Coalition Warfare Under The Duke Of Marlborough During The War Of The Spanish Succession by Frank J. Gehrki

Author:Frank J. Gehrki [Gehrki, Frank J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Pickle Partners Publishing
Published: 2015-11-06T00:00:00+00:00

COALITION WARFARE AT THE STRATEGIC LEVEL

The problems Marlborough faced at the strategic level of war were just as acute and just as debilitating to the war effort as those found at the operational level. These problems did not prevent the allies from achieving many of their national objectives, but they ultimately caused the Second Grand Alliance to obtain less than was possible.

Though defeat of France was the common objective of the coalition partners, each member state had its own national goals. England wanted to prevent the union of France and Spain, which would give France continental hegemony and would also threaten England’s sea supremacy. The Dutch wanted a barrier against French aggression in the Spanish Netherlands and felt threatened when the French controlled that region. The Austrian Empire wanted to gain Spanish territory in northern Italy to which it felt it had a hereditary right. Denmark and Prussia had little political interest and, with the German states, were content to provide forces and reap the monetary benefits from it.{20}

At the strategic level, Marlborough exercised power and authority not normally given a commander in a democratic society today. King William’s admiration of his military prowess, coupled with the recognition of his extreme favor with the royal successor, Princess Anne, earned him this massive power base.{21} His official posts included: Captain-General for the British forces in Flanders, allied commander-in-chief, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary for the King and Queen, and Master-General of the Ordnance.{22} As William III’s plenipotentiary, he negotiated the treaties that constituted the Second Grand Alliance.{23} Doing so gave him a perspective of how the various rulers and leaders stood with one another. He also established contacts with the leading Dutch who were to exert strong influence within the alliance. He established close working relationships with Heinsius, the Dutch Grand Pensionary or “Foreign Minister,” and with Count Wratislaw, the Empire’s Foreign Minister. In essence, Marlborough, in addition to being commander-in-chief, also served as foreign minister for England in planning and prosecuting the war.

Throughout the ten years of his service, Marlborough played the key role in negotiating military contributions by the alliance members. He spent the winter months moving from court to court where he paid respects to the heads of state of the supporting nations, advised them of his progress, and secured their support for the next year. As the war drug on, this became more difficult. In 1705, he visited the Courts of Prussia and Hanover and successfully secured their support in the face of a rising Swedish threat.{24} His diplomatic efforts secured Prussian troops for the 1706 campaign in Italy and staved off the collapse of the alliance.{25} In 1707, as the threat of aggression from Charles XII of Sweden again threatened the alliance, Marlborough personally interceded with the Swedish king and convinced him of the wisdom of taking his efforts into Russia. He also “bribed” Count Piper, Charles’ aide, to encourage his master east.{26} In 1709, he again persuaded the King of Prussia to provide 20,000 troops to

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