Battle of Arras
1654 CE.
Shown on the map at 50.290°, 2.781°.
The Battle of Arras, known at that time as the "Secours d'Arras" 'i.e. Arras Aid, fought on 25 August 1654, was a victory of a French army under Turenne against a Spanish army commanded by Don Ferdinand de Salis and the Prince de Condé. The place, held by a French garrison, was besieged by the Spaniards under the Great Condé. A relief army under Turenne, d'Hocquincourt and de la Ferté attacked the Spanish lines and totally routed them with a loss of at least 7,000 men. Condé succeeded in rallying the remainder of his army and made a masterful retreat to Cambrai. Before the battle, Turenne risked exposing himself and his officers in order to reconnoitre the Spanish lines. He was criticised for taking such risks by some of his officers, but the Duke of York, the future King James II of England, later observed that these officers realised their error after they realised that Turenne had worked out where to attack during these reconnaissances. Turenne attacked at night, two hours before daybreak on 25 August. D'Hocquincourt attacked the troops from Lorraine, Turenne attacked the Spanish and provided support for de la Ferté, whose attack was less successful.
Text from the Wikipedia article Battle of Arras (1654), licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.