At Fontenoy in the Austrian Netherlands, Maurice de Saxe, though gravely ill and carried on a litter, out-maneuvered the Duke of Cumberland's advancing column with concentrated artillery and infantry fire. King Louis XV watched the battle from nearby high ground. The victory boosted French morale and became legendary in French military memory, later invoked by Napoleon.
The battle turned on a single dramatic moment: a massive British and Hanoverian infantry column, having broken through French lines, advanced deep into enemy territory but found itself unsupported and exposed. French artillery and the Irish Brigade, exiles fighting for France, wheeled in and shredded the column at close range.
Marshal de Saxe, suffering from dropsy and barely able to stand, directed the battle from a wicker litter, a detail that became part of French military legend. His calm improvisation under pressure impressed even his enemies.
The victory did little to change the war's ultimate outcome, but it cemented Fontenoy as a touchstone of French martial pride, commemorated in songs and paintings for generations, and it made de Saxe one of the most celebrated commanders of the 18th century.
Key people: Maurice de Saxe, Louis XV, Duke of Cumberland