and wounded; two thousand four hundred deferted; in all 1708 nineteen thousand four hundred: taken befides, ten pieces of Friday we refted, the troops having need of fome eafe, after their great fatigue; and about midnight we detached forty fquadrons and thirty battalions towards the enemy's lines, be tween Warneton and Ypres. The whole army followed by break of day, and incamped at Helchin, whence we purfued our march to-day to this camp close to the lines, which we found our detachments had forced, and taken five hundred prifoners, the only guard the enemy had left for their fecurity. We do not think, that their army is marched from behind the canal, which, with their poffeffing of Ghent, will be a great obftruction to our bringing up our heavy cannon and other artillery; fo that I fear we fhall be obliged to retake that place, before we can make any farther progrefs. Extract of an intercepted letter from a French officer, who was in the battle. I can only fend you an unwelcome relation of the particulars of the battle, which happened yesterday about two in the afternoon near Oudenard. It will prove a great blow to France; for, without exaggerating the matter, we had above ten thousand men killed, wounded, or taken. The action was very ill managed on our fide; for, inftead of attacking the enemy when they began to pafs the Scheld near Oudenard at eleven in the morning, we let them come over the river quietly, which they never would have adventured to do, had we, in any to cannon, lerable manner offered to difpute their paffage; but feeing us ftand ftill, they were encou raged to profecute their firft defign, and began to pass over two bridges, which they had laid. As faft as their horfe and foot came over, they ranged them felves in order of battle against as; and while our generals were in fufpenfe what refolution to take, whether to venture an engagement or not, the enemy's army continued coming over the river, and foon poffeffed themfelves of fome villages and hedges; fo that, at laft, our generals were compelled to endeavour to diflodge them. Ac cordingly, our infantry advanced, and the ground was difputed two or three hours, with a tertible fire and great obftinacy on both fides; but our foot being tired with charging the enemy five or fix times, and being difheartened to fee themselves not fupported by our horfe (whe could not act, because the ground was full of incloíures) and preff ed hard by the enemy, were, at length, forced to retire, and quit the ground to them. We dragoons were obliged to endure the continual fire of the enemy's foot and cannon, without daring to ftir, because we were on the right of the king's houfhold, who fuffered as much as we. Towards the evening we were fallen upon by a great number of the enemy's horfe, to hinder us from fuccouring the reft, who were put to the route, and of feven regiments of dragoons we loft above half. At laft, we had no 1708. cannon, fifty-fix pair of colours, fifty-two ftandards, eight, pair of kettle-drums, four thousand five hundred horfes. On of no other expedient left, than to force our way through the enemy; but first we fent to see whether we could be affifted in that defign by any of our forces. In the mean time night came on apace, and we were informed, that the king's houfhold (whofe retreat was covered in fome meafure by us) were at too great a distance. Things standing thus, our refolution of breaking thro' the enemy funk, and, fome of the enemy's adjutants fummoning us to yield ourselves prifoners of war, we fubmitted to it, see ing no other way to fave our lives. At least forty of our regiments are reduced to a wretched condition, the greateft part of them being killed or taken; fo that it will be long before they can be re-established. Of four regiments of the king's houfhold, at least half are taken prifoners, and among them are feveral perfons of note. The chavalier de Longueville and fifteen other of. ficers were mortally wounded, and two of them are dead fince the battle. The regiments of Pfiffer and Villars are quite ruined, and almost all their officers are taken, with all their baggage, &c. Amongst the prifoners were above seven hundred officers, viz, a lieutenant-general, four major generals, five brigadiers, fourteen colonels, eight lieutenantcolonels, nine majors, two hundred and fix captains, one hundred and forty feven lieutenants, ninety-fix coronets, one hundred and eighty-fix gens d'armes, Chevaux Legers, or lifeguards, and forty feven quarter-mafters. the The marquis de Ximenes, colonel of the regiment of royal Roufillon, and the fieur de la Betrache, colonel of horfe, with a great number of other officers, were killed. A letter written by one of the duke of Vendofme's confidents, fuppofed to be monfieur Capiftron, the duke's secretary. Away with your confternation, Sir, and do not betray in your self the weakness common to your nation, who never light of a misfortune, but presently all is loft. I tell you, in the first place, that the reports you hinted to me are false, and the duke of Vendofme laughs at them. As for the three marches which he fuffered to be ftolen from him, and his not guarding the Denders, every body knows, the duke of Vendofme was for dif puting the paffage of that river; and that, after three days conteft, he was forced to fubmit to the fentiments of thofe, who, to avoid an engagement, voted for paffing the Scheld. However it was then, that they were obliged to own, what that duke had foretold them, viz. That, whenever prince Eugene underftood they had a mind to avoid fighting, he would force them to do it, whether they would or no. As to what they fay, that the duke of Vendofme ought to have attacked the van of the enemy's army, in their paffing the Scheld, he knew better things. For as the other hand, the lowest computation amounts together to fourteen thousand seven hundred killed, wounded, and taken prisoners, without mentioning deferters; and the lowest calculation, given by the French themselves, allows their loss to have been above ten thousand men. The dukes of Burgundy and Berry, with the pretender, reached Ghent the morning after the battle, by five o'clock; and about nine, the duke of Vendofme, who brought up the foon as he received advice from the marquis of Biron, that part of the enemy's army was over, he was for attacking it, while he faw the duft made by the columns of that army on the other fide of the river, about half a league from Oudenard; but he was fingle in his opinion, and confequently not hearkened to. This was at ten in the morning. At four in the afternoon majorgeneral Grimaldi was ordered, without the duke of Vendofme's knowledge, to begin the attack; which, however, when he faw, he was for continuing it. Accordingly he fent monfieur Jenet, - his aid de camp, to the left, with orders for them to engage, but he was killed in his return. Thefe orders were not executed, fome officers infinuating mal à. propos to the duke of Burgundy, that there was a quagmire and an impracticable morafs; whereas the duke of Vendofme's and the count d'Evreux had paffed an hour before. As to the retreat, the duke of Vendofme was not for it; but, as he was backed in his opinion by the count d'Evreux only, he was again obliged to fubmit. No fooner therefore had he given the word for the army to retreat, but all got on horfeback, and with aftonishing precipitation fled to Ghent; and there were not wanting thofe, who advised the princes to fet out poft from thence for Ypres. The duke of Vendofme, who was obliged, for a good part of the time, to make the rear-guard with his aid de camp, did not reach Gent till almoft nine in the morning, when he made a firm refolution to poft the army behind the canal, which goes from that place to Bruges, though against the advice of all the general officers, who threatened for three days together to abandon him; and faid, they ought to endeavour to join the duke of Berwick. That firmness faved the king's army, and France itfelf; for the fright the army was in would have caused a greater difgrace than that of Ramillies. Whereas the duke of Vendofie, by pofting himself behind the canal, has covered Ghent and Bruges, which is the effential point, and thereby revived and put courage into the troops, and given the officers time to recollect themselves, and to know the country. In a word, he has thrown the enemy out of action; and if they attack any of our ftrong places, as Ypres, Lifle, Mons or Tournay, the duke of Vendofme will take Oudenard, make himself mafter of the Scheld, and fo puzzle them. This, Sir, is the very truth, and the fame the duke of Vendofme has fent to the king, &c. rear, 1708 1708 rear, arrived there alfo. As they were apprehenfive of being purfued by the whole confederate army, the duke immediately commanded his troops to march through Ghent to Lovendegen, on the canal, not far from that city; where, for their greater fecurity, they caft up intrenchments, and planted upon them their artillery, which they had left at Gavre with their heavy baggage. In this camp they recovered themselves out of their firft confternation; but the former mifunderftandings revived among their generals, especially between the dukes of Burgundy and Vendofme, who, notwithstanding the interpofition of the court, could never be brought to a reconciliation (h). While the French were intrenching themselves behind the canal between Ghent and Bruges, the confederate troops being returned to their camp (which was the field of battle) they refted two days. Mean time the duke of Marlborough, prince Eugene, monfieur Auverquerque, and the ftate deputies, debated in a council of war, how they might best improve their late fuccefs. The refult was, That the duke of Marlborough's army fhould immediately march to Menin, pafs the Lys, level the French lines between Ypres and Warneton, and hinder any detachment from getting into Ypres, or the French army from retiring that way; and that prince Eugene, with a detachment of the grand army, fhould march, at the same time, towards Bruffels, to affemble his forces, obferve the motions of the duke of Berwick, and hinder likewise the enemy's army near Ghent, from retreating through Brabant the fame way they came. According to thefe refolutions, count Lottum, general of the Pruffians, marched, the 13th of July, at night, with thirty battalions, and forty (h) Burnet obferves, Vendofme took fo much upon him, that the other officers complained of his neglecting them; fo they made their court to the duke of Burgundy, and laid the blame of all his mifcarriages on Vendofme. He kept close to the orders he had from Verfailles, where the accounts he gave, and the advices he offered, were more confidered, than thofe that were fent by the duke of Burgundy this was very uncafy to him, who was impatient of contradiction, and longed to be in : action, though he did not fhew the forwardness, in expofing his own perfon, that was expected: he feemed very devout, even to bigotry; but by the accounts we had from France, it did appear, that his conduct, during the campaign, gave no great hopes or profpect from him, when all things fhould come into his hands Chamillard was often fent from court to foften him, and to reconcile him to the duke of Vendofme, but with no effect. Vol. II. 509. fquadrons fquadrons, the next day advanced towards the French lines, and took feveral fmall places. The fame day the army took their route towards Menin, paffed the Lys near that place, and encamped at a small distance from the town. Whilft a detachment from the confederate army demolished the French lines between Ypres and the Lys, another was fent to raise contributions as far as Arras, which ftruck fuch a terror every where that it reached the very city of Paris. Whilst these affairs were in agitation, the confederate troops expected their heavy cannon, in order to undertake an important fiege; and the French continued in their posts along the canal of Bruges, without giving the allies any dif turbance. The only method they pitched upon, as moft proper to be put in execution, was to harrafs the Dutch Flanders with small parties. This they did, and, whilft the confederate army raised great contributions in Picardy and elfewhere, the French plundered a few boors under the government of the states. Their next attempt was against the forts of the Red-House, and fort Plaffendale, which they made themselves masters of fword in hand. But, whilft they were endeavouring to amuse the confederates by these proceedings, feveral detachments of the allies plundered the countries of Picardy and Artois. Couny Tilly, the lieutenant-generals Orkney, Rantzaw, and Hompefch, the major-generals Webb, Rantzaw, and count d'Arbach, with forty fquadrons, twelve battalions, and a thousand grenadiers, advanced into Picardy, to lay the fame under contribution, or to put that province under military execution. This detachment fell in with eight hundred horse near la Baffeé and Lens, (part of the cavalry belonging to the duke of Berwick's army) of which, a confiderable number were killed, and a colonel, a major, a captain, and two hundred troopers taken prisoners. The confederate troops purfued the enemy to the gates of Lens, wherein they had pofted fourteen hundred foot, which abandoned the place upon the approach of the confederate infantry. After this the generals raifed confiderable fums in the province of Picardy, burnt the fuburbs of Dourlens, and returned with hostages for the contributions they had agreed on to be paid to the allies, without any manner of oppofition. Some time after, a detachment from the French army at Lovendegen, under the command of the chevalier de Rozen, made an irruption into the Dutch Flanders; but they performed little more than the other part of the army commanded by the duke of Burgundy. They fell in upon the Dutch VOL. XVII. C lines 1708. |