five Hours, after ^Vine ?««•- a March of ten Hours, in an extreme hot Day, and follow'd £™myi the Enemy, as far as the Villages of Morfelingen and TeiiTen- hoven, where they made a Shew as if they would ftand their Ground, that they might gain Time to pafs a great Morafs, and reach Dillingen and Lawingen.

As foon as the Action, on the Left Wing, was decided, the Duke of Marlborough difpos'd himfelf to march, with Part of that Wing, towards the Village of Oberklau, to charge the Left of the Enemy on their Flank, and to fuccour their own Right, under Prince Eugene; but he was informed by the Way, by And obtains one of that Prince's Aids de Camp, that there was no farther Oc- » complete cafion for it ; that all was recovered, on his Highnefs's Side, Vl"ory- and that the Enemy had abandon'd the Villages of Oberklau and Lutzingen, after having fet them on Fire.

Thus this ftupendous Battle, which, during near five Hours, Caufes of was fought with dubious Fortune, ended, at lait, in a moft com- thisVl<ao)7- plete Victory, on that Side, which, before the Engagement, had a vifible Difadvantage ; and the Succefs of this great Day, under the Bleffing of the All-ruling Providence, may juftly be attributed to the invincible Courage and Intrepidity of the Con- federate Troops, and to the Conduct and Bravery of their Gene- rals ; tho' the Enemy themfelves, as I have faid above, were guilty of fome Overfights, which did not a little facilitate their Overthrow. .

The Victory being thus completely gain'd, beyond all human The Duke Poffibility of the Enemy's making any further Stand, the Duke, of M"lbo. even while he was in hot Purfuit of the Fugitives, and had been ^tches'*" fixteen Hours on Horfe-back, thought his Happinefs not com- Meffcnger to plete, till he had difpatch'd a Meffenger to England, that his England. Royal Miftrefs, and the whole Nation, might partake with him, in the univerfal Joy, occafioned by this Succefs: He, ' v

therefore, fent away Colonel Pack, one of his Aids de Camp, with Sec Letter a Couple of Lines to his Duchefs, written on Horfeback, with B> below- a Black-lead Pencil, on a Leaf torn out of his Pocket-book.

Having thus given a Defcription of this famous Action, ac- cording to what I have been able to collect from the beft Wri- ters and Relations, as well on our Side of the Queftion, as from

fome

tte Life of J O H N,

fome Accounts given by the Enemy ; I had Thoughts ofgiyfng the Reader a Tranflation of the moft circumftantial Account 1 have feen, on the French Side ; I mean that given by the Mar- quis de Quincy, Brigadier in the French Kings Arw, Lieutenant- General of the Artillery, and Knight of the Military Order of St , Lewis, in his Hifloire Militaire de Louis le Grand : But upon comparing this Account with the foregoing Relation, I find fo little Difference, that it would be fuperfluous ; efpecially as I have already remarked, wherein they chiefly differ : And, be- fides, there not being the leaft Circumftance, even in this Ac- count, tho* proceeding from the Pen of an Enemy, but what, in every Refpect, redounds to the Glory of the two incompara- ble Heroes, who commanded the Confederate Troops, and who; in the Manner I have fo amply defcrib'd above, triumphed over the French and Bavarians.

Juft Enco- As the whole Action was chiefly managed and directed by the miums of Duke of Marlborough ; fo the greateft Share of the Glory is MailboiV certa'nly his Due ; and, indeed, it was at that Time, accord- ingly afcrib'd to him, both by Friends and Enemies ; a greater Initance of which cannot be, than that the Emperour, caufing a noble Pillar to be erected, in the Field of Bittle, with a Latin Infcription on it : He, therein, attributes this Victory to the Puke of Marlborough, concluding with thefe Words :

Exerdtui Vi3ori, cum immortali Gloria, imperavit JOHANNES, Dux de MARLBOROUGH, ANGLUS.

liuKne • Juflice, however, obliges me likewife to own, that Prince

Eugene's Share of the Glory of this great Day, tho* not equal

to that of the Duke, did not fall very fhort of it : And it is ac-

, knowledged on all Hands, that they both performed the Parts

' of confummate Generals ; both gave their Commands with all

the Clearnefs and Compofednefs imaginable, expofed their Per-

fons, where- ever their Prefence was neceffary, with the greateft

ynconcernment, and prcferved their Temper and Prefence of

Mind, in the moft pre&nt Dangers. The Duke, for his Part,

very narrowly . efcap'd being kill'd by a Cannon-Bali, which

?azed under the Belly of his Hofe, and covered him with Dirt, he Prince had a Horfe kill'd under him, and was fo near be- ing taken, that one of the Enemy's Dragoons, among othersj, who rode up to him for that End, had hold of his Coat, when an Imperial Dragoon firing at him, kill'd him, and others com- ing up to his Affiilance, the Enemy made off: And tho* his Highnefs was always in the thickeft of the Enemy's Fire, he had the good Fortune to come off unhurt.

This Prince himfelf was not more forward, in fending Rela- tions of this wonderful Succefs, to the feveral Courts of Germa- ,zyr, than he was in attributing it chiefly to the Valour and Con-

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. 251

d-udl of the Duke of Marl borough ; I, myfelf, have feen one 1704, of them to the Court of Zell, in which he is very fanguine in his v— - v— — ' Praifes of our Englifh Hero.

There is, in the Hands of a Canon of Wurtzburg, the Copy Of both, ia of the Infcription, faid to be intended for a Pyramid, that was an Infcnp- defign'd to be creeled in the Middle of the vatt Plain, in which tlon' this famous Battle was fought, to perpetuate the Memory of it, and to the Honour of both our Heroes. If we may give Credit to a learned and ingenious Author, whofe Manuscript Travels are now tranftating into the Englifh Tongue, it was. chofen out of a Hundred, compofed by the moft learned Men of Germany, for that Purpofe : But, be this as it will, I think it very well 4e- ferves a Place here.

M O N U M E N T U M,

./Eternal Memorize Sacrum. Armo M.DCC.I V. Die XIII. Augufti,

In hac Regione Ingenti clade fufus eil Exercitus Gallo-Bavarus.

Sub Duftu

Emanuelis Eledloris, C'omitumque de Tallard & Marfin. Quorum primus proelio captus cum XL. Praefedis belli PrimariiX

CLXXXX. minoris Ordinis, & XII. Mill. Gregariis. Praeter deletes in Campo XII. Mill. &in Flumen precipitates.

Exercitui viftori cum immortali Gloria imperavit I line pro Leopoldo Caefare Eugenius e Sabaudia Princeps,

Hinc Joannes Dux de Marlborroug Anglus. Qui fub Aufpiciis Annae Reginae ftrenuum militem

A Tamefi ad Danubium duxerat,

Ut Germanise; periclkanti fuccurreret.

Quod, junclis cum Ludovico Marchione Badenfi copiis,

Expugnato ad Donawertham Monte, Valle, & Aggere munitifiimo,

Summa cum Fortitudine incepit. Et poft Confliaum inter Bleindheim & Hoechftatt,

Pari conftantia & felicitate confecit.

Erat adverfa acies & numero, & loci fitu fuperior.

Neque alius patebat ad vi&oriam, quam per Paludes aditos.

Sciant foederati Duces inviam virtuti nullam efle viam.

Difcant Proceres Conjurationem cum Patrise Hoftibus, rard efle impunitam.

Et agnofcat tandem Ludovicus XIV.

Neminem ante obitum debere aut felicem

Aut magnum prsdicari.

We muft not, however attribute the Glory of this Day, wholly to our two great Commanders ; and they themfelves were too equitable, not to allow the Generals and other Officers, and the

Troop,

252 Tie Life of J O H N,

1 704. Troops, under their Command, a- large Share of it, without v^-v^x^ leaving k to Fame alone to make that Divifion, of which the Roman Orator gives us the following elegant Defcription : Nam idlicas Laudes folent quidam extenuare njerbii, eafque de t ra- te re DudliuSf communicare cum Miliiibut, ne proprite Jint Impera- tirujn ; & certe in Armis, Militum virtus, locorum Opportunities, auxilia Saioj"um, c'ajfes, commeatus^ multum juvant, maximam <vero par tent quaji fuo jure Fortunajtbi --vindicat : Ett quidquid eji projpere geftum, id pene omne duett fuum.

Ar.d of the The other Generals of the Confederate Army, I fay, dif- other Gene- charged their refpe&ive Commands, with great Prudence, Ac- tivity and Valour : But among the reft, the hereditary Prince of Heffe-Caflel, and the Prince ofKannover, Generals; Lumley, Hompefch and Bulau, Lieutenant-Generals ; Wood and Villers, Majcr-Generals of Horfe ; the Lord Cutts, the Lord Orkney and Ingoldfby, Lieutenant-Generals ; the Prince of Holftein- Beck, Wilkins and St. Paul, Major-Generals ; and Row, Fer» gufon and BernfdorfF, Brigadiers of Foot, deferve particularly to be mentioned, for their great Bravery and prudent Conduct. Bravery of All the Troops, in general, fought with extraordinary Valour the Troops, and Undauntednefs ; tho' their Courage may have differ'd in ibme Circumftances, according to the particular Temper of the feveral Nations, which compofed the Confederate Army. The Fnglim Foot fhew'd their natural Fire, Brilknefs and Intrepidi- ty, in their feveral Attacks of the Village of Blenheim ; the Pruf- lian and Daniih Infantry, their innate i'irmnefs and Refolution, on Prince Eugene's Side, where they recovered all ; and the Ger- man Horfe perform'd Wonders in the Center, particularly Both- mar's Regiment of Dragoons.

Pr-jite and Having thus recorded the deferved Praifes of the Generals and Cenfure of Soldiers, on the Side of the Confederates, hiftorical Juftice and ien)J- Impartiality call upon me to give the Enemy likewife their Due ; and here, I am obliged to allow, that as many of their Troops, as engaged, /ought with Vigour and Courage ; infomuch that had their Generals performed their Parts, with anfwerable Pru- dence and Forecaft, it is probable the Fortune of that Day might have remained undetermined. The Elector of Bavaria, it is true, maintained his Reputation of a brave and experienc'd Commander ; nor was he ill-feconded by the Marmal de Marfin ; (tho' fome have been of Opinion, that Monf. de Marfin was highly blame-worthy, in refufing Affiflance to Monf. de Tallard, as I have faid above ;) but then, the Marmal de Tallard, and the Generals of the Enemy's Right Wing, were guilty of two inexcufable Faults ; firft in throwing fo great a Number of their Men, into the Village of Blenheim, whereby their Center was extremely weakened j and, fecondly, by fufFering our Troops to

Duke ef MARL BOROUGH, &c. pafs the Rivulet, without any confiderable Oppofuion, as I have already obferved more at large above.

The French have indeed a Salve ready for every Sore, and (as a noted Author hasjuftly obferv'd) generally poffefs this Nction: They were never routed, but it was either becaufe it pleafed the Court, that they mould be routed, or becaufe of fome Jea- loufy betwixt their Generals. They loll (fay they) the Bat- tle of Hochftat, for want of a right Understanding betwixt the Eleclor of Bavaria and the Marflial de Tallard : That of Ramillies, becaufe theMarfhal de Villeroy would not let the Ele&or of Bavaria have the Honour of beating us: That of Oudenarde, becaufe the Duke of Vendome's receiving that Shock was a real Satisfaction to the Duke of Burgundy, the " prefumptive Heir of the Throne : And Monf. de la Motte, " too, fuffer'd himfelf to be beaten, near Wynendale, only in «' Complaifance to the Duke of Burgundy, who was apprehen- " five that he fliould not be able to perfuade the King his Grand- " father to a Peace, which he had very much at Heart, ifLifle " was not taken by the Allies, which it could not have been, had '« they not let the Convoy pafs, which Monf. de la Motte had " attack'd. The paffing of the Scheld, the raifing of the Siege " ofBruflels, the Surrender of Ghent, without ftriking a Blow ; " was likewife all done by Order of the Duke of Burgundy, who " was for a Peace upon any Terms, and could not obtain it with- " out facrificing both the Army and Glory of the King, his «' Grandfather.

As an Author of Reputation, who wrote in the Year 1 705, of whom I made mention at the End of my Account of the Adion at Schellenburgh, doubts of the Veracity of this Paffage of the Rivulet, as far as r-egards the Difficulty and Danger of it ; I fliall the rather tranfcribe what he fays on this Head, as he accompa- nies it with fome other Remarks and Particulars not mentioned above, and give us an Account of the Appearance of Things on the Spot a Year afterwards.

" My Author (continuing the Relation of bis Travels) goes on : «' We left Donawert early in the Morning to continue our Jour- " ney towards Blenheim, where we arrived about ten o'Clock. jng to this We order'd Dinner to be got ready in one of the five or fix Aftion by Houfes which are built upon the Ruins of that Borough, and M^- Blain- taking, for our Guide, a Peafant who knew the whole Field e' of Battle, we walked over it from End to End. The Man, firft of all, pointed out to us the Difpofition of the French Ar- '* my : They were oblig'd to extend their Front from Blenheim, " to the Foot of fome little Hills which border a vail Plain, two '* Leagues from the Danube, (on which Blenheim was fituated) " to prevent their Left Wing's being attacked in the Flank, by ^ Prince Eugene of Savoy, who commanded the Right of the

Allies :

ne Life of J O H N,

" Allies : This Difpofition proved the Ruin of their Army. The " Duke of Marlborough being informed by his Scouts;, that they " had thinn'd the Depth of their Centre, in order to extend " their Line to thefe Hills, order d the Rivulet, which runs thro1 " the Plain, with a Part of the Marfl, to be fill1 d up, and then " attjcKd the Centre of the. Enemy, and put it to the Rout, &c. (It is therefore, plain, by his own Relation, that there were a Rivulet and a Marm to be fill'd up, before the Allies could at- tack the Enemy ) " and thus they cut off their Com-

'* munication with their Left Wing, commanded by the Duke of " of Bavaria and the Marflial Marfin, as well as with the 26 " Battalions, and four Regiments of Dragoons, potted at Blen- " heim.

" Tis true, the Ground on which the French were drawn up, ' ' is fomewhat higher than the reft of the Plain, and that it is " e-jen, in fame Meafure, naturally fortified by the Brook and the " Mar fa, gfpeciallj after a Fall of "Rain ; yet I can't help ob- " ferving, on this Occafion, how Diftance magnifies Objecls. •' Our Gazette and weekly Courant Writers, have almoft made ' a Miracle of the paffing of this Rivulet : But having, this Day, ' the fecondof July, itv$,pa/edand repaffedit, without wetting ' my Feet, in twenty different Places, and found this terrible Marjh ! quite dry ; have I not Reafon to conclude, that this Battle, be- ' ing fought the \ ^th of Auguft, lajl Year, after a very dry Summer, ' the Paffage of this Brook, which hath been reprffented as fo dif- ' Jicult, mujl have been incomparably lefs fo to the Soldier i, who had • bejides thrown vajl Quantities ofFafcines into it ?

I muft here beg Leave to differ from our Author, and to think he has not fo great Reaion to make fuch a Conclufion : He allows that the Soldiers threw vait Quantities ofFafcines into it, (i. e. into the Brook, or tbeMorafs) or, at leaft, into a Hollow Way, at the Foot of the higher Ground, which probably was on both Sides of it. He may have gone ever it, -without wetting his Feet ; but is that any Ar- gument, that he might have done the fame eleven Months before ? JMay not twenty Incidents haveoccafion'd the Difference ? Which for Brevity's fake, I omit enumerating ; and I think the Vouch- ers I have already given, without more, which I otherwife could give, fufficiently eftablifh the Fafts beyond all Room for Doubt : They were all, or at leaft moft of them, Eye-Witneffes j all known Perfons of Diftin&ion and Probity, as much to be be- lieved as any German Officer ; who, as being fuch, may poffibly have been prejudiced by Envy or otherwife, againft the Englilh and other Troops, on the other Wing, who carried off the great- er mare of the Glory of the Day. I muft therefore fay, with our Author, for whom I have otherwife defervedly very great Regard, that I give more Credit to the Teftimony of thefe known, named, and diiUnguifh'4 Vouchers, the Originals of many

of

Dukeof MARL BOROUGH, &V.

of whofe Teftimonies have gone thro' my Hands, /than to any anonymous German Officer whomsoever : And why mayn't I, likewife, fay with him ; *' Plurisefi ociilatus Tcjiis unus, quam " auriti decern : qui audiunt audit a dkunt, qut --vident plane fciunt : 41 andwhy not, Ergo tejlificata loquor?" But to return to ounAu- thor.

*' We ftoppM a little, to confider the Ruins of a large Mill, •" that was at the Head of the Left Wing of the French. The " Officer along with us, who was prefent at the Attack of this Mill, told us, that Marfiial Marfm having placed in it five or fix hundred Grenadiers, with a Lieu tenant- Colonel and fome other Officers, they defended themfelves fo vigo- roufly, and made fo terrible a Fire, that they made a great Slaughter, and then retir'd in good Order, after having them- felves put Fire to the Mill. Upon this Prince Eugene having attacked fome Bufties and thick Hedges, by which the Head of the fame Wing was cover'd, the Germans were driven back three times very fmartly, and the Enemy fo opportunely em- ployed five or fix Pieces of Cannon, loaded with Pieces of Old Iron, and hid among the Bufhes, that they killed above 3000 Men including thofe that were {Iain at the Attack of the Mill. This fo difcourag'd the German Infantry, that had they not received .News of the Defeat of the Enemy's Centre, and of the Marfhal Tallard's being taken, they had certainly turned their Backs, in fpite of all the Efforts of Prince Eugene, and the other General Officers, to rally them. " This Major added, that if the French Troops, which were ftation'd at Blenheim, had marched in Line of Battle a- long the Danube, without giving Time to the whole Army of the Allies to unite and inveftthem ; this Army was fo fa- tigued by Battle, Duft, and Heat, that they were not in a Con- dition to oppofe the Retreat of fo confiderable a Body of frefh Troops, that had not yet been engaged. " Having fpent almoft three Hours in furveying this Field of Battle, which gave fo decifive a Stroke, for the Interell and Liberty of Europe, at the Expence of 20,000 Lives, we came back to the Ruins of Blenheim, a Borough {landing be- fore this Battle, upon the Brink of the Danube. Tho1 the Corn was now very high in this Plain, we could flill fee ma- ny direful Veftiges of the bloody Tragedy that was aded here. Fragments of Bodies half buried, Legs, Arms, Skulls, whole Carcaffes of Men and Horfes, intermix'd with But-cnds of Muskets, Pieces of Swords, and old Rags, which the Peafants had not thought worth while to carry off, after the Retreat of the Armies, prefented a moft difmal frightful Scene to the Eye and Imagination.

The Life of JOHN,

" The little Town of Blenheim, and all the furrounding Coun- tries for five or fix Leagues in Circuit, are fo ruin'd, that one " would think the Armies were but jufl gone. In Reality, was. " it not for the little Corn in the Plain, one would take it for a '* Defart fill'd with the miferable Remains of deftroy'd Villages, " Towns and Caftles ; the horrible Fruits of War.

The Duke It is remarkable, that, after the Fight, two French Generals of Mar.bo- were entertained at Supper, by the Duke ofMarlborough, who, tenahiTtwo w^ ^"s accu^ome^ Hcroick Modefty, endeavour'd to divert French Ge- tne Difcourfe, from the Bufmefs of the Day ; but the French nerals, after Officers would ftill be bringing it upon the Carpet ; and one of the Battle, them faid ; That there was a Critical Moment, in which ViSory An Obfer- had been abfolutely theirs, if the Gens fArmes had done their Duty, vation made Qf the fame Opinion were, likewife, all thofe who would juftify theml6 ° the Marfhal de Tallard's Conducl ; which being known to the See Letter Gens d'Armes, they wrote a Letter to one of the French King's R. below. Chief M'nifterSi to clear themfelves of that Afperfion ; of which I fhall fubjoin a Copy.

A Paflage, which happened foon after Marfhal de Tallard was taken, (hews into what Perplexity his Mind was caft, by this Mif- fortune. The Lord Tunbridge, one of the Duke of Marlboro ugh's Aids de Camp, came to the French General, to offer him his Ser- vice, telling him he was going to the Duke ; upon which the Mar- An inconfi- ftml defired his Lordfhip to tell his Grace ; That if he would let okbJ^]y[°" thofe poor People fcespauvres Gensj alone, ('meaning the French in by the M Blenheim ) and fuffer them to retreat, he would fend Orders not to de Tallard. fire on the Confederates. This unreafonable Propofal being report- The Duke's ed to the Duke, his Grace faid ; He wondered Monf. de Tallard. prudent An- j^j ^^ (on^^er^ that he £,aj no Command where he now ivas.

The fame Night, the Marfhal, with two or three more, were

nSwhkh carried> in the Puke's Coach, to the Prince of Heffe's Quarters,

pafs'd be- where his Grace, making him a Vifit, the next Day, told him,

tween ths He <was forty, that fuch a Misfortune Jhould fall perfonally on one,

Duke and for whom he had fo great an Efteem. Monf. de Tallard returned

thcMarihaL the Compliment, by telling his Grace, That he had the Honour

of having vanquijhed the bejl Troops in the World. To which the

Duke wittily replied j He thought bis man Troops ivere the bejl in

the World, fince they had conquered thofe , which the Marjhal ac-

counted to be fo.

Confe- This Victory, tho1 as great and com pleat in itfelf, as any

quences of ever was gained, was ftill greater in its Confequences. It was

thisV;dory. introductory to all the Succefs which follow'd, during the Courfe

of this War, either in Italy or Flanders ; and certain it is, that

had it not been for this Viftory, the Emperour could not have

maintained himfelf in his Dignity and Eftates, and muft, this

very Year, have been forced from his Capital ; for the Hun-

garians were new almoft univerfally in Rebellion ; and whilft the

a Elector

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, £5^.

Eleftor of Bavnria penetrated into Upper Auftria, and had taken Lintz, the chief Town thereof, the Hungarians ravaged the Lower Auftria, and even threatned Vienna itfelf : For the ilebels, at this time, wanted nothing but Artillery, and other Neceflaries for a Siege, to have taken both that, and the ftfong- eft Towns in Hungary ; which Deficiency would foon have been fupplied, by French Mony, had not the Glorious Day of Blenheim prevented it, and obliged the Monarch of France to empty his Treafures, in recruiting his Forces, and rilling his Magazines, where it was more immediately neceffary. The Emperour was, alfo, at this time, fo low, that his Forces in Italy, upon the Po, were almoft dwindled into nothing, and the poor Remains or" them had been obliged to retire into the Trentin, while the Duke of Savoy was very hard prefs'd by the Duke de Ven- dofme, and his whole Country in great Danger of being made an abfolute Conqueft : But this great and unexpected Succefs gave a new Turn to the Pofture of Affairs, on every Side ; and Lewis the Great had afterwards fuch a Train of ill Succefs, that he had, in theCourfe of this War, as much Reafon to complain of the •Frowns of Fortune, as he had before to exult in her Smiles. And tho', in all the Advices, which we received from the Emperour's Territories, before this Battle, great Care was taken to put the beft Colour upon every thing, in Favour of his Imperial Majefty, and to glofs over his deplorable Circumftances ; yet, in his Let- ter of Thanks to the Duke of Marlborough, on account of this See Lettar Victory, he owns them pretty freely ; and with great Reafon and M- t)iiovv'« Juftice : For (as a late Author very pertinently obferves) " the " Emperour was almoft at the Mercy of his Enemies, and " fcarce any thing lefs than the mighty Efforts of this amazing " Campaign, as Things were then circumftanced, could have " prevented his Ruin. The March from the Rhine to the *•' Danube, the Battle of Schellenberg, the Defolation brought <c upon Bavaria, by the Obftinacy of the Eleclor, and the " Glorious and Divine Action at Hochftadt, are all little lefs " than MIRACI.ES, aad deferve to be confidered and ap- " plauded accordingly.

A.

TH E Enemy's Lofs, according to their own Confeffion, in The Loft of feveral intercepted Letters, amounted to near 40,000 Men, .the ^nemy in which Number they included 4 or 5,000 Men whom they JJ^JJ loft in their precipitate Retreat to the Black Foreft, either by Defertion, or by the Purfuic of the^Huffars and Peafants, who made a great Slaughter of the Stragglers. And, indeed, if it Seg Lettere be confidered, that after an exaft Computation, the Number of K'L. c. ,4he Prifoners the Confederates made, exceeded 1 3,000 (fome Ac- D' and E, counts fay, 14000) Men, of which abpve 1200 were Officers; bekw. YOL,L S thai

258 The Life of J O H N,

1 704^ that they cut m Pieces 10 French Battalions, on their Right, and

4^-y^j overthrew, into the Danube, near 30 Squadrons of Horfe and

Dragoons, moil of whom were drov/ned ; that their Left Wing

See Letter did alfo fuffer very much, efpecially the Foot ; that, befides 95

H.belcw. Officers, who were found at Hochftadt, Diilengen and Lawingen,

the Number of the Wounded, whom (as it has been faid, from

good Authority) they brought oft" from Ulm, exceeded 7,000

Men, of which 1000 were Officers, and the great Number of

Officers found buried in the Village*, thro' which the Army af-

cT-bdcw' terwards niarch'd ; if all this, 1 fay, be confidered, it mutf be

owned, that thefe Letters fpoke within Compafs. This alfo

agrees with what Monf. de Marfin wrote to the King of France,

(bon after, viz. that the Elector of Bavaria, and hirnlelf, had,

the Night before conduced to Ulm, one and thirty Battalions,

and fixty-two Squadrons, which is all that I can find efcaped

from this Bittle, of the French and Bavarians, except Stragglers ;

and we need not doubt, but Monf. de Marfm rmde the beft of

his Story to the King, as well in this, as when he told him, in

his Letter, they had lujl 10,000 Men, bejides what were taken,

and i>ery many ixounded.

Tho' the French have been induftrious enough in concealing their particlar LofTcs ; yet is it known, that the Count de Verue, General of the Horfe was kill'd, Mor.fieur de Bufen, and Count de Clerambault, Litutenant-Generals, drowned in the Danube: That Meffieurs de Blainville and Surlauben, Lieutenant Generals, died of their Wounds ; that Monfieur de Marillac, Brigadier, only Son to the Counfellor of State of that Name, the Duke c'Humieres, Brother to the Duke d'AumOnt, the Marquiffes d'Arpajou, de Hauteibrt, and de Beringhen, were either killed or drowned, and that the Marquis de la Baulme, only Son to the Marfhal de Tal!ard, was mortally wounded, and died a few Days after the Action.

The leaft Computation made of the Lofs of the French, which can be faid to be any Ways impartial, allow it to have been 30,000 Men, viz. 14,000 kill'd and wounded in the Field of Battle, and drown'd in the Danube; 13,000 Prifoners, and 3,oco deferted, or otherwife loft in the Action, and precipitate Retreat. The Paris Gazettes, indeed, have reduced them to a fomething lefs Number ; but I need not tell the Reader, that it is not to them we are to go in Search of Truth.

The Prifoners of Note, befides the Marfhal de Tallard, were See Letter verv numerous, cf which I mail give a Lilt below.

e Befides the Priibners, the Confederates got many other En-

fjgns of a compleat Victory ; as above 100 Pieces of Cannon,

Booty. great and fmalJ, 24 Mortars, 129 Colours, 171 Standards, 17

Puir of Kettle Drams, 3,600 Tents, 34 Coaches, 300 laden

Mules,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

Mules, 2 Bridges of Boats, 15 Pontons? 24 Barrels, and 8 Cafks of Silver.

This Succefs coft the Allies 448- Men kilFd, 7525 Men Lofsoftlis wounded, and 273 loft, or made Prifoners. A great Dumber Confcde- in itfelf, but an inconliderable Price for the infinite Advantage rates' which the Allies gained by their Victory. They loft few Men of Note, except the Prince of Holftein Beck, rnd Brigadier Row, who died of their Wounds after, and Philip Dormer, Lieutenant- Colonel of the Engliih Guards, Major Frederick Cornwallis, Lieutenant-Colonel Dallyel, Lieutenant-Colonel Fetherfton- haugh, Major Creed, Colonel John White, Lord Forbes, Cap- See Letter tain, Major Chenevix, who were killed in the Fight. The prin- b-'k>w. cipal Perfons among their Wounded were, the Lord North aad Gray, who loft his right Hand ; the Lord Mordaunt, who had his left Arm fhatter'd, Colonel Hamilton, Lieutenant-Colonel Levingfton, Lieutenant-Colonel Peyton, Major Granville, Maj. George Morgan, Lieutenant-Colonel Britton, Major Armftrong, and Major Hetley.

Having thus given a particular Relation of this famous Battle, and glorious Vidtory, fought and obtained under the chief Con- duct and M inagement of the great Duke of Marlborough, to his immortal Honour, I ftiall,- as well to corroborate many Cir- cumftances already mentioned, as to iliullrate what has been faid above, by the Addition of feveral others, fubjoin the Copies x

of the fundry Letters, &c. referred to above, written by the , chief Perfons, who had a Share in the Tranfa&ions of this Day, with Anfwers to fome of them, and fuch other Pieces relating thereunto, as I have been able to procure, and which may con- tribute to give my Readers a compleat Idea of this wonderful Aclion, and of every Circumftance attending it.

B.

A Letter written by the Duke of Maryborough, on Horfelac\t ivit& a Leaden Pencil, to his Ducbefs.

Atg. 13, 1704-

I" Have not Time to fay more, [than to beg of you to pre- yjvjj J_ fent my humble Duty to the Queen, and. to let her Ma- °*tfs °" jefty know, that her Army has had a glorious Vi&ory : Letter to his Monfieur Tallard, and two other Generals, are in my Coach, Duchefs, and I am following the reft: The Bearer my Aid de Camp, written with • Colonel Pack, will give her Majefty an Account of what has a Penci1* patted : I lhall do it in a Day or two, by another more at large.

MARYBOROUGH.

Sa A In-

JI OTJOJIO8

the Ltfe of J O H N,

J J J 7

c.

A Letter from the Duke of MarlboroagJ} to Mr. Secretary Harlej. Camp at Hothjladt ; Tburfday Morning, Aug. 14. 1704.

SIR,

[f TT Gave you an Account on Sunday, of the Situation we JL were then in, and that we expedled to hear the Enemy would pafs the Danube, at Lawingen, in order to attack Prince Eugene. At eleven, that Night, we had an Exprefs from him, that the Enemy were come over, and defiring that he might be re-inforced as foon as poflible ; whereupon, I ordered my Brother Churchill to advance, at one o' Clock in the Morning, with his 20 Battalions, and by three, the whole Army was in Motion. For the greater Expedition, I ordered Part of the Troops to pafs over the Danube, and follow the March of the 20 Battalions, and, with moil of the Horfe and the Foot of the firft Line, I pafs'd the Lech at Rain, and came over the Danube at Donawert ; fo that we all joined the Prince that Night, intending to advance, and take this Camp of Hochftadt. In order whereto, we went out, on Tuefday, early in the Morning, with 40 Squadrons, to view the Ground ; but found the Enemy h.:d already poffefs'd themfeives of it : Whereupon, we refolved to attack them, and, accordingly, we march'd between three and four, yefterday Moining, from the Camp at Munfter, leaving all our Tents ftanding ; about fix, we came in view of the Ene- my, who, we found, did not exped fo early a Vifit. The Cannon began to play about half an Hour after Eight : They formed themielves in two Bodies ; the Elector, with Monfieur Marfm, and their Troops, on our Right ; and Monfieur de Tallard, with all his own, on our Left, which laft fell to my Share. They had two little Rivulets, befides a Morafs, before them, which we were obliged to pafs over in jheir View, and Prince Eugene was forced to take a great Com- pafs to come to the Enemy: fo that it was one o'Clock before the Battle begun. It lafted with great Vigour till Sun- ' fet, when the Enemy were obliged to retire, and, by the ' Bleffing of God, we obtained a compleat Vidory : We have ' cut off great Numbers of them, as well -in the Adion, as in 1 the Retreat ; befides upwards of 30 Squadrons of the French, ' which" I pulh'd into the Danube, where we faw the greateft ' Part of them perifh. : Monfieur de Tallard, with feveral of < his General Officers, being taken Prifoners, at the fame * Time: And, in the Village of Blenheim, which the Enemy

"had

Duke of MARL BO ROUGH, &V.

had intrench'd and fortify 'd, and where they made the great- eft Oppofition, I obliged 26 entire Battalions, and i 2 Squa- drons of Dragoons, to furrender themfelves Prifoners at Dif- cretion. We took likewife all their Tents {landing, with their Cannon and Ammunition, as alfo a great Number of Standards, Kettle-Drums and Colours, in the Action ; lo that I reckon the greateft Part of Monfieur Tallard's Army is « taken or deftroy'd. The Bravery of all our Troops, on this Occafion, cannot be exprefs'd, the Generals, as well as the Officers and Soldiers, behaving themfelves with the greateft Courage and Refblution ; the Horfe and Dragoons having <« been obliged to charge four or five feveral times. The Ele- *' ctor and Monfieur de Marfin were fo advantageoufly ported, <•' that Prince Eugene could make no Imprefiion on them till the «< third Attack, at near feven at Night, when he made a great <' Slaughter of them : But being near a Wood-fide, a good " Body of Bavarians retired into it, and the reft of that Army «' retreated towards Lawingen, it being too late, and the " Troops too much tired, to purfue them far. I cannot fay '* too much ia the Praife of the Prince's good Conduct, and the «* Bravery of his Troops on this Occafion. You will pleafe to «' lay this before her Majefty, and his Royal Highnefs, to whom «' I fend my Lord Tunbridge with the good News. I pray you '* will likewife inform yourielf, and let me know her M^jefty's «* Pleafure. as well relating to Monf. Tallard, and the other <•' General Officers, as for the Difpofal of near 1200 other Offi- <« cers, and between 8 or 9000 common Soldiers, who being all « made Prifoners by her Majefty's Troops, are entirely at her " Difpofal ; but as the Charge of fubfifting thefe Officers and " Men muft be very great, J prefume her Majafty will be in- " clin'd, that they be changed for any other Prifoners that offer. " I mould likewife be glad to receive her Majefty's Directions, " for the Difpatch of the Standards and Colours, whereof I «« have not yet the Number, but guefs there cannot be lefs than " 100, which is more than has deen taken in any Battle thefe " many Years.

" You will eafily believe, that in fo long and vigorous an «< Action, the Englifh, who had fo great a Share in it, muft « have fuffered, as well in Officers as Men, but I have not yet •'_ the Particulars. I am,

Sir,

Your moft obedient Humble Servant,

•

MARLSOROUSH.

0*

<The Duke of Marl- borovgh's Letter to the States General.

tte Life of J O H N, D.

The Dtike of MarJoorougb's Letter to the States of the United Provinces.

High and Mighty Lords,

" "B" Gave mjfelf the Honour to write,, on Sunday laft, to. '* JL your High MightinefTes, to acqu; int you with our Refo- " lution to befiege Ingolftadt, and with the Pofture of the Ene- " my. The fame Day, in the Evening, we were informed,, " that the Enemy had paffed the Danube at Lawingen ; where- " upon I ordered, about Midnight, General Churchill, wha " had that Day pafs'd the Danube, with twenty Battalions, to. '* re-inforce Prince Eugene, and at three o'Clock in the Morn- " ing, I march'd, with the reft of the Army ; and for greater " Expedition, Part of the Forces march'd the fame Way as Ge- '• neral Churchill had done, and the Horfe, with the rirft Line " of the Infantry, pnfs'd the Lech, at Rain, and the Danube,- *' at Dcnawert. We joined Prince Eugene the fame Day, in " the Evening, and encamp'd the Right at Apertzhofen, and " the Left at Munfter, defigning to encamp, the next Day, in " the Camp at Hochitadt ; but when Prince Eugene and I went " to view the fame, with forty Squadrons, we found that the " Enemy had prevented us, and were pofted therein j where- " upon we refolved to march againft them, as we did yefterday. " The Army was in Motion, at two in the Morning, which. " the Enemy did not expeft, and we came in Sight about fix, *' and began to cannonade between eight and nine. As the •« Enemy had two Rivulets before them, and a fort of a Moraf?, *' the Cavalry was obliged to file, and Prince Eugene forc'd to " fetch a great Compafs about ; and it was full oneo'Clock, in *' the Afternoon, before we could engage. The Enemy form'd *' two Bodies, the Eledor and Moniieur de Marfin had the *' Left, and Monfieur de Taliard tije Right, with all his Forces. '* It was my Lot to have to do with the latter. The A£tion " grew very hot, and Jailed till Sun-fet, when it pleafed G.~d t( to blefs the Allies with one of the greateft and moft compieat " Victories that ever was. It is impoffible to exprefs the Bravery " of our Troops ; and the Generals, Officer?,, and Soldiers de- " ferve all the Praife that can be given. The Horfe were *' obliged to renew the Charge four or five times ; but I have " not Time now to enter into the Particulars. The whole Army '« of the Enemy was routed. We made a terrible Slaughter of " them, and took their Camp, with their Cjnncn and Ammurji- «' tion. On my Side, we drove about thirty Squadrons into the 4( Danube, where v»e faw theai perilh, for the moft part. We

" have

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 263

" have taken Monfieur de Tallard, with many of the General 1 704. •• Officers, Prifoners. The Enemy had fortify' d a Village cali'd " Blenheim, wherein I have taken twenty-fix Battalions, and " twelve Squadrons, all Prifoners at Difcretion. We have be- •' fides taken a great Number of Standards and Colours.

'* I have not yet a particular Account of what was done in " the Right ; but the good Conduct of Prince Eugene, and the " Bravery of his Troops, have {hone in a particular Manner, on " this glorious Day, upon which I could not defer any longer *' to congratulate your High MightineiTes, referring to Colonel " Panton, one of my Adjutants General, who was in the Ac- " tion, to you give the further Particulars, by Word of Mouth. " I am, bV.

Sign'd, From the Camp atHochftadt,

14, 1704. The Duke of MAR i, BO ROUGH.

This Letter, as well as the Subject of it, could not but be highly agreeable to their High Mightinefles ; and they were see Letter not backward in fhewing the grateful Senfe they had of the f. below. Duke's Services, by a fpeedy and polite Anfwer, in which they did him the Honour juilly due to his extraordinary Merit.

General Hompefch, likewife, gave an Account of this Vic- Extra^ Of t tory, in a Letter to the States General, which he concluded in letter from thefe Words : " The Duke of Marlborough gave Orders with General *' great Prudence and Conduct, and expos'd himfelf in the moft Hompefch, " dangerous Places during the whole Aclicn, giving Directions, " with a Prefence of Mind, amidft the hottelt Fire. Prince *' Eugene, on his Part, has done as much as poffibie : And the " hereditary Prince of Hefle Caffel was in tne Midil of the *' Adion, and has very much diilinguifh'd himfelf, &c,

E.

Another Letter from the Dttke of Marlborough, to the States of the United Provinces.

<High and Mighty Lords.

|" Gave myfelf the Honour to write to your High Mighti- " X neffes, on Thurfday laft, by Colonel Panton, one of my Letter from *' Adjutants General, to impart to you the happy Succeisof the the Duke " Arms of the Allies in Germany, and the glorious Viftory g*^" " which we have obtained over the Enemy, of which we feel " every Day the good Influence. The Number of Prifoners en- creafe hourly, and we reckon to have now about 11,000. 1 200 Officers. I mull confefs, that great Num- S 4 ;' ber

The Life of J O H N,

her is very troublefome to us, there being few Places in this Country to put them in. This oblige me to defire your ". High Mightinefles, to do me the Honour to let rre know " whether \ve may fend down by Water, the Share of the Pri- ?' foners belonging to England and your High Mightinefles, " that they may be di*poied of in the Places of the United " Piovinres. Mean time, we fliall endeavour to cafe felves *' of them in this Country, as fcon as poflible, for nothing elfe " flops us here. .

" As the Face of Affairs, in this Country, is wholly chang'd V at prefmt ; Prince Eugene and I have imparted to Prince *' Lewis of Biden our Sentiments, that to amufe ourfelves at " the Siege of In'gcidft.i:it, at prefent, will be but lofing of " Thne, and that we believe it will be more advantageous *' for the Got d o'f'the common Caufe, to join all our Forces, to " ftreighun more and more the Eaemy, and oblige the French " to quit Germany, and repafs the Rhine ; for then, not only " IngcldiUdt, but a'fo the whole Country of Bavaria, muft fall " of themfdves. We have an Inftance of it in the Cafe of the " City of Augfburg, which the Enemy quitted yefterday Morn- " ing. Their Deputies are come hither to defire our Protec- *' tion, and a Detachment is marching thither to take Pofleflion *' thereof. We hourly expeft an Anfwer from the Prince of " Baden, on this Subjedt.

'• This D;!y, we have return'd Thanks to God, thro' the " whole Army, for his Favour to us, which appears the more ** confpicuous, in that the Enemy own, that their Army con- f fifted of 82 Battalions and 147 Squadrons, which were ad- vantageoufly polled ; whereas we had but 64 Battalions and 166 Squadrons, of which Number, 1500 Horfe, were de- tach'd with the Prince of Baden. This Evening, we are to make publick Rejoycings, by a general Difcharge of all out Artiikry and fmall Shot, throughout the Army. " f have nothing farther to add, but I cannot conclude, with- ** out rep ating to your High Mightinefles, thaf the Valour and " good Conduit of the B iron de Hompefch, and your other *' Genera's, and alfo the Bravery which the Officers and Sol- " diers of your Troops have exptefs'd, on this Occaiion, de- et fervc the g eateft Encomiums : I therefore flatter myfelf, that • " in filling up the Vacancies, your High Mightinefles will have " a particuar R<"gard for fuch who have been in the Adtion, " and for the R commendation of their Generals, whd were " Eye-witnefle? of iheir Behaviour. I am, c^ff.

From the Camp at Sceinheim, ^ '

Auguft 17, 1704. The Duke O^MARL BOROUGH.

General

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 265

General Hompefch wrote another Letter of the fame Date, 1704. to the States General, in which, among others, he has the fol- v^-vO lowing Expreflions, in Honour to our great Commander : Extraft of " Tho' I have already commended the Valour and Prudence ant*herLei> «« of the Duke of Marlborough, I muft again repeat, that no HwipSbhT *' one can fufficiently praife him, for the Zeal and Vigilance he " fhew'd in this Action The fame may be faid of Prince tf Eugene : And after the Example of thefe two Generals (who '«' are remarkable for their Goodnefs and Conduct) our whole «e Army is in a perfect Harmony."

The States General of the United Provinces, who have gene- rally {hewed themielves good Judges of Merit, wrote the fol- lowing Letter to the Duke of Marlborough, which is a very illuftnous Testimony of the Obligations the Allies acknowledged to be due to him.

F.

Tbeir High Mightmeffes Letter to tie Lord Duke of Marftorough, in Anj<wer to that of bis Crate, which ivas brought to them by Colonel Pattfon.

Olonel Pantori has brought to us your Excellency's wel- A Letter come Letter, dated from the Camp, at Hochftadt, the J,rom the " I4tu Inftant, and has related to us what paffed in the memo- f^?/^* " rable Battle fought the Day before. Duke of

*' We return your Excellency moft hearty Thanks, for the Marlboro'. «' fpeedy Notice you were pleafed to fend us of fo agreeable *' News. After the firft Blow you gave them at Schellenberg, " we had reafon to expect fomewhat much greater would fol- " low ; but never durft have carried our Hopes fo far, as to " think of fo glorious and complete a Viftory, as you have, *' with the Army of the Allies, gained over the Enemy.

" The Action of that Day has placed the Greatnefs of your " Merit in its true Luftre : A Day, whofe Glory might have " been envied by the greateft Captains of paft Ages, and whofe " Memory will endure thro' all Ages to come.

" We heartily congratulate your Excellency upon this Oc- " cafion, and rejoyce for the Glory you have acquired, as well " as for the Advantage the Common Caufe has obtained there- " by. This Action will let France fee, that her Troops ar« " not invincible, and will prove fuch a Blow, as that King ne- *« ver felt, in the whole Courfe of his Reign : And, therefore, ** we give Thanks to GOD, whofe Goodnefs has bleffed your *' brave Attempt, and pray that he will profper more and more *' your generous Defigns : Affuring you, that none can be with " greater Efteem, and more Sincerity, than we are, &c"

in

A Letter from the Mar/Hal de Marfin to the French King.

266 fbe Life of JOHN,

1704, In a Letter, which the States General wro.te tQ the Queen, on this Occafion, they acknowledge, that it was the Bravery of the Englim Forces that principally contributed to the Victory, the States anc^ £^at f^e ^kole *was done under the prudent and Valiant Cow- General to duflof.the Duke of Marlborougb, <who in this Battle, reaped Law* the Queen, rels, that .never <uuillfade.

G.

*the Marjkal de Mat-fit's Letter to the King of.. France, concerning the Battle o/Hockjladt,

J the i oth, in the Morning, we had Advice, that Prince _ Lewis of Baden, with 24 Battalions, and 31 Squa- drons, was detach'd from the Enemy's Camp, to befiege In- goldftadt, upon which we refolv'd to march to Lawingen : And the Poft of Hochftadt being found moft advantageous, the Elector encamped his Army there. On the twelfth, we called a Council of War, to confider whether we Ihould flay for the Enemy, who was marching towards us, and refolv'd we mould. On the i3th, in the Morning, the Armies came in Sight of one another. The Marfhal de Tallard, and his Troops, had the Right, and the Elector and I were on the Left. Prince Eugene was on the Enemy's Right, and; the Duke of Marlborough on their Left ; the Enemy fpent the whole Morning in Movements, to draw thercifelves up with Advantage; and, at nine o' Clock, the Cannon began to play on both Sides. About one of the Clock, the Battle grew hot ; the Elector broke the Enemy's Right feveral times ;

" but they immediately rallied again. Their Foot flood brave.-

*' ly to it, being fupported by their Horfe. Our Right did likewife make feveral advantageous Charges, upon their Left ; but about fix, at Night, the Enemy pafs'd a Mocafs, which our Engineers thought impaffdble, and attacked our Right on the Flank, and broke the fame. Twenty-fix Battalions and four Regiments of Dragoons threw themfelves into the Vil- lage of Blenheim, where they were encompafled by the Ene- '. my, and oblig'd to furrender. " When the Elector (aw this unhappy Refult, we refolv'd to

•' retire, with the Left, and the Body of the Battle, to Ulm ; fame of the Cavalry of the Right join'd us ; but feveral Squadrons not being able to come up with the Body, threw themfelves into the Danube, where the Marfhal de Tallard was taken. We arrived yefternight at Ulm, with 3 1 Bat- talions, and 62 Squadrons, without being purfued, and have * faved 1 8 Cannon, with Part of the Baggage. Of your Ma-

<* jefty's, and the Bavarian Troops, there are 10,000 kili'd,

«' befides;

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. " beftdes what are taken ; but we have very many wounded ; *' abundance of Officers and Soldiers, who have eicaped from " the Enemy, join us continually. I fhall fpeedily lend your " Mujefty an Account of the State of our Army, after the «* Battle, that it may be compar'd with that fent by the Ele&ar " five Days ago.

H.

The Duke of Marlborougb" s Letter to the States Genera!.

From the Camp at Sefelingen. High and Mighty Lord?,

" TT Gave myfelf. the Honour to write to your High Might!- A Letter " |r neffes, on Sunday laft, from Steynheim. The next Day *™™ d« " theMarmal de Tallard, with the other Officers of Note, ^arlboro* to "were fent towards Franck fort and Hanau, under a Guard ^g states " of Dragoons : We have made the Repartition of the General. " other Pnlbners, who are fent into the neighbouring Places, " that they may be more eafily guarded, till they are lent a- " way. Their Number is greater than was at firfi believ'd, " fmce they exceed 13,000 Officers and Soldier*, including a-' " bout 3000 which have lifted themfelves in the Confederate Troops. On Tuefday, the Army decamp' d, and march'd to Gondelfingen. Yefterday we advanced to Ober Elchingen, ** and, this Day, to this Camp, which is about half a League from Ulm. We have found a great Number of Officers bu- ried in the Villages thro' which we marched, and fome Citizens of Ulm allure us, that when the Enemy march'd from thence, they carried away about 7,000 wounded, a- mongft whom were about 1,000 Officers. They burnt a " great many Waggons, to make uie of the Horfes to carry " off the Officers upon Brancars (a Sort of Litters.) OurHuf- " fars, and feveral Parties of Horfe, follow them very clofely, " who, together with the Boors, Live kill'd a great Number of il the Soldiers of the Enemy, whom they found ftraggling. We " begin to ftreighten Ulm, expecting the Arrival of the Princo " of Baden, who paffed the Danube, this Day, at Donawert, " and as foon as he is come, and that we have regulated what *' Troops are to carry on this Siege, I (hall advance towards " the Rhine, with the Forces that I have the Honour to com- " mand. This Morning, a Deputy of the City of Memmin- «' gen came to our Camp, to defire our Protedlion ; and reports, «' That the Eleftrefsof Bavaria was gone thro' that Place, with *« 5 of her Children, under a Guard of 1 4 Squadrons, to joii»

ne Life of J O H N,

" the Elector, who, according to our laft Advices, was about " Dutlingen, with the Marfhal de Marfin. I am, *3c. —^j ^ Signed,

The Dukeof MARLBQROUCH.

I.

A Lift of the Englijb Officers kilPdor wounded, in the Battle of Blenheim.

FOOT.

ALWofthe /""\F the Battalions of Guards. Col. Philip Dormer, kill'd. InglifcOf- \^J Lord Mordaunt, Capt. Ja, Dormer, Capt. Pocock, Enf.

2J Reeves, Enf. Campion, wounded.

^Blenheim. Of the Lord Orkney's two Battalions. Col. White. Enf. ' Mac Conway, Enf. Craig, kill'd. Capt. Ja. Cunningham, Lord Forbes, Capt. Montgomery, Capt. Bruce, Capt. Lindfey, Lieut. Harroway, Lieut. Lifle, Enf. Hume, wounded.

Of General Churchill's Regiment. Lieut. Scrim/bur, Lient. Palfrey, kill'd. Lieut. Col. Peyton, Major Hetley, Capt. Meohj Capt. Luke, Capt. Slaughter, Enf. Montgomery, Enf. Boltcn, Enf. Campion, Enf. Smith, wounded.

Of Brigadier Webb's Regiment. Capt. Leon. Lloyd, Lieut. Beifer, wounded.

Of the Lord North and Gray's Regiment. Capt. Daws, Sir J. Sandes, Capt. Cavend;fh, Capt. Burton, Lieut. Freer, Lieut. Weeks, Enf Breames, Enf. Dawfon, kill'd. Lord North and Gray, Major Glan/ille, Capt. Cunningham, Capt. Spotf- wood, Lieut. Buller, Lieut. Boylblanc, Lieut. Hornby, Enf. Croy, Enf Roffington, wounded.

Of Brigadier How's Regiment. Major Cornwallis, Capt. Tankard, Lieut. Kerr, Lieut. Simmons, Enf. Jackfon, kill'd. Lieut. Col. Bretton, Major Armftrong, Capt. Villebonne, Capt. Gafton, Lieut. Bafon, Lieut. Dickenfon, Lieut. Harrifon, Enf. Lefly, Enf. Hargrave, Enf. Edwards, Enf. Dean, Enf. Pa- trick, Enf. Dawfon, wounded.

Of the Earl of Derby's Regiment, Capt. Coghlan, Lieut. Brown, Enf. Sabin, Enf. Hefketh, kill'd. Col. Hamilton, Capt. Hefketh, Capt. Flemming, Capt, Lee, Capt. Home, Lieut. AyLff, Lieut. Reddifh, Enf. Gordon, Enf. Machrich, Enf. Hook, wounded.

Of Brigadier Hamilton's Regiment. Gapt. Browne, Capt. Rollifton, Enf. Moyle, kill'd. Major Cane, Capt. Pennetire, Capt. Hufley, Capt. Vauclin, Lieut. Smith, Lieut. Roberts, Lieut. Weddle, Lieut. Blackney, Lieut. Harvey, Enf. Trip, wounded,

Of

Duke of MARLBOROUGH,

Of Brigadier Row's Regiment. Col. Dalyel, Capt. Stretton, fen. Capt. Stretton, jun, Lieut. Vamlergracht, Lieut. Will. .Cambell, Lieut. Travillion, kill'd. Brigadier Row, Major Campbell, Capt. Crawford, Capt. Fairlee, Lieut, Dunbar, Lieut. Ja. Douglas, Lieut. Elliot, Lieut. Ogilvy, Lieut. Maxwell, Lieut. Stuart, Lieut. Primrofe, Lieut. Gordon, wounded.

Of Brigadier Fergufon's Regiment. Capt. Campbell, Lieut. Arch. Douglas, Lieut. Seaton, Lieut. Moncriff, Enf. Hay, kil- led. Lieut. Col. Levingfton, Capt. Smart, Capt. Blackader, Capt. Borthwick, Capt. Wilfon, Lieut. Fergufon, Enf. Ber- nard, Enf. Maclean, Enf. Ogilyy, Enf. Row, Enf. Dalrimple, Enf. Olephant, Enf. Marfhal, Quarter-Mafter Stephenlon, wounded.

Of Lieutenant-General Ingoldfbj's Regiment. Major Gep. Morgan, Capt. Hen. Cookman, Lieut. Hugh Smith, Lieut, Griffith Jones, Lieut. Bailey, Lieut. Fleetwood Dormer, Lieut. Rowland, Lieut. John Paterfon, Adjutant Povvel, wounded.

Of the D.uke of Marlborough's Regiment. Capt. Fitz Simmons, Capt. Bailey, Lieut. Parrot, kill'd. Capt. Tick- burn, Capt. Pollixfen, Capt. Gardiner, Capt. La Coude, Lieut. Finch, Lieut. Alboreton, Lieut. Whitehall, Enf. Turner, Enf. Douglas, wounded.

Of Col. Meredith's Regiment. Lieut. Cairnes, Lieut. Ed- monds, Lieut. Biron, wounded.

The Dragoons fuffer'd fo little, that only the Adjutant of Ko&'s Hegimenr was much wounded. "

HORSE.

Of Lieutenant-General Lumley's. Lieut. Barton, Adjutant Kingfton, wounded

Of Lieutenant-General Wood's Regiment. Lieut. Col. Fe#- .therftonehagh, Cornet Odiarn, kill'd. Capt. Armftrong, Capt. Shute, Lieut. Dove, Cornet Forrefter, Cornet Stevenfon, wound- ed.

Of Lieutenant-General Windham's Regiment. Major Che- nevix, Lieut. Payne, Cornet Thompfon, Cornet Sanders, ^Quarter-Mailer Crocker, kill'd. Capt. Windham, Lie^ut. Hall, Cornet Ward, Cornet Nevil, Lieut. Edmonds, wounded.

Of the Duke of Schomberg's Regiment. Major Creed, Lieut. Hawker, Quarter-Mailer Charleton, kill'd. Capt. Prime, Cornet Creufeau, Lieut. Palmes, wounded.

Of Col. Cadogan's Regiment. Lieut. Grebeir, kill'd.

The following Officers died afterwards of their Wounds, viz. JSrigadier Row, Lord Forbes, Capt. in the RoyarRegi- .ment ,of Foot ; Capt. Luke, of General Churchill's Regiment ; vCapt. Vauclin of Brigadier Hamilton's Regiment ; and Capt. sGardiner of the Duke of Marlborough's Regiment.

2 Note.

270

»7°4-

A Lift of

the Prifouers of Note ta- ken in this Battle..

Me Life of J O H N,

Note. The Regiments named in this Lift, with the Lord John Hay's, and Major- General Rofs's Regiment of Dragoons, are ali the Englifh and Scotch Forces that march'd with the •Duke of Marlborough into Germany.

K.

A Lift of the Piifoners of Not?, taken at the Battle of Blenheim.

TH E Marfhal de Tallard ; Marquis de Montperoux, Maitre de Camp, General of Horfe ; Monf. de Haute- feuille, Maitre deCamp, General of Dragoons ; Marquis de Marivaux, Lieutenant-General ; Marquis de Blanfac, Marfhal de Camp of Foot ; Monf. de Valfeme, Marfhal de Camp ; Marquis de la Valiere, Marquis de Silly, Brigadiers-General of Horfe ; Monf. Defnonville, Monf. d'Amigay, Chevalier de Croiili, Monf. de St. Second, Monf. de Signey, Monf. de Mont- fort, Brigadiers-General of Foot ; Monf. Jolly, Brigadier-Ge- neral of Dragoons ; Marquis de Seppeville, Monf. de la Maf- filiere, Brigadiers -General of the Gens d'Armes; Marquis de SafTenage, Aid de Camp, and Son-in-Law to the Marquis de Tallard j Marquis de St. Pouange, the Chevalier de Ligonday, Colonels of Horfe ; Marquis de Nonan, Colonel of the Regi- ment of Provence, Count de Tavannes, Count de Schack, Monf. BHancourt, Monf. Sauboeuf, Count de Lionne, Marquis de Laffy, Baron d'Elien, Colonels of Foot; Marquis de Vaffy, Marquis d'Aurival, Colonels of Dragoons; Prince Maubecq of Lorrain, Capt. of Horfe ; Marquis d'Auvet, Capt. of the Gens d'Armes ; Monf. de Caraman, fecond Lieutenant of the Gens d'Armes, and Colonel ; Monf. d'Ovillars, Enfign of the Gens d'Armes ; Monf. Tuiffac, Guidon of the Gens d'Armes : And the Sieurs de Breuil, and la Morcelaire, Commiffaries of the Artillery.

L.

A Lift of tie French Troops made Pri finer s at Difcretion, in the Village of Blenheim, the l^th of Jugaji, 1704.

A Lift of T^OUR Regiments of Dragoons, viz. that of the Maitre

Troops6111"11 JL de Camp-General, La Reine, Vaffy and Rouan, confift-

takeifl th 'n£> °^ three Squadrons each. Seventeen Regiments of Foot.

Village of viz. Navarre three Battalions, Senneterre two, Creder German

Blenheim, two, Aunis two, Artois two, Provence one, Languedoc two,

Blaifois one, Argentois one, Surlaube two, St. Second one, Laffy

one', Bouloanois one, Mourroux one, Montfort two, Royal

three, of the Artillery one ; in all 28 Battalions. The Duke

i of

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 271

oFMarlborough, however, in his Letters to Mr. Secretary Har- 1704. ley, and to the States General, mentions but 26 Battalions : As v-*v-^» does, likewife, one of the French Generals, in his Letter to See Letters Monf. de Chamillard. General Hompefch, in a fecond Letter £]oa£d D- to the States General, calls them 27 Battalions, as do, likewife, See Lelter fome other Accounts : But they all agree, that they were at Q^ below, leaft 26.

M,

The Emperour^s Letter to the Duke of Marlborough, upon bis Gracfs Vitlory at Hochfladt.

" T Lluftriffime Confanguinee & Princeps chariffime. Lubenter The Empe- " _|_ admodum his Diledionem veftram compello nominibus, r3ur's k*- " quam non tam propter antiquiffimam prasclarse Famjliae fuz ^fc0 f «* Nobilitatem, quam ob propria decora & infignia in Me, Do- " mumque meam auguftam & Sacrum Romanum Imperium me- *' rita, inter Romani Imperil Principes fponte mea cooptandam '*' duxi. Extare nimirum volui etiam hoc maximi in GermanJa " Honoris a me in Vos merito collati publicum Monumentum, " quo magis omnibus pateat, quantum cum Serenifiima; MagfiSe *' Britannia^ Reginse, quod Rebus meis, & Imperil ob perfidato " Bavari ad Gallum defeftionem non leviter concuffis, eximias «' fuppetias in Vindeliciam & Bavariam ufque fub duftu veftfo " miferit, turn Dileftioni veftrae Me & Imperium debere ultro " agnofcam, quod tam prudenter, tam fortiter, tam profpefe «f res geftse fint ; cum non Fama fola, fed meae quoque Militix Supremi, Laborum veftrorum & Vifloriarum Socii .'& Partici- pes, eas veltris imprimis Confiliis & Virtuti Anglicarumqae, & Aliarum Copiarum, fub direftione veftra militantium For- titudini, acceptas referant. Tantse vero has funt, prsefertim. Hochftetdenfis, cui parem de Gallis rcportatam Secula non noverunt, retro ut non modo Hoftium perniciofiffimos conatus repulfos, & Vacillantis non nihil Germanise, feu verius univer- fa° Europae, Res rurfus firmatas eflegratulari poffimus, fed etiam porro fperare liceat, plenam mox & integram Chriftiani Orbis Libertatem, contra Gallicam Potentiam ejus Cervicibus im- " minentem, feliciter aflertum iri. Quod cum Dilectionem " veftram Itudia & operam fuam omnem fine ceflatione im- " penfuram certus abunde fim, id mihi folum fupereft, uf.for- " tunatos fucceffus apprecer, Vobifque uberiora gratiffimi animi " documenta quavis occafione promptiffime exhibenda denuo " pollicear.

Dabantur in Urbe mea Vienna?, 28 Augufti, 1704.

A literal

272 Me Life of J O H N,

A literal Tranjlation of this Letter'.

1704. \^T^^ illuftrious Coufin, and moft dear Prince, Ida KV>»> •" jLV JL g'a£My ca'l by thefe Names your Grace [or rather Di- A Tranda- " lection, a Sti!e by which the Princes of the Empire ^o] whom " I have free!y, and of my own accord, admitted among the " Princes of the Holy Roman Empire, not fo much in Confi- '•' deration of your noble Family, as upon Account of your •'•' perfonal Merit, and your great Deferts towards me, my Au- •'•' guft Houfe, and the Holy Roman Empire. I have been " willing that this publick Monument of the fupreme Honour " in Germany, which I have fo defervedly conferr'd upon you, " ihould remain, that it may more and more appear to all the " World, how much, as I freely own it, I, and all the Em- " pire, owe to the moft ferene Queen of Great Britain, for '•* having fent her powerful Affiftance as far as Augfljurg and ?' Bavaria itfelf, under your Conduct, when my own Affairs, " and thofe of the Empire, were fo much fhaken and difor- der'd, by the perfidious Defection of the Bavarians to the French ; and to your Grace, upon account that Things have been fo prudently, fo vigoroufly, and fuccefsfully transacted : For not only Fame, but likewife the Generals of my Forces, the Companions and Sharers of your Labours and Victories, attribute the fame chiefly to your Counfels, and the Valour and Bravery of the Englifh, and other Forces, who fought under your Conduct. Thefe Actions are fo great, and par- ticularly that of Hochftadt, paft Ages having never feen the " like Victory obtain'd over the French, that we may rejoice " to fee, not only the moft pernicious Efforts of the Enemy re- " puls'd, and the Affairs of Germany, which were (omewhat '* tottering, or rather thofe of all Europe, fecured and fettled '* again ; but, likewife, that it may be reafqnably hoped, that «« the full and perfeft Liberty of the Chriftian World ihall be '* refcusd from the Power of France, which was fo imminently '• impending over it. Being entirely perfuaded and fure, that *' your Grace will, without Intermiffion, apply all your Care *' and Induftry towards that End, there remains nothing elfe " for me, but to wifh you a profperous Succefs, and that I af- " fure you of farther Marks of my Gratitude, upon all Qcca- ft fions> which I fhall be ready to exprefs.

Given in my City of Vienna, Auguft 28, 1704.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 273

N. The Marjbalde Villars' 's Letter to the Abbot of St. Pierre.

I" Underftand, by your kft Letters, that fome People out 1704. ' JL of Compaffion for unfortunate Men, excufe, that feven and v*«-v»x^ " twenty Battalions, and four Regiments of Dragoons, fhould A remark. " choofe to furrender Prisoners of War, while our Left Wing able Letter " remained almoft entire. Thefe Sentiments are very little like j^^6, " thofe of the antient Romans, who, after the Battle of Cannae, vicars* to' " when Hannibal was at their Gates, were fo far from excufing the Abbot of *' their Prifoners, that they would not fuffer their Soldiers, St. Pierre. *' who had made their Efcape out of that Fight to come into their " City. Curio, Csefar's Lieutenant, thought very differently " from thefe Gentlemen ; he would not retire with his Caval- " ry : How could 1 appear (faid he) before C<efar, after having " loft bis Legions? What could they do better (fay fome filly " People) than to fave the King a great Number of Troops " and Officers ? "Pis upon fuch Occafions as this, that one muft " anfwer with old Horatius, Father to the three Champions of " the Romans, in our Corneille, when he heard his Son was " run away.

4V // mourutj

Ou qu^tm beau Defefpoir alors le fecourut !

(Had he died on the Spot, or been relieved by a noble Defpair.)

" Thus the Spanifti Infantry, at Rocroy, commanded by the * old Count de Fontaines, chofe rather to perifh than to beg ' Quarter. Ought not the Soldiers and Officers, feeking to fight their Way, with the Bayonet at the Muzzle of their Guns, to have prefer'd a glorious Death, to the Ignominy of periming with Hunger and Mifery in their Prifons ? I blufh for our Nation, when I refleft on fo bafe a Surrender, and J fee, with a Grief beyond Expreffion, how Ihort we come of the antient Romans, and even of French whom J have known.

Sigtv'd,

The Marlhal DE VILLA RS.

VOL; I; T O. 4

Prince Eu- Navarre	3	32	34
gene's Share Santen — — _	2	2O	16
of the Pi i- Greder	2 2	29 17	33 15
foners> Aunix
Surlaube .	2	24	34
Monro •	I	8	8
Agenois •	I	6z	10
Laffy	I	1 1	7
Blaffbn	I	6	6

n& Life of J O H N, o.

A Lift of the Partition of the Officers, Soldiers, Horfe, and Dra- goons, taken by the Allies, at the Battle of Hocbjladt*

Prince EUGENE'S Share.

Bat. Capt. Lieut. S. Lt. Serg. Sold.

37 40 1029

18 33 570

o 28 236

10 36 441 8 38 360 6 20 297

11 21 240

3 1 8 200 8 19 292

annoniers ^5 '53 '63 9^ 253 3665

2 Commiff_of Artill. 2 - , , , • 23

Cavalry — _ 155

Dragoons. Squ. Offic.

Maift. de Camp. 3 38 — _. 300

Vafle 3 38 289

45 20 The Reft of the Regiments.

Nice j ... — — 146

231 163 91 253 4776

Captains 231

Lieutenants . . • 163

Under- Lieutenants — — 91

Sergeants — — . 253

Soldiers, Horfe, and Dragoons 4776

Total of Prince Eugene's Share 5514

P. The

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

P. The Duke of MARL BO ROUGH'S Share.

Royal - Provence	.Bat. Capt. 3 32 i 6	Lieut. 29 5	S. Lt. 22 • 3	Serg. 42	Sold The Duke g0 of Mai 1- - boro's Sham; 3 ' P of the Pri-
Bolonnois	I 10	9	!0	20	308 foners^
St. Second	-i it	13	0	18	213
Languedoc — — Artois —	2 16 2 20	20 20	§	32 33	660
Rebec	I I	6	2	1 6.	;i 75
'Chabrillant — —	1 4	b	0	»7	7.0
M>ntfort " — - — -	2 1 £	*7	'5		4'9
	14 n$	119	83	226	3727
O/Hcers wounded.
At Dillingen	o 60	0	0	o	Q
Cavalry •	0 35	o	o	6	"145
' Dragoons.	Squ.
La Reine .... . . .	3 5°	0	0	o	281
Rohan	3 4°	b	o	Q	290 .
The Reft of the	Regiments.
Albaret	I 0	0	o	0	148
Bandeville Auxeroys •	I 0 I 0	0 0	.," .Q o	0 0	"120 239
... i	_„-_, r - -_„	l	_^____	^_ __
	300	119	*1	226	495°
Captains •				.	303
Lieutenants — —	' — — .		... -		119
'Sub-Lieutenants —	,	1		. . .	83
.Sergeants	. .		.	.	226
'Soldiers, Cavalry, and Dragoons — — •	4950

5673

Total of the Duke of Marlboro ugh's Share, 5678. In the whole, 11,192, besides 3000, who had ta ken Ser- vice among the Allies,

T 2

tte Life of ] O H N,

A Letter from a Trench General to Monf. de Chamillardt Minijler cf Stale, in France.

SIR,

Strafburg, Aug. 30, 1704. N. S.

TH E Army march'd, the twelfth, from Dillingen and Lawingen, to go arTd encamp at Blenheim, along a Rivulet, that edged the Front of our Camp, which was faid to be moorifh, but was not fo ; our Right reaching to the Danube, and our Left to a Hill, covered by a thin Wood. The Eleftor having prefs'd to march forward, upon a Belief that the Enemy were not joined, Monf. de Tallard confented to it, and relied upon People who had ferved a Year and a half in that Country, to poft himfelf as I told you. The Camp was hardly marking, when Information was brought to the MarPnal, that the Enemy appeared on the other Side of the Rivulet, that bordered the Front of our Camp. He went that Way immediately, and having caufed feme Troops to go over, the Enemy retir'd to their Camp. " Several People prefs'd the Eleclor to march up to them, alluring him, that they were not joined. The Marftial dif- fuadec him from it ; reprefenting to him, that, before they advanced, they ought to be thoroughly informed. In order to that, a great Detachment was made to approach them nearer ; and we made fome Prifoners, who cffured us, that they were joined ; whereupon we returned back, and had no other Thoughts but to encamp. About five o'Clock, in the Morning, the Enemy march'd in their Turn to view us, with the great Piquet, with whom they advanced as far as ** Schweiningen, and then retir'd.

" The next Day, at two in the Morning, the Enemy beat " the General, and march'd, in order to attack us. At fix, " in the Morning, we were flill ignorant of their Deiign ; " but feeing them advance towards us, in four great Columns, " we began to believe they had a Mind to fight us. We beat «' the General, in our Camp, and foon after, founded to Horfe : " And, in that Interval, the Refolution was taken, how to " poft ourfelves. To make you comprehend it, without a Plan, " and at this Diftance, I muft refumethe Situation of our Camp. " Our Right reached to the Danube, having the Village of Blen- " heim in our Front, where was Monf. de Tallard's Quarters ; " and the Village of Lutzingen to the Left of our Camp, where " was the Elector's Quarters. All the firft Line of Foot, of " Monf. de Tailard, had its Right to the Danube, that it *' might be at hand, to be polled in the Village of Blenheim,

" which

Duke of MARL BO ROUGH, &V. 27

" which was before it. That firft Line confifted of nineteen 1704. «* Battalions, on the Left of which we had polled all our firft <— -y— •" " Line of Horfe, fo that they joined the Horfe of Monf. de . " Marfin. Next to this was the reft of his Army, v/hich " reach'd as far as the Hill, and of which I Hull not give you " the Particulars, becaufe I was not there, having had Em- " ployment enough in our Right.

" The fecond Line was drawn up as ufual, that is to fay, " the Infantry in the Center ; the two Armies having Commu- " nication one with another, and making together eight Bat- " talions, and 140 Squadrons In the Center of both Ar- " mies, there was a Hill, which commanded all the Plain, and " whofe gentle Declivity reach'd as far as the Rivulet, that run " along the Front of our Camp ; and, over againft that Hill, " was a Village call'd Unterklau, which we caufed to be fet " on Fire, as well as two Mills, that were on the Rivulet, in " the Way down to Blenheim ; fo that it was refolved to defend " only the PafTage of the Rivulet, and the Morafs, the Gene- " rals being ordered to charge the Enemy, as they pafs'd, and " to take Heed not to let too many of them paj's.

" This Refolution being taken, we poked the nineteen Bat- " talions of our firft Line, and feven of the fecond, in the Vil- " lage of Blenheim. We, alfo, placed there our four Regi- •*' ments of Dragoons, on Foot, to the Right, along the Da- <f nube ; and from the Village of Blenheim to that ot Oterkhiu, we pofted, on two Lines, eight and forty Squadrons of Monl. de Tallard's Army, and two and thirty of that of Monf. de Marfm, with nine Battalions in the Center, and the Brigades of Champagne and Bourbonnois, to the Right of Monf. de Mar- fin's Village, that they might be at hand, to fuftain either his Village, or the Right of his Cavalry. We placed Batte* ries in all the Front, and both Armies cannonaded one ano- ther, till ten or eleven in the Morning, when the Attack firft began. During this Cannonading, Advice was brought to Monf. de Tallard, that the Enemy march'd a great Number of Infantry, to the Right ; but that their Defign was to attack the Left of Monf. de Marfm, as the weakeft Side, by reafon. of the thin Wood, to which it reach'd. He went with Speed to the Right, which the Enemy did really defign to attack, being advanced to pafs the Rivalet, in the whole Front of the Hill I have mentioned before, where all their Horfe was pofted, over againft the Right of Monf. de Marfm. •' Monf. de Silly, and one of his Friends f, were upon that -j-TheW Line, and feeing that our Men were drawing off our Battery, terof this they went thither and ftop'd them ; and feeing the Englifh Letter. preparing themfelves to attack the Village of Blenheim, they refolved to caufc the firft and fecond Line of Horfe to march, T 3 t( as

Me Life of JOHN,

" as if the Marflial (de Tailard) had been there prefent. He rode > '.' up to them full Gallop, and made theni, indeed, advance; but " unfortunately the Brigades of the two Rights did only march, " nor did the Gendarmerie move, which gave the Enemy Time " to form, without any Difturbance, feveral Lines of Horfe, in " all the Space of Ground, whither the Tooops did not march, « till above three Quarters of an Hour after that firft Charge. " All the Men the Enemy had in the Bottom of the Valley were -'* repulfed, as well thofe who happened to be in the Way of *' the Gendarmerie, whomnrch'd.' at lafr, intoxicated with Con- " ceit of that fmall Advantage. We prepared ourfelves to re- " ceive the Enemy a fecond time, and negle&ed the great •" double Lires, which were forming at the Foot of that fatal " Hill. Monf. de Silly had his Horfe kill'd under him, and " thinking how to get another, when his Friend, feeing the " Mar/hal de Tailard, joined him, and gave him an Account of " the Attack of the Village. Monf. de Tailard refolved to go " thither, and, by that Means, the Hill was neglected, he not " being able to perceive what p ifs'd at the Foot of it.

". Thus they enter'd the Village, and Monf. de Tailard re- *' doubled his Care to fecure that Poit. At length, he went *' out of that Village, and returned to the Cavalry. As he " came to the Right, the Enemy began a frefh Attack : They advanced to the Village of Blenheim, to the very Muzzles of our Mufkets, but were repulfed. The Gendarmerie, who, with Sword in Hand, thought to have repuls'd the Enemy, that were before them, were expofed to the Fire of fome In- fantry, well pofted, gnd were charg'd by fome Engliih Squa- drons, which made them give Way, and drove them beyond a Rivulet which they had behind them. In this Charge, Meflrs. de Surlaube and d'Imecourt had their Horfes killed -under them, and the firft received fix or feven Wounds. The Brigade of Silly, thro' the Intervals of which the Gendarmerie pals'd to rally themfelves, charged the Engiifh, and made them cepafs the Rivulet, with Precipitation. " During this briJk Attack, the Generals of our Left, and of Monf. de Marfm's Right, awaked out of their fatal Droufi- nefs, and caufed fome Brigades to march to the Enemy, whom they faw advanced almoft to the Top of the Hill. All our Brigades' charged brifkly, and made all the Squa- drons they attacked give Way ; but thefe Squadrons being fuftained by feveral Lines of Horfe and Foot, our Men were forced to fhrink back, and throw themfelves on our fecond Line, which being at fome Diftahce, gave the Enemy Time to gain Ground, which they maintained by their Number?, and their Jlow and clife March. We rallied the Squadrons o'f our firft Line, and they charged again with the fame Succefs ;

" biit

Duke <?/ MARL BOROUGH, &fV. *' but they were ftill overpowered, as were alfo the faid Bri- *' gades, and, at laft, the fecond Line. • i

" Monf. de Tallard interlaced our Battalions with our Ca- " valry, with Defign to make a laft Effort to break the double' " Lines of the Enemy. Our Men march'd up to them gallant-' " ly, and the Enemy's firft Line threw themfelves on their " fecond. We gained fome Ground, and advanced to charge' " the fecond Line ; but this being fuftained by a third and' " fourth, Our Troopers fled, and our poor E 'at tali 'on s ivere cut' in " Pieces. We rallied again the third time the Cavalry which " was broken ; but it was fo diminifhed by the feveral Charges, " that it now formed but one Line.

" Thin.s being in this Condition, Monf. de Tallard confider " ed, that it was high Time to draw off the Dragoons and In-' " fantry out of the Village of Blenheim, and, exhorting his Ca- " valry to ftand their Ground, he took that Refoltition. He " fent a trufty Perfon to Monf. de Marfin, to dcfn-e him to face' " the Enemy, with fome Troops, on the Right of his Village, to " keep them in Play, to favour the Ret: cat of our Infantry ; but " he reprefented to the Meffenger, that he had too much on his " Hands, in the Front of his Village, and the reji of the Lines, " ty think of /paring any Troops, he being fo. far f'-om <t>i&dt'i$us't " that he could but juji maintain his Ground. During this Dif- ' ' courfe, our Horfe had faced the Enemy ; but, on a fudden, " they were ordered to wheel about, which, you will imagine, " was done with great Difoirder. In fcort, this was fo precipi- tate .a Flight, that many caft themfelves into the Danube, and the Enemy let loofe three Regiments of Dragoons after them. Monf. de Tallard was environ'd with the Fugitives, and taken in that Rout. Meflieurs de Mauperoux, de la Valliere, Silly, Seppeville, Meffeliere, St. 'Pouange/ Ligondais, and feveral others, were alfo made Prifoners.

"The taking of Monf. de Tallard is a great Misfortune for the King : For it is certain, that, with his Infantry, he might have made a very honourable Retreat ; whereas that Infantry is now the Laughingstock of Nations, and ufelefs to the King, for a long Time, in a War fo violent as this is. In fhort, to give you an Account of all that happened on that fatal Day, Part of our Cavalry, and, all the Gendarmerie, having thrown themfelves towards the Danube, into a narrow Nook, which formed a Demi-Ifland, they found themfelves cut off from th<J reft of the Army ; which forced many brave Men to throw themfelves into the Danube, to five themfelves. " The News of this being brought to Grignan's Brigade, which was retired more to the Left, to pafs the Morals at Hochftadt, they rallied and march'd to the Enemy, and made them abandon the Defilee, in which they were ; and, there T 4 " by,

The Life of JOHN,

'« by, difengaged all thofe, who were not either killed or " taken. They then formed themfelves on the Height of " Hochftadt, and, marching on, faced the Enemy, which " gave us Time to draw off the Wounded from that Pl?ce. This " was the fad Fate of a briflc and good Cavalry, which might " have been ufed to better Purpofe ; but which we give over " lamenting, as foon as we begin to confider the wretched De- " ftiny of our Regiments of Foot.

" Mefiieurs de Clcrambault and Blanzac were the Officers " who commanded the Dragoons and Infantry in the Village of '< Blenheim ; and ail that we can learn from fome Officers, who " were made Prifoners, and are come to our Camp, is, that " Monfieur de Clerambault, cv£Uttd taking a Refchttion worthy " of hi; Name, with a powerful Body, which was yet entire, as " fan as he [aw the Rout of our Casualty , caufed his Poftillion to " found the Danube, and throwing bimfelf into it, was drowned. " The Enemy, having furrounded the Village of Blenheim, by " feveral Lines, advanced to ftreighten it, clofe on the Left " Flank, where our Right of Hone was before pofted. Our " Men were foon alarmed, and the Colonel of the Royal Regi- «' ment bethought himfelf of faving his Life, and that of his " Soldiers, whom he caufed to lay down their Arms, and him- •• felf furrendered the Colours, The Soldiers of Surlaube, who " were likewife, in the Left Flank, put themfelves into Dif- " order, and entered the Center of the Village in Confufion. «' Monf. de Siviere, being informed of this Diforder, called the «' Regiments of Provence and Artois, and all that were refo- " lute, to him, and, with Sword in Hand, drove the Enemy " to the very Head of their Cavalry, and returned to the Vi! " bge leifurely. Monf. de Siviere had his Wrift broken. Ihf " Duke of Mar thorough judging rightly, that they 'were old Troop: " in that Place, the overcoming »f which would cojt him dear, " made ufe of Monf . Dejnoville, his Prifoner, to exhort them tc " accept their Lives. Monf. de Blanznc consented to it, and did " his beft to get the Confent of Navarre, who buried his Co- " lours. All yielded. Monf. de Blanzac figned the Articles ; " but Siviere and Jourry refuied to fet their Hands to them. " They were all difarmed, and had their Colours taken from *' them. Grief will not Jujfer me to tarry this Rental any far- " ther. You may well imagine what a f«d Speftacle it is to fee -' fix and twenty Battalions, and four Regiments cf Dragoons " Prifoners. J leave that Black Idea, and return to the Vil- '• lage of Oberklau. the Quarters of Monf. de Marfin.

*' When he faw the Hojfe on his Right, ?.nd ours, routed, -' he bethought himfelf of retreating, with his Left, which, " thro' the Care of Count de Bourg, had always repuls'd the '« Enemy, haying charged them as they were halfpafs'd. He

«< drew

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 6fa. 281

" drew off all, his Infantry, and rcarch'd leifurelv; as far as the 1704.

" Morafs of tfochftadt, which he repafs'd in good Order, and U— v*—- '

" came to Dillengen, where the Refolution was taken to fend all

" the Horfe to Ulm, by Goldenfingen, and to caufe nil the

" Baggage to pafs the Danube, during the Night. In the

" Morning, we drew up all the Infantry, and came to encamp

" at Lipent, leaving 1000 Men at Lawingen, with Orders to

t( retreat, as foon as the. Enemy mould approach, and to burn

'' the Bridge, which was done ; and marching fince, with Pre-

" cipitation, we bring, to the King, the poor Remains of an

" Army grieved to Death, and which is no otherwife Guilty, than

" thro ike Nonrperformance of the -pojitiiie Order, which had been

" given, not to let the Enemy pafs the Rivulet , and to charge

"' them as they pafs'd, altogether , and not by Brigades, as we did,

" zguiift. a Body formed and formidable, which at laft penetrated

" into our Ctnter, and furrounded the Infantry, &c. /

R.

A Letter from the Adjutant of the Gendarmerie, to Movjieur

de Chamillard. My Lord,

" TN Obedience to your Command, in your Letter of the A Letter " |_ Fifteenth, to inform you of all that happened among the fro?1 the " Gendarmerie, I fhaJi begin, in the Abfence of the Major, f^Sar- " with acquainting you with the Befpairofall the Officers, up- merie, to " on the News they receive from Paris, wherein they find that Monfieiirde " Monf. de Silly fpreads injurious and malicious Reports againft Chamillard, " them. Is it poffible, my Lord, that the Reputation of a " Body fo well eftablifhed every where, by fo many different " Actions, can depend on the Caprice or Malice of a primate ** Man, without Experience ? And is it juft to believe htm, if he " has a Mind to difgrace fo many brave Men, who, in the Sight " both of Friends and Enemies, have done all that could be ex- " petled from Men of Courage? In that unfortunate Day, they " did not fear to expofe themfelves to Death, for the Glory of " the Nation, and the King's Service ; neverthelefs, it is but ' ' too true, that he has made People believe all that he had " a Mind to fay againft us ; fo prevalent are the firft Impref- ' ' fions ! And, we are told, he has dared to advance, that the "' Flight of the Gendarmerie had occafioned that of the Ca- " valry. All the Army knows, that we had charged twice, " before the Cavalry had approach'd the Enemy ; that we " faced them till fix o' Clock in the Evening ; and that it was " in the Center, which was thin and weak, where the Enemy " pierced thro'. This is Matter of Fa£t, which, I'll maintain, '* no Body will dare to contradid. Wherefore, my Lord, do ' - not deny us, on this Occafion, fo very nice for us, and of fo

" great

2S2

«7°4-

We Life of J O H N,

" great Confequence for all, the fame Privilege, which is al- " lowed to moft Criminals ; that is, not to pafs Judgment upon *' us, upon the Report of a fingle Man, efpecially one fo ex- " ceptionable; but be pleafed to judge of us, on the Tefti- " mony of feveral unexceptionable Witneffes, who are Men of " Experience, who can lee clearly what paffes on Days of " Action, and whom Truth alone, not Envy, will caufe to " jpeak.

" You know, my Lord, we are very much envied ; Wit- *' nefs the Battle of Spire, in which the Gendarmerie broke •« thro' the Enemy, with fo much Rapidity, that they, there- «' by, gave Time to our Infantry to come up : Neverthelefs, fome had the Confidence to fpeak ill of them, and to reprefent their Valour as Temerity, and their Conduft as Over-cau- tiouinefs ; But you were foon informed of the Truth, and did us the Juftice which was due to us, as foon as you knew we march'd by Orders of the Generals only, and that " we had difcharg'd every Part of our Duty. Do us the Fa- *« vour, my Lord, to fearch into the Bottom of this laft Af- " fair ; wherein our Body, as they were pofted, could do no " more, than facrifice themfelves, as they did, without be- " ing able to fucceed in their Charges, being continually expofed 4t to the Fire of a dole Body of Infantry, fuftained by feveral " Ranks ; and, above all, ported in a mallow Way, with Palli- " fadoes before it. It is true, thefe Pallifadoes were not per- " ceived, efpecially by thofe, who fpeak fo rafhly j but they were perceived by thofe who approach'd the Enemy, fo near as we did. I mult alfo make bold to tell you, my Lord, we have taken Notice more than once, that the Marfhal de Tal- lard had no Kindnefs for us ; tho', fince he is a Prifoner, he has honoured us with feveral Compliments, on the Valour of our Officers, regretting fo many gallant Men, who were either killed or wounded. The Refpecl we have for him will not fuffer us nicely to enquire into our Misfortune of not being in his Favour : Hevvever, out of a certain Confidence, which Truth fuggefts, we cannot imagine, that he can fay openly any ill Thing againft us ; nor that he could charge Monfieui* de Silly, to calt on us the Faults of that unfortunate Day, which, Out of Difcretion, we will impute to no Body. " The Marfhal de Tallard did not fee the two firft Charges we made, not being returned to us till after thofe two Actions. He was gone to the Left of Monf. de Marfin's Army, and he might have feen, at his Return, that the Enemy had but too much Time to form four Lines, before us, one upon the other, which baffled our Efforts, and difappointed our good Intentions. We overthrew, indeed, their firft Line, mord than once ; but it was ftill fuccoured, and animated again,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 283

by three others. Had we been Men who would run away, 1704. how could we have, had fifty-one Officers killed or wounded, tho' there were three and twenty abfent ? And moft of the reft had their Hories kill'd under them, as well as the great Number of the Gens d'Arms, of whom I have already, had the Honour to inform you.

" Meffienrs de Lainon, de Hautefort, de Magnac, and fe- veral others, may acquaint you, that we remained with" them, till ten o'Clock, at Night, on the Height of Hoch- ftadt ; that we drew out of the Caftle Monf. de Surlaube and Monf. de la Bahme, and that we brought up the Rear of all, as far as Ulm. After all this, may not we hope, my Lord, that you will be pleafed to inform the King of the Truths I have the Honour to write to you, which are moft certain ? And that you will, thereby, give fome Comfort to Officers, who are grieved to Death, and driven to Defpair, by having their Lives left them, after they had their Honour taken from them ?

I muft not conclude this Chapter, without obferving that the Mufes were not backward on this Occafion. Many were their Productions in Honour of the glorious and ever- memorable Adion, of which I have been giving a Relation. I mall give my Readers a Couple of the moft celebrated j and begin with one we find infer ted in Tom Brown's Works.

On the Duke of Marttorougtfs Vifiory at Hocbfiadt in i 704.

TH E conquering Genius of our Ifle returns j Verfes on ,

Infpir'd by Ann, the Godlike Hero burns j the ***&* of

Retrieves the Fame our ill-led Troops had loft, Hochftadt.

And fpreads reviving Valour thro' the Hoft. In diftant Climes the wond'ring Foe alarms, And with new Thunder Auftria's Eagle arms. The Danube's Banks, forgetting Casfar's Name, Shall echo to the Sonnd of Marlb'rough's Fame. The Shepherd's Pipes rejoyce o'er Gallick Blood, And with eternal Purple ftain the Flood.

But of all the Poetical Performances, which appeared on this Occafion, none came up to that inimitable Poem of Mr. Addi- fon's, call'd the Campaign ; which would very well deferve a Place here entire, among other Monuments of our Hero's Glory ; but as J have given the Reader fome Fragments of this excellent Piece, in other Parts of this Work, I mail only infert that Part of it here which regards this aufpicious Day.

THE

284

?be Life of JOHN,

1704.

Campaign.

fatal Day its mighty Courfe began,

part of Mr. J^ That the griev'd World had long delir'd in vain Addifon's states, that their new Captivity bemoan'd,

Armies of Martyrs, that in Exile groan' d ; Sighs from the Depth of gloomy Dungeons heard, And Pray'rs in Bitternefs of Soul preferr'd. Europe's loud Cries, that Providence affail'd, And ANNA'S ardent Vows, at length, prevail'd ; The Day was come, when Heav'n defign'd to Ihow His Care and Conduct of the World below. Behold, in awful March, and dread Array, The long-extended Squadrons fhape their Way ! Death, in approaching terrible, imparts An anxious Horror to the braveft Hearts ; Yet do their beating Breafts demand the Strife, And Thirft of Glory quells the Love of Life } No vulgar Fea« can Britim Minds controul, Heat of Revenge, and noble Pride of Soul, O'er-look the Foe, advantag'd by his Poft, Leffen his Numbers, and contract his Hoft : Tho' Fens and Floods poflefs'd the middle Space, That unprovok'd they would have fear'd to pafs, Nor Fens, nor Floods, can ftop Britannia's Bands, When her proud Foe rang'd on their Borders ftands. But O, my Mufe, what Numbers wilt thou find, To fing the furious Troops in Battle join'd ! Methinks I hear the Drum's tumultuous Sound, The Victor's Shouts, and dying Groans confound ; The dreadful Burft of Cannon rend the Skies, And all the Thunder of the Battle rife.

An Obfer- vation of the Tatler on forne

Lir.es of it.

«« The Author of the Tatler obferves, that the highejl A3 of ' the Mind is to poj/efs itfelf ivith Tranquillity in imminent Dan- f ger, and to have its Thoughts fo free, as to aft, at that Time, ' without Perplexity. He then mentions feveral of the Similies ' of the Antients to exprefs this Aft ; after which he goes on : ' But the fullime Image I am talking of, and which I really ' think is as great as ever entered into the Thought of Man, is in ' the Poem catfd the CAMPAIGN ; where the Simile of a Mini- ing -Angel fets forth the mojl fedate, and the mejl aftiw Cou- rage, engaged in an Uproar of Nature, a Confu/ton of Elements, and a Scene of Divine Vengeance.'1'' This fublime Image is >ainted in the following fourteen Lines.

TT*\ WAS then great Marlboro's mighty Soul was prov'd, That in the Shock of charging Holts unmov'd,

, « Amidft

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 285

'* Amidft Confufion, Horror, aud Defpair, " Examin'd all the dreadful Scenes of War ; " In peaceful Thought, the Field of Death furvey'd, " To fainting Squadrons fent the timely Aid, , * ' Infpir'd repuls'd Battalions to engage, " And taught the doubtful Battle where to rage. " So iv ben an Angel, by Divine Command, " With rijlng Tempeftsjbakes a guilty Land, " Such as of late o'er pale BRITANNIA pafs'd, " Calm and Serene he drives the furious Blajl ; " And pleas' d the A L M i c H T Y 's Orders to perform, t( Rides in the Whirlwind, anddireBs the Storm.

Thefe Lines (adds the Author, I mentioned above) compliment the General, and his Queen, at the fame Time, and have all the na- tural Horrors, heightened by the Image, that ivas Jlill frejb in tbt Mindof every Reader. (Meaning, I prefume, the dreadful No- vember-Storm.) Our excellent Poet then proceeds.

But fee, the haughty Houfhold Troops advance ! Continua-

The Dread of Europe, and the Pride of France. t[™. °I Part

The War's whole Art each private Soldier knows, And with a Gen'ral's Love of Conqueft glows j Proudly he marches on, and, void of Fear, Laughs at the making of the Britifh Spear ; Vain Infolence ! nuith Native Freedom brave, The meanejl BRITON fcorns the bighejl Slave ; Contempt and Fury fire their Souls, by Turns, Each Nation's Glory, in each Warrior burns ; Each fights, as in his Arm th' important Day, And all the Fate of his great Monarch lay : A Thoufand glorious A&ibjjs, that might claim Triumphant Laurels, and immortal Fame, Confusd in Crouds of glorious Actions lye, And Troops of Heroes undijiinguijb' 'd dye. O Dormer, how can I behold thy Fate, And not the Wonders of thy Youth relate ? How can I fee the Gay, the Brave, the Young, Fall in the Croud of War, and lye unfung ! In Joys of Conqueft, he refigns his Breath, And, fill'd with England's Glory, fmiles in Death.

The Rout begins, the Gallic Squadrons run, '

Compell'd in Crouds to meet the Fate they fhun ; Thoufands of fiery Steeds, with Wounds transfix'd, Floating in Gore, with their dead Mafters mixt ; Midft Heaps of Spears and Standards driv'n around, Lve in the Danube's bloody Whirlpools drown'd,

Troops

tte Life of J O H N,

Troops of bold Youths, born on the diftant Soan,

Or founding Borders of the rapid Rhone, > .

Or where the Sein her flowry Fields divides,

Or where the Loire thro' winding Vineyards glides ;

In Heaps the rolling Billows fweep away,

And into Scythian Seas their bloated Corpfe convey.

From Blenheim's Tow'rs the Gaul, with wild Affright,

Beholds the various Havock of the Fight :

His waving Banners, that fo oft had ftood

Planted in Fields of Death, and Streams of Blood ;

So wont the guarded Enemy to reach,

And rife triumphant in the fatal Breach ;

Or pierce the broken Foe's remoteft Lines,

The hardy Veteran with Tears refigns.

Unfortunate Tallard ! Oh who can name The Pangs of Rage, of Sorrow, and of .Shame, That, with m-ix'd Tumult, in thy Bofom fwell'd ! When firft thou faw'ft thy braveft Troops repell'd, Thine only Son, pierc'd with a deadly Wound, Choak'd in his Blood, and gafping on the Ground, Thy felf in Bondage by the VICTOR kept ! The Chief, the Father, and the Captive wept. An Englifh Mufe is touch'd with gen'rous Woe; And, in th' unhappy Man, forgets the Foe. Greatly diflrefs'd ! thy loud Complaints forbear, Blame not the Turns of Fate, and Chance of War ; Give thy brave Foes their Due, nor blu/b to own, Ike fatal Field by fuch greai^ Leaders nvon j 'The Field, whence fanfd Eu c E N i o bore aivaj Only the fecond Honours of the Day.

With Floods of Gore, that from the Vanquifh'd fell, The Marines ftagnate, and the Rivers fwell. Mountains of Slain lye heap'd upon the Ground, Or 'midft the Roarings of the Danube drown'd ; Whole Captive Hofls the Conqueror detains, In painful Bondage, and inglorious Chains ; Ev'n thofe who.'fcape the Fetters and the Sword, Nor feek the Fortunes of a happier Lord, Their raging King dimonour, to compleat Marlbro's great Work, and finifh the Defeat.

An Obfer- This whole Poem (fays the Author of the Tatler) is fo exquifite-

vation of ty Noble and Poetick, that I think it an Honour to our Nation

at,er and Language. Such a Performance (continues he) is a Chro-

whole. 6 nicle as wel1 as a Poem, and will preferve the Memory of our

Hero, when all the Edifices and Statues ere&ed to his Honour

are blended with common Daft.

Several

Duke of MAPLBOROUGH, &c. 287

Several Medals were likewife ftruck, on this OccaCon : In 1704. London we had the following. «— ^-^j

Medals

On the Battle of BLENHEIM. ^UC£OT

this Occa-

On the Face, the Queen's Bufto, with her Title, as ufual.

On the Reverfe, Britannia, with her Spear, in her Right Hand, and Vi&ory, with her Attributes, in her Left: Near her a Captive pinion'd on Trophies : with this Legend,

DE GALL. ET BAV. AD BLENHEIM.

That is, De Gal!is> & Bavaris, ad Blenheim : In Englifh, Of the French and Bavarians , at Blenheim,

IN the Exergue. CAPT. ET C^ES. XXX. M. SIGN. RELAT. CLXIII.

That is : Capta £ff c&fa Triginta Millia, Signa Re'ata, Centum Sexaginta Tria, 1 704. In Englifh, Thirteen Thottfand Men ta- ken tr killed, and One Hundred Sixty Three Standards or Colours carried off, \ 704.

In Holland the two following Medals appeared on this Oc- cafion.

I.

A large Medallion, on the Face of which are reprefented the Bufto's of Prince Eugene, and the Duke of Marlborough, fa- cing each other, with thefe Infcriptions over them :

EUGENIUS, PRINCEPS SABAUDLE. JOHANNES; DUX MARLBOROUGH.

Eugene Prince of Savoy. John Duke of Marlborough. Under them, in the Exergue, is the following Diltich :

Hie POLLUX, Hie CASTOR ADEST, qvos GLORIA FRATRES,

HOOQSTETQJJE FACIT. Tu QVOQV E, GALLE, V I DES.

Behold Pollux and Caftor, 'whom Glory, and the Battk of. Hochftadt have rfndfr'd Brethren; Of which Thou, O France, art a Witoeff.

On

288 ft* Life of JOHN,

1704. On the Reverfe, is reprefented the Battle of Hochftadt, with our two Heroes, on Horfeback, encouraging and giving a good Example to their Troops. The Field of Battle is cover'd with the Enemy's Dead ; and on the Front is feen a Troop of them laying down their Arms, and, among them, the Marlhal de TalLfni delivering his Sword to our victorious General. In the Air, Fame trumpeting the Glory of this memorable Day ; with the following Words :

HEROUM CONCORDIA VICTRIX.

The ViSory is owing to the Unanimity of tbefe tnuo Heroes. And, in the Exergue, is the following Diilich :

Qu JE, CONJUNCTA SIMITL NUNC FULGENT SlDERA, A-

MICIS, HOSTE TRIUMPHATO, PROSPERA CUNCTA FERUNT.

Thefe two bright Conftellations, 'which Jhine fartb here 'with the great eft Luftre, having triumph d wer the Enemy, carry Pro/verify with them, where-ever they go.

II.

A large Medal, reprefenting, on the Face, Prince Eugene, and the Duke of Marlborough, in the Habit of a Roman War- riour, on their Knees, imploring the divine Afliftance, in the fol- lowing Words :

UT SESE TERTIUS ADD AT DUX DEUS. That the Almighty would join ivith them, and be their Leader.

And, on the Reverfe, a Reprefentation of the Battle of Hochftadt, with the following Ihfcriptioh round it :

SOCIUM CoMtTANTTBUS AaMIS

TEUTONIC TANTIS SE TOLLIT GLORIA REBUS. AD HOCH'STADT, 13. AUCUSTI, 1704.

Such Glory has accrued to Germany, ly the Juntiion of the Troops of her Allies, at Hochftadt . •/«;. ) 3. 1704-

CHAP.

Duke of MAH.LBOROUGH, &V. 2.8 <

.

C II A P. VIII.

Proceedings of the Confederate Armies, after tie Eat tie of Hochftadt, with other Tranfaftions io the Conclujion of the Tear, 1704.

HAVING given as particular an Account as I have been i7O4; able, of the famous Battle of Hochftadt or Blenheim, I W-y-^j now proceed to what follow'd, after this Victory, the remain- ing Part of the Campaign.

The Elector of Bavaria, and the Marfhal de Marfm, having Retreat of gathered the Remains of their Defeat, behind the Morafs ot the Eledor Hocnlhdt, refte4 there fome Hours, and, that very Night, <* Bavaria, caufed their Baggage to pafs the Danube, and fent their Horfe towards Ulm, by Gondelfingen. The next Morning, before Break ef Day, they drew off the Infantry, and paffed the Da- nube at Lawingen, where they left 1000 Men, with Orders to See Letter retreat as foon as the Enemy fhould approach, and to burn the n Bridge, which was done accordingly. The Elector fent Orders, at the fame time, to his Troops in Augfburg and other Places, to quit them, and come to join him, at Ulm, whither he marched, with the greateft Precipitation. The Duke of Marl- borough and Prince Eugene would have followed him, with e- qual Speed ; but the great Number of their Prifoners was a Luggage, which retarded their Progrefs four or five Pays.

The Night after the Battle, the Confederate Army drew up, Morions of and lay on their Arms, near the Morafs of Hochftadt, their „£ Am>y!~ Left extending itfelf towards the Village of Sonderen, and the Right towards Morfelingen. The next Day (the fourteenth of Auguft, N. S.) they made a fmall Motion, and came with the Right to Wittifling, and the Left to Steinheim, oppofite to Law- ingen and Dillingen, where the Duke of Marlborough though^ fit to ftay, till the nineteenth of Auguft, that his wearied Troops might refrem themfelves, and thofe who were flightly hurt reco- ver their Wounds.

It may here very naturally be afked ; Why, after fo compleat Reafonswhy a Viftory, and the great Confirmation and Confufion the Re- ^je Co"fe- mains of the Enemy's Army was thrown into, the Confederate n"*^ ^' Generals, upon their abandoning the Places they had feiz'd, ft>r'd the E- did not cut off their Retreat towards^ and over the Rhine a- nemy w re- gain, and why they did not furround them in a Country, where *****' Victory had now render'd the Allies their Matters and Superi- ours ? To this it may be anfwered ; That their Troops were jaot only very much fatigued, but in want of feveral Sorts of Provifions ; that they were very much embarrafs'd with their VOL. I. U great

1704.

Opinion of the Duke ofMarlboro* and Prince Eugene j

Verified.

The Life of J O H N,

great Number of Prifoners ; and that they could not know what Succours or Re-inforcements the Enemy might meet with in their March, in which, at leaft they would find the Marmal de Villeroy, with his little Army.

His Grace and Prince Eugene, therefore, wifely considering ; That the Face of Affairs in that Country was wholly chang- ed, they imparted to Prince Lewis their Sentiments, that to amufe themfelves at the Siege of Ingoliladt, would be but lofmg Time ; and that they believed it would be more ad- vantageous, for the Good of the Common Caufe, to join all their Forces, to ftreighten the Enemy more and more, and oblige the French to quit Germany, and repafs the Rhine ; for then, • not only Ingolftadt, but alfo the whole Country of Bavaria mult fall of themfelves.

Nor was it long before this Opinion of the Duke's, and of Prince Eugene's, was confirm'd, by the Example of the City of Augfourg, which the French, in Garriibn there, quitted, the fixteenth of Auguft, carrying with them four Hoftages, 'as a Se- curity for 2000 fick and wounded Men, whom they left in the Place. Tie Magiftrates, being, thereupon, immediately af- The City of fembled, fent four Deputies to wait on the Duke of Marlbo- Augfcurg rough, and defire his Protection. His Grace gave them a very Pake'sYo- favourable Reception, and told them, Ihey had nothing to fear frcm the Troops of her Britanmck Majefy, and the States General, in-ho were only fent again/I the Enemies of the Empire and their Al- lies : And thereupon, his Grace fent a Detachment to take Pofleffion of that City. Nothing could be a greater Argument of theJSnemy's Weaknefs, and Confternation, than the aban- HisAnfwer. doning of this important Place, fituated upon a confiderable River, covering Bavaria ; which the Eledlor was in a Condition, before this Difafter, to maintain, without the Affiftance of the Marmal de Tallard.

A Thankf- The next Day, the whole Confederate Army return'd their giving cele- fol£mn Thanks to Almighty God, the Giver of all Viftory, A™Sym 'C and made a triple Difcharge of all their Cannon and finall Arms, as a Rejoicing for their late glorious Succefs. The The Prifon- eighteenth, the Marfhal de Tallard, with moft of the other !^A°!L£!!Z PrifoRers of Diftinclion, were fent from Hochftadt, towards Hanau and Frankfort, under a Guard of forty Englifh Horfe. A: the fame Time, the Repartition of all the reft of the Pri- foners being made, the Duke of Marlborough's Share amount- ed to 5678 Men, and that of Prince Eugene to 5514, in all 11,192 J befides 3000 Germans of the Regiments of Greder and Surlauben, who lifted themfelves voluntarily in the Service of the Allies.

The nineteenth, the Enemy rmarch'd from Steinheim, and en- camp'd with the Right at Puntz, and the Left at Gonddfingen,

* (mm

See Letter E. in the foregoing Chapter.

tinftion lent towards Frankfort. See Letter O. and P.

Farther Progrefs of the Confe- derateAr- my.

rom

Duke of MARLBOROUCH, &SV. 291

from whence they advanc'd, the twentieth, to Languenaa and 1704- Ober-Elchingen, and the next Day came to Sefelingen, withm *-"-vV little more than an Englifli Mile from Ulm, where the Elec- tor of Bavaria not thinking himfelf fafe, had left a Garrifon of four French, and five Bavarian Battalions, and was retired up the Danube towards the Iller. The fame Morning the Duke Sec Letter came to Sefelingen, a Deputy from the City of Memmmgen (a ^cgoing free and Imperial City of Suabia, which had been leized by chapter. the Elector of Bavaria) waited on his Grace, to defire his Pro- Men,min. teaion, and reported ; That the Elearefs of Bavaria was gone gend,hres through that Place, with five of her Children, under a Guard *ejg*«* of fourteen Squadrons, endeavouring to join the Ele<3or? who was then about Dutlingen.

The Eleftor of Bavaria's Communication with his pwn Coun- try being entirely cut off, a Trumpeter came the twenty-third, at Night, to the Confederate Camp, with a Letter from his Eleaoral Highnefs, defiring the Duke would give Conveyance, to one enclos'd, to the Elearefs, which his Grace forwarded by a Trumpeter of his own to Munich, whither the Elearefs wfc gone with her Children. The next Day Prince Lewis of Ihden came to Sefelingen, to confer with the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene, having left his Army encamp'd at Law-

ngen.

The five and twentieth, thefe three Generals had a long Con- A ference, wherein they concerted the farther Operations of the «' Campaign ; and it was refolved : " That, . feeing the Enemy jJJ™ *« were returning towards the Rhine, all the Confederate For- prjnCeLsw- -••« ces mould likewife march that Way, except three and twen- is.andPrince " ty Battalions, and fome Squadrons, which mould be left un- Eugene. " der the Command of General Thungen, to carry on the RefuUof it. " Siege of Ulm, and that Count Wratiflau fhould continue in «« the Camp before that Place, to manage the Negotiations " with the Elearefs, who made fome Overtures, to deliver, -«' not only Ulm, but the whole Eleaorate of Bavaria, upon " certain Conditions."

This Refolution being taken, the Confederate Troops remov- Proceedings ed, the next Day, from the Neighbourhood of Ulm, towards riisreupaa. the Rhine, by different Roads, for the Eafe of the Country of V/irtemberg. The Dutch and Heffians march'd together one Way ; the Hannoverians and Lunenburgers, another ; and the Englifh and Danes under the Command of General Churgh.ll, advanced from Sefelingen to Launfheim. The feven and tw¥n- tieth, the latter continued their Mirch to Grofz-Seifen, and tfie tight and twentieth to Eberfpach, where they relied the nine arid twentieth. The thirtieth, they came to Gro'.z-Heppich, #nd, the thirty-firii, to MundeUheim, \vhere the Duke of U 2 Marlborough

lie Lift of J O H N,

Mariborough joined them, the fame Evening, from the Camp 1 before Ulm.

The Duke of The firft of September, the Englifti and - Danifh Troops halt-

te^in'dby" ed* at Mundelfheim; and the Duke of Mariborough having

the Duke received an Invitation from the Duke Regent of Wirtemberg,

Hegent of by his Grand Marftial, to his Refidence at Stutgart, his Grace

Wirtem- went thither, that Morning, accompanied by feveral General

terS' Officers, and, after a very magnificent Entertainment, return'd

in the Evening, to the Army, which, the next Day, patted the

His Army Neckar, at Lauffen, and came to Grofz-Gardach. The third,

Neclcar116 ^y Grofz-Gardach, and advanced to Eppingen ; and,

the fourth, the Duke of Mariborough, with the Englifh and

Danifh Horfe, marched to Steffelt, whilft the Foot moved, the

fame Day, to Odenheim.

The Ene- The Enemy having repafs'd the Black Foreft, and being fmce we/the" retir'd Over tiie Rni'ne» Prince Eugene did not go to Rotweil, as tthi?ie.e he intended, but went direftly to Raftat, to draw the Troops together, and march with them towards Philipfburg, where he arriv'd the fecond of September. The fifth, early in the Morn- ing, the Duke of Mariborough went from Steffelt to Philipf- burg, where he was receiv'd with all imaginable Refpecl, under a general Difcharge of the Cannon of that Place ; and, from thence he made a Vifit to Prince Eugene, at his Quarters at The Gene- Waghaus. After Dinner, the Prince and the Duke went to- rals vkw the gether, accompanied by the Count of Naffau-Weilburg, and sTrbach other General Officers of the Palatine Troops, and, paffing the Rhine, viewed the Camp of Spierbach. In the Evening, the Duke retarn'd to Steffelt, where the Englifh and Danifh Foot being arrived, that Day, his Grace advanced, the fixth, with the Army, to Kirloch ; and having Advice there, that feveral of the Enemy's Squadrons appeared on the riling Ground, over . againil Philipfburg, he order'd the Englifh and Danifh Horfe to smd Danffli Pa^s l^e ^mc» with all Expedition, to join the Palatine Troops, Horfe pafs which Prince Eugene had fent over that Morning. They im- the Rhine, mediately advanced towards the Enemy, who, thereupon, re- The Enemy tired over the River Queich, to Gemerfiieim, and our Army en- tetires be- camp'd on this Side.

fore them. The feventh, the Englifh and Danifh Foot, with the Dutch The reft of Troops, and thofe of Lunenburg and Heffe, likewife paffed thfr Arhny over> am** toget'ier vvit^1 c^°^e l^at were before on that Side, en- Rhine camP'd on l^e Spierbich. The eighth, in the Morning, they were joiu'd by the Imperial Horfe, and Prince Lewis arrived, at the fame time, from Afchaffenburg. They had Advice, that the Marfhals de Villeroy, and de Marfm, with Monf de Coigny, and the Forces under his Command, were advanced to the Ri- ver Queich, and had poffeffed themfelves of all the Panes, to prevent the Confederates going over that River, in order to in-

vcit

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 293

vefl Landau. The ninth, at Day-break, the Army march'd 1704 from Spierbach, with Intent to encamp as near the River Que- ich, as the Ground would allow of, near to Belheim-Pafs, in order to bring the Enemy to a fecond Battle, or to oblige them to quit the Pafs. Bat the Generals having Advice, that the Enemy had quitted their Camp, on the other Side that River, ^ p and were retired, in great Confufion, towards the Laute, not- withftanding they had been, for fome Days, fortifying and palliflading all the Fords and Pafles, Orders were immediately eiven for the Army to advance, and pafs over it, which they did, that Afternoon; the Foot marching over, on feveral Bridges which the Enemy had broke down, but were foon re- pair'd, and tht Horfe fording it over, in feveral Places ; and they encamp' d, with their Right at Offenbach, near Landau, which tfe and their Left at Rellen, being the Ground from whence the <*«*»•» Enemy had retir'd that Morning ; having left Store of Prints ^ ^ and other Refrefhments behind them.

The fame Day, a Party of Imperial Horfe, having met some of the fome Sauadrons of the Enemy, commanded by the Duke de Enemy's Mo-.fort, a Major-General, who had been conduding four Bat- ^»™n' talions and a Sum of Money, into Landau, fell upon them, with great Vigour, and put them to the Rout, killing upwards of 100 on the Spot, taking feverai Prifoners, and defperately wounding their Commander, who died a few Days after. The tenth, in the Morning, they advanced again, towards the £- riemv, who lay that Night, on their Arms, and as foon as they had Notice, that the Confederates intended to march, retired in great Confufion, towards the River Lauter, while the Confede- Thar Ar- rates encamp'd with their Right, at Barelroth, and their Left at Jjy^1** Langcucandel, where they halted the eleventh. •"• ,Confufion.

In the mean time, the Enemy palled the Lauter, and march- Landauin. ed to Haguenau ; and having thus quitted all the Pofts from vufttd by whence they might have obftruded the Attack of Landau, Prince Prince Lewis marched thither, the twelfth, with the fYoops Lewis. which were to beuege that Place, in order to inveft it ; and the ^ Duke Duke of MarlboroHgh, with Prince Eugene, came to the and Prince Camp of Crone- Weiffemburg, on the little River Lauter, to cover Eugene ™

The Duke put a Garrifon into Lauterburg, and gave Direc- Slc^- tions, that one of the Bridges, which the Confederates had, at Philipfburg, mould be brought from thence, and laid over Rhine, near that Town, to preferve a Communication with the other Side of the River, for the better Subfiitance of the Ar- my Brigadier-General Fergufon marched, the fame Day, with five Battalions of Englifh' Foot, viz. one of the Royal Regiment, General Churchill's, the Lord North and Gray's, Brigadie Row's, and Brigadier Meredith's Regiments, fe*-M«ote, wheis

Uim fur- rendered to the Allies.

The Life of JOHN,

they were to embark with the French Prifoners, and to c6hdu£! them to Holland.

The French The fame Night, likewife, the Duke of Marlborough re- ™ ceived *" ExPreis frocl General Thur.gen, with Advice, " That " having formed the Siege of Ulm, and received his great Ar- tillery, the eighth of September, the Garrifon beat a Parly/ the tenth, and, the eleventh, furrcndered that Place, upon honourable Terms, which he was inclined to grant, that, no Time might be loll for the farther Execution of the Projefb Booty found ' of this Campaign." The Imperialifts found in Ulm, 222 there. Pieces of Brafs Cannon. 12 Iron Guns, 2; Brafs Mortars, 1200

Barrels of Powder, with other Stores and Provifions in great Abundance ; a feaibnable Supply for carrying on the Siege of » Landau.

I fhail now leave the D. of Marlborough, for a while, making the neceiliry Preparations for this Siege, and return to Eng- land.

Ths States The t twentieth of Augufl, O. S. Monf. Vryberge, Envoy General Extraordinary from the States General, deliver'd to her Majefty^ {S$SSj3y at Wind{or» a **"«• from their High Mightiness, and, by m the' Vic'- exprefs Order from his Matters, congratulated her Majefty upon trry rfBIen- tbelate Victory obtained, fy the Army of the Allies, under the vali- htim. ant an([ wife Conduit cj the Duke cf Marlborough.

• The joyful News of the*great Viftory obtained by her Maje-

fly's Forces, and thofe of her Allies, had been brought over to

See Letters England, fome Days before, firft by Colonel Park, and foon af-

B. C. in the ter ty t^e jjOrcj Tunbridge, who' both attended the Duke of

Serf Marlborough, as his Aids de Camp, on that great Day. Here-

upon her Majefty, being deeply feiifible of this general Bleffing,

'* and moft devoutly acknowledging the Goodrieis of Almighty

" GOD, wlio had afforded her his Proteftion and Afliftance^

A general " jr> the juft War, in which fhe was engaged," appointed the

Thankfgiv- feventh Of September, to be obferved throughout this Kingdom,

S apP°:nt' as a Day of publkk Thankfgiving.

Great Re- As this Viftory was, in all its Circumftances, the moft glo-

joycings rious and confiderable, that had been gained in many Ages, the

aH En^aS ReJ°ycing" in London and Weftminfter were fuitable to the great

fcnthft^' Occalion ; and her Majefly's Subjects gave all the Demonftra-

Numerous tions imaginable of their AfTedlion to her Majefty's Perfon, and

congratula- Zeal for her Government. This Feftival was obferved, in all

tory Ad- the other Parts of her Majefty's Dominions, if not with the fame

fent/d roher Sojemnity, yet with as great Affeftion and Loyalty ; and both

Majefty. before that Day, and many Months after, her Majefty's Court

was throngtt by Deputies from all the Corporations and publick

Societies, in the three Kingdoms, and in the remoter! Plantations ;

who waited on her Majtfty with congratulatory Addreffes, for

the glorious Succefles of her Majefty's Arms, under the wife Con-

duel

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

dncr. of the Duke of Marlborough. Nor did the foreign Mini- fters, in England, omit to compliment her Majeity, on that great Occafion.

I fhall now return to the Duke of Marlborough, whom I The left, with Prince Eugene, at the Camp of Crone- Weiflemburg, J^d't covering the Siege of Landau, before which Place the Trenches Landau.* were opened the fixteenth of September, N. S. The Day Be- fore, his Grace went to the Camp before that Place, and, upon his Return, was feized, that Night, with a Fit of an Ague, of which, however, he happily recovered, in a fhort time.

While the Duke of Marlborough lay covering the Siege, the Pufl!la?imi' Marihal de Villeroy came and look'd on him ; but as the Con- f^nch federates were exalted with their Succefs, fo were the French too much difpirited with their Loffes, to make any Attack, or to put any thing to hazard in order to raife the Siege. They re- tired and went into Quarters, trufting to the bad State of the Imperial Army, who were ill provided, and ill fupplied. Prince III State of Lewis had neither Engineers nor Ammunition, and wanted Mo- t^lc Imperial ney to provide them ; fo that if the Duke had not fupplied Army- him, he muft have been forced to give over the Siege. ,

The twenty-furl, the King of the Romans (afterwards, Em- The King of pero.ur Jofeph) arrived before Landau, and the Duke of Marl the Romans borough, who by this time was perfedly recovered of his In- Sau! dilpontion, waited on his Majelty, the next Day, accompanied by Prince Eugene, and feveral other General Officers. His Is v'flted by Grace was received by that Imperial Prince, with fuch Demon- Marlboro' °f ftrations of Joy and Affeftion, as fufficiently exprefs'd the high Efteem he had of his Grace's perfonal Merit, and of the great Services he had done to his Majcfty's Family, and to the whole Empire.

The illuftrious Author of the Campaign defcribes this Inter- view, between the King of the Romans, and our Hero, in the following excellent Lines.

4Uftria's young Monarch, whofe Imperial Sway Scepters and Thrones are deftin'd to obey, ^.jfe boalled Anceftry fo high extends, That in the Pagan Gods his Lineage ends,

Come from a-far, in Gratitude to own t

THE GREAT SUPPORTER OF HIS FATHER'S THRONE: What Tides of Glory to his Bofom ran, Clafp'd in th'Embraces of the GODI IKE MAN ! How were his Eyes with pleafing Wonder fix'd, To fee iuch Fire, with fuch Sweetnefs mix'd I Such eafy Greatnefs, fuch a graceful Port, So turn'd and nnifh'd for the Camp or Court f

U 4 Achilles

96 Tffe Life of JOHN,

1 704. Achilles |hus was form'd with every Grace, -V— — ' And Nireos (hone but in the fecond Place ; Thus the great Father of Almighty Rome (Divinely flum'd with an immortal Bloom, That Cytherea's fragrant Breath beftow'd) In all the Charms of his bright Mother glow'd.

The Royal Youth, by Marlbro's Prefence charm'd, Taught by his Counfels, by his Actions warm'd, On Landau, with redoubled Fury, falls, Difcharges all his Thunder on its Walls j O'er Mines and Caves of Death provokes the Fight, And learns to conquer in the Hero's Sight.

The Duke flaid two Days before Landau, and , having view-- ed the Approaches, which he found in pretty good Forw-rd- nefs, he return'd to his Own Camp, at Crone-Weiflemburg, whither Prince Eugene followed him, the next Day ; and, upon his Arrival, four Regiments were fent to re-"nforce the Siege.

The eight and twentieth, in the Morning, tr.e Duke of Marl- borough again waited on the King of the Romaic, to a Review of the Army before Lmdau, which had been lateiy re-inferred by the Troops from before Ulm, and his Grace returned to Weiffembiirg, the next Day.

f fne fecond of Odtober, the King of the Romans, attended S b-v the PrinciPal Oncers of his Court and Army, went from his cMarlbo- Camp before Landau to Crone- Weiffemburg, to make the Duke a Vifit, and fee his vi&Orious Troops. His Grace, having No- tice of his coming, drew iip his Forces, in tvvo Lines, and re- ceiving his Majefty, at the left Wing of hid Army, waited en him all along the Line, and faluted him with a triple Difcharge of all the Artillery and fmall Arms. The King being extreme- ly well fatisfied, at the good Condition he found the Duke's Troops in, and pleafed with the Entertainment, he, and his whole Court and Officers, had received from his Grace, re- turned in the Evening to his Quarters near Landau. The fe- venth, the Duke of Marlborough paid another Vifit to the .Ring of the Romans, and Prince Lewis of Baden, with whom he had a long Conference, after which he viewed the Ap- preaches, and, the tenth, return'd to his Camp, at Weiffem- burg; the next Day, Monf. Wachtelberg, Envoy from the King of Poland, to the Emperour, and the Marquis de Prie, Envoy from the Duke of Savoy, waited on his Grace, with Commiffions frdm their refpeclive Mailers.

The Length of the Siege of Landau made the Duke of Marlborough very uneafy at Crone- Weiflemburg ; his Grace **inS afraid tnat he mould not have Time to execute his Defigns on the Mofel, which were no lefs important than the taking of

Landau,

The Kin -

*ough.

the D. of

Marlboro'

Duke of- MARLBOROUGH, &c. Landau. The Duke, ever watchful for the Go'od of the com- mon Caufe, had formed a Deiign to take Winter-Quarters on the Mofel, where France lay open; and-he hoped, the enfuing Summer, to have penetrated into the Heart of that Kingdom ; but this Project proved abortive, thro' the ill Conduct or the Detected by Germans, as we mall fee below. It is allowed by all the Officers the ill Con- of the Army, that his Grace fpared no Coftj in procuring In- dnftofthe telligences j and, therefore, his Uneafmefs encreafed, upon Ad- tjernians< vice, that the French intended to fend a Re inforcement to- wards Triers, from the Netherlands and Haguenau ; which made him refolve to prevent the Enemy, and to march thither, in Perfon, with Part of his Forces, and to leave the reft under the Command of Prince Eugene of Savoy, at Crone-Weiflem- burg. This Refolution being taken, his Grace fent, the thir- teenth of O&ober, N. S. fome Battalions, and a Detachment of Dragoons, to take Poffeffion of Homburg, with Orders to fortify that Poll. That Detachment was followed, by another, com - Tj,c p. ^ manded by Colonel Blood, and, on the twenty-fecond, the reft Marlboro* of the Forces, defigned for that Expedition, marched to Horn- E°es cin an burg, where the Duke joined them, the four and twentieth. Ex^di^<1 His Grace haftened his March, as much as poflible, through a t0' mountainous Country, which is in a manner defert, and, on the eight and twentieth, arrived at Hcrmerfkel, within fix Leagues of Triers, where three Deputies of that City waited on his Grace, and acquainted him. that at the Trench bad Jlill 300 Men in the Fort of St. Martin, tbeynvereapprebenfi<veofjome HlUfaget if bis Grace did not prevent it. Upon this Account, the Duke marched, the nine and twentieth, before break of Day, with all the Horfc, and four Battalions of Foot ; and about eleven of the Clock, his Vanguard appearing in Sight of Triers, the French Secures th- abandoned the Fort, having thrown their Ammunition, and City of fome Corn, into the Mofel. The Duke's Dragoons purfued Tr««- them to the Banks of the River, and took Part of their Bag- gage, with fome Prifoners. The Enemy had no focner pajVd the River, than they burnt the Bridges, and, in all Probability, would have done more Mifchief, if the Duke had not come fo fuddenly to diflodge them.

The extraordinary Affiduity and Vigilance which the Duke of Marlborough fhew'd, upon every other Occafion, is in a par- ticular Manner vifible, in this Expedition, wherein he readily expofed his own Perfon to the Fatigue and Inconveniences of fo uncouth a March, rather than entruft a Matter of fo great Im- portance, as the fecuring proper Winter-Quarters for the Troops under his Care, to the Execution of a more inferiour Officer.

The City of Triers, which the Duke of Marlborough had, in this Manner fecured, is pretty large, and reckon'd the moft antient of Europe.

His

308

1 704-

The D. of

Marlboro'

tiewsTraer.

Sends the Engli/h Ca- iralry to-

J2* A Treaty concluded

The D. cf

Marlboro' ends his^ CamPaiSn'

tte Life of JOHN,

His Grace being thus pofiefs'd of that important Port,- he faffr- moiled a great Number of Pioneers to work on the Fortification* of Triers ; he went, the next Day, to view the Ground about Saar, and caufed a Camp to be mark'd at Confarbruck, on that £jverj for ^ Horfe to cover thofe that work'd on the Fortifica- tions of Triers, whither the Cavalry march'd accordingly, the firft of November, N. S. The fame Day, the Duke made the Repartition of the Winter- Quarters, to the feveral Generals un- ^er k*m» an^» *n l^e -Afternoon, went towards Traerbach, ac- companied by the Hereditary Prince of Heffe-CafTel, and other Generals. They lay, that Night, at Fels, the next Day, at Nimeguen, and came to Bern-Caffel, the third of November, about Noon. His Grace went immediately to the rifing Grounds near Traerbach, to take a narrow View of the Place, and re- viewTd the Dutch, which were lately arrived, in the Neighbour- hood, from the Maefe ; and having given the neceiTary Direc- tions for the Siege of Traerbach, the Care of which was com- mitted to the Prince of Hefle-CafTel, his Grace fet out, the next Day, early, on his Return to the Camp at Crone- Weiflemburg.

His Grace came, that Night, to Kern, the next Day, to Kay- ferflauteren, and, the i;xth, at Night, to the Camp before Lan- dau, where he found the Befiegcrs Mailers of the Counterfcarp, on which they had raifed fome Batteries j and more being perfected, the next Day, they had .about fixty Pieces of Can- non firing to make a Breach. The eighth of November, the Duke returned to Wciffemburg. fomewhat difpleafed with the Slownefs, with which the Siege of LancioU was carried on j and confidering, that the French had fent all their Horfe of the Houfhold, from their Camp at Haguenau, to put them. JJ^Q winter Quarters, his Grace ordered the Engliih Cavalry to march fr™ Crone- Weiffemburg towards Holland.

The tenth of November, the Treaty of Accommodation, be- tween theEmpexor and the Eleftrefs of Bavaria, was concluded, ky l^e K-irig0*" the Romans, and the Deputies of her Electoral Highnefs, who was to furrender all the Towns, in her Poffef- ficn, to his Imperial Majefty, to continue at Munich, with ia Guard of 400 Men, ana to have a } e: rly Penfion allowed her, out of the Reverraes of that Electorate, for the Support of her Court and Family j and this was one of the immediate ^Confe- queuces of the e\rer-memorabie Victory obtained by the Duke of Maiiborough, at Blenheim.

About the Middle of November, the Duke cf Marlboro' being fbnfible that the Siege of Landau would not laft i* uch longer, took ^is Leave of the King of the Romans, and the o^ei Generals, or- cjerec} the Englilh Foot to decamp, and march towards the Rhine, in order to be embark'd for Holland ; and having given the necef- fary Directions) for the Winter-Quarters of the reit of the Forces,

under

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V. •

Under lus Command, refolved to crown his glorious Campaign,

by an important Negotiation with the King of Pruffia, in favour of

the Duke of Savoy ; in order to which, his Grace fet out from And goes t»

Weiflemburg, on his Journey to Berlin i the fifteenth of November. n-

The twenty-third, the Garrifon of Landau beat a Parly, and Hoftages being exchanged, the King of the Romans granted. the Garrifon very honourable Terms 5 in Purfuance of which Landau fur- they delivered one of the Gates, the five and twentieth, and, the reader*. fix and twentieth, marched out of the Place, to the Number of 3,4.00 Men, which were left out of 7,000, of which the Garrifon cOnfifted, at the Beginning of the Siege. The Lofs of the Befiegers was lefs in Proportion j for they had not above 2cco Men killed, and about twice as^fnany wounded.

The Duke of Marlborough arrived at Berlin, the twenty- T}ie D. of fecond of November, in the Evening, having been received, in Marlboro's all the Towns, thro' which he pafs'd, lying moftly in the Ter- Arrival and ritories of the Langrave of Heffe-Caffel, the Duke ofWolfem- ^J'1' buttel, the Elector of Hannover, and the King of Pruffia, with Berlin! extraordinary Marks of Refpeft.

His Grace, upon his coming to Berlin., was met, without the Town, by the King's Great Chamberlain, the Field Marfhal, the Lord Raby, her Majefty's Envoy Extraordinary to that Court, and feveral bther Perfonsof Diflin&ion, who accompanied him to the Houfe for the Entertainment of AmbafTadors, where his Grace, with his Retinue, was lodged, and entertained during his Stay there. His Grace had Audience, that very Eveningj of the King and Queen, and was received with great Marks of Affeflion and Efteem. The four and twentieth, the Prince Royal (the late King of Pruffia) entertained him at Dinner, where were prefent the King and Queen, with the foreign Miniflers, and feveral Perfons of Quality ; and, at Night gave a Supper, and afterwards a great Ball, for his Grace's Entertainment.

The late King of Pruffia was of a middling Stature, and in very CUarafler of good Plight of Body; or rather inclined to be corpulent : His thepate K- Air commanded Refpeft ; yet, when he pleafed, no Prince in °n(I ^ ^ the World could be more gracious j he was often heard to fpeak R0yal Con- to his Officers in fuch a kind Manner, -as could not but charm fort. them. His Genius for military Difoipline was juftly to be ad- jnir'd, and it was eafily perceiv'd, that with the Glance of art Eye, he could difcover the leaft Fault committed againft that wonderful Exaftnefs which he introduced in (he Evolutions of his Troops. He exercis'd them daily himfelf about Noon, either on the Parade before the Palace, at Berlin, or behind it, in the fine Garden made by his Father, but by him deftroyed and converted to the fame Ufe, and frequently in both, their March being generally directed that Way ; and he was fo intent on it, that tho' Showers of Rain interven'd, it feldcm interrupted

him*

Me Life of JOHN,

him, unlefs very violent, nor would he rarely be prevail'd upon to put on a Cloak ; and I have more than once obferv'd publick Minifters and Strangers (for the Parade was a fort of Levee,) not a little uneafy on that Account. He married Sophia Do- rothea, now Queen-Mother of Pruffia, Sifter to his prefent Ma- jefty of Great- Britain. This Princefs does every Thing that is worthy of her auguft Extraction ; never did Daughter more re- femble a Father ; like him, Ihe has the fa.ne Benignity and Wifdom, Equity, Jiiftice and Sweetnefs of Temper : She knows the Charms of a private Life and Friendfhip on a Throne ; (he is ador'd by her Subjects and her Domeiticks, and is the chief Darling and Bleffing of bqf h : To a thoufand Virtues, worthy of Veneration, fhe' has added the fingular Talent of {peaking the Language of feveral Countries, which fhe never faw, with as much Delicacy as if they had been her Mother- Tongue : And the Grandeur and Majefty that accompany all her Actions, in- duce even thofe \vho do not Know her, to be of Opinion that ihe was born to rergn. The late King of PrufUa had a numerous Iffue by her, molt of whom are yet living, and his prefent Majelly of Pruffia, at their Head. His late Majeity (as I have already obierved) could, when he pleas'd, be very gracious, but was, in general, not a little a Slave to his Will, and made every one elfe fo; .by which he, in a great Meafure, loft the AiFe&ions of hb People, in the latter- Years of his Life, efpecially by the Liberty allow'd by his Officers, (probably countenanced from above) to the common Soldiers, to harafs and tyrannize over the lower, and indeed the middling Claflfes of his Subjects; of which I have very frequently been an Eye-Witnefs in many Inflances, in my Travels thro' feveral Parts of his Dominions, but more particularly by their arbitrary Proceedings in enlifting his Troops ; and fince the Endeavours of a Great Prince to retire out of his Dominions, which were cenfur'd as fomething more than

The five and twentieth, the King had, for the Duke's En- tertainment, a Combat of wild Beafts, in his Ampitheatre ; and, at a Supper, which the Lord Raby gave his Grace, the King, with the Margrave, his Brother, came and fupped with him.

All the Minifters of this Court (which was then very fpiendid) the Foreign Minifters rending there, and other Perfons of Di- ftin&ion, who were then in thit City, ftrove, each in a parti- cular Manner, how they fhould beil exprefs their Senfe of hb Grace's Perfonal Merit, and of the fignal Advantages the Empire had received from his Courage and Conduct. The fix and twentieth, the Prince Royal of Pruffia fet out for Hannover, and the Duke of Marlborough- left that Court, likewife, and pro- ceeded towards the fame Place, being extreamly vyell fatisfied with his Reception, and the" Succefs of his Negotiation. The

King

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

King prefented his Grace, at his Departure, with a Hat, with a Diamond Button and Loop, and a Diamond Hat-band, valued at between twenty and thirty thoufand Crowns, and two fine Saddle Horfes, with rich Furniture, befides other rich Prefems. His Majeity gave, likewife, noble Prefents to Mr. Cardonnel, his Grace's Secretary, and to other Principal Perfons of his Retinue.

Among other Articles of the Negotiation, in which the Dulce The Duke fiicceeded, his Grace obtained, that 8000 Pruffians ihould march ofMartbo- into Italy, to ferve there, for the Relief of the Duke of Savoy, rou&VN«-

i*-, j r !•» • T- L L • L T> gctiations at

under the Command of Prince Eugeue, who having been Eye- ,-tle Ccnirt ot-

witnefs of their Behaviour, at the Battle of Blenheim, could not Pmffig. fufficiently praife their Bravery and Reiolution, and was the more defirous of having them in his Army ; and with this Re-inforce- ment, and other Affiftances procured him by the Duke of Mar!- borough, his Highnefs favcd Italy from the Ravages of the French, and relieved the Duke of Savoy, who was befieged in Turin. I muft not here omit taking Notice of the Expedition, with which his Grace always managed whatever he undertook ; of which we have a memorable Inftance now before us ; for, notwithftanding all the Diverfions he was obliged to be Partaker of, yet he had difpatch'd his Bufmefs in leis than four Days Time. And he not only fucceeded in thefe Negotiations, by which he kept the Duke of Savoy firm to the Alliance ; but alfo laid down fuch Schemes, at the Court of Berlin, as fufpended their Difputes with the Dutch, about the Eilate of the late King, William ; for which wife Conduct his Grace had the unanimous Acknowledgement of the whole Confederacy, That he bad dove the greateji Services that could be to the Common Ctiufe, in that jfunflure.

The Prince Royal of Pruffia, and the Duke of Marlborough, He arrives arrived at Hannover, the firft of December ; where his Grace al Han- was received with all imaginable Demonftrations of Refpecl and nover » Kindnefs, by that Eleftor (his late Majefty King George I.) the Princefs Sophia, and all the reit of that Court, and always eat with their Electoral Highneffes. The fourth, the Prince Royal of Pruffia left Hannover, and continued his Journey to Hol- land. The Duke qf Marlborough, who intended to have fet forward, at the fame time, but was prevail'd upon, by the Elector, to ftay a Day longer, took his Audience of Leave that Night, and, the next Morning, begun hjs Journey towards Hol- land.

The ninth, his Grace arrived at Naerden, where he was met At Amfter- by one of the Secretaries of the City of Amfterdam, who had dam > been fent by the Magiftrates, with two Yachts, to invite and at- tend him thither. The next Morning, his Grace, after he had viewed the Fortifications and Magazines of Naerden, proceeded, 2 by

And at the Hague.

The Siege ot Traer- bach,

the Life */ J O H N,

by Water, to Amfterdam. He arrived there about Noon, an4 was received at the Limits of that City, by the Burgomafter Witfen, and the Penfionary, who complimented his Grace, in the Name of the whole Magiftracy, congratulating his Return from his Glorious Campaign, and his Victories at Schellenberg and Hochftadt. • The twelfth, in the Morning, his Grace, hav- ing receiv'd all poffible Marks of Honour at Amfterdam, fet out for the Hague, being faluted with a triple Difcharge of all the Cannon, as he had been, at his Arrival, and the like Acclama- tions of Joy from the People.

In the mean time, the Prince of Heffe-Cafiel was carrying on the Siege of Traerbach, where the Allies found as great Re- ftftance, as they had met with at Landau, in Proportion to the Bignefs of the Place, and the Number of the Garrifon. The Caftle of Traerbach, a very ftrong Fortrefs, on the MofeJ, was inverted, by Orders of the Duke of Marlborough, the Beginning of November, N. S. and the Batteries began to play, the eigh- teenth of that Month. The Badnefs of the Weather, and the Lofs of Baron de Trogne, the chief Engineer of the States, who was (hot by the Prince of Heffe's Side, giving the neceffary Orders, were great Difcouragements to his Highnefs, to purfue the Siege of Traerbach; neverthelefs, that Prince caufed the Traetbach Attacks to be carried on with Vigour, and, at length, obliged furrendered. the Garrifon to furrender, the twentieth of December, N. S. tho' on honourable Conditions. Be/ides the Governour, who died of his Wounds, the French loft 350 Men, out of 600 Men, which was the Number of the Garrifon, before the Siege. As for the Allies, they h.id about 1,000 Men kill'd or wounded. A Defign on During the Sieges of Landau and Traerbach, Prince Eugene Old Brifac form'd a Projeft. about the Beginning of November, to feize Old aiifcarries. Brifac. This Defign was exceedingly well kid ; but the Project mif- carried, when it was upon the very Point of being executed, by the Impatience of a Lieutenant- Colonel. This Attempt, if it had not been fruftrated, was to have been followed immediately by another, on New Brifac, the Preparations for which were like- wife made: But the former mifcarrying, the latter fell of Courfe.

The Campaign in Flanders produced this Year very little. General d'Auverquerque bombarded Namur, in order to de- ftroy the Enemy's Magazines there ; and Baron Spar, on the Side of Proper Flanders, bombarded Bruges, and took the Fort Kabella near Sluys. Which was all that happen'd worthy our Note.

In Italy, the Duke of Savoy had a melancholy Campaign, lofing Place after Place ; but he fupported his Affairs, with great Condud ; and {hewed a Firmnefs, in his Misfortunes, beyond jvhat could have been imagined. Verceil and Yvrea gave the

Affcirs of

Flanders.

Affairs of

Duke of MARLBOROUOH, &c.

Duke of Vendofme the Trouble of tedious Sieges ; they flood their Ground, as long as poffible ; but the Duke of Savoy's Army was not ftrong enough to raife thefe Sieges ; fo both Places at length fell. The French demolifhed the Fortlflca- tions of both thefe Places ; and, after had they fucceeded fo far, fat down before Verue, at the End of Odober ; which they did not take till after a Siege of five Months.

As for the Affairs of Spain and Portugal, as they have almofi; always a Connexion with Naval Affairs, and they are treated largely of, in Lediartfs Naval HiJIory of England, I fhall pafs them by here, and return to the Duke of Marlborough.

We left his Grace, the twelfth of December, juft arrived at the Hague ; he was immediately complimented b/ the Deputies of the States General, at his Palace, where they gave him the Thanks of that Illuftrious AfTembly for his Conduct, as well in boroKgT the Cabinet as in the Camp, and had, likewife, a long Con- concerts at ference with him. All the Foreign Minifters, and other Per- the Hagae ions of Diftin&ion, likewife, waited on the Duke, and congratu- l. e '^rr*C lated his fafe Return, after the Labours and Fatigues of his glo- eni-uing rious Campaign; and many private Perfons made Illuminations, Campaign, and other Rejoicings on that Occafion. His Grace, having iiay'd a few Days at the Hague, to concert Meafures with the De- puties of the State', for the Operations of the next Campaign ; embark'd, in theMaefe, the twenty-fecond of December, N. S. R^ms to at Night, on Board one of her Majefty's Yachts, under Convoy England of feveral Ships of War ; bringing over with him, the Marfhal wi'h h;« jde TaJlard, with fix and twenty other French Prifoners, and the rh^,fcPr^a Standards and Colours taken at Blenheim, as Trophies of his tj. Grace's Victory. The fourteenth of December, O. S. the Of his Yachts, and Men of War, entered the River of Thames, and the Victory. Duke went privately, the fame Afternoon, to St. James's Houfe, where he was received with all the Marks of Grace and Favour, Is graciopfly which could be fhewn to the moft deferving Subjeft, by jefty, and his Royal Highnefs, Prince George of Denmark.

The next Day, the Duke being come to the Houfe of Peers, the Lord Keeper. Sir Nathan Wright, addrefs'd his Grace, by Orders of that moft honourable Houfe, with the following 'Compliment.

n.

fm* Lord Duke of Marlborough, H E happy Succefs that hath attended her Majefty's Thg ^^ Armies under your Grace's Command, in Germany, Keeper's " the laft Campaign, is fo truly Great, fo truly Glorious, in all Compliment " its Ci'rcumftances, that few Inftances, in the Hiftory of tothtDuk-:; '•* former Ages, can equal, much leis excel the Luftre'of it.

" Your Grace has not overthrown young unlkilful Generals, "" raw and undifciplined Troops ,• .but your Grace has conquer' d

" the

ne Life of J O H N,

the French and Bavarian Armies ; Armies that were fully inftruct-

ed in all the Arts of War j felect Veteran Troops, flufhed

with former Victories, and commanded by Generals of great *' Experience and Bravery.

" The glorious Victories your Grace has obtained at Schellen- " berg and Hochftadt, are very Great, very Illuftrious, in " themfelves ; but they are greater ftiil in their Confequences, " to her Majefty and her Allies.

" The Emperour is thereby reliev'd ; the Empire itfelf freed " from a very dangerous Enemy, in the very Bowels of it; <l the exorbitant Power of France is check'd, and, I hope, a " happy Step made towards reducing of that Monarch, within " his due Bounds, and fecuring the Liberties of Europe.

** The Honour of thefe glorious Victories, great as they are " (under the immediateBleffing of Almighty God) is chiefly, if «' not alone, owing to your Grace's Conduct and Valour.

" This is the unanimous Voice of England, and ail her Ma- ," jetty's Allies.

My Lord,

«' This moft Honourable Houfe is highly fenfible of the great " and fignal Services your Grace has done her Majefty, this " Campaign, and of the Immortal Honour you have done the " Englifh Nation ; and have commanded me to give you " their Thanks for the fame.

«' And I do accordingly give your Grace the Thanks of this " Houfe, for the great Honour your Grace has done the Na- " tion, and for the great and fignal Services you have done her *' Majefty, and this Kingdom, the laft Campaign.

The Duke of Marlborougk's Reply was :

I

My Lords,

Am extreamly fenfible of the great Honour your Lordihips __ are pleafed to do me. I muft beg, on this Occafion, to do Right to all the Officers and Soldiers I had the Honour of V having under my Command ; next to the Bleffing of God, the " gOod Succefs of this Campaign is owing to their extraordinary " Courage.

" I am very fure, it will be a great Satisfaction, as well as " Encouragement to the whole Army, to find their Services fo " favourably accepted. The Duke

««ives the u 7^ fame j)aV) a Committee of the Houfe of Commons the^oufe *' having waited upon his Grace, to give him the Thanks of Com- *' °f tne Houfe, as well for the eminent Services he had roons, «« pprformedio her Majeftv, and the Kingdom, in the glorious

" \iaories

Duh of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

*' Victories which had been obtained under his Command, as for

" his prudent Negotiations with feveral Princes and St:ites ; and

" to congratulate his Arrival : // /'/ a great Satisfaction to me, The C

" faid the Duke to them, to fad that my faithful Endeav.urs, in Anfwer t<?

" difcharging my Duty to the ^ueen, and to the Public!;, ere fo them>

" favourably accepted. I beg Leave to take this Opportunity ofda-

*C ingjujlice to a great Body of Officers and Soldiers, it bo accom-

" panied me in this Expedition, and all behaved themfel*vcs ^juitb

" the great eft Bravery imaginable: And, I am fur e, this Honour

' ' done us by the Houfe of Commons, in fating fo much Notice of if,

' l 'will give a genera/ Satisfaction and Encouragement to the whole

" Army.

On the fixteenth of December, the Marfhal de Tallard, with The French the reft of the Prifoners, were landed at Blackwall ; where they Prifbners were magnificently entertained at Dinner by Mr. Johnfon, and are fent to then, in the Afternoon, they fet out, in a great many Coaches, ^"utch-* for Barnet, in their Way to Nottingham and Litchfield, where fieu, her Majefty thought fit they mould refide, to wit, at Notting- ham, the Marfhal de Tallard, Marquis de Monperroux, Gene- ral of Horfe ; Comte de Blanfac, Lieutenant-General j Marquis de Hautefeuille, General of Dragoons ; Marquis de Valfeme, Marquis de Seppeville, Marquis de Silly, Chevalier de Croifly, Marquis de Valliere, Majors-General ; Monf. de St. Second, Brigadier; Marquis de Vafley, Colonel of Dragoons. At Litch- field, 'the Marquis de Marivaux, Lieutenant- General ; Monf. de la Meffiliere, Monf. Soly, Monf. d'Amigni, Brigadiers ; Monf. de St. Maurice, Comte de Lionne, Marquis de Laffey, Baron d'Elft, Monf. de Balincourt, Monf. de Saulexbeaus, Monf. de Montenay, Monf. de Gallart, Monf. de Creffy, Colonels of Foot ; Monf. de Ligondais, Baron de Heyder, Colonels of Horfe; Monf. de Prie, Monf. d'Aurival, Colonels of Dragoons.

They were accompany'd by General Churchill, and attended by a Detachment of the Duke of Northumberland's Royal Re- giment of Horfe, who were alfo ordered to guard them, at large, at Nottingham and Litchfield,

Monfieur de Tallard was obferved to have been very gay on his Journey to Nottingham, and feemed very well fatisfied with his Treatment ; but at his Arrival there, and entering the Town by the Paffage cut thro' the Rock, which in Fact, has a (hocking A fpeft, he fee m'd quite difconcerted, and imagin'd he was going to be confin'd in a clofe and difmal Dungeon : But he was foon convinc'd of his Miftake, and found himfelf indulged with all the Freedom and Liberty that he could reafonably ex- pedl or defire. I happened to be at Nottingham at the fame Time, and have frequently been hunting with him at the Di-

VOL. I. ftancp

The Life of J O H N,

fiance of 8 -or 10 Miles from the Town. He kept an elegant Table, and frequently entertained the neighbouring Gentry,, in a very polite Manner.

CHAP. IX.

s in 1705. //// the attacking /fo French Lines.

XH E Beginning of this Year, the Cities of London and Weftminiler were Eye-witnefles of a triumphant Memo- : the Battle and Viftory cf Hochftadt. Her Majefty hav- ing been pleafed to order, that the Standards and Colours, taken in that famous Battle, which were lately brought from beyond Sea, and lodged in the Tower, mould be put up in Weftminfter- ue- Hal1' a Detachment of her Majefty'sHorfe-Guards, and Horfe- jninfter Grenadiers, and a Battalion drawn out of both Regiments of the Hall. Foot-Guards, marched, the third of January, early in the Morn-

ing, to the Tower, to receive them, at which Time the great Guns were fired. From thence, they proceeded, in the follow- ing Manner : Firft the Troop of Horfe-Grenadiers, then the Detachment of the three Troops of her Majefty's Horfe-Guards, four and thirty of the Gentlemen in the Center carrying each a Standard taken from the Enemy j the Battalions of Foot-Guards clofed the March j the Pike-men, to the Number of 1 28, who had left their Pikes at the Tower, carrying each one of the Enemy's Colours advanced. In this Manner, they marched thro' the City, the Strand, and the Pall-Mall, and pafs'd before her Majefty's Palace at St. James's j then thro' St. James's Mews, into the Park, where her Majefty was pleafed to fee them pafs by from, the Lord Fitzharding's Lodgings, forty Guns, in the Park, being twice fired, at the fame time : Thence they proceeded through the Horfe-Guards, King-llreet, and the New Palace-Yard, to Weftminfter-Hall, where the faid Standards and Colours were put up, to remain there as Trophies of that fignal Vidory.

The fixth of the fame Month, the Duke of Marlborough

The D of having been invited by the Lord Mayor and Court of Aldermen,

Marlboro' to dine with them, in the City, his Grace went thither about

entertain'd Noon, accompanied by the Lord Treafurer, the Prince of Hefle,

by the City. and the Duke of Sommerfet, in one of her Majefty's Coaches,

and was followed by a great Train of other Coaches, in

which were the foreign MmiHers, with feveral Perfons of

Quality

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

Quality and the Generals, and other Officers of the Army, who were all fplendidly entertained at Goldfmiths-Hall.

The eleventh of the fame Month, being the Day appointed by the Commons, for taking into Confidefation the great^-Ser* vices that had been performed by the Duke of Mari borough, the laft Summer, and to coniider of fome Means to perpetuate the Memory of them; they came to this unanimous Resolution,

That an humble Addrefs be prefented to her Majefty, ex- Votesott!.-: preffing the Senfe this Houfe has of the glorious Victories Common* obtained by the Forces of her Majefty, and her Allies, under in favour of the Command of his Grace the Duke of Marlborough ; and the ^ke,ot humbly defiring her Majefty, That fhe would be gracioufly M pleafed, to coniider of fome proper Means to perpetuate the Memory of the great Services performed by the laid Duke. Which Addrefs being prefented to her Majefty, by the whole Houfe, her Majelty was pleafed to give this gracious Anfwer :

Gentlemen,

I Am -very well pleafed with your Addrefs ; and I will take it into Confide ration, as you dy'ire, and j end you my Thoughts upon it, in a little Time.

The feventeenth, Mr. Chancellour of the Exchequer acquaint- ed the Houfe, that he had a Meffage figned by her Majefty ; and he delivered it to Mr. Speaker, who' read the fame to the Houfe/ and was as follows :

ANNE R,

HER Majefty, having taken into her Confederation the Addrefs Her Maje- of this Houfe, relating to the great Services performed by %'s Mef- tbe Duke of Marlborough, does incline to grant the Intereji of the ^^° ^ G-own, in the Honour and Manor of VFoodftcck, and Hundred of Commons on! Woo t Ion, to him and his Heirs ; and defer es the Jjfijlance of this that Ac- Houfe, upon this extraordinary Occafesn. count.

The. Lieutenancy and Ranger/hips of the Parks, with the Rents and Projits of the Manor and Hundreds, being granted for two Lives, her Majejly thinks it proper that Incumbrance Jhould be cleared,

Upon which, the Houfe refolved, that a Bill be brought in, Refolatjonj to enable her Majelty to grant the Honour and Manor of Wood- theieupon. ftock, and Hundred of Wootton, to the Duke of Marlborough and his Heirs.

And it was farther refolved, That an humble Addrefs be pre- ftnted to her Majefty, That fhe would be gracioufly pleafed to ce the Mony for clearing the prefenc Incumbrance upon

-

Me Life of JOHN,

the Lieutenancy and Rangerihip of the Parks, Rents and Profits of the Honour and Manor of Woodftock, and Hundred of Woot- ton, in order to the prefent Settlement thereof, upon the Duke of Marlborough and his Heirs.

An Aft cf ^e ^ ^ being pafled both Houfes, and having received Parliament the Sanction of the Royal AiTent on the fourteenth of March, I pafs'd in his fliall fubjoin the Preamble of that Act, ns it (hews the Senfe the Grace's Fa- Parliament had of the great Services performed by the Duke.

The Preamble to the A£l for the better enabling her Majefty, to grant the Honour and Manor of Woodftock, fwith the Hundred of Wootton, to the Duke of Marlborough.

Moft gracious Sovereign.

Prtarnble to « -tlTTHEREAS the eminent and unparallel'd Services, " W perform'd to your Majefty, and the Crown of Eng- " land, by the moft noble John, Duke of Marlborough, are " well known, not only to your Majefty, and all your Subjects, " but to all Europe, who will always remember, That the Alii- *' ances which your Majefty's Royal Brother King William the " Third, of glorious Memory, had, in a little time before his *' Death, contracted, by the Miniftry of the faid Duke of Marl- " borough, as his Majefty's Ambaflador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the States General of the United Pro- vinces, for preferving the Liberties of Europe, againft the Ambition of France, were, immediately after your Majefty's happy Acceffion to the Throne, by the faid Duke, there em- ploy'd by your Majefty, in the fame Character, confirm'd and improv'd, and others were contracted, whereby the Con- federacy, which had been diflblved, at the End of the laft War, was re-united, in a firmer and ftrifter League : And that, in the firft Year of your Majefty's Reign, the faid Duke of Marlborough did fo well execute the Commiflion and Or- ders, which he received from your Majefty, as Captain-Ge- neral and Commander in Chief of your Msjefty's Forces, that he not only fecured and extended the Frontiers of Hol- land, by taking the Towns and Fortrefles of Venlo, Rure- mond, Stevenfwaert and Liege ; but foon obliged the Enemy (who had been at the Gates of Nimeguen) to feek Shelter " behind their Lines ; a*nd the next Campaign, by taking Bon, *' Huy and Limburg, added all the Country, between the Rhine " and the Maefe, to the Conquefts of the preceding Year. And 44 that in the memorable Year 1704, when your Majefty was *' generoufly pleafed to take the Refolution of refcuing the " Empire from that immediate Ruin, to which, by the De- 44 fection of the Elector of Bavaria, it was expofed, the Mea- " fures, which, by your Majefty's Wifdom and Goodnefs, had a «' been

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

" been devifed and concerted, were purfued by the faid Duke, « with the utmoil Diligence, Secrecy and Condua, in leading " the Forces of your Majefty, and your Allies, by a long and « difficult March, to the Banks of the Danube, where the faid " Duke, immediately upon his Arrival, did attack and force " the Bavarians (affiilcd by the French) in their ftrong Intrench - " ments at Schellenberg, palled the Danube, diilrefied the " Country of Bavaria, and a fecond time fought the Enemies, " who had been reinforced by a Royal Army of the French " King's bell Troops, commanded by a Marlhal of France ; " and, on the fecond Day of Auguft, 1704, afcer a bloody " Battle, at or near Blenheim (altho* the Enemies had the Ad- " vantage of Number and Situation) did gain as abfolute and " glorious a Viftory, as is recorded in any Age ; by which, " Bavaria being entirely reduced, Ratiibon, Augiburg, Ulm, " Memmingen, and other Imperial Towns being recover'd, the " Liberty of the Diet, and the Peace of the Empire was re- " ftored, and Landau, Treves, and Traerbach being taken, the " War is carried into the Dominions of France. And tor as " much as the happy Atchievements of the faid Duke, having " apparently tended, not only to the Honour and Safety of your " Majefty, and your Subjefts, and

irjLajUlkjr } (-.Xl-A J w-* -_.«~j~._.- _____ Jf • 1 1

towards the future Tranquillity of Europe ; your Majefty s

moft dutiful and loyal Subjefls, the Commons of England

yicut ocuic vJi tiit IAAU ^iui -v«^ — /

defire your Majefty, that you would be gracioufly pleafed to - confider of fome proper Means, to perpetuate the Memory of « fuch fignal Services : And your Majefty having been thereupon " pleafed to fignify your Intentions, to grant the Intereft of « the Crown, in the Honour and Manor of Woodftock, and " the Hundred of Wootton, to the faid Duke and his Heirs ; " your Majefty's faid dutiful and loyal Subjeds, the Commons «' of England, in Parliament aflembled, duly confidering the « good and prudent Proviflons made by your Majefty, by an " Aft of Parliament, in the firft Year of your Reign, for pre- " ferving the Inheritance of feveral Revenues of the Crown, " and believing, that the Settlement of the faid Honour, " Manor, and Hundred, on the faid Duke, and his Heirs, can " make no Precedent for Cafes, where there is, or mall be lefs " Merit, do moft humbly, chearfully and unanimouf\y, be- " feech your Majefty, that it may be enacled, &c,

By this Aft, the Honour and Manor of Woodftock, with the

Hundred of Wootton, were veiled in his Grace, and his Heirs ;

Rendering to the Queen, her Heirs, and tucceffbrs, on faJecoxd

Day of Auguft, in every Tear, for ever, at the Cajlle ofWtndJor,

X 3

310 the Life of JOHN,

1705. one Standard, or Colours, ivitb three Fto~a;er de Luces painted there- on, for all Mattntr of Rent, Services, &c.

On this Occafion, appear'd fome excellent Lines, from an anonymous Hand, addrefs'd, in a Letter, to f-ignor Antonio Verrio, at Hampton- Court j of which the Reader will find a Copy in the APPENDIX. The beneficent Queen, that me might be wanting in nothing on her Part, to comply with the earneft Defires of the Houfe of Commons, and indeed of the Na- tion in general, to perpetuate the Memory of the glorious dftions perform'd by this truly great Man, likewife ordered the Comptro- ler of her Works to build in Woodftock-Park, a moft ftately Palace or Caftle, to be call'd Blenheim-Houfe : And, about this time, her Majefty likewife appointed his Grace Colonel of her firft Regiment of Foot-Guards.

The Houfe of Commons foon after bore another publick Tefti- ir.ony of the Senfe the Nation had of the Duke's eminent Ser- vices ; for, on the 8th of February, they took into Confidera- tion the Treaty lately concluded by his Grace, and unanimoufly refolv'd; " That an humble Addrefs be prefented to the Queen, ' returning the Thanks of the Houfe to her Majefty, for con- ' eluding the late Treaty with the King of Pruflia, which was fo reafonable,a Support to the Duke of Savoy, and fo great ' an Advantage to the Common Caufe ; and alfo to aflure her ' Majefty, that her faithful Commons would effectually enable ' her to make good the faid Treaty with the -King of Pruflia, ' who upon fo many Occafion?, had fignalized his Zeal for the ' Proteftant Religion, and the Liberty of Europe.

The next Day, Mr. Secretary Hedges acquainted the Houfe, ' That her Majefty returned them many Thanks, for the Af- ' furances they gave her, in their Addrefs, and was very well ' pleas'd to find, they had fo juft a Senfe of the King of ' Pruflia's Zeal for the Proteftant Religion, and the Liberty of ' Europe.

About this time, likewife, feveral Promotions were made in the Army, in which the Queen again ihew'd the Satisfaction flic had in the Services of thole who had fignalized themfelves under the Duke : The Lord Cutts was made Commander of her Ma- jefty Forces in Ireland, under the Duke of Ormond ; the Bri- gadiers Frederick Hamilton, Efq ; the Lord Windfor, the Lord

Raby, and Tidcombe, Efq ; were made Major-Generals j

and the Honourable Colonel Mordaunt, Colonel Blood, and Colonel Stanhope were made Brigadiers.

Scheme and * comenow to the Opening of the Campaign. The Duke of

t'rtparaticns Marlborough, having, the preceding Summer, delivered the

*< r the Empire, by the ever-famous Victory of Blenheim, had a long

tamp«;gn. tjme confidered how to improve that Succefs, this Campaign ;

and having communicated his feveral Projects to the Cabinet

i Council,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 311

Council, none feemed fo judicioufly laid, as the making an Im- 1705. preffion upon the Frontiers of, France : The Defign, therefore, v^-y-*^ was, that the Mofel Ihould be the Scene of Action, and Care had been taken to lay up Magazines of all Sorts, in Triers, for that Purpofe. To carry on this Defign, two Things were abfo- lutely neceffary ; firft, the Concurrence of the cautious Dutch, who feemed unwilling to let their Troops go fo far from their Frontiers, left they mould lofe, in one Campaign, the Barrier they had been forming in two or three ; and, fecondly, the quick- ning the Slownefs of the Germans, without vvhofe joint Affift- ance, the Duke could not aft there, with Probability of Succefs. The States, however, confented, that he mould carry the great- eft Part of their Army to the Mofel, and refolved to lye on the Defenfive upon their own Frontiers -, for they reckoned, that how itrong foever the Elector of Bavaria's Army was, at that time ; yet when France mould be prefs'd, with fo great a Force, as they reckoned would be on the Mofel, he would be ordered to fend fuch Detachments thither, that his Army would be quick- ly diminimed, and fo would not have the fuperiour Strength long.

This being the Duke's Scheme, in order to put it in Execu- The Duke tion, his Grace fet out, the fix and twentieth of March, from St. of Marlbo- James's, towards Harwich ; where he embark'd, the thirtieth, on rol board one of her Majefty's Yachts, and fet fail for Holland, to- to gether with feveral other Yachts and Tranfport- Ships, under Convoy of a Squadron of Men of War, commanded by the Marquis of Caermarthen, Vice-Admiral of the Red. They were put back, the next Day, by contrary Winds ; but, as they were favourable the firft of April, in the Morning, his Grace then put to Sea again, and landed fafely in Holland, the next Day in the Afternoon.

" This Marquis of Caermarthen was a Son of the Duke of character Leeds, and himfelf afterwards the late Duke of Leeds, noted of theMar- for his Extravagances and rakifh manner of Living, which quisofCaer- was no fmall Let in the Way of his Preferment. He was marthen- reckon'd an excellent Sailor, and thought to have great Skill in Ship-Building, of which he gave a Proof by building a Ship call'd the Royal Tranfport, famed for being very expeditious. He was, tho' of low Stature, ftrong and active, of great Fire, and had a Stock of Courage fufficient to undertake any thing ; nor did he want Wit and Parts, if they had been rightly ap- plied.

Upon the Duke's Arrival at the Hague, his Grace had feve- The Duke ral Conferences with the Penfionary, and other Members of the concerts AfTembly of the States General, in which he laid before them Mcafurei the great Advantages, that would accrue to the whole Con- p1^.^ federacy, from the vigorous Profecution of his Defign ; which X 4. would

Me Lfi of J O H N,

would, deprive France of the Means, either of enlarging her Conquefts, in Piedmont, or of protecling Spain ; by putting her upon the Neceffity of defending herfelf at home. Grounds of The Duke had, however, another Motive, \vhich concurr'd the Duke's to put him upon thefe Meafures : The Marmal de Villars late- Cefign. ly made a Duke, was faid to be the right Hand, and almoil fole Dependance of Lewis XIV. His Grace, therefore, pru- dently judged, that to triumph over, and ruin the Reputation of this renowned General, by a fingle Defeat, would be a Ser- vice to the Common Caufe preferable to all others. The Con- fequence of fuch a Defeat would have been the Submiflion of the three Bifliopricks, after which nothing could have pre- vented his making himfelf Mafter of Thionville, and even of Luxemburg itfelf.

The Dutch (as I have faid above) were foon made fenfible of the Plaufiblenefs of the Duke's Projed ; but the greateft Diffi- culty remained behind. In order to remove it, his Grace re- folved to have a Conference with Prince Lewis of Baden, and fent Brigadier-General Cadogan to his Highnefs, to manage an Interview with him.

The Duke The Duke of Marlborough having concerted, with the De-

^fMarlbro's puties of the States, and the Dutch Generals, the necefiary

Motions. Meafures for opening the Campaign, fet out from the Hague,

the fourth of May, N. S. And, the eighth, in the Afternoon,

his Grace arrived at Maeflricht, where Monf. d'Auverquerque

was come fome Days before. He continued there, till all the

Troops, which were to compofe the Army, on that Side, and

the Englifh Forces, that were to march towards the Mofel,

were come up.

The fifth, died Emperour Leopold, at Vienna, which being notified to the Queen, by Count Gallas, the Imperial Envoy Extra ordinary, at a private Audience, a Debate arofe thereup- on in Council, whether the Queen and the Court mould go into Mourning for him, which (tho', at firft, the Majority of the Board gave their Opinions for a Negative) was at laft refolved upon. The Occafion of this Debate was, becaufe the Emperours • of Germany were not ufed to go into Mourning for other Mo- narchs of Europe, whom they look'd upon as an inferiour Clafs of Princes : But Count Gallas having, in his Mailer's Name, promifed, that, for the future, the Emperour would mourn for the Kings and Queens of England, her Majefty took the Refolution.

Count Gallas, at the fame Time, notified the Acceffion of the late Emperour's eldeft Son Jofeph, (who had before been e- lecled King of the Romans, for that Purpofe) to the Imperial Throne, and he, likewife, aflur'd her Majelry, that the new Emperour would not only obferve all the Treaties concluded

with

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

With his Predeceffor, but would omit nothing that might render thofe Alliances more firm. <

On the twelfth, Brigadier Cadogan, whom the Duke of Marlborough had difpatch'd from the Hague, to confer with Prince Lewis of Baden, arrived at Macftricht, with Advice, that he had concerted an Interview, between the Prince a.id his Grace, at Creutznach, the twentieth of the fame Month. The fourteenth^ the Duke review'd the Englifh Troops en- camp'd near Vifet. The fifteenth, thefe Troops pafs'd the Maefe, and continued their March towards the Mofel, under the Command of General Churchill j and his Grace fet out from Maeftricht, towards Coblentz : The Duke's Defign be- ing, that the Campaign, on that Side, mould be opened with the Siege of Saar-Louis, or forpe -other of the Enemy's Fron- tier-Towns.

His Grace arrived at Coblentz, the feventeenth ; and on the pHnceLewi* eighteenth, Baron Forftner, Counfellor to Prince Lewis of Ba- of Baden ex- den, came to Coblentz, from Raftadt, being fent exprefs to the culcs his Duke of Marlborough, to acquaint him, that his Highnefs ™^JJjDg was very much indifpofed, and could not meet his Grace at w;th the Creutznach, as he defign'd ; he Jikewife feem'd, by this Mef- Duke, fage, to decline concurring with the Duke, in the Defigns he had laid, excufmg himfelf, not only on his Want of Health, but becaufe the Force he had about him was not confiderable, nor was that, which he expecled, like to come to him fo foon ai might be wifh'd for.

The Duke of Marlborough, who had fet his Heart on opening the Campaign in thofe Parts, and had great Hopes of Succefs, would not let this prevent him ; fo he refolved to carry the Matter as far he could ; and as the Prince's ill State of Health feemed only to be a Pretence, his Grace refolved to go and confer with him at Raftadt.

The Duke began his Journey from Coblentz, the nineteenth, The Duke and came, that Night, to Schlangenbade, where he found the Socs to con- Landgrave of Hefle, with his whole Court, by whom he was p^* very honourably received. His Grace fet out from thence, ear- Lewi*, ly the next Morning ; arrived at Heidelberg, in the After- noon, and, the next Day, at Raftadt. He was received by Prince Lewis, with all outward Demonftrations of Friendship and Efteem : But it was obferved by feveral in the Duke's Retinue, that the Prince was not fo much indifpofed, as not to have been able to meet his Grace at Creutznach. The two Generals had a private Conference together, in which it was re- folved, " To leave a fufficient Number of Germans, for the Se- Refult of " curity of the Lines of Lauterburg and StolhofFen, under the t'leir C°n' «' Command of General Thungen, and that Prince Lewis of fercncc-

" Baden

tte Life of J O H N,

Baden fhould march with a great Detachment towards the Saar, to aft in Concert with the Duke."

of The twenty fecord, his Grace went to view the Lines of Biehl and Stolhoffen, and came to Manheim the next Day, in his Way to Triers, where he arrived the fix and twentieth. The Duke having affembled all the Troops in the Neighbourhood of that Pkce, the Englifh and Dutch Forces, which were encamp'd near Igel, on the other Side the Mofel, pafs'd that River, the third of June, over feveral Bridges ; and, from thence, march- ed to thole prepar'd for them over the Saar, which River they, likewife, pafs'd, at Confaarbruck. The Heflians, Danes and Lunenburghers pafs'd the Saar, at the fame time ; and fo all the Troops join'd.

After a long March of near eight Hours, they came, with

their Right, within a quarter of a League of Sirk. It being

too late to encamp, the Troops lay on their Arms all Night.

The Duke The next Morning, they encamp'd at Elft, the Right being at

encamps at perie> near sirk, on the Mofel, and the Left at Hollandorp,

tnT Enemy w*tn^n Sight of the Enemy's Army. Upon the Appearance of

the Allies, the Day before, the Enemy immediately prepar'd

for a Retreat, which they now put in Execution, with great

Precipitation, and march'd from Sirk towards C'oningfmacheren,

pofTeffing themfelves of a very advantageous Camp, which

they made yet ftronger, by calling up Intrenchments, and fel-

Who re- l*r>g down Trees : So that there was no Poflibility of attacking

treat, and them, in that Poft, with the leaft Probability of Succefs.

This, indeed, was no Difappointment to the Duke ; for he s< did not defign to attack them , and his advancing fo far, was on-

Ti? D"? C'S ly t0 C0ver the intended SieSe of Saar-Louis. The Taking of gn* that Place was of fo great Importance, that the Succefs of the whole Campaign, on that Side, depended upon it ; and Time being very precious, the Duke difpatch'd frequent Exprefles, to quicken the March, not only of the Imperialifts, but of the Wirtemberghers, Pruffians and Palatines, and to exhort the Princes, who had promifed to furnifh Artillery, Horfes and Waggons, to fend them with all poffible Expedition.

HJS Exhortations, tho' back'd by thofe of the States Gene- fails to join . , i- i T» /• T • r T

the Duke. ra^» were however to little Purpole. It is true, lome Impe- rial Troops were detach'd from Lauterburg, for the Mofel ; but they kept fo truly to their own ufual Pace, and march'd fo flow- ly, that inilead of being on the Saar, the ninth or tenth of June, N. S. as they fhould have been, they were not arrived, the twentieth, nor were there either Horfes or Artillery pro- vided. Prince Lewis of Baden, who had promifed to come in princeLcwis Perfon, came indeed as far as Creutznach, and then falling fick, feigns Sick- took an Opportunity to go to the Wells of Schwalbach, and the ncls' Bath at Schlangenbade, leaving thofe Forces under the Com-

mand

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, c-JV. 315

mand of the Count de Frieze. So here was the former Excufe '705. of Want of Health and Force repeated ; not without fhrewd <»--*y-* •-* Suspicions of Treachery; for it appeared plainly, that the Sufpiciomof French knew what he intended to do, and their Management Ihew'd they depended on it ; becaufe they ordered no Detach- ments to augment Monf. de Villars's Army. Be this as it will-, it is certain the Duke was ill us'd, and that this ill Ufage was the Occafion of his Defign proving abortive.

The Duke of Wirtemberg made a little more Hafte with 4000 Men, in the Pay of the States ; and the Praffians arrived before the grand Army was obliged to decamp.

In the mean time, the Forces of the States General, being Motions of very much weaken'd by the Detachments fent to the Mofel, it *nde^j^f was thought fit, that their Army, under Monf. d'Auverquerque, d'Auver- confifting only of thirty Battalions, and feventy two Squadrons, querque. fhould ftand on the Defenfive. For that End, they encamp' d near Maeftricht, on the Hill of St. Peter, where they entrench- ed themfelves, not doubting but that the Elector of Bavaria, and the Duke of Villeroy, who commanded the French and Sparufli Army in the Netherlands, would fend a flrong De- tachment towards the Mofel. They v/ere, however, deceived in their Expectations ; and this encreas'dtheSufpicions of Prince Lewis's Conduct : For the Enemy being inform'd how Things pafs'd, on the Mofel, refolv'd to take the Advantage of their Superiority on the Maefe. They came out of their Lines, the twenty-firft of May, and marched to Val Notre Dame, near Huy, which Place they inverted, the eight and twentieth. ed'by'the

The thirtieth, theMarfhal de Villeroy, and the Count d'Ar- Enemy; tagnan, having, feveral times, fummoned the Town, which is «

of no Defenfe, it was thought fit to prevent the Ruin of the Inhabitants, and to come to fuch an Agreement about it, as was made when the Duke of Marlborough came before it. And the Garrifon retired into the Caftle.

The next Day, the Enemy Itormed Fort St. Jofeph three And tlie times ; but were repuls'd, with a very great Lofs. The third Caftle ta- of June, after a vigorous Attack and Refinance, they made k™- _ themfelves Matters of Fort Picard, and the Red Fort, and then batter'd the Caftle and Fort St. Jofeph. The neceffary Prepa- rations for a general Affault being made, and the Breaches being fo wide, that it was thought impoffible to defend the Place any longer, the Governour beat a Parly, the tenth ; but could ob- tain no other Conditions, than that the Garrifon mould march out of the Breach, with their Arms, and Ihould afterwards lay them down, and Surrender themfelves Prifoners of War ; which was put in Execution the next Day. The thirteenth, that Part of the Garrifon, which was in the Forts St. Jofeph, and La

Saar,

Tie Life if JOHN,

Sair, march M out, in like Manner, and they were all carried to Namur. Two Days after, the French Army march'd from The Citudel Huy to Horrion, and, the next Day, drew nearer to Liege,

veftedTthe a"d' invefted the Citadel of that Place"

Enemy. The News of the taking of Huy having reachM the Duke

of Marlborough's Army, the Deputies of the States reprefented Reprefenta- to his Grace ; " That ic was impoffible to fubfiil any longer in tion of the « his Camp ; that the Germans having, by their Delays, fru- thePSmes " ftrated the D.efiSn of Befie£ing Saar- Louis, and defeated all hereupon. " r^c otner Projects on the Mofel, it was to no Purpofe to con- tc tinue any longer in thofe Parts, when their Forces might " be employed, in the Netherlands, in flopping the Progrefs " of their Enemies." The Duke was as fenfible of that me- lancholy Truth, as the Deputies themfelves could be ; but being The D. of willing to Hay till the laft Extremity, " That the Imperialifts Marlboro' " might have no manner of Excufe for difappointing him," he decamps ^id not decamp from E)ft, his Head-Quarters, till the feven- E"t teenth of June, N. S. The French faw the Confederate Army retire with greater Tranquillity, than they had exprefs'd when they firlt advanc'd that Way ; and the Duke of Marlborough, A Council of when he arrived at Triers,, held a great Council of War. It War. was there refolved ; " That the Forces under his Command

TheRrfult « fhould march back to the Maefe, except 7,000 Palatines, in " the Pay of England and Holland, who were unfortunately left " for the Security of Triers, and other Polls, on that Side, ** under the Command of Lieutenant-General Aubach. They " were to be joined by Part of the Troops of Weftphalia; and •'the 12 ooo Pruffians, with the 4,000 Men of Wirtemberg, " were ordered to march to Lauterburg, to re-inforce Prince *' Lewis of Baden." According to this Refolution, his Grace, after having fpent fome Weeks in this fruitlefs Attempt, mwch'd The Duke for the Netherlands, by the fhorteft Way, very much morti- jetums to. fied} at this ill Ufage of the Germans ; and the Imperial Troops, Ketherknds. the PrulCans and VVirtembcrgers, moved towards the Upper *" Khine.

The Marfhal de Villars, having now no Enemy before him, made a Detachment to re-inforce the Elector of Bavaria j ano- ther, for the Army under the Marfhal de Marfin, in Alfaee, III Condua and advanced, with the reft, towards the Saar. Upon the firft oftheGer- Notice of his Approach, the Palatine General fent precipitate Orders to the Governour of Saarbruck, to quit that Carlle, and blow up the Fortifications, as foon as the Enemy mould appear, which was punctually performed. This Overfight was but a Preliminary to the unpardonable Blunder, committed by Monf. d' Aubach ; who, to complete the ill Conduct of the Germans^ on the five and twentieth of June, even before any Enemy ap- peared in Sight, deftroyed all the Magazines, the Englifh and

Dutch,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

Dutch had, at a vaft Expence, erefted at Triers ; blew up the

Fortifications ; burnt the Boats defigned to make Bridges, and,

in a fcandalous Manner, quitted that important Polt. The Confute

French, who did not expeft fo eafy a Conqueit, took Poffeflion cci

of it, four Days after, and the Marfhal de Villars march'd to

join the Marfhal de Marfin, and, in Conjunction with him, beat

the Imperialifts from the Lines of Crone-Weiffemburg.

General Thungen had enough to maintain himlelf, in the Lines of Lauterburg ; the fame fatal Influence, which difap- pointed the Duke of Marlborough's Projects on the Mofel, hav- ing kept the German Troops difperfed, as if it were on Defign, to give the French an Opportunity, to beat General Thungen over the Rhine, and retake Landau.

The Prince of Baden's Condudt, throughout this whole Af- Rcf.efli«n: fair, lay very open to Cenfure ; and he was almoft generally be- "n v!nce lieved to be corrupted by the French ; while others, who were for putting the beft Conduction they could upon it, were obliged to attribute his afting as he did, to his Haughtinefs, and an En- vy of the Duke of Marlborough's Succefs.

The Infantry, under the Duke of Marlborough, together Incredible •with the Train of Artillery, march'd from Triers, the nine- Expedition teenth of June, under the Command of General Churchill ; the Marlboro' twentieth, his Grace followed with the Horfe, and encamp'd at Hopital ; the twenty-firft, he came to Bibrich ', the next Day, to Pruyn, where he halted, the twenty- third, and the four and twentieth to Dreyborn. Upon Advice from Monf. d'Auver- querque, that the French had inverted the Citadel of Liege, his Grace fent Orders, the twenty-firft, to General Churchill, to de- tach 100 Men, with all the Grenadiers, out of each Battalion, under the Command of the Earl of Orkney, Lieutenant- Gene- ral, to meet the Horfe at Duren, the fix and twentieth ; and having received a fecond Information, from the Dutch Velt- Marfhal, that the Enemy had been retarded two or three Days before Liege, for want of their Artillery, his Grace fent frefh. Orders, to the Earl of Orkney, to haften his March. His Grace made this extraordinary Expedition, that he might join Monf. Which d'Auverquerque, time enough to fave the Citadel of Liege, or y^"E0" ^ give Battle to the Marfhal de Villeroy, before he could draw off fajr! . his Cannon : And it is certain, that he thereby entirely chang'd the whole Face of Affairs in the Netherlands, to the Advantage of the Allies.

The Enemy, upon Advice of the Duke's Approach, fent back And obl>£« their Artillery to Namur, and the feven and twentieth, in the *e,5jg"^ Morning, quitted the City of Liege, and retired to Tongeren. sLge'of the The Duke of Marlborough, on his Side continued his March Citadel of with his Horfe, the five and twentieth, from Dreyborn to Du- Liege. ren, where the Earl of Orkney was already arrived. The Earl

Me Life of J O H N,

of Orkney was a fourth Son of the late Duke of Hamilton, but bred under his Uncle, Lord Dumbarton, who died in France ; ^J™f and after the Revolution had his Regiment. He was remark- Orkney. ° a^e *°r l"s Bravery, and got poflefs'd of a great Eftate by his Marriage with Mrs. Villiers. The fame Day, upon Advice from Mcnf. d'Auverquerque, that the Enemy's Forces were preparing to retire from before Liege, and had, to that End, put their Cannon on Board feveral Boats, to be fent up the Maefe, his Grace thought fit fo make a Halt with the Horfe, on the fix and twentieth ; but the Detachment of Foot continued their March, and, the fame Day, General Churchill joined the Duke his Brother, with the reft of the Foot.

The D. of The feven arid twentieth, his Grace, having left Orders for alf

Marlboro1 the Troops to advance by eafier Marches, came away from Du-

^nves at ren> anc] arrived, about Noon, at Maeftricht ; where he was

t( received with a triple Difcharge of the Artillery, and great Ex-

preffions of Joy. His Grace had regulated Matters with Monf.

d'Auverquerque, and the other Generals, to march, the firit of

July, N. S. to the Enemy ; but, that very Day, the French

march'd from Tongeren. They had mark'd out a Camp, at

Waremes, where Preparations were aftually making for the En-

tertainment of their Generals } but, upon Advice, that the Con-

federate Army would pafs the Maefe, that Morning, they con-

tinued their March, and encamp'd at Montenaken, within a

League and a half of their Lines ; upon which, the Engliih and

Dutch Generals thought fit to let their Troops reft, one Day

more, after fo hard a March.

The fame Day, the Duke of Marlborough's Army pafs'd the Maefe, over two Bridges, near Vifelle, and advanced to Haneff ; and the Forces commanded by Monf. d'Auverquerque march'd, The French at *ne fame time, to Theis, upon the Jaar. The EnerJry hav- retreatwith- ing Notice of this March, decamped, that very Evening, with •heir great Precipitation, and retired into their Lines, having fent es> away moft of their Baggage, the Day before. The third, the

Confederate Armies made a Halt ; but march'd, the next Day ; that, under the Duke of Marlborough to Lens les Beguinnes, where they had their Left, and their Right at Trefin ; and the other, under Monf. d'Auverquerque, had its Right at St. Ser- valin and Latine, and Breff upon its Left.

The Caftle The Confederate Generals refolved, hereupon, to retake the of Buy in. Caftle of Huy, before they proceeded farther. To this End, ?efted by the they ma(je a Detachment under General Scholten, which invefted

ra?es. that PIace> the fixth" The nex£ DaX> the Duke °f Marlbo-

rough, with his Troops, and thofe of the States, put themfelves in a Situation, to cover, and help to carry Oh the Siege. Two Days after, the Cannon, and Mortars, began to play upon Fort Pkard, with fo good SuccefK thar General Scholten made rhe

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

neceffary Difpofitions, for attacking it. The Enemy was beat, 1705 with great Bravery, out of the Cover'd Way, and the Confede- V^Y"* rate Troops were refolutely climbing up the Fort ; which the Enemy perceiving, they fled into the Caftle, with the Lofs of their Commander, and feven more, who were taken Prifoners ; arid the Red Fort, they had abandon'd two Hours before.

The tenth, a Battery of twelve Guns, and feveral Mortars, were brought to play againft the CaiHe. The eleventh, a Bat- tery was erefted in Fort Jofeph, which, with the other, had fo good Succftfs, that the Enemy, feeing a Breach was already made, beat a Parly, defiring to be conducted to Namur ; -but this be- ing refus'd, they furrendered upon thefame Conditions, as were And re- allowed to the Dutch Garrifon, when the French took thattaken« Place, juft a Month before, and were made Prifoners of War. The twelfth, the Garrifon march'd out, to the Number of 4.50 Men, befides the Sick and Wounded, and- was carried to Mae- ilricht. As for the Lofs the Befiegers fuftained, it was very in- confiderable.

CHAP. X.

Sticcefsful At lack of the French Lines , with other to the Cone lufion of the Tear 1705.

THE Difappointment on the Mofel fitting very heavy on The Duke the Duke of Marlborough's Mind, his Grace refolved to of Marlbo-' recover that Misfortune, by undertaking fomething worthy of r°"esshtop^e- Tiimfelf, ,o.n the; Maefe ; and as no Enterprize appeared more dif- j^ prench fic^Jt in itfelf, and more advantageous in its Confequences, than Lines. the Attack of the Enemy's Lines, his Grace fent General Hom- pefch to propofe it to the States General That General foon returned with the Anfwer of their High Mightineffes, which was, " That having an entire Confidence in the Conduft and Prudence " of his Grace, they left it entirely to him, to do whatever he " mould think for the Good of the common Caufe." The Duke, hereupon, held a Council of War, wherein the Generals of his Army, and thofe of Monf. d'Auverquerque's were pre- lent. The Debate was the forcing of the Enemy's Lines ; but nothing being refolved upon, the firft time, a fecond Council was called. Some Generals, in the Service of the States, oppos'd Some Dutch the Duke's Projeft ; but Monf. d'Auverquerque, the Hereditary General o?~ Prince of Heffe-Caffel, Count de Noyelles, and fome others, Pofe u- declared, it was their Opinion, that neither the Enterprize was dangerous, nor the Succefs of h improbable, if the judicious

Meafures

Wf Life of J O H N,

Meafures propofed by the Duke of Marlborough were put in Execution: Whereupon the Refolution was taken. The Enemy The Duke's were ported along the Lines, with near 100 Battalions, and 146 Canton ptx- <jquatjrons . fat Confederate Army, on the other hand, con- fiiied of ninety-two Battalions, and 1 60 Squadrons ; fo that they were pretty equal in Force.

A Strati- The Enemy having, therefore, the Advantage of being ftrong- fem put in \y entrench'd, with a like Number of Troops, it was refolved Pradtics ,• to make a Feint to divide them. And, accordingly, the Army, under Monf. d'Auverquerque, decamp'd from Vignamont, the feventeenth of July, N. S. at three in the Morning, and march'd towards Bourdine, on the other Side of the Mehaigne, and the Duke of Marlborough made a Motion, at the fame time, as if he intended to fupport Monf. d'Auverquerque, in the At- tack of the Lines, about Meffelen, where they were not fo Which fuc- flrong as in other Parts. This Stratagem fucceeded to Wifh ; ect-Js. for thofe Motions, particularly the paffing of the Mehaigne,

having given great Jealoufy to the French, they beftow'd their Attention on the Side of the Gerbife, towards Namur ; where- upon the Duke of Marlborough made the following Difpoii- tion, in order to march, with the whole Army, in the Night between the feventeenth and eighteenth.

The Difpa- " Lieutenant General Scholten, having rejoin'd the Ar- fition in or- n mv with ten Battalions, and ten Squadrons onlr, thirteen

nw. " Squadrons more> out of the RiSht of the Duke of Marl- " borough's fecond Line, were added to them ; and five of thofe Squadrons were given to Colonel Chanclos, who being perfectly acquainted with the Lines, and the Nature of the Ground, was order'd to march at the Head of all. Eleven Battalion?, and all the Horfe of the Right Wing of his Grace's Army, to the Number of twenty- four Squadrons, were alfo detach' d, in order to march at the •' Head of the firft Line ; and thofe two Detachments were to " be commanded by Count Noyelles. General of the Infantry, " having under him the Lieutenant Generals, Lumley, Hom- " pefch, Scholten, and Count d'Ooil Frife : The Major-Gene- " ralsWood, Rofs, Erbach, Welderen, Prince of Hefie-Homburg, " and Weeck; and the Brigadiers Hey, Palms, Baldwin, Sacken, " Grevendorf, Pofern, Meredith, and Hamilton. On the feven- •' teenth, about four in the Afternoon, his Grace gave Orders «' for the whole Army to get ready to march j that all the *' Biggage fhould affemble, at fix, near Tourine, behind the " Camp, under the Guard of a Colonel with 400 Foot and " 100 Horfe; that at nine in the Evening, Count Noyelles " mould advance, with the two Bodies before mentioned, filing- " off by their Right, that which affembled before their firit fi Line to the Left, and that of Lieutenant-General Scholten

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &?c. -

to the Right, marching thro', the Route, the Guides would1 fhew them, directly towards Wangen and Elixheim, which two Pofts they were to attack, if the Pofture the Enemy were in, would permit : That his Grace's Army mould march, likewife, at Ten o' Clock, following the fame Route, .which the two Detachments took ; that the Artillery Ihould move, at the fame time, on the Right of the Army ; that Monf, d'Auverquerque's Artillery mould follow the fame Way ; that an Hour before the Army march'd, all the Horfe of the Left Wing of his Grace's Army fhould move along the two Lines, and repair to the Right of the Infantry ; that, at the fame time, the Body of Horfe commanded by the Earl of Albemarle, mould advance forwards, from their Camp » that Monfieur d'Auverquerque's Army mould rep.ifs the M&. haigne, over the 1 2 Bridges, made there for that Purpofe, and fhould join, with the Right of his Foot, the Left of his Grace's Army ; that when Monf. d'Auverquerque fhould begin to move, he mould detach aftrcng Party of Dragoons, towards Gerbife, to give the Alarm in the Enemy's Line, on that Side ; and that the Detachment commanded by the Lord Albe- marle mould bring up the Rear of all. This Difpofition be* ing made, and the Gun which is ufually fired for the Tattoo, being now the SigivJ for taking down the Tents, the two Armies began their March, between ten i.nd eleven in the Evening, filing off", by their Right, in two Columns, leaving Cortis, Montenaken, Houtein and St. Gertruydenknd, tq. their Right ; and the Villages Trogne, Cras, Avergna, Baud- win, Reitfhoven, Over-Winden and Neer-Wincien, to their Left, and marching diredlly towards their Line, where the two firft Detachments were to attempt to force their Paflage, at Elixheim, the Cattle of Wangh, and the Villages of Wangh, Neerhefpen and Ooftmalen. The Guides /which conducted the Detachments were, fome-,proccedlngs what at a Lofs, on cccafion of the extreme Darknefs of the tliereiJPon' Night ; and this fo retarded their March, that it was half an Hour paft four, in the Morning, and broad Day, when they arrived before the Pofts I have mentioned above, which ac- cording to the Information, they had before received, they found but thinly guarded.

Count de Noyelles caufed the Caftle of Wangh, which de- fended a Stone Bridge that was there, on the Geete, to be at- tdck'd j but the Enemy immediately abandon'd that Poll, and The Lines gave an Opportunity to the Grenadiers, who were order'd on f°ic'd- that Service, to march forwards, and attack the Barrier of the Line ; which the Guard there did not defend much better ; and fo the Troops enter'd the Line, on that Side, with little or no Op- pofition,- tho' the Enemy had i 2 Squadrons ofDragoor-sencamp'd 'VoL. I. Y behind

the IJfe of J O H N,

behind Ooflmalen (within a Cannon Shot of them) who immedi- ately mounted their Horfes, but durft not advance to defend their Barriers. At the fame time, three Battalions poffefs'd themfelves of the Bridge and Village of Helifheim, a quarter of" a League from Wangh, on the Left, which was done with as little Oppofi- tion : Nor did Lieuttnant-General Scholten meet with gre'ater Refiftance, at the Villages of Ober-Hefpen and Neder-Heipen : So that being Mailers of thofe Bridges and Barriers, and having made feveral other Bridges, the Horfe went over the fame, and immediately form'd themfelves on the Eminence extending their Right towards the Village of Hachendoren ; and Ibme Battalions drew up along the Line, and behind the Horfe.

While the Pioneers were bufy in making Paffages thro' the Lines, ten of the Enemy's Squadron?, and four Battalions, were perceived between the Villages of Gouchancourt and Efmale ; but they gave Time for the Confederate Forces to extend them- felves, endeavouring only to advance to the Village of Elixheim. The Count de Noyelles caus'd all the Troops he had with him to go over, as faft as poflible : And the Duke of Marlborough. arriving, with the whole Army, his Horfe went over the Line, with the fame Expedition, as the reft had done ; thus they all advanc'd towards the Enemy, who, by this time, were re-in- forced to the Number of. 50 Squadrons, and 20 Battalions, and, advanc'd with great Refdlution, behind the hollow Way going up from Elixheim to Tirlemont.

This oblig'd the Confederate Horfe to flop a few Minutes, till fome Battalions advancing lined the hollow Way, and firing upon the Enemy's Horfe, obliged them to retire beyond the Reach of their Mulkets, and to rorm themfelves before their In- fantry. This gave an Opportunity to the Confederate Horfe to pafs the hollow Way. In the mean time, the Enemy caufed eight Pieces of Cannon with treble Barrels to advance, with which they began to fire brifkly upcn them : But the Duke of Marlborough being come in, Peifon, at the Head of his Horfe, and feeing that the Enemy were continually receiving frefh Re-inforcements, and that their Infantry was going to join them, his Grace was refolved to charge them with the Hone only. This was done with that Vigour and Courage, that the Enemy's Cavalry, being foon broken, and put to the rout, they endeavour'd to rally themfelves behind their Infan- try, whiift the victorious Horfe of the Allies poffefs'd themfelves or their Cannon and Ammunition- Waggons.

The Enemy being re-inforced with.iome Squadrons, and hav- ing interlined fome Infantry with them, moved again towards the Allies : But the latter, being likewife re-inforced, and fuf- tain'd by their Infantry, advanced to meet them. The Right of the Confederate Horfe coming too near the Hedges of the

Village '

Duke 'of MA R L COROU G H, &?r.

Village of Efmale. which were Jined with fome of the Enemy's Foot, were fomevvhat diforder'd by their Fire, and obliged ix> flirink back : But having foon after, extended themfelves more towards the Right, to make Way for fome Battalions that march' d againft the Enemy's Foot, they both charg'd, with that Bravery and Brifknefs, that the Enemy's Horfe was foon 'de- feated, and cut in Pieces j and their Infantry being abandon'd in the Plain, had much ado to get away, in great Diforder, be- tween the Villages of Heiliflieirh and Gotfheven, where they met with the reil of their Army, and formed themfelves- as well as they could. In the mean time, the Duke of Marlborough caus'd all the reft of his Troops to enter the Lines, and extend- ed the Right of his Army, towards the great Geete, before Tirlemont, in which Town the Enemy had left the Battalion of Monluc, which, upon the firft Summons, furrendered Prisoners at Difcretion.

In this Action, the Marquis d' Alegre, and the Count de Horn, Pnfoner$ Lieutenant-Generals, a Major-General, two Brigadier- Generals, taken. and a great Number of other Officers of all Ranks, befides A- bundance of private Men, were taken Prifoners. All theTrcops of the Allies behaved themfelves with great Bravery and Re- folution ; but, amongft the Horfe, the Regiment of Brigadier Cadognn diftinguifhed thernfelves, having had the Honour to charge firll ; which they did with fuch Succefs, that they de^ feated jour Squadrons of Bavarian Guards, drove them thro' two Battalions of their own Foot, and took four Standards j and all this only with the Lufs of Lieutenant Auftin, and fome few Men. Nor was the Lofs of the other Troops greater in Proportion. The Duke of Marlborough, having very much expos'd himfelf in the Action, was in great Danger of hp Life : For as he was leading on feveral Squadrons, a French or Bavarian Officer quit- ted his Poll, and advanced Sword in Hand, to attack his Grace ; but as he was raifing himfelf upon his Stirrups, to reach him, he flung himfelf off of his Horfe, and was prefendy :kili'd. Monf, d'Averquerque, in his Account of this Action* &}'s> tne Bavarian Horfe, which confiited of 24 Squadrons, offering to oppofe the Confederates, was almoft entirely ruined, as was, likewife, the two Regiments of Alface and la Marque.

STANDARDS and COLOURS taken.

Nine Standards, of Blue Sattin, richly embroider'd with the ctamiarjs Bavarian Arms, fix belonging to the Elector's own Troops, and and Colours three to thofe of Cologn, having the following Motto's and tak.a. Devices.

Y* i,A'

AMedJ ft ruck on this Occa- fion.

rbe Life of J O H N,

1 . A*Laurel : Jlut Coronari, aut Rumpi.

2 . An Olive-Tree on a Rock : Per ardua Laurus.

3. A Pillar reaching the Clouds : Tantum Umbra mo<vetur.

4. A Bear rampant : Ex Vulnere crude lior.

5. A Dove with an Olive-Branch : Uni fervojidem.

6. A Chaos : Obftantia frmant.

7. A Helmet with a Feather on a Pedeftal : Ex Juris Gloria*

8. A Olive-Tree (hading Serpents : Nocet Umbra Nocenti.

9. This Standard was ftript ; but was of the Elector's Guards.

Four Colours, three belonging to Monluc's Regiment, and one taken in the Field.

One Pair of Kettle-Drums, belonging to the Spanifh Troops.

There were many more Standards and Colours taken.

There were, likewife, taken ten Pieces of Cannon, with three Barrels each, to dikharge three Balls at once ; befides eight others, three of which were twenty-four Pounders.

Upon this Occafion a Medal was flruck, in the follow- ing Manner:

On the Face is reprefented a Bufto of her Majefty, with her Title, as ufual ; and, on the Reverfe, the Duke of Marlbo- rough, on Horfeback, entring the Enemy's Lines, to advance to Tirlemont, which appears in View, with this Inscription over it:

FORTES FORTUNA JUVAT. . Fortune favours the Valiant.

And in the Exergue ;

FOSSIS, VALLISQUE HOSTIUM SUPER ATIS IN BRABANTJA ET FLANDRIA, 1705.

The Enemy'' i Ditches and Lines, in Brabant and Flanders, forced, in 1705.

Retreat of The Body of Troops under the Command of Monf. d'A- kgre» being thus defeated, the Eleftor of Bavaria, and the Marfhal de Villeroy, confulted for the Safety of the reft of their Army ; and, decamping, in the Sight of the Confederates, pafs'd the great Geete, and the Deule, with all imaginable Diligence, and poflefs'd themfelves of the ftrong Camp at Parck, with their Left, at Roofelaer, and their Right, againft the Height of Louvain, at Winefelen. From thence, the Elector wrote the following Laconick Leiter, to his Favourite, the Baron de Malknecht,

Dear

of Bavaria and the Marfhalde ViUeroy.

20 .

326 Tbe Life of JOHN,

1705. ' the Aftion. The Troops did alfo exprefs fuch Bravery, as was even beyond our Hopes. The Enemy being repulfed, I caufed the Forces to advance towards this Place, where I obliged the Battalion of Monluc to fyrrender Prifoners. I thought this good News deferved to be lent to your High Mightineffes, by a Pcrfon of Note, and I have chofen Lieu- tenant-General Hompefch, who had a great Share therein, to inform you of the other Particulars, referring to my next, to give your High Mightinefles an exacT: Account of the Priioner?, Cannon, and Standards, taken from the Enemy. I intend to advance to-morrow towards Louvain. I am, with an inviolable Refpeft, your High Mightinefles moft " humble znd obedient Servant.

From the Camp at Sign'd,

Tirlemonr, July 1 8, 1 705 . The Prince and Duke of

MAR I.B'OROUGH.

Mondeur Monfieur d'Auverquerque wrote likewife a Letter, at the . d'Auvei- fa*"6 time, to Monf. Fagel, to be communicated to the States, cjuerque which containing little or nothing more, than the Circumllances, writes like, j have already mentioned, I mall only add his Poflfcripr, which Suites0 e does F'irticu!ar Honour to the Duke of .Marlborough, and is a Monument of his excellent Conduct.

The PofK P- S> " * muft do this J«fti" to the Duke of Marlboicugh, fcript to his " to give him all the Honour ofl~his Enterprise, which he ha? L.UCI. " carried on and fupported/ with a great deal of Conduct and

"Valour. We march again to-morrow. We have made Pri-

" foners of War a Regimeet in 1'irlemont.

The State^ having received thefe Accounts, returned a Let- ter of Thanks to his Grace, in which, among other Things, they f'.y : ,

Txtrs-fl of " O"1' Generals a!lo~M, that this Vi£lory, under God, is en- the States " tirel; due to four Excellencf 3 Care, Prudence, apd Faliur ; Letter to " /ja-L!1/' .'urwsunttd ana con^uer^d thofe iJijficulties and Obftades,

r- D o " which, for alc<ve two T?ars, have appeared unfarmountable Marlboro. ., , . . .,, ff J

" and tn<vi>:

'"hp DI '- iiis Grr.ce, rcJolvir^ to fend 3?i Account of this Success to

ofAferlbo- l^2 Emp?t-'our, by a particular Perfon, chofe, for that End,

^•Jo-?itl RiclrarK one of his Adjutants, who had the Direction

a Mefcneer of makfrtg'thc EriageF, and had behaved himfelf very well in

e Em" this Action. IHe arrived at Vienna, with that welcome News,

pcrour' the- fix and twentieth of 'July, while the Court was celebrating

i tfw

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 327

the Anniverfary of the Birth-day of the Emperour, who then 170;.,, enter'd the eight and twentieth Year of his Age. His Imperial <— » ^y-«^i Majeily took that Opportunity to declare in Publick, the great Efteem he had for the Duke of Mariborough, and among other Things faid, That the Duke^s Services to the Common Caufe in Ge- neral, and in Particular to his Family, vjere fuch, that they Jhould never be forgotten, by him or his Pofterity.

The Court of Vienna, however, tho' they could not but al- The Em- low this Enterprise to have been a glorious one, yet were either perour'sDe- apprehenfive or jealous of the Confequences of it ; for Count claration Wratiflau, in a Letter, of the 2jth of July, to a Perfon of concerning Note, at the Court of Hannover, expreffes the Opinion the Imperial Minifters had of it, in the following Words : Nous private Q. avons bier eu des Avis, que my Lo/d Due doit avoir force les pinion of Lignes ; Si cela eft, il ne fongera plus de revenir a la Mofelle. the Court J^avoui que ce coup fera fort glorieux, pour fa perjbnne ; majs je Vienna. ne fais, s'il fera fort utile a la Caufe commune, prevojant que les Hollandois, attires par V amorce de que/ques contributions, pourfulv- ront leur poitite, et ftrent, a la Jin, olliges de dimminuer leur Armee, par les Garnijbns quits mettront dans les grojjes Villest £ff tombfront, par confequencet dans les inconveniens de la. Guerre pafsee. That is, " We received Advices yefterday, according to which the Duke of Mariborough rnufl have forced the Lines. If that be true, he will think no more of returning to the Mofel. I allow, this Stroke will be very advantageous to the Duke ; but I don't know whether it will be any great Benefit to the Common Caufe ; for I forefee, that the Dutch, invited by the Bait of fome Contributions, will purfue their Point, and, in the End, be forced to weaken their Army, to put Gar- rifons into their larger Towns, and, of Confequence, will '* fall into the Inconveniencies of the preceding War.

The Account of this Advantage was brought to England, by ^ jna . /- Colonel Durel, who arrived at Windfor (where the Queen and giving celel Prince then were) the fourteenth of July, O. S. A Week after, bratsd in her Majcfty's Proclamation was publifli'd, appointing the twenty- E»Sland. third of Auguft, for a Day of publick and general Thankfgiving, throughout England and Wales : And, when the Day came, it was uflier'd in as ufual, and her Majefty celebrated it by repair- ing to St. Paul's, with the fame State and Solemnity, as ihe had done the Ye.ir before, after the Battle of Hochftadt.

We left the Duke of Mariborough encamp'd at Vlierbeck, Farther where he was informed, that feveral Pofts on the Deule, be- Proceeding* tween Louvain, and the Village of Neer-Yfche were flenderly ' guarded ; he, therefore, refolved, with the Advice of the Ge- nerals, to endeavour to force them, in order to the Pafung of that River. To this End, Lieutenant- General Heukelum, with five Battalions and nine Squadrons, of the Army of the States;, Y 4 the

ttg Life cf J O H N,

Duke to make two or three Marches, without calling a Coun- i cil of War, to execute fome Defign formed by his Grace. To favour that Expedition, Baron Spar, who commanded a fmall Body of Dutch Troops in Flanders, march'd the third of Au~ guft, N. S. from Riemen, with all his Grenadiers, and a fuffi- cient Number of Fufiliers, to fupport them, being followed by the reft of the Forces under his Command ; and, in that March, Succefs of defeated a Party of th« Enemy. He came, in the Night, to Baron Spar. Raboth, on the Canal that leads from Bruges to Ghent, where his Men made a Bridge, and having pais'd over the Canal, they attack'd the Enemy's Lines, which were defended by fe- veral Forts, at a fmall Diftance from each other. Notwith- flanding this, they forced their Lines at Lovendegen, and in lefs than three quarters of an Hour, were Mafters of four of thofe Forts ; in which Action they took Prisoners three Captains, three Lieutenants, three Enfigns, and near 300 private Men, with no other Lois, on their Side, than that of a Colonel, a Lieutenant, and five private Soldiers wounded, and two pri- vate Men killed. Baron Spar, then march'd towards Bruges ; but receiving Advice, that the Enemy was marching towards him, with a fuperiour Force, which they had got together, from feveral Garrifons, 'in the French and Spanim Flanders, he retired, the feventh, to Meldegem, carrying away with him feveral Hoftages, for the Security of the Payment of Contri- butions, and having deftroyed feveral Forts, and Corps de Garde, along the French Lines, on that Side.

FartherMo- The fifteenth, the Duke of Marlborough, having left two ticns of the Battalions at Tirlemont, and as many at Dieft, for the Secu- DukesAr- rjtv of thofe Places, march'd, with his Army, from Meldert, and encamp'd at Corbais ; the Dutch Forces, under the Com- mand of Monf. d' Auverquerque, advancing, at the fame time, to St. Martin's.

The next Day, the two Armies continued their March to

Genap, and there united into one Body. The feventeenth,

they advanced to Fifchermont, the Right being at Hulpen, and

the Left, at Braine la Lea ; General Churchill Being, detach'd,

at the Head of the Line, with twenty Battalion?, and as many

A Poft ta- Squadrons. In that Day's March, Monf. d'Auverquerque

ken by Gen. caufed one of the Polls of the Enemy, called Waterlo, de-

d'Auver- fended by Brigadier Jaques Pafteur, with two Regiments of

querque. J)ragoons, a"d as many Battalions of Foot, to be attack'd by

a Detachment, commanded by Lieutenant-General Dompre,

who beat the Enemy from that Poft, arid purfued them about

a League, in the Wood of Soignies.

Conftema- This fudden March of the Confederates kept the Enemy in tionofthe great Apprehenfions, and gave them an equal Fear, for fome Places in Brabant and Flanders, However, upon the Duke of

Marlborough'%

0/MARLBOROUGH, &V. 331

Marlborough's advancing from Genap to Hulpen, the Eleftor 1705. of Bavaria, and the Marlhal de Villeroy, only ftretch'd out U- -y— -^ their Right to Over-Yfche, near the Wood of Soignies, and kept itill their Left, at Neer-Yfche, with the little River Yfche before them, by which Means they covered both Brufiels and Louvain.

The eighteenth, by Break of Day, the Confederate Army The Confe- filed off, with the Right Wing, in tw» Columns, and pafs'd d«ate Army the long narrow Road of the Lane, near Hulpen, where they ™aJJ,e^4 °P were not a little furpriz'd to find no Enemy to defend that difficult Pafs. About Noon, the whole Army was drawn up iu Sight of the Enemy, whom the Duke of Marlborough and Mont. d'Auverquerque having view'd, they were both of Opi- nion to attack them immediately, before they had Time to recover die Confternation which was apparent enough in their Army. But the Artillery not being come up (as it has been faid)'thro' General Schlangenburg's Fault ; and that General,

who had a Pique aeainir, the Duke (becaufe the Attempt upon .

IT* i • i i • -X • - >-» f % i • **^ envious

the Lines was taken without his Privity or Content) having F^-lon op.

periuaded fome other Dutch Commanders to join with him in pofes the oppoling his Grace ; they made their unanimous Report to the Duke's De- Depaties of the States, that the Enterprize was neither advifa- fi£n< ble nor pra&icable, upon which the Deputies pofuively refufed to comply with it.

The Duke fubmitted, tho' with a great deal of Reludanctf. He fubmits as appears by the expoitulatory Letter * he wrote' the next Day with Re- to the States General, juitly complaining of a Want of that luaance- Confidence which they had repofed in him, the Year before, in * See below, Germany, and of which they had experienced fo advantageous Letter A. an EfK.'clt. This Letter being made publick at the Hague, oc- caiioned great Murmurings among the People, who juiily thought the Duke was too hardly dealt with, and that the Common Caufe fuffered by it.

On the other hand, the Dutch Deputies and Generals ufed The Dutch all the Endeavours they could, to juftify their Condud, and to Deputiesand throw off the Odium, which they foon perceived was going ^ to end°»vourtq be caft upon them. They wrote feveral Letters to their Highjuftify Mightineiles to that End, of which I fhall give the Reader a themi'elves. Copy of one, for a Specimen, and they caufed them to be in- gee Letter duitrioufly difperfed, to pre-engage the Minds of the People in B. below. . their Favour ; but they had no great Effeft ; for, it was the general Opinion of almoft every one, That more Deference /kould^^^ °" have Leen paid to the Duke of Marlborougb' s Advice ; efpecially as ^r*^p0n. it was corroborated by the Opinion of the chief General of their own Troops ; as we may fee by the Letter of the Deputies of see Letter the States General. 'B. below.

A late

A MIflake of a. late Author

We Life of J O H N,

A late Author offers an Argument in Justification of the Dutch (which I have not found elfewhere.) " The Duke (fays " he) with his Army, came without farther Oppofition (that is, after the forcing of the Lines) very near Louvain, the Deule running between his Camp and the Town : A Deluge of Rain fell that Night, and fwelled the Deule fo, that it was not poffible to pafs it. This gave the French Time to recover themfelves out ofitheir firft Confternation, which the Ad- vantages the Confederates had gain'd put them in. After a few Days, when the paffing the Deule was practicable, the Duke of Marlborough gave Orders for it ; but the French were polled with fo much Advantage, on the other Side, *' that the Dutch Generals perfuaded the Deputies of the " States, that they muft run a great Rifque, if they would " venture to force the Paflage." I muft confefs, I can't well reconcile this Account, in Favour of the Dutch, with the Fafts I have before related upon very good Authority. He tells us of a Delay, of a few Days, which gave the Enemy Time to recover them/elves out cf their firft Confternation. It was the eighteenth, that the Confederate Army came in Sight of the Enemy, and put them into this Confternation ; it was the fame Day that the Duke made the Propofal, and that the Dutch Deputies and Generals refufed to confent to it ; and upon this Difappointment, the Duke caufed the Army to march off again, the next Day, confequently here was no Delay. Befides, it was the Yfche, and not the Deule, which lay between the two Armies. His Rela- tion muft, therefore, refer to the Action of the thirtieth of July, of which J have given an Account above ; but that was an Attempt actually made (tho' unfuccefsful) and fo far from be- ing oppofed, that it was advifed, by the Dutch Deputies and Generals. So that taken either Way, this Relation is a grofs Miftake, introduced in an improper Place, to juftify the Con- dudt of the Deputies. Our Author, after this, proceeds to give a fuccinft Account of the real Defign, which the Deputies and Dutch Generals oppofed ; but, as it it was a fecond Occafion, in which they gave the Duke this Mortification. " The Duke " of Marlborough (fays he) was not a little mortified with this ; " but he bore it calmly, and moved another Way. After fome " few Motions, another Occafion was offered, which the Duke " intended to lay hold on : Orders were given to force the «* Paffage ; but a Motion thro' a Wood, which was thought '* neceflary to fupport that, was not believed practicable ; fo " the Deputies of the States were again poffefs'd with the Dan- •* ger of the Attempt ; and they thought their Affairs were " in fo good a Condition, that fo defperate an Undertaking as " this feem'd to be, was not to be ventured on."

«< This

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 65V.

«« This (continues our Author) was very uneafy to the Duke; " but he was forced to fubmit to it, tho' very unwillingly : All " agreed, that the Enterprize was bold and doubtful ; fome " thought it muft have fucceeded, tho' with a Lofs at firft ; " and that if it had fucceeded, it might have proved a deci- " five Aftion ; others, indeed, looked on it as too defperate. " A great Breach was like to have arifen upon this, both in " the Army, and among the States, at the Hague, and in the " Towns of Holland, efpecially in Amfterdam ; where the " Burghers came in a Body to the Stadt-huys, complaining of " the Deputies, and that the Duke of Marlborough had not " fuller Powers. I can give no Judgment in fo nice a Point, " in which military Men were of very different Opinions, " fome juftifying the Duke of Marlborough, and others as " much cenfuring him. He fienved great Temper, on this Occa- " fan, and tho"" it gave him a very fenjible Trouble , yet (to his * ' eternal Honour) he fet himfelf to calm all the Heat, that ivas te raifed upon it.

It muft be faid, in the Duke's Favour, for Juftification he needs none ; that he had an Army fuperiour to the Enemy ; and a great Part of it, betides, flufh'd with the Victory ac Blenheim, and the whole with the late Advantage, at the forcing the French Lines; and tho', as a late Author obferves, there was a Difference of Opinion, even among the Officers of the Army ; yet far the greater Number, and in particular the Officers of the Horfe, were for the Attack. The Deputies did, indeed, purfuant to their Inftruftions, fuffer the Duke of Marlborough to make two or three Marches, without calling a Council of War ; but, in their Inftruftions it is added, for the Execution of fome Dejign formed ly his Grace ; which they did not comply with ; for when the Defign, which was the Occafion of thefe Marches, and without which they might as well have continued where they were, came to be put in Execution, they obftrufted it.

Agreeable to this, is an Obfervation of the fame Nobleman I juft mentioned, in the Vindication of his Speech : " Did not the Dutch Deputies (fays he) march near three Days 'in Com- pany with the Duke of Marlborough, and, in all that Time, did they ever make any Exception againft the Defign ? Yet when it came to be put in Execution, when a fair Opportu- nity offer'd, and Viftory, in a Manner courted us, there not being half the Difficulty nor Danger there was at Blenheim, could any Arguments perfuade them to confent to venture a Battle ?

I (hall now proceed to give the Reader Copies of the Letters referred to above.

Me Life of JOHN, 1705.

. A.

A Letter

of°Marlboro* ^e ®u^e °f Marllcrougti* t Letter to the States General.

to the Stages

General. HJgh ^ Mighty Lords>

" A CCORDINGto what I had the Honour to 'write " jf\ to your High Mightineffes, the 1 3th Inftanr, - tht»Army " march'd, Saturday laft, and encamp'd, that Day, at Cor- '* bais and St. Martin's, and the next Day at Genap. On Mon- " day, we came to Fifhermont, and, yefterday, we were i« '* Motion, before Break of Day, and having pafs'd feveral " Defilees, we came into a pretty large Plain, having found " the Enemy, as we expected them, between Ober-Yfche " and Neer-Yfche, with the little River Yfche before them ; " at Noon, or a little after, our whole Army was drawn up in Order of Battle, and having view'd, \vith Monf. d'Au- verquerque, the four Ports which I defign'd to attack, I flatter'd myfelf already, confidering the Goodnefs and Su- periority of our Troops, that I might foon have congratu- lated your High Mightinefles upon a glorious Viftory : But, at laft, when the Attack was to begin, it was not thought fit to engage the Enemy. I am confident, that Meflieurs the Deputies of your High Mightinefles, will acquaint you with the Reafons that were alledg'd to them Pro and Con ; " and that they will, at the fame time, do Monf. d'Auver- *' querque Juftice, by informing you, that he was of the " fame Opinion with me, That th« Opportunity <was too fair to •' be let Jlip: However, I fubmitted, thai' ivitb much Re- " luftanty.

" I fhall fpeak this Day to Meflieurs the Deputies, and to " Monf. d'Auverquerque, that they may give Orders for the " Attack of Leave, and for carrying on, at the lame time, " the leveling of the Lines.

At the Camp at I am with all manner of Refpeft,

Lower Wavre, Aug.! 9, 1 705. Your High Mightinefles, &c.

P. S. " My Heart is fo full, that I cannot forbear reprefent- " ing to your High Mightinefles on this Occan'on, That I find " my Authority here, to be much lefs, than when I had the 4f Honour to command your Troops, laft Year, in Germany.

B, A

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 33

1705.

A Letter from the Deputies of tie States General, to their Sigh Mlghtinejjes.

High and Mighty Lords,

" \Y7"E made feveral Marches fmce the i5th Inftant, ac- A Letter

" VY cording to the Duke of Marlborough's Projeft, com- £"" ^

" municated to us. Yelterday we broke up from Braine la Leu, t;es to

" as we had the Honour, to notify to your High Mightinefles, States Gc

" on Monday laft, that our Defign was to march farther along neral.

" the Deule, with an Intent to pafs the Lane and Yfche, and

" afterwards endeavour to make ourfelves Matters of Louvain,

" or gain fome greater Advantages, for the Arms of the States,

tl and High Allies, by fighting the Enemy, if a fair Occafion

" offer'd. Having pafa'd the Lane, where we wonder'd to find

" no Enemy to difpute fo difficult aPaffage, we met with more

" Qbftacles at the Yfche. For, befides the Report of three

" Generals who had view'd ir, and faid there was no Ground

" for the Horfe, either to pafs, or be drawn up in, we found

" the Pafles there fo difficult, and the whole Enemy's Army

" fo well ported, to defend them, that we thought it was not

" to be attempted, without having firft heard the Sentiments of

Monf. d'Auverquerque, and the other Generals and Lieu-

tenant Generals. We found them al!, except Monf. d'Au-

verquerque, to be unanimoufly of Opinion, that the attacking

the Enemy, in the faid Pofts, would be attended with the

greateft Difficulty and Hazard for the common Caufe, al-

ledging, That, confidering the Enemy could not be attack-

ed but with great Diiadvantage on our Side, we mould, in

cafe of a Defeat, be reduced to the greateft Streights ima-

ginable j partly, bccaufe being fo far advanced in the Ene-

my's Country, we fhould neither have had Places, norHofpi-

tals, whither to fend our wounded Men, and partly, becaufe

in fuch a Cafe, the Enemy might eafily have cut off our

" Convoys of Bread. Befides which, the faid Generals were

" of Opinion, that the Affairs of the High Allies, and our Re-

" publick, juftly weighed, were not yet reduced to fuch a Con-

" dition, as to attempt, as they called it, fo defperate a Work.

'* We own, that my Lord Duke of Marlborough was of

«* Opinion, as well as Monf. d'Auverquerque, that the Attack

«* was practicable, and might be attended with Succefs; but

" we could not refolve to confent to a Thing of fo great Im-

" portance, contrary to the Opinion of all the Generals of that

* ' Army, to which your High Mightinefles have done us the

*' Honour to depute us,

" And

334 Me Life of JOHN,

1705.

A.

A Letter

of°Marlboro' ^e &"** °f Marllcrough* f Letter to tie States General.

to the States

General. Mjghty

t0 wliat * haci the Honour to 'write to your High Mightineffes, the 131)1 Initanr, thfc>Army

march'd, Saturday laft, and encamp'd, that Day, at Cor- bais and St. Martin's, and the next Day at Genap. On Mon- day, we came to Fifhermont, and, yefterday, we were in Motion, before Break of Day, and having pafs'd feveral Defilees, we came into a pretty large Plain, having found the Enemy, as we expefted them, between Ober-Yfche and Neer-Yfche, with the little River Yfche before them ; at Noon, or a little after, our whole Army was drawn up in Order of Battle, and having view'd, with Monf. d'Au- verquerque, the four Pofts which I defign'd to attack, I flatter'd myfelf already, confidering the Goodnefs and Su- periority of our Troops, that I might foon have congratu- lated your High Mightinefles upon a glorious Viftory : But, at laft, when the Attack was to begin, it was not thought fit to engage the Enemy. I am confident, that Meflieurs the Deputies of your High Mightineffes, will acquaint you with the Reafons that were alledg'd to them Pro and Con ; " and that they will, at the fame time, do Monf. d'Auver- <f querque Juftice, by informing you, that he was of the " fame Opinion with me, That the Opportunity <was too fair to " be let JJip: However, I fubmitted, tho1 nvith much Re- " luftancy.

" I fhall fpeak this Day to Meflieurs the Deputies, and to " Monf. d'Auverquerque, that they may give Orders for the " Attack of Letive, and for carrying on, at the lame time, " the leveling of the Lines.

At the Camp at I am with all manner of Refpeft,

Lower Wavre, Aug. 1 9, 1 705. Your High Mightinefles, &c.

P. S. " My Heart is fo full, that I cannot forbear reprefent- " ing to your High Mightineffes on this Occasion, That 1 find " my Authority here, to be much lefs, than when I had the •« Honour to command your Troops, laft Year, in Germany.

B, A

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 335

1705.

A Letter from the Deputies of 'tie States General, to their Nigh Mightinejjes.

High and Mighty Lords, " \T7"E made feveral Marches fmce the i5th Inftant, ac- A Letter " VV cording to the Duke of Marlborough's Projeft, com- ™

municated to us. Yeflerday we broke up from Braine la Leu, t;es to ^ as we had the Honour, to notify to your High Mightinefles, States Gc on Monday laft, that our Defign was to march farther along neral. the Deule, with an Intent to pafs the Lane and Yfche, and afterwards endeavour to make ourfelves Mailers of Louvain, or gain fome greater Advantages, for the Arms of the States, and High Allies, by fighting the Enemy, if a fair Occafion offer'd. Having pafs'd the Lane, where we wonder'd to find no Enemy to difpute fo difficult a Paffage, we met with more Obftacles at the Yfche. For, befides the Report of three Generals who had view'd it, and faid there was no Ground for the Horfe, either to pafs, or be drawn up in, we found the Pafles there fo difficult, and the whole Enemy's Army fo well polled, to defend them, that we thought it was not to be attempted, without having firft heard the Sentiments of Monf. d'Auverquerque, and the other Generals and Lieu- tenant Generals. We found them al!, except Monf. d'Au- verquerque, to be unanimoufly of Opinion, that the attacking the Enemy, in the faid Pofts, would be attended with the greateft Difficulty and Hazard for the common Caufe, al- ledging, That, confidering the Enemy could not be attack- ed but with great Disadvantage on our Side, we mould, ia cafe of a Defeat, be reduced to the greateft Streights ima- ginable ; partly, becaufe being fo far advanced in the Ene- my's Country, we fliould neither have had Places, norHofpi- tals, whither to fend our wounded Men, and partly, becaufe in fuch a Cafe, the Enemy might eafily have cut off our Convoys of Bread. Befides which, the faid Generals were of Opinion, that the Affairs of the High Allies, and our Re- publick, juilly weighed, were not yet reduced to fuch a Con- dition, as to attempt, as they called it, fo defperate a Work. " We own, that my Lord Duke of Marlborough was of Opinion, as well as Monf. d'Auverquerque, that the Attack was practicable, and might be attended with Succefs; but we could not refolve to confent to a Thing of fo great Im- portance, contrary to the Opinion of all the Generals of that Army, to which your High MightineiTes have done us the Honour to depute us,

« And

W>e Life of J O H N,

" And we hoping, that we have fully fatisfied the Intentions of your High MightinefTes, contained in your Refolution of " the 5th Jnftant, to permit the Duke of Marlborough, with- " out the holding a Council of War, to make two or three " Marches, for the Execution of fome Defign formed by his " Grace, we therefore, for the future, fhall regulate our Con- " duft, according to our Inftruftions, and your High Mighti- " nefles Refolution of the 2 6th of June lail, except your High *' MightinefTes fhould be pleafed to fend us farther Orderl And " we cannot conceal from your High MightinefTes, that all the " Generals of our Army think it very ftrange, that they fhould " not have the leait Notice of the faid Marches.

" This day we came to encamp here, and defign fuddenly " to march again, in order to befiege Sout-Leewe, fo foon as " thenecefFary Preparations fhall be made ready. Wherewith,

Waveren, Aug. High and Mighty Lords, &c.

19, 1705. Signed,

ROU WENOORT,

Van HEMSKERK,

N. V. SCHACEN.

Farther TheDukeof Marlborough's Projea being thus defeated, the

fhfconfe Confederate Army march'd, the nineteenth of Auguft, N. S.

derateAriny. ^rom Lane to Lower Waveren, where having retted one Day,

the Duke of Marlborough's Forces returned to Corbais, and

Monf. d' Auverquerque's Army came, at the fame time, to Mont

St. Hubert. The fix and twentieth, both Armies march'd, and

then encamp'd together, with the Right near La Romee, and

the Left at Perwitz.

Sout-Leewe ^ne ^even and twentieth of Auguft, a Detachment was made, taken. under the Command of Lieutenant-General Dedem, to befiege Sout-Leewe, a little Town, in the Middle of a Morafs, and the chief Defenfe of the Enemy's Lines. The Place was invefted, the nine and twentieth of Auguit, and, a Week after, the Gar- rifon, to the Number of about 4.00 Men, commanded by Briga- dier-General Dumont, furrer.der'd Prifoners of War, before the Batteries had begun to fire ; the Dutch General having declared, that, if they held out any longer, he would give them no Quarter.

The Ene- The Duke of Marlborough having caufed the Lines to be

piy's Lines levelTd, from Wafleigne to Sout-Leewe, and Tirlemont to be

levelJ'd. difmantled, his Grace pafs'd the Demer, and encamp'd, the

nineteenth of September, at Arfchot. Upon his Approach.'the

Enemy quitted their old Lines, between that River and the

Nethe, and retired into the new ones, between Boetchet, on the

Nethe, and Werchtern, on the Demer, where they could not

be

Duke <?/ M A R L B 0 R OU G H , &C. 337

fce attack'd. The twenty-firO., his Grace went to Turnhout, 1705. to meetMonf. Buys, Petitionary of Amfterdam, who was fent to < — -v— ^ confer with his Grace, on the Part of the States General. This Moi.f. Buys was the Effeft of the Duke's expoftulatory Letter co them, con- f'fnt: from cerning the Ufage he had met with from their Deputies, of c^aTto which the Reader has feen a Copy above. the ouke 0{

What pais'd in this Interview, was not clearly known ; but Marlboro'. there were Reafons to believe, That Moaf. Buys affitred his Grace Satisfaction of the Re-dinefs of their High Migbtinefs, to give him all re a- JS^jJ1,^ finable Satisfaction, for the Difguft he had taken at fame Proceed- D.fguit he ings at Ober Tfcae, and to make him, for the future \ more eajy in had taken. bis Command, by removing tbofe who Jbew d the greateft 'fncKna'tion to contraditt him. This Conjecture will appear the more proba- ble, if we confider, the En^liih Court, and, indeed, the Na- The Englifh tion in general, did, at this Time, fo warmly efpoufe the Duke Nation of Marlborough's Refentment, that a Pamphlet, entitled, ^gjSfii Dutch Politicians, in which fevere Reflections were made on fentjnent. the Hollanders, in general, and, in particular, on the Deputies of the States, for not fuffering his Grace to fight the Enemy, was publickly fold, and efcaped uncenfured ; and what is more, the Earl of Pembroke, Lord Prefideut of the Council, was named to go Envoy Extraordinary to Holland, in order, as it was iuppofed, to expoitulate the Matter with the States ; but Sa their High Mightineflcs prevented his Lordfhip's Journy, by s'!ven h-m. giving Satisfaction to the Duke of Marlborough, and removing General Schlangenburg.

His Grace remained fome Days at Arfchot, to forward the Fortifications of Dieft, Haffelt, Tongeren, and fome other fniall Places, where Garrifons were to be left during the Winter. The eight -and twentieth of September, N. S. the Army march'd to Heventhals, where, about a Fortnight after, the Duke cfTheDulrs Mariborough left it, under the Command of Monf. d'Auver- Soes t3 the querque, and went for the Hague. His Grace ftaid there three Hasue » D^tys, during which Time, he had feveral Conferences with the Pe: lion iry, and then returned to Heventhals, from whence the Returns to Confederates decamp'd, the twentieth of Oftober, K. S. and thre A marcii'd to Oaitmael. They continued their March, the next Day, to Brecht, halted there, the twenty-fecond, and removed., the twenty -third, to Calmpthout. The neccffary Preparations of Artillery and Ammunition, for attacking of Sandvliet, being Sandvlief made at Bergen op Zoom, the Count de Noyelles inverted that inve^ed« Place, the four and twentieth 5 and, the next Day, the Duke of Marlborough went thither, from Calmpthout, to view the feveral Polls, and to give his Directions for a Siege.

His Imperial M.vjefty having fent two very preffing Letters to T;heD- the Duke of Marlborough, to invite him to Vienna, in order fr^11^ to concurt the Operations of the next Campaign, and feveral vkmw VOL. I. Z other

338 rbe Vfe of JOHN,

1705. other Concerns of the greateft Importance, his Grace, having L—v-< •> the Queen's Le^ve, accepted of the Invitation, and, to that End, fet out from the Army, the fix and twentieth of Odo- ber, N. S. and came, the eight and twentieth, at Night, to D.ifleldorp, \\here he was complimented, in the Name of the Elector Palatine, by Coionel du Soquet, who was appointed, together wich other Officers of his Electoral Highnefs's Court, to attend his Grace, in his Journy, thro1 the Elector's Territo- ries. The nine and twentieth, the Elector met his Grace, on the RoaJ, about two Leagues from his Refidcnce, at Bernfberg, Ts ft? tarr.- and entertained him very magnificently, under feveral Tents, cd fcy th: which had b?en pitched there for that Purpofe. After Dinner, Elector Pa- },is Grace continued \\- Journy, and, the thirtieth, at Night, was Andcomptt- attended, at Ditkirclun, by Baron Elflf, great Dean of the ment> d by Chapter of Triers; and Baron Van Hagen, great Chamberlain t':- l <fv<;r to th.-.t Eleflor, who h?d fent them to compliment his Grace, of Tiiers. upon his paffing thro1 his Country.

Arrives at The thirty-firft, in the Evening, his Grace came to Frank- Fiankfort. fort, and was faluted, at his Entrance into that City, with a treble Difcharge of the Artillery ; and, when he alighted out cf his Coach, was complimented by the Magiftrates. His Grace And has a refted there, the firft of November, and, the fame Evening, Conference Prince Lewis of Baden came thither to wait on him. He had a with Prince Cou.'erenctf with the Duke, that Night ; and another, the next Baden ° Morning, in the Prefence of Monf. Geldermalfen, Plenipoten- tiary of the States General.

AnCbferva- As Prince Lewis of Baden had, or, at leaft, was thought to

ticn en the have been, in a great Meafure, the Caufe of the Duke's Project

Marlboro's cn r^e Mofel, at the Beginning of the Campaign, being dif-

pmdmt appointed, in the Manner the Reader has feen above, it was

Couduft. believed his Grace would, upon this Occafion, have fhewn fome

Marks of his Refentment; but tho', at this Interview, they

were narrowly obferved, nothing appear'd, but all imaginable

Demcnftrations of Friendlhip, and good Correfpondence. So

prudent, and fo cautious of giving Offence, was this great

M,m, that he rather chofe to fuffer in his own Reputation and

Glory, than to prejudice that of any other Perfon, tho' never

fo much deferved.

Sandvlkt The Town of Sr.ndvlift made no long Refiftance, for, on the

taktn- nine and twentieth of Odober, N.S. Count de Noyelles gave

Advice of its having iurrendred, in a Letter to Monf. Fagel. The D. of The Duke arrived at Ratifbon, thefixth of November, N. S. M*r'h r ,' aru]} the fame Evening, embark'd on the Danube, in Order to Proceed> t>7 Water, to Vienna, where he arrived, the twelfth. He was received, at Landing, by the Earl of Sunderland, and Mr. Stepney, who conducted him to the Houfe of the Prince of Longueval. The Imperial Court intended to have defrr.y'd his

Expences,

Duke cf MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Expences, and the Palace of the Prince of Dietrichfte'm was fitted up for his Reception ; bat his Grace was pleated to decline both.

The Duke had Audience of their Imperial Majeflies, and the ?Tr.s Audi- ArchduchefTes, the D^y after his Arrival ; and the two follow- «i« -f their ing Days, he received and returned feveral Vifus. The iix- ^'?ev teenth, his Grace had a Conference with the Prhce of Salms, AnTccnfr- and other pubiick Minifters, at which the En.perour was pre- renceswith fent. In this Conference, he was treated witii great Freedom the Mini- and Confidence, and he had p.l! the Affunnce g.ven him that fters> could be exprefs'd in Words. He plainly law, that the Em- perour was jiigaiy diiTatisfied with Piince Lewis of Beden ; but he hid fjch Credit in the Empire, efpecially with the Circles of Suabiaand Franconia, thit there was aT.'eceffity of bearing with, what could not be remedied. The f.me Evening he was .1 .ong while in Converfation with their Imperial Majeities ; when the Emperour was gr«iuouuv pleated to declare, thai, bis Grace's Services to the common Caufe, in general, and to his Family, in particular ; were Jut b as /hou'd never be forgotten by him, no'- his Pojlerity. His Grace was afterwards feized with a Fit of the Gout, which confined him :hi e D.i/s to hi, Chamber ; during which Time, he was viuted by all Per ions of the greatetl DifT tinftion at that Court. The mnrtecntn, the Earl of Sunderland The Earl of had his Audience of Le^ve of tiit ^.i,t.erjur ai)d E.nprefs, and Sunderl-nd the next Day of the Ernprefs LJowag. r, and the Archdu- aienwof chefles ; and was presented, oy hib Imj. t-.-i .1 M.'jeft) •, with his Leave. Piclure fet with Diamonds. Tae tuc t -ecoaJ, the Duk? of Marlborough went to tiie fitnous C.i raber of Rarities, wiicre the Emperour was pleated to meet h m, and prcfcnted him, in a very obliging Manner, with a Ring. <jf great Value. The fame Evening, his Grace hid hii Audience of Leave, of the whole Imperial Family, and, the twenty -t.'.ird, deparcei from Vienna, The D. of being accompanied by the Earl of Sunderland, for the Court of Marlboro' Berlin, having firft concerted proper Meafures with the Imperial Jg^rtrf Minillers, for carry ing on the War with more Vigour than ever, 5^^" renewed bur Treaties made with the Emperour Leopold, and provided for the Security of the Duke of Savoy.

In Confider.ition of t:ie lignal Services done by his Grace to Is made the Houfe of Auftria, and tu the Empire, his Imperial Maj'-fty ' was pleated to make him a Grant -.f the Loruftiip of Mindel- heim, in Su-b'a, nut far from Angfburg, lately pofleiied by- Duke Maximilian, Uncle to tiie iilector of Bavaria, which Fief was now ereded into a Principality of the holy Roman Empire, and was, in fuch manner conferred upon the Duke, That hit Grace, and the HtifS-Male of his Bod}, lawfully begotten, and their Heirs-Male, and PojTeJJors of that Principality ,jhou'd be fum- moned to all the Disti of the Empire, and Circle of Suabia, there

Z 2 tO

His Journey from Vienna to Berlin.

The Duke ot'Marlbo- rough ar- rives at ScrJio.

rCharadler of Lord Raby.

The Duke's Negotia-

Me Life of JOHN,

to appear in Per/on, or by their Plenipotentiary, as other Princes of the Empire do : And Jkould a!fe enjoy all other Ad-vantages, Im- munities, Rights, Prerogatintej, and Pre-eminences, as Princes of the Empire have. From whence his Grace was, from that time, diftinguifh'd, throughout the Empire, by the Stile and Title of Prince of Mindelheim. While the Duke was at Vienna, the two Envoys and Plenipotentiaries of the States General came, by ex- prefs Orders from their Mafters, from Tyrnau, to wait ori his Grace, and to receive his Advice and Directions, about the Ne- gotiation with the Hungarians.

When the Duke of Marlborough departed from Vienna, his Imperial Majefty had order'd Horfes to be ready at every Stage, at his own Expence, and fcveal Officers of the Court Tfda before, to provide every thing in a Readinef*, that no- thing might retard their Journey ; fo that the Duke and the Earl travell'd with extraordinary Speed, notwithftanding the Seafon of the Year.

The Duke, arriving at Berlin, the 3cth, went the fame Night to Court, and had a Conference with the King of Pruffia. The next Day, he prefented the Earl of Sunderland to his Majefty, the Prince Royal, and the two Markgraves, the King's Brothers, who all receiv'd his Lordfhip with great Marks of Eiteem. They faw the King at Dinner, with the whole Royal Family, and, after a Ihort Stay there, his Grace, with the Lord Sunderland, went to dine with the Lord Raby, her Majeity's AmbifTadour at that Court. The fame Evening, his Grace fupped with the King, the Prince Royal, and the Mark- graves, and din'd with them, the next Day, at the great Chamberlain's.

" Lord Raby, (the late Lord Straffbrd,) was of the Name of

" Wentworth, and Family of Strafford. He was Page to King

" James's Queen, and was made, after the Revolution, Groom

" of the Bed Chamber to King William. He fucceeded in the

Title of Raby-Caftle, and the Peerage, on Lord Stafford's

Death. King William firft fent him to the King of Pruffia,

with the Character of Envoy Extraordinary ; and upon the

Acceflion of Queen Ann, {he fent him again to that Court,

upon the King's having fliewn his Inclinations for him. His

good Parts, join'd to a fine Underftanding, and an Applica-

'•' tion to Bufmefs, recommended him fo far to the Queen's Fa-

" vour, that he was join'd with Dr. John Robinfon, Bifhop of

" Briftol, (afterwards of London) as her Majefty 's Plenipoten-

" tiary, at the Congrefs of Utrecht.

The Day following, his Grace had 'a long Conference with the King ; and he had learned fo perfectly to accommodate him- &lf to that capricious Prince's Temper, that he renewed all

Treats,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 341

Treaties, and particularly tiie Treaty concluded, the 1 aft Year, 1705. with that Court, for 8000 Men, to be employ'd in Italy, for v^-y^*"* one Year longer ; his Majerty promising to recruit them, and to fend three1 Battalions, in the Room of the Horfe which were re- call'd. His Grace having fettled thefe Affairs, and adjufted fome other Difficulties, fet out from Berlin the third of Decem- ber, N. S. in the Evening, being very well fatisfied with the Succefs of his Negotiations, and the Honour which had been {hewn him at that Court, where he was complimented by the Im- perial Refident, with the Title of Prince of Mindelheim, by Order of his Mafter ; and he, likewife, delivered his Grace a Letter from the Emperour. The King of Pruffia presented his Prcfents Grace with a Sword enrich'd with Diamonds, and the Earl of g^ ^nd Sunderland with a Diamond Ring of confiderable Value. t},e £a'ri Of

The fixth of December, N. S. they arrived at Hannover, Sunderland. , where his Grace lodg'd at the Houfe of General Bulau which They ar-

had been prepared for his Reception, and the Lord Sunderland !jlve at • i i_ TT r i -1 • e i «anno-

was entertained,- at another Houfe, belonging to one of the ver .

chief Officers of the Court. They waited, the fame Evening, on his Electoral Highnefs, the Eleclorefs Dowager, &c. and were received with the Marks of Diftin&ion due to their Qua- lity and extraordinary Merit. The Duke gave that Court full Affurances of the Queen's adhering firmly to their Interells, in maintaining the Succeffion to the Crown, in their Family, with which the Eledor feem'd fully fatisfy'd. The ninth, (his Grace having been prefented by the Eleftor with a fine Calafh and fix Horfes, and the Earl of Sunderland with a Set of Horfes) they And thft fet out early from Hannover, and arrived, the fourteenth, at Hague. the Hague.

The Duke having fettled feveral important Matters with the The Duke's States General, particularly the taking io,ooq Men more into Negotja- the Pay of England and Holland, to re-inforce Prince Eugene's tic Army in Italy, his Grace went on board her Majeily's Frigat, the Peregrine Gaily, the feven and twentieth of December, in the Pit, below the Brill, and failing from thence, the next Morning early, in Company of feveral Yachts, under -j^e rjuke Convoy of her Majefty's Ships, arrived at St. James's thethir- Arrives in tieth, at Night, about eleven o'clock. England.

To conclude the Foreign Tranfaclions of this Year, as I did Affairs in the former, I mail juft hint, in a very few Words, at what hap- Germany, pened, during fome Part of it, in other Places : And firft, be- «he German Army ; it was, as ufual, not brought together, for fore the Month of Auguft. It was then, indeed, a fine one, and yet did not do very much. The French gave way, and retired before them : Hagenau, and fome other Places, were abandon'd by the French, and the Imperialifts took Poffeffion of them. A Z 3 Blockade

Aff.in Italy.

The Life of J O H N, &c.

Blockade was laid to Fort Louis: But nothing was done by that Army, equal to their Numbers and Strength, or to the Reputation the Prince of Baden had formerly acquir'd.

In Italy, Prince Eugene had again a melancholy Campaign. His Army was weak, ill-provided, and worfe paid ; The French were f>r fuperor in Number and Forces, and he was long (hut up within the the Country of Bergamo; at length, he broke thro' to Cufano, whtre there happened a very {harp Adlion, be- tween him, ai;d the Duke deVendome: Both Sides pretended to the Viftory ; but Prince Eugene feemed to have the cleareft Title to it ; becaufe Vendome repafs'd the River, and left the Imperialifts Mailers of the Field of Battle.

END of BOOK IV.

«

BOOK

BOOK V.

TRANSACTIONS during the Years 1706, 1707, 1708, and 1709.

CHAP. XI.

<f he Battle of Rameliics, and the Succefs vhich. im- mediately enfued.

iHE Duke of Marlborough being returred to England, as I have already fa id, at theCon- ciuhon of my Account of the hit Year's Fo- reign Tranfatlions, and the Parliament being then fitting, it will be necefTary for me cp go back fome Weeks, to give a brief Account of fome of the Proceedings of that Aug ;il Aflembly, before the Conclufion of the Yeir, as far as they have any Regard to our illuftnous Hero, or his Adions abroad, before that Time.

This Parliament met on the 25th of October, and the Houfe of Commons having cholen John Smith, Elqj for their Speaker, her Majefty made a moft gracious Speech to both Houies, of which I think it neceflary to tranfcribe fome Paragraphs, and believe I mail not need to make any Apology lor it, to (hew rry Reafonsforfo doing, as the Reader will, from the very Contenti .thereof, eafily forelee with what Intent it is done.

Z4 " Nothing

Some P cet-d rifl

The Life of J O H N,

" Nothing (fays her M\jeft\) can be more evident, than that, " if the French King continues Matter of the Spanifh Mo- " narchy, the Balance of Power in Europe is utterly deftroy'd, " and he will be able, in a fhort Time, to engrols the Trade, " and the Wealth of the World.

" No good Englifhman could, at any Time, be content to fit " ftill, and acquiefce in fuch a Profpeft : And, at this Time^ •* we have great Grounds to hope, that, by the Bleffing of G D " upon our Arms, and thofe of our Allies, a good Founda- " tion is laid for reftoring the Monarchy of Sp : in to the Houie " cf Aultria, the Confequences of which will not only be " fafe arid advantageous, but Glorious for England.

" I may add, we have learnt by our own Experience, that *' Peace with France will laft no longer than the firil Opportunity " of their dividing the Allies, and of attacking foaie of them " with Advantage.

" All our Allies rrmft needs be fo fenfible this i? the true State " of the Cafe, that I make no doubt but Metres will foon be «' concerted, as that, if we be not wanting to ourfelves, we «< mall fee the next Campaign begin cffenfivelv, on all Sides «* againft our Enemie?, in a moft vigorous Manner.

" The Firmnefs and Condud which the Duke of Savoy has " fhewn, amidft extream Difficulties, is beyond Example.

" I have not been wanting to do all that was poffible for me, *' in order to his being fupported.

" I ought to take Notice to you, that the King of Pruflh's " Troops have been very ufeful to this End ; your Approbation " of that Treaty hft Seffions, and the Encouragement you gave " upon it, leave me no Doubt of being able to renew it for ano- "therYear.

Thefe were, at that Time, the Sentiments of our gloriots Queen ; and that both Houfes cf Parliament, and confequentlv the whole Nation, concurr'd with her Majcfty, in having the fame Senfe and Opinion of Things, is evident from their re- fpedive Addreffes, of which I mall, for the fame Reafons, tran- fcribe fome Paflages ;

your moft MaJefty's moflr dutiful and loyal Subjefls, e Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament af- fembled, beg Leave to make our humble and fincere Ac- knowledgments to your Maji'fty, for your molt gracious Speech to both Houfes, which has -opened the Eyes, and raifd the Hearts of tfiycur loyal S:ifycSs.

" Your MVjell/ is pleas'd to give' "us Warning of the Danger of being ;o far deluded, as to depend again on the Faith of Treaties, with-'an Enemy, who has never yet any other Re-

" gard

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 345

*' gard to them, than as they ferved the Purpofes of his'Intereft 1706. '' and Ambition: and to inform us, that no Peace can be lafting, v**v*** " fafe and honourable, till the Spanifh Monarchy be fixed " in .the Houfe of Auftria, and France reduced to fach a De- *' gree, that, the Balance of Power, in Europe, be again re1- " iiored.

" We humbly concur with your Majefty in thefe your wife " and noble Sentiments, and we faithfully promife, that ho " Danger fhall deter us, nor any Artifices divert us, from doing ' ' all that is in our Power to affift your Majefty in carrying on " the War, till you fhall be enabled to promote fuch a Peace " for Europe.

" Your M^jefty is gracioafly pleas M to encourage us with " the Hopes of a glorious Campaign, the next Year, and we " humbly prefent our Thanks to your Majefty, for having wife- " ly and providentially endeavour'd to concert fuch Meafure?, " as, by the Goodnefs of GOD, may be a reafonable Foundation " for thofe Hopes: And we affure your Majefty, nothing on " our Part fhall be wanting to make them effectual.

" We reft confident, that all your Majetty's Allies, excited " by your Conftancy and Courage, and fired by the Example 6/ " a Prince whom you have been pleas' d to mention, in fb ho- ' ' nourable a Manner, will make their utmoft Effects to carry tfn " theCaufe of Liberty, and bring this jult and neceflary War ** to a fpeedy and happy Conclufion.

Moft gracious Sovereign,

" \7 OUR .Vlajefty's inoft dutiful and loyal Subjecls, the pattofthc " jL Commons of England, in Parliament afTembled, a^e Commons " met together, with Minds fully dilpos'd to a ffi ft your Majefty Addrefs. " in comp:ffiing the great and gloriout Dejigns mentioned in your " moft gracious Speech to both Houfes ot Parliament, for which " We beg leave to return our moft hearty Thanks, and, at the " fame Time, to congratulate the glorious Succefs of your Majeflfs " A-ms, and tbofe of your Allies.

" We are fully convinced, the Balance of Power in Europe " can never be reftored, till the Monarchy of Spain is in the ' PoiTeffion of the Houfe of Auftria, and that no Peace with " France can be fecure and lafting, while the French King fhall " be in a Condition to break it ; and therefore your f.iithful " Commons are fully refolv'd, efFedluary to enable your Majefty " to carry on the War with Vigour, to fupport your Allies, and " make good fuch Treaties as your M< jefty fhall judge necef- " fary to reduce the exorbitant Power of France.

Some time afterwards, the Lord Haverftiam mov'd in the Motion of Houfe of Peers, that she State of the Nation mould be taken into *e L°[d Confutation, - Haver/ham.

«' This

The Life of J O H N,

" This Lord, before he was created a Peer, was Sir John Thompfon, who made a good Figure in King William's Reign, in the Houfe of Commons. Upon his being call'd up to the Houfe of Lords, he was made a Commiflioner of -" the Admiralty: He was a very ready and bold Speaker " (by fome call'd eloquent) but he frequently loft himfelf in Heat " and Paffion : He was of the Low-Cnurch-Princip!es, and gene- " rally turbulent.

On the ijth of November, the Day appointed to take his Motion into Confideration, he made a long and memorable Speech, in the Debate, fome Part whereof, having Regard to the Duke of Marlborough, may very properly be introduced here.

My Lords,

part of " It may perhaps be expeded, fmce I mov'd to you the State

Lord Haver- « of the Nation, that I mould fay fomewhat to you, on this {ham's «' Occafion. And, tho' I never labour' d under more Difficulties Speech. (f tkan j ^Q at prefent> yet being confcious to myfelf of a Heart " as full of Loyalty and Duty to her Majefty, and Zeal for her " Service, as is poflible for any Subject to have j and knowing " that the bell Way of preferving Liberty of Speech in Parlia- " ment, is to make ufe of it, I will mention three or four Ge- " neral Heads to your Lordfhips, and fpeak to them with a " great deal of Freedom and Plainnefs. The firft Thing I *' fhall fpeak to, is the prefent Confederate War, in which we " are engaged : And becaufe the beft Way of judging what we " may reasonably expect for the future, is to confider the " Actions that are pail, give me leave a little to take Notice, " to your Lordftiips, of the Operations of the laft Campaign. " I mall not fay much of our forcing the French Lines, and " our beating the French Troops afterwards (tho' that was a " very great and brave Action) but becaufe there was fuch a '* Mixture of Victory and Misfortune, and that this is fuch a " chequer'd Piece, I purpofely forbear taking farther Notice " of it.

" But there were two other AdYons, which, I think, take in " your whole Campaign, the March of our Army to theMofelle, " and the Bufinefs of Oberifch ; in both which, give me leave to *' fay (not to give it a harder Term) I think we were not ufed «f as we might have reafonably expected. Our General, with a " great deal of Conduct, cover'd Prince Lewis of Baden's " Army ; nor can it be doubted, he might eafily have join'd " us, if he had been pleas'd, without the leaft Danger from the " French ; which, if he had done, by the beft Account I could ". ever get (and, I think, I have a very true one) we had been "at leaft 25009 ftronger than the French there; but being " difappointed of being joined by Prince Lewis, and of the Af- i " fiitance

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

'« fiftance we expefted from him, that great Defign proved a- " bortive.

" The next was the Bufinefs of Overifch, where, by the " Conduit of my Lord Duke of Marlborough, we had a *' fair Opportunity of putting an End to the War at once, the ." Dutch held our Hands, and would not let us give the deci- ** ding Blow.

" Thus ended your Campaign, tho' it began with more " promifing Hopes of Succefs, than this next I believe will; " you had then an Enemy to deal with, whole Councils were " diftra&ed, whofe Troops were broke, and the Courage of " his Army funk.

" From all this, give me Leave to conclude, that it is nei- " ther Men nor Money, Courage nor Conduct, that are the " only Things neceffary to carry on a Confederate War.

" Thofe who command your Army are Men of that Bravery, " and every common Soldier hath fo much Courage, that no e ; ual " Number of Men, in the World, I think, can Hand before them. But let our Supplies be never fo full and fpeedy j let our Management be never fo great and frugal ; yet if it be our Misfortune to have Allies, that are as flow and back- ward, as we are zealous and forward ; that hold our Hands, and fuffer us not to take any Opportunity that offers, that are coming into the Field, when we are going >" into Winter-Quarters, I cannot fee what it is we are reafon* " ably to exped.

His Lordfhip, after this, went on to make fome Obfer- vations on the Decreafe and Balance of Trade, the Views of the Dutch, their Methods to over-reach usj the Freedom of Speech in Parliament, and making an Application of it to a Paragraph of her Majefty's Speech to her laft Parliament, laft Year ; and laftly, of the Advantages that might accrue to the Nation, if the prefumptive Heir to the Crown, accord- ing to the A& of Settlement in the Proteftant Line, mould be here amongft us ; and concludes all with this Motion :

" That an humble Addrefs be prefented to her Majefty. " by this Houfe, that her Majefty will be gracioufly pleafed ".to invite the Pi-efumptive Heir to the Crmvn of England y « according to the Afts of Parliament made for fettling the " Succeffion of the Crown in the Proteftant Line, into this " Kingdom, to rejlde here.

When the Queftion was put, whether the Houfe of Hanno- ver mould be fent for over into England or not ? The previous Queftion being put, it pafs'd in the Negative ; notwithftand- jng which their Lordfhips were extreamly zealous for the Secu- rity of the Hannover Succeffion, by an Aft of Naturalization : Ajjdon the 21 ft, the Judges, according to Order, brought in

a Bill

The Life of J O H N,

a Bill to nominate the following Gommiffioners, to aft upon thd Deceafe of her Majefty, for the better Security of the Hanno- ver Succeffion, viz. the Archbifhop of Canterbury, the Lord High Admiral, the Lord Keeper, the Lord Treafurer, th6 Lord Privy Seal, the Lord Prefident of the Council, the Lord Steward of the Houfhold, and the Lord Chief Juftice of En- gland for the Time then being.

Thanks ^ut to return- The Houfe of Commons refolved, on the

given to the fcventh of January, " That the Thanks of their Houfe be

Duke of " given to his Grace the Duke of Marlborough, for his great

Marlboro' « Services performed to her Majefty, and the Nation, in the

of tCom°Ufe " ^ Campaign, and for his prudent Negotiations with her

mons. " " Majefty's Allies ;" and appointed a Committee for that Pur-

pofe, who having attended the Duke accordingly, his Grace's

Anfwer was :

HisAnfWer " * am ^° ^"^^te of the great Honour which is done me ' " by this Meflage, that I cannot have the leaft Concern at the " Reflections of any private Malice, while I have the Satif- " fadion of finding my faithful Endeavours to ferve the Queen, " and the Kingdom, fo favourably accepted by the Houfe of " Commons."

Af erGons What thefe Refle(^Ions of private Malice were, the Reader thrownupon ^as alrea<ty partly feen, in what I have mentioned and obfcrv- the Duke, ed of the Lord Haverftiam's Speech ; but were chiefly, as it was believed, fome Afperfions caft upon his Grace's Conduct, laft Campaign, in feveral Pamphlets, efpecially in a Libel, en- titled, A Letter to the Author of the Memorial of the State of England. Mr. Stephens, Reftor of Sutton in Surry, being

A^eCSteyby f°Und t0 be the Author of that fcandalous Pamphlet, was fent for up, and examin'd, before a Secretary of State : He, at firft, feem'd obftinate in maintaining what he had advanc'd ; but, upon better Thoughts, being fenfible of his Error, he publifh'd the following Recantation, by way of Letter to the Duke of Marlborough.

„. May it pleafe your Grace,

tot'ion " HP'0 read the Petition of one who is truly fenfible of,

" J[ and forry for the unjuft Reflections, which were caft " upon your Conduft, in a late Pamphlet, entitled, A Letter " to the Author of the State Memorial ; of which I cannot, " without great Shame and Sorrow, confefs myfelf the Wri- " ter.

" 'Twas my Misfortune, too inadvertently to hearken to " what was feid, laft Summer, by thofe who took Pleafure in " telling News, and giving ill Turns to all Events. My foolifh " Credulity made me believe, and my Rafhnefs prompted me

Duke of. MARYBOROUGH, &Y. 349

*' to publifh, what f took, without due Enquiry ; and which, 1706. " I am too late convinced, was unjuft and groundlefs. v^vO

" But tho' with Shame and Confufion, I muft offer any '* Confutations to induce your Compaffion, after I have been *f the unhappy Caufe of doing you fo much Wrong ; yet I beg «' your Grace to belief, that I have always been, according " to my poor Ability, zealous for the late Revolution, for her " Majefty's undoubted Title to the Crown, and till this late un- " fortunate Occafion, entirely devoted to your Grace's Intereft, " and an Admirer of your great and glorious A&ions ; by which " Means, as heretofore I incurr'd the Hatred of all thofe who " obftruft the publick Affairs, envy all our Succeffes, and " your Grace the happy Inftrument of them; fo by this laft *' Action, I have forfeited the good Opinion and Patronage of " all thofe who wifh well to their Country ; many of whom " own'd me with more Refpeft, than was due to my Condition, " but have now caft me off, with Indignation ; fo that I have " nothing to hope for, but that your great Gcnerofity will look " down upon a poor and numerous Family, all depending upon ' ' your Compaffion ; who, tho' they have no Part in the Guilt, " muft fhare largely in the Puniftiment.

" Your Grace may be affured, that I do heartily wim all " imaginable Succefs to your Endeavours, and that you may " raife yourfeif to the higheit Degree of worldly Honour : *' That as the antient Commanders acquired to themfelves Ti- " ties from the Countries which they fubdued by their Power, " your Grace may gain Honours, by the Juftice of thofe Arms " you command for the Relief of opprefled Nations, to the " perpetual Renown of our moft gracious Queen, the lafting " Honour of your grateful Country, and the tranfmitting of <f your own Name and Memory to all Pofterity.

" And that you may live to enjoy the Fruits of your La- " bours, I wifh as fmcerely, as I wilh well to my own Soul.

" My humble Petition is, that you will pardon the Rafh- " nefs and Folly of your unworthy, but ever thankful Pe- " titioner,

Sutton, March 21, 1705-6. WILLIAM STEPHEN*.

But this Malice, which the Duke of Marlborough takes No- An Attempt tice of, was not confined to Pamphlets alone ; an Attempt was faid to be formed againft him, as it was believed, even in the Houfe of fofmed a" Lords, tho' he was, upon all Occafions fpoken of with great g^ ^ Refpecl. Complaints were made of the Errors committed the the Houfe lafl Year, in the Conduct of the War. The Anti-minifterial of Lords, Party laid, indeed, the Blame of the Mifcarriage of the De- f>gn on the Motel, on the Prince of Baden, and the Errors com- i muted

S&r Life of J O H N,

mitted in Brabant, on the States and their Deputies ; but, they pretended, they could not be Judges of thefe Things, nor be able to give the Queen fuch Advice, as might be fitting for them to offer her, unlefs they were made acquainted with the whole Series of thole Affairs : Their Propofal, therefore, was, that, by an Addrefs,' they might praf the Queen to commu- nicate, to them, all fhe knew concerning thofe Transactions, during the laft Campaign : " For they reckoned, that if all «« Particulars mould be laid before them, they would find fome- " thing in the Duke of Marlborough's Condudt, on which a " Cenfure might be fix'd. To this, it was anfwered, that if " any Complaint was brought, againft any of the Queen's " Subjects, it would be reafonable for them to enquire into it, " by all proper Ways : But the Houfe of Lords could not " pretend to examine, or to cenfure the Condudl of the Queen's " Allies: They were not fubjeft to them, nor could they be " heard, to jullify themfelves : And it was fomething extra- " ordinary, if they mould pafs a Cenfure, or make a Com- " plaint of them. It was one of the Trufts that was lodg'd " with the Government, to manage all Treaties and Alliances ; <£ fo that our Commerce with our Allies was wholly in the " Crown. Allies might fometimes fail, being not able to per- " form what they undertook : They are fubjetl both to Errors " and to Accidents, and are fometimes ill ferved. The en- " tringinto that Matter was not at all proper for the Houfe, *' unlefs it was intended to run into ram and indifcreet Cen- " fures, on Defign to provoke the Allies, and, by that means, " to weaken, if not break the Alliance. The Queen would " no doubt endeavour to redrefs whatsoever was amifs, and " that muft be trufted to herConduft."

Comes to Thus this Attempt failed, and tended rather to the Duke's nothing. Honour than Difgrace. About the fame time, his Grace had The Duke tjje Honour of the Queen's Commands, to treat with the Duke rcu^h'con" °^ ^ lvo.v» concerning an Attempt upon Toulon, which, tho' certs an At- ** mifcarried, when put in Execution, was thought one of the tempt on molt effectual Means of finifhing the War. Having treated a- Touion. bout it with the Duke's Minifters, he made Overtures to the Dutch of going to his Roval Highnefs's Afliilance ; but the States General knowing his Grace's excellent Conduft, and fear- ing they might be expofed by his Ablence, prevail'd with him to make the Campaign in Flanders.

An Inftance How vigilant the Duke was, in the mean time, for the Good of the °f the Pubiick, and particularly to keep up a good Intelligence

Duke's VI- between the Courts of England and Hannover, the Reader may

£npubf°kk fee by the f°Uowins Piece-

Good.

Tran/latiail

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 351

1706.

*.

Tratijlatlon of a Letter from Mr. Cardonnel to Man/. * * * * at Hannover.

«« A Cccrdirg to what I had the Honour of advifmg you by A Letter «' /\ the lalt Port, I have communicated your Letter, of the ^"J^ *' 1 2th Inftant, to my Lord Duke, and, in Anfwer, am to tell to Monf. ' " you, from him, thjt with regard to the lending away the **** at «' Afts of Regency and Naturalization, his Electoral Highnefs Handover. ' may beaffui'd, that the Queen will, in that, confult his In- ' tereft equally with her own, without having any Regard to ' the Detraction of a certain Set of People, or whatever they * may have to fay in Oppofition to it. Her Majefty even ' hopes, that if, contrary to Expectation, there fhouid be any, " of this Kind, at your Court, they will cither be removed, " or, at leaft, fdenc'd. His Highneis has, likewife, expiain'd " himfelf in fuch manner, to Mr. CraLs, for whom, you know, " he has always h id a Friendftiip, that he is fure his Son will " be more prudent, during the few Days he has to remain at " Hannover.

" As for Mr. Hore, I am fjre, and have even Orders to tell " you, that his Highnefs has (o much Regard for him, and is *f fo fenfible of his Merit, a to be very far from ever doing " any thing, that may derogate from his Credit or Authority, " at the Court where he now is ; J. likewife, believe, that he, *' himfelf, is not in the leaft apprehenfive of it. In fliort, you '* may depend upon it, our Court will be very far from taking " the leaft Step, that can be diiagreeable to their Electoral " Highnefles ; and that mv Lord Duke will always efteem it *' an Honour, and take a PJeafur-, in cultivating that good '* Intelligence and Friendfliip, which is fo neceffary to both •' Courts.

I am, &c.

- Whitehall, March 19, 1706. A. CARDONNEL'

The Duke went on Board the Peregrine-Gally, the tenth of TheDute April, accompanied by the Lord Halifax, who was fen t by her ef Marlbo- JVlajcfty, with a Compliment to the Elector of Hannover, and rough em - the Princefs Sophia, and with the Garter for the Eleftoral Prince, (his prefect Mjjefty.) As likeu-ife, by his Grace's Son- in- Law the Marquis cf Mounthermer ; Mr. Buys, Penfioner of Arr,fterdam, Mr. Piefz, Pn'v. Counfel'or to the King of Den- mark, and feveral other Perfons of Diftinftion. The next Morn- ing, his Grace pafs'd by the Nore, with feveral other Yachts,

ur.der

Vbt Life of JOHN,

under Convoy of the Rumney and Rye ; joined the Squadron of her Majefty's Ships, commanded by Sir Edward Whitaker, at theGunfket. And, the fourteenth, about nine in the Morn- ing, the Squadron left his Grace, with the Centurion Man of War, and the feveral Yachts and Sloops, going into theMaefe. Arrives at *n the Afternoon, his Grace landed at Rotterdam, and, the fame tke Hague. Evening, arrived at the Hague ; where, the next Day, he re- ceived the Compliments of the publick Minifters, and other Per- fons of Quality and Note, on his happy Arrival : And, the Day following, his Grace had a Conference with the Deputies of the States General, upon the neceflary Meafures to be taken for opening the Campaign.

At the fame time the Duke of Marlborough was employed in negotiating another important Treaty, with the States, for the Security of the Proreliant Succeffion, as the Reader will fee by the following Piece.

Extratf of a Letter from the Lord Halifax^ to Mo»/. * * * *, at Hannover, dated May 17, 1706. at the Hague.

Ixtraft of a Letter from the Lord Halifax, to Monf. * * * at Hanno- ver.

IB E G the Favour of you, that you would prefent my moft humble Duty to their Eledoral Highneffes, and the Electoral Prince, with the utmoft Refped, and affure them, that as I have been always devoted to their Intereft, in England, I am now come abroad only in Hopes, I may be fome way ufeful to them. I bring them the greateir. Proofs that the Queen and the Nation can give them, of their Affedion and Zeal, to preferve and maintain the Succeffion in that Illuftrious Family; and I hope that the Negotiations, which my Lord Marlbcrough is now carrying on in, this Place, wiil add a greater Strength to our Law*, £sV.

The Proofs, &c.. his Lordfhip mentions were the Ads of Parliament for the Naturalization of the Houfe of Hannover, and for the better Security of the SuccdHion, as alfo to prefent the Garter to the Eledoral Prince, his prefent moft gracious Majefty.

That the Lord Halifax purfued the Treaty mention'd above, after his Return from Hannover, where he was received with many uncommon Marks of Honour, the following Extradl of another Letter fhews :

Extrafi

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

Extra ft of a teller from the Lord Halifax, to Monf. * * Hannover, dated Hague, Aug. 12. 1706.

" \\7 HEN I was at the Camp, I fpoke to the Duke Extraft of " W °f Marlborough, about the Title, and he is very a Letter «' ready to join in that, or any Thing that may be agree- £rom the *' able to the Prince ; when I come into England, I fhall -not «' fail to reprefent it to the Queen. I intended to have gone to " England, by Oilend ; but the Penfioner wrote to have me «' come this Way, to fatisfy fome Scruples that were raifed a- gainft our Treaty. All the Towns of this Province have agreed to it, -but Leyden : I have been this Morning with Monf. van Leeven, their Deputy, and I hope he is fo well fatisfied, that he will not make any Opposition longer j if he does, it will not obitruct above a Day or two.

The Duke of Marlborough continued at the Hague, till the The Duke ninth of May, N. S. during which Time he had repeated Con- of Marlbo- ferences, with the Deputies of the States, and their Generals, TOUSh con- on the fame Subjeds. That Day, his Grace left the Hague, (jjlfc u- and, being acojmipained by Velt-Marfhalt d'Auverquerque ar-tiesof the rived at Maeltrlcht, the twelfth. Monf. d'Auverquerque, depart- States. ed the fame Night, and the Duke followed him, to the Army Goes to of the States, which was drawn together near Tongeren; and Maeftrichtj both repaired, -the feventeenth, to Liege, to view the Citadel, And Liege. and the new Works about that Place. In the mean time, the Englifh Forces having received Orders to take the Field, Gene-^ ral Churchill fet out from Breda, with the Troops which were there, and the Artillery, the eighth, and march'd to Wallwick, and, the fame Day, the reft of them march'd out of their re- fpeftive Garrifons, in order to join at the Bofch, which they did, the ninth. The eleventh, they marched to Carnock, and from thence continued, with long Marches, till they arrived at Bilfen, the nineteenth of the fame Month. The twentieth, the Army of the States march'd from Tongeren to Borchlaem, and, The Confe- the fame Day, the Englilh joined them, between that Place and ^Sk Grofz-Waren.

The Confederate Army then confifted of feventy-four Batta- TheirForcs, lions of Foot, and 123 Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, hav- ing, with them, 100 Cannon, twenty Hawbitzers, and forty two Pontons.

The Court of France, in the mean time, had Information, • that the Confederate Army, in the Netherlands, was not yet compleat; that the Danes refufed to ftir from their Quarters, De(Vrns ani till their Arrears were paid ; and that the Pruffians, for other Motions of Reafons, were yet fo far behind, that they could not join the thjFrenrfi.

VOL. I. A a Daks

Cf. r.c r T ~ TT XT

354 fbe Life of JOHN,

1 706. Duke of Marlborough in feverai Weeks. It was confidently ^/V^J faid, that the French King had Pensioners in the Courts of Den- mark and Pruflia, who had promifed him to ufe their utmoft En- deavours, to retard the March of their refpective Matter's Forces (which were in the Pay of England and Holland) to the General Rendezvous ; upon the Confidence of which they proceeded, as we mall prefently find they did. Others fay, that the Court of France being fenfible, a defenfive War would, at length, ter- minate in her irrecoverable Ruin, refolved to make an extraordi- nary Effort, and to aft every where ofFenfively. In order here- unto, a great Council of War (fay they) was held at Verfaille's, where n»oft of the Generals afliiled, and form'd feveral Projects to raife the Glory of their Grand Monarch's Arms, and recall Fortune, which had feem'd to abandon them, in the preceding Campaigns. Be this as it will, the Army of the two Crowns, under the Command of the Elector of Bavaria, and the Marmal de Villeroy, confifting of 70,000 Men, being entirely aiTembled, they flattered themfelves, that they might keep up the finking Credit of their Arms, by a confiderable Action in the Nether- lands. In this fond Imagination, fuch pofitive Orders were fent to the Mar fhal de Villeroy, to fight the Allies, that the Duke of Bavaria, who was then at Bruflels, had juft time enough to take Poft-Horfes, to join the Army, which pafled the Deule, the nineteenth of May, and pofted themfelves at Tirlemont, with the Gheet before them.

The Confe- ^he Confederates, on their Side, were no lefs ezger for an En- derates are gag'ement ; but could hardly flatter themfelves with the Hopes of deiirous of having fo early and fo fair an Opportunity for it. The Duke Engaging. of Marlborough being apprehenfive, that the French would play the fame Game over again, and keep behind the Deule, as they had done the Year before, had feveral times exprefs'd his Concern and Uneafinefs about it, to thofe who were intimate with him ; and, by a wife Forecaft, was already laying Schemes, to put the Enemy befides their cautious Meafures, when Provi- dence threw into his Hands an unexpected Occafion of fignalizing again his Courage and Conduct.

Mi s of Upon the Enemy's pafling the Deule, the Duke of Marlbo- thoir Army rougn ^ent Orders to the Danifli Horfe, who were coming from in order ' their Garrifons, to haften their March ; and that there might thereunto, not be the lealt Pretence of Delay, he engaged his Promife, with the Field-Deputies of the States, that their Arrears fhould be duly paid them. The Duke of Wirtemberg, who commanded thofe Troops, and was well-affected to the common Caufe, feeing every Thing was complied with, that the King of Den- mark infilled on, thought he needed not to ftay, till he fent to that Court, nor wait for exprefi Orders. He, therefore,

commanded

Ditke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

Commanded his Troqps to march, and they made fuch Expedi- tion, that the twenty fecond of May, N. S. being the Day be- fore the Battle, they came up within a League of die Rear of the Confederate Army.

About the fame time, the French having been join'd by the The French Horfe of the Marflial de Marfin's Army, and confiding in their co.™e out Superiority of Number, came out of their Lines, and eflcamp'd £f. tildr between Tirlemont, and Judoigne.

The next Day, being Whitfunday^ about four o'Clock, in the The two Morning, the Confederate Army marchM, in eight Columns, Armies towards Ramellies, a Village near which the Gheet takes its meet. Source ; that they might avoid the Inconveniency of paffingthat River. They foon had Information, that the Enemy's Army, having decamp'd from Tirlemont, was, likawife, on their March, to meet them, their Baggage and heavy Cannon being left at Judoigne. The Duke of Bavarh, and the Marmal de Villeroy, not in the leafl fufpefting, that the Danes had already join'd the Confederate Army, were fully bent upon engaging them, either that Day, or the following ; being apprehensive the Duke of Marlborough had formed the Defigu of invefting Namur.

The Enemy's Army then confifted of 76 Battalions of Foot, Force of the and 132 Squadrons of Horfe, having 62 Cannon, 12 Mortars. En?my'« and 36 Pontons. Their immediate Defign was to poflefs them- Alm?' felves of Ramellies, and the ftrong Camp thereabouts, to prevent the Confederates doing the fame ; and, in this they fo far fuc- ceeded, that, being nearer, they got thither firft ', but had the Mortification to be foon beat out of it again, as the Reader will iee below.

The Fears of the Enemy were, however, groundlefs, concern- ing Namur ; for the Duke of Marlborough had no fuch De- iign. His Refolution was the fame with theirs, and had not they offered him Battle that Day, he would certainly hive ?t- tack'd them the next. The two Armies met near ths Village of Ramellies, from whence the Battle took its Name. When the Confederate Army was advanced near this Place, they found Situation the Enemy getting into the Camp of Mount St. Andre, and of the placing their Right to the Mehaigne, where they had pofled a Enemy's Brigade of Foot, and filled the Space between that and Ramel- lies, which is about half a League, an open and level Ground, with near soo Squadrons, among which were the Troops of the French King's Houfhold. They had likewife above 20 Batta- lions of Foot, with a Battery of about 12 Pieces of Cannon, at Ramellies. This Place, which is rendered famous to all Pollen- A Dsfcrip- ty, by this aufpicious Day, is but a Village, funounded by a tion °- *•**• Ditch, in the Diftrift of Louvain, on the Borders of the Pro- nidlk*' vince of Namur. It is fituated at the Source of the Gheet, a- bout a Mile and a half North from the Side of the Mehaigne, A a 2 ' that

356 rhe Dfe of J O H N, £V.

1706. that Interval being the narrow Aperture, where this glorioaJ

t-— v— — ' Battle was fought. The Gheet runs from Ramellies to Autreg- life, thro' a marlhy Ground, and beyond Autreglife, the River grous wide, and the Ground is unpafiable. Ramellies is fix Miles almoft South from Judoigne, twelve South from Tirle- mont, fourteen Weft North- Weft from Huy, and eleven North from Namur.

T e Fam-us Battle gT RAMELLIES.

Pre arations About one in the Morning, the Duke fent the Quartermafter- on both General, with the Camp Colours, and a few Squadrons, to- Sides; for wards Ramellies, to make a Feint, as if they defigned to form a the Engage- Camp there, the better to penetrate into the Enemy's Defigns ; mcutt and, about three, his Grace, and the Marfhal d'Auverquerque de-

camp'd, with the whole Army, and advanced, in eight Co- lumns, in a great Fog.

A little after eight o' Clock in the Morning, the advanced Guard of the Confederates, which confifted of 600 Horfe, and had been fent with all the Quarter- Matters of the Army, to view the Ground, arrived at the Height of Merdop, (or Merdan) from whence they perceived, that the Enemy were in Motion, and march'd in the Plain of Mont St. Andre, extending them- felves as far as the Tomb of Hottomont, towards the Mehaigne. Hereupon they halted, and fent Intelligence to the Duke of Marlborough, and Monf. d'Auverquerque, who being advanced about ten, to view the Enemy, they could not, at firft, judge, whether thofe Squadrons they faw were only to cover their March, into their lines, or whether they were the Van of the Enemy, that came to offer Battle. His Grace, therefore, gave Orders to the Horfe to batten their March, refolving, if thofe he faw had been only covering Squadrons, to attack them with his Cavalry only. But the Fog being foon after difperfed, and the Army being then in full View of the Enemy, the Duke found their whole Army approach, with an apparent Refolution to fight, upon which he made all the neceffary Difpofitions to re- ceive them.

The Enemy, feeing the Confederates fo near them, pof- fefb'd themfelves of a very ftrong Camp ; placing their Right near the Tomb of Hottomont, againft the Mehaigne ; and their Left at Anderkirk, or Autregliie ; and pofted a good deal of their Infantry in the Villages of Autregliie, Offuz, and Ramel- lies, which laft was near their Center ; befides which, they put five Battalions, near the Hedges of the Village of Franquenies, which was on their Right, The Confederate Army, was, at the fame time, drawn up in order of Battle, the Right Wir.g fceing pofted near Fo'tz, on the Rivulet Yaufe, with a littre

Morals

• ; ,bnit:

jj

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 6JV. Morafs in Front j and the Left near the Village of Franquenies on the Mehaigne ; where, befides the Number of the Horfe, belonging to that Wing, the Duke of Marlborough ordered the Danifti Squadrons, being 21 in Number, to be pofted; rightly judging, by the Situation of the Ground, that the Strefs of the Aftion would be on that Side. All things being thus dlf- pofed, it was refolved to attack the Village of Ramellies, which was the Enemy's principal Poft ; in which, as I have faid above, they had pofted twenty Battalions, who had entrenched them- felves, with a Battery of about twelve Pieces of treble Cannon : And from thence to Autreglife they had formed a Line of Foot, along the Gheet, and a Line of Horfe behind them. In order to this Attack, 20 Pieces of Cannon, of 24 Pounders, and fome Hawbitzers, were brought up ; and 1 2 Battalions, who were to be fupported by the whole Line, were order' d to make the firil Onfet, under the Command of Lieutenant General Schultz.

About half an Hour paft one, the Artillery of the Confe- The Battle derates began to play ; it was immediately anfwered by the Ene- ^esins« my's Cannon, and both continued firing, with confiderable Exe- cution : Whilft the Duke of Marlborough was at the Head of the Lines, to give the neceffary Orders every where, Velt-Mar- ihal Auverquerque repaired to the Left, where, perceiving that the Enemy's Foot, pofted in the Hedges of Franquenies, gall'd the Horfe of that Wing, he commanded 4 Battalions, with two Pieces of Cannon? under Colonel Wertmuller, to diflodge them from thence : Which they performed, with great Vigour and Refolution. Hereupon the Enemy detach'd two Battalions, and 1 4 Squadrons of Dragoons, on Foot, to regain that important Poft ; but Monf. d'Auverquerque commanded at the fame time, the whole Wing of the Dutch Horfe to attack the Enemy, which not only prevented their Defign, but put thofe Dragoons into fuch Diforder, that they were not able either to reach the Village, or to recover their Horfes, which they had left a good Way behind the Tomb of Hottomont ; and fo were, moft of them, cut in Pieces, and taken Priibners. The Dutch Cavalry charged with a great deal of Bravery, Sword in Hand, and foon after the Engagement was fuftain'd by the Danifh Squadrons ; but having to deal with the French King's Houfhold, viz. the Moufquetaires, Gendarmes, Guarde de Corps, Horfe Grenadiers, and other choice Troops, which were in the Enemy's Right, the Conflict was obftinate, and the Succefs doubtful, for above an Hour. The Danifh Horfe, which fought on the Left of all, behaved themfelves with fuch Gallantry, that they forced the Enemy to give Ground, and broke feveral of their Squadrons ; but, at the fame time, the French had almoft an equal Advan- tage againft the Dutch Horfe of the Right of the Left Wing, whom they put into great Confufion. To remedy this, the A a 3 Duke

35* Toe Life of J O H N,

1 706. Duke of Marlborough, who was advanced that Way, fent for

C/'V'S.'' twenty Squadrons of Horie from the Right Wing, where they

could nor engage the Enemy's Left, by reafon of a Morafs

which (eparaced them : And with thefe he re-irJbrced his Left,

adding to them L's Body of Reierve.

Prudest French Writers, who have given a Defcription of this Battle,

Conduct of allow of this as a very prudent Part of the Duke of Marlborcugh's

aribo" >0t Conduct ; but to ccver th- Difgrace cf their favourite Troops,

pretend Lis Grace fen: for fifty, and not twenty, Squadrons from

his Right, and made four Lines of them, befides a Column com-

pos'd of his Body of Referve. " Thus (fays F. Daniel) the

" whole Weight of the Battle fell upon the Right Wing of the

" French Army, where the Troops of his Majefty's Houfhold

" were placed. This Body (continues he) which had hitherto

" been invincible (he forgets Blenheim) enter'd the Enemy's

Troop=, and overthrew the three full Lines ; but finding a

" fourth, and tlic Column above-mentioned, befides, which

" was moving to fall upon them in the Flank, they were obliged

" to give Way j" and juft in the fame Strain the Marquis de

Quincy argues : But to proceed.

The Duke of Marlborough, while thefe Troops were advan-

cirg from the Right, rallied fome of the broken Squadrons, and

gr.ve his Orders for others to charge : In this Place his Grace

>vasin the Extremity of Danger ; for being fmgled out by feve-

Th Duke ra^ °^ t'ie mc^ re^ute °f tne Enemy, and having the Misfor-

ofltftrlbo- tu^e, as he was leaping a Ditch, to fall from his Horfe, he had

rou-h twice either been killed or taken Prifoner, if fome of the Confederate

in fcn-at Foot, that were near at Hand, had not come very feafonably

Darger. to his Affiilance.* After this, his Grace had ftill a narrower

Efcape, a Cannon Ball taking off the Head of Colonel Briend-

field, his Grace's Gentleman of the Horfe, as he was holding

The Ad ^ ^rruP ^or tne Duke to remount.

vantage be- ' The twenty Squadroas liis Grace had fent for from the Right,

gins to de- to rc-inforce the Left, had but little Share in the Defeat of the

clare in pa- Enemy's Right : For by that time they were come up, the

Conf-'d- * -^ucc^ acc^ i-'aner, having charged them both in Front and Flank,

rates. " had almoft compleated that fignal Piece of Service, cutting in

Pieces the befl Part of the French King's Houfhold j infomuch

that they could never be iuJly re-eftablifhed during the remainder

of the War. Jn . the mean time, the Village of Ramellies was

vigoroufly attack'd by General Schultz, with the 1 2 Battalions

wider him. The Enemy, Uaving the Advantage of the Ground,

* Thus the Relation printed by Authority in Efcgland has it : But it has teen faid by fome Officers who were ia the Engagement, that the Duke was born down by fome of the diforder'd Dutch Horfe. It is not impoflibJe but both might be true,

defended

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

defended themfelves with great Resolution and Obitinacy, til] fee- ing the whole Line of the Confederate Infantry ia Motion to fup- port General Schultz, and the Dutch and Daniih Horfe advancing to furround them, they bethought themfelves of m.-kin-; their Retreat ; but found it was too late : For they were intercepted by the viaorious Horfe, and, molt of them, either killed, or taken Prifoners.

The reft of the Enemy's Infantry endeavoured, likewife, to J^e make their Efcape, which they did in better Order, being fa- s^es° vour'd by the Horfe of their Left Wing, who being covered by a Rivulet and Morafs, had not yet been attack'd, and form'd themfelves in three Lines, between Offuz and Autregli.e. But the EngUfti Horfe having found Means to pafs the Rivulet, charged the Enemy with iuch unparallel'd Brifknefs and Courage, that they entirely abandon'd their Foot; and. our Dr:.g'X>ns, pufhing into the Village of Autregiife, made a terrible Slaughter of them. The reft of the En-nay, who were, at the iaaie time, attack'd by the E".gii(h and Dutch Foot, with equal Bravery, gave Way on all Sides. Their Horfe rallied again, in the Plains, to cover the diforderly Retreat of their Foot ; but they were fo clofely purfued, by the Confederate Cavalry, chat they were forced to divide themfelves into three fmall Bouies, that they might flee the better, three different Ways. Taofe that took to the Left, were puriued by the Dutch and Danes, who made great Slaughter amongft them, and took abuncance of Prifoners : And thole that fled to the Right, were chas'd by the Regiments of Lumley, Hay, and Rofs ; which two laft fell in with the Foo» Regiment du Roy, of whom having kill'd many, the reft threw down their Arms and begg'd Quarter, which was generoufly granted. Upon this, they delivered their Arms and Colours to the Lord John Hay's Dragoons : But when thefe Dragoons faced about, in order to purfue the Ene- my, they treacheroufly attempted to take up their Arms again ; in which, however, they were prevented, and fuffered fcvcrely for their Perfidy.

The headmoit Regiments of the Englifh Horfe, that purfued the Enemy's Center, were that of Lieutenant General Wood, commanded by himfelf, and Wyndham's (afterwards Paim's) Carabineers, headed by Major Petry. When they came upon a rifing Ground, they efpied feven Squadrons of the Spanimand Bavarian Guards, among which was the Eleftor himfelf, and the Marfhal de Villeroy, who hoped, with thefe few choice Troops. to make good their Retreat, and fave their Cannon, which was inarching in a Line before them. General Wood galloped with his own Regiment upon the Enemy's Left, and charg'd them fo vigoroufly, that he broke them all to Pieces, kilting many of them, and taking not a few Prifoners, among whom were two Lieutenant-Colonels, one Major, four Captains, and feveral A a 4 Subaltern,

360 . rbe Life of JOHN,

1706. Subaltern Officers. He alfo took the Standard of the Elec- <>^.— v«ii.J tor's Guards, two of his own Trumpets and kill'd his Kettle- See Letter Drummer: The Eledlor himfelf and the Marlhal de Villeroy D. below. vej.y narrow]y efcaping. Major Petry, at the Head of Wynd- ham's Carabineers, fell cpon the Enemy with equal Brifknefs and Refolution ; put many of them to the Sword, and took fe- The Confe- ver:^ Prisoners, particularly the Mrjor of the Spanifti Guard?, derates gain Monf. de la Guertiere, and Mcnf. de Bruan, Cornet of the fame ; a compleat befides four Officers, and 46 private Men, of the Royal Bom- Vifiory. bardiers, with their Colours. The Englifh Horfe and Dragoons follow'd the Chace thro' and by Judoigne, till two of the Clock in the Morning, as far as Meldert, being five Leagues from the Place where the Action happened, and two from Louvain. During this Retreat, a Misfortune happened, to the Enemy, which contributed not a little to compleat the Vidtory. Several Waggons of their Van-guard, breaking down, ftopp'd the Way, fo that their Baggage and Artillery, which follow'd, could not pafs ; nor could their Troops defile in good Order : Perceiving that the Confederate Horfe, having get 'Intelligence of this Ac- cident, purfued them clofe, they threw down their Arms, that they might efcape with the greater Eafe, and retreated, with- out any Order, and in the greateft Confiriion. Here it was that the moft Prifoners were taken ; for in the Aftion little or no Quarter was given, the Confederate Horfe having been highly provoked by the idle Gafconades of the French Mufqueteers and Gens d'Armes, of which they were very full when they came to the Attack ; but paid dearly for it in the Sequel. In See Letter fljortj never was Victory more compleat ; the Confederates made themfelves Mailers of ail the Enemy's Cannon, excepting two or three, to the Number of about 50 Pieces ; moft of their Baggage ; about 1 20 Colours or Standards, and feveral Pair of Kettle- Drums. The Enemy's Lofs of Men, according to the moft ge- neral Computation, amounted to 8,000 flain, and among them, Prince Maximilian and Prince Monbafon ; and about 6,000 private Soldiers, and near 600 Officers taken Prifoners ; which, with their Deferters and Wounded, made their Lofs not lefs than 20,000 Men. Some Acconnts make the Number of Deferters fo great, to aver, that hardly half of their Troops ever returned to their Colour?. The Perlbns of Note among the Prifoner?, were Mefneurs Palavicini and Meziere, Major Generals ; the Marquis de Bar, Brigadier-General of Horfe ; the Marquis de Nonan, Brigadier-General of Foot; the Marquis de laBaume, Son of the Marmal de Tallard j Monfieur de Montmorencv, Nephew to the late Duke of Luxemburg, a Nephew of the Lord Clare, and feveral others.

Having given the moft circumftantial Account I have been able

to colleft of this remarkable Aftion, from the feveral Relations

i publifh'd

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 361

publifh'd here and in Holland, and from other authentick Pa- 1 706. pers ; I mall now add a Word or two of what the French have t-/^v*XJ faid to leflen, their Misfortune. Their Terror and Amazement French Ac- was, beyond all Queftion, very great; however, they put the c??nts °f beft Face upon it they could, and, at firft, endeavoured to con- ls Adllon' ceal their Lofs, by giving only a very flight and general Ac- count of the Battle. One of their Prints fays no more than that, " On the 23d, the King's Army advanced from Goflen- " court to the Mehaigne, and was attack'd by the Confede- " rate Army. That the Confederates were poflefs'd of feveral «' Foils, out of which they were driven by our Foot, who, " for about an Hour and a half, fought the Enemy's Foot, " with Advantage, at the Villages of Ramellies and Jandre- " nouille : fo that, for a long time, there was Ground to hope " the Victory would have been theirs ; but that while moft of " the Troops were engaged in the Center, one of the Enemy's " Battalions attack'd and forced the Village of Taviers. That " their Horfe attack'd the French Horfe, on the Right ; who «' not fuftaining their Effort with like Vigour, gave the Con- " federates fuch Advantage, as obliged their Army to retire, " after a pretty equal Lofs, on both Sides : That the Retreat " was made, at firft, in good Order ; but the difficult Ways " occafioning a Confufion, fome Troops betook themfelves to " Flight, which was the Caufe of farther Lofs, and obliged " their Army to abandon Part of their Cannon, and feveral *' Waggons."

In other Relations, the Reader is amus'd with pompous Accounts of the fuperiour Valour of their Troops ; tho' in the very fame Periods, they are obliged to allow they were beaten. I mail mention only one or two Inttances of thefe Gafconades from the Mercure Galant of that Month : " The Duke of " Marlborough (fays this Author) having feen with what Va- " lour the French had fought, could not forbear faying, That " with 30,000 fuch Men, be could go to the End of the " World.'1'' What muft we not then fuppofe he could do with thofe Troops, who beat and triumph'd over thefe more than Men, if we will believe them? In another Place, fpeaking of the Troops of the King's Houfhold, he makes our brave Gene- ral own ; " That they were more than Men ; and that he " knew them, as well as what they were capable of doing, •' fo well, that he judg'd it proper, to order fix to one to •« oppofe them." The Paris Gazetteer, however, tho' not the moft modeft of News Writers, is oblig'd to own, that the Troops of the Houftiold, did not behave themfeives very well : " The Cavalry on the Right (fays, he) where the Troops of the " King's Houmold were pofted, did not withftand the Enemy's " Attack with the fame Vigour as the reft did."

But

<Tbe Life of J O H N,

But to leave thefe Triflers, let us hear what an Author of fomething more Credit, and Reputation, tho' not the moft im- partial neither, on that Side, fays. I mean the Marquis de Quincy, who begins the fifth Volume of his Hiftory, and his Relation of this Campaign, in the following Words.

" I am now to give an Account of the moft difadvantageous " Campaign, for France, that has ever happen'd during this " King's Reign, which brought on fuch a Chain of terrible " Confequences, as chang'd the very Face of Affairs in this •* Kingdom. And yet never was there more Reafon to believe, *• that the Prince who directed it, (viz. theFrench King) would " have brought his Enemies to Reafon, and would have obliged " them to acquiefce in a Peace, fuch as his M;-jefty was wil- " ling to give to Europe, which began to ftand in need of it. " At the Conclufion of the preceding Campaign, Orders were immediately given to recruit the Troops, and raife frefh ones ; and uncommon Diligence was uied, during the whole Courfe of the Winter, as well in this, as in filling the Ma- gazines, in thofe Places where the feveral Armies were to aJ&mble ; that they might be early in a Condition to exe- cute tho/e Projects, which the King himfelf had fbrm'd, *' with infinite Pains, and for which he had put his Armies in " fuch a State, that they might triumph in every Place, where-

«' foever he had any Enemies I may very well fay, that

«' the Court never form'd fuch well-laid Defigns, as thofe " which were intended to be put in Execution this Campaign ; " and that never Meafures were better taken, nor purfued with " greater Secrecy, to carry fo many great Points at one and the *' fame time." (Here my Author gives an Account of thefe vaft Prcjeclf, and then proceeds.) " Thefe were the Defigns " which were to have been executed during the Courfe of this " Year, which, if they had fucceeded, it was reafonable to *( hope, would have produced the Advantages France expected from them : But we mail foon fee, by the Relations -I am going to give, that the Events were fo far from anfwering the Expectations fo juftly conceived, that never Campaign

was fo difadvantageous to the two Crowns. Of all

the fatal Accidents of this Campaign, (continues my Author) the Lofs of the Battle of Ramellies, which, if I may be al- lowed to fay it, was hazarded without any Neceffity, was that which was moft fenfibly felt ; becaufe the Confequence of it was the Lofs of a great Number of Places in the Low- Countries." Here our Author goes on to give an Account of this Battle, in which he confirms almoil every Circumftance I have mention'd in my Relation ; excepting that he affirms the Confederate Army to have been far fuperior to that of the French ; and aflerts, that there were not above 6,000 kill'd on

both

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

both Sides, of which he reckons but a third Part on his Side, and two thirds on that 6f the Allies, a Suppofition fo mon- ftroufly ridiculous, that it refutes itfelf. He likewife runs into the fame abfurd Rhodomontades, which I have mention'd above, with regard to the more than human Courage of the Troops of the King's Houihold, againft whom he, with the reft of his Countrymen, affirms, the Duke of Marlborough, knowing what fort of People he had to do with, oppofed fix to one. But as, if there had been any Truth in this Affertion, the Duke muft, for this Purpofe, have weakened fome other Part; of his Army, why did they not take that Advantage, and fall up- on the weaken'd Part ? He has no other Way to come off, but by pretending, that a too great Dependance on thefe Troops brought this Misfortune on the whole Army.

This compleat and memorable Victory, next to the Bleffing Juft Praifes of Heaven, (which during the whole Courfe of this War, of tlie Ge • feemed vifibly to affert the Juftice of the Confederate Caufej I "'jjoffi was principally owing to the great Courage, Prudence, Vigi- cers lance and Experience of the chief Commander, the Prince and Duke of Marlborough, who was perfonally prefent in the hot- telt of the Aclion, and gave his Orders, with wonderful Se- datenefs and Prefence of Mind. And his very Enemies were obliged to acknowledge, that his Conduct and Bravery, in this great Day, fhone in the moft confpicuous Manner. The fecond Honours of this glorious Day were undoubtedly due to Monf. d'Auverquerque, Velt-Marfhal of the Dutch Troops, who afled with all the Valour, Conduft, and Vigour that became a great and experienced General. The other Generals likewife diftinguiihed themfelves, and, among the reft, none more than his Grace, the Duke of Argyle, who expofed his Perfon to the greateft Danger, and received feveral flight Wounds ; nor were the inferior Officers lefs worthy of Commendation, every one behaving, in their refpedlive Stations, as became Men who were refolved to conquer or die.

All the Troops that engaged, fought, likewife, with the And of the greateft Bravery and Refolution, and like Men who were re- Troops. folutely bent to maintain the Reputation they had acquired at Schellenberg and Blenheim. Each had their Part of this glo- rious Vidtory, tho' in different Manners. It muft be acknow- ledged, to the eternal Glory of the Dutch, both Horfe and Foot, that they bore almoft the whole Brunt of the Fight, ha- ving had to deal with the French King's Houfhold, and other choice Troops, which compofed the Enemy's Right Wing. The Danifh Horfe were a great Weight to incline the Victory, on the Side of the Confederates ; and the Englifh had the Ho- nour to compleat it, by having the greateft Share in the Pur- f«it i as fome of their Regiments of Foot had in the Engage- •* meat, i

1 706.

2fc* Life of J O H N,

mcnt. Among the reft, Colonel Charles Churchill, who com- manded General Churchill's Regiment, fignalized himfelf, by driving, with his Battalion, fupported by the Lord Mordaunt's Regiment, three French Regiments into the Morafs, where moft of them were either deftroyed, or taken Prifoners.

The Honour of this Day was the greater to the Confede- rates, as the Elector of Bavaria had been heard to fay, the E- nemy's Army was the beft he ever beheld; and as they loft not only their Camp, Baggage and Artillery, but all that they had left in Judoigne. To which we may add ; That this Viftory decided the Deftiny of the Low- Countries, as the Battle of Hochftadt did that of Bavaria.

On account of this Battle was ftruck a large Medaillon in Holland : On the Face is reprefented two Nymphs making Hands, reprefenting Great Britain and Holland. Behind Great Britain is a Column, bearing the Bufto of the Duke of Marlbo- rough, with his Name on the Pedeftal, and an Unicorn lying at the Foot of it. Behind Holland is another Column fupporting a Bufto of the Veldt-Marmal d'Auverquerque, with his Name on the Pedeftal, and the Batavian Lion at the Foot of it. And, jound the Medal the Infcription :

Hoc PR./EFECTO PATRIAM SERVO. Hoc DUCE RECEM FIRMO. INTAMINATIS FULGEANT HONORIBUS.

Under his Command, I defend my Country. Under hii Condufi, I fupport the King. (fc. Charles III.) May the Lujtre of their Glory never fade.

In the Exergue :

GONCORDIA ANGLIJE ET BATAVIJE, BRABANTIA ET FLANDRIA IEGITIMO DOMINO RESTITUT/E.

Bj the Union of Great Britain and Holland, Flanders and Bra- bant are reflord to their rightful Sovereign.

On the Reverie, is a Plan of the Battle of Ramellies, with that Village in View. On the Front lie great Numbers of the Enemy's Dead, and Quantities of their Arms left a Spoil to the Allies ; with the following Infcription round it :

MALE QUjESITIS NON GAUDET TERTIUS

MA 1 1 D. 23.

Ill-gotten Goods never defcend to the third Heir. May 23.

Vol. I />.

'?

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. In the Exergue, is the following Infcription.

GALLIS, BAVARIS, ET HISPANIS, APUD RAMELIUM, UNO PR^ELIO VEL CAPTIS, VEL DELETIS, VEL FU- GATIS. 1706.

The French, the Bavarian?, and tie Spaniards, were either ta~ ken, defeated, or put to the Flight, in the Jingle Battle «/"Ra- mellies, 1706.

There likewife appear'd, at the fame time, a Medal of a fmaller Size, on the Face of which is reprefented a Bufto of her Majefty, with her Title. And, on the Reverfe, two flying Fames, founding their Trumpets, and holding a Plan of the Battle of Ramellies, with a Map of the Provinces of Flanders and Brabant, the Gaining of which was the Confequence of this Battle. With the following Infcription over them :

GALLIS AD RAMELIES VICTIS. 12 MA 1 1, 1706.

The French <vanquift?d at Ramellies. May 12, 1706.

In the Exergue was the following Infcription :

FLANDRIA ET BRABANTIA RECEPTIS.

Flanders and Brabant recovered.

There were likewife feveral other mix'd Medals ftruck at the fame time, on which Mention is made of this compleat Vic- tory.

The Elector of Bavaria, and the Marfhal de Villeroy, with The Frehck the greateft Part of the broken Remains of their Army, con- abandon tinued their precipitate Flight, till they were got to Louvain j Louvam- where having held a fort of a tumultuous Council of War, by Precipitate Torch-light, in the Market-place, they refolved to abandon Flight of the that Place, and to retire towards Bruffels. This was immedi- gle^ ately put in Pra&ice j but the Elector of Bavaria thought him- a felf fo little feture there, that he fpent the whole Night in caufing his Papers, Jewels, Plate, and valuable Furniture, to be pack'd up and lent away foi Ghent, whither he himfelf follow'd with all imaginable Precipkation. On the other hand, the victorious Confederates, having purfued the Fugi- tives, till two, in th« Morning, refted a little near Meldert-

and,

Toe Life of J O H N,

and, at Break of Day, the Duke of Marlborough order'd the Army to encamp at Bevechien, for the Refrefhment of the Troops. In the mean time, his Grace difpofed all things for their March, early See Letter the next Morning, in order to force the Paffage of the Deule ; B. and F. but he receiv'd Advice, in the Night, that the Enemy had quitted The Ccnfe t*ie'r Camp, and abandon'd Louvain ; upon which, Bridges be- derates take" ^ng kid over LJiat River> a Detachment of 5 oo Men was fent PofTeflion of to take Poffeffion of Louvain ; and the whole Army pafs'd the Louvain. River, the next Day, about Noon, and took the Camp of

Bethlem.

A fhort De- Louvain, which was the firft Fruits of this Victory, is a very

fcription of jarge aIKj pleafant City of the Low Countries, fituate on the

River Deule. eleven Miles South-Eaft of Mechlin, fifteen North-

Eaft of Bruflfeis, feven and twenty North of Namur, and eight

and thirty North -Eaft of Mons.

A late Author, Ipeaking of this Battle, fays, the Duke of Marlboroagh had told him, " The French Army look'd the beft " of any he had ever feen ; but that their Officers did not do " their Parts, nor fhew the Courage, that had appeared among " them, on other Occafions." To this we may add, and ac- An Over- count it as a very great Error, on their Parts, that they placed fight of the f0 entire a Dependance on the Troops of the King's Houftiold, Generals as was» *n a §reat Meafure, their Ruin. For had they been as vigilant to fupport them, with a Re-inforcement of Horfe from their Left, which was, in the mean time idle, as the Duke of Marlborough was in fupporting his Cavalry who attack'd them, by a Supply of frefh Troops from his Right, the Victory would probably have been more doubtful, or at leaft would have been bought, by the Allies, at a dearer Rate. Thus the high Idea the French Officers had conceiv'd of the Valour and Conduct of thefe Troops, turn'd to their own Difadvantage. This high thereuTo? °Pinion> however, appeared to be too ramly and immaturely formed, and would better have been left to Time : For it is next to an Impoflibility to reftore a Nation, that has had the Misfortune to be fo often defeated, fo foon to their priftine Va- lour. Princes, who are not prefent, at the Defeat of their . Troops, are apt to imagine, that Fortune may be more favour- able to them, another time ; but they are very often deceived. Their Fate is generally the fame with that of thofe unfortunate Gamefters, who, notwithltanding their ill Turn of Fortune, hazard on, thinking to recover their Lofs, till they have nothing more to lofe.

The Lofs of The Lofs of the Confederates, in fo bloody and obftinate a the Confe- Conflict, could not but be gretf ; yet did not much exceed i ,000 , derates. kill'd, and about double that Number wounded, moil of them See Letter in the Dutch Service. Among the flain, were reckoned Prince A. below. Lewis of Heffe-Caffel, Colonel of Foot ; Col. Van Driebergen ;

Col.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Col. Leerfe ; Col. Gammel ; Col. Van Schoonheyde; Col. Brouck ; Col. Bortvvigh ; Col. Hirfel ; Col. Murray, junior ; Col. Bifberg ; Col. Fabrice; Lieut. Col. Baker; Major Bon- coem- ; Major Roer ; Major Noorman ; Count Van Warfuze, a Major ; Meffieurs Bentingh, Piper, Smirfer, Tullekins, and Stra- ter, Captains of Horfe ; Meffieurs Schimmelpennigh, Beckman, d'Ozallier and Clerc, Captains of Foot ; Monfieur Winterkamp, a Cornet ; Monfieur Roer, and Croonbreecker, Enfigns ; and Adjutant Piper. Among the Wounded, were reckoned, Col. La Rocque Servier ; Major Count Vander-nat ; Major St. Pol, who died of his Wounds; Major Swerin, who was alfo taken Pri- foner ; Major Larny, mortally wounded ; Major Cunningham ; Monfieur Van Berghem, Captain of Horfe ; and Monfieur Su- therland, Captain of Foot. Col. Schravemore was taken Pri- foner, but came back upon his Parole. Monfieur d'Auverquerque, who purfued the flying Enemy, till one the next Morning, was like to have been ftabb'd by a bafe Bavarian Captain, to whom he had generoufly given Quarter, and fuffered him to keep his Sword ; but the Villain was prevented by one Violette, a French- man, Groom to that General, who {hot the Bavarian dead upon the Spot.

Having thus given a fuccincl: Account of this glorious Aftion, I mail now add the feveral Pieces and Letters, refer'd to there, and then give an Account of the Confcquences of it, which prov- ed greater, than even the moft fanguine Hopes could fuggelt.

A.

A Lift (printed at tie Hague) of the Kiird and Wounded of the drmy of the Allies, in the Battle of Ramellies, tie z$d of May, 1706.

HORSE.

TWO Colonels kill'd, 3 wounded ; 3 Lieutenant-Colonels wounded ; 4 Majors killed, 3 wounded ; i o Captains kill'd, 24 wounded ; 6 Lieutenants kill'd, 27 wounded ; 4 Cor- nets kill'd, 28 wounded; 8 Subalterns kill'd, 1 8 wounded; 343 Troopers or Dragoons kill'd, 695 wounded ; 990 Horfes kill'd, 351 wounded.

FOOT.

Three Colonels kill'd, 3 wounded ; i Lieutenant-Colonel kill'd, 3 wounded ; 2 Majors kill'd, 3 wounded ; 9 Captains kill'd, 38 wounded ; 7 Lieutenants kill'd, 49 wounded ; 8 En- figns kill'd, 40 wounded ; i 8 Subalterns kill'd, 70 wounded ; 641 Soldiers kill'd, 1590 wounded.

Officers

The Life of] O H N,

Officers of Horfe and Foot ; £2 kill'd, 28.2 wounded. Troopers, Dragoons, and Foot Soldiers, 984 kill'd, 2285 wounded.

Total, 1 066 kill'dj 2567 wounded.

B.

High and Mighty Lords,

*ThePukeof " \ /f Onfieur, the Velt-Marfhal d'Auverquefque, having fent Matlboro's. *«- ^\ ^ Monfieur de Waflenaer, to inform your High Mighti- Lettertothe « nefie6 of the Victory, which GOD was gracioufly pleafed to UteS' " g've us over fhe Enemy on Sunday laft, I deferred my Con- " gratulations, till to Day> that I might be able, at the fame *' time, to acquaint your High Mightinefles, with the Succefs * ' of our Defign to pafs the Deule, which we had determin'd to *' attempt this Morning. But the Enemy have thought fit to " fpare us that Trouble, having left us an open Field, by their " Retreat towards Bruflels ; fo that, with double Joy, I have " the Honour to write this Letter to your High Mightinefles, *' from Louvain, where, for the Good of the common Caufe, 1 had " long rwiJb'J to be. 'Tis certain, that all the Generals, Officers, ** and Soldiers, have done all that was poflible for Men to per- *' form, on that glorious Day j and their Conduct and Bravery *' cannot be fufHciemly praifed. I make no manner of Doubt, " but that Meflieurs, the Deputies, and Monfieur d' Auverquer- " que, have done Juftice to your own Troops, and that your ' ' High Mightinefles will feek Occafions to acknowledge and " reward the Deferts of fo many brave Men. I have made *•' Choice of Colonel Chanclos, to carry this agreeable News tf to your High Mightinefles, both by reafon of hisMeritin the " laft Campaign, and of his Service in this. He will acquaint " your High Mightinefles with the Particulars of all that has '• pafs'd, and the prefent Pofture of the Enemy, whom we are " refolved to purfue. It ihall always be my greateft Delight to " fhew to your High Mightinefles my inviolable Adherence to " your Intereft, and that lam, with great Refpecl,

" Your High Mightinefles, £rV.'v Louvain, May 25,

1706. ThePrinceand Duke of MARLBOROUGH.

A Remark The Reader will remember, that in my Account of the Tranf*

upon part of a#joriS of tne Year 1 703, among other Pieces, I inferted the

^ £" Reafons alledg'd by the Duke of Marlborough, and feveral

other Generals, in a Council of War held the 24th of Augult,

of that Year, why they were for forcing the French Lines ; and

the Reafons given by tlje Dutch Deputies and Generals, for not

attempting them. Thg Duke's Words were :

" If

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 369

" If we attempt their Lines, mould they pretend to defend 1706. *' them, we may, with the Afliitance of the ALMIGHTY, hope ****Y**J tl to gain a complete Vidlory, the Cmfeytences of which may be " of more Importance than can be forefeen ; and fhould the/ think " bell to retire, there is Ground to hope, we mi%ht pujbfor- " ward very fuccefsfidlyt and draw mighty Ad-vantages from «• it."

In Anfwer to this? the Words of the Dutch Deputies and Ge- nerals are : %

" Suppofing the Lines forc'd, it is to be confider'd WhatAd- " vantage will come of it, and whether we mail then be able *' to penetrate into the Country, and to march to Tirlemont *' and Louvain. What gives Ground to apprehend we mail " not, is, that the Enemy, a little within their Lines, have " Foils to retire to, that are more defenfable than their Lines ; " for Inftance, that of Ramellies ; where their Right being ex- ' ' tended to the Mehaigne, near Taviers, and their Left towards " Ramellies and Autreglife, they will have a narrow Aperture of ff but 1200 Paces to defend.'1''

Now upon that very Spot were the Enemy fought and beaten, at this time. The great Share the Dutch had, in gaining this Vidlory, makes fome Amends for the wrong Judgment they form'd in 1703,, and the Confequ&ices of it (which the Reader will fee below) are a mining Proof of the Duke's excellent Judgment and Forefight : Upon which his Grace had much Ren- fon to value himfelf, and remind the States General, (as he does in the above Letter) that he was, at length arrived, where he had long wi/frd to be, for the Good of the common Caufe.

c.

Monjieur a" Auverquerque wrote alfo the foUo^cing Letter to the States.

High and Mighty Lords,

' TT has pleafed GOD ALMIGHTY to grant to the Arms 6f A Letter " JL the States, and thofe of the High Allies, on the twenty- from Mor»f, " third of this Month, being Whitfunday, a complete Viflqry d[^™\a " over our Enemies, for which Bfeffings we ought to return him S^s'tttes* ** our Praifes and Acknowledgments. I have given myfelf the General, " Honour to congratulate your High Mightiness, and to caufe " an Account of the Particulars of that Action to be given to " you, by my Adjutant, Monfieur de Waffenaer. We mall " ufe all poffible Diligence to improve this Advantage, by vigo- " roufly purfuing the Enemy. We pifs'd the Deule this Morn- " ing, and are come to encamp near Tor-Banch, having Lou-. " vain behind us. The Enemy retired upon our Approach, VOL. I. B b "and

Me Life of ] O H N,

and are, at prefent, encamped beyond the Canal, near Grim- bergen. I muft do Juftice to the Bravery and Refutation of your Troops, Generals and fubaltern Officers, by afluring your High Mightinefles, that they have, in truth, a great Share in the Victory. The Eng'ifh and Auxiliary Troops have alfb maintained their Reputation ;• and gain'd no lef&- Honour. My Lord Duke of Marlborough, according to bis laudable Cufiom, has performed all that could be expected from a great Captain. The Enemy have really fuffered a great Lofs : But i cannot yet acquaint your High Mightinefles with the exaft Number of their Slain ; they could only fave 2 or 3 Pieces of Cannon ; the reft, to the Number of 50, being, fallen into our Hands ; we have, likewife, taken 70 Standards and Colours, and 200 high and fubaltern Officers, without «« reckoning whst the Englifh have taken. I have given Leave *« to many of my Prifoners to go home, upon their Parole, for 3 " Months ; fonie of them being much wounded, and others hav- " ing, by the Fate of War, been ftripp'd of their Cloaihs. The " Number of Soldiers taken Pi iibners, amounts to three thou- fc land, whom I havefent to Maeftricht, by the Way of Liege, to "be difperfcd in other Places. We have, on our Side, loft feveral «' good Officers of Note ; and, among the reft, Prince Lewis o£ " Hefle, Colonel of Foot. I fhall order an exacl Lift to be *' given me, of the Officers and Soldiers that have been kill'd " and wounded in this Adlion, which I {hall give myfelf the «' Honour to tranfmit to your High Mightineffes. I hope and " pray, that GOD will continue his Bleffing, upon your Arms, *' and thofe of your Allies, in order to attain the defir'd End^ " lam of Opinion, that this Army ought to be forthwith re- " inforced, as much as poflible, both to maintain our Advan- " tages, and pufh them farther on ; and, in order to that, •v Troops mult be drawn out of the Garrifons ; fince they are " now iufficiently out of Danger. The Enemy will do their " utmoft to make themfelves ftronger, here, and the Marlhal " de Marfm is to join them in a Day or two, with a great De-1 " tzichment. I remain, with much Refpeft, tfr.

At the Camp near Louvain, J^n '

May the z6th, 1706.

Extracl of a. Lttter, from Lieutenant-Gewral Wood, t* a nobh Friend.

Extrafl of a «« ^""\NE of the Lieutenant-Colonels, who was much wound- Ge^r°m " ^J ed' remembring me, fince the laft War, called out to Wo'rlTtoa " me to fave his Life, as I did : The other Lieutenant Colonel

Friend.

Duke O/MARLBOROUGH, &c. 371

came to me, and yielded himfelf Prisoner alfo. Both thefe 1 706. affured me, the Day after the Battle, ta;-t the Elector him- felf, and the Marfhal de Vi'leroy were in the Croud, and not ten Yards ofF from me, when they two called out to me for Quarter, and that they -narrowly efcap'd: Which had I been fo fortunate as to have known, I had ftrain'd Carolia-i nus, [bis Horfe] on whom I rode all the Day of Battle, to have made them Prifoners."

The EleSor of Bavaria s Letter to the French King. Si R,

*< Lofs,

the Events df the Battle of Ramellies had anfwered the A ^^^ Hopes we expected from it, it would not have been the from die but the Gain of a Battle, that I mould have acquaint- Eletlur of " ed your Majefty with. There is no Fault to be imputed to * vinatvi.

L /-i i i_ i T, r , the Frescfl

' the Generals^ who have commanded, nor the Troops who j^g. ** have fought, but to a Fatality without Example. I have a tl Heart fo full of this Misfortune, that 1 cannot exprefs to <l your Majefty the Burden I labour under. The Lofs, Sir, of '< the Battle of Ramellies, which has been as fatal as that of " Hochftadt, convinces me, that it is not the Number of an *' Army, nor the advantageous Situation of a Camp, nor the " Courage of Soldiers, that give the Victory, but GOD alone. " When I ferioufly confider all that has pafs'd in this great *' Action (where your Majefty's Houfhold, and my Cuiraffiersi *' broke no lefs than three times the Enemy's Left,) I mult ". confefs I do. not comprehend the Builnefs of War. The only '* Confolation that remains, Sir, in my Misfortunes, is, that I *< have done.' nothing contrary to your Orders, which Mirftial *' Villeroy cannot but acknowledge, as w£ll as all the Officers *' of the Army, who have feen me expofe myfelf as much as ** the meaneft Soldier ; and, if the Peril of my Life would have *' purchas'd a Vidlory, it would affuredly not have been my *' Fault, that your Majefty's Arms had not been triumphant : «* But the Evil is befallen us, and what remains is to feek thi " Means of remedying it. I expeft, in all this Chaos of Con- «' fufion, your Majefty's Orders, and am,

Near Louvain, May '

23,1706. Your Majefty's, &V.

The Eledlor of B A v A R i A .

fife 2 F.

372 tte LfiofJOHX,

i;r6. V-"-yx.J F.

Their High Mightim fas return' d the following Anfaer to the Duet of Marthrough's Letter.

SIR,

A Letter " 'HT'HE News brought, the Day before yefterday, by Ad- from the «« jutant General de Waflenaer, of the great and fignal

fkafr\ it0 " Victory, which the Army of the Allies, under your wife and c " courageous Conduct, has, by the Blefling of GOD, gained <f over that of the Enemy, has fillM our Hearts, and the Hearts " of all the good Subjects of our Commonwealth, with unfpeak- " able Joy, which is now redoubled, by the Confirmation of " it in your Excellency's Letter, of the 25th Inllant, which " was delivered to us before the Arrival of Colonel de Chanclos, " and, at the fame time, acquaints us with your glorious Entry " into Louvain, from whence we have a long time as much " wifh'd to hear from you, as your Excellency has defir'd to be " there, for the Good of the common Caufe. We do, in Re- " turn, congratulate with your Excellency, for the happy Suc- " cefs of this great and glorious Action ; a Succefs principally " owing, after the divine Benediction, to your Conduct and " Valour, which will render your Glory immortal. It is a " particular Satisfaction we receive from the Teitimony which " you have given of the Courage and Bravery of our Troops ; " for tho' \ve r.ever doubted but they would follow the Steps of " fo great a Captain, as your Excellency is, yet this Teflrmony •' is extremely advantageous to them, and acceptable to us. " We will not forget the Services which they have performed " on this great Occa&on. We pray GOD to blefs more and " more all your Def, ns and Enterprizes : And fmce your Glo- *' ry, after the Battle* of Schellemberg, Hochftadt, and Ra- " mellies, can receive no Addition, by the Greatnefs of Vidlo- " ries, we wife it may by their Number. We defire you to " believe, that the Efteem, \ve have for your Excellency's Per- " fon, and rare Merit, cannot be greater. We are Your Excellency's

Moft affectionate to ferve yon,

The STATES GENERAL of the

At the Hague, May United Provinces of the Low

27, 1706. Countries;

G. de SUY LT de Serofskercke.

By their Command,

F. FAGEL.

" ' * - Afiae

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 373

A fine Medal was ftruck, at Utrecht, on Occafion of the 1706. Vidory at Ramellies : U— V— -J

The Face reprefents a General arm'd, and fallen on the M dal °* Ground, his Shield and Sword drop' d,. holding up his Hand JeR^"[! in a fuppliant Pofture ; and Pailas Handing over him, her left jies/ Hand on his Shoulder, keeping him down, her right Hand ele- vated, with a Palm-Branch in it, denoting Victory. Over the .General are the Words LUDOVICUS MAGNUS ; (Lewis the Great;} and over Pallas, ANNA MAJOR ; (Greater ANN.)

On the Reverfe is the Story of Abimelech's being kilTd, in attacking the Tower of Thebez, as it is related in the ninth Chapter of Judges ; and rtprefents a Tower attack'd ; the Af- failants are endeavouring to fet it on Fire, in one Part, in ano- ther they aflault it with mrffive Weapons, and are oppos'd from, the Battlements, by the Defendants, among whom is a Woman, with her Arms ftretch'd out, as in the Aclion of having juit thrown down a Stone, which lighting on the Head of Abi- melech, who is near the Gate of the Tower, makes him drop his Sword and Shield, and, in a finking Pofture, he is turned towards his Armour-bearer, who Hands ne;ir him, in the Action of drawing a Sword. Above are the Words, PER CUTE ME,

ME D1CATUR QJJOD A FOEMINA INTERFECTUS SIM.

Jud. Cap. 9. ( Tbrujf me tbro\ lefl Men fay of me , IwasJIainby a Hroman.) On the Edge of the Medal arc the Words, DOM i-

NUS TRAOIDIT HUM INMANUsFoEMIN^E. |ud. Cap. 1 6.

(lThe LORD has delinje^d him into the Ha?iJ of a Woman. )

After the Battle of Ramellies, a General Revolution followed, The Conk- throughout the Low Countries, and the Allies were blefs'd with>.jL.f^etSj f a continued Chain of Conquefts. The Inhabitants of thofe Pro- Ramellies. vinces (weary of the French Government) received the Con- federate Generals every where as their Deliverers, who had re- deem'd them from Slavery, and recover'd their antient Li- berty.

The French having abandon'd Louvain, as we have heard above, and being retired over the Canal of Bruflels, the Duke of Marlborough purfued them, without lofs of time, and having decamp' d from Bethlem, advanced to Digham, the z6th of May, N. S. In this March, his Grace received the fol- lowing Letter, from the Marquis de Deynfe, Governour of Bruflels.

SIR, Bruflels, Mav 26, 1706.

" rTPHE States of Brabant, and the Magiftracy of Bruflels, The Mar- " J_ have taken the Refolution to fend Deputies to you : ^' dfe, '•' They have defired me, Sir, to write to you, molt humbly to Letter'to *' defire you to fend a Trumpeter, to conduft them in Safety, the Duk- of _" to the Plage where you mall think fit to receive them. I Marifeorov B b 3 " have

374

1 70*1.

rhe Life of J O H K,

have not the Honour, Sir, to fay more to you, concerning " my particular Interefts, and thofe of other Perfons of QualJT " ty, who feem refolved to ftay there, if you approve of it. I f have the Honour to be, with Refpeft, Si R,

Your moft humble,

and moft obedient Servant,

The Marquis de DEYNSE.

The Duke, hereupon, fent Colonel Panton, ore of his Aids bant"' &c!" *k Camp, with a Compliment to the Marquis, and the States wa.t' on the of Brabant, to let them know he fhould be glad to fee them, in Puke of the Afternoon. According to this Invitation, they came to his Alarlboro'. Grace's Quarters, near Dighem, with two other Deputations, ore from rhe Sovereign Council of Brabant, the other from the Bttrgomafters, and City of Bruflels. They all exprcfs'd, as well their Satisfaction at their being delivered from the French Yoke, as their deep Senfe of the Obligations they owed to the Queen of Great Britain, and the State1; General. As foon as they were gone, his Grace, in Conjunction wjth the Field De- puties of the States, wrc^s the following Letter to the States of Frabant.

!«' Gi ace's

snd the

fv':;l cttcrto the Stales of Urabtnt.

GENTLEMEN,

GOD ALMIGHTY having ble&'d the Arms of the Allies, in behalf of his Majefly, King Charles the third, and the Retreat of the Army of France having given us the Op- portunity of approaching your Capital, I come to allure you of the Intentions of the Queen, my Miftrefs, as the Deputies do, on the Part of the States General, their Mafters, and, in the firft Place, to tell you, that her Majefty, and their High Mightineflcs, have fent us to maintain the juft Rights of his faid Catholick Majefty, Charles the 3d, to the Kingdom of Spain, and to all that depends thereon ; and that her Maje- fty, the Queen, and their High Mightinefles, nothing doubt- ing, but that you being likewife convinced of the lawful Sq- vereignty of his faid Majefty, will, with Pleafure, embrace this Occafion of fubmitting yourfelves to his Obedience, as faithful Subjects. We can allure you, Gentlemen, at the fame time, on the Part of the Queen, and the States, that his Ca- tholick Majefty will maintain you, in the entire Enjoyment of all your antient Rights and Privileges, as well Ecclefia- ftical as Secular ; that we will be very far from -making the leaft Innovation in what concerns Religion; and that his Ca- tholick Majefty will caufe thofe ConceJ|ons to be renewed, which are termed, The joyful Entry of Brabant, in the fame Manner, as they were granted by his PredecefTor, Charles

. I.

373.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, £sV. the 2d, of glorious Memory. As to our felves, we afore you, that the Army fhall be employed every where for your Protection, in Aich Manner as you defire it ; and that we vvijl moft earneftly feek, in every thing, the Opportunities of fhswing the Refpetfl, and fmcere Elteem, wherewith we have the Honour to be,

Gentlemen,

At the Camp of Your moft humble, and

;JJeauli~j, May moft obedient Servants,

26,1706. The Prince and Duke of MARL BOROUGH.

Ferdinand van Co L L E N . Sieur GOSLINCA.

His 'Grace judg'd it neceffary to write-this Letter to the In Inftar •States of Brabant, not only to enable them to affonble, but of thf . likevvife to prompt ,them to declare immediately for King ^"^ ^ Churles III. before the Enemy had recover'd their Confterna- Afiiduity. tion, and could make a Stand. Two other .Letters, of the like Tenor, were aifo fern to the Sovereign -Council of Brabant, and to the -City of Bruffels, all which had the defined Effedl : For, •the very next Day, the three Deputations attended his Grace, and the Dutch Deputies, with three Letters ; the firft from the Chancellour, and Members of his Majefty's Sovereign Council, •which was as follows.:

OUR LORDS,

:c \y\7E have, this Morning, received the Letter, w/hich A l ctt.r V V your Highnefs, and your Excellencies, were pleafed from the " to write to us, at the Camp of Beaulieu, yeflerday ; upon Sovereign «' which we have the Honour to tell you, that we fubmit our- 9ou^.t " felves to the Obedience of his Majefty King Charles the *jj {£» *' third, and that we will, upon all Occafions, give Jiim fmcere puties, " Teftimonies of the fame Fidelity, which we have paid to his *« Majefty, Charles the fecond, of glor.oiis Memory. We " thank your Highnefs, and your Excellencies, for the AlTu- *' ranees which you give us, on the Part of her Majefty, the •«' Queen of Great-Eritain, and the High and Mighty Lords *c the States -General, and particularly for that his Majefty " Charles the third, will maintain us in the entire .Enjoyment •« of all our antient Rights and Privileges, as well Ecclefiafti- " cal as Secular:; that no Attempt fhall be made upon our Re- " ligion, and that his Majefty will renew the Conceffions, call- <c ed The Joyful Entry, in fuch Manner as the fame was fworn " by his late Majefty, Charles the fecond. We fend Deputies " of our Body to exprefs thefe our Thoughts, by Word of •f Mouth, to your Highnefs, and your Excelleucies, to make B b 4 '* our

tte Life of J O H N,

our Acknowledgments for the Proteftion, which you have been pleafed to promife us, upon all Occafionsj and to affurc you, that we are, with great Refpea,

Bruflels, May 27, 1726.

Ordered in Brabant.

A Letter from the States of Brabant to the fame.

My LORDS,

Your Highnefs's and your Excellencies moft humble and molt obedient Servants,

The Chancellour and Members of his Majefty's Sovereign Council.

J. GILSON.

The zd Letter from the Members of the three Eftates of Brabant, to his Grace, and the Deputies, was in thefe Words.

OUR LORDS,

" \\1 E have received, with all pofiible Refpea, the Let- " V V ter which your Highnefs, and your Excellencies did " us the Honour to write to us, the 26th Inftant, and fhalj, " without any Lofs of Time, communicate it in the ufual " and reqnifite Form, to the other Members of the three " States of this Country, whom it may concern. In the mean " time, we are come, our Lords, to return you a thoufand " moft humble Thanks, for the obliging Offers, and the moft *' honourable Marks, we have received, of the Proteaion, '* which your Highnefs, and your Excellencies are pleafed to " grant us, on the Part of her Majefty, the Queen of Great *' Britain, and their High Mightinefies, the States General ; " as alfo for the fincere Aflurances given, that his Catholick " Majefty, King Charles the third, will maintain us in the " full Enjoyments of our ancient Rights and Privileges, both " Ecclcfiaftical and Civil, without permitting the leaft Inno- " vation to be made, in ar.y thing that relates to the Church ; " and that his faid Majefty will caufe the Conceffions, known " under the Name of Tbs joyful Entry of Brabant, to be re- " newed in the lame Manner, as was done by King Charles the " fecond, of glorious Memory. We do not doubt but the " other Members of the States, in the Day of their General *' AflembJy, will exprefs (as we do at this prefent) their per- " fea Submiffion and Obedience, which {hall be follow'd by " that Loyalty and fervent Zeal, which we have always ftiewn *' for hi*, whom God has granted to us, to be our Matter " and Sovereign. We are alib penetrated with a lively Senfe, » «« of

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &?r. 377

(( of all the Goodnefs and Favours, wherewith your Highnefs 1706. " and your Excellencies, in particular, have been plealed to <— %— -* " honour us ; and we humbly pray, that you will be fully per- " fuaded, that we have the Honour to be with Efteem,

OUR LORDS,

Your Highnefs's and your Excellencies

moil humble and moft obedient Servants,

May 27, 1706. The Members of the three States of this

Country and Dutchy of Brabant, who are now in this City of Bruffels. By their Command,

H. VAN BROCKE,

The third Letter^vas from the Burgo-Mafters, Sheriffs, and Council of the City of Bruffels, as fellows :

OUR LORDS,

* ' » *TH I S with profound Refpeft, that we have received From the

" your very obliging Letter, by which your Highnefs, City of

" and your Excellencies, have been pleafed to affure us, of the Bruff«J»*

" generous Protection of her Majeily of Great Britain, and

" their High Mightineffes the States General; and that his

" Catholick Majelty, Charles the third, will maintain us in

c< the entire Enjoyment of our antient Rights and Privileges,

" both Ecclefaftical and Civil, without fuffering the leaft In-

" novation to be made in what concerns Religion ; and that his

" Majeily will renew the Conceffions, known under the Nam*

" of The joyful Entry of Brabant, in as full and ample Manner,

" as they were granted to us by King Charles II. of glorious

" Memory. We aflure you, our Lords, that, on our Part,

" we will give you the moft lively Marks of our Fidelity,

" Zeal and Obedience to his faid Catholick Majefty. We are

" likewife very fenfible of all the Marks your Highnefs, and

*' your Excellencies, in particular, have been pleafed to give us

" of your Goodnefs, Favour and Protection, and {hall eter-

f< nally acknowledge the infinite Obligations we have to you ;

*' and are with molt profound Veneration,

OUR LORDS, Your Highnefs's, and your Excellencies,

moft humble and moft obedient Servants,

The Burgo-Mafter, Sheriffs, and Council of the City of Bruffels. H. JACOBS.

Befides

37« ^ Life of J O H N,

i-c6. Eefides the Concerns of thefe Letters, the rerpe&ive Depti- i^-Y—) ties repeated tlie -great Senfe they had of her Majeily's Good- nefs, in relieving them from the Opprefiion of the Fiench Government.

Croat Dex- The Submiffion of Bruffels, whkh had afterwards fo great tir:ty in the an Influence on the other Towns in Brabant and Flanders, be- Man:,ge- ^^ Qne of ^ moft. cur;QUs Points of the Hiftory of this Cam- ^g^ tjJ'S paign, I {hall add, in this Place, the following memorable Letter, from the Field Deputies of the State?, to their High Mightinefies, on that Subje&, than which there can be no greater Teftimony and Monument of the Prudence and Dexte- rity, with which his Grace the Duke of Mariborough, .vith their AffiiUnce, proceeded in an Affair of fo nice a Nature ; as well as becaufe ic gives not only feme farther curious C fiances of this Matter, but of the Battle, ~? which this was the happy Confcquence : And what might farther be expected from this glorious Beginning of the Campaign.

High and Mighty Lords,

The States « AFTER having given the necefiary Orders in Lou-

Peputii « ^-^ vajnj to prcfefvc the reft cf the Magazines of Meal

theft 'H^H " an° Oats, ar'd difcover the Provi£ons the French had put

Mightincf- " mto fevcral Monafteries, we marched from that Camp (tha,t

fet. '* is, Bethlem) and, being on our March, my Lord Duke re-

" ceived a Letter from the Marfhal de Deynfe, Governour of

" Brufiels, in the Name of the Deputies of the States of Bra-

" bant, and the Magiftrates of Brufiels, wherein they defired

«' my Lord Duke to appoint an Hour and Place to receive a

»' Deputation of the fdid States, who being now abandoned by

" the French, were willing to fubmit to the Arms of Eng-

" land, and the States General. The fame Evening, tbout

** fix, my Lord Duke <lid us the Honour to come to our

" Quarters, and bring along with him the States of Brabant.

" But before we receiv'd them, we had a private Conference

** with my Lord Duke, who told us, that he found them in a

" favourable Difpofition, to caufe, upon the Demand of his

" Grace, and the Deputies of your High Mightineffes, thje

•' three States of Brabant to meet, with all poffible Expedi-

*' tion, to proceed to the Recognition of King Charles the third, " for their lawful Sovereign, in a molt folcmn Manner ; where- •' upon, we thought it of the higheft Importance to the com-

" mon Csufe, in this junclure, to improve their favourable

ft Dj'pofition, in hopes that the Example of Brabant, and the

*' capital City in particular, will be followed by the other Pro-

** vdnces. This will give us, likewife, an Opportunity to per-

•'•' fuade them to re-call their Troops in the Service of France •

"And

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

And befides we do not queftion, but this will have ano- ther good Effeft, viz. to encourage the Spaniards and Wal- loons, and even the Bavarians, to defert : The two former, becaufe they may have the fame Employments under their lawful Prince, and the latter becaufe they are exafperated a- gainft the French, whom they charge not to have done their Duty in the late Battle. The Elector himfelf has expreis'd the fame Things in very plain Terms. Thefe were the chief Things that were agreed upon, between my Lord Duke and us, which being fet down in Writing, and communica- ted to the Deputies of the States of Brabant, &c. aforefaid, who approved the fame, Letters were directed to the fevera} Members thereof, to caufe their refpeclive Bodies to be af- fembled to-morrow or next Day. We hope, that your High, Mightineffes will approve our Conducl in this Affair, which is fo nice in itfelf, that it would not admit of any Delay, and that you will fend us your farther Orders and Inftruclions, with all poflible Speed. Having in one of our former., re- prefented the Neceffity to caufe the Artillery to be brought from Coblentz, we mall add in this, that having conferred with my Lord Duke, on that Subjedt, we have pitch'd upon Dort, as the moft convenient Place, where that Artil- lery is to be brought. Your High Mightinefles will give us Leave to complain, once more, that there is not here any one Prefident of the Council of War, nor Fifcal or Provoft, nor any Perfons belonging to the Hofpitals, tho' the former are abfolutely neceflary for keeping the Troops under a good Difcipline, and the other for looking after the Wounded, and to take Care of fo many gallant Men, who have fo bravely and fo joyfully expos'd their Lives, for the Service of the State. We cannot likewife forbear, on this Occafion, to defire your High Mightinefles to take into Confideration, «' whether it will not be fitting to give fome Gratuity to your «' brave Soldiers, as it has been iometimes pradlis'd on the f like Occafion ; for we dare fay, that their Bravery cannot be fufficiently praifed, and our Enemies admire it, and com- mend it themfelves.

" The Enemy had all the Troops of the Houfhold, and the choiceft Regiments of all their other Forces, in that Place ; and having, befides, the Advantage of the Ground, and 50 Pieces of Cannon in Front, to cover them, they thought themfelves invincible ; but notwithftanding the fame, the " Army of the two Powers, (England and Holland) and in " particular the Troops of your High Mightinefles, which ?' being pofted on the Left, had the Right of the Enemy to en- *' gage> where the Troops of the Houfhold, with their Ar- f mours on, were, attack'd them with fo much Vigour, in 2 Front

3*0 Me Lfi of JOHN,

- 1 706. " Front and Flank, that they facilitated the Victory to our " Right Wing : Therefore we take the Liberty to recommend " thefe brave Troops to your High Mightinefles, that they may " be encouraged to behave themfelves in the like Manner.on the " like Occafion,a$ it may very well ftill happen this Campaign, " which in all Probability will decide the Fate of this War. " We cannot, on the other hand, forbear to acquaint your " High Mightinefles, that feveral Generals of the Cavalry of " the Left Wing, and even all the Brigadiers, except one, are " abfent, as are alfo a great many Officers of lefler Rank, of " whom we have ordered a Lift to be made. We have or- " der'd fome Regiments out of the Frontier Places, which are " now out of all Danger, by this Viftory, to march, and we* " defire your High Mightinefles to give Orders to all the " Troops in the Provinces, &c. to march, with all Speed, " that this unfpeakable Conllernation of the Enemy, and the " favourable Seafon, may be rightly improved to the belt " Advantage. The Confufion the Enemy were in, after the " Battle, cannot be exprefled, as we are informed by the Sieur " St. Gravenmoer, who was an Eyewitnefs thereof, having been " taken Prifoner when the Enemy broke thro' our firft Line. " He reports, that the Eleftor, notwithftanding his great Cou- " rage and the Bravery he exprefs'd in the Battle, couid not " forbear to melt in Tears, in his Prefence, as did alfo feveral *' other Generals. In Ihort, the Viftory is compleat, and the " happy Confequences thereof begin to appear. We congra- " tulate your High Mightinefles on that Account, and hope to " have Matter enough to repeat the Compliment, the Con- *' juncture being very favourable, and the Duke applying " himfelf to it with all poffible Zeal. We fhall, on Sunday " next, return our folemn Thanks to God Almighty, to whom " thefe great Succefles are owing, and offer up our Prayers, "'that he would be pleafed to continue to blefs the Arms of " the Allies, and put a Stop, by means of a lading and ho- " nourable Peace, to the EfFufion of Cl.riftian Blood. We re- " main, &c.

FERDINAND VAN COLL EN.

F. A. Baron VAN RHEEDE.

S. VAN GOSLING A.

P. S. " The Towns of Malines and Aloft have fubmitted " themfelves ; the City of Bruflels, and the Court of Juftice " being aflembled, while \ve were writing the Letter above, " have declared themfelves for King Charles ; but the other fc three States cannot meet till within 8 Days. There is no

•« doubt

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 381

doubt but they will fubmit likewife. There being a great 1706. Number of Colours and Standards taken by your own Troops, v-*v*»> we defire the Inftruftions of your High Mightineffes about the Difpoial thereof. We have ordered to take a Lift of the Names of who have taken them, that they may receive the Reward promifed for their Encouragement.

The Duke of Marlborough being defirous to give all the Se- curity and Satisfaction he pofiibly could to the feveral Towns and Countries, which had fubmitted to> the Obedience of their lawful Sovereign, King Charles III. and that they might have an entire Dependance upon the Affurances given them by his Grace, and the Deputies of the States General, thought fit to publim the following Order, at the Camp at Beaulieu.

" John, Duke and Earl of Marlborough, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, Marquis of Blandford, Baron Churchill of Ay mouth, one of her Britannick Majefty 's moft honourable Privy Council, Knight of the moft Noble Order of the Garter, Matter-General of the Ordnance, Colonel of the firft Regiment of her Majefty's Guards, Captain- General of her Land Forces, and Commander in Chief of the Army of the Allies.

WH E R E A S God has gracioufly blefs'd the juft Arms The D. of of the Allies, with a Victory over the French Forces, Marlboro'* and thereby brought us into the Spanifli Netherlands, which Provinces we acknowledge to belong rightfully to his Catho- lick Majefty, King Charles the Hid, we are refolved to pro- tect thefe Provinces, and maintain all their Inhabitants in the quiet Poffeffion of their Effefts and Eftates, as good Subjects of his faid Majefty. Wherefore, by thefe Prefents, we for- bid all the Officers and Soldiers of our Army, to do the leaft Hurt to the faid Inhabitants ; but, on the contrary, command them, to give them all the Help and Affiftance they fhall re- quire : And declare, that if any Soldier {hall be taken plun- dering, or doing any other Damage to the faid Inhabitants, their Houfes, Cattle, Moveables, or other Goods, he mall immediately be punifhed with Death ; and, the more effectual- ly to reftrain Maroders, and oblige the Officers to keep their Soldiers under ftrift Difcipline, we further declare, that the Regiments or Corps, to which any Soldiers taken, tranfgref- fing this our Order, belong, mall be obliged to make good to the faid Inhabitants, all the Lofs and Damage they may have fuftained, without any other Form or Procefs, than the appre- hending fuch Soldiers in the Fa£t, who, (as is abovefaid) mall fuffer Death without Mercy, And that no Perfon may pretend

" Ignorance

rbe Life of JOHN*.

Ignorance hereof, we command that thefe Prefents be fortlr- with read and publifhed, at the Head of each Squadron anc$ " Battalion of our Army, and that a printed Copy be diftribu- " ted to each Company. Given in our Camp at Beaulieu, the «* 26th of May, 1706.

Sign'd,

The Prince and Duke of MA RLBO ROUGH.

Mechlin The fame Day, in the Evening, the Inhabitants of Mechlin

febnuts. (OT Malines) waited upon the Duke of Marlborough, and the Field Deputies, and made their Submiffion ; whereupon his Grace fent Colonel Dare), Adjutant-General, with a Detach- ment of 200 Horfe, to take Poffeffion of that Town, whofe Go- vernour furrender'd himfelf Prifoner.

The Army The Duke of Marlborough, having fent hk Brother, General marches to Churchill, with four Battalions of Foot, and two Squadrons of Crimlerg. HorfCj to cornmand in Bruflels, caufed the Army, the fevcn and twentieth of May, N. S. to pafs the Canal of that City, and to encamp at Grimberg, where his Grace, and the Field-Depu- ties, received the three Deputations and Letters above-mentioned, and where it was thought reafonable, after the great Fatigue the Troops had undergone, to give them two Days Repofe. From Grimberg, his Grace wrote the following Letter to Mr. Secretary Harley.

Hit Grace the Duke of Marllorough* s Letter to tht Right Honour- able Mr. Secretary Harley.

SIR, Camp at Grimbergh, May 28, 1706.

A Letter <f T HoP° Colonel Richards will be with you, in a Day or

from the " M. two, with the good News of our Vi&ory over the Ene-

Dukeof^' «< my, which, by the Event, appears to be much greater than

Marlboro' to <i we couid nave expeded. For on Monday Night, while we

wHariey.**' " were ma'c'ng our Dilpofition to force the Paffage of the Deule^

" by break of Day, the next Morning, we had Advice, that

" the Enemy, having abandoned Louvam, were retired towards

" Bruflels, fo that we made our Bridges, and pafs'd the River,

" without any Oppofition. We encamped, that Day, at

" Bethlem ; and continued our March next Morning early. A-

" bout to o'Clock, I received the enclofed Letter by a

" Trumpet from the Marquis de Deynfe, Governour of that

" Place: Whereupon I fent Colonel Panton, one of my Aids de"

" Camp, with a Compliment to him and the States, to let them

" know, I fhottld be glad to fee them in the Afternoon. About

«? fouf

Duke of MA RL BOROUGH, &c,

*' four o'Clock', they came to Digham, with two other Deputa- ** tions, one from the Sovereign Council of Brabant, and the ** other from the Burgomafters and City of Erufiels. They all ** fhew'd great Satisfaction at their being, delivered from the " French Yoke, and exprefs'dr with a very becoming Re- *' fpeft, the Obligation they owe to her Majefty, on thisOcca- " fion. As foon as they were gone, I writ a Letter, in Con- " junction with the Deputies of the Army, to the States, " whereof you have here a Copy. I was advifed to it as necef- " fary, not only to enable them to afiemble, but likewife, Cf to prompt them to declare immediately for King Charles, " before the Enemy came to make a Stand. We wrote " two other Letters, of the like Tenor, to the Sovereign " Council, and to the City, which have ail the good Effect ** we could \virn : For yefterday, in the Afternoon, the three ** Deputations returned with the Letters, whereof you have " likewife Copies, owning his Catholick Majefty in Form. " They repeated again the great Senfe they have of her Ma- " jefty's Goodnefs, in relieving them from the Oppreflion of " the French Government ; and I can aflure you, there " feems to be an univerfal Joy among all Sorts of People. The " Magiftrates of Mechlin, and thofe of Aloft, have likewife " been with me, and made their Submiffion. The Enemy *' have abandon'd Liere, and carried all their Artillery and " Stores to Antwerp, which, I reckon, is now the only Place in *' Brabant we are not Matters of. The Army pafs'd the Canal '• of Bruflels yefterday, and came and encamped at this Place, " where we halt to-day and to. morrow, to refrefh the Troops, " who have marched fix Days together, without any Reft. No- " thing could excufe the giving them fo great a Fatigue, efpe- « cially after a Battle, but the Neceffity of purfuing the Enemy, «< and getting hither. However, I mall fend a Detachment to- « morrow, to poflefs themfelves of Aloft. I leave my Brother *« Churchill to command at Bruffels, with four Battalions of «< Foot, and two Squadrons. Our hafty Purfuit of the Enemy «« obliged them to leave a great Number of wounded Officers *« there, who are made Pnfoncrs of War, among others the w Count de Horn, a Lieutenant-General, and the Earl of Clare, «« a Major-General ; but the latter died, on Wednefday, of his " Wounds. There are likewife great Numbers in other Places. " On Sunday, we fliall continue our March to Aloft, and fo " on towards Gand, (or Ghent) to prefs th'e Enemy whiKt the «* Confternation continues among them. I cannot help fay ing, •' That, I think a Viftory was never more compleat, nor *' greater Advantages made of the Succefs, in fo ihort Time. I " hope God will continue to blefs her Majefty's Arms, till the ** Enemy be reduced to a firm and folid Peace. Befides the

" great

The Life of J O H N,

' great Slaughter that was made in the Battle, of their Left Troops we have an Account from all Parts of great Numbeis ' of Deferters, that are gone to Liege, Maeftricht, and other ' Frontier Places, fince the Aclion, whereby their Army muff ' be much weakened.

I am, &c.

MARYBOROUGH.

The *even and twentieth, the Duke of Maryborough fent his Thr Du'cc Brother, General Churchill, with four Battalions of Foot, and rough^oes two Squidrons of Horfe, to command in Bruffels ; and the eight teBiuflels. and twentieth, his Grace made his publick Entry into that City with great State ;' he was met at the Gate, by the Magiftrates, who prefented him with the Keys ; which he returned, with Af- furances of her Majelly of Great Britain's Protection. After hav- ing received the Compliments of fuch of the Nobility, as had not followed the Elector of Bavaria, who, at the fame time, ex- prefsM their AftedHon and Fidelity to King Charles III. and hav- ing paid Viiits to feveral Ladies of the hi^heft Diftinftion, being every where highly carefs'd, and received with all poflible De- monilrations of Joy and Refpeft, his Grace returned, in the Evening, to the Camp, where he received Advice, that the Enemy, having carried away their Cannon and Ammunition from Licre aban- jjere?' fca(i quitted that Place; upon which his Grace fent, the the Enemy. n'ne anc* twentietn> a Detachment of 200 Men, to take Poffef-

fion of it.

An Instance Notwithftanding the Duke of Marlborough had Caufe, at the of Marlbo * Opening of the Campaign, to complain of the Condudl of the rough's Ge- Court of Denmark, which, either in Favour to France, as fome nerofity and furmized. or out of a too great and ill timed Caution, on ac- Politeneii. ccunt of Arrears, had like to have hemm'd the Courfe of his Glory, and hinder'd the Battle and Viftory which eniued, or might have expofed the Confederate Army to the greatelt H !7.ird ; yet iiis Grace was fo far from mewing any Refentment, that the Danifti Troops, having had a great Share in the Vidory gained at Ratnellies, the Duke not only acknowledged that fignal Piece of Service, by the Praifes he gave them himfelf; but, according to his ufual Politenefs, wrote the following Let- ter to the King of Denmark :

T)ukt of MARL BOROUGH, fc?r.

The Duke of Mar Ibo roughs Letter to the King of Denmark. Si R,

E I N G inform'd, that the Letter which I did myfelf A Letter the Honour to write to your Majefty, the next Day from the our Victory, happened to fall into the Hands of the Duke of ^ Enemy, I take the Liberty to addrefs this fecond Letter to your Majefty, to congratulate you, with all Submifiion and Refpeft, upon the happy Succefs which God has been gra- mark, cioufly pleafed to give the Arms of the high Allies over the Enemy, the Particulars of which I forbear to repeat, well knowing your M ijefty has had a full Account of them from other Hands. We have already reap'd all the Fruit of it, that we could wifh for, in fo fhort a Time; the Capital City of BnifTels, and all the other Towns of Brabant, Ant- werp excepttd, having fubmitted to his Catholick Majcity, King Charles the Third.

" After the Troops have had a little Refrefhment, we fhall

advance again towards the Enemy, without giving them

Time to recover themfelves, relying entirely on the B'.effing

of Heaven, and the Bravery of the Troops, particularly thofe

of your Majejiy, who dijlinguijhed themfel'ves fo eminently , and

' ac^uir^d fy much Glory in the Battle , that 1 cannot excufe myfelf

' from writing this fecond Letter to your Majefty to do 'Jujlice to

' the Duke oj Wirtcmlerg, who, that Day, gave Jh in in? Proofs

' of his Capacity and Valour j as alfo to all the other Generals,

' Officers, and So 1dle> f, of your Majefty'' s Troops, under his Com-

' mand, who well dcfer<ve all the Praifes I can give them, and if

' I might prefume to fay it, all the Regard your Majefly canjhew

' for fitch ktrave Men. I have not been wanting to do them this

' Jufticeto the Queen, and his Royal Highnefs, and I hope

' your Majefty will excufe the Liberty I take in recommending

' them to your Favour, and alfo in befeeching your Majefty

' to believe, that I am inviolably, with moil iubmiffive Re-

« fpeft,

Your Majefty's From the Camp

at Griir.berg, moft humble,

the ?9th of

May, 1 706. and moft obedient Servant,

The Prince and Duke of MA RLE CROUCH.

This Letter was fo well taken by his D.inifh Majefty, that in

a Letter he wrtte in Aufwer to it, (which, however I hav«

VOL. I. C c not

386

1706.

1,1— v,- j

The Army encamps near Aloft.

And mar- ches to Meerlebeck

A Thankf- giving cele- brated in the Army.

?be Life of J O H N,

not feen,) it is faid, he treated the Duke in the Stile of Coufin.

The fame Day, the Duke of Wirtemberg was detach'd, with 2,oco Grenadiers, 1,0:0 Horfe, and fix Pieces of Cannon, to take Pod at Aloft ; that place having declared, for King Charles the Third, two Days before. The thirtieth, the Army march'd from Grhr.berg, and encamped near Aloft ; the Dake of Wir- temberg advancing, with his Detachment, towards Gavre, with the Pontons, for laying Bridges over the Scheld, near that Place, in order to inrercept the Enemy's Retreat, towards their own Frontiers : But as ioon as they heard of the Confederate Army's Motion, they quitted their Camp, between St. Dennis and Ghent, and mavch'd, the thirty-firft, at three o'Clock, in the Morning, towards Courtray. The Duke being advifed of this, and that the Enemy had evacuated Ghent (leaving only a Spaniih Battalion in the Caftle, with the Duke de Vintemille, Go- vernour of the Town) his Grace advanc'd near that City, and pitch'd his Camp, the fame Djy at Meerlebeck. Brigadier Cadogan approaching Ghenr, with fome Horfe, when the laft Battalion of French were marching out of it, the Inhabitants appeared, in great Numbers, on the Walls, and calling out, with great Joy, Welcome, Welcotr.f* would have let him into the Town ; telling him, there were in the Caftle only fome few Spanifh Soldiers, who were enclined to lay down their Arms : But the Brigadier contented himfelf with making his Report to the General, and the Deputies of the States, who were foon after attended by the Magiftrates of that City. The firit Day of June, being appointed by the Duke of. Marlborough, as a Day of Thanksgiving to Almighty God, for the late Compleat Viftory at Rameilies,-' and the great Advantages that had attended it, the fame was obferved with as much Devotion as can be expected in a Cr.mp. The fame Day the Duke of Marlborough wrote the following -Letter to the States General.

The Duke of Marlbo- rough's Letter to the States.

High and Mighty Lords,

I Return you my moft humble Thanks, for the Letter your High Mightinefles have done me the Honour to write to me, bearing date the 27th paft. The Satisfaction you ex- prefs of the Services we have done to your Republick, affecls us with the due Senfe thereof, and will encourage us more and more to continue to ufe our utmoft Efforts for the Common Caufe. Since my laft, from theCampofGrimberg, we are come near Ghent, having fenc a Detachment of 2,000 Grenadiers, and 1,000 Horfe, under the Command of the Duke of Wir- remberg, with the Pontons, to lay a Bridge on the Scheld, at Gavre, to endeavour thereby to cut off the Retreat of the

" Enemy,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

Enemy, whofe Army was then encamp'd near the City ; but as foon as they had Notice of our Defign, they abandon'd the fame, and march'd, yefterday Morning, at three of the Clock, towards their old Lines, near Courtray. Yefterday, after our Arrival in this Camp, in the Afternoon, the Ma- giftrates of the City came to make their Submiffion, and we have written to them, in Concert with Meffieurs the Depu- ties, a Letter to the fame Effecl, as we did to the City of Brufiels, and we doubt not but they will follow their Example. The Prince of Vintinvglia, Governour thereof, who his been left in the Caftle, with a Battalion of Spaniards, had fent to us fome Propofals, but I am perfuaded he will furrender, as well as the Marquis de Deynfe, Governor of Brufiels. We are fending a Detachment to Bruges, to receive their Submif- fion, and I have juft now written two Letters, one to the Marquis de Terracena, Governour of the Citadel of Antwerp, wherein are four Spanifh Battalions ; and the other to the Magiftrates, to exhort them to fubmit. Quarter-Mafter- General Cadogan is entrufted with thofe Letters, from which I expeft a good Succefs. I will, with all Speed, impart to your High MightinefTes, the Anfwers I {hall receive. I am, with all poffible Refpeft, &c.

At the Camp at Sign'd,

Meerlebeck,

near Ghent, The Prince and Duke of

June 1,1706.

MARLBOROUGH.

His Grace fent, the fame Day, Major-General Rofs, with a The Caftle Detachment of 600 Horfe to Bruges, with Letters to invite the ^ Ghent Magiftrates of that City, and the Franc, to the Obedience of furrenders- King Charles III. And, at the fame time, Brigadier Dewitz was detach'd, with fix Squadrons, to fummon the Goverriour of Oudenard. The fame Day, likewife, the Magiftrates of the City of Ghent came again to the Confederate Camp, to compli- ment his Grace, who exhorted them to follow the Example of the Cities of Brabant, and acknowledge their lawful Sove- reign, King Charles III. Count Corneille of Naffau, Son to Monfieur d'Auverquerque, with two Battalion?, march'd into that City ; upon which, the next Day, early in the Morning, the Prince de VintimigHa, after making fotne Difficulties, gave up the Caftle, and the Regiment of the Marquis de Los Rios, The Duke which was in Garrifon there, furrender'd themfelves Prifoners of of Marlbo- War. rough

The Duke of Marlhorough went, about Noon, to the City, es. and was met, at the Gate, by the Magiftrate?, who prelented Cc z to

Oudenard funenders.

tte Life of JOHN,

to him the three Keys, which his Grace returned, and was- fterwards entertained, at Dinner, by the Count de Naffau. la the Evening, the Magiftrates again attended his Grace, at his Quarters, and made their formal Submiflion to King Charles. Brigadier Dewitz Cent to acquaint his Grace, at the fame time, that, at his coming before Oudenard, he had fummoned the Gar- rifon, confifting or one Spanifh, and two French Battalions, who refufed to furrender j but that he had Intelligence, if a fmal! Bcdv of Foot, with Cannon, appeared before the Piace, they would certainly capitulate. Upon this, Lieutenant-Gene- ral Scholten march'd, with leven Battalions, four Pieces of Can. non, and two Mortars, upon whofe Appearance, the Garrifon iarrendered, the next Morning, being permitted to march out.

The fame Morning early, his Grace received Letters from Major-General Rofs, and Brigadier Cadogan ; the firil advifing, that, upon his approaching Bruges, the French Battalion, which was retired thither, and the Magiftrates, were defirous to fub- mit themfelves to King Charles III. The latter, acquainting his Grace, that there were ten Battalions, in the City and Caftle of Antwerp, who feern'd willing to furrender upon honourable Terms ; upon which, the Duke lent the Brigadier an Authority Bruges, and to treat with them. The fame Day, likewife, about nine of the the Franc, Clock, the Magiftrates of Bruges, and of the Franc, waited on fnbmit to m-s Grace, to defire his Protection, and to make their Submif- K. Charles. £Qn -n f crm to King Charles. His Grace alfo received Notice, Damme that the Enemy had quitted Damme, and that fifty Dm goons of Major-General Rofs's Detachment took Poffeffion of that Place, who were relieved by a Dutch Regiment, out of Flanders ; and another march'd into Bruges. In the Afternoon, his Grace fent Colonel Durel, with a Detachment of i 50 Horfe, and a Letter, to the Governour of Dendermond, to fummon that Place to acknowledge Kirg Charles III. And a Letter was, likewife, fent to Major-General Rofs, for the Governour of Oftend, to the fame Purpofe. All which Tranfa&ions being very ccnfider- able, the Duke of Marlborough thought fit to inform the States General of them, which he did in the following Words :

abandcn'd by the Enemy.

The Duke cfMarlbo- rough's Letter to the States, dated from , the Camp at Meerle- hrck, June

High and Mighty Lords,

ACccrding to what I gave my felf the Honour to write to your High Mightineffes, on the firlt Inftant, the Caftle or Ghent was obliged to furrender, the next Day. The Spanifh Battalion, confiiiing of 400 Men, with the Colonel, the Marquis de Los Rios, and all the Officers, being made Prisoners of War; but all the Soldiers, except qo, declared for King Charles. The Summons we lent to Bruges, and the Ccunty of Franc, has had the defired Effect: The Magiftrates came iiithrr, this Morning, to make their Submiflion, and

*c acknowledged

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

« acknowledged their lawful Sovereign, in a due Form. We «• caufed a Battalion of the Troops of Flanders to march there- '*' into, and another was fent to Damme, which the Enemy had " abandon'd ; but what is more furprizing ftill, is, that having " yefterday caufed Oudenard to be fummoned, and upon their " Refufal, order'd, that Day, Lieutenant- General Scholten to " march thither, with 7 Battalions, 4 Pieces of Cannon, and " two Mortars, the Garrifon confifting of 3 Battalions, has im- ** mediately capitulated, and a French Battalion therein, has obtained Leave to retire. The other two Battalions being Spaniards, and theGovernour, have declared for King Charles, and, at this Inftant, I am informed that our Men are got into the Place. This Morning I received a Letter from Brigadier Cadogan, whom I had fent to fummon Antwerp, whereby it " appears, that we had not been rightly informed of the Strength " of that Girrifon ; fince he informs me, that there are five " French, and as many Spanifh Battalions therein. However, " he acquaints me, that they feem difpofed to furrender upon *' honourable Terms; whereupon, having advis'd with Meffieurs " the Deputies, and Monfieur d'Auverquerque, and conftdered " the Importance of that Place, and how precious Time is to " us, we have lent a full Power to the Brigadier aforefaid, to " grant them reaionable Terms, of which we expedT: an Account " to-morrow.

" The Hand of God appears vifibly; in all this, ftriking the " Enemy with fuch a Terror, as obliges them to deliver up fo " many ftrong Places, and large Countries, without offering the " leaft Refiftance.

" This has encouraged me to fummon the Towns of Dender- '- mond and Oftend ; and, for that Purpofe, I hive fent De- " tachments, with Letters for the Governours. We fhall foon " know, what this will produce, and I (hall not fail to imparc '* this to your High Mightinefles. We have made our Bridges, *' and the necefTary Diipoiltions, to pafs the Scheld, and the " Lys, to-morrow, to encamp between Daynfe and Nivelle. " The Enemy are retired beyond Courtray. I am, &c.

Slgn'd,

The Prince and Duke of

MARLBOROXJ GH.

P S. <' I am informed from Monf. Schelton, that the 3 Bat- " wlions of the Garrifon of Oudenard, are all marched away, " the French to Courtray, and the other towards Mons.

Cc3 It

ttc Life of J O H N,

It will not be improper to obferve here, that the Enemy's Army did not continue long near Courtray ; Monf. de Chamil- The Ene- I2rd, the French King's Prime Minifter, coming to their Camp,, *?y's ^srmy the firft of June, had a Conference with the Elector of Bavaria,, and the Marfhal de Villeroy, and it was concluded between, them, that to prevent the farther great Delertion of their Men, and to fecure the Frontier-Places, as well as others of Hainault,. and French Flanders, the Army fhould feparate, and only leave two flying Camps, one at Mortagne, on the Scheid, and the other at Armentier, on the Lys. Pursuant to this Resolution, the Eleftor of Bavaria march'd, and re-inforced the G..rrifon of Mons, where he took up his Refidence. Detachments were likewife fent to Tournay, Lifle, Ipres, Menin, and other Places.

Farther The fourth of June, N. S. the Confederate Army marched

Motions of from Mcerlebeck, and having, (as the Duke of Marlborough • theConfe- advifed in his Letter to the States-General.) pafs'd the Scheid Army an(* tfe ^S' encamP'd between Deynfe and Nivelle, where the Magiftrates of Oudenard came to wait upon the Duke, to entreat his Grace's Protection, and aflure him of their Fidelity to his They en- Catholick Majefly, Charles III. The next Day, the Army camp at" march'd again, and encamp'd with the Left at Arfeele, and the Arfeele. Right, at Caneghen. In the Morning, Baron Schelde, Trea- furer of Antwerp, with an Officer of the Garrifon, came to the Duke of Marlborough, with Letters from the Magjftrates of the City, and the Marquis de Terracena, Governour of the Citadel ; praying, that thok Gentlemen might have Leave to go to the Ekdtor of Bavaria,, to receive his Directions, how they were to behave themfelves, with relation to the Summons, which they had received from his Grace. The Duke did not, however, think fit to grant their Requeft, (and, indeed, it is to be wonder'd how they could hope it) but fent them back to Ant- werp, with Anfwers to the Letters they brought ; and thereupon, immediately detacn'd the Lord Orkney, with i,eco Hone, to tie ITmade Jom Brigadier-General Cadogan, and inveil the Place ; giving to befiege them Orders, at the fame Time, to form the Siege, as foon as Antwerp, his Lordfhip could be joined with iixteen Battalions of Foot, who were ordered to march, for that End, from Flanders. In the mean time, his Grace difpatch'd Orders to Brigadier Ca- dogan, to give the Garrifon no more than four Hours Time, to confider of the Capitulation which was offer'd them. Dendermond The fame Day, Colonel Durel fent an Exprefs to acquaint refufes to his Grace, with the Anfwer of the Governour of Dendermond, furrcnder. which was: " That the Place being well garrifoned, and pro- " vided with all Neceflarieu for its Defenfe, he hoped to merit " his Grace's Eiteem, by discharging his Duty, and the Truft " repofed in him .

The

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

The fixth of June, the Duke of Marlborough had the Satif- faflion, to receive the News of the Relief of Barcelona, which had been reduced almoft to the laft Extremity by the French The Duke and Gallo-Spaniards ; but what heightened the Joy was, that ^e'o"^^" the Exprefs by which he received this News, directly from Relief of thence, thro' Genoa and Germany, brought him two Letters Barcelona. from King Charles, of which, as they are a Monument of Ho- nour to his G'cace, I mall infert tranlkted Copies, at large.

The fir ft Letter was to this Purpofe.

My Lord Duke and Prince,

" XT' O U couid never have given me more convincing Proofs K.Charles's " jL °f >'our Zeal and Concern for my Service, and the Good Letter to " of the common Caufe, than by interpofing your good Offices ^ijj "it6 " with the Q^een, your Miftrefs, in order that the Fleet and rough " Forces, fhe had defigned for my Service, might ufe the Di- " ligence they have {hewn to come hither. My City of Bar- " celona, wherein I chole to continue, to encourage the Garrifon " and Inhabitants to a long and vigorous Defenfe, was reduced " to fuch Extremities, that without the Arrival of this Fleet " and Succours, it was to be feared, that the Enemies, who " were actually lodged on the -Point of the Counterfcarp, and " had made a fufficient Breach, would have taken the Place in a " very little Time. I do hereby acquaint yoa with fo for- " tunate an Event ; and while I hope, that the reft of the " Campaign will anfwer this noble Beginning, I flatter myfelf " to hear, likewife, in a (hort time, good News from you, " and the glorious Operations you have performed, by your own " Valour, and that of the Troops under your Command. " The Queen, your Miftrefs, and Meffieurs the States-General, " could not oblige me more, than in fending hither the Count " de Noyelles, and Brigadier Stanhope, affuring you, that their " Perfons have always been, and always will be acceptable to me. I do not queilion, but you interefted your felf, in the Choice of both, as you do in every Thing that may promote my Intereft, and that of the common Caufe : Whereupon I pray God to keep you, my Lord Duke and Prince, in his holy Protection, and I allure ^ou of my per feel; Eiteem and Gratitude.

Barcelona. May 12, i ~o6.

'The Life of J O H N,

•

The other Letter <voas as follows :

My Lord Duke and Prince ;

Another « T"> y thefe few Lines, which you fhall receive with a Letter /OJ^^e. " J_) of the loth Inftant, I have been willing to fhare with, Came. " you ^e new J°7 I nave °f feeing my City of Barcelona en-

" tirely freed from the Siege. Never was Retreat made with " fo much Precipitation, as that the Enemy made juft now ; " having left us all their Artillery, confifting of 140 Pieces of " Brafs Cannon, and avaft Quantity of all Manner of Ammu- «« nition, and Provifions, beyond Belief. I do not doubt, but «' you fhall receive, from other Hands, the Particulars of this " Siege : Wherefore I write this the fhorter, praying GOD to *' keep you, my Lord Duke and Prince, in his holy Protec- «' tion.

CHARLES, R, Barcelona, May 12, 1706.

For the Particulars of this great Event, I refer the Reader to Lediar<fs Naval Hijlory, where they are related at large. Reioic;ngs Upon the Receipt of this joyful News, the Troops and Artil- on' Account ]Cry were drawn out, the next Morning, and a triple Difcharge ct this New s. ma(je of the Artillery and fmall Arms. The fame Day, at Noon, the Duke of Marlborough received Advice from Brigadier The Garri- Cadogan, That, the Day before, the Governours of the Caftle fon of Ant- arj(j (jjty of Antwerp had figned the Capitulation, by which the fcte? caP'tu" Garrifon, confifting of fix French, and as many Spanifh Regi- ments, was allowed to march out in three Days, and was to be conducted to Le Quenoy.

French Ac. The Marquis de Quincy gives us the following Account of count of the the Surrender of this important Place. " The Troops (fays he) fhis'pia" °f " ^ent ^ ^e ^u^e °f Marlborough, for that End, having '< feized all the Avenues to this Place, the Officer who com- " manded them, fummon'd the City to furrender. The Garri- «' fon confifted of fix French and fix Spanifh Battalions. The " Marquis de Terracena, to whom the King of Spain had con- " rlded the Government of the Citi.de!, whether of his o\\n Motive, or gain'd by the Citizens, who were unwilling to expoie their Houfes to the fatal Events of a Siege, gave evi- dent Proofs to the French Troops, that he was not inclin'd either to defend the Place, himfelf, or to leave it to the Care of Monsieur de Pontis, Captain of the Guards, who com- manded them; fo that, as he was Mafter of the Citadel, Monf. de Pontis was obliged to capitulate, without {fording an Attack. It was ftipulated in the Capitulation, that the Troops fnouid march out, with their Anrif and Rig-

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, £s?V. 39,

o-ige, and all other Marks of Honour, with four Pieces of 1706. Cannon, two Mortars, and each Soldier Ammunition for U— v*-«J twelve Difcharges. They were conducted to Qaenoy and Landrecy. As for Monf. de Terracena, it was agreed, that he and his Spanifh Troops fhould keep Poffeffion of the Cita- del, tiil farther Orders from the Archduke ; (King Charles III.) An evident Proof of the Governour's Treachery, and that he had made his Agreement with the Allies, before they fent their Troops thither.

At the fame time, another Exprefs arrived, from Major Gene- Oftcnd re-, ral Rofs, with the Governour of Oftend's Anfwer to the Sum- fufes to fur mons made him to furrender, which was : " That he had fent ren er* " to the Eieclor of Bavaria, and hoped he would be excufed, " if he defended the Place, as became him, till farther Or- " ders." Upon which, a Detachment was commanded to march, and poffefs itfelf of Plaffendael, a ftrong Fort upon the Canal, a fmall League from Oitend, to facilitate the Siege of that Place. The Day before, the Affembly of the States of Flanders paffed the following Refolution, concerning the Recognition of King Charles II I.

" 'TT^HE Letter which his Highnefs, my Lord Prince and The States " Duke of Marlborough, and their Excellencies, Mef-

" fieurs the Deputies of the States General of the United Pro- " vinces, have been pleafed to write to the Affembly of this ( " Province of Flanders, having been read, with due Refpecl, and the advantageous Contents thereof being taken into Confide- ration ; it has been unanimoufly refolved, to acknowledge, as the £ud Affembly acknowledge?, by thefe Prefents, the Sove- reignty of his Catholick Mnjeftv, Charles III. to whom they fubmit, as good and faithful Subject, in Hopes, and in Confidence, that his M .jefty will maintain this Province in all their Privileges, Ufes and Cufloms, as well in temporal as fpiritual Concerns. That his Majefty, as Count of Flan* ders, will not fuffer that any thing, reining thereunto, be any ways changed or leffened, and that he will agree to, and approve, the Conftitution of the Government of the faid Province, Courts, Countries, Towns, Chatelenies, Offices, and generally ail the Di Uriel -> of the fame, either as to the Farms of the Revenue of the Province, or the Sums borrowed to this Day, upon what Account foever they be, without any Exception, for the Security of the Publick in general, and the Security of" priv-te Men in particular. And for the Per- formance of w-r.it is here above expreffed, his Highnefs, my Lord Prince, Duke of Mar/borough, and their Excellencies, Meffiears the D.-puties of the States General of the United Provinces, are me ft hu.nbly dciired, to be pleafed to ratify

*' what

394 1 706.

'fit Life of JOHN,

what they have had the Kindnefs already to grant to the Col- leges and Cities of this Province, upon the Prayers and Repre- fentations made unto them. And forafmuch as many Inhabi- tants of this Province, as well Clergymen as Secular, find their Eftates were confifcated and feiz'd, 'tis hoped, that thefe Confifcations and Seizures will entirely ceafe, from the Date of this prefent Submiffion. Done in the Aflembly of the Deputies, Spiritual and Temporal, of the Provinces of Flan- ders, in the Town-Houfe of Ghent, June the 6th, 1 706.

Signed, T. THYSBAERT, and fealed by the great Seal of the Province of Flanders.

" The whole granted, in the Name of his Catholick Majefty, " King Charles III.

Signed, At the Camp of

Arfeele, June The Prince and Duke of MAR LBO ROUGH. 7, 1706. FERDINAND VAN COLLEN.

F. H. Baron van RENSWOUDE. J. van GOSLINGA CUYPER.

Rapidity of Thus, within the Space of fifteen Days, the Duke of Marl- the Duke of bor0iigh entirely defeated and difperfed one of the moft gallant, °r° * ' an^ beft-appointed Armies, that ever France brought into the

Field, and recovered the whole Spanifli Brabant ; the Marqui-

fate of the holy Empire, with its Capital, the famous City of

Antwerp ; the Lordftiip and City of Mechlin, and the Capital

City, with the beft Part of Spanifli Flanders. An Event,

which can hardly be parallel'd.

It is* faid, upon this Occafion, that the Government of the Spa-

nj^ Netherlands was proposed to the Duke of Marlborough j - but he generoufly refufing the Offer, it was fettled, by his Grace vernment of and the Deputies of the States General, and the Adminiftration the Spanifn was given to 2. Council of State, confifting of natural born Sub- Nether- jefts Of the Spanifli Provinces, who took the Oath of Fidelity

to King Charles, in the Prefence of the Duke of Marlborough,

the Deputies, and the States.

The King of Lewis the XIV. was fo furpriz'd, when the News was brought r^ncewm bim of thefe Succeffes of the Duke of Marlborough, that he Credit tothe would not give Credit to it ; but fent Monf. de Chamillard, his News of the Minifter of War, to examine into the Truth, Circumftances, Duke's Sue- and Caufes of it, and to give the neceflary Orders on the ^pot : cefles. gut jjjjs being before the Surrender of Antwerp, what muft

not his Surprize have been upon receiving Intelligence of

that?

On

Succef

The Duke of Marlbo-

fufestheGo

Duke -of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 395

On occafion of this Succefs, the following Medal was (truck. 1 706. On the Face is reprefented a Bufto of his Grace the Duke of Marlborough, with the following Title :

JOANNES, DEI GRATIA, SACHI ROMANI IMPERI i PRIN- CEPS, Dux MARLBOROUGH, EXERCITUUM ANCL.ORUM

CoMMENDATOR GENERALIS.

fc

John, by the Grace of GOD, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire > Duke of Mar thorough, andGeneraHJpmo of the Englijh Armies.

On the Reverfe, is a Pile of Trophies, among which are the Arms of Flanders and Brabant, creeled in Honour of our Hero, with the following Infcription :

PRETIUM NON VILE LABORUM.

The <uiorthy Reward of his Labour.

And in the Exergue :

GALLIS ACIE DEVICTIS, BRABANTIA, FLANDRIA, ET ANTVERPIA, 15 DIERUM SPATIO EREPTIS. 1706.

The French being conquered in Battle, Brabant, Flanders, and the Marquifale of Antwerp, were recover d in the Space of i£ Day '*> in 1706.

The Artillery and Provifion-Waggons could not poflibly keep Tj,e D. of Pace with the rapid March of the Confederate Army, which Marlboro* being therefore unable to undertake any thing for feveral Days, goei to the the Duke of Marlborough, whofe aftive Genius would never let him fpend a Day in vain, refolv'd to employ that Time in a Journy to the Hague, to confer with the States General, about the farther Operations of War, and other Concerns of Im- portance. Some were of Opinion, that the Duke had been thwarted by the Dutch Deputies and Generals, in a Council of War, and hinder1 d from purfuing his good Fortune, infomeEn- terprizes, which they thought too hazardous, and that this oc- cafion'd his Journy. Be this as it will, he left the Army at Ar- feele, under the Command of Velt-Marfhal d'Auverquerque, and fet out, the eighth of June, for that Place, where he ar- rived the next Day ; accompanied only by Mr. Cardonnel, and Colonel Durel. The tenth, in the Afternoon, feveral Deputies of their High Mightinefles waited on his Grace, and had a Con- ference with him, concerning the farther Operations of the Cam- paign,

396 7&<? Life of JOHN,

, 1706. paign, and whether they readily concurr'd in what he propos' d, V-i >-v"i -»l or not, it is certain they did in fome Things ; and, in particular, it was faid, they confented to the Siege of Menin, provided he would engage to reduce Oftend firil ; which we {hall fee he did. Here I fhali leave his Grace a while, and return, in the mean rime, to England.

News of ^ The firft News of the ever-memorable Viftory of Ramellies

Succd^ar' * Was brouSht to England by Colonel Richards, Aid de Camp to

rive"^31" *^c Duke of Marlborough, who arrived in London, the fixteenth

England. of May : And, the very next Day, the Queen (defirous of giving

Letter from (he Duke the early Satisfaction of feeing what a grateful Senfe

^eQH"nto fhe had of his eminent Services, honoured him with a Letter, in

e* which fhe was fo gracious to tell him, that " She wanted

" Words to exprefs the true Senfe me had of the great Service

" he had done his Country and her, in that Great and Glorious

" Viflory, and hoped it would be a Means to confirm all good

" and honeil People in their Principles, and frighten others from

" being troublefome ;" and then fpoke " of the Allay it was

•* to all her Satisfaction, to confider what Hazards he was ex- " pofed to" and repeated an obliging Requeft, f which it is faid) (he had often made, " that he would be careful of himfelf." The fame Day, Mr. Secretary JIarley wrote the following Letter to his Grace.

My Lord,

Mr. Seer. «« XT'Efterday, about feven in the Evening, Col. Richards Harley s " JL brought the mod acceptable News of the glorious Suc- tbeDnke " ce^s vour Grace had obtained, in attacking the French Ar- " my ; and at the fame time we are rejoicing for the Victory, " we cannot (I mean every good Englijbman) but be fenfibly " touch'd with the Danger all was in, by the Hazard your " Grace expofed your own Perfon to ; that Deliverance en- " hances the Value of the Victory, confidering how dear it had " like to have coil us. Heaven itfelf hath preferved that prer' " tious Life, and would not fuffer us to lofe your Grace, <wf.a " nvas born for the Delivery of your oivn Country and tie Refcue '' of many ethers from Tyranny and Opprtffion. Your Grace does " not only triumph over the pubhck Enemies, by teaching us " how to conquer abroad, but you deliver us from ourfelves, " and refcue us from that Tyranny which each Party here would " exercife upon one another : You have again difarmed Ma- " lice, and tho' your glori.us Ati'.cns will er.creafe Envy, yet 4< the Luflie of what you have done will di [cover it, and confe- " quently render it impotent. May your Grace ftill go on prof- " perouflv, the Icjl General, to the bejl zhtcen, and engaged in " the befi Caufe ; and may you live long to enjoy, in Peace, the

" Fruits

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 597

*' Fruits of your innumerable Hazards and Toils. I am, with 1706. " the greateft Duty and Affection, U •%* *J

" My Lord,

" Your Grace's moft humble, " and mbft obedient Servant,

Ro. HARLEY.

This Account was confirmed, the twenty- firft, by Captain Pit, 4 another of his Grace's Aids de Camp with a farther Relation of the glorious Progreffes of her Majeity's Arms, and thofe of her Allies. Her Majefty having, at the fame time, received an Ac- count of the Succefs of her Fleet and Forces in Spain, the fame Day Captain Pit arrived, at Kenfington, a Proclamation was or- Proclaim- dered, in Council, to be publimed, for a'publick Thankfgiving, tion for f to be held the feven and twentieth Day of June. At the fame'J^ankfS'v* time, another Order was made in Council, and publim'd, to AfreeTradc open a free Trade with the Spanilh Netherlands, which was^with the another happy Confequence of the Succefs of her Majefty 's'Sp^ifli Ne- Arms, under the wife Conduct of his Grace the Duke of Marl- *""££* borough.

The fame Day, Monf. Vryberg, Envoy Extraordinary from The Dutch the States General, had private Audience of the Queen and Envoy con- Prince, to congratulate with them, in the Name of their High ^^ul^s MightinefTes, upon the fignal Victory obtained by the Arms of Majefty on her Majefty, and her Allies, in Brabant. Two Days after, her account of Majefty, and her royal Confort, went to Windfor, where her the Vidory.: Majelty was attended by congratulatory Addreffes, from moft Congratu- Parts of her Dominions. Among the reft, the loyal City oflatory Ad- London, as on all other, fo on this Occafion, was moft forward JjfS^J001 to exprefs their Zeal and AfFedlion to her Majefty 's aufpicious a Government, by an Addrefs, in which they had the following fr^c"^e * Words, in Honour to his Grace, the Duke of Marlborough. cityofLoa- " We humbly congratulate your facred Majefty, on the ama-z- 'do«. ing and late glorious Victory over the French Army, by the fignal Bleffing of ALMIGHTY GOD, upon the potent Arms of your Majefty, and your Allies, under the prudent Con- duel of his Grace, the Duke of Marlborough, your moft Un- daunted and Renowned General', &c".

'

The twenty -fourth, Mr. Secretary Harley wrote the fol- lowing Letter to the Duke ; and on the 28th and 3ift the two fubfequent.

Mr. Secre- tary Harley to theDuke.

398 *be Life of J O H N,

1706.

<-. i-v-..f My Lord,

Letters from " T Cannot tell where this Letter will find your Grace ; the I Improvements you make of your glorious Victory are fo ftupendous : You have united the Characters of Scipio and Hannibal ; your Grace knows how to conquer, and how to improve a Victory to Admiration. Among the Letters which have fallen into my Hands, there is one to Monf. d'Allegre, hath this Article, that the Elector of Bavaria had wrote to his Brother the Elector of Cologne, in thefe Terms: Avec la plus [elle Arme, et la plus florijjfante et aximee, fai ite batue , Dieu Fa voulu. I hear from one I fent to Calais, that after the News of the Viftory, and the declaring of Bruffels, the " Mob of Calais were very troublefome in the Town, and had " your Grace's Name continually in their Mouths. We are " affured that an Exprefs was fent away. May 25, N. S. to " Monf. Feuillade, to offer the Duke of Savoy any Terms *' whatever. I doubt not but their Emiffaries will be bufy alfo " in Holland again ; but I wrote laft Poft to Monf. Buys, to " caution him upon that Subjed, how neceflkry it was to be " very vigilant, &c. &c.

" I am with the greatefl Duty and Affection, &c. &c.

Ro. HARLEY.

My Lord,

« T Received, this Morning, the Honour of your Grace's <« JL Letter of June 3. and cannot but obferve, with the ut- " moft Pleafure and Satisfaftion, the great and wonderful Suc- «« ceffes which attend every Day your Grace's moft prudent " and moft valiant Conduct. It is true, that Viaories have " been obtain'd over potent and flourifhing Armies formerly. " Your Grace gave us, two Years fmce, a noble Inftance of ** that ; but give me Leave to fay, this is not only obtaining •' a Victory, but wearing of it too ; this is improving your own " Adions, and out-doing your own Viaories ; for nothing " but you, Sir, can outdo my Lord Marlborough's former '* Viaories.

" Your Proceedings are fo fwift, that it is fcarce poflible, «« with Thought,- to keep pace with them, therefore we can «« only here give Direaions at Random, &c.

lam, &c.

May 28.

Ro. HA R LEV-

My

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 399

1706. My Lord,

« \Tr HAT Succefs, this fortunate raifing of the Siege " \v (°f Barcelona) will have upon the Minds of the Por- " tuguefe, I cannot tell. All forts of People here are much «« exafperated againft them ; and Schonnenberg now writes to " his Matters, that he fufpefts fome of thofe Miniilers are in " the Intereft of France, Mid I believe all of them hope for " a civil War in Spain, of which they will make their Mar- " kets j but the glorious things your Grace has done, puts an " End to fuch little Projecls. Your Grace does all at once, " and the Influence of it will be as extenfive as the Grandeur ** of the Aftion, &c.

I am, &c.

May 31. RO.HARLEY.

As there are Fragments of two other Letters extant, which are much to the fame Purport as the three above, tho' of fome Weeks frefher Date, I think I cannot affign them a more pro- per Place than here, and fhall therefore fubjoin them ; tho' feemingly addrefs'd to the Duchefs, and not to the Duke.

MADAM,

" T Was juft going to end this Trouble, when I was favour'd " I with your Grace's Commands, which J fhall apply my- *' felf to obey with all imaginable Chearfulnefs and Diligence ; " J cannot think of a Servant and a Spy without the utmoft " Abhorrence, and particularly when I find it levell'd at your '' Grace's Family, to whom we all owe fo much. I have '* been often provoked to fee fo much publick and private In- *' gratitude exercis'd towards the Duke.

" I fhall not omit any thing which may tend towards a Dif- " covery of this Villany ; and I will not put it into any " one's Hands, but manage that myfelf. I beg your Grace " will do me the Honour to believe me to be, with the utmoft " Duty,

Thurfday Aug. Madam, &c.

S, 1706. Ro. HA R LEY.

" I return your Grace moft hearty and humble Thanks for " the favourable Expreffions in ycur Letter. I. beg Leave to " affure you, that I ferve you by Inclination and Principle, " and a very little Time will make that manifeft, as well. as *' that I have no Views or Aims of my own.

March, 25, 1707.

this

Me Life of J O H N,

This Jail Letter feems to have been writ in Anfwer to one from the Duke, in which he infmuated, at leaft, that he had not the beft Opinion of Mr. Harley.

»

" Is it not amazing ({ays a late noble Author) that a Perfon, " who could thus extol the Duke of Marlborough's Services to " his Country, fpeak of his Glory as beyond the Power of " Envy or Malice to hurt it, and profefs to ftel fuch a peculiar " Joy in the Contemplation of it ; is it not amazing that this " very Perfon fhould be, at the fame Time, contriving how to *• ruin that glorious Man, in order to raife himfelf upon his " Ruin?

But that I may not, (notwithstanding what I have already declared in my Preface) again be look'd upon rather as the Duke's Advocate than his Hifbrian, Jludiatur et altera Pars.

" I have already obferved, Madam, (fays the fuppofed Right Honourable Author of the other Side of the Quertion) " that " Mr. Harley is intended to be the fecond Devil of your Dra- •* ma, as likewife that your Temper is fo extremely frank and " open (your own way of defcribing it) that the Cuftoms " and Manners of the World are no better than Cobwebs to •' your Grace.

" Thus in expatiating on the dreadful Shock you receiv'd " in the Queen's AffedUon, by the Means of Mrs. Mamam, •' according to your State of the Cafe, or in Confequence of " your own imperious and decifive Manner, according to mine, " you make no Scruple to violate private Correfpondences (hi- " therto held facred) and to difplay before the World Mr. Har- *' ley's Compliments to your Lord, on feveral Victories, as " fo many Proofs of an unlimited Attachment, which no Con- " fideration could juftify him for breaking thro'.

" If therefore Mr. Harley, in Compliance with the Times, *' has, in thofe Letters, better fupported the Character of a " Politician than a plain Dealer, we cannot pafs any Cenfure *' upon him, without accompanying it with fome ungentle " Thoughts of the Perfon who brought thofe Letters to light, " fo long after the Writer was no more.

This is, I think, the whole of what has been faid on both Sides of the Queition, in this Part of the memorable ContrO- verfy between the Noble and fuppos'd Right Honourable Difpu- tants ; and here I mall reft it, begging Leave only (without be- ing cenfur'd as an Apologift rather thm an Hiftorisn) to confefs my Ignorance in fuppofing Letters wrote, by a Secretary of State, to a publick Minifter, a Plenipotentiary, and a Com- mander in chief, were not to be deem'd publick Correfpondences, and in fome Meafure, Inflations, by which a Perfon in fuch kigh Pofc, is to regulate his Conduct, and that they are m

otherwife

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

.Otherwise held {acred, than as they are to be deem'd fecret^ anc! as containing the Senfe and Opinion of the Sovereign and the Publick, and as fuch to remain Secrets, till the Perion intruft- ed with Concerns of fo high Nature has form'd his Condud thereupon, and in Compliance therewith. In this View, and in this only, I thought them very proper to be introduced here* as Vouchers for the Duke's Condudt ; and, for want of 'better Information, never lobk'd upon them ss meer private Corre- fpondences, wrote only in Compliance with' the Times, or that the Publication of them could be deem'd a Violation of any thing that ought to be held facred, at fo great a Diftance of Time : But the Author of The other Side of the Queflion has very judicioufly fumnTd up the whole Charge, and herfelf given Judgment, by allowing that Mr. Harley, ifi thofe Letters, has better fupported the Character of a Politician than a plain Dealer ; and this, if I take the Matter right/ is all her Noble Antagoniit contends for.

The feven and twentieth of June, the Day appointed for a publick Thankfgiving, was celebrated with the ufual Solemni- ties; and her Majefty repair'd, for that End, to the Cathedral

St. Paul's, with the fame State flie had done, upon the lik«

•'"'"ons, in preceding Years.

C H A P. II. .

The Siege of OSTEND.

i

TN the foregoing .Chapter, I mention'd, that the French Proceeding! J. and Spanifh Armies in the Netherlands were feparated, and of the the greater Part of them put into Garrifons, as not being then Fi'ench« in any Condition to withftand the Torrent of Succels, whteh • •attended the victorious Army of the Confederates. They did not, however, yet give up all Pretence to the Succefs of this Campaign : They had, indeed, put their Troops into Garri- fon ; but it was only to refrefh and recruit them, in order to take the Field again as foon as poflible. They even boafted, that, by the middle of July, they would have an Army of 60,000 Men, ready to oppofe the Allies ; and, in order to this, great Detachments were ordered from trie Upper Rhine, and from the King of France's Honmold, to join the French Army in Flanders. It was, likewife thought neceffury to make an, Alteration in the Command of their Forces; a thing fcarce 'ever before pra,ftifgd in the middle of a Campaign. The Puke; Vat. J. Dd d«

'The Life of J O H N,

de Vendome being their moft profperous, if not their abldl General, he was fent for out of Italy, to command on this The Duke Side, in order to ftop the Progrefs of the Duke of Marlbo- calkdcuTS rouSh' and the Allies; but we fhall not find him to have aft- Italy. fwered the Expectations, which his Matter conceived cf him,

, as we may fee in the Preamble to his Patent, where the French

pointed to ^ng ty* ' " r^ere was a Neceffity of putting, at the Head command in. " of his Troops in Flanders, a General, who might gain the Flanders. " Confidence of the Officers and Soldiers, and reftore to the " Troops, that Spirit of Fortitude and Boldnefs fo natural to " the French Nation. And that the Knowledge he had of ' ' no one being more capable to anfwer his Expectations, had " determin'd him," &c. His moft ChrSftian Majefty did not confider, that the Duke de Vendome would not here have to encounter with tatter'd (tho' valiant) Germans and Hufiars, who were in want of every thing but Courage, fuch as he had to do with in Italy : No, he was here to oppofe a gallant Ar- " my, confining of experienced Officers and refolute Soldiers, fluffrd with repeated Victories, well cloathed, and as regularly paid, and provided with all Neceffaries for carrying on any Manner of warlike Exploit whatfoever. He was, therefore, deceived in his Expectations,' and the Duke de Vendorne made but an indifferent Figure in Flanders , as we mall now * foon fee. IB the mean time, to falve Monfieur de \ illeroy/s Honour, it was given out at Paris, that he had defu'd to be rcc.li'd.

The Duke The Duke op Marlborough concerted,' in one Day, with the h fete Deputies of the States, the farther Operations of the Cam- out from Pa>gn> ar)d agreed about the Government of the Cities and the Hague. Towns lately conquered ; for they agreed to every thing he t - propofed, and fent' him back with fall Powers. This done,

he let out the eleventh of June, N. S. from the Hague, in or- der to return to the Army, and lay, that Night, at Moer- His Re- , Dyke. The next Day, as his Grace was proceeding on his eepticn it , Journey, he was met, at Merxem, two Leagues from Ant- Antwerp. . ,W€rp) by the Biftiop of that City, attended by all the Clergy, both Secular and Regular, who aflured his Grace .of their in- , violable Loyalty and Affeclion. to King Charles III. and to the Houfe of AuUria ; acknowledging, at the fame time, his Grace to have been the glorious Initrument of their happy Delive- rance from the Tyranny of France, under which they had la- bour'd ever liuce the Death of King Charles II. The Mar- grave of Antwerp, \viih the Burgomafters, and the reft of the IVL-giitrates, attended his Grace, at fome Diftance from the City, where the firft Penfionary, in the Name of the reft, made a Speech to the fame Purpofe, as the Clergy had done ,, before, and pfefthted his Grace the Keys of the Town, tell- i ing

Duh of MA R,L BOROUGH, &V»

fng him, 7 'hey bad never been delivered up to any Perjon, Jlnte the Great Duke of Parma, and that after a Sie.-'f r,f .'^.• Months : A gre.'.t Honour to Jlis Gruce, who became .viatter of the Place, in a lefs Number of Days, almult in a lei's Number of Hours,. At his Entrance into the Town, the Duke was re- ceived with afl the* Honours and Ceremonies, which were ufu- ally paid to their S vereijn Princes, i c;o of t,he principal Ci- tizens going in Proceii on before the Coach his Giace was in, with lighted Torches, to t!ie Bilhop's Palace", where he was iplenduiiy entertain'd and lodg'd that Ng.it. The Marquis de Terracena, Grandee of Spain, and Governour of the Cita- del, who had declared for King Charles 111. waked on' his Grace during the whole Solemnity j and the. Streets were crowd- ed with, an infinite Number of People, continually reputing, with, the greater! Marks of Joy and Satisfaction imaginable, Long li<ve King Charles HI.

His Grace kit Antwerp, the thirteenth, early in the Morri- ing, and arrived, the fame Evening, in the Ca.np at A'k-ele. When the Garrifon of Antwerp w^s to march out, ;'.cc-jrding to the Capitulation, one Spaniin, and one Walloon Regiment A Imp ft the ftaid ber;ind entire ; and of the other Regiments of ti.ole ^^Ie0^ar" Countries, there were fcirce 150 left, when they p ifs*d by Antwerp . Brufiels, moft of the Officers and Soldiers entring inio the Ser- enters into vice of his CathoHck Majeity } as did, likewiie, the Marquis the Seivice de Winterfeld, Lieutenant-General, and Governour of Lier, ^^eCon' who commanded the Garriion in the City of Antwerp, and the Barou de Wrangle, a M.jor-General, a Perfon of the firil Quality, and of great. Credit among the Troops.

On the 1 4th of the fame Month, General Churchill, Gq- ^ ^^ vernour of BrufTels, caufed a Proclam sii n to be affixM at tne ta)US ba_~ ufual Places ; importing, " That he judg'd it neceffary, for nifh'd the " the Service of his Catholick Majefty, Charles III. and to -City. *' prevent many Inconveniences, to command all Frenchmen, " military or others, not Burghers, or Houfekeepers, in that " City, not to ftir oat of their Dwellings, on the laid i4th of " June, 1706. in the Afternoon, on Pain of Imprisonment ; " having' direded Paffes, for their retiring fafely, to be given «*. to all fuch as (hould defire the fame j declaring, th/it if 24 *' Hours after that Ti;ne, any Frenchmen, not Burghers or " Houfekeepers, fhould be found in that City they ihould bd •• treated as Spies, and ha:-g'd. All Innkeepers, and other *' Inhabitants of that City, were that Morning to deliver to " his Excellency a perfect Liil of all the French, who lodg'd " in their Houfes, purfuant to an Ordinance cf the Magiftrates " of that City, publifh'd theDaybefov: All Spaniards^ vrho " were come thither from the Garriion of Antwerp, and " would not acknowledge Charles III. for their lawful Sova- D d 2 rein

reign, nor could produce Paffes from Brigadier ftiould be treated as the aforefaid Frenchmen ; and the Wives of all French Officers, and Soldiers, except fuch as, by rea- fon of Sickr.es, were confined to their Beds, were to retire from thence in three Days, on Pain of Impriionment, and- Forfeiture of ail their Goods and Effects." Both Armies While the Enemy lay near Courtray, they were reinforced by fe-i*forc'd. the Detachment of Foot, which Monfieur de Marfin was leading from Germany, the Horfe of that Detachment having joined them before the Battle of Ramellies : And feveral other Detach- ments, both from the French Army en the Upper Rhine, and ' from the King's Houfhould, were order1 d to Flanders. .The States General, on the other hand, caufed twenty Battalions to> march out of feveral Garrifons, to re inforce the Army under the Duke of Marlborough and Monfieur d'Auverquerque ; and, at the fan.e Time, the Troops of Hannover, and thole of the King of Pruflia, advanced towards Brabant, with hafty Marches* ^•he Siege to make amends for their former Slownefs. The Confederates cfOfiend being, therefore, itill fuperiour, the Refolution, which the Duke reUvcd on. had concerted, with the States, at the Hague, to befiege Oftend, wasputin Execution. This Place was more famous for the Siege it fuftain'd, in the laft Age, for above three Years, againft all 'the Forces of Spain, than for the Goodnefs of its Fortifications ; tho' even they were ftronger, at this Time, than at that Siege. It was, however, very confiderable, on account of its Situa- tion, which covers great Part of Flander.% (ftanding about 9 Miles North-Haft of Newport, 11 Weit of Bruges, 20 South- Weft of Sluys, 24 North- Eaft of Dunkirk, and 3.5 alrnoft Weft of Ghent;) and as it was a Sea-Port, and a Neil of Privateers, which very much annoy'd the Trade of the Englim and Dutch.

And that of Jt had been propofed to the Duke of Marlborough to lay Siege

Dunkirk re- to Dunkirk ; but whether his Grace look'd upon that Enterprize

jetted. £5 too difficult and hazardous, or whether he thought i't might be

reduced wi'Ji more Eale hereafter, the Reiolution for beheging

Oflend took Place.

The Fort ^e greate^ Difficulty in this Enterprize was, becaufe the

of Hafien, Place could be attack'd only on one Side, and that within -a

4ael taken, very narrow Compafs : However, whilil the Grand Army- was

"taking fome Relrefhment, General Fagel, who was encamp'd at

Oudtnberg, took the Fcrt of Plaflendael, Sword in Hand';

'which Place, not b?ing far from Oitend, very much facilitated

the taking cf that Town.

ADefignoo h had been relolved, to make an Attempt, at the fame

Kcwpctt Thr.e, on Newport, in order to which, rvlonfieur d'Auver-

Jaid alide. quervue, with one and forty Battalions, and thirty Squadrons,

came bdore that Place, the eighteenth of June, and made foinc

Pieparauon*

Duke of MARLBOROuqH, &V. 405

Preparations to attack it : But feveral unforefeen Difficulties ac- 1706. curring, efpecially that of opening the Sluices, which would have made the Siege tedious, the Defign was abandon'd, and it was refolved to turn that Force againft Oftend. French Writers insinuate, that this was only a Feint, and no real Defign of the Allies ; fmce, notwichftanding they had attack'd and taken the Redoubt before the Fort of Nieuwendam, and feveral other Foils, leading from thence to Oudenburg, they quitted the Enter- prize.

Accordingly, the Velt-Marmal decamp'd, the nineteenth, Th« from before Newport, and encamp'd at Marienkirk, near Fort Albert, within half a League of Oftend. It was intended to open the Trenches, the twentieth j but the Ground being very low, and as it was impoffible, in fome Places, to dig a Foot and a half, without finding Water, it was put off, till they had got a fufficient Number of Fafcines and Gabions, to cover the Work- men and Soldiers. All poflible Diligence was ufed to get thefe, and every Thing elfe, in a Readinefs ; yet, in the Council of War, which was held, on the twenty-third, it was found necef- fary to fufpend the opening of the Trenches feme Days longer, till they had received all their Artillery, and other Neceflaries, for carrying on the Siege with Vigour. Sir Stafford Fairborn, with a Squadron of nine large Englifh Men of War, four Bomb- Ketches, and two Fire-Ships, at the fame time, block' d up the Harbour, being apointed to batter the Town by Sea.

The Night between the five and twentieth and fix and twen- Some of tha tieth, the Enemy having erected a Battery of five Pieces of Can- Fn^my'i non, without the Town, towards the Sea Side, to hinder the ^"j0" Barks from Landing, the advanced Gunrd march'd thither, "al nailed up thofe Cannon, and retired again by Break of Day. The Befiegers, in the mean time, having Intelligence, that the Seamen and Citizens intended to affiit the Garriion, in defending the Place, the Velt-Marfhal let them know, he would ruin the Town and burn all their Ships, if they mould offl-r to lend any Affiftance to the Enemy : And this Meffage had its defired Effcft upon them ; for they not only laid afide their Defign ; but, the eight and twentieth, the four Burgomalters came to the Camp, and humbly entreated, that their Town and Ships might be {pared, the Bomb-Ketches having already thrown in fome Bombs : But as they made no Overtures of Surrendering, they were obliged to return as they came.

In the Night, between the eight and twentieth and the nine The and twentieth, the Trenches were opened, within Mufk<--t Shot Trench* of the Place, by Lieutenant-General Fagd, who had,, ivder °P-'UC(i* him, Major-General Lauder; and Brigadier Amama, with two Colonels, and 2,000 Soldiers or Pioneers, fupported by four Battalions, two Engliih and two Dutch. The Enemy made a D d 3 ' great

*•• '

o6 ' rhe 'Life of J O H N,

1706. great Fire from the Town ; but that did not hinder the Works* from being carried on, with great Sue cefs, and the Lofs of the Confederates, on this Cccafion, was not above fixty Men, killed and wounded. The nine and twentieth, the Trenches were re- lieved by Lieutenant-GeneralOxenftiern, Major-General Murray, and the Dukeof Argyle, Brigadier, with a Colonel, four Batta- lions, and i,8oc Pioneers.

" The Duke of Argyle, of whom I fhall have frequent Occa- cf the Duke " fion to make honourable Mention, in the Sequel, is Repre- of Argyle. « fentative of the Noble Family of Campbell ; great Grandfon " to that Earl who loft his Head at the Reflection ; Grandfon *« to that Earl who was beheaded by King James ; and Son to " that Earl who came over with King William, at the Revolu- tion, and by him created Duke. His F;mily has not loft, in his 1'erion, the great Figure they have maintain'd for fo many Ages. The Queen gave him the Command of the Horfe- Guards, which his Father alfo had, and made him one of the Knights Companions of the Thiftle : As many of his noble and valiant Actions will be recorded in this Work, I (hall not «' foreftall them here; what he did for the Support of the Suc- *' ceffion in the illuftrious Houfe of Hannover, at the Beginning " of the late King's Reign, and how he was defervedly ad- " vanced in Honour, Rank and Dignity, is too frefh in every " one's Memory, to need a Recapitulation here; and, there- " fore, fhall only add, that on the 3d of December, 1705. he ** was introduced into the Houfe of Peers, of England, as " Baron and Earl of this Kingdom, by the Stile, and Title, of " Baron of Chatham and Earl of Greenwich, in the County of " Kent.

The thirtieth, General Spar with Major General Collier, and Brigadier Litten, with a Colonel, four Battalions, antj 1,500 Pioneers, relieved the Trenches : And thefe three Lieu- tenant-Generals commanded, in the Trenches, in their Turns, till the Place furrendered.

The Eat- By the firft of July, N. S. the Batteries were finiflied, and teriesfini/h- the Befiegers planted Cannon upon them. The third, Sir Staf- ed« ford Fairborn came a-moar, to confer with Monfieur d'Auver-

querque, and they agreed, that, the next Day, the Bomb- VefTels fhould draw near the Town, to bombard it. The fame Day, the Trenches, on the Left, were carried on, within 150 Paces of the Glacis of the Place ; and the Line of Communica- tion being finim'd, the Attacks were purfued, with fuch Vigour, that the Befiegers loon covered themfelves from the Cannon of The Town the Town. The four Batteries they had erefted were one of birdeT1 eight Pieces Ot Cannon> one of eighteen Mortars, the third of with great* e'ght and thirty Pieces of Canncn, and the fourth of ieven. Fury. Thefe, being all ready, began to batter the Place, by Break of

Day,

Duke 0/MARLROROUG.B, &fc.

Day, and continued the Fire, with fuch uninterrupted Fury, that the Flames appeared in feveral Place-)-, before eight in the <• Morning. Before Night, the Battering by Sea, having like- wife done great Execution, a great Part of the Cannon of the Befieged was difmounted, and the Place near reduced to a Heap of Rubbifh. The fourth, the Firing and Bombardment was continued, with great Vigour ; and, the Night following, an AfTiuIt was made on the Counterfcarp.

The Attack was begun by fifty Engliih Grenadiers command- A LodS- ed by a Lieutenant, and fupported by a Battalion of the Dutch. ™ent^™de It was carried on with all pofljble Courage and Refolution, and co»nter- the Enemy being beaten from their Works, the Allies made a fcarp. Lodgment upon the Counterfcarp.

' The fame Day, the Duke of Marlborough, accompanied by The Duke the Princes of HefTe and d'Auvergne, the Count Van der Nat, of Marlbo. and Count NafTiu, Son of General d'Auverquerque, came to the J£"r£a^flts Siege. His Grace was faluted by the Guns of all the Ships of befor3 mp the Fleet, under the Command of Vice-Admiral Fairborn, who, oftend, likewife, came on Shoar, and having dined with the Duke, held a Conference with him.

The next Morning, the Befieged fallied out, with 900 Men, in order to diflodge the Befiegers, and endeavour the Regaining of the Poll, they had taken : But the Battalions, which were in the Trenches, advancing to their Succour, after a fmall Encoun- ter, the Enemy retired, without having gained any other Ad- vantage, by their Sally, than killing and wounding about fifty of the Befiegers. During this, all poffible Diligence was ufed, to perfect two Batteries on the Glacis, one of twelve, and the ocher of eight Pieces of Cannon.

The fixth, at nine in the Morning, the Befieged find- Oftend Cor- ing it was to no Purpofe, to "hold out any longer, againft renders« the Fire of fix and forty heavy Cannon, eighteen Mortars, and. feveral hundreds of fmall Cohorn Mortars, beat a Parly. The Capitulation being, thereupon, agreed to and fign'd, at eleven, the fame Night, the next Morning the Allies took Poffeffion of Oftend, in the the Name of King Charles III.

The taking of this Place, in fo fhort a Time, was fo much Honour the greater Honour to the Confederates ; becaufe, in the Years; gained in 1601, 1602, and 1603, it held out a Sjegeagaintt the Spaniards l!*'s flurt of three Years ; during which, the Befiegers loll near fourfcore fiese' thoufand Perfons before it : Whereas now, the fame Place, tho* defended by a ftrong Garrifon, commanded by two Generals, one a Frenchman, the other a Spaniard, and provided with. Artillery and Ammunition in Abundance, furrendered to, thff'j Allies, after having been batter' d no more than three Days, and fome few Hours.

D d 4 The

1706.

Reafons sffign'd by the French for furren- dering fo

The Capi- tulation.

Lofsofthe Allies.

A Medal flruck en the Sur- tender of

ttitai

The French, to juft!^ Monf. de la Mothe, from any Imputation, tor delivering up this important Place, in fo fhort a Time, fay, that the Place being entirely ruin'd, by above 10,000 Bombs, which were thrown into it, the Menaces of the Inhabitants to revolt, the Mifunderftanding between the French and Spanifh Garrifons, and the Want of Arms for thei Soldiers, obliged him to capitulate. To all which, Monf. de Quincy adds, that the Place was very ill provided with every Thing, and that the Garrifon, which corfifted only of eight Battalions, and four Regiments of Dragoons, were all either new Levies, or difaffe<fled Walloons. How little Truth there was in feme of thefe Affertions, the Reader has already feen.

According to the Capitulation, the Garrifon confifling of tv/o Spanifh Battalions, four Troops of Dragoons of the fame Nation, and four French Regiments, march'd out, the eighth of July, N. S. without any Marks of Honour, their Swords and Baggage only excepted, having firft been obliged to promife, th'at they would not bear Arms againft King Charles III. or his Allies, for the fix Months following ; but moll of the Spaniards enter'd into the Service of the Allies, In this Capitulation, no mention was made of the Shipping in the Harbour ; in which, however, were found two Men of War, one of eighty, the other of fifty Guns, and about five and forty fmall Veffels. This important Conqueft did not coft the Allies above 500 Men, killed and wounded. They found, in the Place, four and twenty Colours, and one Standard ; fifty Pieces of Brafs, and forty Iron-Cannon ; Ammunition in Abundance ; and 300,000 Ib, of Powder.

On die Surrender of this Place, the following Medal wafc .ftruck.

On the the Face are two Bufto's, reprefenting the Duke of Marlborough, and the Vejt Marihal d'Auverquerque, with the Infcripcion :

JOHANNES, Dux MARLBOROUCH, HEN^ICUS D'AtrvES.«t

QJJERQJJE, SlDERA ANN I, 1706.

jFobx Duke of Marf^rouvb, and Henry cT Au<v erquerque, the fit* Corjlellutions of the Ycart \ 706.

On the Reverfe, the Veh-Marfhal d'Auverquerque, on Foot, tracing the Cap of Liberty on the Head of a Nymph flanding before him, with her Hands bound, lepreienting the City <x <6itend> which appears at a Diibnce, wkh the Infcription ':

LlfiERAT, NON MUTAT JuGUM, Dl£ 6. JuLii.

|2f Jflivtrt far fro*, -lut Joes not txcbange, be* fekt* Jtt'y 6. i The

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

The following Lines, upon the Marmal de Villeroy, were lianded about at Paris, foon after the Defeat of the French Army, at Ramellies.

Ceft a ce Coup, que Villero}

Ce Marecbal incomparable, 'Pour avoir bien fer<vi k Royt

Aura FEpee de Connetable : Car pour un tnoindrf Evenement

tallard cut un Goutver»ement»

Varus rends mol mes Legions f

S'ecrioit PEmpereur dugujle : Tallard rends moi mes Battalions /

Dit Louii, a titre'plusjufte : Mallard reponct — He / Grand Rot, Demandez les a Villeroy.

The Approaches before Oflend being levell'd, and a good Garrifon left in that Town, and in Plaflendael, under the Com- mand of Lieutenant General Spar, Monfieur d'Auverquerque d'Auver- march'd, the twelfth of July, with the Troops under his Com- querque rt* mand, to join the Duke of Marlborough whom we left at J^n* th* Arfeele : And of whole Proceedings, in the mean time, I am Mai-iboro * now to give an Account.

His Grace broke up from Arfeele, the eighteenth of June, Motions of and marched to RoufTelaer, where he encamp'd, to cover the t'le Duke's Siege of Oftend. The twenty -fecond, he received Advice from Brigadier Meredith, who commanded the Troops which blockad- ed Dendermond, that the Enemy, having fent a Detachment of ^- 3,000 Horfe, and 2,000 Foot, from Mons, hoping to furprize tempt ot the him, he, having timely Notice' of their Approach, had retired Enemy'*, from Lebbeeke to Baeftroo, a Poft »fo advantageous, that the Enemy did not think fit to attack him there, tho' fo much fupe- riour in Number. Of fifty Men he had left, in a Redoubt, to cover his Retreat, only five Men were killed, and the Captain, who commanded them, with feven of his Men, were taken Pri- foners. The Enemy put about 400 Foot, and 100 Dragoons, into the Town ; and, upon fight of Brigadier Cadogan, with fix Squadrons, who came from Oudenarde, about an Hour too late to fecure the Bridge of Aloft, they retreated, in the greatefl Hurry, to Mons again, having loft, in this Expedition, near 700 Men, moft of whom deferted.

. The eight and twentieth, the Duke of Marlborough received Dender- a Letter from Brigadier Cadogan, with an Account, that the |"°nd re~ Town of Dendermond having been fet on Fire, in feveral Places, c"n" *infc" by the Bombs, he had, the feven and twentieth, by the Advice to furrcn-'

ofdcr.

A Letteir from theD.

.of Peter-

ns Life of JOHN,

of- the Marquis de Terraceaa, written a Letter to the Cover- ' •nour, the Marquis DelValle, to acquaint him, that the Garrifon was to expeft no other Conditions, than to remain Prifoners of War, if they obftinately perfifted to maintain the Place any longer ; upon which the Governour deiired a Cefiation of Arms for four and twenty Hours, to affemble and confult with his Officers. The Cefiation being expired, his Anfwer, to the Mar- quis de Terracena was ; " That having call'd a Council of War, " it was there refolved ; fmce the Town had a ftrong Garrifon, " and wasotherwife well provided, for a good Defenfe, it was «' their Duty to hold out to the laft.

About this Time, the Duke of Marlborough wrote the follow- ing Letter to the- Eaji of Peterborough.

The Duke of Marlborougtf t Letter to the Earl of Peterlorougb,

My Lord,

^1 ^ H O' we have no diredl Account of your Lordmip'a Progrefs, fmce the Relief of Barcelona, yet the Ad-

vicCS fr°m feVCral Other ?artS' 3S Wel1 aS the Enemy's Frontiers, agree fo well, and we are naturally fo inclined to

believe readily what we wifh, that I perfuade myfelf, there is no Reafon to doubt of. your having, fome time fines, brought the King to Madrid. As this good News has been indulg'd here, with the greateft Satisfa&ion, I do, with no lefs Plea- fure, take this frefh Opportunity of congratulating your Lord- fhip on the glorious Occafion, which is by all Hands chiefly attributed to your Valour and good Condudl. The whole Confederacy is full of Joy, for the Advantages this wonder- ful Succcfs will produce to the Publick, and I aflure you, I am no lefs fo, for the Addition it has made to your Lordfhip's Glory ; in which no Man alive takes more Part than I do. After fuch furprizing Events, there is nothing that we may not expeft from you ; therefore, I hope, your Lordfhip will not think us unreafonable in our Expectations, that we fhall foon hear of the entire Reduction of Spain, to the Obedience of their lawful Sovereign, for which you feem defign'd, by Providence, to be the happy Inftrument ; and I heartily wilh you all Manner of Succefs in the accompliming this great Work.

'•' We have reduced Oftend, and are now making all poffible Diligence in the neceflary Preparations for the Siege of «

Menin,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &V.

* Menin, and hope, with the Bleffing of God, we mail not end i, " our Campaign there. I am with Truth and Refpeft,

My Lord,

Your Lordfhip's moft

Faithful humble Servant,

MAR i. BOROU GH.

• So ready was his Grace in acknowledging Merit in others, and in rejoycing at their good Succeis.

Orders were difpatch'd to block up Dendermond very clofely, Farther till there mould be a proper Seafon for attacking it in Form. -pf°t"e<1^58S The Troops of Pruffia and Hannover came thru Day to Aloil, fe(jeratc and Orders were fent them, to encamp there, till further Orders. Army. The fecond of July, at Night the Lord Raby, her Majcity's Ambaffador Extraordinary to the King of Pruffia, came from Wefel, to the Camp at Rouffelaer, to wait upon the Duke of Marlborough. The fourth, in the Morning, when his Grace went to Monf. d'Auverquerque's Camp, before Oilend, as I have feid above j as he patted thro' Bruges, he was faluted with a T]iC Dukf. triple Difcharge of the Cannon of that Place. His Grace, of Marlbo- likewife, pafs'd thro1 Bruges, in his Return, where he was rough's Re- again faluted, with a triple Difcharge of the Artillery. The ce'^i011 at Clergy met him, at fome Diftance, out of the Town, as the Magiftrates of that City, and the Franc, did at the Gates. They all made their Excufes, that they did not know of his Grace's coming the Day before, till he was at their Gates. Thev prefented him the Keys of the City, and affured him of their Zeal and Loyalty to their lawful Sovereign, King Charles III. acknowledging, at the fame time, the great Obligations they- had to his Grace, as the happy Inftrument of their Deliverance from the Tyranny of France. Thefe Ceremonies being pafs'd, his Grace arrived, about fix in the Evening, at the Camp.

Before the Duke went to Oftend, he had ordered the Prince of The Allies Holftein Beck, Lieutenant-General, to march, with eight Batta- take Pof. lions, and take Poffeffion of Courtray, where he arrived, ac- £ffion °f cordingly, the fifth. The Detachment, under the Command o/ ° Major General Berenfdorff, which lay near Oudenarde, was ordered, at the fame time, to take the Camp of Harlebeck, near Courtray, his Grace defigning to march thither, with the Army. The Troops of Hannover and Pruffia were ordered, the fame Day, to march to Ninove. The fixth, the Duke of Marlborough, with the Army under his Command, march'd from Rouffeiaer, and encamp'd, with the Right, at Courtray, and the Left, at Harlebeck, having the River Lys in the Rear. His Grace having Notice, that the Prince Royal of Pruffia in- fended jo fee the Army, fent away .Colonel Durel, Adjutant- General,

Srr._ •-

412 the Life of J O JH N,

1706. General, the eighth, in the Morning, to Cleves, to compliment J his Royal Highnefs, and to conducl him to the Camp. The tenth, Colonel Lalo's Regiment march'd from the Camp towards * Oftend, there to embark, together with Brigadier-General Far- ringdon's, and Brigadier-General Maccartney's Regiments, in order to join the Troops in England, which were appointed for a Defcent. The eleventh, the Army march'd from Harlebeck and came to Helchin, near which Place four Bridges were laid, by his Grace's Directions, over the Scheld. In the Evening, Count MafFei, Envoy Extraordinary from the Duke of Savoy, came thither, to wait on his Grace, by particular Orders from his Royal Highnefs. The thirteenth, Brigadier Cadogan was fent, by the Duke, with 400 Horfe, to mark out a Camp for the Army, near Gramont, in cafe the Enemy's Motions mould make it neceflary to march that Way : Which being done, and Directions, likewife, given, for the widening and repairing the »f Bavaria Ways thither, he returned, with his Detachment, in the Even- retires from ing, to the Army. The Elector of Bavaria, in the mean time, Mons at the having Advice, that the Allies had laid Bridges over the Scheld, thePConre-° anc* l^at *°me °^ ^eir Troops had appeared about Gramont, re- derate " tired, with his Court, the thirteenth, at Night, with great Pre- Army. cipitation, from Mons to Valenciennes.

The Prince The fixteenth, the Prince Royal of Pruffia arrived at the Con- Royal of federate Camp, with his Court. The Duke of Marlborough, Pniflia an(j the reft Of the Generals, met him, at fome Diftance from Am". the CamP> and his Grace condufted his Royal Highnefs to his Quarters, were he was fplendidly entertained at Dinner. The next Morning, his Grace ordered the firft Line of the Army to draw out, and pafs in Review before his Royal Highnefs.. The eighteenth, in the Morning, the Duke, with the Prince Royal, and feveral General Officers, having with them a Guard of 2,000 Horfe, and 600 Foot, went to a rifing Ground, within a ™ PrSe Mile of Tournay, where they took a View of that Place, and .take a View returned to the Camp, about Noon. The nineteenth, early in. •f Tournay. the Morning, his Grace went to view Monf. d'Auverquerque's Army, which came, the feventeenth, to St. Eloy- Vive, beyond Harlebeck, on the Lys, where they continued, for the better Subfiitence of the Troops. At the fame time, his Grace order- ed that River to be viewed ; and finding, that the Enemy, by making Sluices, had fo drained the Water, that inftead of the Depth neceffary to bring up the Boats with the Artillery, in many Places, there was not one Foot left ; General Salifch was ordered, the twentieth, to take a flrong Detachment under his Com- mand, and deftroy all the Sluices, between Lifle, Armentiers, Menin, and Courtray. Three Days before, the Troops of Pruflia and Hannover, with 3000 Palatines, marched fro A Aloft, and, the nineteenth, arrived in the Rear, of the. fecond XJne. CHAP,

T)uke of MARLBOROUGH, &fr,

CHAP. Ill

¥be Sieges of Menm, Dendermond, and Aeth, wttb ether Tranfaftions to the End of the Campaign.

THE Confederate Army, being now considerably re-in- 1706. forced, his Grace thought fit to employ moft of the c— v— «J Troops, that had no Share in the former Services and Fatigues The Siege of this Campaign, in fome considerable Enterprize ; and none ot Menin could be greater, at this Juncture, than the Siege of Menin, refolved ""• which was reckoned a Key to the French Conquefts in the Ne- Strength of .therlands ; one of the moft regular Fortifications in Flanders, *hat Waee.; and on which, the celebrated French Engineer, Monfieur de Vauban, who directed the Fortifications, had beftowed his ut- inoit Skill, and thought them his Maiterpiece. It was built af- ter the Peace of Nimeguen ; and nothing that Art could invent was wanting, to render it impregnable. It was, befides de- fended, by a Garrifon of 6,000 Men ; (Rouffet fays, 4,326 private Men, commanded by 574 Officers, including Serjeants ;) the Marquis de Bully, who was Governour, had under him, Lieutenant-General Caraman ; and Monfieur de Valloris, who> was chief Engineer, had two other Engineers of Note under him. All thefe Things duly weigh'd, it was thought, by many,, too bold an Undertaking, to befiege it ; but then, on the other hand, it was confidered, that the Reduction of fo important a Place would not only add great Reputation to the Arms of the Allies, but would be a great Help to fecure their late Acquiii- tions : It being fituated on the River Lys, five Miles South- Weft of Courtray, nine almoft North of Lifle, and twelve al- moft South-Eaft of Ipres. Upon thefe, and other Confidera- tions, this Siege being refolved upon, part of the Forces, which were appointed for that Service, with Meffieurs des Rocques and Hertel, the two chief Engineers, and fourteen other Engineers, marchM, the twenty-,firft of July, N. S. to Courtray ; having with them, 1 2 Pieces of Cannon, 8 fmall Mortars, and 1 2 Pontons. The next Day, General Salifch, to whom the Com- mand and Direction of this Enterprize was confided, mardi'd, with the reft, being together two and thirty Battalions, and five and twenty Squadrons : Twelve thouiand Pioneers were, likewife, appointed to work on the Lines of Circumvallation. The Place was inverted, the twenty- third of the fame Month ; but, the Artillery from Ghent not being come up, the Trenches were not opened, till the fourth of Auguft, in the Night.

The principal Officers, who were appointed to command, at Tha. this Siege, under General Salifch, were Lieutenant Generals Trenches

Scholtz, opened<

M- *V £#* */ J o H-N,

1706. Scho'Uz, and Lord Orkney; Major-Generals Erberveld, Rant-< -V-— > zau, Week, Villate, Pai'landt, and the Prince of Sonderburg J and the Brigidiers Capol, Schurel, Nuffeu-Woudenburg, Ama- /ma, .Argile, Troufiel and Schwartzd. • " / »

The Coun- The Approaches were c.rn'ed 'on, in the ufual Forms, witn"-

terfcaip out any remarkable Occirrence, till the i 8th of Attguft, -when St r"

" ^ the aps on the R-ght and Left being advanced, as far as the

Saihant Angles of the Goar.terfcarp, the Difpoiition was rnada fllr attacking it, in the Evening. This Action proving .the licit bloody, that hsppen'd at any Siege, fmce that of the .Covcr'd Way of 'Keyferfwaert, I fhall be the more particular in my Re- lation of it. Lieutenant-General i'choltz (or Sholten) commanded the Att.ckon the Right, having under him Major-Gerwal PaJ- landt, and Brigadier Schwartzel j the EarJ of Orkney commanded the Attack on the Left, with M ijor-General -de Villate^ and the Duke of Argile, Brigadiers ; and at each Attack, were. 300 Gre- nadiers, aamany Workmen, and a Detachment of the like Number of Fufileer?, to cover them ; the whole being fultained by theg Bal- - talioas that relieved the Trenches, four on the Right, and five on the Left, viz. thofe of Lottum, Ingoldfby, Pallandt, Fagel, Laa- der, Vogelin, Goven, Ranck, and Leers : And four other Bat- talions were order'd to fupport them, in cafe of Need; The Duke of Maryborough was that Day hjmfelf at the Camp^ and aififted at making the neceffary Diipufitions for this famous Ac- tion. The Attack began about feven o'Clock, upon a Signal of a Mine the Befiegers fprung up, at each of the two Salliaut Angles of the Cover'd Way, which had a good Effect. . Theiir Men behaved themfelves with great .Bravery 5 the Grenadiers, efpecially, advanced with an uncommon Intrepidity to the Pal- lifadoes, and, throwing their Grenadoes into the Cover'd Way, leap'd in after them, killing all that oppos'4 them. The Ere- my made a gallant Refinance, and the firft five Battalions fuf- fer'd very much, by the exceffive Fire which was made from the Place j but the Grenadiers preffing on, with great Fury, they foon beat the Enemy out of the Cover'd Way, with a terrible Slaughter, and made Lodgments clofe to the Pallifadoes, on the four Angles of the Countericarp. The Enemy fprung two Mines, during the Attack, which did the Befiegers bufc little Harm 5 but they were expofed to the Fire of the Ravelins, and other Works, for near two Hours, before the Men could cover themfelves. This occafion'd the greateft Part of their Lofs, which was little lefs than 1400 Men, kill'd or wounded > with three Engineers kill'd, and three wounded. However, it was as little as could be expected in fo warm a Service. The De- *The Duke puties of the States, and the Generals, exprefled themselves ex- «>f Argile tremely well fatisfied, with the Gallantry of the Troops, on tinS ift" this' Occafion. Among the reft, the Duke of Argile diftinguifb-

•I

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, fcfr.

td himfelf very much in this Aftion^ The fame Night, the Befieged made feveral Signals to give Notice, as it was believ'd, that they were reduced to the/ laft Extremity ; and they were anfwer'd from all the neighbouring Places.

In the mean time, the Army under the Duke of Marlbo- rough, continued encamped at Helchin, only the Left Wing was extended to Lauwe near Menin, in order to oppofe any Attempt, that might be made by the Duke de Vendome, who TheDuke being arrived at Valenciennes, the 4th of Auguft, was drawing <je Vendome together an Army, with which he threatned to relieve Menirr. arrives at On the i 6th of the fame Month, Brigadier Cadogan, being out Valencien- near Tournay, with a few Horfe, to cover the Foragers, w<*s nes* furpriz'd and furrounded by a fuperior Number of the Enemy's Cavalry, and carried Prifoner into Tournay; but, the iStrr, Br;ga(};er the Duke de Vendome fent him back, on his Parole ; being Cadogar* willing to contend with the Duke of Marl borough, if not in taken Pri-" the Field, at leaft in Generofity. On the other hand, the Duke foner< of Marlborough releafed Baron Palavicini, a Major-General in But reloas4 the French Service, taken at the Battle of Ramellies, by way upon Parole, of Exchange.

The nineteenth of Auguft, N. S. the Confederate Troops be- The Siege fore Menin began two Saps, in order to make a Defcent into of Menin the .Ditch, and work'd, at the fame time, upon the Batteries carried oa* on the Counterfcarp. The next Day, they finifhed two Batteries, one of fix, and the other of five Pieces of Cannon, which began to fire upon the Billion and the .Ravelin, next Morning, at JSreakofDay ; and two more Batteries, being perfected, were ready to play, the twenty -fecond, in the Morning. The Duke of Marlborough going thither, to fee what Progrefs was made, the Governour beat a Parly, upon which Hoitages were ex- The Town changed about nine, that Morning. The Garrifon defned, a- capitulates, mong other Things :

'« That they might be allowed four Days, from the Date of Their De- •* the Capitulation, to expedl Succours, and that, if they were ir»nds. not relieved in that Time, a Gate mould then be delivered up ; that the Ganifon (hould march out with Arms and Bag- gage, apd all the ufual Marks of Honour, mould carry away with them twelve Pieces of Cannon, and four Mortars, and fliould be conducted to Lifle ; that they mould be furnifhed with Waggons and Boats for their .Baggage, and their Sick ' and Wounded ; and fuch of them, as were not in a Condition ' to remove, mould be taken Care of, in the Town, at the ' Expence of the Allies : That none of the Garrifon fliould be ' ftoppM for Debt, giving Notes under their Hands, for what « they might owe : That 12 cover'd Waggons, fliould be.aj- "f lowed the Garrifon, which fliouid not be vifited : That Pri- " foners taken on both Sides fhould be fet free : That no En-

tte Life (/JOHN,

quiry mould be made after any Deferters, on either Side * That fuch of the Garrifon as had~isilates or Effecls, in the '« Countries which were under the Obedience of the Allies, " ihould not be molefted in th&r Perfons or Eftates, and might *' continue in the French Service, and enjoy their Eftates and " Effecls : That as many Perfons might march out with the *' Garrifon, mafk'd, as the Governour mould think fit. That " the Guard to conduft them to Lifle mould confift of no more *' than 4 Squadrons of Horfe, that the Burghers mould be .*' maintained in their Privileges, and thofe who would might ** depart : That all the Generals of the Confederate Force* *' mould fjgn the Capitulation, and that the Allies fliould not *' take any of their Men out of their Ranks, as they march 'd " out, under any Pretence whatsoever." In the Evening the Capitulation was concluded ; the firft Article they propofed was Terms refufed, and it was agreed : " That they mould deliver up the g-anred • tf Qates of Bruges the next Day, being the 2%d, at nine in the ** Morning : That they mould march out in the Manner de- <( fired, but mould carry away with them only four Pieces of " Cannon, and two Mortars, and mould be conducted to Douay : " That they mould be provided with Waggons and Boats ; that " their Sick and Wounded, who could not be removed, mould *' be taken Care of, in the Town, at their own Charge. That, .*' as to the Debts of .any of the Garrifon, the latter mould not " be flopp'd, provided they gave fuch Security for Payment •' thereof, as fhould be accepted by their Creditors. That only " eight cover'd Waggons mould be allow'd them ; that the " Prifoners on both Sides mould be fet at Liberty, as defired."" The Articles they demanded concerning the Deferters, theEftateS of any of the Garrifon continuing in the French Service, and Perfons marching out mafk'd, were rejected : " The Guard to " conducl them to Douay was agreed to be 200 Horfe." What was deiired in favour of the Inhabitants was granted, " pro- " vided thofe who retired fhould declare their Intention of {a " doing, within a Month. It was agreed, that the Capitula- " tion ihould be ligned by the General who commanded the " Siege, as ufual in like Cafes : " The laft Article they pro- pofed was refufed ; " But it was promifed, that Care mOuld be '*' taken to prevent any Diforder, and Juftice ihould be dona " immediately upon any Complaint."

^ The Surrender of this Place happen'd fooner, by fome Days,

than the Eefiegers could reasonably have expected, confidering the Strength of it, and the Number of the Garrifon, who be- fides had very confiderable Magazines, both of Provifions aad Ammunition.

Parfuant

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Purfuant to this Capitulation, the Duke of Argile took Pof- feffion of one of the, Gates, call'd the Gate of Bruges, the twenty-third, in the Morning, with a Guard of 200 Men, and, The Duke on the five and twentieth, the Garrilbn, confifting of twelve ^.^f.'^ Battalions of Foot, and three Squadrons of difmounted Dragoons, fsflion ot- " making in all, about 4,300 Men, march'd out, with all the the Town. ufuai Marks of Honour, under a Guard oi zoo Confederate Horfe, who conducted them, the next Day, to Douay. It had been agreed, that the Garrifon (hculd march thro' the Breach ; but it appearing not to be wide enough, they march'd thro' the Lille-Gate. It is faid, that when the Governour firft demanded to march out of the Breach, he was anfwer'd ; that it was not advifable for him to do it, unlefs he had Ladders, and there- upon he chofe to march out at the Gate. The fame Day, Major-General Welderen, being appointed to command in Me- nin, took Paffeffion of the Town, with five Dutch Battalions of Foot. The Duke of Mariborough found, upon vifuing the Place, 55 Brafs Cannon, 10 Iron Cannon, 6 Mortars, 810 dou- ble Barrels of Powder, 387 double Barrels of Mufket- Balls, with a great Quantity of all Sorts of Provifion. Among -the Ar- tillery, were, likewife, found four Pieces of Cannon, with the Arms of England, taken at the Battle of Landen, which his Grace ordered to be fent to England ; and, at the fame time, gave Directions for levelling the Approaches, and repairing the Fortifications of Menin. The Lofs which either Party fuftained in this Siege, the Reader will fee, in the following Letter," from General Salifch to Monfieur Fagel, Secretary to the States General.

SIR,

¥ GIVE myfelf tha Honour to acquaint you, that the General Sa~ |_ Garrifon of Menin march'd out yefterday, about ten in Hfch's Letter the Forenoon, according to the Capitulation, making in all, ^^ ^ about 4000 Men ; fo that they had in this Siege 1 300 Men ^~? killed or wounded. My Lord Duke of Mariborough, and Monfieur the Velt-Marlhal d'Auverquerque, faw the Garri- fon march out, and every thing was done in good Order. As to the Lois we have fuitained in this Siege, your Honour may fee it in the following Lift. We have found in the Place 55 Pieces of Brafs Cannon, and 10 of Iron; befides feveral other Pieces that were buried under Ground, 6 Mor- tars, 810 double Barrels of Powder, 387 double Barrels of Mufket-Balls ; befides a great Quantity of all other Sorts of Ammunition and Provifions, of which I have not yet an exaft Lift: The Battalions of Heyden, Sachfen-Eyfenach, Chambrier, UfHingen, and Floor, are march'd into the VOL. I. E e " Place,

4*8 The Life of J O H N,

1706. *' Place, to remain there in Garrifon, till farther Orders. <— -v— -> " I am, &c.

Sign'd, From the Camp before Menin,

Aug. 26, 1706. E. W. SAIISCHP.

According to this Letter, my Account of the Force of the Garrifon, at the Beginning of the Siege, will appear large j but as I had it from good Authority, I mall leave it as I found it, without determining on either Side.

Loft of the As for the Lofs of the Enemy, during this Siege, the French inemy. themfelves allow it to have been greater than General Salifch makes it. Monfieur de Quincy, gives us the following State of it. Dragoons, kiil'd or wounded, 93 ; fick, 28 ; Officers kill'd, 49 ; Soldiers wounded, 802 ; Soldiers killTd, c.6o. To- gether, 1532 Officers and Men, kill'd, wounded, and fick.

Lcfs of the A true Lift of all the Woundsd and Slain in the Siege of Menin* Confede- cace the p/ace vjas taw/led, till the Capitulation,

fetes-.

Killed, Wounded, Colonels — — — — - — — oo 03

Lieutenant- Cdonel . co 01

Majors — — oo 04 .

Captains — — 13. 22

Lieutenants 13 27

Serjeants — — 34 69

Private Soldiers 517 1872

Run away to the Enemy 21

583 2045

The Duke The Duke de Vendome having affembled an Army of 15 j de Vendomc Squadrons, and 73 Battalions, it was thought he would have paflin. made fome Motion to diiturb the Prcgrefs of the Confederate

Arms ; but he had the Mortification to be only a Spectator of

the Siege, and Surrender of Menin, and continued quiet in his

Camp, behind the Deule.

Bender- The nine and twentieth of Auguft, the Duke of Maryborough

mend be- gave Orders to befiege Dendermond in Form, which had been ieg'd in blockaded ever fmce the B.ittle of Ramellie?, and appointed his

Brother, General Churchill, to take the Command and Direc- ADefcnp- tion of that Undertaking. Dendermond is a ftrong Town in. tion of the the Earldom of Flanders, on the Rivers Schtld and Dender, Pia«e. from Wj1jc}1 latter ir has its Name. It is fuuate i 2 Miles Ealt

•f Ghent, 14, Stjuth-Well of Amverp, and 17 North-Weft of if ' Bruffels-.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

BrufTels. Three Days after, his Grace arrived himfelf, in the Camp before that Place, together with the Deputies of the States, to haiten the Siege ; and from thence they wrote the following Letters, giving an Account of its Siege and Surrender.

High and Mi'hty Lords,

" "I Arrived here M Thurfday Night, with Monfieur de The D. of " I Ci.jfli.:g.n, and Monfieur de Geldermalfen, to haiten the Marlboro's " Attack of this Place, and am very glad J can acquaint your T**!* t0 " High Mightinefles, that this Morning, about 10 o1 Clock, about rhe' ** the Garrifon heat a Parly, demanding honourable Conditions; Surrender " but my Brother returned Anfwer, that he could grant therrf °f Dender , " no other Terms, than that they mould remain Prifoners of irmd* " War, yet that their Baggage would be left them, provided ** they did declare themfelves, and deliver up one of their Gates " in two Hours time. They rejeded this Propofal, and the " Hoitiges having been fent back, Orders were given to renew " the Attack ; whereupon the Gnrrifon defired a farther Ceff-ition *' of Arms, for *n Hour, at the Expiration of which they furren- " dered, and about -, delivered up the Gate of Mechlin. They " are to march out next Tueiday, in order to be conducted to. " Holland.

" I heartily congratulate your High Mightinefles upon this " happy Event, in which the Hand of GOD has vifibly ap- " pear'd : It having been obferved, that for feveral Years part, " there has not been in this Country fo favourable a Seafon for " fuch an Enterprise. I am, witn entire Devotion and Re- « fpecl,

High and Mighty Lords, &V.

At the Camp be- Signed,

fore^Dendermond, The pj.ince and Duke of

MARLBOROUGH. High and Mighty Lords,

" A Ccording to our laft, the Trenches were open'd, and the The Stitca " -t\ B<ueriesfii,imM ; fo that they began to play yeikrday ^ePuties «' Morning, with fo great Fury and Execution, that the theTr Prin- Branches, in a Redoubt, and Work that cover'd it, being cipals. wide enough this Morning, our Men carried the fame by Storm, with great Bravery, and little Lofs : Whereupon the Befiegers immediately defired to capitulate, and fent us Ho- itageb, for that Purpofe. Their Propofals having been brought to us, and to my Lord Duke of Marlborough, whilit we were' all in the Trenches, to fee the Affault, feve- ral Meilages w- re fent to and fro ; and the Agreement was, at lair, concluded, about five this Afternoon, by which the E e 2 " Ganifon

fl>e Life of JOHN,

Garrifon are to remain Prifoners of War, on Condition^ however, that they ftiould be allow'd their Swords and Bag- gage. And accordingly they have delivered up to us the Gate cf Mechlin. We {hall take further Meafures with my Lord Duke of Marlborough, about the next Enterprize ; and we fhall wait for your High Mightinefles Order, to know whither the Garrifon fhall be conduced. We have thought it our Duty to congratulate your High Mightinefles, upon this fpeedy and happy Succefs. We are,

High and Mighty Lords, c5V. From the Camp be- Signed,

fore Dendermond, o ir /-•

Sept. 5, 1706. S.V. GOSLINGA.

A. V. BORSSELE, Lord of GELDER MALSEN.

SomeObfer- Thus the Troops of the Allies made themfelves Matters, in vadons on a Siege of feven Days, of this important Place, which, being this Succefs. ftrongly fituated among Moraffes, had formerly baffled the Ar- my of the French King, who befieged it in Perfon, and which was now defended, by two French Regiments of Foot, a Spa- nifh Battalion, 700 Men, drawn out of feveral other Regiments, and 200 Dragoons unmounted. The French, according to Cuftom, to lefien the Honour gain'd by the Befiegers, pretend the Garrifon might have held out longer, had it not been for a Mifunderitanding between the Governour and the Officer who commanded the French Troops. The Duke of Marlborough appointed Brigadier Meredith, to. command in Dendermond, with a Garrilon of 500 Men; befides the Regiment of Sarra Blanca, which was ordered to remain at Grimberg, under his Dire&iOn, to cover the Country of Waes.

Situation of . The Duke of Marlborough came, in Perfon, to vifit th'is the Confe- Place ; his Army, in the mean time, was encamp'd at Elchin, derate Ar- whitner General §alifch had Orders to bring back the Troops from the Siege of Menin. He arrived there, the eighth of September, and, the fame Day, the Englifh, Pruffian, and Han- noverian Infantry made a Motion, by Order of the Duke, from the Right to the Left, to be nearer at Hand, to pafs theScheld, over fix Bridges, which this General had caufed to be buik, op- pofite to the Village of Potte. Brigadier Wertmuller, who com- manded in Courtray, likewife, join'd the Army, with his Gar- rifon : And, the ninth, the Troops began to pafs the Scheld, and advance towards Aeth.

<Aeth in- Dendermond being now reduc'd, after fo many Cenquefts, the

i-eftcd. Confederate , Army might have ended the Campaign, crowned

with more Glory than could almoft be aimed at in one Summer j

but

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

but the ever-vidlorious Duke of Marlborough thought it yet too foon to ftem the Torrent of their Succefs : He, therefore, or- dered them to turn their Arms againft Aeth, which was, ac- cordingly, inverted, the fixteenth of September, by forty Bat- talions and thirty Squadrons, under the Command of Monfieur d'Auverquerque ; the Duke of Marlborough himfelf being enr camp'd at Gramez, to cover that Siege, and the Enemy between Conde and Mortaigne.

Aeth is a ftrong Frontier-Town, and a Place of fome Con- Situation fideration, in the Earldom of Hainault, fituate on the Dender, ^ *£« of at the Place where the Brook of Cambron empties itfelf into that River, 14 Miles almoft North-Weft of Mons, 22 almoft South- Weft of Bruflels, and 24 South of Ghent. The French took it in 1697 ; but reftor'd it, the fame Year, by the Peace of Ryfwick. It is a pretty regular Fortification, and all the Works were, at this time, in good Repair. Monfieur de Spinola was Governour of it, and the Brigadier de St. Pierre commanded the Troops, to the Number of about 2000 Men. The Enemy had Time to provide every thing that was neceffary for a long and vigorous Defenfe ; but Men were chiefly wanting. The feventeenth, the Befiegers begun their Line of Circumvallation, and to make and bring Fafcines together.

The Trenches before Aeth, were opened, the 22d, in the The Night, with very little Lofs. This was chiefly owing to a JrTdhcs Stratagem ; for tho' the Defign of the Befiegers was to open the °pen ' Trenches on the South-Side, they made a Feint of opening them on the North-Side j upon which, the Befieged drew the greater Part of their Strength that Way, and in that Inter- val the Befiegers purfued their Point, with fo much Succefs, that before they were difcovered, they were got under good Shelter. The Befieged were the eafier deceived in this, becaufe it was on the North-Side, that the Marfhal de Catinat hid for- merly attack'd it, and the Breaches then made, being no otherwife repair'd, than by Fafcines : But the Befiegers difcover'd a more convenient Place, between the Brook of Cambron, and the Dender. The Attack being carried on as ufual, the Befiegers made a Lodgment, on one of the Angles of the Cover'd Way, the nine and twentieth of the fame Month ; and having carried on the Saps, which they begun that Night, on the Right, againft the Point of the Ravelin, and, on the Left, againft the two Points of the Counterguard, within 200 Paces of each other ; they took Pofleflion of that Counterguard, the Night between the laft of September, and the firft of Odtober ; and finiftVd, at the fame time, anewBrttery, on the Cover'd Way.

This obliged the Garriibn, who were terrified with the Ap- Aeth fur- prehenfions of a general Storm, to beat a Parly, tie firft of Oc- render*. tober, at four in the Afternoon. They, at firft, refks'd to fur- £e 3 render,

A Letter frtm Monf. d'Auver- querque to Mr. Secre- tary Fagel.

tte Life of JOHN,

render, upon the Conditions offered tlem by Monf. d' Auver- querque, upon which, the Hoitilities were re;:ew'd ; but beating a Parly the fecosd time, they were obliged to furrer.dei them- felves Prifoners of War : The Circumlhnces of which, the Reader will fee in the two following Letters from Monf. d'Au- verquerque to Mr. Secretary Fagel.

Monf. <T Au'verquerqui s firfl Letter to Mr. Secretary TageL

SIR,

" A FTER we had msde our<~elves Mailers of the Cover'd /"\ Way of the Coantei-fcarp, and while I was in the Ap- proaches, about fix o'Clock, hit Night, the Enemy beat a Parly, and fent out two Officers to demand an honourable Capitulation. I let them know, that they were to hope for no other Terms, than to be received Prifoners of War ; that out of Cor.fideration, however, for the Officers, I would allow them their Swords and Bagg;-ge, and the Soldiers their Knapfacks, and gave them half ;m Hour's time to refolve what to do. I fent one of my Adjutants with them, to know the Governor's Refolution ; but he returned immediately, and told me the Governour would not agree to it ; upon which, the Hoftilities were renew'd. But to-day, towards " Noon, the Befieged having beat a fecond P^rly, and fent " back the two Officers that came out to treat with me laft " Night, one of whom is a Colonel, the other an Adjutant to " the Duke de Vendome, it was agreed, after fome Debate, «' that the Garrifon Ihould iurrender themfeivts Prifoners of *' War. We fhall take Poffeffion cf a Gate to morrow, an4 «' the Garrifon is to march out on Monday. I do myfelf the Honour to congratulate their High Mightineffes. with all my Heart, upon the Surrender of this Place. I wi(h,^nd hope, that the ALMIGHTY will b!efs, more and more, the Arms of the State, and its High Allies, and make them victorious. My Adjutant, Lieutenant-Colonel Mortaigne, is ordered to carry this News to their High Mightinefles.

I remain,

Oaober 2.

P. S. " The Garrifon confided of 2100 Men, of which 500 " were killed or wounded, in the Siege. On our Side, 8 or *' 900 Men have been killed or wounded.

According to the Accounts, the French themfelves give of their Lofs, at this Siege, they had but 800 Men kft, of the Garrifon, when they furrender'd; and they afiign tbat as a

Reafon

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &?<:. 423

Reafon for the Governour's being obliged to furrender on fo 1 706. Jiard Conditions ; becaufe he had not Men enough to befet all o«"v^ the Polls, and had for that Reafon abandou'd the Saillant An- gles of the Cover1 d Way.

Monf. d"1 duvtrqiterijuis fecond Letter to Mr. Secretary Fagel.

SIR,

ec ^LT'Eflerday, theGarrifon of Aeth march'd out, as Prifoners Another «• ".JL of War, confining of i 50 Officers, and about 600 Sol- Letter from " diers, befides almoil 300 Sick and Wounded, left in the Hof- ^°^'r ^ *' pitals. I have fent them to Ghent, to be embarked there for quYt^Mrf " Bergen op Zoom, where one Half is to continue, and the Secretary " other Half' is ordered for Breda, till their High Mightineffes Fagel. " think fit to difpofe of them, in other Places. Yefterday, the *' Baggage, which I had granted to the Officers, was fent to " Mons and Conde, and I gave Leave to the Prince of Spinola, " late Governour of Aeth, Monf. de St. Pierre, Commander " of the French, Colobel Hondetor, and Colonel St. Valier, to " go for France for fix Weeks, upon Account of their private '* Affairs. This Morning, I caufed the Troops polled about " this Place, to draw up upon two Lines. The Enemies caufe *' more Troops to march towards Mons.

From the Camp before am'

Aeth, O£l. 5, 1706. AUVER.QJJERQJTE.

The Duke of Marlborough remained all this while, encamp'd The twi ^ at Gramez, to cover the Siege of Aeth ; and the Duke de Ven- Ar™ies J°'a dome contented himfelf to look on the taking of that Place, (^jrwi. with the fame Tranquillity, as he had, before, that of Menin : Eut being1 apprehenfive that the Allies might have a De-fign, either upon Mons, or Charleroy, he caufed the Garrifons ot thofe two Places to be re-inforced.

This Lukewarmnefs of the Duke de Vendome, was highly TheEleftor diftafleful to the Eledor of Bavaria. He wanted to be in Ac- °f B tion again; tho' he faw a Series of ill Fortune attended him, ^ in whatever he took in hand ; but the French did not care to hazard any thing under his Conduft. " They were {fays a late Reafons af- " Author) jealous of the Elector's Heat ; and tho1 he defired to fign'd for command an Army apart, yet it was not thought fit to di- £^ vide their Forces, tho' now grown to be very numerous. Deferters faid, the Pannick was ftill fo great in the Army, that there was no Appearance of their* venturing on any Adlion. Paris itfelf was under a high Confternation ; and tho' the King carried his Misfortunes, with an Appearance of tf Calmnds and Compofure ; yet he was often let Blood, which E e 4 «' was

Motions of both Ar-

mi eo.

The Life of J O H N, • .

was thought an Indication of a great Commotion within ; and this was no doubt the greater, becaufe it was fo much difguifed. No News was talked of at that Court, all was filent and folemn, fo that even the Duchefs Dowager of Or- leans knew not the true State of their Affairs ; which made her write to her Aunt, the Ele&refs of Hannover, to learn News of her.

The Lines before Aeth being all levell'd, the Army, which was employed in that Siege, made a Motion, the fifth of Oc- tober, in the Afternoon, and, the next Day, encamp'd, with the Right, at Molley, and the Left at Aubre : Whereupon, the French ftretch'd out -their Camp j fo that their Line took up near four Leagues, in length, the Left being at Mortaigne, and the Right at Querrichin. The twelfth, at four in the After- noon, the Duke fent the Quarter matter General, with the Quarter-Colours, and all the Picquet of the Army, and Orders to advance, and pitch a Camp at Cameron Cldiiler. The thir- tieth, in the Morning, the Army commanded by the Duke of Marlborough marcii'd from Gramez, and having pafs'd the Dender, near Leuze, join'd the Army under the Command of Monf. d'Auverquerque.

The French had reported, that they would fall upon the Rear of the Allies, at Leuze: And they did, indeed, appear, the eighteenth, in the Afternoon, and again the aoth in the After- noon, with large Bodies of Horfe, to reconnoitre the Confede- rate Camp ; but the necefiary Precautions being taken againft any Attempt, they did not think proper to {hew themfelves any more. The two Armies being join'd, the whole encamp'd to- gether, on the Plains of Cambron, with the Right at Chierre, and the Left at Lens j the Head-Quarters being at the Abby of Cambron, within two Leagues and a half ot Mons.

This encreas'd the Enemy's Apprehenfion for that Place j but the Seafon being too far advanced for any great Under- taking, and the Confederate Forces too much fatigued, the Duke of Marlborough, having made fome Motions, for the greater Convenience of Foraging, left the Army at Ghiefleng- hien, under the Command ot Monf. d'Auverquerque, and went to Bruflels, the feven and twentieth of Oftober, N. S. attended by Mr. Stepney, her Majefty's Envoy Extraordinary, and feve- ral General Officers.

Th« Duke w-as met, at fome Diftance from the Town, by publ.cl^En- General Churchill, Count Sinzendorff, and other Perfons of Quality, with whom his Gi ace, at the repeated Requeft of the Magiftrates, made his Entry on Horfe-back. At the Anderlech- Port, his Grace was received by the Burgomafler and Magi- rlrates, who there preferred him the Keys of Honour, and made •him a very pclke Speech ; in which they exprefs'd their

Gratitude

1 he D. of ^ ariboro* Ir: ves the

Vakcs

tiy at Biuf-

tiv Ws.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 4.2,$

Gratitude to herMajefty of Great Britain, and the Englifh Na- 1706. t!on, and to his Grace, the glorious Instrument of their Deli- I"— v— -^ verance. The Streets, thro' which the Duke pafs'd, were filled His fplen- with a great Concourfe of the Nobility and Gentry, of both ^n^;"|~_ Sexes, and lined with the Burghers under Arms. The Popu- tertzinmwt lace made loud Acclamations, and gave all other Demonftrati- there, ons of Joy ; the Cannon, in the mean time, firing from the Ramparts ; and the fame Honours were paid to his Grace, as were, in former Times, wont to be paid to the Dukes of Bur- gundy. His Grace alighted, at the Palace of Orange, where he was complimented by the Council of State, the States of Brabant, and the Chief of the Clergy. The eight and twen- tieth, in the Morning, the Magiftrates waited on his Grace a- gain, in a Body, prefented him with what they call the Wine of Honour, which was brought in a Tun gilded, and painted with his Grace's Arms, upon a Carriage, with Streamers, drawn by fix Horfes, preceded by Trumpets and Kettle Drums, and attended by a Cavalcade of young 'Students, on Horfe- back, finely cloath'd, with Devices in their Hands, in Honour to his Grace, and in particular reprefenting the great Aftions of this Campaign. .

His Grace, having received all poflible Marks of Honour He return* and Refpett, from the whole City, return'd, the thirty-firft of to the Ar- Oftober, to the Army. The third of November he fent Ma- mX« jor-General Murray, with four Scotch Battalions, and fix of the Danifh Troops, towards Courtray, where they had Orders to remain, till the Fortifications of that Town were repair'd, and put into a Pofture of Defenfe.

Two Days after, his Grace fet out for the Hague ; and the £oes to tlls next Day (being the fixth of November, N. S.) the Army ague' moved to St. Quentin Lennick, in order to feparate, and march _,, . into their Winter Quatters, the Regulation of which was as fepaeratesr.my follows.

The Englifh Forces were garrifon'd in Ghent, under the The Repar- Command of General Ingoldfby ; the Danes, in Bruges ; and titionof the the Pruffians and Lunenburghers along the Demer, and between Wmter- the M*iefe and the Rhine. The Dutch Troops were quarrer'd ^ar C in the following Places, under the following Generals. Monf. d'Auverquerque was appointed to command in chief, in the Netherlands, and to refide at BrufTels, having, under him, Meffieurs Dopf, and Huekelom, Lieutenant-Generals, and Monf. Vitiates, and Prince William of Hefle-CafTel, Major- Generals ; Count Tilly, General of Horfe, was appointed to command in Louvain, with Mr. Dedem, Lieutenant General, and the Earl of Athlone, Major-General ; Monf. Salifch, Ge- neral of the Infantry, in Mechlin, with Monf. Dompre, Lieu- tenant^General, and Mr. Collier, Major General. The Earl

of

The Life of J O H N,

of Albemarle' commanded on the Maefe, having under him Meflieurs Hompefch and Oxenftiern, Lieutenants-General, and Meffieurs Souteland and La Lecq, Majors General ; Major- General Murray, in Courtray ; Major-General Pallandt, 'in Me- nin ; Brigadier Pallandt, in Aeth ; Major-General Ladder, in Dendermond ; Lieutenant-General Spar, in Oftend ; and Lieu- tenant-General Fagel, in Sluys, in Dutch Flanders. All the Brigadiers were order'd to continue with their Regiments, un- der" Penalty of being cafhier'd.

The Duke The Duke of Marlborough, having embark'd at Antwerp, rou^har-0" the feventh of November, N. S. on board one of the Yachts rives at the belonging to the Admiralty of the Maefe, arrived, the eighth, Hague. at Rotterdam, and, the next Morning, at the Hague, attended by Count Sinzendorff, and Mr. Stepney. The latter, being recall'd from Vienna, where he was her Majefty's Envoy Ex- traordinary and Plenipotentiary, came to the Hague, to fuc- ceed Mr. Alexander Stanhope, in the fame Character ; the Queen having thought fit to allow Mr. Stanhope, to quit that publick Station, which he was no longer able to difcharge to his own Satisfaction, by reafon of his great Age, and ill State of Health.

As I fhall have farther Occafion to make honourable Men- tion of Mr. Stepney, in the Sequel, fome Account of his Fa- mily, Rife and Eftablifhment in publick Bufinefs, may not be j^"*^61'^ unacceptable to the Reader. " George Stepney, Efqj was DJ' e ' " indeed born in Weftminfter, but was defcended from the •' Family of the Stepney's in Pembrokeihire. He had the " good Fortune to be educated at Cambridge, at the fame " Time with Mr. Montague, afterwards Lord Hallifax, who " brought him to Town, and fent him Secretary to Mr. John- " ftoun, Envoy at the Court of Berlin. When that Gentleman •" was recall'd, and made Secretary of State for Scotland, ••' Mr. Stepney remain'd there and was made Refident He was '« afterwards fent Envoy to the King of Poland ; and he being " noted for underftanding the Affairs of Germany better than •« ever any Englifhman did before him, and that there were but «« few Germans who underftood them fo well, he was employ'd " by King William to negotiate Affairs at feveral Courts of «' Germany ; in all which Commiffions he difcharged his Duty •« fo well, that, at his Return to England, the King made *( him one of the Commiffioners of Trade, and fent him af- " terwards to refide, with the Character of Envoy Extraor- " dinary, at the Court of Vienna, in which Poft, the Queen, '« at her Acceflion to the Throne, continued him, with the " Addition of Plenipotentiary, till me afterwards fent for him " from Vienna to the Hague, to fucceed Mr. Alexander Stan- " hope in the fame Character : No Maa ever was or could be

•' better

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &?r.

" better qualified to ferve his Country in foreign Negotiations : " He was poffefs'd of excellent natural Parts, and of a great <l Share of Learning ; he was a thorough Statefman, and " fpoke almoft every Language, as well antient as modern, in "• great Perfe&ion ; he was very agreeable in Converfation, and " wrote his Letters in a clear and eloquent Stile ; and with all " thefe Qualifications neceflary for a Minifter, was very polite " and affable, and befides, fo good a Poet, that England has " produced very few, if any, that have exceeded him: And " indeed iuch a Perfon was highly requifite to lucceed fo able *' a Perfon as his Predeceffor at the Hague."

The Duke of Marlborough having received the Compli- Confers jnents of the States, foreign Ministers, and other Perfons of p^^ 0* Diflindlion, on his wonderful and glorious Campaign, his the States. Grace had feveral Conferences with the Deputies of the States, in which, among other Things, it was agreed, That the Steps France had made towards a Peace, fhould be communicated to the Minifters of the Allies, in order to remove all Sufpicions of clandeiline Negotiations, and encourage the feveral Members of the Grand Alliance, to redouble their Efforts againft the next Campaign.

The States having, therefore, defired the Minifters of the offers made Allies, refuling at the Hague, to be prefent, the twenty-firft of by France November, at an extraordinary Congrefs, their Deputies for f°r a P&ce* foreign Affairs made a Notificati9n to them, which gave them great Satisfaction :

" They own'd, that France had formerly,* by fome private Communi- " Perfons, made general Intimations of their Willingnefs to cated to &* «« treat of Peace ; and that, laft Winter, the Marquis d' Ale- AUies* " gre had prefented to the States a formal Memorial, on the fame Subjeft, the Subftance of which was read to the Con- grefs : That they had given no Ear to thefe Advances, nor communicated them to the Allies ; becaufe they did not judge them worth imparting to them. But that, in October paft, the Ele&or of Bavaria had written a Letter to the Duke of Marlborough, and another to the Field- Deputies of the States ; which two Letters, and the Anfwers that had been returned to them, were alfo communicated to the Congrefs. That to the Duke of Marlborough, with his Anfwer, were as follows ;

A Letter

428

37* Z//<? <?/ JOHN,

The Elec- tor of Ba-

to to'tJ?

Duke of Marlboro*.

A Letter fram the E/efior of Bavaria to the Prince and Duke of Marlborough.

H E moft Chr'iftian King, Sir, finding, that fome O- vertures of Peace, 'which he had caufed to be made private Manner, inftead of producing the Effeft of " making known his Difpofitions, towards procuring a general «« Peace, have been look'd upon, by ill-defigning Perfons, as " an Artifice to difunite the Allies, and make an Advantage " of the Mifunderftanding that might be created among them ; " has refolved to fhew the Sincerity of his Intentions, by re- " nouncing all fecret Negotiations, and openly propofmg Con- " ferences, in which, Means may be found, for re-eftablifhing " the Tranquillity of Europe.

" The moft Chriflian King is pleafed to charge me to inform " you of this, and to defire you to acquaint the Queen of Eng- " land with it.

" I give the like Notification, on the Part of the moft " Chriftian King, to the States General, by a Letter that I '< have written to their Field-Deputies ; and he would do the " like with regard to the other Potentates, that are at War " with him, had they Minifters near at hand, as you are, to " receive the like Intimation, he having no Defign to exclude ** any of the Aid Potentates, from the Negotiation, that mail " be begun, in the Conferences he propoies. Moreover, for " advancing a Good, fo great and neceffary to Europe, which " has too long fuffer'd the inevitable Calamities of War, " he confents that a Place may forthwith be chofen, between " the two Armies, and after their being feparated, between " Mons and Bruflels, in which you, Sir, with whom the In- •• terefts of England are fo fafely entrufted, the Deputies " which the States fhall pleafe to nominate, and the Perfons " whom the King of France fhall impower, may begin to treat " upon fo important an Affair.

*' I am extreamly pleafed, Sir, to have fuch an Occafion " to write you this Letter, being perfuaded it will leave no " Room to doubt of the Sentiments of his moft Chriftian ' Majefty, which may be fo beneficial to all Europe. " You will be glad to give an Account of it to the Queen of England, without Lofs of Time, and to whomfoever elfe you fhall think fit. I fhall expect your Anfwer, Sir, to ac- ' /quaint the moft Chriftian King with it ; and flull be al- ' ways ready, Sir, to do you Service. Sign'd,

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

The Anfwtr from the Duke of Marllorougl? to the EleQ Bavaria.

SIR,

" ¥ T A V I N G communicated to the Queen, my Miftrefs, The Duke

" f~\ what your Elecloral Highnefs did me the Honour to of Marl bo -

«' write to me, in your Letter of the zift of laft Month, of rough's An-

** the Intentions of the moft Chriflian King, to endeavour to wer*

•* re-eftablifh the Tranquillity of .Europe, by Conferences to be

" held for that Purpofe, between Deputies on both Sides, her

" Majefty has commanded me to anfwer your Electoral High-

" nefe, that me has received with Pleafure the Notice of the

" King's Inclination, to agree to the making of a folid and

" lafting Peace with -all the Allies, being the fole End that ob~

* liged her Majefty to continue this War till now, fo me will

" be very glad to conclude it, in Concert with all her Allies,

" on fuch Conditions as may fecure them from all Apprehen-

fions of being forced to take up Arms again, after a fhort

Interval, as has fo lately happened. Her Majefty is alfa

willing I mould declare*, that fhe is ready to enter jointly

with all the high Allies, intojuft and nec'jflary Meafuresfor

attaining to fuch a Peace : Her Majefty being refolved not

to enter upon any Negotiation without the Participation df

her faid Allies. But the way of Conferences that is propos'd,

" without more particular Declarations, on the Part of his

" moft Chriftian Majefty, does not feem to her to be proper •

" for obtaining a truly folid and lafting Peace. The States

" General are of the fame Opinion. Wherefore your Elefto-

" ral Highnefs will rightly judge, that other more folid Means

" muft be thought on, to obtain fo great an End, to which

" her Majefty will contribute, with all the Sincerity that can

" be wifh'd, having nothing fo much at Heart, as the Relief

" of her Subjects, and the Tranquillity of Europe. Your E-

" leftoral Highnefs will always do me the Juftice to be perfua-

" ded of the Refpeft, with which I have the Honour to be,

«. &c.

Hague, Nov. 20, 1706.

The Elector's Letter to the Deputies of the States, with their Anfwer, being much of .the fame Tenour, with thofe to and from the Duke of . Marlborough, I omit them.

After the Reading of thefe Pieces, the Deputies of the Subftmce of States made a Speech to the Congrefs, purfuant to the Inftruc- the sPeetl» tions given them by their High Mightinefles for that Purpofe, ^ etje5t( in which they reprefented : '' That their High Mightinefles tha^Occa^*

" being fio*

fbe Life of J O H N,

" being firmly refolved to obferve their Alliances, in every Par*, " and to do nothing that may be contrary thereto, would not " be wanting to lay before them, the Proportions that have " been made to them, and what they have refolved thereup- *' on. That a Peace would be extreamly agreeable to their *' High Mightineffes, and, without doubt, to all the other *' High Allies, provided it could be had on fuch Terms, as «' might reafonably promife its being firm and laiting ; but that <f the Conferences propos'd, without a more particular Decla- «' ration of the Intentions of France, and without a probable «' Certainty or Appearance of good Succefs, did not feem to •* their High Mightinefles to be a proper Means for attain- «' ing it, but much rather a Mean;, by fuch Conferences a- ** bout a Peace, to divert the Thoughts of War, and of « the great Preparations the Enemy make, and to lull fome «« of the Allies afleep by the Hopes of Peace : That their *' High Mightinefles, for their own Parts, are refolved to a- «' bide by the Meafures they had taken, and the Alliances «' they had made, which God had hitherto fo wonderfully " blefs'd, and to execute and obferve fincerely what was fti- «' pulated and promifed by the Treaties, and therefore not to «' enter into any Negotiation of Peace, but jointly with their «' High Allies, and to communicate to them faithfully, conform- " able to the faid Treaties, the Propofals that may be made to " them on this Subject, expecting that the faid High Allies " would do no lefs on their Part.

Reafons The French had very fubftantial Reafons to induce them to

Why t"5 A ^ue *°r a ^eace> at c^'s t*me : ^e raifing of the Siege of Bar- forTpeace ce^ona ' tne ^ofs of the Battle of Rameiliec, and the Confe- quences that attended it; the total Defeat of their Army, be- fore the Walls of Turin, by the Duke of Savoy and Prince Eu- gene, which entirely chang'd the Affairs in Italy ; the Streights to which the King's Treaiury was reduc'd, and which were but ill remedied, by forcing and impofing Mint- Bills upon the Na- tion, inftead of ready Money : All thefe, I fay, concurr'd to call the Court of France, into the utmoft Coniternation and Perplexity, and obliged them to make thefe publick Advances towards a Peace.

Thefe Overtures towards a Peace on the Side of France, being look'd upon to be too general to ground a Treaty upon, and being, for that Reafon rejected ; Reflections were again caft upon the principal Perfons concern'd, on the Side of the Al- lies, as if they acted rather with private Views, than for the publick Good. It was no Wonder, (fays a French Author) Their Re- tnat thefe " Advances made by France, however fincere, had thelDuke°of " no ^^^ • becau^e l^e tnree principal Power,, on whom Marlboro', " skis Accommodation depended, were govern'd by three *c, " Perfons,

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

Perfons, .whbfe private Intereft it was to continue the War ; that is, Prince Eugene, the Duke of Maryborough, and Pen- fionary Heinftus. It is well known (continu«s my Author) that Prince Eugene, befides the particular Enmity he had conceived againft France, his native Country, was entirely in the Sentiments of the Emperor, who contributing little or nothing to this War, which was begun in his Favour, and in which he could lofe nothing, but had a Profpedt of gaining much, it was his Intereft to fee it continued ; that the Duke of Marlborough had an abfolute Power over the Minds, not only of the Queen, but of the Parliament, and the more as the principal Offices of the Kingdom were filFd with his Creatures ; and laftly, that Penfionary Hein- fius, being fubfervient to the Wills of Prince Eugene, and the Duke of Marlborough, was fo entirely Matter of the Republick of Holland, that it was, as it were, wholly robb'd of its former Liberty, and the Good of the Publick facrificed to his private Intereft." Here, indeed is a direct Charge of private Intereft againft the Penfionary, tho' not fup- ported by the leaft Shadow of Proof; but for our two Warriours, I find nothing like it, alledged in particular or circum- ftan daily.

The Duke of Marlborough having fettled feveral important The Duke- Affairs with the States, particularly, at the Defire of the Duke of Marlbo- of Savoy, the Continuation of the Heffian Troops in Italy, his '°ugh ar- Grace fail'd from the Maefe, the fix and twentieth of Novem- JvesatLon- ber, N. S. attended by feveral of her Majefty's Yachts, and °' Men of War, and landed at Margate, the next Day, and, two Days after, came to London.

The Affairs of the Allies in Germany were not fo fuccefsful as The Affairs in the Low Countries ; tho' the French did not make all the of Ger- Advantage, which their Grand Monarch might reafonably have many* expe&ed from the Superiority of his Army, under the Command of the Marihals de Villars and de Marfin, to that under the Command of Prince Lewis of Baden. Their Succefs went no farther than regaining from the fatal Slownefs of the Germans, what they had loft the foregoing Campaign : For when they hoped to have made fome Conquefts on that Side, they were di- verted from adYmg any longer offenfively, by the Duke of Marlborough's Succefs in the Netherlands, which obliged thofe Marfhals to fend ftrong Detachments thither, as I have already obferved above.

Prince Lewis's melancholy Situation, and the Reproaches Death of (deferved or undeferved I fhall not pretend to determine) which Pr. Lewis he was fenfible he lay under of favouring France, when he faw °fBaden- he could do no more Service, at the Head of the Imperial Army, but was obliged to fit quiet, and deplore his melancholy Condi-

tloa,

ttt Life of J O H N,

tion, with the Refle&ion ; That, as Affairs were, at this time, managed, the greatefl Misfortune that could befal a Man of Ho- nour, nuas to command an Imperial Army : Thefe Things, I fay, induced him to retire to the Baths of Schlangenbad ; and, 'in all Probability, did not a little contribute to the lingring Sick- nefs, of which he died, atRadftadt, the fourth of January, N. S. I mall not detain the Reader with a Character of this unfortunate Prince, and once reputed great and fkilful General, whofe Lofs of Fame was owing to a Chain of Caufes, and perhaps to none more, than his Jarring with the Council of War at Vienna, who were obferved always to crofs his Projects, and to fail in fup- plying him with what was neceflary to put them in Exe- tion.

The Duke * ^a^ conclu^e my brief Account of the Affairs of Germany, of Maribo- with a fhort Relation of the Inveftiture of the Duke of Marlbo- roughin- rough, in the Principality of Mindelheim. The Emperor hav- vefted ; in the jngj jn November laft, ere&ed that County into a Principality onShfi? of the EmPire» and conferred the fame on the Duke of Marlbo- heim. r°ugh> and her Majefly having been pleafed to allow Mr.

Stepney, her Envoy Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at the Imperial Court, to take Poffeffion thereof, in his Highnefs's Name, the Ceremony was performed there, in the Town Hall, on the 24th of May, N. S. and, the next Day, by the Officers, Magiftrates, Burghers, and other Subjects of that Principality, to whom Count Konigfeg, one of the Emperour's Privy Council, and his firft Commiflioner for this Adi, declared, that his Im- perial Majefty had transferred on the Duke, in Confideration of his Important Services, all his Right to the faid Principality, in Teftimony whereof, a Secretary of the Feudal Court read the Lehn Brieff, or Letter of Inveftiture, and then a Patent, where- by the faid Officers and Subjects, were firft difcharged from the Obedience and Vaffalage, which they fwore a Year before to his Imperial Majefty, upon the Death of Maximilian, late Duke of Bavaria, and afterwards were direded to take a new Oath of Homage to the Duke of Marlborough, as Prince of Mindelheim, which was adminifter'd to them accordingly," by Mr. Stepney's Orders, in the Prefence of Count Konigfeg, and two other Im- perial Commiflioners, Baron Volmar, and Baron Imhoff, who had lately the joint Adminiftration of that Country. The whole Ceremony was performed with a great deal of Decency ; and the People, in general, gave all Demonftrations of Satisfaction, in being under his Highnefc's Protection. Some time before, the Emperor fent a Decree to the Diet of the Empire, import- ing : That having thought fit to create the Duke of Marlbq- rough, a Prince of the Empire, in Confideration of his eminent Services, he had creeled the County of Mindelheim into a Princi- pality, and given the fame to that Prince, to qualify him to fit

and

Duke of MAR.LBOROUGH, &V. 433

and vote in the College of Princes of the Empire, and that, 1706. therefore, his Majefty recommended them to admit his Pleni- L potentiary thereinto, without any Delay, that the faid Prince might be encouraged more and more, to continue his Services to ^ Germany, and the Common Caufe. And, in November follow- Madbon's ing, the Duke's Minifter was accordingly introduced into the Plenipoten- College of Princes, at the Diet, by Count Pappenheim, Hereditary tiary,admit. Vice-Marmal of the Empire, with all the' Marks of Refpeft. girtrf d«

As his Grace had the Honour to be ranked among the Princes Rmp:re. of the Empire, fo he was obliged (as well as the other Princes The Duke's and States) in cafe of Neceffity, to have fiwniftied a Quota of <2«"ta. Mony and Men, for Defenfe of the Empire; which, lor the Principality of Mindelheim, according to the Matricula, fettled by" the Emperor Charles V. is three Horfe, ten Foot, and feven- ty-fix Florins ; and his Seat, in the College of Princes, at the ^nd Seat. Diet of the Empire, was next to the Duke of Schwartzemburg, and before the Counts of Suabia, Wetteravia, Franconia, and Weftphalia.

I have already mentioned, what a happy Turn the Affairs of A fairs of Italy had taken, in Favour of the Allies, upon the Raifmg of Italy. the Siege of Turin, by the Confederate Army, under the Com- mand of the Duke of Savoy, and Prince Eugene, after which, that victorious Army carried every Thing before them.

The French pretended, that all this, and particularly the Railing of the Siege, was done by Order from Court ; and that the Duchefs of Burgundy, the Daughter of King Viftor Ama- deus, was the Perfon that prevailed on Lewis XIV. to coafcnt to it. But this Pretence fecms to be a very lame one ; for, furely, a Retreat, concerted in the Cabinet, would not only have been made in better Order, and not have had the Appear- ance of a Flight ; but would have prevented this Army from being oblig'd to fight againft his Will and his Orders, and the expofmg the Honour of his Nephew ; and would, moreover have faved the Lives of a great many Men, that were loft in this Defeat.

• In Spain, the Affairs of King Charles might, likewife, have Of Spain. been reduced to a happy Crifis, and his Catholick Majeity, in a'l Probability, put in a quiet Poffeffion of all that Monarchy, had \ not the unadvifed, if not finifter Counfels, of his German Mi- nifters, and an ill-timed Fit of Devotion, induced him to take an inconfiderate Progrefs to Saragofla, inllead of going directly to Madrid, as adviied by his beft Friends and trufty Allies, which gave Time and Opportunity to the French and Gallo- Spaniards, to recover from the Confternation they were reduced to, to re-inforce their Army, and to regain what the Confede- rates had won, at a vaft Expence of Blood and Treafure. VOL. I. Ff As

•

434

North.

tte Life of J O H N,

As to the Affairs of the North, I have hitherto pafs'd them And of the by, as having no immediate Connexion with the Purport of this Hiftory ; but I fhall be obliged now, to make fome Men • tion of them ; becaufe they begin, about this time, to open a Scene, in which the Duke of Mariborough had, the enfuing Year, a notable and honourable Share, and in which his pru- dent Conduft again decided the Fate of Europe, in Favour of the Grand Alliance.

1706.

Staniflaus crown 'd King of Poland;

The King of Sweden inarches in., to Saxony.

CHAP. IV.

Seme Occurrences between tbe Sillies and the King of Sweden, with other Tranfa&tons to the Conclufan of 'the Tear •, 1706.

TH E Affairs of King Auguftus of Poland ware now re- duced to fo low an Ebbr that, brave as he was, (giv- ing too large a Scope to his Pleafures) he had been induced to retire into Saxony, leaving the greater Part of that Kingdom in the PofTeffion of the victorious Charles XII. and to iuffer Staniflaus, who, by the Sewdifli Fa&ion, was eledled King of Poland, to be crowned at Warfaw. This Coronation being at- tended with a Treaty, between that Prince, and the King of Sweden, awaken'd Auguftus from his Lethargy, and ob- liged him to return from Saxony to Poland, to make a fcricler Alliance with the Lz<ir; but the Army, which was to follow him from Saxony, was fcarce arrived near Frauftadt, in Fe- bruary, but it was defeated, by the Swedifh General Reinf- child.

It was then believed, that the King of Sweden would not have allowed Auguftus Time to repair that Lofs, by the Ruffian Suc- cours; but would have purfued, and obliged him totally to aban- don Poland and Lithuania j but it foon appeared, that he had other Defigns in View. The Remainder of the Campaign was fpent in Marches and Counter-marches, and in raifing of Contributions ;• after which, King Charles, having re-inforced his Army, and left two Bodies of Troops in Poland, march'd fuddenly into Saxony, in September, and thereby hindered King Auguftus, from receiving any Supplies from his Hereditary Dominions. The Affairs of the latter were in this defperate Condition, whe» another Event, no lefs unexpected, feem'd to buoy up the ink- ing Spirits and Hopes of his Party, by the Victory he (or rather the Poles and Ruffians, on his Side ; for he himfelf had no Shu** in it] gained at KaliJch, the nine and twentieth of O&eber, N. S

•rer

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 435

over General Mardefeldt, and the. Palatine of Kiovia : But the 1706. News of this Battle was fcarce made publick, when the Scene • ,/*"VVj was Ihifted again by a Peace, ftill more furprizing thin all the A Peace be- reft, being fign'd, the four and twentieth of September, between ^.een ^e Charles, Auguftus and Staniflaus, above a Month before the ob- Sweden taining of that Viftory : Which, however, to the yet greater Kirg Au- Surprize of every one, made no Alteration in the Treaty ; tho'guftus, and King Auguftus thereby gave up the Kingdom of Poland, renounc'dKin§ Sta" all Right to the great Dukedom of Lithuania, and folemnly ac- JlJ knbwledged Staniflaus, as true, rightful King of Poland, and Some Re- great Duke of Lithuania. Various were the Opinions of the ™arks UP" Motives which could induce Auguftus, to condefcend to fuchon diilionourable Terms, to procure a Pacification, and to confent to abindon his conftant Ally, the Czar of Mufcovy. The moft genera! Opinion was, that he did it out of a tender Regard for his Hereditary Dominions ; but herein he was miferably di lap- pointed ; fince they fufFer'd as much after the Peace, as they could have done by the Continuance pf the War : For the King of Sweden ftill exacted heavy Contributions from them, with the utmoft Severity j it was generally fa id to be to the Amount of nine and twenty Millions of Rix-Dollars, or above five Millions Sterling ; a prodigious Sum for Co faiall, tho' plentiful and flourifhing a Country ; and, I muft confefs, I was ftrangely furprizcd, being in thofe Parts, at that Time, to find little or no Appearance of Want or Diftrefs. It fell, indeed, harden, for the prefent, on the landed: Intereft ; for as a very great Part of the Mony was fpent in the Country, the Trading Part of the Electorate, efpecially Leipzick, gain'd, rather than fuffered, by thefe Exactions. Auguftus, however, put a pretty good Fc.ce upon the Matter, and (hewed, in outward Appearance, fewer Signs of Refentment, than might reafonably have been expedled ; efpecially confidering what Advantages Charles took.of his Mif- fortunes, to treat him not in the moft kingly Manner. It has been currently reported, that this unrelenting Monarch^ not con- tent with having dethroned his Enemy, and placed his Crown on fhe Head of another, infifted, fome Months after, upon his congratulating the new King, by a Letter under his own Hand, a fuppofed Copy of which was pretty publickly difpers'd.

Monfieur de Voltaire, who makes no Manner of Scruple of averring the Truth of this Faft, gives a Copy, not only cf this pretended Letter from Auguitus, but of Staniflaus's Anfwer, of

'uch, for the Singularity of them, I {hail give the Reader

«^-c. L

k ' ndv&Q • .. tiz '

A fuppofed Letter from King Au- guftus to King Sta- nifiaus.

f&e Life of J O H N,

King Augujlus' i Letter to King StaniJIaus.

Sir and Brother,

AS I ought to have a Regard to the Entreaties of the King of Sweden, I cannot difpenfe with congratulating your Majefty, upon your Accefiion to the Throne ; tho' the advantageous Treaty, which that King had lately concluded for your Majefly, might perhaps have been a fufficient Excufe for my avoiding this Correfpondence. Neverthelefs, I con- gratulate your IVLjefty, and pray GOD that your Subjects may give greater Proofs of their Loyalty to you, than they have ta me.

Leipzick, April 8, 1707.

AUGUSTUS, King.

Another Letter fup- pofed to bfe irom King 'Aiiguftus to King Sta- niflaus.

I have tranflated this from Voltaire ; but I have another Copy, fomething different, by which, if genuine, it appears, that Staniflaus had before written to Auguftus, to notify his Ac- ceffion to the Throne of Poland.

Another Letter fuppofed to le from King Auguftus to King

Stani/laus. Sir and Brother,

" T^ we ^ave "Ot an^verec* vour Majefty 's Letter fconer, «' I it was becaufe we did not think it neceflary to enter into a particular Correfpondence by Letters, at this Time. However, to fatisfy his Majefty, the King of Sweden, and that he may not impute it to us, our being too difficult in complying with his Demands, we give you Joy upon your Acceflion to the Crown ; hoping, at the fame Time, that your Msjefty will find the Subjeds of your Kingdom more faithful and obedient, than thofe we left there. All the World agree with us, in this Point, as it is well known, that for all our Favours, we have had no other Return but Ingra- titude; and that the greateft Part of the Perfons, upon whom we have abundantly conferr'd them, have been induilrious only in forming Cabals againft us, .with the View of promot- ing oar Ruin. We wifli your Majefty may not be expofed to the like Events, recommending you to the Divine Protection, Given at Drefden this 8th of April, 1 707.

Sir and Brother,

Your good Brother and Neighbour,

AUGUSTUS, R. Underfign'd, A. H. PHLUC. Anddirefted, .

TohisMajeftv, the K.

The

Duke 0/MARLBOROUGH, fc?<\ 437

The Anfwer to this Letter, from King Staniflius to King An- 1706. guftus, if that given us by Monfieur de Voltaire, may be fup- ^••^•^J pofed to be genuine, was in every Refpe& as cold, as either of the above. He probably perceiv'd, that Auguitas, when he complained of the Ingratitude of his Subjecls, defigned it r.s a Reproach upon himfelf, he having given him the Palatinate of Polhania,

King Stani/laus's Azfiuer*

Sir and Brother,

" X7OUR Majefty's Correfpondence is a new Inftance of His Anfwer.

" JL the Obligation I have to the King of Sweden. I have

" a true Senfe of the Compliments you make me upon my Accef-

" fion. I hope my Subjects will have no Reafon to be wanting

" of their Loyalty to me ; becaufe I mail obferve the Laws of

" the Kingdom.

STANISLAUS, King of POL AND.

Thefe Letters belong, indeed, more properly, to the Tranf- a&ions of the enfuing Year, of which I mill give Account in the following Chapter; but as I mail treat of thefe Matters there, HO farther than as the Duke of Marlborough was con- cern'd in them, I hope this Anticipation will be excus'd.

But to return from this Digreffion : On the feventeenth of De- An Inter- cember, of this Year, Charles and Auguftus had an Interview at vic'w be^ Alt-Ranftidt, two German Miles from Ldpzic>. ; where, in ^^ Remembrance of the Peace, a yearly Fair was granted, called Xl\r easnd the Frieden's-Mart, or Fair of Peace. , Auguftus.

Auguftus, to throw off Ibme Part of the Pufiilanimity, of which he was accus'd, on this Occafion, fome Years after, when the Tide turned again in his Favour, called Baron Imhoff, and Monfieur Pfingften, his Plenipotentiaries for concluding that Peace, to an Account for k, under Pretence, that they had ex- ceeded their Commiffion ; and they fuffered for it, tho' molt thought wrongfully. But to come to the Point, which introduced this Digreffion.

His Swedifh Mijefty's marching into Saxony gave juft Caufe The Ajj;e$ of Jealoufy to the High Allies: Dr. Robinfoa (afterwards Bi- je-lousof mop of London) and Monfieur Haerfolet, Envoys from her Ma- 'the King of jefty and the States General, in Poland, had, fheretore, Orders Sweden. to attend that Monarch, and to obferve his Motions ; but be- fore their Departure from Dantzick, they fent him the follow- ing Letter.

Ltfe of} OHN,

Si

HE R facred Majefty of Great Britain, and their High and Mightinefles the States General of the United Pro- vinces, have frequently declared to' your Majefty their Semi-. ments and good Wifhes, for preferving the Tranquillity of the Empire, particularly that Part thereof, which lies next to Poland ; and your Majefty's Anfwers to their Reprefentations were fuch as gave them a Profpect of your Majefty's Com- pliance with their Requeft, and of your having fuch Views for the Good cf the Common Caufe, as to join your Forces to thofe of the Allies, who fight for the Tranquillity of Europe ; or, at leaff, to do nothing which may interrupt any farther Opportunities of their acting with Glory and Succefs againft the Commcn Enemy, till an equitable and lafting Peace {hall be concluded, on fuch Terms as fhall difable France from vio- lating it here.after, with Impunity, if the Courfe of that great good Fortune, which has hitherto attended the Arms cf the Allies, in bridling the Difturber of Mankind, be not diverted ; fince, next to God's Glory, they wifh for nothing more, than that every one may be preferved in the Pofleffion of his own Right ; and as they think this neceffary for them- felve?, fo the) believe it cannot prejudice Sweden, fines it is too evident, that France aims at nothing lefs, than to difiurbi all the Prir.ces and States equally ; fo that, if they be not all fecured, thev muft be all Slaves. Several Rumours have been fpread abroad ; which tho' they are not credited in Eng- land and Holland, ret being fomewhat perplexing, we have fent to pray your Majefty, not to touch the Empire, with your Arms, nor engage in any Courfe, which may endanger your Friends, Allies, and all Europ?, which God Al- mighty prevent.

J. ROBINSON.

J. V. HAERSOLET.

To this Letter the King of Sweden anfwered, " That he had no Defign, by this Invafion of Saxony, to undertake any Thing to the Prejudice of his Friends -and Allies ; but, being provoked by an ui juft War, to do what the Law of Na- tions allows, he ought long fince to have removed the Seat of the War, to that Electorate, where it had its Source, and had been fuppcrted fo many Years ; but that he forbore do- irg it, at the Juterceffion of the Allies, and would not make ufe of his Right, as long as he had any Profpecl of curbing an obftinate Enemy ; but fince his Affairs would not fuffer him to be amufed any longer, and that he could not permit the Enemy to repair his Strength, fo often broke to no Purpofe,

" there

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. 439

there was a Neceffity of attacking the Fountain, from whence 1 706. fo many Evils had fprung ; hoping, that the Allies would have no Caufe to complain, if, by this Expedition, their Succeffes fhould be interrupted ; fince it was very apparent, Saxony had done fo much Mifchief, and would do more, if not prevented, &c.

This Anfwer not being fatisfadory, and the Sufpicion of the The An- Allies Hill encreafing, upon the King of Sweden's raifing great fwer unfa- Numbers of Men, throughout the Empire (notwithftantiing the tisfaaory. .Peace concluded with Auguftus) and his admitting the King of France's, and the Elector of Bavaria's Minifters, to his Au- dience, the Englifh and Dutch Minifters were direfted to oefire his Swediih Majefty would declare his real Intentions. That jeferved Prince put them, .however, ftill off, with dubious An- fwers, and refuied to open his Mind to any one, but to the He refutes Duke of Marl borough ; whofe fuccefsful Negotiation with t°(;Penhirn. that Prince, I mall relate, in the enfuing Chapter, more fully JjJJ JJe™y than has hitherto been done by any Hiitorian, I have,, at leaft, ofMarlbol feen. " rough.

The Duke of M irlborough, notwithstanding the many other His Grace's -weighty Concerns, which at this time occupied his Time and Vigi]ance Thoughts, neglecled nothing that might contribute to prevent Conduit ^ the evil Conlequences, which might attend thefe Proceedings of Sweden. By his conftant Vigilance he had a very early Know- ledge of every Step the King of Sweden took ; and as he was jeniible, that the Court of Hannover took Care likewife to have the moft early Intelligence of that Monarch's Proceedings, and was nearly concerned to prevent the Confequences or them, he began, by confulting with his then Electoral Highnefs (his Jate Majefty, King George I.) under whofe aufpicious Concur- rence and Couniels, his Grace continued his Negotiations, on this Head, till they were brought to a happy Conclufion. The following Pieces are evincing Proofs, that the Duke of Marlborough nad this Affair at Heart.

ExtraS of a Letter from the Duke of Marlborougb , to a Gentle- man 'very much in the EJieem of his late Majefiy, at Hannover.

FromtheCampatGram.es, Sept. 15, 1706.

S ! R» Extraftof

«' | Juft received your Letter of the feventh Inftant, and am a Letter ** JL very much obliged to you, for the Account you give me ^OI? th^ *' of the Entrance of tne King of Sweden into Saxony; which, j^,^ " if proper Meafures be not taken, in time, to prevent it, rough, to " may be of fatal Confequence to the High Allies. With a Mom. ***, *« View to this, upon the firft Report of the Troops being in at «an- Ff4 "Motion, ncver-

The Lift of J OH N,

Motion, I applied myfelfr Jfeme Days ago, to his-tleclora Kiglmefs, to entreat his prudent Advice, in a Cafe of. fo nice a Nature ; and I do not doubt but her Majefxy, the Queen, and the States General, will be very defirous of it. 1 {hall be in daily Expe&ation of his Electoral Highnefs's Anfwer, for our Guide ; in the mean time, you will very much, cbiige me, by communicating what Intelligence you may pro- cure of that King's Defigr. : In which I am periuaded France has been tampering, at leaft, with, the Minifies of that Court; &c.

This Letter was written, originally, in French, and

Sign'd,

The Prince and Duke of

MARLBOROUCH.

at

.

Extraft of a Letter from Mr. Cardomtel, to Man/. ***, Hannover, tranjlated from the Original, in French.

From the Camp at Cambron, Oft. 14, 1706.

" XT7ITH regard to the King of Sweden, I do not find,

" Vv that the Stntes are inclined to purfue any but amica-

te ble Meafures; ard I think you may be convinced, that the

*' Queen will, in this Affair, entirely follow the Advice of his

f< Electoral Highr.efs. I wrote, fome Days fmce, to Mr. Ro-

" binfon, that, according to the Opinion of my Lcrd Duke,

" he, together with the Miniflcr of the States General, fhould

" repair to Saxony, the1 Tie fhould ret yet have received par-

'« ticular Orders for it frcm cur Court, but toexpeft them there,

" which I am j.pt to believe he will do.

" J ?m of your Opinion, that Count Wratiflau, tho1 he

" promifes Wonders, if, by no Means, a proper Perfon, to treat

" with the Kirg cf Sweden, at this Jim&ure. For my Part, I

" car.not f- rbesr thinking, it is chiefly his Fault, that th§

*' Treaty with the Hungarians did not take Effeft,

J am, &c.

A. CARDONNEL.

P. S. " Itisfaid, that Monf. de Vendome has Carte Blanche ; fc he threatens us what he will do, when our Troops are gone, ** into Winter-Quarters.

Duke of MARLEOROUGH, &c. 441

Extra fl of a Letter from Mr. Car fennel, ti Motif. ***, at ^.»^v-. -J1 Hannover, tranjlattd fnm the Original, in Frentb.

Hague, Nov. 4. 1706.

" r I ^ HE Treaty, between King Augunu:, and the King Extraftofa <f j|_ of Sweden, has, as you will eafir/ conceive, extream-r Letter from " iy furpriz'd us ; becaufe we could never believe the former ^n^3't"0 " capable of taking fuch a Step. I mult confefs, Sir, you jv^o"f/**« " always judg'd aright ; however, J think, it is better that he at Han- " has done it of his own Accord, than by the Means of others, never. " We hope his Swedifh Majefty will now think of leaving " Saxony quickly, and of carrying his Arms to feme other " Parts, where they may give lefs Apprehenfions to the " Allies, &c.

A. CARDONNEL.

Tranjlation of a Letter from Mr. Cardonnel, to Monf. ***, at Hannover.

St. James's, November 19, 1706. Si R,

''' \T 7" ^ arrrived here yeflerday, and it is by Orders of A Letter " \T mY Lord Duke, that I have now the Honour of Wri- from Mr. " ting to you, to acquaint you, that his Highnefs found People Card"n^t9 " very uneaty in Holland (and it feems to be the fame ^ ^an- * " Cafe here,) at the little Appearance there is of the King noVer. " ot Sweden's quitting Saxony, ib foon as was hoped; tho' " the Peace with King Auguitus has been fo long ratified. " As for his Highnefs, he feems to repofe an entire Con- «' fidence, in the upright Intentions of his Swedim Majefty. <f Neverthelefs, as the long Stay of his Army in Saxony " caufes Uneafmefs elfewhere, he defires you will acquaint *f him, by the firft Opportunity, with the Sentiments of his " Eleftoral Highnefs, on this Head. Our Parliament will be <c prorogued for about a Fortnight, in Hopes that, in the " mean time, the Affairs of Scotland will be brought to a ? happy Conclufion.

I am, &c,

A. CARDONNEL.

The third of December, the Earl of Sunderland was made Earl of Secretary of State, in the room of Sir Charles Hedges ; but, Sunderland tho' the Duke's Son-in-Law, it was not till after much Solli- made Secrv citation, that the Queen could be prevail'd with, to make this tary°f state. Alteration,

Me Life of JOHN,

" The Duke of M?rl borough (fays a Noble Author, than whani, " no one cau'd know his Sentiments Letter) was not, in his Tncli- " nation, for this Promotion of my Lord Sunderland. I have " a Letter (continues my Author) from him, expreffing his Dif- " like to the Defign ', but how hard prefled both he and my '• Lord Godolphin were to have it brought to Effeft, willfully " appear by the following Letter, oti the fame Subject.

This Letter was dated from Gramez, where the Duke lay with the Army under his Command, to cover the Siege of Aeth, in Oftober, 170^. and, as it (hews with what Indiffepence he a£led, with regard to thofe Enemies of his who were endeavour- ing to undermine him in the Queen's Favour ; and with what Djfmtereftednefs, with regard to his own Family, when the Queflion was the Advancement of one fo nearly allied to him, to a Foil in which he might have co-operated wfth the reft of his Ffiends in being a Support to his Interefl, if it wanted any, may not improperly be inierted here.

" When (fays the Duke) I writ my 1 aft, I was very foil of *' the Spleen, and I think with too much Reafon. My whole ' Time, to the left of my Under -/landing, has been employed for the ' PUBLICK. GOOD, as I do ajfure , I do, inthePrefenceofGw, ' nealeciinv no Opportunity of letting 83. (the Queen] fee, what I ' take to le be,- true Intertji. It is terrible to go thro* fo much 1 Uneafinefs. I do not fay this to flatter any Party ; for 1 will ' never do it, let the Confequer.ee he what it will : For, as Par- «' ties, they are loth in the wrong. But, it is certain, 73. and •' his Adherents are not to be trufted. So that 83 (the Queen) •" has no Choice, but that of employing thole, who will carry *' on the War, and fupport 9 1 : (the Lord Gode'pbin :} And if " any other Method is taken, I know we (hall go into Con- " fufion. Now, this being the Cafe, I leave you to judge, " whether I am dealt kindly with ? I do not fay this for any *' other End, but to have your Juilice and Kindnefs ; for in " that will co;:fift my future Happinefs. / am jure I would " venture a thcufand Lives if I had them, to procure Eafe and " Happinefs to the Queen. And yet no Number of Men could " pefluade me, to aft as a Minijfter, in what was not my Opi- ** nion. So that I (hall never. fail in fpeaking my Mind very *« freely. And as my Opinion is, that the Tackers, and all •' the Adherents of 73. are not for carrying on the War, which *' is for the true Interefl of the Queen and Kingdom, you may de- «' pend I (hall never join with any but fuch, as I think \vill ferve " her, and the true Intereft of oar Country with all their *' Hearts. And if the War continues but One Year longer, with " Succefs, I hope it will not be in any body's Power to make " the Queen's Bufinefs uneafy. And then 1 Jhall be glad to live " us quittly aspofflle, and not envy the governing Men, who

«' would

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c.

t( would then, 1 believe, think better of 90. and 91. (tntnfclf *' and the Lord Godolphin) than they now do. And I will " own frankly to .you, that the yealoufj fame of cur Friends *' have, that 90. »nd 91. (himfelf and Lord Godolphin) do (f not aft Jtncerely, makes me fa weary, that, were it net ' f for my Gratitude far 8 3 . (the Queen) and Concern for 9 1 . " (Lord Godolphin) 1 'would now retire, and never fervc more: *f- 'For I have had the good Luck to deferve better from all '* Englifhmen, than to be fufpe&ed for not being in the true *' Inter^ft of my Country, which I am in, and ever will be, with- * ' out being of a Faflion : And this Principle Jball govern me, for tf the little Remainder of my Life. I nmjl not think of being po- " pular ; but IJhall have the SatisfaRion of going to the Grave, " with the Opinion of having afted as became an honeft Man. " And if I have your Efteem and Love, I fhould think myfclf '« entirely happy. And fmce the Refolution is taken, tq. vex " and ruin 91. (Lord Godolphin;} becaufe 83. (the Queen} has " not complied with what was defired for 117. (Lord Sunder- " land} I (hall, from henceforward defpife all Mankind, and *f think there is no fuch Thing as Virtue ; for I know, with «' what Zeal 91. (Lord Godolphin} has preffed 83. (the Quecn\ " in that M/.tter : I do pity hirn, and fhall always love him, as " long as I iive, and never be a Friend to any that can be his *' Enemy. I have writ my Mind very freely to 83. (the Queen) " on tiiis Occafion ; fo that whatever may happen, IJhall have " a quiet Mind, having done what I thought my Duty : And as " for the Refolution of making me uneafy, I believe they will " not have much Pleafure in that ; for as I have not fet m) " Heart on having *JuJlice done me, Ijhailnit be difappointed, nor " will I be ill ufed by any Man."

I have followed my Noble Author in decyphering the Figures in this Letter i but as fhe has not been fo good as to explain whom fhe means by 73. I am oblig'd in this to follow her fuppos'd Right Honourable Antagonift, who explains roundly : No doubt Lord Rochefier.

As I have juft mention'd this Antagonift, I fhall add a Para- graph from her, in which fhe thinks fhe has done Juftice to the Duke, after having thrown out fome Reflections on him, which (tho' fhe hopes they will carry with them their own Juftification,) might as well have been difpensM with.

" J will, however, (faysjhe} do him (the Duke] the Juflice to *•' acknowledge, that the Sentence he pronounces on the two " Parties, that they are both in the Wrong, ought to be recorded " in Letters of Gold, where-ever the Throne is placed } as a " Truth felf-evident , and of the la ft Importance, both to Princt ? and People. '

Addrefs of the Houfe of Com - mans.

tte Life- of JOHN,

But to return to my Noble Author : " She fuppofes, that as " well the Duke as Lord Godolphin were fo hard prefs'd by " the Whigs, and that the Queen was made fo difficult to be *' prevail'd upon by Mr. Harley," who was at the Head of the Oppcfition to the Miniftry : And fhe adds ; " It was no Won- " der, that Mr. Harley, with fuch Views as he then had, " fhou'd be unwilling to fee a Secretary of State difplaced, over whom he thought he had fome Influence, and thro* whofe Hands the greater Part of the Bufmefs of his own Of- fice ufed to pals ; and much more unwilling to have him fucceeded by a Perfon over whom he had no Power whatfo- ever."

The Parliament of England meeting, the fame Day the Houfe of Commons, in Return to her Majeity's moft gracious Speech from the Throne, refolved, that an Addrefs fhouid be prefented to her Majefty, in which, among other Things, " They con- " gratulated her M-jefty, upon the glorious Victory obtained " by her Arms, and thole of her Allies, under the Command " of the Duke of Msrlborough, at Ramellies, and the repeated " Succeffes, with which it had pleafcd GOD to blefs the Arms '* of her Majefty, and her Allies, beyond the Example of for- *' mer Ages; to which they added, anAffurar.cz to her Majejiy, " that as her Allies had (hewn their Firmnefs and good Difpofi- " tion to carry on the War vigoroufly, fo they were decermined, " that no fpecious Pretences of Peace fhouid divert them from " their fteady Refolution of enabling her Majejly to improve in " all Places, the Ad-vantages of this fuccefsful Campaign. The " Experience they bad of the prudent Adminiftration, and the great tf Care and Management in the Application of the public k Treafure, " encouraged them to ajfure her Majejly, they would give fuch' *' fpeedy and effectual Supplies, as, by GOD'J Blejpng, might ejia- *' blijh thf Balance of Power in Europe, by a fafe, honour able, and " lajling Peace"

The next Day they pafs'd the unanimous Vote : That the Thanks of this Houfe be given to his Grace the Duke of Marl borough, for his eminent Services to her Majefty, Thanks to and this Kingdom, in the great and glorious Victories and Suc- the Duke of cc£es cbtain'd over the common Enemy in the laft Campaign. Marlboro . r^je <r;ornmjttee appointed by the Commons having, the next Day, attended the Duke, with the Thanks of that His Grace's Houfe, his Grace made this Anfwer : If any thing could add to Anfwcr. my Satisfaction, in the Services, I have endeavour* d ta do the Stucen and my Country, it would be the particular Notice, which the 'Houfe of Commons is pleafed to take of them, fi much to my Advantage.

The fifth, the Houfe of Commons, prefented their Addrefs to her Majefty, as did the Houfe of Lords another, doing the

The Com- mons vote

Duke of MARLBORdUGH, &C. 445

fame Honour to the Duke of Marlborough : And after having 1706. congratulated her Majefty, in general, on the great Succefs of *— - p*v— • -* her Arms, this wonderful Year, obferved :

" That nothing could be more glorious, than the opening the A^drefs °f *' Campaign by the ever-memorable Victory gained at Ramel- * e Lor s' " lies, under her wife and valiant Genera!, the Duke of Marl- sf borough ; and nothing more feafonable, at the Clofe of the " Campaign, than the complete Vittory gained by the Duke ofSa- <f <voy and Prince Eugene, before the Walls of Turin : And if " they ftiould not do all that lay in their Power, towards im- " proving the Advantages divine Providence had given her " Majefty and her Allies, they mould be inexcufable : Nor could " they fufficiently exprefs the univerfal Satisfaction of the People, " on the Declaration her Majefty and the States had made to " the Miniflers of the reft of the Allies j that no Negotiations of " Peace Jbould be entered upon, but in Junflion with the Mem- " bers of the Grand Alliance. That the Example of her Ma- *' jefty and the States ought to infpire the reft of the Allies with " a noble Emulation of acting with the like Vigour. If any " of them had fail'd formerly, they hoped her Majefty would " find proper Means to let them fee, that the only right Amends 4; they could make to the Caufe of Liberty, was by doubling " their Efforts at this important Juncture, which was the true Way to obtain fuch a Peace, as might fecure the Proteftant Succeffion, the Advantages of Trade and Commerce, reftore the whole Monarchy of Spain to King Charles III. and fix a Barrier for the States General, as might be to their Satif- fadion, and procure fuch Terms for the reft of the Allies, as might be juit, fafe and honourable. His Grace the Duke of Marlborough coming, the fame Day, to the Houfe of Peers, the Lord Keeper, William Cowper, Efq; by Direction from their Lordihips, made the following Speech to him :

My Lord Duke of Marlborough,

" W AM commanded by this Houfe, to give your Grace their The Lord " J. Acknowledgments and Thanks for the eminent Services Keeper's " you have done, fince the laft Seflions of Parliament, to her " Majefty and your Country, together with their Confederates <f in this juft and neceflary War.

" Tho' your former Succefles againft the. Power of France. " while it remain'd unbroken, gave moft reafonable Expefta- " tion, that you would not fail to improve them, yet wh:t *' your Grace has performed, this laft Campaign, has far ex- " ceeded all Hopes, even of fuch as were moft affe&ionate and " partial, to their Country's Intereft, and your Glory ; theAd- " vantages you have gain'd againft the Enemy are of fuch a

" Nature,

Me Life of j O H N,

Nature, Co confpicuous of themfelves, fo undoubtedly owing to your Courage and Conduct, fo fenfibly and univerfally be- neficial in their Confequerices, to the whole Confederacy, that to attempt to adorn them, with the colouring of Words, would be vain and inexcufable, and therefore I decline it^ the rather, becaufe I fhould certainly offend that great Mode- fly, which alone can and does add Luftre to your Actions, and which, in your Grace's Example has fuccefsfully with- ftood as great Trials, as that Virtue has met with in any In- ftance whatfoever ; and I beg leave to fay, that if any thing could move your Grace to reflect, with much Satisfaction, on your own Merit, it would be this, that fo Auguft an Af- fembly does, with one Voice praife and thank you : Ait Honour, which a Judgment, fo fure as that of your Grace's, to think rightly of every thing, cannot but prefer to the Often- tation of a publick Triumph."

His Grace's Anfwer to this Speech was :

His Grace's TT Ejleem this a very particular Honour, which your Lordjhips are Anfwer. |^ ^leafed to do me ; no body in the World can be more fenjlble of

it than I am, nor more dejirous to dejerve the Continuance of jour

Favour and good Opinion.

The feventeenth of December, the Houfe of Lords prefented the following Addrefs to the Queen, in favour of the Duke of Marlborough.

E your Majefty's moft dutiful and obedient Subjects, the Lords Spiritual and Temporal in Parliament af- fembled, having, with much Satisfaction, confidered the ma- ny great Actions, which the Duke of Marlborough has per- formed, in your Majefty's Service, to the Honour of his Country, and for the Good of the common Cauie of Europe, (fuch Actions as the wifeft and greateft People have rewarded with-Statues and Triumphs ;) are extremely defirous to exprefs the juft Senfe we riSve of his1 Merit, in a peculiar and diftin- guiming Manner ; and in order to perpetuate the Memory thereof, to fettle and continue his Titles and Honours, with his Right of Precedence in his Poi-erity, by Act of Parlia- ment, as the Mstbod moil eIFedtu.il tor that End, and bell fuiting fo great an Occaiion. But yet having always a juft Regard for the Prerogatives of the Crown, (your Majefty be- ing the fole Fountain of Honour) we thought it our Duty, in the firft Place, to have Recourfe to your Majefty, for your Royal Allowance, before any Order given to bring in a Bill of fuch Nature, and, at the fame time, to defire your Maje-

" fly,

"The Lords ' Addrefs in ' Favour of , the Duke of , Marlboro'.

Duke of MARLBOROUGH* &c. 447

«, fty, would be gracioufly pleafed, to let the Houfe know, 1 706. " in what Manner it will be moft acceptable to your Majefty, U— y—J ei that the faid Titles and Honours fhould be limited.

Her Majejly't Anfaer ta this Addrefs ran thus ;

ANNE, R.

*« T^TOthing can be more acceptable to me, than your Ad-

*« 1^1 drefs. I am entirely fatisfied with the Services of the Anfwer

*« Duke of Marlborcugh, and therefore cannot but be pleafed

'« you have fb juft a Senfe of them.

** I muft not omit to take Notice, that the refpe£tfu! Manner '* of your Proceed in-g, in dcfiring my Allowance for bringing " in the Bill, and my Direction tor the Limitation of the Ho- " nours, does give me great Satisfied ion.

" My Intention is, that after the Determination of the Eftate, " which the Dake of Mariborough now has in his Titles and " Honours, the fame mould be limited to his eldeft Daughter, " and the Heirs Male of her Body, and then to all his other 44 Daughters fucceffively, according to their Priority of Birth, «' and the Heirs Male of their refpeftive Bodies, and afterwards, " in fuch Manner, as may effectually anfwer my Defign, and " yours, in perpetuating the Memory of his Merit, by con- " tir.uing, as far as may be done, his Titles and Name to all " his Polterity.

" I think it would be proper, that the Honour and Manor

of Woodftock, and the Houfe of Blenheim, (hould always with the Titles, and therefore I recommend that itter to your Confideration."

Then the Duke of Mwlborough, on this Occafion, fpoke tq the Lords in thcfe Words :

MY LORDS,

** IT Cannot find Words fufficient to.exprefs the Senfe I have The D. of " JL °f t'ie great anc^ diftinguiming Honour, which the Houfe Marlboro's •' has been pleafed to do me, in their Refolution, and their Ap- f^occa- " plication to her Majefty. The Thoughts of it will be a con- fwn< " tiuual Satisfaction to me, and the higheft Encouragement ; " and the thankful Memory of it muft laft as long as any Po- " fieri ty of mine.

" I beg leave to fay a Word to the Houfe, in relation to that " Part of her Majefty's moft gracious Anfwer, which concerns " the Eftate of Woodftock, and the Houfe of Blenheim. I did " make my humble Requeft to ;he Queen, that thofe might

« go

448 The Life of J O H N,

17-6. " go along with the Tides, and I make the like Requefi to

v-"-v*~' " your Lordfhips, that after the Duchefs of MarlborougrTs

" Death, upon whom they are fettled in Joynture, that Eltate

" ai;d Houfe may be limited to go always along with the

"f K

The Stan- The r;;-"teenth, her Majefty having been pleasVl, at the Re- dards and quefl- of tne city of London, to order, That the Standards and

kenatSRarColours uken at the famous Battle of Ramellie?, which were mellies "~ lately brought from the Netherlands, fhould be put up in Guild- hung up in Hall, aDetachmem of her Majeity's Horfe Guards, and Horfe- Guiid-Hali. Grenadiers, and a Battalion drawn out of both Regiments of her Majefty's Foot-Guarcs, were drawn up, on the Parade, ia St. James's Park, and having received the faid Colours and Standards, which had been laid up at White-Hal], they proceed- ed, in the following Manner : Firft the Troop of Horfe-Grena- diers, then the Detachment of the three Troops of her IVLjefty's Horfe-Guards, fix and twenty of the Gentlemen, in the Center, carrying each a Standard taken from the Enemy. The Battalion of Foot-Guards clofed the March, fixty-three of the Pike-men, inftead of their Pikes, each carrying one of the Enemy's Co- lours advanced. In this Manner, they march' d thro' the Park, and St. James's Meufe, where her Msjefty was pleafed to fee them pafs by, from the Right Honourable the Lady Fitzhard- ing's Lodgings, the Guns in the Park being fired, at the fame time. Thence they proceeded down Pall-Mall, the Strand, &c. to Guild-Hall, where the Standards and Colours were put up, to remain there, as Trophies of that fignal Victory, wherewith it pleafed ALM IGHTY GOD to blefs the Arms of her Majefty, and her Allies, under the Conduft of his Grace the Duke of Marlborough ; and as a lading Monument of the immortal Honour gained by her Majefty's Arms, on that memorable Day.

The D. of The Duke of Marlborough, having been invited by the

Marlboro* Lord Mayor and Court of Aldermen, to dine with them, in

th^Lord^ the City, his Grace went thither, the fame Day, about Noon,

Mayor accompanied by the Lord High Treafurer, and the Dukes of

Sommerfet and Ormond, in one of her Majefty's Coaches, and

was follow'd by a Train of other Coaches, in which were fe-

veral of the Nobility, the foreign Minifters, and ether Perfons

of Quality, with the Generals, and ether chief Officers of the

Army. They were received, at Temple-Bar, by the City-

Marfhal, and were conduced to Vintner's-Hall, where a fplen-

did Entertainment was provided for them, by Sir Robert Bed-

ingfield, Lord Mayor, the Court of Aldermen, and Sir William

Brnfon, and Sir Ambrofe Crawley, Sheriffs ; and they were

2 followed,

Duke of M A R L B o R o u-c u , &V. 449

followed both going and coming, with great Acclamations horn 1706. the People. <— v"*-J

The twentieth, the Bill from the Lords, entitled ; An Aft T^ BUUn /?/• /£* fettling the Hr^ifi and Dignities of Jd>n, Duke' of Marl- ^J^^ b trough, upon his Pofteriiy, and annexing the Honour and Manor Of Marlbo- of Woodjlock, and Houfe of Blenheim, to go alonv ivith the faid rough paf. Honours, was re id three times, by the Houle of Commons, I-d- and paf^'d, tfemine Cuntradicenie ; and, the next Day, it had the Royal Afient.

At the Prefentation of this, together with the Land, and Malt-Tax Bill, &c. the Speaker of the Houfe of Common's made a Speech to her M:ijefty, importing; " Th it as the glo- rious Victory obt;un'd by the Duke or Marlborough, at Ra- Extra£l of mellies, was fo furprifing, that the Battle was fought before ^ctj^eaker it coald be thought the Armies were in the Field ; fo it w« Houfe Of no lefs furprifing, that the Commons' had granted Supplies to Commons herMajefty, beloreher Enemiej could well know, that her Speech to Parliament was fitting. " And thr; Queen, on hfr Part, in ^lcr ^IaJefty- her moil gracious Speech to both Ho'jfes, was pleated to ex* prefs herfelf as follows, in Favour of the Duke :

" The particular Notice you have taken, of the eminent Pnft of her *' Services of the Duke of Manborojgh, is alfo very agreeable 'j'- ^''y's '* to me ; and I make no (^aeftior., but it will be fo to. the -P"-11- " whole Kingdom.

The lait Day of the Year, being appointed a General A wr.»ral Thankfgiriag, for the wonderful Succeftcs of her Majeiiy's Tha. Arms,&c. her Mnjefty went, with the utual State and Solemnity, to the Cathedral Church of St. Paul's ; and thereby gave her Subjects, and efpecially the City of London, the joyhtl Spec- tacle of two Triumphs in one Year. "

CHAP. V.

*Tke Duke of Marlborough'^ Journey into Saxony, and Conferences -with the King of Sweden there ;• With tbefecret Motives to, and Hiftory of, that Journey.

THE conftant Series of prodigious SucceiTes, inalmoft all \ Parts, with which the Confederate Arms were attended, S.ims ntro- the laft Campaign-, made it generally believed, that the King of France would never be able to retrieve fo many, and fo great Misfortunes, and that he would foon be obliged to lay afide

VOL. I. G g his Actions.

450 We Life of J O H N,

1707. his Pretenfions to Spain, to obtain a Peace, which his Subjects \^*Y~+j Hood in great Need of, and which they implor'd of him, in the moft folemn Manner ; but, notwithftanding the great Hopes conceived, at this Time, the Year I am now entring upon will not furnilh us with fo much Matter for Triumph as the fore- going; on the contrary, we lhall fee the Enemy, who was look'd upon as totally overwhelm'd, railing his Head again, and triumphing, at leaft, in fome Places, in his Turn.

Spain was the moft fenfible of this fatal Turn of Affairs, by the Lofs of the B?tcle of Almanza ; and the Germans felt the Weight of the French Arms, as the EfFedl of their own Su- pinenefs, after the Marlhal de Villars had forced their Lines, and gained fome other Advantages, by the Contributions he exacted from them. The grand Delign of the Allies (except-1 ing that on Naples, which iucceeded, and for which the Im- perial Court neglefted every thing dfe) was the Siege of Tou- lon, for a particular Account of which, and' the Caufes of its Miscarriage, I lhall refer the Reader to LediarcTs Naval Hif- tory, &c. In the Netherlands, the Neceffity of fecuring the Conquefts made in the preceding Year, hinder'd the victorious Duke of Maryborough from extending them : For the Enemy (notwithftanding their great Lofs at Ramellies) had fo well re- cruited their Army, as to be fuperiour in Number to the Confederates, and, at the fame time, carefully avoiding an Engagement, his Grace, to hi:, great Regret, found it impoffi- ble to come at them, in their ftrong Camps, tho' he feveral times attempted it, as we lhall fee more particularly below, after I have taken Notice of fome Things, which pafs'd be- fore the Opening of the Campaign.

The Parliament, having met, on the feventh of January, and the Houfe of Commons having taken into their Confideration «' The eminent Services of John Duke of Marlborough, " whereby the Glory of her Majefty's Government, the Ho- " nour and Safety of the Kingdom, and the Intereft of the " Common Caufe had been fo highly advanced/1 they a- greed upon the following Addrefs to the Queen.

<?Cc!mOUfe Moft Graci°us Sovereign,

drefs in Fa- lt TT7" E your Majefty's moft dutiful and loyal Subjects, the vour of the « ^^ Commons of England, in Parliament affembled, ta- ' king into our Confideration the many eminent Services of John, Duke of M-, rlborough, whereby the Glory of your Majefty's Government, the Honour and Safety of your Kingdoms, and the Interefts of the Common Caufe, have been fo highly advanced, do, with all Submiffion, addrefs i our-

Duke of MARL-BOROUGH, &fa.

** ourfelves to your M;jefty's moft facred Perfon, humbly to " defiie, thatj as your Mojefty is, at your Efltpence, graci- " oufl/ pleafed to ere£l the Houfe of Blenheim, as a Monu- *' merit of his glorious Actions, and the Houfe of Peers, by " your Majcfty's Permiffion, have given Rife to a Law for " continuing his Honours to his Poitcrity ,• we, your moft o- " bedient Commons, may be permitted to exprefs our Senfe " of fo diilirjguifliing a Merit, and our ready Difpofition to " enable your Majefty to make fome Provision for the more " honourable Support of his Dignity, in his Pofierity, in fuck " a Manner, as {hall be moil agreeable to your Majefty.

This Addrefs being prefented, the next Day, to the Queen, by the whole Houfe, her Majefty was pleafed to anfwer, as

follows :

Gentlemen,

'' IT A M very glad you have fo juft a Senfe of the repeated TheQueen's- " JL Services of the Duke of Marlborough : I will confider of Anfwe'- " your Addrels, and return an Anfwer very fpeedily.

Accordingly, on the ninth of January, Mr. Secretary Har- ley deliver'd to the Houfe the following Meffage, figned by her Majefty.

ANNE R. A Me/Tag*

from the

" T T E R Majefty, in Confideration of the great and enai- Queen to *' AJ. nent Services, performed by the Lord Marlborough, th,e H< ufe " in the firft Year of her Reign, as well by his prudent Nego- mons°in"his *' tiatioris^ as her Plenipotentiary at the Hague, as by his Va- Grace's Fa- " lour and good Conduct, in the Command of the Confede- vour. " r.ite Annies abroad thought fit to grant to him, and the «' Heirs Male of his Body, the Title of a Duke of this *' Realm; and, ab a" farther Mark of her Favour, and Satis- " fa&ion with his Services, and for the better Support of his " Dignity, her Majefty granted to the faid Duke, and the " Heirs Male of his Body, during her Life, a Penfion of " 5000 /. per Annumt out of the Revenue of the Poft-Office ; '* and an Acl having p.ifs'd this Seffions, for fettling the Ho- " nours and Dignities of the Duke of Marlborough, upon his " Pofterity, and annexing the Honours and Manor of Wood- " ftock, and Houfe of B:enheim to go along with the faid Ho- *' noursi it would be very agreeable to her Majerty, if the *' Penfion of 5000 /. per Annum, be continued and limited, by tf A6t of Parliament, to his t-'ofterity, for the more honoura- *' ble Support of their Dignities, in like Manner at his Ho- G 2 2 " nours

ne Life of J O H N,

noiirs, and the Honour' and Manor of Woodftock, and Houfe of Blenheim, are already fettled and limited.

Kenfington, Jan. 9, 1706-7.

A Bill Paf- fed (here- upon.

The Duke

of Marl- borough go« to Hol- land.

Arrives at the Hague.

Confers with the Deputies of the Statxs

Upon the reading of this Mtflage, the Houfe refolved, that a Bill be brought in, pnrfuant to the Tenour of the faid Meflage ; which having pafs'd both Houfe?, received the Royil Affent, the eight and twentieth : And thus this Matter, which had been oppofed, with fo much Warmth, in a former Par- liament, pafs'd in this, bv an Emulation in the Houfe of Commons, not to be outdone by the Houfe of Peers, in ' fhevying a true Senfe. of the Duke of Marlborough*s great Merit.

The Duke of Marlborough, who, in the foregoing Years of her Majesty's Reign, made fb fhining a Figure, by his glorious military Atchievements, befpeaks our Attention, this Year, chiefly by his important Negotiations ; for which he had as happy a Talent, and as much Skill and Sagacity, as Con- duel and Bravery, when at the Head of an Army. The Plan for the Operations of the Campaign being concerted, as far as they could be at London, his Grace departed thence for Hol- land ; but having been detained, nine or ten Days* by contra- ry Winds, at Margate, he embark'd there, the fecond of A- pril, in the Evening, defigning to reach Oftend; the Wind, however changing, he landed at the Briel, the fifteenth, N. S. at Night.

The next Day, the Duke arrived at the Hague, about two in the Afternoon, to the great Joy of the Miniiters of the Allies, who were in impatient Expectation of his Coming. His Grace dined with Mr. Stepney, her Majefty's Envoy Ex- traordinary, who was lately return'd from BrufTels ; and, after Dinner, made a Vifit to the Grand Penfion?ry, and another to the Prcfident of the Aflembly of the. States General. The eighteenth, his Gr^ce received and returned feveral Vifits, and went, in the Afternoon, to the Congrefs of the Foreign Mi- nifters, to whom he fignified, That the Queen of Great Britain i';ould hearken to no Propofc.h far a Peace, but iiibat <^>:o>ild firmly fecure the general T ran quill, ty of Eu-ope: And the Deputies of the States came to confer with him, at his Lodgings. The Field Deputies of the States aflured his Grace, at the fame Time, that all the military Preparations were ready, and that he would not have Occafion to Icfe Time in waiting for any thing. On the nineteenth, in the Evening, he had another long Conference, with the Deputies of the States, at his own Lodgings, on the Affairs of the prefent Jur.clure, and, among other Things, told them ; " That the Troubles of

•' Saxony,

Duke O/MARLBOROUGH, &c. Saxony, occafioning a great Diftraftion in the Empire,

which brought infinite Prejudice to the Cummon Caufe, the Queen, his Miftrefs, had thought fit, to (end him thither, Acquaints to pay a Compliment to the King of Sweden, and endeavour j^?0™ ^'^ to engage him to remove the juft jcaloufies, his long Stay, 0pS 0jJ*n in the Heart of Germany, gave to fome of the high Allies, into Saxo- For which Purpofe, he had the neceflary Powers from her ny. Majefty, and defired to have the fame from the States. The Penfionary having, the next Day, acquainted the States wHich the of Holland, and Weft Friefeland, with the Neceffity of theStatesaP- Duke of Marlborough's Journey, the Matter was thought of fo p:ove of% great Importance to the Common Caufe. that they readily concurr'd in thofe Medures, and his Grace fet out, the fame Evening, for Leipzick, by the Way of H mnover.

Monfieur d'Auverquerquo', Veldt- Marflial of the Troops of Monf. the States General, having had feveral Conferences with the d'Auvsr- Duke of Marlborough, fet out the Day before his Grace's De- j[uer<Jue ^ parture, for Bruflels, in order to aflemble the Confederate ^^f Troops, in their refpeclive Cantonments, and obferve the French, who began to be in Motion about Namur, agiinft the Duke's Return.

I am now gVmg to give an Account of a Tranfaftion, which The Duke tho\ at th:-tt; Time, af the hig>ieft Importance to the Common of Marlbo- Caufe, mull not have been luok'd on as fuch by our Hiilorians roush's and Annalifts ; becaufe they p ;f; it {lightly over, with men- Saxor^ ^ tioning few of the Circumfhnceo of it, and lefs of the happy Confequences which ''ttended tiie Duke's Negotiations, and of thofe fital ones, which were thereby prevented. I fhall be the more particuhr, in my R:l;tion of them, as I w;:s an Eye- witnefs of what happen'd publickly, on this Occafion, and had an Opportunity of being inform'd of many Particular?, which have efcaped the Notice of moft, or all Hiftorians, who have given us any Account of this Negotiation: And I am befide?, the better enabled to do this, as I have lately had a very curious German Manu'.cript, on thia Subject, communicated to me from Leipzick.

The Eyes of all Europe were now on the King of Sweden, The Eyes of who, as I have f.iid, in the foregoing Chapter, had, with his all Europe vidlorious Army, poflefs'd himlelf of Saxony, reduced Augulius or the King to the Neceffity 'of miking an inglorious Peace, with the Lofs of Sweden, of his Crown, which he had been obliged to renounce, in Fa- vour of King Staniflaus. The King of Sweden was now in the Heart of German, , in a formidable Pofture, with an Army flufh'd with Succefs ; which, tho' he had concluded a Peace with Au- guftus, and had only the Mufcovites, and a fmall Party of Poles ' to encounter with, he was recruiting, in all the Neighbouring jProv'inces of the Empire, and equiping, in tha moft powerful G g 3 Manner,

454 '* Me Life of JOHN,

\ 70 . Manner, with the Spoils of Saxony. This gave great Appre- t— - -V-.J henfions to the Allies, and, indeed, their Je;:k,ulies feem'd to The Allies be but too well grounded. I have already obferved what C<~' ..r>- "rehenfions tenance l^'s Monarch, gave to the Minifters of Fran, of^him! Bavaria, and on the contrary, what evaiive Anfwers h»j gave to SomeRe- the Reprefent*tions made him, by the Minifters of Great Bri- fledtions on tain, and Holland. What juft Grounds had not then the Con- *he Reafon- fe(jerates to be alarmed ? And, indeed, what could not this bold and enterprizing Prince, under thefe Circumflances, have done ? France maae ftrong Applications to him, and it was then a current Report, that he would turn his Arms agnirit the Empire, and join with the Grand Monarch, to depiefs the Hcufe of Auftria ; which Report feem'd the better grounded, as it was well known, that the Kin^; of Sweden was exafperated againft the Empire and the Emperor. Had this not been pre- vented, how esfily might he not have over-run and given Laws to the Empire, I might perhaps fay, to all Europe? He was then in the Meridian of his Glory, his Troops inured to Hard- fhips, familiar with Victories, who, to a Man, were ready to facrifice their Lives in any Caufe, which fhould be undertaken by a Prince they ador'd, and who, by his Condefcendance to them, and Conformity to their Cuiloms, h?.d made himfelf Mafter of their Minds, as well as their Bodies. If, with this Army, he had joined thofe of France and Bavaria, and march'd into-the Emperor's Hereditary Dominions (not to mention what might have enfued) what but a Marlborough and an Eugene could ever have oppofed fuch a Torrent ? And might not even they, with all their Conduct and Bravery, at the Head of their brave and fteely Troops, have been. born down with too fuperiour \Vifdcmof a Force ? This the great Duke of Marlborough wifely confider- the Duke of ed, and therefore reiolved to add the Fox's Tail to the Lion's Marlboro.' Skin; 3nd to put a Stop to thi? great, this impendent Danger ; it was for that, the Duke of Marlborongb, undertook this im- portant Journey, and Negotiation ; and, we fhall find he fuc- ceeded to his Wifti.

Charles XII. had indeed pafs'd his Word, in 1 700, not to intermeddle in the War then breaking out, between Lewis XIV. and the Allies. It was thought, that the King of Pruffia, and the Elector of Hannover, had a great Influence over the King of Sweden, and they gave the reit of the Allies great Aflurances, that he would do nothing to difturb the Peace of the Empire, nor to weaken the Alliance ; but the Duke of Marlborough did not care to truft to this; nor would he be perfuaded, that a » Prince, who purfued Glory with fo much Eagernefs, as the young and aclive King of Sweden did, would be fo great a Slave to his Word, as not to facrifice it to his Ambition and Intereft.

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

Ii has been faid, that the Eleftor of Hannover advifed the Britilh Court to 'fend the Duke of Maryborough to Saxony ; it may be fo, and I have myfelf allow'd below, that every thing was tranfadled with his Elc&oral Highnefs's Concurrence and Counfel ; but if that wife Prince was affured the Allies had no- thing to fear from the Meafures the King of Sweden was taking, what abfolute Neceflity was there for this Journey ? Be this as jj-ls it will, the Queen judg'd rightly, that nothing could be more meets w grateful to the Ambition and Pride of a young, enterpnzing, the Queen'* and victorious Prince, than to be waited on by the greateft and APPl'oba- moft renown'd General of the Age. The Duke, as [ have faid ti0n* above, took Hannover in his Way ; and, in his P;-.fTage thither, fpoke with the Biftiop of Ofnabrug, at the City of that Name.

His Grace had, in the mean time, his private Intelligence from every Part : The following Letter was probably an Intro- duction to fome Difcovery.

Dufleldorp, April 5, 1707.

f" Lord, H E Perfon who will have the Honour to prefent A Letter this Letter to your Grace, is a perfecl Stranger to me, fr°ni the ' tho' I have enquired after his Charafter. I do not know Jj^jJ ^an" ' what he has to propofe ; but he being very preffing, and ^ £^° of ' faying it was very much for your Grace's Service, and that Marlboro.' ' he intended to go to the Hague ; I did not think it proper to ' refufe him; and I do find that he is known here, and that he ' is the Brother to a Merchant at Cologn. He tells me, that ' he could have a Letter of Recommendation from the Eledtor, ' in Cafe there was Occafion. I have inclofed the Paper he * gave me, and if the Propositions be fuch as he pretends, I fhali be extreamly glad to have contributed towards it ; if otherwife, your Grace will pardon this Liberty.

I am, &c.

MANCHESTER.

" Charles Earl of Manchefter, of whom I had Occafion to chata&er '* make honourable Mention, towards the Conclufion of King of the Earl " William's Reign, was defcended from one of the hrft Families of Man- 41 of the Name of Montagu. At the Revolution, the Com- chefter' " mand of the Yeomen of the Guards was given, him. He was " fent AmbafTadour Extraordinary to Venice, in the Year 1697. " In the Year 1699, he fucceeded the Lord Jerfey, in his Am- *' baffy, to the Court of France, wjiere he remained till the *' Death of King James ; when, upon the French King's caufing " the Pretender to be acknowledged King of Great Britain and G g 4 Ireland,

456 *be Life of J O H N-,

1707. " Ireland, he received Orders, to retire immediately. On his Return from France, he was very gracioufly received by his Majefty, who approved of his Conducl, and not long after appointed him one of his Principal Secretaries of State. *' On the Acceffion of Queen Ann, he had his Dimiflion from all his Poits ; but was employ'd again afterwarde, by that Princefs, and in paiticuljr, Oftthezbth of Janu ry 1706-7. he receiv'd private Inftruftions, from her Majefty, as being appointed her Ambafladour Extraordinary to the Republick of Venice, with Orders to call, by the Way, firft at the Courts of Vienna and Turin ; and it was on this Journey, that he wrote the above, and the following Letters. " His general Character was, that he w..s of greater Appli- cation than Capacity ; that he was of good Addrefs, but no great Elocutiori ; that he was perfectly honeft, arid a great Lover of the Conftitution of his Country, which he took great Pains to gain a Knosvledge of,' and to apply that Know- ledge to the Service of the Publick.

The following Extradl (hews, at leaft, that the Lord Man* eheiter had great Expeditions from the Duke's Journey.

Extraft of a Letter from tie Lord MancbeJIer, to Men/. ***, at Hannover, dated Vienna, dpril 50, 1/07.

Extraa of a ' • \T7 ^ are entcr'ng on a Sreat Scheme, in the Affairs of

Letter from " \\ Europe; I hope the King of Sweden will not pre-

the Lord « Vent us ; and, if fo, in all Appearance, we are likely to

Ite^tQ6" " ^ave ^e Succefs we defire. They wait here, with great Irn-

Mcnt *** " patience the Refuh of the Duke of Marlboroagh, which we

at Han- ' " fhall foon now hear.

i-cvtr.

The Duke The Duke of M.arlborcugh, having iinifhed his Negotiations,

Departs from with the Eleftor of Hannover, took his Leave of that Court,

.'Hannover. the four aK(i twentieth of April, N. S. in the Evening, came

away from thence at four the next Morning, and lay thatNighr

r.t Hnlberftadt, where he was complimented by the Magistrates.

The fix and and twentieth, in the Morning, his Grace continued

his Journey to Hall, a famous Univtrfity belonging to the

King of Pruflia, about five German Miles diilant from Leipzick.

See Letter Here his Grace was met by Mr. Robinfon, her Majefty's Envoy

A. btlow. Extraordinary, by Count Sinzendorf, the Imperial Envoy, and

. . by Monfieur Cranenburg, the Dutch Minilter, After Dinner,

at th^King his Grace received the Compliments of the Magiilrates and of

of Sweden's the Univerfity ; and then proceeded, accompanied by Mr Ro-

Quarters, bit fon, and Monf. Cranenburg, to Ait-Ranftadt, about two

''ick. German Miles from Leipzick, where the King of Sweden h?.d

his

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, 6ff.

his Head Quarters. He went diredly to Count Piper's Quarters, which were not far from thence, \fhere he had a Conference with that Prime Miniiler, for about an Hour, and then retired to the Quarters the King of Sweden had ordered to be prepared for him, at Tauche, a Village about two German Miles Di- ftance from Leipzick, and not far from the King's Quarters.

Monf. Volcaire, (who, according to a noted Author, from Aneoregi- ferry Memoirs, has wrote a Life of Charles XII.) fays: " As°"sMiftake « foon as he (the Duke) was arrived at Leipzick, (Mt-RaaflaJt, VoSJT " be Jbould have faid) where Charles then was, he made his " Application privately, not to Count Piper, the firft Minifter ; " but to Baron Gortz, who began to have a Share in the " King's Confidence with Piper. He told Gortz, that the '' Delign of the Allies, was, in a fhort Time, to propofe " to t;;e King of Sweden, his being once more Mediator be- " tween them and France. His Motives for this, were his '' Hopes of discovering the King's Intentions, by Gortz's An- " fwer, and becaufe he would much rather have had Charles «' for an Arbitrator, than an Enemy.

I (hall not pretend abfolutely to contradidl this Piece of pri- Obferva- ' vate Hiftory of Monf. Voltaire's, mentioned by no other Hi- tlons on iu ftorian ; but I muil confefs, it feems very improbable, if not in- credible to me. I was, that Night, in the City of Leipzick, and the next Morning in the Camp ; but no fuch Thing ever came to my Knowledge. Is it probable, that fo remarkable an Incident mould efope the Knowledge of every one, but Monf. Voltaire's Informant ? Were not the Eyes of every one on the Duke at his Arrival ? Could this Interview be fo privately managed, as not to come to Count Piper's Knowledge ? Would not this have railed a Jeaioufy in him, that mult have put a Slop to, or very much entangled, the whole Negotiation? And can. it be believed, that fo great a Statefman as the Duke was, wb\ild have thrown fuch a Stumbling Block in his own Way, as *this would have been, at the very Beginning of his Treaty ? Baron Gortz began, indeed, at this Time, to rife in the King's Eileem and Confidence ; but he was not yet arrived to that Height in his Favour, to be a Rival to Piper, or to dare to enter into a fecret Negotiation without his Knowledge.

Monfieur de la Mottraye carries the Matter yet farther againft Voltaire, and fays, Gortz wis out of the Queflion, he being then Grand Marmal of the Bifhop of Lubeck, Adminiflrator of the Duchy of Holiiein, and was certainly then very little v known to Charles. This is, however, carrying the Matter too far ; for he certainly was then very much in the Eileem, if not in the a&ual Service, of the King, as Minifter. Mr. Robinfon fays, the Duke had a Conference, the 28th in the Afternoon, See ^^ tvith Count Piper and Baron Gortz ; but he limits that Con- A. below, i ference

Remark.

Monf. de Voltaire's Anl'wer.

458 Me Life of JOHN,

T 707. ference to the Affiirs of Holftein, in which (he fays) Things Vu"-^-* i.^ \vere concerted to mutual Content.

The Duke, indeed, was, at all times, very condefcending, when he could thereby ferve the Intereft of the Queen his Mi- ilrefs, and the Nation ; but how would it have become his Character and Dignity to apply himfelf principally, not even to a fecond, but to a third Minifter, when the prime and fecond Miniflers wereprefent ? And if it was only to found him, as Monf. Voltaire feems think, would not a third Perfon, or another Time, if but a Day, or a few Hours later, have been more proper ? And would not he, in the mean time, have applied himfelf to the Prime Minifter ? As there is hardly any Reafon to doubt he did, notwithftanding Monfiear Voltaire's fecret In- formation. Monf. de la When I fir/I f-Mrote the above, I had not feen Monf. de la

JMottraye's Mottraye' s Hiftoric^l and Critical Remarks on Monf. de Voltaire's Life of Charles XII. &c. in which he juflfy fays ths Duke of Marlborou\h could not poffibh have addreffed himfelf , (that is, as foon as he came there) ti Baron Gortz ; to which Monf. de Vol- taire an fivers , in his Notes to a future Edit ion y that he had this C.ircumjiance from the Mouth of Monf . Fabricius, who was prefent, and who had told it him, in the Prefence of WitntJJe*. Monf. de Voltaire would have done well to have told his Readers, when and where it was that Monf. Fabricius told him this Anecdote ; for every Body know?, there was a time, when this Gentleman was fo unhappy as not to know what he faid. However, nrtwithjiand- ing this pojitive AJJurance of Monf. de Voltaire 's, I muft confefs, it feems as impoffible to me, that Monf. Fabridus Jhould ha--ve told him this Circumftance, as it d.es to Monjicur de la Mottraye, and m\felfy that the Duke Jhould have IranJaSed it. Unlefs, it was at the time I have hinted at above, when he was not in a Condition to give a reafonable Anfwer to any thing.

Since I am fpeaking of Monf. de la Mottraye, I (hall add one Circumltance more from him ; which tho' not mentioned by any other Hiitorian ; nor can I fay, I ever heard it faid be- fore j yet (if Count Piper can be fuppos'd to have afted with fo much Inconfiftency) leans not improbable, and very well anfwers the Character of our Hero. After having faid, that neither the King of Sweden himielf, nor his Prime Minifter, treated the Duke of Marlborough, with that Regard which was due to his Character and Rank, he gives the following Inftance of it, with regard to the latter, which he fays he had from a Gentleman, wiio was in the Coach with the Duke, when he

A Circum- went to the Audience he had demanded of Count Piper.

Joned Ty" " The V&e (fays my Author) coming to the Gate of Count

Monf. de la " Piper's Quarters, precisely at the time appointed, ient in his Meffage ; but was anfwer'd, the Count was bufy. The Duke

" waited

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

t; waited a good half Hour before he came down ; but he no " fooner faw him at the Gate, ready to receive him, than he <{ came out of his Coach, and, putting on his Hat, pafs'd by " the Count, without faluting him, and went afide, as if to " ifiake Water ; and then, after having made him wait longer " than was neceflary for that Purpofe. he went up to him, and l< addrefi'd him with that Eloquence and Politenefs, which, " every one knows was natural to him." From this iuppofed Coldnefs, between the Duke and Count Piper, Voltaire draws a Conclufion to juitify his AfFertion of the Duke's neglecting the Count, and applying himfelf to Baron Gortz , but, fuppofing the Truth of this, it would be a very fir-fetch'd Argument.

As I have, on this4 Occafion, made frequent Mention of the unfortunate Baron Gortz, I believe his Character, as given by an Author, who is noted for a happy Talent that Way, will not be unacceptable to the Reader, especially as one Part of ic feems to corroborate what I have faid in Oppofition to Monf. Voltaire.

" Henry, Baron de Gortz, was born of an independent Fa- " mily in Franconia : He enter'd young into the Service of the " Duke of Hdlilein-Slefwick, and rofe to be his Minifter. He " was a Man generous, noble, and magnificent even to Pro - <l fufion ; vigilant, fuH of Projeds and Stratagems ; a Man *' whom nothing could iurprize, nothing diffaade from a Defign " he had once formed ; whofe Ambition was boundlefs, and " who always aim'd to do fomething to be talk'd of. In «' the North, there was no Intrigue in which he had not a " Hand, and into which he did not likewife draw his Matter ; " whom he puih'd upon Enterprizes fo far above his Power " to execute, that he thereby loft his Dominions. He thought " Holftein too narrow a Sphere for him to move in ; and there - " fore he attich'd himfelf to Charles XII. King of Sweden, '* after that Prince returned from his long Stay at Bender jV (which tacitly implies, that he had no Power, nor any Influence at this Time')

" Chailes was juft fuch a Matter as the Baron wanted, and " he juft fuch a Minifter as was necefTary for the King of " Sweden ; nor was there ever in the World a greater Sympathy ' ' between two Men ; Gortz was born to form great Defjgns, " Charles to put them in Execution ; and the conftant Defign of " both was only to throw Europe into a Ferment.

*' The Baron, befides other happy Gifts of Nature, had the Ta- " lent of infinuating and pleafing. He foon (that is,after his Return " from Bender) got an Afcendant over Charles, to fuch a Degree, " that tho' this Prince was never to be advis'd by his Miniiters, 4< yet the Baron's Opinion was a Law to him. Gortz frighten'd

" Europe,

The Duke

The Life of J O H N, Europe, and~madc Sweden tremble ; being as much feared

and dreaded there as the King himfelf. He knew, all the

while, that the Nation envy'd him ; but was in no Manner of Concern about it; for being fure of the Favour of the King, he defpifed the Hatred both of the Populace and the •' great Men.

A Proof of this his Dependence upon his Royal Matter, is his Behaviour at his Cataftrophe, at Frederichmall, which being kept a Secret from him till he was actually put under Arreft, he faid, upon that Occafion, to the Officer, Surely the King muft be dead! And he is faid to have defired, afterwards, that if he was allow'd to have any Burial out of the Kingdom of Sweden, his Epitaph might be Mors Regis, Man mea.

The feven and twentieth of April, in the Morning, the Duke ofMarlbo- of Marlborough was complimented, upon his Arrival, by the rough has Minifters and General Officers ; at half an Hour part eight, he Audience °f went jn a Coach of Count Piper's to Alt-R-inftadt, and, about ten, had his firft Audience of the King, which lafted about two Hours; when his Majeftj received him, with all Demonftra- tions of Efteem and Honour. He prefented to his Swcdifh Majefty a Letter from the Queen of Great Britain, and, at de- livering it, mudc him the following Compliment in French.

S i R,

" T Prefent to your Majefty a Letter, not from the Chancery, J[ but from the Heart of the Queen, my Miftrefs, and writ- ten with her own Hand. Had not her Sex prevented it, fhe would have crofs'd the Sea, to fee a Prface admired ty the whole Uni'verje. \ am, in this Particular, more happy than the Queen; and / iuijb I could fei^ue fame Campaigns, under fa great a General, as your Majefly, that I might learn what I jet want to know, in the Art of War.

Some Authors call the Genuinenefs of this Speech in Que- flion, and think it too mean an Adulation to proceed from the Mouth, of one of the Duke of Marlborough's Rank and Expe- rience; Rut I rather take it to be an Evidence of his Skill in Mankind. He knew the Character of Charles, and his Foible, and could not have failed his Words more to the Purpofe. 'i Ley pleas' d not only the King, but his whole Army, who ador'd him, as much as ever Frenchman did his Grand Monarch. At leaft I heard the very Words in the Mouths of his Officers, for many Months afterwards.

This weJl-tim'd Compliment, I fay, was exceeding agreeable to the King, and no doubt contributed not a little to incline him in Favour both of the Duke's Perfon and Errand. It footltM his Vanity to fuch a Degree, that it was vifible, (as I have been

iaform'd)

nrnt to the King.

Very accep- table to his Majefty.

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &c. 461

inform'd) as referv'd as he was, in his very Countenance. The 1707. King, who either could or would not fpeak French, had this (^-v— — ' Speech interpreted to him, in Swedifli, and his Majefty 's An- fwer, which was in the fame Language, and in very obliging and gracious Expreffions, was interpreted to the Duke in French.

I have f<iid above, with Monf. de Voltaire, and fo indeed, it was then generally faid in the Camp, that the Duke made his firft Compliment to the King in Frencn. But Mr. Robinfon, in a Letter, I mall give the Reader a Copy of below, fays it was in Englifh, and that he interpreted it to the King, as he did the King's Anfwer to the Duke.

The Subltance of the King's Anfwer to his Grace's Speech was as follows :

' r | ^ H E Queen of Great Britain's Letter, and your Perfbn, The King's ' \_ are both very acceptable to me, and I ihall always Anfwer. ' have the utmoft Reg trd for the Interpofition of her Majefty ' of Great Britain and the Interefts of tne Grand Alliance. Jt ' is, likewife, much agunft my Will, if I have been obliged ' to give the leaft Ombrage to any of the Parties engaged in it ;

* but your B'xceller.cy cannot but be convinced, that I had ' juft Caufe to come into this Country, with my Troops. On ' the other hand, you may affure the Queen, my Sifter, that ' my Defign is to depart from hence, as foon as I have obtain- ' ed the Satisfaction I demand ; But not fooner. However, I « fhall do nothing, thru can tend to the Prejudice of the Com-

• mon Caufe, in general, or to the Protellant Religion, in « particular ; of which I mall always glory to be a zealous ' Protedor.

Thefe were the firft general Compliment?, in which, however, his Grace hinting at the great Preparations his Majefty' was making to augment his Army, the Ombrage the Higji Allies could not but take at his long Sojourn in Saxony, and the great Satisfaction it would be to them, if he would fpeedily evacuate that Country : The King affured his Grace, (as the Reader has feen in his Speech above) that he would never do any thing to the Prejudice, either of the Common Caufe, in general, or of the Proteilant Religion, in particular. Thefe were look'd upon only as Words of Courfe ; and with refpeft to the former might, at that Time, have no great Meaning ; tho', for the' latter, he might be in earneft; for he always feem'd to have a Senfe of Religion, and,a Zeal for it, tho' without any great Knowledge either of the Theory or Practice of it: At leaft, as he profefs'd to follow the Steps of the greac Guftavus Adolphus, he was obliged to make a Shew of it.

462

The Duke dines with the King.

Has apri- vate Audi- ence of his Majefiy-

fr'.fpure Vhat Lan- guage »t2S fpoken be • twccn the Kin); and the Duke.

lllonf. de

"Voltaire's Account of this Audi- nice.

We Life of J O H N,

Monf. de Limiers fays ; the King added ; 'That he was mi ac~ countable to any one for his Adions $ and that he would difcover bit Dejigm, ivhen be (hould think proper . This, indeed, agrees pretty well with the King's general Charadei ; but his whole De- meanour to the Duke Teems to be a Contradiction of it.

The Duke had the Honour to dine with his Ma jelly in Pub- lick: The Croud of People which went from Leipjtick and other Places, to fee thofe two Heroes wasfo great, that it was thought neceffary to poll three Regiments of Horie round the King's Quarters, to prevent Diforders. After Dinner, he had a feccnd Audience of his Majefty, on Bufmefe, a; which were prefent Count Piper, and Monf. Harmelin, the two chief of his Swedifh Majeft/s Minifters, together with Mr. Robinlbn : And here, tho" I do not profefs to have an implicite Faith, in all Monf. Vol- taire relates ; yet what he fays of this Audience gives fo jull an Idea of the Duke's Capacity, that I cannot refill the Tempta- tion of repeating it.

Moni". de Voltaire, and Monf. de la Mottraye, have had an important Squabble, in what Language this Conference was managed. The former fays the King fpoke in German, and the Duke anfwer'd in French ; .the latter aflerts ; // is certain^ the Dttke did not under ft and a U''ord of German ; lo which Voltaire replies ; the Duke of Marlborougb underjlood German ; but did not /peak it. Both yery pofitive ; but I am apt to believe Mon- ileur de Voltaire in the Wrong ; becaufe, tho' I have been fre- quemly -with the Dake of M.-:r:borough's Retinue, in fe^ , .M! Parts of Germany ; I never heard it once hinted, that his Grace had ever attempted to know a Word of that Language : It would have been wholly ufelefs to him, French being the uni- verfal Language, at Camp and Court. Mr. Robinfon, in tnc Letter I nave already menticn'd, &ys, the Duke dircouis'd, after the firil Speech, in French, wliich the King underlined, but did not fpeak. And it is moil probable, that if the King •n German (or as I rather believe, in Swedilh) it was interpreted to him, by Mr. Robinfon, wno underllood and ipoke both.

" The Dake (fays Monfieur Voltaire) who was never over- " hafty in making Propofals, end had learn'd, by a long Ex- " perience, the Art of penetrating into die Minds oi Aim, .11 as of diving into the fecret Connexion between tneu inmoil Thought* and .their Aftions, GeUures and Di'courfe, fix'd his Eves attentively upon the King. .When he fpoke to him of War in general, he imagined thac he faw, in his Majeily, a natural Averfion toward:- France, and that he took a fecret Pieafure in %eaking of the Couquetts ^c; Allies. He mentioned the 'Czar to him, -u.d cock T\ that his Eyes kindled whenever He was named ; notwitn-

" ftanding

Duke of MARLBOROtfrGH, &C.

"• ftanding the Moderation of the Conference. He, moreover, '< remark'd, that the King had a Map of Mufcovy lying be- '* fore him, on the Table : This was fufficient to determine r< him in his Judgment, that the King of Sweden's real De- " fign, and fole Ambition, were to dethrone the Czar, as he '« had already done the King of Poland. He found, that he c< had no other Views by remaining in Saxony, than, by that *' Means, to impofe. fome hard Terms on the Emperor of Ger- " many. He knew his Imperial Majefty would comply, and " that thus Matters would be eafily brought to a Conclufion. " The Duke left Charles XII. to his natural Inclination ; and " being fatisfied with having difcovered his Intentions, he made " him no Propofal."

. Thus far Monfieur Voltaire.. That the Duke difcover'd the Some King of Sweden's Intentions, and was highly fatisfied with them, Remarks is not to be queftion'd ; but that fo wife a Statefman mould reft thereupon, contented here, and depend on the King's Inclination alone, without cherifhing it, or making him any Propofal, after taking fo long a Journey, for no other End, than to divtrt his Majefty from any pernicious Defigns, which, by the Periuafions of France, might get the better of, and thwart his Inclinations, is as improbable, as it is falfe in Fad.

Monfieur de la Mottraye, by way of Obfervaticn upon thefe Monf. de la Circumftances related by Monfieur de Voltaire, fays ; " I never Mottraye's " heard thefe Circumftances mentioned, nor do I know it was ti^T*^^ " ever furmis'd, that the Duke, by a bare View of a Map of Monfieur " Mufcovy lying before the King of Sweden, penetrated into de Voltaire's " the real Defign of that Monarch, which (adds he) you your ReP]y' «' felf afterwards own the Swedes themfelves were ignorant of, " even when they were actually on their March." In anfwer to which Monf. de Voltaire again refers to Monf. Fabricius, as his Author, and an Eye-Witnefs. Monf. de la Mottraye adds ; *' I had the Honour to be frequently in the Pretence of *' Charles XII. during his Sojourn at Bender; but 1 never " knew him mew an Averfion towards France. On the con- " trary, he always employed Frenchmen in his Army, prefer- f able to all other Foreigners, and could not conceal his Con- cern for them, when he heard of their Loffes. I never knew a Swedifh Officer but what wiih'd well to France ; and I never heard any Complaints, but only that France had for- faken them, in their Misfortunes, and had never paid one Penny of the Subfidies, ftipulated between them, after the Battle of Pultowa." To this Monf. de Voltaire only an- fwers ; Cabinet- Me/fingers are admitted to the Prefence of their Sovereigns, and are tie Bearers of- thsir fecret Counfe/s, and yet are never the better informed of them,

The

The Life of J O H N,

The Audience being over, his Grace fpent the whole Eyen- ing in vifiting Count Pjper and the other Miniilers and General Officer5, as, i ike wife, the Coanteflbs of Piper and Reinfchi'd. The fame Day Count Wackerbarr, Lieutenant-General of King Auguftus's Forces, waited upon the Duke of Marl bo- rough, with a Compliment from his Mailer, intimating, that he would be, that Night, at Leipzick, where he fhould be glad to fee his Grace : His Majeiljt having before, to fhew the particular Efteem, he had for the Duke, lent Colonel Du Erofs, to compliment him, on his Arrival in his Electorate. Purfuant to this Invitation, the Duke went, the next Morning, for Alt- Has a Con- Ranftadt to Leipzick, to wait on King Auguffcus, with whom ference with he had a private Conference, of above half an Hour, in which, King Au- jt was believed, King Auguftas delired the Duke to ufe his In- PolaTd ° fluence with the King cf Sweden, and his Minifters, to miti- gate the hard Conditions which were put upon him.

There were the greater Grounds for this Belief; becnufe the King of Sweden parted but the Moment before from King Au- guftus, whom he had not fecn in two Months before, and, with whom he had been in Conference near two Hours, whereas he had never before pafs'd above half an Hour in ConVerfation with him ; and it was obferved, at his Departure, that Auguftus was very much difconcerted ; from whence his Courtiers concluded, that Charles, inftead of relenting, had fhewn himfelf immove- ably fix'd to the hard (or rather cruel) Refolutions he had taken. This, however, is /111 Conjecture, for the Conference?, as well between the two King , ss between Auguilus and the Duke, were private, and no one prefent, but Mr. Robinfon, to the l.-tter. This Conference being ended, the Duke returned to Count Piper's Quarters, where he dined.

The Duke 1° lne Evening, his Grace fupp'd with Velt-Marfhal Rein- has his Au- fchild, and, on the nine and twentieth, was vificcd by Count dienceof Piper, Vclt-Marftial Reinfchiid, Velt-Maifhal Ogi!vy, and fe- Leaveof the veraj other General-Officers and Perfons of Quality ;' and after having dined with Baron Gortz, had his Audience of Leave of S cef of f^e ^'"2 °^ Sweden. At this Audience, the Duke had fufficienc hisN tia- Affurnnces cf what had been before concerted with Count Piper, tion. and, therefore, left the King, extremely well fatiified, not oaly

with his Reception at that Court, but wifh his Negotiations. Has anQp- During this Audience, King Staniflaus came in, and was com- portunity of plimented by his Grace, who, however, could enter into no compliment- farther Conference with him ; becauie the Queen had not ac- ing King knowledg'd him, as King of Poland. The Duke, foon. after

Staniflaus* T • • i r • L

took his Leave, and went to Leipzick, trom whence, without making any Stay, he proceeded on his Journey to Berlin.

To this Account, I fhall add the Extraft of a Letter from Mr. Rcbinfon to the Earl of Mancheftcr ; not only as it con-

ftnttl

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c*

firms moft of the Circumftances I have given above ; but' as it jullifies, in a particular Manner, the Cenfure I have pafs'd upon Monf. Voltaire, and the Abfurdity of his fuppcfing the Duke of Marlborough would make his AddrefTes to a third Miniiler, when a firft and iecond were prefent.

A.

Extrafl of A Letter from Mr. Robinfon, dated at Ldpzick, May

the ^th, 1707.

ON the z6th pail, arrived his Grace the Duke of Marl- A Lett* borough, in the Afternoon, at Hall, whither myfelf, fr°™ Mr. with the Imperial and Holland Envoys, were gone to meet ^ ^rd him ; and being informed, on the Way from thence, to the Manshefter* Swedifh Quarters, that the King of Sweden could not give him an Audience before the next Day, his Grace thought fit to go directly to Count Piper's Quarters ; where the Count made ample Protections, how acceptable his Grace's coming would be to the King, his Matter, and appointed eleven o'Glock^ the next Morning, for his repairing to the Head-Qyarters^ when his Majeily came from Church. His Grace went thence to the Quarters prepared for him, about an Englifh Mile and an half from the King's, and the next Morning, at the Time appointed, went to wait on his Majefiy. The In- tcndant of the Court, and other Officers, received his Grace, and, in the Anti-Chamber, Count Piper, who conducted him into a Cabinet, where the King was, with feveral Senators, Generals, and other Officers about him. His Grace made a fhort Compliment, in Englifh, which I interpreted, as alfo the Anfwer that was made by Count Piper. Afterwards his ' Grace fpoke in French, which his Majeity underftands, bat ' does not fpeak } and the Converfation was general for about ' an Hour, when his Majefty took the Duke with him to Din- ' ner, placing him on his Right Hand, and Count Piper on his ' Majefty's Left. After Dinner, he returned with his Majefiy * to the Audience Room, which after a little while Was void- ' ed by the reft of the Company, and then his Grace fpoke at ' large, his Majeity giving great Attention to what Was faid^ ' with all Appearances cf much Content. Count Piper, (who, together with Mr Hnnneiin, (laid with the King) could not refrain from fheduing fovr.e Tears, at the very pathetick Ex- preffions, his Grace uftd, to affure the King of her Majefty's Friendfhip, and on the King's Part made (unable Returns. Thofe Difcourfes, and others about military Matters, took up an Hour and a half, when his Majefiy wen: again to Church. After A'irds, ins Grace made a V'iiit to the Counj tefs Piper, and had then a Conference with the Count, and VOL I. H h " from

-66 Me Ufe of J O H N,

1707. "' from thence went to fee the Velt-Marfhal Reinfchild's Lady," — ~V~— • «. " On the 2 8th, his Grace went to Leipzick, to wait on King " Auguftus, with whom he had a private Conference of about " half an Hour, and then returned to Count Piper's Quarters, " where lie dined. He had that Afternoon a Conference with " Count Piper and Ruon Gortz, about the Affairs of Holltein, in which, Things were concerted to mutual Content. In the Evening his Grace flipped with the Velt-Marfhal Rein- fchild. The zgth, his Grace was vifited by Count Piper, Veh-MarQial Ogilvy, and many others j and, after having dined with Baron Gortz, had his Audience of Leave of 'the King of Sweden. Before it was ended, Notice was givenj that King Staniflaus was in the Anti-Chamber ; whereupon his Grace faying, he had no Objection againft his coming in, the King of Sweden went and brought him. Some Civilities pafs'd between that King and his Grace, who foon after took " his Leave, and we;it to Leipzick, and thence, without mak: " ing any Stay, proceeded on his Journey to Berlin.

cfaratter «• Doflor John Robinfon, who wrote the above Letter, vvr^ ot Dr. John i< brec} a Clergyman, and had a Living in the North of England. nlon> « if I forget not, fome where in the Neighbourhood of Hull. " His Patron being fent with the Character of Refident t6 " the Court of Sweden, he accompanied him, in the Quality " Chaplain and Secretary ; and upon his being recall'd or re- " mov'd, he fucceeded him, firft with the Character only of " Secretary-Reiident, but afterwards of Refident, in which he " liv'd fo long at that Court, that it could not be fuppofed, that *' any one underilood the Affairs of that Kingdom better, which " enabled him to write an Account of Sweden, a Work juitly " efteem'd. He fbHow'd the Camp of Charles XII. and as h:e " .' always fupported the Charadkr, fo becoming his Cloth, (tho' 'he had, lor a Time, exchang'd it for the Sworn) of being very grave and fober, and belides of being a Man of foli'd Senfe, fo, on the other hr.nd, he was always very vigikntand careful of the Intereft of his Sovereign ; and he was, at this time, in that extraordinary Prince's Army, with the Cha- racter of Envoy Extraordinary. I had the Honour to be par- ticularly known to him, fome time afterwards, in the City of Hamburg, where he refided in the fame Character, with the Addition" of Plenipotentiary, upon Occafion of certain Dif- " ferer.ces that hr.d ariien, between fome of the appennag"d •:es of Holfrein, which they had fubmitted to the Deter- " mination cf Queen Ann. In thisCommifGon, he was join'd '•' with John Wich, Efq; her Majefty's Miniiler, to the Hans- " Towns and Princes in the Circle of Lower" Saxonv, (Father of " Sir Cj-ril Wich, Esrt. nov/his Majelcy'sMinifter-Plenipotenft-

" ary

Duke <?/ M A R L B o ROU G H , &c.

" ary to the Emprefs of Ruffia,) who was dignified with the *' fame Chara&er, on this Occafion, and they gave, I believe, a ff general Satisfaction, in their Determination. He then took " the Gown again, and had, as a Reward for his Labours the " Biihoprick of" Brittol bellowed upon him, was of the Queen's " Privy Council, Privy Seal, and Firlt Plenipotentiary at the " Congrefs of Utrecht, and laftly was tranflated to the See of tc London, in which he died,"

The Succefs of the Duke of jyiarl borough's Negotiations, at Caufes of the Court of Sweden, was generally thought to be owing, not f^e Duke'a alone to the perfonal Efteem, which the 'King exprefs'd to have ce 3* for his Grace, and to his Toothing and ch'erifhing his Natural Inclination, which luckily happen'd to chime with the Duke's Wiflies ; but, likewife, to a large Sum of Mony, opportunely given to Count Piper, who, in Return, perfuaded his Mailer to that March, which remov'd him to fo great a Diftance, as freed the Allies fronji any farther Apprehenfions on his Account.

Monf. de Limiers makes no manner of Queftion of the Truth CotifitmM of this Report. " The Duke of Mariborough, (fay she) hav- "°l ^onf- d« " ing founded the King's Intentions, in his private Audiences, Limiers« " addrek'd himfelf, for the reft, to Count Piper. The Publick " is not, indeed informed, of what pafs'd in the Duke's Inter- " views with that Miniiter : But however fecret this Matter was " kept, it was well known, that a conliderable Prefent, made " tlie Count, hallened the Negotiation to a Conclusion, in three " Days time.

A great many Vouchers might be produced to prove a good And others. Intelligence ; and more than probably a fecret Treaty between the Duke and Count Piper : I Hull only add one more here : My Lord Mancheiler, in a Letter of the 4th of May from Vienna, to the Earl of Sunderland, after giving an Account of fome Orders given by that Court, goes on : " But I am flill of Opi- " nion, they will wait till they fee what the King of Sweden *' will do, and what Aflurances the Duke of Mariborough has. *'' Here are Letters come from thence, which mention, that his " Grace was in Conference luiih Count Piper for federal Hours.

Monf. Voltaire allows, that this Report gained Credit, at that APaflageia Time, throughout all Europe ; but with a dictatorial Authority, ^onfieur

. . TI-n . ,, r, 7 Voltaire s

pretty common with -oar poetical Hiitonan, adds: " for my Hiftoryccn- " own Part, after having,, traced this Report to its Source, I fur'd. " have been convinced, that Piper received a fmail Prefent from " the Emperour, by the Hands of Co^nt Wratiflau, with the " Confent of the King his Mailer, and nothing from the Duke " of Mariborough.1' As Monf. Voltaire is not pleated to in- form his Readers where or what this Source was, to vyhich he teuced this Matter ; 1 ih.Ul, for his and their Iniornution, lead II h 2 them

468

1707.

Some far- ther Paf- fages in Volta-re ex- amin'd into.

'The Vfe of J O H N,

them to a Source, which, next to the Probability of the Thing itielf, gave, in a great Meafure, Rife to this Report : A certain rich Jew, (if I miftake not, from Amfterdam,) who was then at the farhous Fair of Ltipzick, was iecn to wait on the Duke more than once j this Jew was known to negotiate Bills of Exchange for a large Sum, in Pifloles, (ico,ooo Piitoies was the Sum named ;) with Mr. Hahman, a;noted Banker in Leipzick ; and this Banker was known to pay, about the lame time, large Sums, in Piltoles, to Count Piper's Order. This was at leaft one Source, which was in the Mouth of almoft every one, from whence this Report arofe ; but my Saxon Manufcript, befides thi?, adds, that feveral Alterations in the Count's Oeconomy, and fome Indifcre- tions of one of his Secretaries, contributed not a little to con- firm it.

It may not be improper for me to remove one Difficulty, that might poffibly be ttarted, in Oppofition to my Relation, in Point of Time. J fix the Time of this Jew's being at Leipzick, during the Fair : The F^ir I know begins the third Sunday after Eafter ; and lafls a Fortnight. I have not thought it nectffary to enquire what Day of the Month, the Fair was regularly to have begun, this Year ; but this I know, that upon Occafion of the King of Sweden's being encamp'd in the Neighbourhood, and Safe-guards for Perfons and Goods being allow'd, on both Sides, to foreign Merchants of all Nations, the Shops were open'd and the 'Fair kept fome Weeks both before and after the uunl Time. Du- ring this Time the Dake of Mar'borough was in S ixony, during this Time, the Jew I (peak of xvas with the Duke, more than once, in his Quarters ; and I myfclf faw him trar.Lftingan Affjjr of great Confequence, with Mr. Hah mm, in whole Houfe I lodg'd : But whether within the prccife time the Fair was wont to be kept, or before or after, I neither can, nor is it material for me to determine.

To conclude this Matter, that I m?.y not be thought prejudiced againfl the Count, ] m::ll add what Monf. Voltaire fiys farther, in his JuiKrkation, and to deftroy the Credit of this Report. And, farther (continues our Hiflorian,} Count Piper, who very well knew, that his Mailer's Proceedings, if they proved un- fortunate, might one Day be imputed to him, fent his Ad- vice, fealed up, to the Senate of Sweden, to be opened after his Death : Which Opinion was, that Charles ought fir ft to cfiablijh King SiariiJIaus, on the Thi one of Poland, and then to accept of the Mediation bctnxeen France and the Allies, before he entered upon his Dcjtm, in Mufco-jy. 'Tis true, indeed, (adds Monf. Voltaire] tharPiper might, at the fame time, advife his Mafter to that dargerous Expedition, and be wil'ing to clear himfelf of it, in the Eyes of Pofterity ; but it is ;xs certain,

that Charles was inflexible in his

Defign of dethroning the " Em-

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &5V.

" Emperor of Ruffia ; that he then took Counfel of no body, "*' nor had any Occafion for Count Piper's Inlligation, to ftrengthen " his Refolutions of being reveng'd on Peter Alexowitz, which " he had, long before, fix'd : And lailly, (fays our Hijlorian] tf what entirely juftifies the Minifter, igainfl this Imputation, " is the Honour which Charles XII. paid to his Memory, a " long time after, when, being informed that Piper was dead " in Ruffia, foe caufed his Body to be tranfported to Stockholm, " and his O*wequies to be performed with great State and Mag- " nificence, at his own Expence." I cannot agree with Mr. Voltaire, that his laft Argument fo abfolutely vindicates Count Piper. It is certain, and he allows, that this was Charles's fa- vourite Scheme, upon which he was entirely bent, and confe- quently, muft be fuppofed to have believed it reafonabie, who- ever wa^s the Advifer of it ; and tho' it mifcirried, and drew upon him a Chain of Misfortunes, why fhojld he, therefore, throw the Odium of it, on the Advifer? Or, if he did, as the Count was long his Favourite Minister, might he not retain a Value for his Memory, notwithstanding this one Miftake ?

A late Historian of our own, fays, in down-right Contradic- tion to Voltaire, " That as fson as the Duke arriv'd at Alt- " Ranftadt, he went direifily to Count Piper's Qumer?, and, in <c a Conference with that Prime Miniiter made giifter in his " Eyes a Prefent of a hundred thoufand Guineas, which, ac- /" cording to his fecret Instructions, his Grace was not wanting " to infmuate, weigh'd more than as many French Louis- " d'Ors. The Svvedifh Minifter catch' d at the Bait, and this *' Golden Shower fmooth'd the Way to his Grace's favourable " Reception, and Successful Negotiation."

Be all this as it will, the Duke of Marlborough Succeeded in ' his Negotiation to his Wifhcs, and gained great Honour by the Journy : And tho' fome unexpected Events occaficn'd the K'ng ; of Sweden's flaying longer in Saxony than was expected ; yet r, \vefhall find, that his M::j-fty had a ft rift Regard to what he a had promifed the Duke, and that his Grace's Literpofinon had ll a great Influence in accommodating Matters with the Emperour. Various were the Apprehenfions the Court of Vienna was under from the Projects or Defigns of the King of Sweden : I Hull mention Several in the Sequel, and how far the Duke had an In- fluence to prevent them ; buf '"now Sh'.ll only take Notice of one, which they had early, and of which the Lord Manc'ietUr gives an Account in the Letter I have quoted above, of the 1 41 ti- of May, to theEirl of Sunderlar.d : " I find ffa-smv LorJJthey " fe^.r here, that the King of Sweden has fome Thoughts to- " w;;rds Siltfia and Bohemia, and if he fhoul.1 rp^ke tne le.ilt " Step that W?.y, they will recall their Trooin O'.it of It.il/, as " ajfo Prince E'l^en;:; which will put an Ead to all the-Defigns H h 3 4* tiiere.

The Life of J O H N,

there. I hear they have fent Orders to the Battalion of Muf- covites to difperie themfelves ; for the Emperour will not give any Occ^iion to the King of Sweden, to have a Pretence •' to quarrel. In a fubfequent Letter, of the feventh of Airy, i " the fame Lord tells my Lord Sunderland, that, according to " Accounts from Saxony, the Duke of Marlborcugh fnould f:jy, *' there c<>.as no Danger to be apprehended from thence?"1 But we fhall find more Inftance's below. I cannot, <h refore, but \vonderhow Bifhop Burnet can fo pofitively affirm, "Ti?at the Duke could gain no Ground on the King of Steepen; ur.iefs he fuppofes the Duke's Journy was with the Intent to perfuaoe the King of Sweden, to acceed to the Grand Alliance, which I never iound he attempted to do : Unlefs in a fhort Infinuation of Monf. Rouf- fet, which will, indeed, admit of this Interpretation. And of ano- " This Prince (fays he, meaning the King of Sweden.) might ther in «« have made himfelf the Umpire of the Rue of Chriftendom, Rowffet. „ if he had given Ear to the Solicitations of the Duke (of " Marlborough,) on other Affairs, which would have gain'd " him a real Glory, as he did, as far as regarded his Sojourn in «' Saxony."

I thail quote bat one Paragraph more, from an Author gene- rally very well receiv'd :

" The King of Sweden (fays he) might, if he had pleafed, " have itopp'd the Progrefs of the War, and immortalized his «' Name, by rendering himfelf the Arbiter of a Quarrel which " divided Europe ; for the Profperity of his Arms had render'd " him the Terror of all the Powers in the North. He hi-d de- *' priv'd the Eledlor cf Snxony of the Crown of Poland, and was *' now in the Middle of Saxony, where he committed univerfal " Ravage, and might have turn'd the Balance which way he " pleas'a : The wrong Advice cfhis Favourite, corrupted by my Lord " Marlbcrciigl\ was the Cattfe cf the Misfortunes into which that *' Prince was afterwards precipitated." (as a noted Author has it.) And the fame Author adds, that '• the Neighbourhood of this great «( Monarch, who, whcre-ever he mnrch'd, carried Fire and " Sword with him, gave vaft Uneafmefs, and the Joy was as " great when he manifelled a Design to turn his Arms sgainft *' the Mufcovites, which he was put ut>on to do iy the Englijh* " They had, for fome time paft, lufpedled him to be fupported " underhand by France, and they thought the bcfc Way to em- " broil him with that Crown was to engage him in a War with «« the Qzar. The Perfcn commiffion'd to negotiate this Aftdir " was my Lord Maribcrough, who went to the King of Sweden, " and foon put his Ncrot:ation in a hopeful Way to fucceed. " He found about the King a Minijler fo frrdid, that he w?.s not " Proof againft an Offer ot Three hundred tbmifand Crowns, to '< betray his Mafter into a War, winch ccTuld not but be fatal

« to

Duke cf MARLBOROUGH, -&c.

to him : • This Miniller knowing his Mailer'^s ambitious

Temper, propos'd no lefs to him than dethroning the Czar. The young Monarch full of Zeal and Courage, did not ima- gine how impoffible it was to dethrone a Prince who was re- tired behind Provinces quite defcrted, and where the Snow lay fo deep, that it was difficult to diftinguifh whether they walk'd upon Land or Rivers." This tallies exaclly with what I haveaverr'd, ([ think on very good Grounds,) differing only in the Sum given to this Minifter, of which that mention'd by me feems to have the beft Vouchers.

The thirtieth of April, N. S. the Duke of Marlborough ar- The D. of rived at Charlottenburg, the King of Pruffia having fent iYlonf. Marlboro' Grumkau, to defire his Grace would pafs that Way. He fupped, ar«vcs^at that Night, with the King, and was lodged in the Apartment ^ belonging to the Markgrave. The next Day, being Sunday, his* Grace accompanied the King to divine Service, and Monf. L'Enfant, by his Mijefty's particular Orders, preach'd in French, on that Oecafion. On the fecond, his Grace left Charlotten- burg, in order to proceed towards Hannover, where he arrived, Hannover i cm the third ; and, the Day following, after having had a private Conference, with the Elector, had the Honour to dine with his Electoral Highnefs. In the Afternoon, he fet out for the Hague, And the where he arrived, the eighth, having received the higheft Marks Hague, of Honour and Efteem, in the feveral Courts, thro' which he had pafs'd, fmce his Departure from thence.

The next Morning, his Grace was complimented, upon his He confers Return, by the foreign Ministers, and other Perfons of Diilinc- ^ith the tion ; and, in the Evening, was in Conference with the Depu- t^/sr^0 ties of the States General, to whom he communicated the Af- furances he had received from the King of Sweden. This en- And ac- tirely diffipated the Jealoufies fome of the Allies had conceiv'd 9u?ints of his Swedifh Majefty's Defigns ; which were induftrioufly fo- hisTuccefa merited by the Emiffaries of France, who, on the other hand, ja Saxony. left no Stone unturn'd, to engage the young Northern Hero, in an open Rupture, with the Emperour. The Intrigues of Franca proved, however, unfuccefsful ; the King of Sweden's Refolu-. tions were fix'd ; nothing lefs than the dethroning of the Cx-r of Mufcovy could fatisly his Ambition, or cool his Reyenge ; he overlook'd the moit insurmountable Difficulties and Dangers, with a kind of Difdain, which fhew'd he was inexorable ; and the fhort Stay he yet made in Saxony, was only to bring the Emperour to harder Conditions, which he Succeeded in, efpe-. cillly in Favour of the Proteibnts of Silefia. For the Neigh- bourhood of a Prince, haughty, tenacious, and affronted, at the Head of an Army daily encreafing, made the Emperour think it his Iqtereit, or rather, he was under aNecefiity, to get ii ii 4 nu

Me Life -of J O H N, rid of tim, at ary Rate. But of this I mall have more to fay,

jn the eniliing Chapter.

CHAP. VI.

'The Campaign in Flanders, with other Tranfaftions* to the Conclufion of the Tear^ 1 707.

The D. of rT"*HF Duke of Marlborough, being returr.'d from Saxony,

Marlboro' left the Hague, and arrived at liruflels, the thirteenth of

arrives at May, N. S. He immediately held a Council of WV.r, with

Brwflbls. jvionficur d'Auverquerque, and the Field-Deputies of the States ;

sfter which, Orders were feut to the Confederate Troops, to

march to their Rendezvous at Anderlech, near BrufTels. The

Confederate Arn.y was then computed to con fj ft of 97 Battalions

of Foot, and 164 S ..uidrons of Hqrfe and Dragoons, having,

with tlum, 102 Pieces of Cannon, ten Hawbitzers, and 44

Pontons. The Enemy's Army was computed, at that time, to

confiflof 102 Battalions, and 168 Squadrons, having 72 Pieces of

Cannon, 16 Mortars and Ha'wbitzersj and 36 Pontons.

The twenty firlt, the Duke fet out from Bruffels, after having been waited on by the Council of State, and Members of the other Courts of that City, who came to wifli him a happy Cam- paign.

From BruJ/els, the Duke wrote the fillofwing Letter, to the Earl of Mqncbejler.

A tetter

from the D«ke of Marlboro' to the E. of

MY LORD, Bruffels, May 17, 1707.

' T DID not receive the Honour of your Excellency's Let-

' \_ ter, of the 27th of laft Month, till my Return from

' vSaxony to the Hague, where I made fo fhort a Stay, that I

' hope you will excufe my not ar.fwei ing it fooner. J have

' feen, by other Letters from Vienna, of later Date, how ob-

' ftinately they purfue the Expedition againft Naples, notwith-

' ftanaing all the Reprefentations that have been made to dif-

'• luade tnem from it; a jealous Humour prevails fo much nt

' that Court, that they will not ferioufly weigh and confider

' their own Intereft, fo that the beft Arguments are thrown

' away. I expedfoon to hear whether our Misforcune in Spain

has made luch Impreifions as it ought with them. In the

mean while, I am glad to fee, by Letters from Turin, that

the Duke of Savoy pur&es the Meafures that hare been con-

" certe^

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &?r. 473

" certed with him, with all the Earneftnefs we can defire. I 1707.

*: arrived here two Days ago, and immediately ordered the »^/\^\J

" Troops to march to their Rendezvous, near Hall, where I

" fhall join the Army on Saturday, and then {hall foon be able

" to guefs, by the Enemy's Motions, what they defign. They

" talk no lefs than of giving us Battle, which, in my Opinion,

" is what we ought moft to defire ; for tho' 'tis pofllble they

" may out-number us, yet I am fure they cannot equal us in

" Goodnefs of Troops. Your Excellency will have heard of

" the Misfortune arrived to our outward-bound Portugal- Fleet,

" and of the Lofs of the Convoy. I am, &c.

MARLBOROUGH.

In the Evening of the 2 ift, the Duke joined the Army, which He goes to moved, the fame Day, from Anderlech, and encamp'd, with the Right, at Bellengen, and the Left at Lembeck, and having Hall in the Rear. Upon Intelligence, that the French, who had been drawing together, about the fame time, continued quiet in their Lines, the Duke of Marl borough advanced nearer to them, in order to meet them half Way, for a Battle, which they had given out they would offer the Confederates ; or, if they declined it, to lay Siege, either to Mons or Charleroy ; but, on the four and twentieth, his Grace received unexpected Information, that the Enemy were come out of their Lines, and were encamp'd at The French Haine, St. Paul, and Peronne, where the Eledlor of Bavaria, come out of and the Duke de Vendome, took a Review of their Army, the their L'ncs' five and twentieth.

From this Camp, the Duke of Marllorougb 'wrote the following Letter to tic Earl of Mam.bef.er.

. Camp at Lembeck, May 25, 1707. My LORD,

«' I" Have received the Honour of your Excellency's Letter, of Another ' JL the inh Inftant, and, fend this to Mr. Chetwynd, in Letter from ' Hopes it may meet you at Turin, where I doubt not but you t!:e ?.uke.of < will find.H. R. H. perfedly well inclined, and ready to con- JJJfJJ of ' cur in any thing that may promote the carrying on the Ex- Mancheftcr. ' pedition into France, with all poffible Vigour. I am glad to fee ' you have fo good an Opinion of the Court of Vienna, for ' I have been, for fome time, apprehenfive they were not in ' fo good Difpolitions as were to be wiihed. Our Army has ' been affembled at this Camp four Days. That of the Enemy f is come out of their Lines ; fo that the next March we make, f we^may be able to guef;, whether they defign to meet us, as

*' they give gut. It is certain, they are very numerous ; but

•« our

Tlie Con- federate* refolve to attack the Enemy.

Bat they prevent it.

<Tbe Life of J O H N,

oar Troops are all in fo good a Condition, that I think we can wifli for nothing more than a Battle, to do our Part towards repairing the Misfortune in Spain.

I am, &.c.

MARL BO ROUGH.

The Con- federate Army re- turns to BrufleJs.

The French

feline Fighting.

The Confederate Army advanced, hereupon, the next Morning, to Soignies, their Right being at Louvignies, and their Left at Naeft^ and the Enemy, who, by this Motion of the Allies, thought they would take the Camp of Bois Seigneur Ifaac, march'd, at the fame time, to Pieton, placing their Right, near Meling, and their Head-Quarters at Gofieliers. The feven and twentieth, the Duke of Marlborough, accompanied by fe- veral Generals, advanced with twelve Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, to view the Ground, and the Avenues to the Enemy's Camp : And, upon Intelligence, that they were encamp'd in the Plain of Flerus, a Council of War \vas held, in which it was refolved to march to Nivelle, in order to attack them. Ac- cordingly, a Detachment was fent to view the Pafs at Ron- quieres, thro' which they were to pafs. The Generals, who were fent thither, reported, that the Enemy fufpe&ing the De- f'gn of the Allies, had made a Detachment to fecure that im- portant Poll, and would, undoubtedly, advance, upon the firft Motion of the Confederates, to hinder them from marching thro' that Pafs ; or elfe, would charge the firft Troops which fhou'd pafs, with fo much Advantage, that if was not thought advifeable to move that Way.

This Report being maturely weighed, in a Council of War, and, befides, the Generals wiiely confidering, that the Enemy had drain'd all their Garrifons, and got together all their Forces, probably, with no other View, but to plunder the open, great, and wealthy Cities of Brabant, particularly Louvain and Bruffels, as foon as they mould find the Confederates engaged in any Siege ; which they might have done, in lefs time, than the bringing up of the heavy Artillery and Ammunition would re- quire j all thefe Things, 1 fay, coniidefed, it was refoived to march back to Bruflels.

This prudent Resolution was executed with fo much AiCduity, that, the eight and twentieth, the Confedtrate Army returned from Soignies, to the Camp at Hal), pafs'J, the next Day, the Canal of BrufTels, at Dighem, and encamp'd at Beaulieu, where they refted. the thirtieth, imrch'd the thirty-hrit to Bethlem, layed Bridges over the Deule, which they pafs'd,. the firft of June, and ported themfelves at Meldeil The French, feeing their Defign difappointed, advanced to the ftrong Camp of Gemblour.-, without danng to venture an Engagement with

the

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

the Allies, tho' thev were were fuperiour, in Number, by 34 Squadrons, and 24 Battalions. A-id fo both Armies continued, above two Months, in their refpe&ive Camps, during \vhich time, no Aftion pafs'd between them, worth mentioning.

It will now be necefiary, that I add a Word or two, to what France en- I have faid, in the foregoing Chapter, concerning the King of dcav-urs to Sweden, and hi= Difpute with the Emperour j for notwithitand • foment a ing the Succefs of the Duke of Mailborougn's Negotiations, in ^^the' Saxony, the Emiffaries of France left no Stone unturn'd, to en- Eirpcror gage the young Northern Hero in an open Rupture \vi:h his Im- and the perial M,fjefty. In a Letter of the 1 1 th of May, from Vienna, KinS "f Lord Manchefter tells the Earl of Sunderhnd, he was affured bweden» they had Letters there, which they had intercepted, coming from Swiflerland, irom the Court of France to the King of Sweden : Nor did the King of Sweden want plaufible Pretences to fall out with the Court of Vienna ; for, about this time, an un- lucky Quarrel happened, between Baron Strahlenheim, Envoy of Sweden, and Count Zobor, an Hungarian Lord, Son-in- Law of Prince Adam of Lichtenftein. The Rencounter was A Quarrel this: " being both at Dinner, at the Count de la Tour's, and between " difcourfing of the Affairs of Europe, Count Zobor faid, that £™"* and " tbrs e Knaves occafioned a great deal of Mi/chief in the World, g jrunstrah» « He named, indeed, only Prince Ragotzki for one, and King knheim. 1 Stanifl ms for another ; but he made ufe of fuch Expreffions, as evidently fhew'd, he meant the King cf Sweden, for the- third ; upon which the Swedifh Envoy thought himfelf, in Honour, obliged to give him a Box o' the Ear. The Com- pany prevented any farther Mifchief, at that time, and Count Zobor was, atfiril, confined, by Order of the Emperor, md, fhortly after, fent Prifoner to the Cattle of Gratz, in Stina ; the CommifTaries appointed to make Enquiry into that Affair, having reported, that he had been guilty of Difrefpecl: to- wards the King of Sweden."

Baron Strahlenheim having informed the King, his Matter, what pafs'd, his Swedifli Majefty ordered him to declare, that J gwdS he approved his Conduct, and that he had Orders to abfent him- demands felf from Court, till he had received a juft Satisfaction, as well satisfaction on that Account, as for the Affront offer'd to feme Officers of on that Ac. his Troops, who, being lilting Men at Breflau, were infulted countt by the People. The Imperial Minfters mewed a Willingnefs, at this Critical Juncture, to give the King of Sweden all reafonable Satisfaction : But, with regard to Count Zobor, they thought, that Monfieur Strahlenheim, having given a Blow to a Perfon of his Quality, and his Imperial Majefty having fince confin'd him clofe Prifoner, the Swedes ought not to infilt upon farther Satisfaction.

This

Sweden.

TheSwe- difli Mjni-

*bl Im*? rl^ Court"

The Em- peroi's An- fwer to the

?in? °fs Demanus

The K^ne •t" Sweden not fatiiricd

the Life of J O H N,

This was not, however, the moft material Point, that msde the Court of Vienna uneafy ; for the Swedes had ftarted other pretenfions of a more delicate Nature ; and, in a Declaration which Count Piper had communicated to Count SinzendorfF, his Swedifti Majefty infifted on the delivering up of the Mufcovite Troops, who, when they efcaped the Year before out of Saxony, were entertained in the Imperial Army, on the Upper Rhine. Thefe Troops, being informed, what was in Agitation with regard to them, difbanded themfeVes, and march'd off, in Parties of about twenty, thro' Boi.emia, and Moravia, into Poknd. This fo exafpemed the King of Sweden, that he re- new'd, and ftrenucufly infifted upon his Demand, of the Sur- render of thofe Troops ; adding, that he expected a more ample Satisfaction, as well for the Affront offered to Baron Strahlen- heim, as for the Recruits, which were raifed for him, in Silefia, and had been taken from his Officers at Breflau. The very Day, that thefe Demands, which were made to Count Sinzen- dorfF. were communicated by him to the Imperial Court, Baron Strahlenheim received Orders from the King, his Mafter, to repair to him, without taking Leave of that Cpurt ; he was prevail'd upon to ftuy four Days, that he might carry with him, the EmPeror's Anfwer to his Matter's Demands ; but that An- fw'er not being then ready, he left Vienna, ,and fet out for Saxony. Two Days afcer, the Anfwer was, however, fent, and imported, in Subftance ; " That the Empercur could not «' deliver up the Mufcovite?, they not being in his Power ; that «> Count Zobor fliould be profecuted as a Criminal, in the «' Courfe of Law, by the Fiical ; and that, as for what had " happened in Silefia, with refpeft to th^ Levies^for his Swe- " diili M: jelly, fufficient Satisfaction fhould be made, after due '« Examination into the Matter of Fad."

^o 8've ^hcr Satisf.idion to his Swedifh Mrjefly, the Im- pcri.il Court foon after declared, that fome Troops had been detach'd in Parfuit of the Mufcovites, in order to their being de- jiver'd up to the King of S'veden, but had not been able to overtake them, and farther folemnly aver'd, that the Mufco- v;:e> made their Efciipe from the Rhir.e, without their Con- n.varce or Participition. This Declaration was, however, con- tradicted by Biron St.-.ihleaheim, who, in his Way from Vienna to Saxony, meeting fome of thoie Troops, and pretend- ing to be Count Wackerbaert, a General in the Service of King Aug;iiluf, they fanklv own'd, that tii-'ir Efcipe w-s concerted wi-.h the In perial Court. Tiiis being entirely believed, by the King of Sweden, irritated him the more, and nrude him infill peremptorily uporj fu!! Sarisficlion, with regard to all the three Points afcovementioned, b^ibre ht left Saxony.

< The

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

The Emperor dreading the Confequences of a Rupture with the Swedes, who might eaiily over-ruri his hereditary Countries, and having nominated Count Wratifliu to go to the King of Sweden, to adjuft all Differences, that Lord wrote to Count Piper, to know whether he fhould meet with a favourable Re- ception: But Count Piper let him know, " That if he came RefufeS to " with Power to give his Matter real Satisfa&ion, he would be enter into *' welcome ; but that if he only came to enter into a Difcuffion a *arther «« of his Swedifh Majefty's Pretenfions, he might fave himfelf^^JJ^ • " the Trouble of that Journy." °er>

The Imperial Court fent Orders, hereupon, to Count Sinzen- dorff, to urge Count Piper to declare, what Satisfaction his Ma- tter infifted upon, fince he refufed to allow his Minifter to difcufs The Em- it, and to aliure him, that the Empercr was ready to refer the \™°*fef** controverted Points to the Arbitration of the Queen of Great to tjje Britain : Thefe Circumftances are corroborated, by what my Lord Queen of Mancheiter wrote to the Earl of Sunderland, from Vienna, on the Great Bri- i 4th of May. " The Miniflers (fays my Lord) have fpoke to me " of the Proceedings of the King of Sweden towards this Court. " His Envoy has again renewed, with ftrong Expreffions, his <£ Demands of having the Mufcovites delivered to him by the " Emperor, and Satisfaction for what has pafs'd between the " Count Zobor and his Minifter ; which he carries fa high, as " to make it a Capital Crime, as alfo Reparation in the Matter " of Breflaw ; and in Cafe he has not immediate Satisfaction, " he has Orders to go away. Thefe Things make them very *' uneafyhere, they King fo expofed. All this he has done " within thefe few Days, and fmce the Duke of Marlborough " has been in Saxony, which they hoped had made all Things " eafy. I believe, they have not yet determined what Me<t " fures to take j but I believe tl>ey have wrote this whole Ivlat- " ter to England, to be laid be'ore the Q^een." Here his Lordmip, indeed, feems to doubt, whether the Duke had been fo efFeftually fucceisful, as had been hoped ; But the Earl of Sunderland, in a Letter to him fays: '« Lord Marlboiough has, " I hope, left M^tcers with the King of Sweden in as good a " Way as one ecu! J expect, which will be a great E.ife on that «« Side." And here I {hall leave this Matter, for the prelent.

As nothing happened, in the Field, during this Interval, worthy the Reader's Remark ; I fhail liil up tl.is Chafm, with Part of the Duke's Correfpohdence, at this time, concerning other Affairs of Moment ; with which I mail interweave what I think farther nscefnry to fay, with regard to the King of Sweden.

47s 5T£? Life of J O H N,

1707.'

\*~Y*+J Translation of a Letter from the Duke of Marlboroiigh , to A Gentleman 'very much in the good Graces of his Elefioral High' iiefs, at Hannover.

From the Camp, at Meldeft, June i, 1707.

Si R,

*f T Have fo great Obligation to you, for the News you are ftomthe " A pleas'd to fend me, that if time would allow, I mould not Duke of " fail of acknowledging it regularly myfelf; but the continual Marlboro* " Motions we are in oblige me to beg your Acceptance of my to M°n-# «< Thanks now, and that you would continue to infqrm me of at Han-*' " wliatever >'ou mav Juc^ge worthy of my Notice. nover. " "I have heard, with great Satisfaction, the Refolution they

have, at length, taken at the Hague, concerning Monfieur de Bothmar's Regiment ; and, as I think, it was in a very good Condition when I was with you, I hope it march'd ' without Delay ; efpecially as the Enemy is in fuch a Situa- tion, that, fo far from being able to undertake any Siege, we fhall rather be oblig'd to fpend our Time in obferving their Motion?, unlefs a favourable Opportunity mould offer to draw them to a Battle. I leave farther Particulars to Mr. Car- donnel, who will from time to time inform you of our Motions.

" You will be pleas'd to affure his Electoral Highnefs of my " moil humble Refpefb, and be perf jaded of the real Efteem, " with which I am, &c.

The Prince and Duke of

MARLBOROUGH.

About this Time the Duke had fame Intelligence given him of certain Intrigues that began to be hatching againft him in England, of which the Reader will find a more particular Ac- count at the Beginning of the Second Volume of this Work : His Grace had .it firlt fome Doubt about the Truth of thefe Reports, and would hardly have believed them, it there had been any Reom left for Difbelief, as appears by a Fragment of a Letter from this Camp, dated the very next Day.

Meldeft, Jane 3, 1707. " The wifeft Thing is to have to do wit i as few People as

*' poffible. If you are lure that Mrs. M .a fre ,ks of Buhnef*

*' to the Queen, 1 fliould tn.nk, youinigr.t, wth fetor Caution fi Uil her of icy wnka would do good : .For ihe certainly m^fl " be grateful, and will mind what you fay.

The

"Duke of MARL BO ROUGH, &c. The following Pieces are of no lefs Concern, than the Com- mand of the Army of the Empire.

Another Letter from the Duke of Marlborougb, to the fame Gentleman.

From the Camp at Meldeft, June 9, 1 707. SIR,

** T Send yon enclos'd the Extraft of a Letter, which I have A Lettef " JL jaft received from the Eleftor Palatine. I beg you would from the «' lay it, with all convenient Speed, before the Eleclor, and his Duke of " Minilters, that I may, without Delay, know his Highnefs's Marlboro* " Sentiments, as to what is propos'd, with regard to hitnfelf ; ^an^"^*" «« being defirous of governing myfelf, as well in this Affair, as court of «< in every other, in fuch Manner, as may be molt agreeable to Hannover. " your Court. I mail, in the mean time, inform our Court of " the Matter, that I may receive her Majefty's Commands, " which I am perfuaded, beforehand, will be entirely conform- «c able to the Wifhes of his Electoral Highnefs. I am, with

" Truth, &c.

.

The Original of this Letter, in French, was fign'd The Prince and Duke of

MARLBOROUCH.

i

The Subject of the Letter mention'd above, from the Elector Extract of a Palatine, the Reader will fee by the following Lines of it. J'ai Letter from FHonneur, Monf. de <uous ecrire ce/'e-ci, pour vous conjurer, par i ,. ^le"or tout ce que <vous cjl It plus cher en ce monde, d? employer <v£tre hunt ^ puke Of Credit, et <vos bans Offices, tant a la Cour de Vienne, et cells Marlbpro." <f Angleterre, que par tout oil vous le jugerez neceffaire, pour que le Commandement de F armee de f Empire fait confie, fans aucun perte dt terns, a FEletteur d1 Hanno<vre. La Crife ou font aujourdhui les affaires de T Empire, 'vous fera aifement juger du prefent befoin quil y a d'y apporter les remedes convenables, et lei plus prompts^ dont a mart avis, un de~sprincipaux ejl celui, qittje viens de iious fug- gerer, dans la Perfonne du dit Eletleur. That is, "I have the Ho- «' nour, Sir, to write you this, to conjure you, by all that is " deareil to you in this World, to employ the great Credit you •*' have, together with your good Offices, as well at the Courts " of Vienna and England, as vvh.re-ever elfe you may judge it *' necefl-iry, that the Command of the Army of the Empire, " be entruited, without any Lcfs of time, to the Elector of " Hannover. The Crifis, to which the Affairs of the Empire " are, at this time, reduced, will eafily convince you, how

" neceJ&ry

A Letter to the Duke of " Marlboro' " from the «< Court of t( Hannover. f( Sec below. ,

480 W>e Life of J O H N,

1 707. " neceflary it is, at prefent, to apply proper and fpeedy Re- v^v^> " medico; of which, in my Opinion, what I now fuggeft to " you, in the Perion of the faid Elector, is one of the chief.

Of fuch Importance was the Influence and Credit of our Britifh Hero thought by a Prince and Ele&or of the Empire, in a Cafe where the Safety and Welfare of the Germanick Body was fo highly concern'd.

The following is a Translation of the AnAver written to hi» Grace, from Hannover, by Orders of the Eledor.

Hannover, June 17, 1707. My Lord,

I Received the Letter your Highnefs honour'd me with on the 1 9th Inftant ; and was not wanting to Ihew it imme- diately to his Electoral Highnefs ; who has commanded me to allure you of the Obligation he has to you, for commu- nicating a Copy of the Letter you wrote to Count Piper, than which, in the Opinion of his Highnefs, and his Mini- flers, nothing could be more effe&ual. We muft hope, that Mr. Robinlon, afling upon that Foot, and under the prudent Directions of your Highnefs, may find means (if any yet remain) to mitigite Matters, and to prevent a Rupture be« tween his Imperial M2Jefty, and the King of Sweden. The Elector's Minifter at the Court of Vienna, is endeavouring, on his Part, to engage that Court to make feme Advances to his Ssvedifh Majefty j and li£ does not defpair of Succefs. It might be very proper, if your Highnefs would, likewife, give the fame Advice to that Court, which cannot fail having a great Regard for your Counfels.

" His Electoral Highnefs has likewife commanded me, to thank your Highnels for the Communication of the Eleftor Palatine's Letter, concerning the Command of the Army of the Empire, and to tell you, that conflicting the prefent Situation of Affairs, he cannot think that thofe who have any Concern for his Glory could advife him to accept of that Command, fines the beft that can be hop'd, on that Side, is to ftand on the Defenfive. The Elector believes that Matters cannot be more fpeedily redrefs'd, on that Side, than by a General, who is a&ual.'y en the Spot, I mean Monf. de Thungen, and that the firi't Srep proper to be ta- ken, is to make the old Margrave of Bireich lay down that Command ; and that done, in the fecond Pbce to detach an immediate Rein'brcemenr, from the Army in Brabant, to the Aff-ftance of Mori", de Thungen. As the Eieftor has him- fe!f written to your Highnels, concerning the Neceffiry of

" this

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. 4&1

" this Reinforcement, I have no more to add, but the Aflu- 1707. *' ranees of the profound Refpeft with which I am, V— -v— «J

My Lord, &C.

The Court of Vienna not having yet given the Satisfaction to the King of Sweden, which that Monarch ihfifted upon, his Army ilill remain'd in Saxony, which gave OcCafion to the following Letters.

Tranjlation of a Letter from the Duke of Martior'ougtj to Count Piper.

From the Camp at Meldeft, June 6, 1707*

SIR,

«' T DeferrM writing to you, till my Arrival at the Army, in A Letter «« JL Hopes of being foon able to give you fome agreeable Jj^o? " News ; but fince I do not yet find Matters in that Situation, Mar](j0ro» «< which I could have wifh'd, I can no longer delay begging to count «• of you, to tender my moll humble Refpeds to the King, Fij>er. " and to make my molt fubmiffive Acknowledgments agreeable " to his Majelly, for all the Favours he vouchfafed to heap «' upon me, during my Stay in Saxony, from whence I re- 4i turn'd, with all Expedition to Bruflfels. We caus'd the Ar* " my to be aflembled immediately, as did, likewife, the Ene- " my, on their Side ; for, taking Advantage of the Treaty 44 in Italy, they have drawn fo many Troops from thofe Parts, " that they are come out of their Lines, with a pretty large '*' Superiority ; but as the Advantage of brave and valiant •« Troops is on our Side, I flatter myfelf, with the Blefling of " Heaven on our jull Caufe, we fhall at length, have a iuc- " cefsful Campaign.

" You have, without doubt, heard of our Misfortune irt «' Spain, (of which I have yet no Particulars from oar Side,) ." as, likewife, of that which has happen'd fmce to the Troops " of the Empire, on the Rhine, ocCalion'd by their own Neg- «' ligence. All this, you will eafilv conceive, gives us a great *' deal of Uneafinefs ; but I may frankly own to you, that the " new Inflances of Diftatisfa&ion, which the Court of Vienna *' has fo lately given the King (your Mafter) is a greater Trou- " ble to me, than the latter of thefe Accidents. However, I " will pleafe myfelf with the Affurance, that his Majefty'a " Moderation will prevail, on this OcCafion; for mould he fliew " his Refentment, at this Juncture, it would prove very fatal " to the High Allies, as well as to all Chriftendoai ; which I " am perfuaded is very contrary to his Mnjerty's Intentions. " The Qneen, my Miftrefs, who has nothing more at Heart,

VOL. I. li " than

We Life cf J O H N,

than to cultivate a perfect Underftarfdir.g arid Frienditn'p with the King of Sweden, and who has 0pen'd her Mind to " him, without Referve, will, together with all the reft of the " Allies, think herfelf under the higheft Obligation to his " Majelty, on that Account : . I, : therefore, entreat you, to " favour me with feme good 'News on this Head, h' J durft " flatter myfelf^ that hi* M ..jelly would have the leaft Regard " for my moft humble Supplications, 1 w'OuT'd be'gof 'you to " add thofe likewife, with the Affurance, that he has not a " more faithful Servant, nor one .who would endeavour to tef- " tif'v a mote perfect Gratitude for it', by an unbounded Of- " fering of myfelf and Service. In fhort, Sir, all the Allies " place-their Hopes in the Goodneis and Prudence of the King " your Mnfter, with an entire Confidence.

" I mufl add my moit humble Thanks to you,, for all your "•Civilities, being with the moft fincere Refpect,

SIR, £:c. The Prince and Duke of

MA?. LSO ROUGH.'

Tranjlatim of a Letter from the Dutf of Zlar thorough, to a Gen- tleman at the Court of Hannover.

From the Camp at Meldeft, June 16, 1707. . SIR,

A tetter «' \/f A.TT E RS '•" thefe ?arts beinS 3n the fame Situa'

from the «< JLVJ[ ticn> as well on one Side as the other, fir.ce my-laft,

Marlboro' to " ^ Hiight have difpens'd with writing to you by this Oppor-

a Gentle- " tunity, were it not to communicate to you, the two en-

jnan at the " clos'd Copies ; one of a Letter written' by the Queen (my

Court of «< Mjilreft) to the King cf Sweden, and the other of a Letter

Hannover. „ from Count Sir.zehdorff to myfelf. I hope his Eleftoral

" Highnefs will favourably accept of them '(together with my

"' moit humble Refpeds) the firft being \vrkten at his Defire,

*' and the other in Part concerning him. . 1, therefore, beg his

" Electoral Highnefs will honour me with his Commands, if

" he be defirous I Tnould add any thing, to what I have al-

!!* ready repreftnted to the Queen. I am

SIR, &-c.

.

The Prince and Duke of

'M/.R LBOROUClfl.

of MARYBOROUGH, &?r.

The alow e mention* d Copies were asfollmvs :

Tranflation of a Letter from btr Majcfty, Queen An*> to tfo &ng df Sweden.

S*R, my Brother*

" T Have jult heard, with a great DifTati'sfaftion, that the Cop of A T< _§_ Imperial Court has not yet terminated, to your Majeity*-s Letter front " Mind, all thofe Things which may have ad mini it red to Queen Ann, " you feme Caufe of Difcontent } of which I mall htve Rea- to{ ^ *JinS " foil to apprehend fome fatal Confequences j if I were not ° " ftrongly perfuaded, that the Zeal which you have always " fhewn, for the two Cauies of Religion and Liberty, wiH " never fuffer you to undertake any thing in Cppofition to the *' Allies, who fo generoufly Ihed their Blood, and lavifh their *e TreafureSj for the Common Good of the Princes cf Ea- *' rope, and to preferve a Balance of Power fo neceftary fof " us all. I, therefore, conjure your Majelly to have a Regard " to the prefent Situation of poblick Affairs ; and to continue " ih the lame Sentiments, your Majefly has always profefs'd " to have, with refpecl; to the Common Caufe ; especially irt ** thofe favourable Declarations fo lately made. I take upon *c me to employ my Offices with the Emperour, that he may " give you a fpeedy and jaft Satisfaction, with an entire Con* *' fidence, that your Majeity will fufFer thefe Differences to be " adjufted by my Care, and in an amicable Manner. I am,

SIR, my Brother, and Nephew,

Your rrloft affectionate Siller and Aunt,

JCenfmgton, May, ANN, #.

30.0.8. 1707.

.) -. ' * <Tran/Iathn of a Letter from Count Sinzendorff to the Du'.e cf

Marlbo;-ough.

" TT Underftand, by the Letter your Highnefs was pleas'd to g^ , " JL vvr'te me> on tne 23C^ °f May, the Unealinds you were Letter from " then under, with regard to the State of Affairs on the Rhine; Count Sin- " which, without doubt is encreasM, by the Behaviour of tha zend"i-ff to " Army of the Empire, when the Marihal de Villars p.ifsM Je °^ " the Rhine. I confefs, this is a very unlucky Accident, borough, " which would not have happen'd, if we had had a competent *' Chief at the Head of our Troops. Your Highnefs knows, ' that the firft Propoial was to fend for the Prmce of S.ivow, Ii 2 •• and

484

1 707.

The Life of J O H N,

and that it was afterwards thought proper, -in England and Holland, to change that Purpoie ; tho' I will not pretend to fay, whether this might not have been the moft reafonable Projecl. Count Stahremberg was put in the Room of this Prince, but immediately this Refolution was chang'd ; and Thanks be to God, the whole Court was Witnefs, that I had no Hand in it. After this, it was determin'd to fend the Marflial de Heifter thither ; but his Departure has been hi- therto delay'd. I am forry I am oblig'd to trouble your Highnefs with thefe Particulars ; but, in Ihort, there are certain Moments at Courts, in which it is impofiible to put a Stop to, or hinder, thofe evil Resolutions, which one fre- quently has Reafon to wifh otherwife in the Sequel. In this unhappy Junfture, I have propos'd the Elector of Hanno- ver for this Command ; becaufe I believe it neceflary the Ar- my of the Empire mould have a Chief, whofe Birth and perfonal Merit may carry a Weight with them. Befides, this Prince has yet fpare Troops in his Dominions, has Mo- ny, and is of an indefatigable Application. Endeavours have likewife been made to furmount certain Difficulties made by fome, as well with regard to thofe Princes who oppofe the ninth Electorate, as in Consideration of feveral other Rtfle&ions : And his Imperial Majefty has thought fit to inftrucl the Eleclor of Mentz, to take upon him to make this Propofal to the Elector of Hannover, and that the Em- pire might be difpos'd, at the fame time, to approve of this Refolution. What now remains, is your Highnefs's Con- currence, at the fame time, that the Queen and the States General give theirs. I mall communicate thefe Particulars to the Counts de Goes and de Gallas, that they may make the neceflary Reprefentations. By this means, I hope, the Aff.iirs on the Rhine may be retrieved ; for I cannot be per- fuaded, that the Enemy's Army is fo numerous as they make it ; we have not yet been beaten, and befides the Troops of Hannover, to the Number of fix Battalions, and a Regiment "* of Dragoons, which would accompany their Prince, more [C Troops may be drawn from the Circle of Weitphalia, from " Muniter, and the Palatinate, and ^ooo Men, of the Troops *' of King Auguftus, if the Queen and the States General " Ihould think it proper to fend them to the Rhine. With " thefe, it is certain, a confiderable Army may be form'd, not " far beneath 60,000 Men. J do not at all doubt, but Monf. *' de Rechteren, to whom I have communicated this Refolu- " tion, will inform your Highnefs and the States of it; and *' that, before all things, you will confider, that thefe 5,000 *' Men, of the Troops of King Auguftus, may be employ'd " to good Advantage on the Rhine. I fliall defer, till my

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c. " next, to give yonr Highnefs a more ample Detail of the(e '* Matters, as well as of the Affairs of Italy and Spain, which " I mail be the better able to do, becaufe we mill be a little *' better inform'd of the Intentions of the King of Sweden.

I am, £c.

My Lord Duke, ViennJune

Count de SINZI;NDORFF.

The two following Pieces mew with what Satisfaction, for the Good of the Common Caufe, the Duke of Marlborough re- ceived the News of the Eleftor of Hannover's being, at length, prevailed upon, to take upon him the Command of the Arm/ of the Empire.

A Letter from Mr. Card'mnel to a Gentkman of the Court of

Hannover.

•

From the Camp at Meldeft, June 30, 1707. SIR,

" T7" ° U wil1 fee» by the endosM Copy, what the Eleflor A Letter " JL Palatine has written to my Lord Duke, who is con- trom Mr- •* cern'd he has no Letter from you, to confirm this Refolu- ^''^Q""^ tion of his Electoral Highnefs ; which his Grace fincereiy man at rejoices at. He wifhes his Highnefs all the Succefs ima- Hannover. ginable, and will endeavour to contribute to it, as much as is polfible.

" We have nothing new here ; both Camps are in the fame Situation. We have Advice, that the Eledor of Bavaria is fending fome of his Bavarian Troops, under Command of the Count d'Arco, to reinforce the Marflul de Villars.

J am, &c.

CARDONNEL.

Extract of a Ltttsr from the Eledor Palatine to the Duke of Marlborougb^

"AS for the Command of the Army of the Empire, the Extraft of • " /\ Biihop of Spiga, my Envoy Extraordinary at the L-ttcr fr°ni " Court of Hannover, has difpatch'd a Meflenger to me, wiio J^e, f!e<a°r " is this Moment arrived, to advife me, that the Eleflor of tj^^'ke of " Hannover has not only accepted of it, but has, in the moil Mad bora* li 3 '* generous

ik Life of J O H N,

" generous Manner imaginable, ofFer'd to carry a good Body of Troops with him, without burdening the Empire with "-any Charge, on that Account. This gives me by fo much " the more TemTole Satisfa&icn, as we may, from thence, rei- " fcnably hope, that the Face of Affairs, in thofe parts, will " foon be chang'd for the better.

The following two Pieces are Count Piper's Anfwer to the Duke of Marlbjorough,. and the King of Sweden's Anfwer to the Queen.

'fbe Tiavjiation of Count Piper's Anfv;-er to the Duke of Mar thorough.

SIR,

*« "I No fconer received the Letter your Highnefs has ho-

" J_ no-jr'd me with, than I waited on his Majefty (the King,

« my M_iter) to pay your Compliments to him ; and as he,

" i$p$a every Qccajion, gives Murks of his particular Eiteera

for your Highnefs ; fo, in this, he fhew'd it in a more ex-

traordinary Manner. I am likewife very fenfible of the

Proofs you are pieafed to give me of your Friendship, and

(hail never be wanting to convince you of my fmcere Incli-

nation to render you my belt Services, as often as it (hall ba

in my Power. I btg your Highnelb will pardon my not an-

fwering fooner. Not to mention other Occupations, the

principal P»eafon for my delaying it a little was, that I was

willing nrft to found theKing (my Mailer) as to his Sentiments,

with regard to the Subject of DixTuisfaftion given his Ma-

jefty, by the Emperor, which makes one Part of your Let-

ter. All the World mull alJow, tb-.t the Injuries done him,

in divers Places, and at fundry Times, njuit have very

much exafpcrated him, aaicl more efpecially the laft Jnftance,

in granting the Mufcovites a free Pafnge, and all manner of

Conveniency. Thefe Things are all of fuch a Nature, that,

wittput an actual and. fuficient Satisfaction given, theKing

(my Mailer) will be oblig'd to feek it himfelf, in his Impe-

rial Majcfty's Hereditary Dominions. If the Emperour were

inclined ;o make a juit and fpeedy Reparation of thefe Inju-

" ries, it has been in his power, by cffcfting ir, to put a Stop

*' to ths fatal Coniequerrces, which may othenvife enfue ; ef-

",pecia!!yv as her rvi.jejiy of Great Britain has ofFer'd her

" good Offices, to n;ediate an Accommodation, for which the

ff King, (my Matter) has tefti^ed his Acknowledgments. And

fe your Ki{baefs may be affured, that let <vckat will happen, this

** "tLnjient Jhali make xo Change, ir. the Oi-sriures made \ou while

?' bfrf. While Matters are under this uncertain Situation, I

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c.

'•" Have nothing new to advife you, from thefe Parts. I only *' wiib, that all your Highnefs's Undertakings may tend to the " Encreafe of your Glory, that you will vouchfafe me the Con- " tinuance of your Affe&ion, and be perfuaded that I am "' more than any one,

fen

Your Highnefs's, &c.

The Tranjlation of the King of S^aedetis Letter to the S^een.

MADAM, &c.

" AS your Majefty, in the Letter you wrote me, on the The King " ,/V. 3oth °f May, feems to exprefs fome Uneafineis on of Sweden's " Account of thofe 'Occafions of Diffatisfaftion, which the j*nfw« to " Emperour has given me, and offers to employ your good e<<iLcea« " Offices in mediating an Accommodation of them, I cannot " but gratefully acknowledge the Marks your Majefty is pica-- tf fed to give me, of your Zeal and Regard, fpr what concerns " me. It was much againft my Inclination, that thefe Diffe- " rences ever arofe ; and if an Eye be had to the Manner in " which the Emperour has afted with regard to me, it will bg " eafy to judge, that, hitherto, the Imperial Court has been " far from being difpos'd to give me any real Satisfaction. On " the contrary, it has the Appearance, as if they fought to en- " creafe the Number of Injuries, by adding others more outra- " geous than the former. Your Majefty knows, that after fo " many Wrongs done me, in different Places, and at different " Times, feveral Months have elapfed, without my being able " to obtain the juft Satisfaction demanded; which gives me " Reafon to apprehend a greater Backwardnefs for what has " happen'd anew ; fmce they could determine, during thefe " Debates, to fufTer the Mufcovites to efcape, and grant them a " free and openPaffage thro' his Imperial Majefty's Dominions ; " nocwithftanding the Right I had of reclaiming them, and " contrary to the Hopes given me, thu they fhould be deli- '" vered into my Hands. This alone would be fufficient to jultify " my Animofity and Refentment, if, in Default of a fpeedy and " adequate Reparation, I (hould be obliged to feek and expecl, *' in the Emperour's H reditary Provinces, what no one could ** difapprove in a like Juncture.

I am, &c. Alt-Ranftadt. I '- June, 1707. CHARLES.

> aj J * /I

I i 4 Thtf

4^8 tte Life of J O H N,

1707. The King of Sweden had, in the mean time, demanded of the

« sr— ' Imperial Court, as Preliminaries to the Admiffion of Count Wra>

Farther De- tiflau, as Envoy from the Ernperour, the delivering up of Count SdSofthC Zobor> and °* ^e Imperial Officers, who had hindred the levy- Sweden. *ng °f t^e Swedifh Recruits. This the Court of Vienna com- plied with, and declared, moreover, that the City of Breflau ihould pay 4000 Crowns, to the Widow of a Swedifh Corporal, who was kill'd in that City, in aScuffleoccafion'dby the Seizure of thofe Levies : And, upon this, Count Wratiflau was admitted, as the Reader will fee by the following Letter from the Duke of Marlborough to the Earl of Manchelter.

Camp of Meldeft, Aug. 4, 1707. My LORD,

A Letter « -.- HAVE the Honour of your Excellency's Letter of the

rSkeof *' J. 8ch of July» from Venice, and am very much oblig'd to

Marlboro1 " you for the Account you give me of what paiVd at the Court

to the E. of " of Turin while you were there. The Succours to be fent to

Manchester, « Spain depend, in a great Meafjre, upon what the Duke of

" Savoy will be able to do in Provence. Here we flatter our-

*' felves, his Royal Highncfs has been before Toulon thefe ten

" Days. It is likely, before this comes to hand, your Excel-

" lency will know the Succefs of that Expedition. 1 had a Let-

" ter, this Morning, from Mr. Robinfon, of the 2-^th pall,

" wherein he tells me Count Wratifl.m arrived there the Day

" before, and that, at his Defire, the Dutch Minilter had aCon-

" ference the fame Evening, with Count Piper, which he was

" to report to the King, fo that we are ilill to learn what may

" be the Iffue : But foui •Regiments of Swediih Horfe having ac-

" tually taken Quarters in Silefia, gives but a melanchcly Prof-

*•' peel. We haye nothing new in thcfe Parts. J am with great

" Trqth, &c.

MARLBOROVCH.

Count\Vra« This forcM Compliance, on the Fart of the Imperial Courrj tiflau rttus'd did not, however, give full Satisfaction on the King of Sweden, Audience, wjlo> UpQn ^Qunt Wratiflau's Arrival at Alt-Ranitadt, refufed to admit him to his Audience. This IVJinilter was, therefore, oblig'd to content himfelf with Conferring with Count Piper, and Mcnfieur Hermelin, concerning the Efcape of tjie Muscovites, whicji the Imperial Court npw thought was the only important Point, that remain'd unadjuiled : gut they were deceive^ : For the Proteltanfs of Silefia, who had been in a great Meafure dir veiled of the. free Exercife of their Religion, by the invading £eal of Popery, having privately made Application to the King

9

"Duke of MARLBOROUGH, £?V. 489

of Sweden, that Monarch took a Refolution to reitore them to 1707. their Rights and Privileges. To this End it was, that he fent <— -<v-i »J the four Regiments of Swedifh Horfe, mention'd in the above The King Letter, into that Country, to protect them provifionally ; and, ^ this done, he began to multiply his Demands ; of which I mall ^-,s give the Reader a particular Account, after having premis'd the mamls. following Piece, by which he will fee what Steps his Swedifh Majefty took previous to thefe Demands.

Extratl of a Letter from P. MeaJws, Efq; to the Earl of Man- chefier ', dated Vienna^ dug. 20, 1707.

XOU defire, my Lord, an Account of Count Wratiflau's A Letter AfFiir. Mr. Robinfon, our Minifter here, who, with *rom **• )utch Minillers, has been .idling the Part of a Mediator, JJ-"!^^ and who were well fatisfied to find the three Points fo friend- Ea^' 0° ly adjulted, have had a fourth llarted, and that of no lefs Mancheftcr. Confequence than Religion ; the King of Sweden infilling now, upon the Proteihnts being reflored to the Ufe and Exer- cife of their Churches and Religion, in Silefia, according to the Weftphalian Treaty. On this, the Mediators defired three Weeks Time, in which to confult their Governments, and the King granted it : But before half that Time was ex- pired, his Majefty demanded of them, to infift with the Em- perour upon a direct and pofitive AfTurance ; which they de- clining, upon their not having received Anfwers to their Let- ters on that Subject, his Majefty thank'd them for the Pains they had taken, but declin'd their farther Offices, in plain Words. Thus Hands that Matter, never appearing worfe. Count Wratiflau continues Itill there, yet without having been admitted to an Audience of the King. The French ftrengthen themfelves here, in Germany, inftead of detaching from their Army, notwithstanding fome pofitive Reports we have had to the contrary : And I fear, as we are ilriving to ftir up the Subject? of France, their Intention is to do the like with the Emperour. What Effect that may have here, I cannot yet tell : But I am not without my Apprehenfions. If the Swede and Villars fhould adl by Concert, one may fay the Imperial Court would be in far greater Danger, than before the Battle of Hochtfadc.

The new Demands, made by the King of Sweden, on the Im- perial Court, were :

" i. That the Emperour fhould give it under his Hand, that New De- ft he knew nothing of the March of the 1200 Mufcovites, who «"nds of •' efcap'd th.ro' the hereditary Countries. £l

rour.

" 2. That

lit Life of J O H N,

" 2. That he fhould forthwith decide the Affair of the Elec- tion of Lubeck, in favour of the Duke, Adminiftrator of " Holilein ; and confirm the Agreement between that Houfe " and the Chapter, for the two next Generations.

" 3. That the Country of Hadeln, on the River Elve, be fe- *' queftred into the Handsof his Swedifh Majefty, till the Right " of all the Pretenders to it be decided.

«' 4. That the Proteftant Religion, in Silefia, be refbred,, ac- «' cording to the Treaty of Weitphalia.

'•' 5. That his Imperial Majefty fhould renounce all Pretences " to the Quofa, which the King of Sweden had not furnifh'd " during this War, and fhould draw no Confequences from *' the Crown of Sweden's not having done Homage for the «' Dominion? they have in the Empire, fmce the Year 1664. •' And,

" 6. That the whole Swedifh Army, in their Return thro' " Silefia into Poland, fhould be maintain'd at the Emperour's " Charge."

There were about this Time certain other Articles hand- ed about, privately, in Holland, which, it was infmuated, the I£ing of Sweden defign'd to propofe to the Diet, the chief of which were :

" i . That the Elector of Bavaria fhould be reftor'd, or, at . "- Ifaft his Electorate given to the King of Sweden, and he be " declar'd Elector, in his Room, as being his neareft Rela- «' tion.

" .. That, for the future, the Election of Emperour fhould " be alternately out; of the three Religions, fmce the electoral " Colleg-tf was compofed of them.

«' 3. That the Proteftant Churches fhould be re-eftablifhed, ". in Sil^iia, Moravia, Bohemia, Hungaria, ts'c. on the fame ** Foot they were in, at the time of his great PredecefTor, Gui- "• tavus Adotphns : And,

" 4. That the King of Sweden fhould have the Sovereignty '« of the. City of Bremen. ]

Thefe Articles may perhaps have been forg'd in France ; but I can hirdly believe the King of Sweden ever harbourM ti»e Thoughts of making any fuch Propoials, at leait, after the Af- furances given the l)uke of Miirlborough : and betides, they are contradiftory in rhemfelves ; for what has the Diet of the Empire to do with Hungary ? I return, therefore, to the other fc Arr.ic.ks,

. . ' ;

Thefc

Duke of MARIBOROUGH, &c. 491

Thefe new Demands were the Subject of feveral Conferences 1707. between the Counts Wratiflau and Piper ; and the firft overlook' d s~\r\$ feveral Formalities, and granted many Points, which the Court Occafion of Vienna would, at another Time, have rejeded. The Con- "2Jfie^iffi" firmation of the Treaty, between the Ducal Houfe of Gothorp, cu and the Chapter of Lubeck, in the Year 1647, and the Refto- nticn of the Exercife of the Proteftant Rejigion in Silefia, were the two Articles which met with the greateil Difficulty : But the Guarmty of Great Britain and Holland, at length, removed all But are re- Difficulties ; and the firil of September, N. S. every Thing was rcov'd by fettled and agreed on. The King of Sweden decamp'd from ^J,"^0" Alt-Ranftadt, early; die next Morning, and the Treaty being Q°^ Bri<1> figa'd that very Day, at Wolkwitz, the Imperial Minifter fee tain and out the Day following for Vienna. The fixth, the King of Holland. Sweden, taking Drefden iri his Way, paid a Vifit to King Au- guries, attended only by 5 or 6 Pen'ons ; in which it is hard to fay, \vhetherUadauntsdnefs or Imprudence had the greateftShare. The Ratification of the Treaty being deliver'd him, the twelfth, in Sileiia, he fo haftened his March, that by the 25th, his whole Army had pafs'd the Oder, and was in the Dominions of Po- A happy knd. And thus this Phenomenon, which had put the High Al- Confluence lies under great Apprehenfions, entirely difcppear'd, as a happy °£ tj^a^'0ke Confequence of the Duke of Marlborough's prudent and fuc- rough-s Ne- eefsful Negotiations in Saxony. But it is Time I return to the gotiations in Army, under our Hero's Command. Saxony.

At length, upon certain Advice, that the French had detach'd The D. of thirteen Battalions, and twelve Squadrons, from their Army, Marlboro* towards Provence, the Duke of Marlborough, in Concert with "[°^sthe Monfieur d'Auverquerque, and the Deputies of the States, re- £nerny. folved to march from Meldeft, towards Genap, in order to at- tack the Enemy, with lefs Difadvantage, in their fortified Camp, at Gemblours. Accordingly, the ninth of Auguft, N. S. the Difpofition was made, for the Army to pafs the Deule, at the Kfpofidons Abby of Florival ; and, the fame Evening late, Orders were made for given for the March of the heavy Baggage towards Bruflels, and , the laying of four Bridges over the Deule. At the fame time, p° the Troops which were encamp'd near Louvain, under Major- General Week, and the Regiment of Bochmar, were ordered to inarch to Florival, and the Battalions in Bruffds, to advance to Waterloo. The tenth, in the Morning, the Artillery was com- manded to pafs the Deule, at St. Jorifwert, and, about three in the Afcernoon, the Duke of Wirtemberg march'd, with fourteen Squadrons, to Pieterbais, with Orders to flay there till Morning, to obferve the Enemy, and, afterwards, to make the Rear-Guard. At four, the whole Army decamp'd from Meldelt, and, ac- The Confo- cording to the Difpofition that had been made, pafs'd the Deule dcrat;Army ; and, marching all Night, arrived, the eleventh, at d£camPs' 3 Break

492 &>e Life of J O H N,

1 707. Break of Day, about the Heights of Waveren, where they made C.*">v""i»J a fhort Halt, and then continued their March towards Genap, where they encamp'd, with their Right, at Promelles, and their Left, at Davieres, having made a March of feven Leagues.

Here they had the Intelligence, that the Enemy no looner re- ceived Advice, that the Duke of Wirtemberg was advancing, with his Detachment, to Pieterbais, and that the Army of the Allies was in Motion, than they were extreamly alarm'd, nnd immediately ordered their Troops to their Arms. They, like- wife, cut down feveral Trees, in the Roads and Paflages which led to their Camp. About Midnight, they got certain Informa- tion which Way the Allies were moving ; whereupon, they The Enemy begun their March, with all imaginable Precipitation, towards reti«*s with pjerus ancj Hefpenay, intending to be, that Evening, at Gofle- |fo£lplta~ her?, and take Pofleffion of the ilrong Camp at Pieton. The twelfth, in the Morning early, the Confederate Generals received Advice, that the French Army had made but a (hort Halt at Gofleliers, and were advanced to Seneff, about Midnight, the Elector of Bavaria having taken his Head Quarters in the Caftle of Vanderbeck, and the Duke de Vendome in the Farm-Houfe " of Rel, between Vanderbeck and Seneff, having the River Pie- ton before them.

The Duke The Duke of Marlborough and Monfieur d'Auverquerque, «t Mailbo- having confer'd together, upon the Receipt of this Advice, it was fccs'tir-n1'" TC^ve^ to marcn diredly to Nivelle, in order to attack the Ene- my ; and, accordingly, the Army march'd, about one in the Afternoon, and came into that Camp, the fame Evening. It was too late to attack the Enemy that Night, the neceflary Dif- pofitions were, therefore, made, to do it in the Morning ; and, as they had Reafon to believe, that the Enemy would attempt to retire, in the Night, in order to gain the Camp at Cambron, all pofiible Diligence was ufed to prevent their effecting it. To this End, Count de Tilly, with forty Squadrons of Horfe and Dragoons, which were commanded, under him, by the Eari of Albemarle, and the Major-Generals, Count d'Erbach and Rofs, and a Detachment of between five and fix thoufand Grenadiers, commanded by Lieutenant General Scholten, and Major-General Zoutland, was ordered to poft himfelf between the two Armies, with the Left, at Corneliz, and the Right, towards the Road, from ilink to Nivelle 5 and, in cafe the Ene- my decamp'd, to fall upon their Rear, and keep them in Play, rill the whole Army could come up. Thefe Troops, notwith- flanding they march'd with all poflible Difpatch, could not reach their relpeclive Polls before Midnight. The French, in the mean time, forefeeing what was the Duke of Marlborough's Defign, and perceiving, that it would not be poflible for them to avoid ao Engagement, if they continued io their Camp, till

the

Duh of MARLBOROUGH, &V. 493

the Morning, refolved to decamp in the Night ; that they might, i 707. if poflible, avoid coming to any Action, with the Army of the <— — v—- ' Allies, the Valour and Experience of whofe Generals, and the Courage and Activity of their Soldiers, they very well knew and dreaded.

They began to prepare for this fecond Retreat, about the fame Thc7 n~ time the Confederate Army came to the Camp at Nivelle, and ^nd'thnc" about Nine, at Night, their Left began to retire towards Mori- v -^ 3\i ' mont, without Beat of Drum or Sound of Trumpet. The thir- Privacy. teenth, a little before Break of Day, Count Tilly advanc'J, \vith his Detachment, directly to the Enemy's Camp ; when he iaw their Army in full March, making their Retreat in very good Order, from Hedge to Hedge, and obferv'd the Country to be fo difficult, that it would be next to impoflible to come at them. He gave immediate Notice of this to the Duke of Marl- borough, and informed him, that he was marching to endeavour to attack their Rear, according to his Orders. Upon this, the Duke detach'd twenty Battalions, and thirty Squadrons, under the Command of General, Count Lottum, to fupport Count Tilly ; the Horfe being commanded by Lieutenant-General Dopf, the Sieur Schulenburg, and the Earl of Athlone, Major- Generals ; and the Foot by Lieutenant-General Fagel and Major- General Welderen.

Count Tilly march'd, with all poffibk Speed, and had feveral Skirmifhes with the Enemy's Rear ; but having purfued them, three or four Hours, as far as the Plains of Marimont, and ob- ferving, that it was to no Purpofe to fatigue the Troops, he re- turn'd to the Camp. The Country was cut by many deep Roads, which very much favour'd the Enemy's Retreat ; for there they ported fome of their Infantry, which hinder'd the Confederate Horfe from making Openings to follow them. The Duke of Marlborough, who was advanc'd with a Detachment, being returned to the Camp, refolved to remain there, that Day, to give the Troops fome Repofe, after the tirefome March they had made ; and becaufe he was in an Uncertainty, whether the Enemy march'd towards their Lines, or to Cambron, Monf. d'Auverquerque fent one of his Aids de Camp, with 150 Huf- iars, to poll himfelf on the Hills of the Great Roulx, from whence they plainly difcover'd the Enemy's March, at about half a League's Diltance. That Officer reported, that the Van-

fuard was advanced to St. Dennis, having rhe River Haifne be- ind them, which was confirmed by the Spies, who added, that the Elector of Bavaria had his Quarters at St. Dennis, and the Duke of Vendome, at Caftiaux. From this March, the Gene- rals concluded, that the Enemy did not defign to retire within the'r Lines, but rather to poiTefs the advantageous Camp at Cambron : Upon which, the Confederate Army decamp'd from

Nivelle,

hf Life of JOtf &,

Nivelle, the fourteenth, about fix in the Morning; but ' the whole Day, a very violent R:^in, which msde the Roads al- moft unpaflable, it was very late when the Right came to Soig- nies, and 'the Left could not come up 'till -trie ntxt Morning j tho' 1,000 Pioneers had been three Days at work, to repair the Roads, from Arquennes to Soignies.

The Enemy The Confederate Army fuffered very much in this March;' fuffers «> ^^ ^g Enemy labour' d under infinitely greater Difficulties : For e^" having ^ain on tneir ArnT5, at St. Dennis, till Night, the four, tecnth, they purfued their March, early the next Morning^ with great Precipitation, and in the fame Confuiion as before, to' Chievres, where they arrived, at the fame rime the Confederate* came to Soignies. This hafty Retreat, befides the Fatigue, oc- cafioned a very great Defertion among the French : For their Soldiers having been without Bread, for more than two Days, and without Reft for three, not having Time to put up their Tents between Seneft and Chievres, above i,cco of them went over to the Confederate Camp, and as many rtore at leaft to Bruflels, and other Places. The Enemy was, befides, in want of all Sorts of Neceflaries, during their whole March from/Gem- blours, their Baggage being fent away from thence, with their" Artillery, to Cha'rJeroy, upon the firil Motion of their Army to1 avoid an Engagement. Bad Wea- The gre.t Rains, vhich continued, for fome Days, having ther obliges rendered the Ways wholly unpr\fEble, obliged the Duke of" Marlborough to g've over tne Purfuit of the Enemy, and de- Uincd the Confederate Army in the Camp at Soignies. The E- nemy, in the mean time, fortified the Avenues to theirs, as well as the Unfeafonablenefs of the Weather would allow them ; and tho' their Army was foon after re-inforced, with fix Battalions, and two Regiments of Horfe, from the 'Flyii;g Camp of Count? de la Motte; yet they retired farther beyond the Marque, and encamp'd, with their Right, at Pont a Trefm, and their Left, under the Cannon of Lifle.

The Enemy Monf. Rouflet gives as the following Account of this theff retreats into fafl Retreat. " The Confederate Arrry (lays he) left their Camp theirLines. , of Soignies, the thirty-firit of Auguft, and march'd direftly towards the Enemy, who were at Cambron. The Prince of- Orange, as General of the Republick, put himfelf at the Head of the Dutch Infantry ; but the French had no fooner Advice of this March, than they qaitted the Camp of Cam- bron with great Precipitation, r.otwithftanding the advanta* geous Situation, pafs'd, at length, the Scheld, and retired be- hind their Lines, between L;ile, and Pont a Trefm. Had The Allies ' the Allies (continues he) began their March, an Hour or two foil in with f fooner, they might have fallen upcr. the Rear-guard of thtf their Rear. .< fnaK^ ^rmy, whom they few following the Bodv of i«,

" The

Duke of MARLBOROTJGH, &c. 495

** The Soldiers of the Van of , the Allies got into their Camp, 1707. «« where they found Beer, Wine, and feveral other Tilings, v~^— v~— . > *' which the French had not Time to carry away with them. ^

The Allies hereupon, advanced again, the feyenth of Septenv ^he^he her, towards them, and encamp'd, with their Right, at Rolk- r^.^ '*££ gem, and their Left, at Helchin, . near, the Scheld, fubiiitmg all tarther. Ais while on the French Territories. The fourteenth, the Duke of Marlborough had Intelligence that the French had made a Dilpofition, to forage the next Morning at Templeuve, and the ' Villages thereabouts ; he, therefore, march' d out, that Morning, by Break of Day, with 20,000 Foot, 5,000 Horfe, and twelve Pieces of Cannon, with a Deilgn to attack the Guard that co- ver'd them, and, by that Means, endeavour to bring them to a TI;? Duke general Action ; but the Enemy, being informed of the Duke's OI Marlbo- Jntention, did not think fit to venture out of tHeir Camp. His ntt^^^j£ Grace, hereupon, ordered his Troops to forage thofe Places, v<u>i,t«>i>rin£ that the Enemy might have no farther Benefit from. them, which the Enerr.y was 'done without the' leaiVOppofition, tho' under the Cannbh ^ an AtftittL of Tournay, within a League of the Enemy's Camp, and three from that of the Confederates ; fo fearful were the French of running any Hazard, tho' with never fo viiible an Advantage.

The Duke of Marlborough finding it, therefore, impoffible, He to bring the cautious Duke de Vendome to an Engagement, ta their Camp being cover' d with 'the Scheld, end with their Tn- trenchment", his Grace left the Camp at Helchin, the fourth of Oftoher, N. S. and went for the Hague. He arrived there, the fixth, at nine in the Morning, and immediately made a Vifit to the Grand Penfionary, and Monf. de Slingerland, Secretary of . the Council of State. The fame Afternoon, his Grace h?.d a ^^ . Conference with the Deputies of the States General, wherein he ^puties of communicated the Orders he had received from the Queen of the States.. ( it I'rit in, his Miftrefs, to repair to Ffaiicfort, and to confer \ - ie Eleftors of Mcntz and Hannover, about the Operations c ie next Campaign. The next Morning, his. Grace had a .''inference, with thofe Deputies, and, 'in the Evening,

f- :br the Army, to give the neceffiry Orders for their Return r*

n I :.ro Winter- Quarters.

i: lately after his Arrival there, on the tenth, the Troops v .-eve delign'd for the Grrriibns of Menin, Courtray and

C irde, went into thofe Places ; ami, the next Day, the -A " oime to Peteghem, with a Defign to pafs the Scheld at

• 'vancing, with the fiorfc and Dragoons, to Zv/ml:w\ '

'i e fa.ae Day, the Foot continued their March, thro' C-,-

'The Life of J O H N,

to Weftrem ; and, the next Day, the whole Army came to Afche, where they continued, till they heard, that the French Army feparated the twentieth » upon which all the Confederate. Troops went into the refpeftive Winter-Quarters which were into\V 'iucr aflign*d them, being much the fame as they had been the Year Quarters, before.

The D of The fifteenth, the Duke of Marlborough fet out for Germa- Marlboro' ny, in the Morning, lay that Night at Liere, the next at Grave, goes to Ger- the feventeenth at Wefel, and the eighteenth at Duflfeldorp ; many- his Grace having altered his intended Rout, upon a Report of feveral French Parties being pafs'd the Rhine, which was con- firmed at Grave, and this was the Reafon of his taking this laft City, in his Way. The nineteenth, the Duke was met by the Elector Palatine, at Bruck, about a League from his Cattle of Js entertain- Banfberg, where his Electoral Highnefs entertained his Grace ed by th« with a fplendid Dinner, under a very magnificent Perfian Tent ; Elector Pa- after which, he continued, about twenty Miles, to Waert, being ktJne. conducted thither by the Palatine Guards. The twentieth, the Arrives at Euke ^aX at Limburg, on the Laune, and, the tvventy-firft, Francfort. reach'd Francfort. His Grace found the Elector of Hannover (our late mcit gracious Sovereign, King George I } who had been prevailed upon to command the Army on the Rhine, this Sum- mer, and at wliofe Initances this Interview was appointed, ar- rived before him, as was likewife the Eleclor of Mentz. Has feveral They had feveral Conferences together, but nothing could'be Conferences concluded, till Count Wratiflau, the Emperour's Plenipotentiary, with the arrived there, the feven and twentieth; nor, indeed, then nei- MentrVnd ^er » becaufe the latter declared he was not fully inftru&ed : Hannover. Whereupon the Conferences broke off, and, on the nine and twentieth, the two Electors of Mentz and Hannover fet out, from Francfort, the firil for his Refidence, and the fecond for the Imperial Army ; the Duke of Marlborough departing, a,t Returns to the fame Time, for the Hague, whither he was attended by the Hague. Count Wratiflau, and arrived there, the third of November. Refleaions A late Dutch Writer, who has pretended to give the Publick caft upon a Continuation of Rapin's Hiilory of England (cho' never two theDuke^of Works were more unlike) and who, upon all Occafions, fhews Lv"1 htc' an I"clmation» if he could but f-nd Subject, to befpatter the Author, Charafler of our Hero, endeavours to draw Arguments, from »nfwcr'd. this Journy, for that End. As the Paragraph is pretty fingular, tho' there is little elfe in it, I Iktll divert the Reader with a Tranflation of it.

" 1'he Duke of Marlborough (fiys my Author) was defirous " to make himfelf Amends for the little Succefc of this Cam- '* paign. He adlcd with the Confent, but not at the Defire, of " their High Mightindfes. The 2 til of OclobiT, he repair'd «' to Francfort, accompanied by Monf. de Geldermalfen, to

" confer

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &V.

G< confer witfc the Electors of Hannover and Mentz, Count «« Wratiflau, the Imperial Minifter, and feveral Princes and «« Deputies of the Circles of the Empire. The General,, whom « all the World did Juftice, and who, likewife, took Care to " do it himfelf, was extreamly apprehenfive of a Peace, which '« would have render'd his great Talents ufelefs. The Misfor- « tunes which had happen'd, in Spain and the Empire, made ..«« him fear, that the Allies might be more difpos'd, this Year, «< to give Ear to pacifick Propofals, than they had been in the 41 foregoing. The Intent of hi : Journy was not only to fet afide " all fuch Thoughts, but to excite them to continue the War, " with new Vigour ; and he affur'd them, in the Name of the «« Queen, that her Majefty would entertain no Thoughts of a « Peace, till the Allies had obtained all they had to aft. of France, «« and till that Monarchy was reduced to the State it was in, ** under Lewis XIII. Our Captain Negotiator (as my Author *• calls the Duke) urged the Princes and Deputies very much " to furnifh their Contingents in time, and to augment their' •' Forces with 30,000 Men, for the enfuing Campaign. The «< Members of the Empire abfolutely rejected this Propofal. " The Duke, who was never at a Lofs for an Expedient, pro- ** pofed, that the Emperour, England, and the United Pro- «« vinces mould furnim 10,000 Men each. This Propofal, the M Emperour's Minifter highly exclaim'd againft ; and Monf. de " Geldermalfen feem'd not much lefs furpriz'd at it. He ar- " gued, with great Vehemence, that the Republick was ex- '* haufted, by the extraordinary Difliurfements they had been at, " to keep up a Diverlion in Spain, Portugal and Piedmont. Jn *' vain the Duke protefted, that both the Queen, and himftlf, .*' would leave no Stone unturn'd to engage the Parliament to " provide for the greater Part of this Augmentation. They " neither would nor could confent to any thing. So (fays a " certain Hiftorian,) the Duke of Maryborough return'd to " England equally diffatisfied with his Journy to the Rhine, his .." Campaign, and his Negotiation at Fran cfort,

" I do not (continues my Author) in the leaft doubt, but the /' Admirers of this famous General will take it amiis, that I •" attribute the Pains the Duke was ?tt to animate and buoy *' up the Minds of the Allies, to his Aversion to a Peace. Let " fuch fhew me what other Motive it can be afcrib'd to? i" Was it an Attachment to the Houfe of Auftria, an In- fl clination to have whatever had been taken from that illuf- f trious Family, by Lewis XIV. reftor'd ? Such an Attach- f ment, in an Englifh Proteftant, would not fall very Ihort of " Folly. Was it a Hatred to France ? He always behaved f with great Politenefs and Humanity to the French who fell f ' into his Hands. Was it a Conviction, that the Safety of Eng-

VOL.I. Kk « lan<i

Me Life cf JOHN,

land depended upon a depreffing of the Houfe of Bourbon, and augmenting the Power of the Houfe of Auftria ? It may be fufficient to anfwer to this, that he was Mafter of fome good Senfe and Penetration. Was it a Zeal for the Pro- teftant Religion in general, or for the Church of England in particular, that urg'd him to abate the Power of France, that fhe might not be in a Capacity to undertake any Thing to the Prejudice of either ? Tho' a certain Author of his Life, pretends he received the Sacrament, according to the Rites of the Church of England, the Eve of the famous Battle of Hochftadt, all the World agrees, that Piety and Devotion, and efpecially fuch fervent and zealous Piety, was never his Charadleriftick. Was it a Zeal for his Roval Miftrefs, whofe Right to the Crown, France had call'd in Queftion ? He knew too well the Difpcfition of that Crown, to gi/ve her Majefty Satisfaction on this Head. We " are, therefore, under a Neceflity of returning to the Motives " I at firft alledged, and muft own that the Duke of Marlbo- " rough, who was form'd under King William, and had im- " bib'd his Maxims and Tendencies, was inclin'd to War for " his private Security and Intereft ; to which I may add, that " he had fo much the more Reafon to be foml of it, becaufe, " till then, it had proved infinitely glorious to him.

What a Heap of infinuative Scandal, Malice or Envy, is here thrown upon the greateft Man of his Age ; under the laci ed Veil of Reaion, and evincing Argument, tho' not fupported by either ! Our Author's Queftions are cf fuch a Nature that they snf-ver thrmfelves, to the Advantage of our Hero ; and his own Anfwers are fo weak and evaiive, that thry need no Con- futation: I (hall therefore, only afk him a Queftion or two, in my Turn, Were not the Supinenefs of thnt Let :^gick Body, the Empire, ar.d the B?.ckwardnefs of all the Alii' s in general, the Dutch not excepted, more thnn fufficient Mo ves for the Duke to act as he did, without hooking his private lutereft into the (Queftion ? Surely they were ! Was not the Honour, as well as the Iiuerefc, of every one of the Allies equally at Stake, and ought not the Generals and Miniiters of every one of them, to have afted in the fame Manner as the Duke did, in Proportion to their refpeflire Influences over the whole ? Certainly they would have done it, if they had been moved by fo fervent a Zeal for the Good of the Common Caufe ! What Proportion then can the Duke's private Views, if he had any, bear to thefe weighty Motives, of fuch Importance to all Europe ? What were the Views, or rather Reflations and Engagements of the Allies, at entring into this War ? Were they, at this Time, fully accomplilh'd"? Did France Ihew any Tendency towards

giving

Duke of MARL BOROUGH, &c.

giving the Allies that Satisfaction they expefted ? What more effectual Means to oblige France to it than thofe the Duke pro- pos'd ? What Reafon had the Emperour to exclaim agiiinit che Propofal ? Was not the Houfe of Auftria to be the greateft Gainer by the War ? Why fhould the Dutch be furprized at it"? Or rather mould not they have made it ? They certainly had an immediate Benefit by it, as well by their clandeftine Trade, as the Encreafe of their Power. Fortrefles were daily putting into their Hands, and others propos'd to be conquer'd, as they were in the Sequel, and all for their Security. When our Author has anfwer'd thefe Queftions, I have another Bede- Roll at his Service. I agree with him, that the Duke came away diffatisfied ; but it was at the ungenerous Return he found made to the fuper-abundant Readinefs of England, to facrifice their All, for the Good of the Cemrnon Caufe.

The Duke, during his Stay, at the Hague, communicated to A laudable the States-General what pafs'd at Francfort ; and their Deputies Resolution having had feveral Conferences with the Imperial Minifters, °fthe Ja£es their High Mightinefles refolved, to ufe all poffible Means e to enagage the Empire, to make greater Efforts for the future, than they had hitherto done. In order to this, they wrote a preffing Letter to the Diet of Ratifbon, wherein after having re- prefented the great Deficiences, and Delays of the Germanick Body, from time to time, in the Performance of what they were, by Treaty, bound to, and the evil Confequences, which had hitherto attended them, they concluded by faying ; " That their High Mightineffes would continue to contribute their utmoft, towards bringing about the great Work, they had, jointly, with them, undertaken ; but that they expected the like, from his Imperial Majeily, and the Empire, feeing they were obliged to it by their Alliances and Common In- tereft ; and, in Cafe of Non-Performance, their High Mi-gh- tinefles protected againft all the ill Confequences thereof. Thus have we feen, that this Year did not prove very profper- A Remark ous to the Arms of the Allies, as I juit hinted, at the Beginning ontheCam- of this Chapter: Yet, tho' no Conquefts were made in the Palg"m, Netherlands, it tended to the Honour of the Duke of Marlbo- ^ds. rough, whofe excellent Judgment, and unwearied Application, were viiible in every Tranfaction even of this barren Campaign, and mull be acknowledged by every unprejudiced Perfon.

I mail not need to lay much here, with refpecl to the Affairs Some ob_ of other Parts, during this Campaign, having premifed fome- fervaticnj thing, as an Introduction to this Year's Tranfadtions. For the on Aftairi Aftairs on the Upper Rhine, I mall only add ; that after the ^nar™ Elector of Hannover was prevailed upon, as I have faid above, to take upon him the Command of the Imperial Army, by that Kk? Prinw'i

500 Me Life of J O H N,

1707. Prince's Vigilance and good Conduft, the Face of Affairs wai i^-yxj entirely changed, in Favour of the Confederates, towards the End of the Campaign, and feemed to promife fair for the next.

The Grand Defign of the Allies, this Campaign, was the Siege of Toulon, which, tho' it prov'd fo far unfuccefsful, that they were obliged to raife the Siege, yet they made their Retreat with an inconfiderable Lofs, which was more than ten- fold recompenfed by the Lofs the French fuffered in their Ship- ping, and was greater than they ever fuftained in any Naval Fight, and which they have not recovered to this Day ; for a particular Account of which, I ref;r the Reader to Leotard's Naval Hiftory.

The Allies had, however, fome Acquifitions to boalt of, this Campaign, and thofe not inconfiderable : I mean the Re- duftion of the whole Kingdom of Naples, to the Obedience of the Emperour, with the Spanifh Towns on the Coaft of Tufcany, and the taking of Sufa, in Piedmont.

The Duke The Duke of Marlborough having concluded feveral weighty •f Marlbo- Affairs with the States General, embark'd for England, and rough re- came to St. James's, the feventh of November, O. S. The Importance of this Year's Tranfaftions, as far as the Duke of Marlborough was concerned in them, not being fo confiderable as to be taken Notice of in Parliament, in his Grace's Favour ; J mould have had nothing of Parliamentary Affairs to mention this Year, had not a memorable Debate arifen, in the Houfe of Peers, which too nearly concerned the Duke, and his Honour, to be pafsvd by in Silence ; I mall, therefore, mention as much of it, as immediately related to his Grace.

The nineteenth of December, there was a long and memo- ,.. rab'e Debate in the Houfe of Lords, in relation to the Affairs of

rable JJebate . , _^ . . , . ' . ... p . .

in the Houfe Spam, the Queen being prefent incognito, till five o Clock, in of Lords the Afternoon : The Earl of Rochefter 1'poke firft, and, having afcout the commended the Earl of Peterborough's Courage and Conduct, Pet^rboro* anc* enumeratec* h*3 Services, faid it had been a conftant Cuftom, »nd the that when a Perfon of his Rank, that had been employed Abroad, Affairs of in fo eminent a Poft, as his Lordfhip had, returned Home, he Spain. }iad either Thanks given him, or was called to an Account : Urging that the fame ought to be done in relation to the Earl of Peterborough. The Lord Hallifax, who fpoke next, enlarg'd likewife on the Earl of Peterborough's fuccefsful Services, but dextcroufly put off the returning him Thanks, till the whole Tenor of his Conduct had been examined, than which the Earl himfelf profefs'd, he had nothing more at Heart. The Lord Haverfham was not iilent : But having highly extolled the Earl •f Peterborough's Valour, Skill, and Succefies. made a Side- Wind

Duke of MARLBOROUGH, &c. 50

Wind Reflexion on the Earl of Galloway, faying, 'Too*/ t* 1707. Wonder our Affairs in Spain went fo ill, Jlnce the Management of ^~y^J them had been entrufted to a Foreigner. Hereupon feveral Mem- bers ihewed the Neceflity of carrying on the War, till the whole Monarchy of Spain was recovered, and King Charles fettled on his Throne ; among the reft, the Earl of Peterborough faid, %hat they ought to gi<ve the Queen nineteen Shillings in the Pound, rather than ta make Peace upon any other Terms, adding, that if it *was thought neceffary, he was ready to return to Spain, andferve €<ven under the Earl of Galloway.

" Charles, Earl of Peterborough, was Lord Mordaunt in character the Reign of Charles II. a great Projector for the Improve of the Had ment of our Plantations. At the Revolution, he was very °f Pet€r- zealous ; for which King William made him Earl of Mon- berow£Jl« mouth, and employ'd him in Places of Truft, till by his unfteady Temper, which naturally prompted him to run from Party to Party, he loft his Favour ; and his Practices with Sir John Fenwick, and a Book he was faid to have publifh'd under the Name of one Smith, brought both him, and the Treatifc fuppofed to be either wrote by himfelf, or by his Directions, under the Cenfure of both Houfes of Parliament. " On Queen Ann's Acceffion to the Throne, my Lord Not- tingham (it is faid) procured him a Commiffion to be Captain General of the Plantations in America ; but my Lord Marl- borough returning from Holland, before the Commifiion pafs'd the Seals, it was put a Stop to (fuppos'd by his Means,) as being thought too great a Command for one of his fiery, inconftant Temper. This (is faid) to have foured him io, that he oppos'd this Court (or, at leaft, the Minillry of it,) as he did that of the laft. He obtained, however, not long after, a Com million to command a Defcent, the Succefs of which being foreign to the Subject of this prefent Work, I refer for the Particulars to our General Hiilorians. He always affecled Popularity, and to talk in Places of publick Refort ; " he appear'd but too much an Enemy to reveal'd Religion ; but " was upon all Occasions very brave ; Characters not often met " with, in the fame Perfon.

This naturally brought on the Confideration of Ways and Means to retrieve the Affairs of Spain, in relation to which the Earl of Rochefter faid : That we feemtd to negleB the pi incipal Bujinefs, and mind only ActeJJbries ; adding, he remembred the Saying of a great General, the old Duke of Schomberg^ viz. That the attacking of Trance in the Netherlands, ivas like taking a Pull by the Horns. And therefore his Lordihip propos'd, T)jat The Dutce *vut Jhould ftand on the Defenjl^ve in Flanders, and fend from t hence of Marlbo- 15, v 20,000 Mtu into Catalonia. That noble Peer was fecond- |?uf\**

502 Me Life of J O H N,

1707. ed by the Earl of Nottingham, who complained of Spain being in a Manner abandoned. But the Duke of Marlborough fhew'd, with fome Warmth, the Danger of fuch an undigefted Council* and the Neceffity of augmenting rather than diminifhing our Forces in Flanders. The two chief Reafons his Grace urg'd were, Firft, That moft of the Enemies Jlrong Places there might be kept 'with one Battalion in each ; whereas the great Towns of J$rabantt we had conquered, required twenty Times that Number of Men, for their Prcfer'vation. Secondly, That if our Army in the Netherlands 'was weakened, and the French, by their great Su- feriority, Jhould gain any considerable Advantage, which it wot r.it improbable they might, the difcontented Party in Holland, who were not a feew, and bore with Impatience the necejfary Charges of the War, would not fail crying aloud for Peace. Hereupon, the Earl of Rochefter faid, He wcndered that noble Peer, who had been fuer conspicuous for his Calmnefs and Moderation, Jhould now be tut of his Temper ; adding, that there being an abfolute Necejfity to fucc-ur Spain, his Grace njould oblige their Lord/hips, if he would let them know, where they might get Troops to fend thither ; and the more becaufe the Earl of Peterborough had, that <very Day, af- fured them, he had heard Prince Eugene fay, That the German Soldiers had rather be decimated than fent into Spain. The Duke of Marlborough wifely anfwered the Reproach of having fhew'd fome Warmth, by faying, The Thing was of too great Importance to be. Jpoken of without Concernment ; And as for the Qneftioa propoled by the Earl, he added, That althf it was improper to 'difclofe fecret Projects info great an Aj/embly, (to which that Day iriany Strangers had been admitted by the Favour of the Queen's Prefer.ce) becaufe the Enemy 'would not fail being informed of them ; yet to gratify their Lordjhips, he might ajjure them, that Meafures had been already concerted --with the Emperor, for the forming f.n Army ^40,000 Men, (whom he fpecijied under the Command of the Duke of Sa-voy) and for fending powerful Succours to Kin? Charles, adding, it was to be hoped, that Prince Eugene might be prevailed with to go and command in Spain, in which Cafe the Germans would gladly follow him thither. The onfa Djficul'y ivbicb hit Grace faid might be objected againjl this Scheme, was the ufual Shwnefs of the Court of Vienna, to which Purpofe be took Notice, that if the 7000 German Recruits, which the Emperor had pramifed for the Army in Piedmont, had arrived Tims enough, the Enterprize againjl Toulon, might ha-je been attended with Suc- cffs ; but that it "Mas to be hoped, and he durft en^a«e his V/ord for it, that for the future, his Imperial Majefy would punf'ual.y perform bit Pramifes. Upon which the Debate ended.

To

Duke of MARYBOROUGH, &V. 503

To conclude this Volume, and to avoid the Cenfure of being 1 707. a partial Apologift, I fhall borrow an Obfervation or two from " the Author of the Other Side of the ^ueflion.

" Tho' the Queen (fays he) had no Diflike to the Triumphs " of a Thankfgiving Day, me ever thought it purchas'd much " too dearly, by the Lives of her Subjects. She had a Heart

" which overflowed with Humanity :- the Lifts of the Slain

" and Wounded were feldom laid before her, but her Eye3 " fwam with Tears, which neither the Joy of Viclory, nor the *' Formality of Congratulation could reftrain.

" Every Year of the War had been adorn'd with fom« *' Triumph ; but this, inftead of being crown'd with Laurels, " was hung with Sables, (alluding to our Lofs at the fatal " Battle of Almanza, (which was fought in May, of thb " Year :) If therefore, the Queen was melancholy, in the " midil of Triumphs, it muft be imagined fhe was now in " a Manner difconfolate ; a Field of Blood was ever before " her Eyes ; the Groans of the Dying were ever in her Ears ; " the Devaluations of a ruinous War hung an eternal Weighs *f upon her Heart."

To whom, therefore, could fhe unbofom this Variety of? Sorrows ? " If to the General : He befought her Majefty to '* have Patience but one Year more, and fhe would then cer- " tainly obtain her Defire upon her Enemies.

" Thus filenced, but not fatisfied, her Majefty was obliged to " look elfewhere for that Comfort and Confolation which fhe " could noi obtain where fhe principally expefted it ; and where " could fhe fo reafonably apply as to Mr. Harley, who had al- " ready given fuch Proofs of his Moderation, Ab'ii.y and At- " tachment to her real Intereft ?"

But as thefe Confiderations are fulted more pCroperly to the Subject of the enfuing Volume, I fhall conclude this, \vith afk- ing a Queftion or two, in my Turn, and refer to that for the Anfwers to them, which will, at the fame Time, fufficier.cly aciwer the Queftions put by her fuppos'd Ladyfhip.

" If the Duke of Marlborough befought her Majefty, to " have Patience but for one Year more ; and fhe would then " certainly obtain her Defire upon her Enemies ;" did he de- ceive her in her Expectations > Did not the Succefles of the two enfuing Years 1708. and 1709. fully anfwer all he fuggeft- ed ? Did fhe not obtain her Defire upon her Enemies ? Why did not fhe and the Nation enjoy the Fruits of thefe glorious SucceJ/es? Who advis'd the Queen to enter into inglorious Meafure^, for treating of a general Peace with the Common Enemy ? And who to conclude an inglorious Treaty, with this Common

Enemy,

tte Life of J O H N, Gfc.

Enemy, in which the Interefts of the Nation, and her Allies, were given up, and all the Advantages gained by the unparalleTd Succejfes of her Majijlys Arms, under the Command of JOHN Duke o/" M A R L B o R o u G H , at a great Expence of Blood and Trea- Jure, ficrijiced to Party-Rage and Fatfion ? For the Anfvvers to thefe Queilior.s, as well thofe propos'd by the fuppos'd Right Honourable Author, as thofe by myfelf, I refer the Reader t» the Second Part of this Work.

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