The French won at Fontenoy, near Tournai in modern Belgium, on 11 May 1745. Marshal Maurice de Saxe defeated the Allied army of the Duke of Cumberland, and Tournai fell shortly afterwards.
The two armies
Marshal de Saxe had about 70,000 to 75,000 men around Tournai, and the Allied army marching to its relief about 50,000 to 55,000. The Allies were British, Dutch, Hanoverian and Austrian troops.1
Losses differ by source. According to Encyclopædia Universalis, the victory cost the Allies 15,000 men and the French 7,000. John Rickard of HistoryOfWar.org writes instead that Cumberland kept his army together and retired with limited losses.2
The anecdote
A famous story says the British Guards invited the French Gardes Françaises to fire first. The story comes from Voltaire, who first reported it in 1768, and its reliability is doubtful.
Frequently asked questions
When and where was the Battle of Fontenoy?
It was fought on 11 May 1745 near Tournai, in what is now Belgium, during the War of the Austrian Succession.
Who won the Battle of Fontenoy?
The French, under Marshal Maurice de Saxe, defeated the Allied army of the Duke of Cumberland.
Is the "fire first" story true?
Its reliability is doubtful. It comes from Voltaire, reported in 1768.
Notes
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