the Battles of the Boyne and Fleurus along with the siege of Limerick. After the death of William III in 1702, the regiment went back to the Netherlands and during the War of the Spanish Succession (1702–1712) was the backbone of the Dutch Army. In that war, the Dutch Army was the second largest in Europe. In particular, the Dutch pioneered the development of platoon fire, which allowed infantry formations to fire continuously, which gave the Dutch an advantage in firepower over armies not using the platoon fire system. The Blue Guards of the Allied armies under the command of John Churchill, a British general, and distinguished themselves in the Battles of Malplaquet and Oudenaarde. They were not present at the Allied victory of Blenheim, but they greatly distinguished themselves at the Battle of Ramillies, under the command of Colonel Wertmüller, storming two French held villages on the Allied left. They also fought bravely and suffered heavy losses at Malplaquet, fighting under the command of the Prince of Orange on the Allied left flank. During the War of the Austrian Succession, they took part in the campaign in Germany in 1743, the Battles of Fontenoy and Rocoux and the defence of Brussels and of Bergen op Zoom. After the war, the Republic maintained a policy of strict neutrality. The Dutch Guards came into action once again during the campaigns of 1793 and 1794 against the armies of Revolutionary France. Disbanding After the Dutch Republic had been invaded by the French troops in 1795 and the Stadtholderate had come to an end, the Republic was reformed and became the Batavian Republic. The Dutch Guards and other guard units, as representatives of the Ancien Régime, were disbanded the same year. External links Total War Center discussion www.vlgn.nl References Military units and formations of the Netherlands Former guards regiments