Battle of Dettingen
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The Battle of Dettingen (German: Schlacht bei Dettingen) took place on June 16 (some sources, no doubt using a different calendar, say June 27), 1743 at Dettingen in Bavaria during the War of the Austrian Succession. It was the last time that a British monarch, George II, personally led his troops into battle. The British forces, in alliance with those of Hanover and Hesse (the "Pragmatic Army" of 50,000 men), defeated an army of 70,000 French under the duc de Noailles.
During the battle, Lieutenant Colonel Sir Andrew Agnew of Lochnaw warned his Regiment The Royal Scots Fusiliers not to fire until they could “see the white’s of their e’en.” A noted wit, Sir Andrew is also quoted as addressing his regiment thus: "Lads, you see they loons (young men) on yon' hill. Better kill them afore they kill you." And to George II after the battle, who had (humorously) chided him for letting a French cavalry charge break into his Regiment's square: "An' it please Your Majesty, but they didna' gang oot again."
In memory of this victory, Handel composed his Dettingen Te Deum.
Dettingen has since 1947 been the name of one of the training companies at the UK's Royal Military Academy Sandhurst. In recent years it has been the training unit for short courses (for example the Territorial Army Officers' Commissioning Courses) run at the Academy.
External Links
The Battle of Dettingen 1743 (http://www.britishbattles.com/battle_of_dettingen.htm)de:Schlacht bei Dettingen fr:Bataille de Dettingen