The Wars of the 1700s
26th Sept 2025
The War of the Spanish Succession
In 1702 dispute over who would take the throne of Spain led to war among the European powers.
John Churchill, now Duke of Marlborough, commanded the army in Europe which included the First Guards. In 1704 their Grenadier Company spearheaded an attack on the Schellenburg fort in Bavaria, capturing it in an hour and half. Casualties had been terrible with only 21 out of the 82 grenadiers surviving. Six weeks later on the 13th August the Battle of Blenheim took place and the First Guards won the Battle Honour ‘Blenheim’. Fighting continued and in 1708 the Coldstream Guards joined the army for the victorious battle at Oudenarde and in 1709 at Malplaquet.
In 1704 Gibraltar was captured from the Spanish and a Composite Guards battalion was formed of First Guards and Coldstream to help defend it. They acquired the Battle Honour ‘Gibraltar’ for its defence and then assisted the capture of Barcelona the following year. But this early success ended in failure two years later with surrender at Almanza and another force defeated at Brihuega in 1710. This force included the Scottish Foot Guards.
In 1707 the Act of Union between England and Scotland was completed and the Scottish Foot Guards were no longer based in Scotland.
War of Austrian Succession
In 1740 dispute over who would take the throne of Austria led to another European war.
All three Foot Guard regiments took part in this campaign which was the last time a King led his forces in battle. George II achieved a victory at Dettingen on 27th June 1743. He then gave command to his son the Duke of Cumberland who was defeated at Fontenoy 11th May 1745. The Guards kept up disciplined volley fire and stood firm against repeated French attacks for three hours.
The Seven Years War
In 1756 war broke out again and in 1758 a Guards Brigade was formed from the 1st Battalions of all three Guard regiments. At St Malo they were heavily defeated, 800 were killed and as many captured. In 1760 a Guards Brigade under General Julius Caesar was sent to Germany to support our allies against the French. They saw little decisive action.
The American War of Independence
Following the declaration of Independence by the American colonies in 1775, and the failure of British Forces to end the rebellion, Britain sent reinforcements. This included a composite battalion from all three regiments and on arrival in 1776 New York was quickly captured. This was the second time the Coldstreams had captured the city. The Guards were involved in many actions but it was only at Brandywine Creek 1777 and in North Guilford Carolina in 1781 that they played a major role.
The British Army had to adapt to fighting an enemy that did not follow the tactics and methods of European armies. The Guards gained Light Companies to fight more independently than their regular units. Ultimately however, the British were defeated at Yorktown and on the 19th October 1781 Cornwallis surrendered with his entire force of 6,000 men including some 500 men of the Guards Brigade.
Sign up to our mailing list
To keep up to date with news and special events.