Battle of Saint-Denis (1678)

Battle of Saint Denis

Part of: Dutch War

date	14.-15. August 1678
place	Saint-Denis (Mons) , Belgium
output	draw

Parties to the conflict
France	United Netherlands Spain
Commander
Maréchal de Luxembourg	William III. (Orange)
Troop strength
Unknown	Unknown
losses
2,500 dead and wounded	4,500 dead and wounded

St-Denis-en-Brocqueroie Abbey, Quartier des Maréchal de Luxembourg

The Battle of Saint-Denis took place on August 14th and 15th, 1678 near the village of Saint-Denis (near Mons ) in Belgium. The commanding officer on the French side was François-Henri de Montmorency-Luxembourg , his opponent was Wilhelm III. of Orange-Nassau with a combined Dutch-Spanish-English force.

It was the last battle of the Dutch War and, curiously, it only took place after the peace treaty had been signed with the Dutch on August 10th.

The battle

Since May 1678 Mons was besieged by the French army, the headquarters of the Maréchal de Luxembourg was in Écaussinnes in the Benedictine abbey of Saint-Denis-en-Brocqueroie. The treaty between France and Spain had not yet been signed at the time, as the French were constantly raising new objections - in the hope of taking Mons quickly beforehand.

William of Orange's troops, stationed near Brussels , have meanwhile been marched to end the siege by force. After his arrival on the scene, the two armies faced each other, separated by the course of the Obrecheuil river.

A report of the conclusion of the peace treaty reached the camp of the Dutch governor on August 13th, but was not of an official nature. On the morning of August 14th, Godefroi d'Estrades brought the same news to the Maréchal de Luxembourg. He was about to relay the message to the Dutch camp when he learned that the Orange and his army were forming to attack. Luxembourg then felt that his honor compelled him to accept the challenge.

A bloody battle broke out between the villages of Thieusies, Casteau and Saint-Denis. Wilhelm himself fought on the front line, but could not achieve more than an undecided outcome of the battle. Luxembourg itself withdrew from the siege of Mons, whereupon peace negotiations with Spain finally advanced. Finally it was signed by the Spanish on September 17, 1678.

The battle, pointless and without any effect, was one of the bloodiest of the whole war. The Allies lost 4,500 and the French 2,500.

Famous participants in the battle

James Scott , son of Charles II , commanded an Anglo-Dutch brigade in battle and was able to excel in battle.

Menno van Coehoorn (the "Dutch Vauban") was involved, as was the later Marshal Heinrich von Nassau-Ouwerkerk , who saved the life of Wilhelm von Nassau in the battle by knocking down an attacker who had his pistol already on the prince's chest Had brought stop.

Web links

• La bataille de Saint-Denis de 1678. Website of the Association des Sites des Villages de Mons (ASSIVIMO)
• Bataille de Saint-Denis. In: M. Mignet: Négociations relatives à la succession d'Espagne sous Louis XIV ( full text in the Google book search)
• Saint-Denis. Website of the city of Mons

Coordinates: 50 ° 30 ′ 28 ″  N , 4 ° 1 ′ 49 ″  E