eng: 
The French, who had begun only as allies, were now 
obliged to fuftain the whole burthen of the war, and ac¬ 
cordingly invaded their enemies on every fide. The troops 
fent to the queen’s affiftance by England, were commanded 
by the earl of Stair, an experienced general, who had 
learnt the art of war under the famous Eugene. The 
chief objedt which he had in view was to effect a junction 
with the queen’s army, commanded by prince Charles of 
Lorraine, and thus to out-number the enemy in the field. 
The French, to prevent this junftion, aflembled an army 
of fixty thoufand men upon the river Maine, A. D. 1743, 
under the command of marfhal Noailles, who ported his 
troops upon the eaft fide of that river. The Britifti forces, 
to the number of forty thoufand, pufhed forward on the 
other fide into a country where they found themfelves 
entirely dertitute of provifions. The' king of England 
arrived at the camp while his army was in this critical 
fituation ; wherefore he refolved to penetrate forward, to 
join twelve thoufand Hanoverians and Medians who had 
reached Hanau. With this view he put his army*in mo¬ 
tion ; but before he had marched three leagues, he found 
the enemy had furrounded him on every fide, near the 
village of Dettingen. Nothing now prefented but the 
moft mortifying profpedts ; if lie fought the enemy, it 
muft be at the greatert difadvantage ; if he continued in¬ 
active, there was a certainty of being fiarved ; and as for 
a retreat, that was impofiible. The impetuofity of the 
French troops faved his whole army. They parted a de¬ 
file, which they rtiould have been content to defend ; and, 
under the condudt of the duke of Grammont, their horfe 
charged the Englifh foot with great fury. They were 
received however, with intrepidity and refolution ; fo 
that they were obliged to give way, and repafs the Maine 
with precipitation, with the lofs of about five thoufand 
men 1 lie king of England, with great perfonal courage, 
exported himfelf to a fevere fire of the enemy’s cannon, 
and in the midft of the engagement encouraged his troops 
by his prefence and his example. The Englirti had the 
honour of the day. but were Coon obliged do leave the 
field of battle, which was taken pofleffion of by the French, 
who treated the wounded Englifh with clemency and care. 
Though the Englirti were victorious, yet the earl of Stair, 
who was commander in chief, did not aflame any honour 
from fuch a victory. He was unwilling to rtiare any glory 
which was fo precariously obtained, and {hatched rather 
from the enemy’s miftake, than gained by his conduCt. 
He therefore fulicited for leave to refign ; which being 
granted, the troops were led into quarters, and defifted 
from further operations that campaign. 
Meanwhile the French went on with vigour on every 
fide. They oppofed prince Charles of Lorraine, and 
fruftrated his attempts to pafs the Rhine. They gained 
fome fuccertes in Italy; but their chief hopes were placed 
upon an invafion of England. Louis XV. front the vio¬ 
lence of the parliamentary difptites, had been perfuaded 
that England was ripe for a revolution, and only wanted 
the prefence of the pretender to bring about the change. 
An invafion, therefore, was actually projected ; and prince 
Charles-Edward, the fon of Janies, the old pretender, 
liaftily departed from Rome for Paris, where lie had a 
flattering audience of the French king, who undertook 
to fupport his exertions to recover the crown of England 
for his father. The troops deftined for the expedition 
amounted to fifteen thoufand men ; and preparations were 
made for embarking them at Dunkirk to fome of the 
neareft ports in England, under the eye of the young pre¬ 
tender. The duke de Roquefeuille, with twenty (hips 
of the line, was to fee them fafe landed in England ; and 
the famous count Saxe was to command them, when put 
on-rtiore. But the whole.projeCt was difconcerted by the 
appearance of fir John Norris, who, with a fuperior fleet, 
made up to attack them. The invading armament was 
thus obliged to put back; a very hard gale damaged their 
tranfports ; and the French, fruftrated in their fcheme 
of a fecret invafion, thought fit openly to declare war, 
V.ol, VI. No, 385, 
i. A N D. 717 
But though fortune favoured England on this occafion, 
yet in other refpeCts file was not fo propitious. A pow¬ 
erful fquudron had been fent into the Mediterranean, to 
overawe thofe dates who might be inclined to lend aflifit- 
ance to France or Spain; which was conducted by Lef- 
tock ; but admiral Matthews, though a younger officer, 
was fent out to take the fuperior command ; which pro¬ 
duced a mifunderftanding between the two admirals. An 
opportunity foon offered for'thefe officers to di(cover their 
mutual animofity, to the manifeft injury of their country. 
The combined fleets of France and Spain, to the number 
of thirty four fail, were feen off' Toulon, and a fignal was 
made by Matthews to prepare for engaging. It happened 
that his fignals were not perfectly exaCt. This was a fuf- 
ficicnt excufe to LeftoCk for not bringing-up into his 
ftation ; fo that after fome vain efforts to attack the enemy 
in conjunction, Matthews refolved to engage by himfelf. 
One fliip of the line belonging to the Spanifli fquadron 
(truck to captain Hawke. The pnrfuit was continued for 
three days, at the end of which Leftock feemed to come 
up with more vigour ; but juft then Matthews gave or¬ 
ders for difcontinuing the chace ; and failed away for 
Port Mahon to repair the damage he had fuftained. The 
Englifh fleet claimed the victory; and the French and 
Spaniards were pleafed with their efcape. In England, 
however, this rencounter was confidered as the moft mor¬ 
tifying defeat, and the complaints of the people knew no 
bounds. Both admirals, upon their return, were tried 
by a court-martial. Matthews, who had fought with in¬ 
trepidity, was declared for the future incapable of ferving 
in nis majefty’s navy ; while Leftock, who had kept at a 
diftance, was acquitted with honour, for having entrenched 
himfelf within the punctilios of difcipline. He barely did 
his duty ; but a man of honour, when his country is att 
flake, will do more. 
The proceedings in the Netherlands were alfo unfa-,- 
vourable to the EngFfli. The French had aflembled a 
formidable army of one hundred and twenty thoufand 
men, the chief command of which was given to the fa¬ 
mous count Saxe, natural fon to the king of Poland. He 
had been bred from his youth in camps, and had (hewn 
very early inftances of cool intrepidity. To oppofe this 
experienced general, the Engliih were headed by the duke 
of Cumberland, who neither pofTefled equal talents for 
war, nor was able to bring fuch a formidable army into 
the field. The French, therefore, bore down all before 
them. They befieged Fribourg, and in the beginning of 
the fucceeding campaign, inverted the ftrongcity of Tour- 
nay. Although the allies were inferior in number, they 
refolved, if poffible, to fave this city by hazarding a 
battle. They accordingly marched againft the enemy, 
and took port in fight of the French, who were encamped 
on an eminence, having the village of St. Antoine on the 
right, a wood on the left, and the town of Fonteney be¬ 
fore them. This advantageous fituation did not reprefs 
the ardour of the Englifh, who began the attack at two 
o’clock in the morning, and, prefling forward, bore down 
all oppofition. They were for near an hour vidlorious, 
and appeared confident of fnccefs; while marfhal Saxe, 
who was extremely ill, was carried about to all the ports 
in a litter, and allured his army that, notwithftanding all 
unfavourable appearances, the day was his own. A co- 
lemn of the Englifh, without any command, but by mere 
mechanical courage, had advanced upon the enemy’s lines, 
which opening, formed an avenue on each fide to receive 
them. It was then that the French artillery, on three 
fides, began to play upon this forlorn body, which, though 
they continued for a long time unffiaken, were obliged at 
laft to retreat, about three in the afternoon. This was 
one of the moft bloody battles fought in the feventeenth 
century ; the allies left on the field of battle near twelve 
thoufand men, and the French bought their vidtory with 
an equal number of (lain. This blow, by which Tournay 
was taken by the French, gave them fuch a manifeft fu- 
periority all the reft of the campaign, that they kept the 
8 U. fruits i 
