Battle of Oudenarde

Battle of Oudenarde
Part of the War of the Spanish Succession
Duke of Marlborough at the battle of Oudenaarde (painting by John Wootton)
Date 11 July 1708 Location near Oudenaarde, in modern Belgium Result Grand Alliance victory
Belligerents
Great Britain  Austria  Prussia  Dutch Republic	France
Commanders and leaders
Duke of Marlborough Prince Eugene of Savoy Henry de Nassau, Lord Overkirk	Louis, duc de Bourgogne Duc de Vendôme
Strength
105,000	100,000
Casualties and losses
3,000 dead and wounded	6,000-7000 dead and wounded 7,000–8,000 prisoners

The Battle of Oudenarde (or Oudenaarde) was a battle in the War of the Spanish Succession fought on 11 July 1708 between the forces of Great Britain, the Dutch Republic and the Holy Roman Empire on the one side and those of France on the other. It took place at Oudenaarde (now in Belgium) and was a great victory for the allies.

Great Britain, the Netherlands, and the Holy Roman Empire were horrified at the thought of a union between Spain and France which caused them to ally against France, beginning the War of the Spanish Succession. The commander of the allied armies was John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, whose chief deputy was the commander of the Empire's army Prince Eugène of Savoy, who was his close friend.

Meanwhile, the two French army commanders were very quarrelsome. Louis Joseph, duc de Vendôme was a seasoned, experienced soldier. The Duke of Burgundy had considerably less experience and owed his position to the fact he was the grandson of the King, Louis XIV of France.

Marlborough's army consisted of about 90,000 men (112 infantry battalions and 197 cavalry squadrons) just south of Brussels. Eugène's forces were assembled at Coblenz, in modern Germany. These two areas were somewhat far apart, while the French army's 100,000 soldiers (130 battalions and 216 squadrons) were concentrated near Mons, in modern Belgium.

At this time, the French commanders began quarrelling. Vendôme wanted to attack the city of Huy, which could draw Marlborough in pursuit. The eventual plan adopted, however, (under orders from Louis XIV) was to attack Flanders. The army moved eastward, until they reached the city of Braine-l'Alleud, which was about 25 km south of Brussels, and also threatened the nearby city of Leuven. Marlborough placed his forces a few miles south of Leuven, in order to cover both threatened cities.

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