Anniversary of the Battle of Blenheim

Perhaps one of the greatest yet most overlooked British victories in military history, the Battle of Blenheim (or Blindheim in German) marked on this date in 1704 a turning point in the larger War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714) and would forever help reshape the balance of power on the continent.

Ostensibly a war between the Grand Alliance – made of the then-Holy Roman Empire, Great Britain and the United Provinces (modern Netherlands) – against the French and Spanish House of Bourbon and their allies in Bavaria, the Spanish Succession was triggered by the death of the childless Charles II of Spain.

The Herald of War

The late Habsburg’s throne was then left to the grandson of Louis XIV of France, Philip of Anjou, who would go on to become Philip V of Spain in 1700. This was, however, on the condition that Philip renounced his claim to the throne of France. Louis XIV chose to ignore this element, preferring French domination over both France and Spain – and wider Europe in the process – and thus the Grand Alliance was formed in response. The ensuing conflict was in essence the late king’s Austrian Habsburg and French Bourbon relatives vying for control, drawing in the rest of Europe (including Great Britain herself) and turning the mainland into a bloody arena for 13 years.

The precursor to the battle began when Louis XIV marched on Vienna, seeking to seize the Habsburg capital and thereby defeat the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I and force a favourable truce. The ancient metropolis was under considerable peril: surrounded on all sides by the combined forces of Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria and Marshal Ferdinand de Marsin to the west, Marshal Louis Joseph de Bourbon, Duke of Vendôme to the south and Francis II Rákóczi’s Hungarian uprising to the east, The City of Dreams looked sure to fall.

The Advance on Vienna

Enter General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough. An English soldier and statesman born into an aristocratic Devonshire family, the General had already

had a distinguished career by the time of the Spanish War of Succession, having played a role in the Monmouth Rebellion, Glorious Revolution and Nine Years’ War before being discredited and accused of high treason following a dispute with a rival general, Tollemache.

His story would, however, not end there. Eventually reconciled with the British nobility, Churchill would go on to become instrumental in the war ahead. After realising the danger of Louis’ encroachment, the great Duke began marching his forces south from Bedburg in modern west Germany along to the River Danube, artfully avoiding conflict along the way through a combination of deception and administrative genius.

The Duke managed to marshal his forces across 250 miles (400km) in a mere five weeks, an astounding feat given the terrain and constant danger. Marlborough then rounded upon the armies of Maximillian and Marsin, who delayed until Marshal Camille d’Hostun, Duke of Tallard arrived with reinforcements. The Allies were in turn boosted by the subsequent appearance of Prince Eugene of The Duke managed to marshal his forces across 250 miles (400km) in a mere five weeks, an astounding feat given the terrain and constant danger. Marlborough then rounded upon the armies of Maximillian and Marsin, who delayed until Marshal Camille d’Hostun, Duke of Tallard arrived with reinforcements. The Allies were in turn boosted by the subsequent appearance of Prince Eugene of Savoy, yet were still outnumbered: at the onset of battle, they stood at 52,000 men and 66 guns, whilst the Franco-Bavarian commanders boasted 56,000 and 90 artilleries.

The Battle and Aftermath

Despite the considerable disadvantage, it would be the Duke of Marlborough who carried the day. Through subtle disinformation, tactful manoeuvres, exceptional discipline and a relentlessness typified by their esteemed general, the French were routed beyond equivocation. As Maximilian II Emanuel himself put it upon seeing the Gens d’Armes pushed back by Colonel Francis Palmes’ men: “What? Is it possible? The gentlemen of France fleeing?”

And flee they did. For France and its allies, the loss was utterly catastrophic. Some 27,000 men were killed, wounded or captured, and the myth of French invincibility shattered beyond repair. Belgian Field Marshal of the Holy Roman Empire Jean-Philippe-Eugène, Count de Mérode, 5th Marquess of Westerloo, described their defeat:

“The French lost this battle for a wide variety of reasons. For one thing they had too good an opinion of their own ability (…) Another point was their faulty field dispositions, and in addition there was rampant indiscipline and inexperience displayed (…) It took all these faults to lose so celebrated a battle”

The immediate aftermath saw another 7,000 Franco-Bavarians desert their regiments, and Marlborough and Prince Eugene consolidate their victory and

ultimately prevent the collapse of the Grand Alliance. While the wider war waged on for another decade, historian Sir Edward Shepherd Creasy once remarked

that, “Had it not been for Blenheim, all Europe might at this day suffer under the effect of French conquests resembling those of Alexander in extent and those of

the Romans in durability.”

Upon the end of the war, Churchill returned to England, hailed by the 110 cavalry standards and 127 infantry colours that were captured during the battle, each borne aloft in procession at Westminster. ‘The Miracle of the Danube’ would be later immortalized by the creation of Blenheim Palace, finished in 1722, which remains the seat of the Dukes of Marlborough to this day.