A war commenced in 1672 between the French monarch and the States General of Holland; King Charles II. of England also declared war against the Dutch; and a British force, commanded by the Duke of Monmouth, was sent to France to co-operate with the army of Louis XIV. in an attack upon Holland. Douglas' Regiment had, in the meantime, been augmented to sixteen companies, and when the army took the field, it formed two battalions; and was in the division of the army commanded by Marshal Turenne. Several fortified towns were captured by the main army; and in June, Douglas' Regiment, being encamped in the vicinity of Nimeguen, was detached with several other corps under the Comte de Chamilly to besiege Grave. The attack on the town commenced towards the end of June, and in the early part of July the governor surrendered. A number of the subjects of the British crown, who had entered the service of Holland, being found in garrison, they were permitted to engage in the service of Louis XIV., and were received as recruits in Douglas' Regiment.[52] In August the regiment was withdrawn from the vicinity of Grave, and ordered to join the forces under Marshal Turenne.
1673
In 1673 eight thousand British troops served with the French army, and were engaged in the siege of Maestricht, in which service they evinced signal gallantly; and in repulsing a sally of part of the garrison, the Duke of Monmouth, Captain Churchill (afterwards the great Duke of Marlborough), and twelve private men of the English Life Guards (a squadron of which corps was serving with the French army), highly distinguished themselves.[53] The town surrendered on the 2nd of July.
1674
Before the following year King Charles II. concluded a treaty of peace with the Dutch Republic; but his Majesty did not withdraw the whole of his troops from France; and during the campaign of 1674 Douglas' Regiment, with the Scots regiment of Hamilton, and the English regiments of Monmouth and Churchill, served with the French army on the Rhine, commanded by Marshal Turenne. In the early part of June, Douglas' Regiment was encamped near Philipsburg,[54] a town in the west of Germany about half a mile from the Rhine, and was formed in brigade with the French regiments of Plessis and La Ferté, with a battalion of detachments, commanded by Brigadier-General the Marquis of Douglas.[55]
The opposing armies having taken the field, Douglas' Regiment was suddenly withdrawn from the vicinity of Philipsburg, and, after crossing the Rhine, advanced towards the ancient city of Heidelberg, to prevent the junction of the forces under the Duke of Lorraine and the army commanded by the Duke of Bournonville. This movement brought on several skirmishes, in which the regiment took part; it was also engaged in a sharp action on the 16th of June, when the Imperialists were defeated; and in the accounts of this action published at the time, the conduct of the regiment is spoken of in terms of commendation.
After chasing the enemy out of the Palatinate, the regiment retired with the army across the Rhine, to join the reinforcements from Alsace and other places; and after the arrival of these troops, the army re-passed the Rhine, and Douglas' and two other regiments were detached to the vicinity of Landau, and ordered to encamp within a league of the town. The regiment was subsequently detached towards Manheim, and, after taking part in several operations, in the beginning of October it was encamped at Lavantzenaw, in Alsace.
Information having been received that the Germans had passed the Rhine and advanced to Molsheim, the French and British troops quitted their camp about an hour after midnight on the 3rd of October, and after a march of several hours, arrived at the enemy's camp, and attacked them with great spirit. The conflict took place amongst woods and broken grounds, and the British troops displayed signal gallantry, fighting with a spirit and resolution which the enemy could not withstand. Many officers and men fell, yet the conflict was continued, and Lord Duras (afterwards Earl of Feversham) had three horses killed under him. Eventually the enemy were driven from the field, with the loss of ten pieces of cannon, thirty standards and colours, and several prisoners.[56]
The Germans were subsequently reinforced by a number of fresh troops, when Marshal Turenne retired with the French and British forces, and took up a position near Saverne in Alsace, by which he prevented the Imperialists deriving much advantage from their superiority of numbers.