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Recommended Reading
The War of the Austrian Succession, By Reed Browning
Guibert: Father of Napoleon's Grande Armée, By Jonathan Abel
Ep 7: The Battle of Fontenoy
On October 11, 1746, over 200,000 soldiers clashed along the banks of the River Meuse in one of the largest land engagements of the 18th century. Following his conquests of Brussels, Antwerp, and Namur, French Marshal Maurice de Saxe sought to crush the remaining Allied forces defending the Austrian Netherlands and gain a decisive bargaining chip for ongoing European peace negotiations.
Arrayed against Saxe was a fragile 80,000-man Allied coalition composed of British, Dutch, Hanoverian, Hessian, and Austrian troops under Prince Charles of Lorraine. Hampered by political bickering over command precedence and the "posts of honor," the Allies found themselves backed against the Meuse River with their left flank exposed after the townspeople of Liège opened their gates to the French..
As heavy morning fog lifted over rain-soaked fields, Saxe launched massed infantry columns supported by mobile 8- and 12-pounder artillery batteries against the stone-walled "breakwater" villages of Lier, Varoux, and Rocoux. What resulted was hours of brutal, close-quarters combat. Though the villages eventually fell under overwhelming weight of numbers, a masterclass delaying action by Sir John Ligonier and Prince Waldeck allowed the Allied army to extricate itself across the Meuse in good order, preserving their force to defend the fortress of Maastricht .
What you're missing...
Patreon subscribers in The War Room unlock a full uncut episode (an additional 20 minutes) exploring the broader operational and historiographical significance of Rocoux:
The Peak of 18th-Century Army Sizes: Why Flanders was one of the few European theaters capable of logistically sustaining 200,000 men, and why field armies would not reach this scale again until the Napoleonic Wars.
Proto-Corps & Task-Specific Formations: How Saxe and his Chief of Staff, Crémille, managed an unmanageable army by pioneering semi-independent task forces—the evolutionary ancestor of the modern corps system [104–106, 116–121].
The Art of Contesting Villages: A deep-dive analysis comparing village strongpoints at Rocoux to later engagements like Ligny, Waterloo, and Leuthen.
Chapter Timestamps
00:00 – Cold Open & Introduction: High stakes on the River Meuse
03:45 – Post-Fontenoy Landscape: Saxe’s conquests & French peace-table bargaining
08:15 – Command Friction: Prince Charles of Lorraine & the dispute over the "posts of honor"
14:30 – The Princeling Problem: How Saxe managed insubordinate Royal Princes Conti & Clermont
19:50 – Fog, Rain, & The Fall of Liège: Damp terrain and open town gates
25:10 – The Breakwater Villages: Defensive preparation in Lier, Varoux, & Rocoux.
31:40 – Saxe’s Offensive: Massed infantry columns and mobile heavy guns
38:00 – Ligonier’s Masterclass: Saving the Allied army across the Meuse
44:15 – [WAR ROOM EXCLUSIVE] Why 18th-Century Armies Peak at Rocoux
50:30 – [WAR ROOM EXCLUSIVE] Proto-Corps & Divisional Task-Groups
56:45 – [WAR ROOM EXCLUSIVE] Methodists in Redcoats: Samson Staniforth’s Journal
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Recommended Reading
Frederick the Great: A Military Life By: Christopher Duffy
 Research on Saxon Army Loyalty & Desertion By: Markus von Salisch
Episode Summary
In October 1756, the Seven Years' War in Europe opened at Lobositz along the Elbe River. Fearing an anti-Prussian coalition, Frederick the Great launched a pre-emptive invasion of neutral Saxony, blockading 20,000 Saxons at Pirna. When Austrian Field Marshal Ulysses Maximilian von Browne marched north with 35,000 men to relieve them, the two armies collided in heavy morning fog
Blinded by mist, Frederick mistook the main Austrian army for a weak rearguard and launched ill-fated cavalry charges into marshy ground. Meanwhile, a brutal infantry brawl raged through the stone-walled vineyards of the Lobosch mountain. Believing the battle lost, Frederick departed, leaving command to Field Marshal James Keith. Subordinate commander August Wilhelm von Braunschweig-Bevern rallied ammunition-depleted Prussian battalions to charge with fixed bayonets, pushing back the Austrians and securing a costly tactical victory. The win delayed Austrian relief long enough to force the total surrender of the Saxon army at Pirna, turning occupied Saxony into Prussia’s vital war chest.
Chapter Timestamps
00:00 – Intro & Geography: Setting the stage in the Elbe River Valley
03:15 – The Pirna Blockade: Frederick’s invasion of Saxony & the race against time
07:30 – Meet the Commanders: Frederick, Keith, & Bevern vs. Von Browne & Hadek
12:45 – Fog of War: 5:30 AM reconnaissance & the Homocaburg heavy battery
17:20 – The Cavalry Blunder: General Kyau’s 59 squadrons charge into marshy ground
22:10 – The Vineyard Scrum: Close-quarters brawling on the Lobosch mountain
27:45 – "Skewer the Dogs": Bevern’s bayonet charge & ammunition redistribution
32:30 – House-to-House Fight: Clearing Lobositz & Von Browne’s orderly retreat
37:15 – Desertion & Aftermath: The story of Swiss mercenary Ulrich Bracher 
41:50 – The Surrender at Pirna: Capturing Saxony as Prussia's financial war chest
 Exclusive Patron Content: What’s Missing in the Free Version?
The full, uncut version contains over 30 minutes of strategic context and command analysis cut from the public release:
[46:30] The Diplomatic Revolution: Kaunitz's anti-Prussian alliance & Maria Theresa's military reforms.
[51:15] Frederick’s Forced-Draft Mistake: Drafting 20,000 captured Saxons into the Prussian army, triggering mass desertions.
[55:40] Modern Command Lessons: Small-unit initiative, ammo management, and bayonet charges, drawing direct parallels to Joshua Chamberlain at Gettysburg.

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Following the 1745 capture of Louisbourg, British ministers redirected General James St. Clair's Quebec-bound army to launch a surprise amphibious assault on Lorient, the primary Atlantic depot and shipyard of the French East India Company (Compagnie des Indes). Co-commanded by St. Clair and the contentious 70-year-old Admiral Richard Lestock, the 1746 Lorient Expedition quickly devolved into a logistical fiasco. Discover how this "feeble and fruitless" raid, naval duels in Quiberon Bay, and flawed strategic lessons directly shaped British military policy throughout the War of the Austrian Succession and the Seven Years' War.
Key Discussion Points
Redirecting the Canadian Invasion: How shipping bottlenecks aborted the 1746 Quebec campaign and forced ministers to pick Lorient off a map.
Amphibious Friction at Anse Pouldu: The mechanics of a smooth beach landing ruined by a lack of artillery transport and militia ambushes on Brigadier O'Farrell's column.
Naval Duels & The Loss of the Ardent: The engagement between HMS Exeter and the crippled French 64-gun warship Ardent, culminating in its accidental burning by civilian transport crews.
Flawed Strategic Lessons: How French troop transfers from Flanders convinced British planners that coastal raids were a silver-bullet strategy for the next decade.
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Recommended Reading:
The War of the Spanish Succession by James Falkner
Prince Eugene of Savoy by James Falkner
Episode Summary
For continental European powers in 1706, fighting against France was like being in a cage match with an 800-pound gorilla. Unlike the British, who had the English Channel to keep the French at arm's length, smaller states like Piedmont-Sardinia faced a life-and-death struggle against the towering ambition of Louis XIV. Join hosts Lee Gugino, Dr. Alex Burns, and Dr. Andrew Bamford as they venture into the critical Italian theater of the War of the Spanish Succession.
In this episode, we dissect the monumental Siege of Turin, where a massive French army of 60,000 men besiege the capital of the Sabaudian lands. We also trace how Victor Amadeus II broke out of the besieged city to link up with the legendary Habsburg general Prince Eugene of Savoy. Together, they executed a remarkable 300-mile relief march in just 24 days. From the intense underground war of counter-mining to the final, bloody bayonet charge of the Prussian troops, we cover how a smaller allied force managed to shatter the lines of a superior enemy in one of the most decisive victories of the era.
"What Are You Missing?" (Edited vs. Uncut Edition)
To keep the public feed moving, we've focused primarily on the grand strategy and the main battle. However, our War Room members on Patreon get the full, uncut experience, including 10 minutes of exclusive content and host banter:
Habsburg Arms: Andrew and Alex discuss how this battle is a high point in Austrian military history and how that effects later battles.
Modern Leadership Lessons: Alex talks about the lessons, from this historic battle, that can be useful to modern leaders.
Episode Highlights & Timestamps
[00:00] – The Cage Match: The geopolitical stakes of the War of the Spanish Succession.
[15:15] – The House of Savoy: Victor Amadeus II and the militarized Sabaudian lands.
[31:30] – Eclipsing the Sun King: The solar eclipse of May 12 and its psychological impact.
[45:45] – Pietro Micca’s Sacrifice: Tunnels, gunpowder charges, and the defense of the Citadel.
[1:05:00] – The Lightning Campaign: Prince Eugene of Savoy's rapid 200-mile relief march.
[1:22:15] – Storming the Lines: Leopold van Anhalt-Dessau, the Prussian advance guard, and the heavy toll of the assault.
[1:38:00] – The Aftermath & Superga: Why Victor Amadeus II built one of northern Italy’s most spectacular basilicas.
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Episode Summary
Today in 1776 General Sir William Howe launched his attack on Washington's army on Long Island. In this episode, hosts Dr. Alex Burns, Dr. Andrew Bamford, and Lee Gugino are joined once again by National Park Service historian Jason Wickersty. 
In this episode, we'll talk about how the British lost the initial race to  occupy New York and how Charles Lee turned the city into a fortress. We'll also talk about the Howe brothers' preparation and experience made them well suited for the operation. Then, we'll dive straight into the tactical movement: Grant’s feint on the left, the Hessian push in the center, and Howe's silent night march through the unguarded Jamaica Pass.
"What Are You Missing?" 
To keep the public feed moving, we’ve focused on the tactical timeline. However, our War Room members on Patreon get the full UNCUT experience, including over 20 minutes of content:
Clinton's "Genius": Historians often sight Sir Henry Clinton as the real military genius but we discuss how at the time of the Battle of Long Island he did not inspire much confidence from his superior. 
Failure in the South: We talk about the British failed expedition to the southern colonies and how it effected the New York Campaign.
Strategic and Operational Differences: Jason explains how Howe's and Lord Germain's expectations for the campaign differed and how that effected the course of the operation. 
Maryland Regt: We talked about the famous Marylanders who held the line against the British Army and allowed the American Army to escape.
Modern Equivalencies: Lee and Jason discuss how the tactics of the British Army on Long Island mirror tactics outlined in modern military publications.
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