MARLBOROUGH MARCHES WITH THE ALLIED ARMY INTO GERMANY.

In the month of April, the duke, accompanied by his brother general Churchill, lieutentant-general Lumley, the earl of Orkney, and other officers of distinction, embarked for Holland, where he had a long conference with a deputation of the states concerning a proposal of sending a large army towards the Moselle. The deputies of Zealand opposed this measure of sending their troops to stich a distance so strenuously, that the duke was obliged to tell them in plain terms he had received orders to march thither with the British forces. He accordingly assembled his army at Maestricht, and on the eight day of May began his march into Germany. The French imagined his intention was to begin the campaign with the siege of Traerbach, and penetrate into France along the Moselle. In this persuasion they sent a detachment to that river, and gave out that they intended to invest Huy, a pretence to which the duke paid no regard. He continued his route by Bedburgh, Kerpenord, Kalsecken; he visited the fortifications of Bonne, where he received certain advice that the recruits and reinforcements for the French army in Bavaria had joined the elector at Villigen. He redoubled his diligence, passed the Neckar on the third of June, and halted at Ladenburgh; from thence he wrote a letter to the states-general, giving them to understand that he had the queen’s orders to march to the relief of the empire, and expressing his hope that they would approve the design, and allow their troops to share the honour of the expedition By the return of a courier he received their approbation, and full power to command their forces He then proceeded to Mildenheim, where he was visited by prince Eugene; and these two great men, whose talents were congenial, immediately contracted an intimacy of friendship, Next day prince Louis of Baden arrived in the camp at Great Hippach, He told the duke, his grace was come to save the empire, and to give him an opportunity of vindicating his honour, which he knew was at the last stake in the opinion of some people. The duke replied he was come to learn of him how to serve the empire: that they must be ignorant indeed who did not know that the prince of Baden, when his health permitted him, had preserved the empire and extended its conquests.

Those three celebrated generals agreed that the two armies should join, that the command should be alternately vested in the duke and prince Louis from day to day, and that prince Eugene should command a separate army on the Rhine, Prince Louis returned to his army on the Danube, prince Eugene set out for Philipsburgh; the duke of Marlborough being joined by the imperial army under prince Louis of Baden at Wastertellen, prosecuted his march by Elchingen, Gingen, and Landthaussen. On the first day of July he was in sight of the enemy’s entrenchments at Dillingen, and encamped with his right at Amerdighem, and his left at Onderin-gen. Understanding that the elector of Bavaria had detached the best part of his infantry to reinforce the count D’Arco, who was posted behind strong lines at Schellenberg near Donawert, he resolved to attack their entrenchments without delay On the second day of July he advanced towards the enemy, and passed the river Wermitz; about five o’clock in the afternoon the attack was begun by the English and Dutch infantry, supported by the horse and dragoons. They were very severely handled, and even obliged to give way, when prince Louis of Baden marching up at the head of the imperialists to another part of the line, made a diversion in their favour. After an obstinate resistance they forced the entrenchments, and the horse entering with the infantry, fell so furiously upon the enemy, already disordered, that they were routed with great slaughter. They fled with the utmost trepidation to Donawert and the Danube, leaving six thousand men dead on the field of battle, The confederates took sixteen pieces of cannon, thirteen pairs of colours, with all the tents and baggage. Yet the victory was dearly purchased; some thousands of the allies were slain in the attack, including many gallant officers, among whom were the generals Goor and Beinheim, and count Stirum was mortally wounded. Next day the Bavarian garrison abandoned Donawert, of which the confederates took immediate possession, while the elector passed the Danube in his march to the river Leche, lest the victors should cut off his retreat to his own country. The confederates having crossed the Danube on several bridges of pontoons, a detachment was sent to pass the Leche, and take post in the country of the elector, who had retired under the cannon of Augsburgh. The garrison of Neuburgh retiring to Ingoldstadt, the place was secured by the confederates, and the count de Frize was detached with nine battalions and fifteen squadrons to invest the town of Rain. Advice arriving from prince Eugene that the mareschals Villeroy and Tallard had passed the Rhine at Fort Kehl, with an army of five-and-forty thousand men, to succour the elector of Bavaria, the generals of the allies immediately detached prince Maximilian of Hanover with thirty squadrons of horse as a reinforcement to the prince. In a few days Rain surrendered, and Aicha was taken by assault. The emperor no sooner received a confirmation of the victory of Schellenberg, than he wrote a letter of acknowledgment to the duke of Marlborough, and ordered count Wratislau to intimate his intention of investing him with the title of prince of the empire, which the duke declined accepting until the queen interposed her authority at the desire of Leopold.

ANNE, 1701—1714