Editing Prince Eugene of Savoy (section)

==== Oudenarde and Malplaquet ====
[[File:Eugene at Oudenarde (detail).png|thumb|302x302px|Prince Eugene at Oudenarde (detail) by [[Huchtenburg|Jan van Huchtenburg]], who was employed around 1709 to depict ten battle scenes.]]

At the beginning of 1708 Eugene successfully evaded calls for him to take charge in Spain (in the end Guido Starhemberg was sent), thus enabling him to take command of the Imperial army on the [[Moselle]] and once again unite with Marlborough in the Spanish Netherlands.<ref>Eugene's army was made up almost entirely of Germans paid for by Britain and the Dutch Republic.</ref> Eugene (without his army) arrived at the Allied camp at [[Asse|Assche]], west of Brussels, in early July, providing a welcome boost to morale after the early defection of [[Bruges]] and [[Ghent]] to the French. " ... our affairs improved through God's support and Eugene's aid", wrote the Prussian General [[Dubislav Gneomar von Natzmer|Natzmer]], "whose timely arrival raised the spirits of the army again and consoled us."{{sfn | Churchill | 2002 | p=350|ps=:It was also at this time that Eugene visited his mortally ill mother in Brussels for the last time. She died later that year in 1708.}} Heartened by the Prince's confidence the Allied commanders devised a bold plan to engage the French army under Vendôme and the [[Louis, Duke of Burgundy (1682–1712)|Duke of Burgundy]]. On 10 July the Anglo-Dutch army made a forced march to surprise the French, reaching the River [[Scheldt]] just as the enemy was crossing to the north. The [[Battle of Oudenarde|ensuing battle]] on 11 July—more a contact action rather than a set-piece engagement—ended in a resounding success for the Allies, aided by the dissension of the two French commanders.<ref>Lynn: ''The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667–1714,'' 319</ref> While Marlborough remained in overall command, Eugene had led the crucial right flank and centre. Once again the Allied commanders had co-operated remarkably well. "Prince Eugene and I", wrote the Duke, "shall never differ about our share of the laurels."{{sfn | Henderson | 1964 | p=162}}

[[File:John Churchill Marlborough porträtterad av Adriaen van der Werff (1659-1722).jpg|thumb|left|170px|Duke of Marlborough (1650–1722) by [[Adriaen van der Werff]]. Eugene became Allied commander-in-chief following Marlborough's dismissal in 1711.]]

Marlborough now favoured a bold advance along the coast to bypass the major French fortresses, followed by a march on Paris. But fearful of unprotected supply-lines, the Dutch and Eugene favoured a more cautious approach. Marlborough acquiesced and resolved upon the siege of [[Vauban]]'s great fortress, [[Siege of Lille (1708)|Lille]].{{sfn | Chandler | 1989 | p=224}} While the Duke commanded the covering force, Eugene oversaw the siege of the town which surrendered on 22 October but [[Louis François, duc de Boufflers|Marshal Boufflers]] did not yield the [[citadel]] until 10 December. Yet for all the difficulties of the siege (Eugene was badly wounded above his left eye by a musket ball, and even survived an attempt to poison him), the campaign of 1708 had been a remarkable success. The French were driven out of almost all the [[Spanish Netherlands]]. "He who has not seen this", wrote Eugene, "has seen nothing."{{sfn | McKay | Baker | von Savoyen | 1977 | p=117|ps=: "When King Louis XIV heard about Eugene's wound, he remarked, "I certainly don't want Prince Eugene to die but I should not be sorry if his wound stopped him taking any further part in the campaign."}}

The recent defeats, together with the severe winter of 1708–09, had caused extreme famine and privation in France. Louis XIV was close to accepting Allied terms, but the conditions demanded by the leading Allied negotiators, [[Anthonie Heinsius]], [[Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend|Charles Townshend]], Marlborough, and Eugene—principally that Louis XIV should use his own troops to force Philip V off the Spanish throne—proved unacceptable to the French. Neither Eugene nor Marlborough had objected to the Allied demands at the time, but neither wanted the war with France to continue, and would have preferred further talks to deal with the Spanish issue. But the French King offered no further proposals.{{sfn | McKay | Baker | von Savoyen | 1977 | p=121}} Lamenting the collapse of the negotiations, and aware of the vagaries of war, Eugene wrote to the Emperor in mid-June 1709. "There can be no doubt that the next battle will be the biggest and bloodiest that has yet been fought."{{sfn | Henderson | 1964 | p=171}}

After the [[Siege of Tournai (1709)|fall of Tournai]] on 3 September (itself a major undertaking),{{sfn | Chandler | 1989 | p=249|ps=:Coxe says the citadel fell on 4 September. Chandler describes the siege as one of the hardest fought and least pleasant of modern history. This time, Marlborough conducted the siege while Eugene commanded the covering force.}} the Allied generals turned their attention towards [[Mons, Belgium|Mons]]. Marshal Villars, recently joined by Boufflers, moved his army south-west of the town and began to fortify his position. Marlborough and Eugene favoured an engagement before Villars could render his position impregnable; but they also agreed to wait for reinforcements from Tournai which did not arrive until the following night, thus giving the French further opportunity to prepare their defences. Notwithstanding the difficulties of the attack, the Allied generals did not shrink from their original determination.{{sfn | Coxe | 1820 | p=58}} The subsequent [[Battle of Malplaquet]], fought on 11 September 1709, was the bloodiest engagement of the war. On the left flank, the [[John William Friso, Prince of Orange|Prince of Orange]] led his Dutch infantry in desperate charges only to have it cut to pieces; on the other flank, Eugene attacked and suffered almost as severely. But sustained pressure on his extremities forced Villars to weaken his centre, thus enabling Marlborough to break through and claim victory. Villars was unable to save Mons, which subsequently capitulated on 21 October, but his resolute defence at Malplaquet—inflicting up to 25% casualties on the Allies—may have saved France from destruction.<ref>Lynn: ''The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667–1714'', p. 335</ref>