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The Battle of Fontenoy 1745 by James Falkner  We all have favorite Wars, Generals, and Battles, well this one ch...

The Battle of Fontenoy 1745 by James Falkner The Battle of Fontenoy 1745 by James Falkner

The Battle of Fontenoy 1745 by James Falkner

The Battle of Fontenoy 1745 by James Falkner




The Battle of Fontenoy 1745

by

James Falkner






 We all have favorite Wars, Generals, and Battles, well this one checks the boxes on all three of my lists. Maurice de Saxe was not only a great general, but also one of the eighteenth century's greatest thinkers and writers on the subject of war. Some of the changes in armies that he wrote about were utilized by Napoleon and generals since then. 

 Maurice de Saxe, or more correctly Arminus-Maurice de Saxe, was one of 354 illegitimate children sired by Augustus II 'The Strong' of Saxony (if most people in Asia are related to Genghis Khan, surely a lot in Europe are related to him!). He was the first of only eight illegitimate children that Augustus would recognize. His life in warfare started at the early age of twelve when he went to war against France in the War of The Spanish Succession. Oddly enough, he rose to be a Marshal of France. His counterpart on the English side of the battle of Fontenoy was William Augustus, The Duke of Cumberland. He was the third child of George II of England. These two generals would be the head of each of the separate armies to clash at Fontenoy. 

 The book is misnamed by the author. It not only describes the actual battle of Fontenoy, but goes back in time to describe all of the events that led to The War of The Austrian Succession (also called the Pragmatic War, because of the Pragmatic Sanction). Maria-Theresa of Austria was the oldest living female offspring of her father, Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI. The Pragmatic Sanction was a treaty that most of Europe had signed that allowed a female to take over the Austrian Hapsburg Realms. In actuality, everyone was waiting for the death of Charles to either attack or defend Austria. First and foremost among them was Frederick II of Prussia (Frederick The Great). With the death of Charles the games began.

 The author describes in detail the coming of the war and the events that led to the Battle of Fontenoy. The book continues after the battle to show the reader the '45' and the meteoric career of Bonnie Prince Charlie. The author goes into the Duke of Cumberland's subsequent history after the battle of Fontenoy, and his fall from grace and gradual rise again. The part of the book on the actual Battle of Fontenoy does however, leave the reader wanting more detailed information about the actual battle. You do get the movements and attacks etc. of the units involved, just not to a depth I would have liked to see. If the book had been named more appropriately, my misgivings about the actual information on the battle would be lessened. It is still a very good book about an era in history that not much at all has been written about. Hopefully, that will change soon. Thank you Casemate Publishers for allowing me to review this book. It is an easy recommendation for someone who is looking for information on the War of the Austrian Succession, and not just because of the dearth of other sources.

Robert

Book: The Battle of Fontenoy 1745
Author: James Falkner
Publisher: Pen & Sword
Distributor: Casemate Publishers



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