BOOK III. The king of England, having marched back his 1095. army to Rouselaar, left the command to the prince

de Vaudemont; and at the head of a grand division of the troops joined the elector of Bavaria and the earl of Athlone, and took the command of the covering army before Namur. The season, far from being remarkably rainy, as was the case in 1692, was now so dry that the convoys of provision and ammunition could not be sent up the Sambre and Maese for want of water. The main body of the forces, late under the separate command of M. Boufflers, having joined M. Villeroi, that general was expected to march to the relief of the besieged. But the prince of Vaudemont being posted in an exposed situation three leagues only from the French camp, he determined first to attack and destroy this inferior enemy, and then to proceed on his expedition to Namur. The presumption of the prince de Vaudemont in choosing so indefensible a position has incurred the severe censure of that great military critic M. de Feuquieres; who at the same time remarks of M. de Villeroi," that he was as blind as Fortune herself, who had so undeservedly bestowed this opportunity upon him." For, when the enemy was thus evidently in his power, the maréchal resolved, in opposition to all the instances that could be made to the contrary, to defer the attack till the next day. But the prince, sensible of his danger, made in the mean time ad

Retreat of

de Vaude

mirable dispositions for a retreat. He posted his BOOK III. cavalry in a manner so artful as to conceal the 1695. complicated manœuvres of the infantry; and a grand movement taking place with the utmost Celebrated exactness and regularity, the French with amaze- the Prince ment saw a whole army vanish as it were from mont. before their eyes at once. Towards the close of the evening, the prince reached the plain of Oyendonck, where he designed to have taken post but recollecting, as he afterwards said, a maxim of the great duke of Lorraine, "that, when an army is retreating, it must be sure to retreat beyond the enemy's reach," he continued his march all the night, after refreshing his troops, and by nine in the morning found himself perfectly safe under the walls of Ghent.

The retreat was extremely admired and celebrated by all military judges; and the king of England wrote with his own hand a letter to the prince, in which he compliments him by saying, that it demonstrated more consummate skill in the art of war than if he had won a battle.*

* The following is a translated copy of king William's lette to the prince de Vaudemont:

"You cannot believe how much your letter of yesterday noon, which I received this morning by break of day, disturbed me. On the other side, how joyful I was upon the receipt of the other letter, dated from Mary-kirk, near Ghent, this day, at three in the morning. I am much obliged to you; for in

BOOK III.

1695.

Maréchal Villeroi was compelled to content himself with the capture of the petty fortresses of Dixmuyde and Deynse, which he dismantled, and detained the garrisons contrary to the conditions of the cartel established between the belligerent powers.

In the mean time the siege of Namur was carried on with the greatest vigor and success, under the direction of the celebrated Coehorn. The allied generals seemed to feel that they had no longer a Luxemburg to contend against, and exerted themselves with unusual activity and perseverance. The king and the elector inspired courage in every breast, by sharing the toils and dangers of the siege equally with the men whom they commanded. On the storming of the first counterscarp, the king remaine exposed in the trenches a considerable time to a very hot cannonade from the enemy; which killed several persons about him, and among the rest Mr. Godfrey, deputy governor of the bank, who came over to establish certain regulations relative to the army remittances; and was curious to see

this retreat you have given greater marks of a general, consummate in the art of war, than if you had gained a victory. I absolutely approve of your conduct upon this occasion; and I hope it will hinder the enemy from undertaking any thing farther of the same nature. Nevertheless, I shall be impatient till I know which way they bend their march, since this blow has failed them."

1095.

something of the nature of military attacks.* BOOK IL On the 4th of August 1695, the town was surrendered by count de Guiscard, on condition of being allowed to withdraw the garrison into the citadel. M. Villeroi now advanced with his forces as if determined to attempt the relief of the castle: but on a sudden he defiled with his whole army towards Brussels, at that time the residence of the electress of Bavaria, to whom a polite message was sent by the maréchal, that he had orders to bombard the place, but would spare the quarter where she had her abode. This terrible menace was immediately put in execution; above 2000 bombs and a prodigious number of red-hot shot were thrown into the place, a great part of which was in consequence laid in ruins. This was said to be a retaliation upon the English for the bombardment of the French maritime towns. gardless of this barbarity, the siege of the citadel of Namur was continued with unabating vigor; and M. Boufflers, fearing a speedy surrender, and

Re

The following conversation is said to have passed between the king and Mr. Godfrey, a very few minutes before the can, non-ball came which deprived the latter of his life.-KING. "As you are no adventurer in the trade of war, Mr. Godfrey, I think you should not expose yourself to the hazards of it."— GODFREY. "Not being more exposed than your majesty, should I be excusable if I shewed more concern?"-KING. "Yes: I am in my duty, and therefore have a more reasonable claim to preservation."-RALPų.

1695.

BOOK m. dreading the disgrace of a capitulation, formed a desperate attempt to break through the allied camp with his cavalry, but was prevented by the vigilance of the king. On the 21st of August the batteries opened with a general discharge from 166 pieces of cannon and sixty mortars; so that the very hill on which the castle is situated seemed, according to the strong expression used on this occasion, "to reel with the violence of the shock." On the 28th of August M. Villeroi, having received a great reinforcement from the Rhine, took post at Gemblours, and drew out his 'army in battalia as near the allies as the ground would permit. On the other hand the king quitted his lines, and made every disposition to receive his attack. But in the night the maréchal decamped, and retreated along the banks of the Mehaigne. A general assault was made on the castle the day succeeding this retreat; and, after a dreadful carnage on both sides, a lodgment was made near an English mile in extent. Preparations being in a few days in forwardness for a second assault, the governor, count de Guiscard, desired to speak with the elector; and an offer was made to surrender the Coehorn fort. But the elector refusing to treat for less than the whole, M. de Boufflers consented to a capitulation-terms the most honorable being granted to the garrison. The king of Great Britain had there

* Ralph.