Page:Cassell's Illustrated History of England vol 4.djvu/233

A.D.1706] found Philip's besieging army too numerous to engage with. On the 8th of May, however, Sir John Leake, who had sailed from Lisbon with thirty ships of the line, showed himself in the bay, and the count de Toulouse sailed away for Toulon without attempting to strike a blow; and Philip no sooner saw himself abandoned by the French fleet, and in danger of an attack from both land and sea, than he made as hasty a retreat, leaving his tents with the sick and wounded behind him. Philip had recalled the duke of Berwick to his service, who had only been dismissed because he was no favourite with the queen, and he was posted on the Portuguese frontiers. But, notwithstanding this, the earl of Galway crossed these frontiers with an army of twenty thousand men, took Alcantara, and made prisoners of the garrison, amounting to four thousand men. He then advanced on Madrid, lord Peterborough engaging to meet him, with king Charles, at the capital. At his approach Philip fled with his queen to Burgos, carrying with him all the valuables he could convey, and destroying what he could not take. About the end of June the earl of Galway entered Madrid without resistance, and, had the earl of Peterborough, with the king, met him, according to agreement, the war would have been at an end. But Peterborough, who, had he been at liberty to act as he pleased, would have soon been in Madrid, was sorely hampered by the imbecile king Charles had reached Saragossa, and been acknowledged sovereign of Aragon and Valencia; but he was afraid of advancing towards the capital, lest they should be cut off by the enemy. In vain did Peterborough urge and entreat, and show the necessity of dispatch to meet Galway. The wretched monarch had made his chief councillor the prince of Lichtenstein, who had none of the brilliant, dashing qualities of Peterborough, and against that dead German weight Peterborough strove in vain. The timid, stupid king remained immovable; till Galway, finding himself unsupported in Madrid, and that the Spaniards looked with indignation on an army of Portuguese with a heretic general in possession of their capital, took his departure. Meantime king Philip and the duke of Berwick had met, and, on the frontier, had received fresh reinforcements from France. They, therefore, returned, and availed themselves of Galway's unfortunate position to recover the capital. Galway evacuated the place on their approach without a blow, and retreated towards Aragon to form a junction with Peterborough and the king. On the 6th of August Charles and Peterborough came up with Galway at Guadalaxara; but, notwithstanding this increase of force, nothing could persuade the dastard Austrian prince to advance. Peterborough, who had all the fiery temperament of a hero of romance instead of the patience of Marlborough, which had so often triumphed over German pride and Dutch phlegm, lost all patience and gave up the enterprise.



He returned to the coast of the Mediterranean, and with him went all chance of Charles of Austria securing the Spanish throne. Peterborough set sail with a squadron to endeavour to aid the duke of Savoy, the victory of Eugene not yet having occurred.

When Peterborough was gone, nothing but distraction raged in the camp of the confederates. Lord Galway could assert no supreme command against the prince of Lichtenstein and the Portuguese general; every one was at variance with his fellow officer, and all were disgusted with the Austrian councillors of Charles, and with his inert and hopeless character. The duke of Berwick, availing himself of their divisions, marched down upon them, and they made a hasty retreat towards Valencia and the mountains