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The Battle of Fontenoy, 11 May 1745,〔This article uses the Gregorian calendar (unless otherwise stated). See the article Old Style and New Style dates for a more detailed explanation of the dating issues and conventions.〕 was a major engagement of the War of the Austrian Succession, fought between the forces of the Pragmatic Allies – comprising mainly Dutch, British, and Hanoverian troops under the command of the Duke of Cumberland – and a French army under Maurice de Saxe, commander of King Louis XV's forces in the Low Countries. The battle was one of the most important in the war and considered the masterpiece of Marshal Saxe, serving France; King Louis XV, and his son, the Dauphin, were present at the battle. Napoleon I later declared that the victory at Fontenoy prolonged the ''Ancien Régime'' monarchy in France by 30 years.〔Black: ''Britain as a Military Power'', 68〕 Saxe went on the offensive in April 1745 with a large French army, looking to build on the previous year's gains. His initial aim was to take control of the upper Scheldt basin and thereby gain access to the heart of the Austrian Netherlands. To these ends, he first besieged the fortress of Tournai, protecting the siege with his main force about 5 miles (~9 km) south-east of the town. In order to relieve Tournai, the Allies first decided to attack Saxe's position – a naturally strong feature, hinged on the village of Fontenoy and further strengthened by defensive works. After failing to make progress on the flanks – the Dutch on the left, Brigadier Ingolsby's brigade on the right – Cumberland decided to smash his way through the centre without securing the flanks of his main attack. Despite devastating flanking fire the Allied column, made up of British and Hanoverian infantry, burst through the French lines to the point of victory. Only when Saxe concentrated all available infantry, cavalry, and artillery was the column forced to yield. The Allies retreated in good order, conducting a fighting withdrawal. The battle had shown, however, the strength of a defensive force relying on firepower and a strong reserve. Casualties were high on both sides, but the French had gained the field, and Tournai fell shortly after the battle. This success was followed by a rapid advance against the less organised and outnumbered Allied army: Ghent, Oudenarde, Bruges, Dendermonde soon fell to French forces. The British army's withdrawal to England to deal with the Jacobite Rising facilitated the French capture of the strategically important ports of Ostend and Nieuwpoort, threatening Britain's links to the Low Countries. By the year's end, the Saxon-born Saxe had completed the conquest of much of the Austrian Netherlands, and with his successes he became a national hero in his adopted country. The battle had established the French superiority in force and high command. ==Background== In 1744, France went over to the offensive in the Low Countries. King Louis XV and the Duke of Noailles scored early successes with the capture of the frontier fortresses of western Flanders: Menin, Ypres, and Knocke fell in June, while Furnes was taken in July. The whole southern sector of maritime Flanders was soon in French hands, but the strategic situation abruptly changed when Prince Charles of Lorraine led 70,000 Imperial troops across the Rhine and into Alsace.〔Browning: ''Austrian Succession,'' 173; Skrine: ''Fontenoy'', 99–100〕 To counter this threat, Louis XV and Noailles led large reinforcements south, while Maurice de Saxe, illegitimate son of Augustus II the Strong and, since March, a Marshal of France, was left in charge in Flanders with a reduced army of between 50,000 to 60,000 men facing an allied army of 96,000.〔White: ''Marshal of France'', 138; Browning: ''Austrian Succession,'' 173–74〕 Opposing Saxe was the Pragmatic Army, the bulk of which was made up of British and Hanoverian troops under General George Wade, and Dutch troops under Prince Maurice of Nassau. Much had been expected of the Allies in 1744 but the timidity of their generals had produced nothing against a numerically inferior enemy. Although Wade eventually advanced towards Lille, he did little more than bicker with the Austrians about the cost of moving his siege train from Antwerp.〔Black: ''Britain as a Military Power, 1688–1815,'' 66〕 Saxe was able to maintain his position at Courtrai and along the lines of the Lys, and remained relatively untroubled throughout. ''In part'', the risible results of the Allied campaign in the Low Countries had led to the fall of the Carteret government in Britain, leading to a new administration led by Henry Pelham and his brother, the Duke of Newcastle.〔Browning: ''Austrian Succession,'' 195〕 Elsewhere, the Pragmatic Allies had scored considerable success in late 1744. A joint Austro-Saxon force under Charles of Lorraine and Count Traun drove Frederick II's Prussian army from Bohemia; and Piedmont-Sardinia had expelled the Bourbons from northern Italy. Further success followed with the death in January 1745 of the French puppet, Emperor Charles VII. When his successor, Maximilian III Joseph, hesitated over peace proposals, the Austrians launched a rapid campaign, culminating in April with the Franco-Bavarian defeat at the decisive Battle of Pfaffenhofen. Max Joseph sued for peace and gave his support for the candidacy of Maria Theresa's husband, Francis Stephen, in the coming Imperial election for the vacant throne.〔Browning: ''Austrian Succession,'' 203〕 With Bavaria out of the war the Austrians could now try to win back Silesia from Frederick II. Likewise, Bavarian repudiation of its French ties meant France was freed of its German involvement, and could now concentrate on its own military efforts in Italy and the Low Countries.〔Browning: ''Austrian Succession,'' 204〕 As early as December 1744, Saxe had prepared plans for a spring offensive in the Low Countries. He had made up his mind not only what he would do, but what he would compel his enemy to do, correctly calculating the operational and political difficulties that such a diverse opponent would face.〔Charteris: ''Duke of Cumberland'', 168〕 This opponent comprised Britain, the Dutch Republic, Austria, and Saxony, who had concluded the defensive Treaty of Warsaw in January 1745 – the Quadruple Alliance – by which all contractants committed themselves to uphold the Pragmatic Sanction and the House of Austria's claim to the Imperial crown.〔Simms: ''Three Victories and a Defeat'', 336–37〕 To the Low Countries, the British sent the son of King George II, the 24-year-old Duke of Cumberland, as the new Captain General of Britain's army, while Maria Theresa sent the experienced Count Königsegg to command Austrian forces. The trio of generals was completed by Prince Waldeck, commander of the Dutch contingent in theatre. They hoped to gain the initiative by the establishment of forward magazines and an early opening of the campaign season. Major supply and ammunition depot magazines were set up for the British by General Ligonier at Ghent, Oudenarde and Tournai, while the Dutch General Vander – Duyn placed theirs at Mons, Charleroi and Tournai.〔Rolt, pp. 170–173.〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Battle of Fontenoy」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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