Battle of Seneffe

The Battle of Seneffe was fought on 11 August 1674 between French army under the command of Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé and the Dutch-German-Spanish army under William III of Orange.

During the Franco-Dutch war, William III commanded a Dutch-German-Spanish army through the southern Netherlands into the territory of Northern France. France defended this area with an army under Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé. For five weeks the two armies manoeuvred without getting into combat with each other. On the 10th of August, William III decided to head for Paris in order to force the enemy into fighting.

Condé sent a detachment of about 500 horsemen to keep the Dutch vanguard busy near the village of Seneffe, blocking the advance of William. In the meantime, Condé tried to surround the 60,000 allied troops with the 45,000 men at his disposal.

The horsemen managed to keep the Dutch vanguard busy, but the envelopment of the main allied force failed. After ten hours Condé had 8,000 dead or wounded and William - 11,000, with the allied troops retreating from the battlefield.

Reception of the Grand Condé at Versailles following his victory at Seneffe. Condé advances towards Louis XIV in a respectful manner with laurel wreaths on his path, while captured enemy flags are displayed on both sides of the stairs. It marked the end of Condé's exile, following his participation to the Fronde.

References

• Lynn, John A. The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667–1714. Longman, (1999). ISBN 0-582-05629-2