moved
towards Lessines with his main army, to cover the siege.

The loss of Ghent and Bruges, the annoyances he suffered from party
attacks at home, and the failure of the allies to furnish the
promised contingents, so agitated Marlborough that he was seized
with an attack of fever.

Fortunately, on the 7th of July Prince Eugene arrived. Finding that
his army could not be up in time, he had left them, and,
accompanied only by his personal staff, had ridden on to join
Marlborough.

The arrival of this able general and congenial spirit did much to
restore Marlborough; and after a council with the prince, he
determined to throw his army upon Vendome's line of communications,
and thus force him to fight with his face to Paris.

At two in the morning of the 9th of July, the allies broke up their
camp, and advanced in four great columns towards Lessines and the
French frontier. By noon the heads of the columns had reached
Herfelingen, fourteen miles from their starting point, and bridges
were thrown across the Dender, and the next morning the army
crossed, and then stood between the French and their own frontier.

Vendome, greatly disconcerted at finding that his plans had all
been destroyed, ordered his army to fall back to Gavre on the
Scheldt, intending to cross below Oudenarde.

Marlborough at once determined to press forward, so as to force on
a battle, having the advantage of coming upon the enemy when
engaged in a movement of retreat. Accordingly, at daybreak on the
11th, Colonel Cadogan, with the advanced guard, consisting of the
whole of the cavalry and twelve battalions of infantry, pushed
forward, and marched with all speed to the Scheldt, which they
reached by seven o'clock. Having thrown bridges across it, he
marched to meet the enemy, his troops in battle array; the infantry
opposite Eynes, the cavalry extending to the left towards
Schaerken. Advancing strongly down the river in this order, Cadogan
soon met the French advanced guard under Biron, which was moving up
from Gavre. In the fighting the French had the advantage, retaining
possession of Eynes, and there awaiting the advance of the English.

Meanwhile Marlborough and Eugene, with the main body of the army,
had reached the river, and were engaged in getting the troops
across the narrow bridges, but as yet but a small portion of the
forces had crossed. Seeing this, Vendome determined to crush the
British advanced guard with the whole weight of hi