Fontenoy 1745 ─ Cumberland's Bloody Defeat

A disputed succession to the Austrian throne led to general war between the leading powers of Europe in 1740, with France, Spain and Prussia on one side, and Britain, Hapsburg Austria and the Dutch Republic on the other. While fighting occurred across the globe, the bloodiest battles were fought on the European continent, with none more costly than the battle of Fontenoy in 1745.

Fearing an encirclement of France by a resurgent Hapsburg-controlled Austria, the French commander Marshall Saxe planned to overrun the Austrian Netherlands, thereby dealing a decisive blow against their enemy's ability to wage war. Saxe's army, the cream of the French military, invaded and set up a defensive position at Fontenoy, near Tournai--daring his enemies to knock him off his perch. This title, beautifully illustrated with full color plates, is an in-depth study of the British Duke of Cumberland's attempt to assault Saxe's position. It focuses on the inability of allied leaders to coordinate their attacks and how Cumberland came within a whisker of achieving a major victory.

Born in London in 1964, Mike McNally is an acknowledged expert on the Williamite War in Ireland and acted as a consultant in a recent study of President Barack Obama's Irish roots. Married, with three children, he is the author of best-selling studies of the pivotal battles of the Boyne and Aughrim is is currently studying the role of the Irish Brigade in French service from the Boyne to Fontenoy. The author of several books for Osprey, with his varied areas of interest he continues to research such diverse subjects as Irish military history, the campaigns of Marlborough and the German colonial campaigns during World War I.

Sean O'Brogain lives and works in Donegal, Ireland. He has a BA (Hons) in scientific and natural history illustration from Blackpool and Fylde College (Lancaster University).