Page:Historyoffranc00yong.djvu/173

 VIM. POWER OF THE CROWN. I49 Cevennes revolted under Cavalier, which acted as a diversion in favour of the allies. In 1703 the French arms were, on the whole, successful in Germany, but two new powers, Savoy and Portugal, joined the allies. The next years, 1704 to 1706, were among the most important of the war. In the beginning of 1704 Austria itself was in great danger from the French and Bavarians, and the two great generals of the allies, Marlborough and Eugene, came severally from the Netherlands and from Italy. They gave battle to the French marshals, Villars and TalLird, on the banks of the Danube, on the 19th of August, 1704. The battle is called by the French Hochsiedt, by the English Blenheim, and it proved a most crushing defeat to France. It cleared Bavaria from tlie P^rench, and Eugene then went to assist his cousin Victor Amadeus, whose domi- nions were being ravaged by the Duke of Vendome, while Marlborough returned to Flanders. Meanwhile Philip the Fifth was reigning over Spain and the Sicilies. But early in 1704 the Archduke Charles tried to enter Spain by way of Portugal. This attempt was unsuccessful, but it was at this point that Gibraltar was taken by the English, and has remained in the English possession ever since. In 1705 Charles, with the help of the English under the Earl of Peterborough, lande'd in Catalonia, where the people were strongly on his side, and in the next year he was able to enter Madrid. During both these years the French were also unsuccessful in Italy. They succeeded for a moment in 1706, when Eugene was absent and Vendome commanded the French. But when Vendome was recalled and Eugene came back, things were changed. The French had now occupied all the Savoyard dominions except Turin, which was besieged. It was the custom for the princes of the family of Lewis XIV. to make campaigns with the army, without any authority, and safely kept out of harm's way. His nephew, Philip, Dtike of Orleans, was thus with the army in Savoy, but under the orders of two generals. La Feuillade and Marsin, against whose fatal blunders he remonstrated in vain. There was a great battle at Turin, were Orleans was wounded and Marsin killed ; Feuillade tore his hair instead of giving orders, 20,000 out of 50,000 men were lost, and all French designs on Italy were so utterly ruined that Eugene and the Duke of Savoy marched into Provence. Meanwhile the Imperialists drove the French and Spaniards out of the kingdom of Naples. The same year, 1706,