Battle of Rocoux

The Battle of Rocoux took place on 11 October 1746 during the War of the Austrian Succession, near Rocourt, Liège in Belgium. It was fought between a French army under Marshal Saxe and a combined British, Dutch, German and Austrian force led by Charles of Lorraine, Earl Ligonier and Prince Waldeck.

Despite a series of victories in Flanders, by 1746 France was struggling to finance the war, and opened bilateral peace negotiations with Britain at the Congress of Breda in August. While Rocoux confirmed French control of the Austrian Netherlands, Saxe failed to achieve a decisive victory, and the two armies went into winter quarters to prepare for a new campaign in 1747.

When the War of the Austrian Succession began in 1740, Britain was still fighting the War of Jenkins' Ear with Spain; from 1739 to 1742, the main area of operations was in the Caribbean. British and Dutch troops initially fought as part of the Pragmatic Army; it was not until March 1744 that France formally declared war on Britain, while the Dutch Republic officially remained neutral until 1747.

French victory at Fontenoy in April 1745 was followed by the capture of the key ports of Ostend, Ghent and Nieuwpoort, while the Jacobite rising of 1745 forced the British to transfer troops to Scotland. In early 1746, the French took Leuven, Brussels and Antwerp, but they were close to financial collapse, prompting Foreign Minister d'Argenson to open peace talks.

The British still hoped to retrieve their position, and in April, Ligonier assumed command of British and Hanoverian troops for a new offensive in the Austrian Netherlands. However, Austria had acquired these territories in 1713 largely by default, and had little interest in fighting to regain them, while Dutch trade was badly affected by the war. These factors played an important role in the 1746 campaign.

Often referred to as Flanders, the Austrian Netherlands was a compact area 160 kilometres wide, the highest point only 100 metres above sea level, and dominated by canals and rivers. Until the 19th century, commercial and military goods were largely transported by water and wars in this theatre generally fought for control of rivers such as the Lys, Sambre and Meuse.

In mid-July, the Pragmatic Army prepared to defend Namur; leaving the Prince de Conti to finish with Charleroi, Saxe cut their supply lines, forcing them to retreat. By late September, Namur had fallen and the Allies moved to protect Liège, the next town on the Meuse. Most estimates of the numbers suggest between 70,000 and 75,000 Allied troops faced a French force of 110,000 to 120,000.

Anchored on the left by the Liège suburbs, the Allied line ran through Rocoux to the River Jeker; the Dutch under Waldeck held the left, the British and Germans in the centre and the Austrians, who formed the largest part of the army, on the right. The Allied position was divided by several rivers and deep ravines, making the movement of troops across it almost impossible; in the ensuing battle, this meant the Austrians played little part in the heavy fighting which took place on the Allied left and centre.