Battle of Dettingen

Battle of Dettingen
Part of the War of the Austrian Succession
File:Horse Guards Charge.jpg Charge of the Horse Guards
Date 27 June, 1743 Location Dettingen, Bavaria Result Decisive Allied victory
Belligerents
Great Britain, Hanover, Austria	France
Commanders and leaders
George II	Adrien-Maurice, duc de Noailles
Strength
35,000 98 guns	26,000 56 guns
Casualties and losses
2,500	4,000

The Battle of Dettingen (German: Schlacht bei Dettingen) took place on June 16 (June 27 according to the Gregorian calendar, which the British had not officially adopted), 1743 at Dettingen in Bavaria during the War of the Austrian Succession. It was the last time that a British monarch, George II, personally led his troops into battle. The British forces, in alliance with those of Hanover and Hesse (the "Pragmatic Army" of 35,000 men), defeated an army of 26,000 French under the duc de Noailles.

Quotations

During the battle, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Andrew Agnew of Lochnaw warned his Regiment The Royal Scots Fusiliers not to fire until they could “see the white’s of their e’en.” A noted wit, Sir Andrew is also quoted as addressing his regiment thus: "Lads, you see they loons (young men) on yon' hill. Better kill them afore they kill you." And to George II after the battle, who had (humorously) chided him for letting a French cavalry charge break into his Regiment's square: "An' it please Your Majesty, but they didna' gang oot again."

Legacy

In memory of this victory, Handel composed his Dettingen Te Deum.

Dettingen has since 1947 been the name of one of the training companies at the British Army's officer training academy. In recent years it has been the training unit for short courses (for example the Territorial Army Officers' Commissioning Courses) run at the Academy. Additionally, it is the name of 4 (Dettingen) Troop at Army Training Regiment Winchester.

References

• Chandler, David. The Art of Warfare in the Age of Marlborough. Spellmount Limited, (1990): ISBN 0-946771-42-1

External links

• The Battle of Dettingen 1743