then, and so it was a century later, for though none know better the superlative qualities of the French as a fighting people, yet the English are the one nation that has never been afraid to meet them. With the Peace of Ryswick the 'prentice years of the standing Army are ended, and within five years the old spirit, which has carried it through the bitter schooling under King William, will break forth with overwhelming power under the guiding genius of Marlborough.
Authorities.—The leading authority for William's campaigns
on the English side is D'Auvergne, and on the French
side the compilation, with its superb series of maps, by
Beaurain. Supplementary on one side are Tindal's History,
Carleton's Memoirs, and Sterne's Tristram Shandy; and on
the other the Mémoires of Berwick and St. Simon, Quincy's
Histoire Militaire de Louis XIV, and in particular the
Mémoires of Feuquières. Many details as to Steenkirk, in
particular, respecting the casualties, are drawn from Present State of Europe, or Monthly Mercury, August 1692, and as to
Landen from the official relation of the battle, published by
authority, 1693. Beautiful plans of both actions are in
Beaurain, rougher plans in Quincy and Feuquières. All
details as to the establishment voted are from the Journals of
the House of Commons. Very elaborate details of the operations
are given in Colonel Clifford Walton's History of the British Standing Army.
