and this he accomplished, falling back upon Bavay. His soldiers left the field not scattered nor singly nor as men defeated, but in serried ranks and compact masses as men ready at any moment if need were to renew the conflict. In the whole action which had lasted seven hours they had lost less than 500 prisoners and very few pieces of cannon. Of standards and colours they had taken full as many from the Allies as the Allies had taken from them. As to the slain it will presently be shown that they had inflicted a loss far more heavy than they had sustained. On the whole then, after so many and such great reverses in their campaigns against Marlborough and Eugene, a defeat so well contested by themselves, and so dearly bought by their opponents, seemed to them almost an equivalent of victory. Thus Marshal Villars in one of his reports to his King, dated a few days afterwards, thought himself justified in saying: "If God in his goodness should vouchsafe to us to lose such another. battle your Majesty may consider your enemies annihilated! "6 With respect to the numbers we cannot indeed assent to the exaggerations of Villars, whose undoubted gallantry was only too often dashed with gasconade. He goes the length of declaring that the Allies had lost 30,000 men and his own army only 6,000. The most careful computations, derived from different sources, make out that the French loss was not less than 12,000, while that of the Allies exceeded 20,000. Such as it was however the disproportion afforded an argument to those politicians in England who desired to • Lettre au Roi du 14 Septembre | Succession d'Espagne, vol. ix. p. 1709 Mémoires militaires de la 377. prove how much of nerve and vigour the French armies still retained. As Bolingbroke wrote: "A deluge of blood was spilt to dislodge them, for we did no more, at Malplaquet." 7 If we trace the mind of Marlborough during these events as revealed in his most secret correspondence, we shall find a strange amalgam of the petty and heroic the most insignificant vexations commingled with the highest public cares. The Duchess had written to him lately in her usual strain of imperious violence, reproaching him bitterly because he had not, as she demanded, reproached the Queen. The passion of his wife struck with tremor that great chief whom no peril in the field could discompose. He answered her on the day before the battle with expressions such as these: "I can take pleasure in nothing so long as you continue uneasy and think me unkind. I do assure you, upon my honour and salvation, that the only reason why I did not write was that I am very sure it would have had no other effect than that of being shown to Mrs. Masham. In the meantime I cannot hinder saying to you that though the fate of Europe if these armies engage may depend upon the good or bad success, yet your uneasiness gives me much greater trouble." The battle being fought and over Marlborough added a postscript as follows the same evening: "I am so tired that I have but strength enough to tell you that we have had this day a very bloody battle; the first part of the day we beat their foot and afterwards their 7 Letters on History from bers see especially Coxe's MarlChanteloup, 1735. Letter viii. borough, vol. v. p. 64. For the computation of the num horse. God Almighty be praised it is now in our power to have what peace we please, and I may be pretty well assured of never being in another battle; but that, nor nothing in the world, can make me happy if you are not kind.” But Marlborough was not content with compliments like these; he offered also an unconditional surrender. He wrote to his consort a few days afterwards undertaking to do what he had hitherto declined-namely despatch a letter to the Queen of the purport that the Duchess had asked. Nay more, lest Her Grace should consider him lukewarm in his language, he sent her a draft of his intended letter, that she and Godolphin might correct it as they pleased, and that he might afterwards transcribe and send it—which they and he did accordingly. It is more pleasing to contemplate another feature by which the character of Marlborough was at all times most highly distinguished his tender care of the wounded. As he rode over the field of Malplaquet next morning he surveyed with deep emotion the numbers of the dead and dying, as strewed along the plain or heaped upon each other. He could not sleep on the two ensuing nights, and was seriously indisposed for some days; and, as is observed by himself in a letter of the time to Godolphin, "the lamentable sight and thoughts of it has given me so much uneasiness that I believe it the chief cause of my illness." But his sympathy had been shown in deeds. He had at the first despatched Cadogan to the outposts, there to hold a parley with one of the French officers, and propose a suspension of arms for two days during which the dead might be buried and the wounded be relieved. This was readily agreed to and Marlborough gave most careful directions for seeking out and assisting the French wounded, many of whom, officers and soldiers, had crept away into the neighbouring woods, where they would certainly have perished but for this timely aid. It was probably from the great number of the slain at Malplaquet and from the severe illness of Marlborough immediately afterwards, that a rumour of his having fallen in the battle spread through some of the French provinces. Thence appears to have arisen the wellknown ditty "Malbrook s'en va en guerre," which relates how the tidings of his death were brought to his consort from abroad. But the great popularity of this song dates only from 1781, when a village nurse used it as a lullaby at the cradle of an infant Dauphin.8 Mons became the prize of Malplaquet. The investment of that city was as soon as possible commenced by the army of Eugene, and covered by the army of Marlborough. While they vigorously pressed the siege, divers plans to raise it were discussed in vain by Marshal Boufflers who continued in command, and Marshal Berwick who had recently joined him from the frontiers of Savoy. The breaches being declared practicable on the 20th of October, the Governor beat a parley and the garrison capitulated. With this success ended the campaign. Marlborough and Eugene, having disposed their troops in winter-quarters, repaired to Brussels and from thence to the Hague. On the Rhine the Elector of Hanover had been as be Notice par P. L. Jacob: Chants populaires de la France, vol. iii. M. Jacob adds of Marlborough: "Faute de pouvoir le vaincre on essaya de le chansonner." fore most tardy in taking the field, and most inactive after he had taken it. A detachment of his army was indeed sent to the southward under Count Mercy; it crossed the Rhine near Basle and attempted the invasion of Alsace. But a counter-detachment of the French army under Count de Bourg engaged it near Neuberg, when Mercy was totally defeated, and compelled to fall back to Germany with heavy losses. In Dauphiny there was in truth no campaign at all. The Duke of Savoy was offended at the slackness of the Court of Vienna in sending him supplies, and at its jarring pretensions to certain districts in the north of Italy. He sullenly remained in his palace at Turin leaving the command of the troops to Count Daun, who attempted little and did nothing. Nor yet in Spain was there much achieved. The siege of the citadel of Alicant had continued ever since the close of the preceding year. Stanhope was eager to relieve it and went to Port Mahon there to expedite the fleet. With about 4,000 troops on board he appeared in Alicant Bay, but was baffled by tempests and contrary winds, and succeeded only so far as to obtain favourable terms for the two English regiments which formed the garrison and which had defended the place with the greatest gallantry. These regiments he embarked and brought back to Barcelona. In the summer Staremberg and Stanhope mustered their army on the Segre, but found it too feeble for any offensive operations. They could do little more than maintain one bank of the river while Marshal Bezons with the French and Spaniards held the other. On the frontier of Portugal, the Allied troops, English and Portuguese, had as chiefs conjointly the Earl of Galway and the Marquis de Fronteira. Advancing |