The Duke of Marlborough

Full title:

Captain-General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough

Dates:

1650-1722

Claim to fame:

General of King James, King William and Queen Mary and Queen Anne, victor of Blenheim, Ramillies, Oudenarde and Malplaquet against the French.

Nickname:

"Corporal John" - a term of endearment from his soldiers for his care of them.

John Churchill’s (1650-1722) long career as soldier and statesmen spanned the ranks of five monarchs, but his greatest military success came very late in his career - if he had died before he was 50 it is unlikely that he would be remembered today. His triumphs were not only due to his talents as a soldier but also as a result of politics and patronage.

The son of a gentry family impoverished in the Civil War, Marlborough joined the Army in 1667. He rose steadily, acting as second-in-command at the battle of Sedgemoor (1685), and later commanding English troops in Flanders and Ireland, but his greatest success came in the War of the Spanish Succession (1702-14), where Britain fought with a coalition of European powers to contain French expansion.

In 1702 Marlborough was appointed Captain-General of the allied forces. Although one of England’s senior generals, he was not a natural choice, and was even regarded as reckless by some of his contemporaries. He was soon to prove that, unusually for a commander of his era, he was prepared to manoeuvre to bring about a decisive battle, and was then able to react quickly and decisively as the tactical situation developed.

In 1704, to relieve French pressure on his Austrian allies, Marlborough marched his army some 400 km from Flanders to Bavaria, where he joined forces with the Imperial general Prince Eugene of Savoy. Their combined armies faced the French near the village of Blenheim. Although outnumbered and facing an enemy in a strong natural position, Marlborough nevertheless attacked. Realising that the French position did not allow troops to be moved easily around the battlefield, Marlborough pinned down the French flanks and then delivered a crushing blow against his enemy’s weakly defended centre. The French army suffered its first major defeat for forty years, losing over 30,000 casualties and having its commander-in-chief captured.

In 1706 Marlborough repeated this feat at the battle of Ramillies. After launching an attack on the French left flank, he skilfully transferred troops, out of sight of the French, to reinforce his centre, where he then attacked and broke the enemy line. He followed up this victory with four successful sieges, which allowed the allies to control the entire Southern Netherlands. It was the most successful campaign of Marlborough's career. By skilful battlefield manoeuvres, Marlborough achieved another crushing victory at Oudenarde in 1708, and although the allies suffered massive casualties in the drawn battle of Malplaquet in 1709, French expansion had been finally halted.

Marlborough’s battlefield successes were combined with personal courage, wider organizational and political skills, a gift for logistical planning, and the ability to co-operate effectively with his allies, especially the Dutch, who contributed the largest number of troops to Marlborough’s army, and were largely responsible for keeping it supplied. Marlborough was always concerned about the welfare of his soldiers and was thus able to gain their trust and confidence. These many qualities ensure his reputation as one of Britain’s greatest generals.

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, Captain-General of the English forces and Master-General of the Ordnance, c1702. Oil on Canvas, attributed to Michael Dahl (c1659-1743).

NAM 2000-06-146

"The Duke of Marlborough’s attention and care was over all of us."

Corporal Matthew Bishop, 1708.