92

niSTOKY OF ENGLAND.

CHAP.

XIX.

HIM.

posts. About half a mile in advance of his army was encamped^a brigade named from the province of Bourbonnais. Thesetroops had to bear the first brunt of the onset. Amazed andpanicstricken, they were swept away in a moment, and ran fortheir lives, leaving them tents and seven pieces of cannon to theassailants.

Thus far William’s plans had been completely successful:but now fortune began to turn against him. He had been mis-informed as to the nature of the ground which lay between thestation of the brigade of Bourbonnais and the main encampmentof the enemy. He had expected that he should be able to pushforward without a moment’s pause, that he should find theFrench army in a state of wild disorder, and that his victoryW'ould be easy and complete. But his progress was obstructedby several fences and ditches: there was a short delay; and ashort delay sufficed to frustrate his design. Luxemburg wasthe very man for such a conjuncture. He had committed greatfaults: he had kept careless guard: he had trusted implicitly toinformation which had proved false: he had neglected informa-tion which had proved true: one of his divisions w r as flying inconfusion: the other divisions were unprepared for action.That crisis would have paralysed the faculties of an ordinarycaptain: it only braced and stimulated those of Luxemburg.His mind, nay his sickly and distorted body, seemed to derivehealth and vigour from disaster and dismay. In a short time hehad disposed every thing. The French army w-as in battle order.Conspicuous in that great array were the household troops ofLewis, the most renowmed body of fighting men in Europe; andat their head appeared, glittering in lace and embroidery hastilythrown on and half fastened, a crowd of young princes and lordswho had just been roused by the trumpet from their couches ortheir revels, and who had hastened to look death in the facewith the gay and festive intrepidity characteristic of French