Henry de Nassau, Lord Overkirk (Dutch: Hendrik van Nassau-Ouwerkerk) ( – 18 October 1708) was a Dutch States Army officer who was a second cousin of William III of England. He would come to play a prominent role in wars against the Kingdom of France, and led the Dutch army during the battles of Ramillies and Oudenarde. While Lord of Ouwerkerk and Woudenberg in the Netherlands, the English called him "Lord Overkirk" or "Count Overkirk".
Life Born in The Hague to Louis of Nassau-Beverweerd (illegitimate son of Maurice of Nassau, Prince of Orange) and his wife Isabella van Hoorn, Ouwerkerk was baptised there on 16 December 1640. Granted the title Count of Nassau (graaf van Nassau) by the Emperor Leopold I in 1679, he joined William III's invasion of England in 1688, and was appointed the king's Master of the Horse the following year. He resided in London, notably at Overkirk House, which later became part of 10 Downing Street.
Ouwerkerk died on 18 October 1708 at Roeselare in modern-day Belgium and is buried the Nassau-LaLecq Crypt at Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, Netherlands. His widow continued to live at Overkirk House until her own death in 1720.
Franco-Dutch War and Nine Years' War
Already in his youth, Ouwerkerk entered military service. He first took part in the Franco-Dutch War and was wounded in the Battle of Seneffe. Some time later, he saved William III's life in the Battle of Saint-Denis. Prince William, who himself was fighting in the thick of the action, was so close to the enemy that the knight d'Esclainvilliers was already putting a gun to his chest when Ouwerkerk shot the Frenchman out of his saddle. This act was gratefully acknowledged by the States-General, with the gift of an honour guard, magnificent pistols and golden ornaments. William immediately made him a captain, and since then he accompanied William on most of his campaigns.
In 1688, at the start of the Nine Years' War, he accompanied William III during his invasion of England. He later took part in the Williamite War in Ireland, fighting at the Battle of the Boyne. After the battle, his force of 1,000 horsemen was the first to enter Dublin. Back on the continent, he drove off the French cavalry at the Battle of Leuze. In 1692, he fought the French again at the Battle of Steenkerque. The following year, Ouwerkerk gained great fame as colonel of the Dutch Horse Guards at the Battle of Landen. When the French broke through the entrenchments and their cavalry poured into the open plain behind them, English and Dutch horsemen mounted a desperate rearguard action to buy time for the rest of the army to retreat. Ouwerkerk's guards overran two French squadrons, pushed through a third, and captured several standards and prisoners. In doing so, he played a key role in saving much of the Allied army.
During the 1695 campaign, he commanded the cavalry in the army of Prince de Vaudemont, which covered the Allied forces besieging Namur. He was promoted to major-general on 16 March 1696, and to full general in 1697. After naturalising him as an English citizen, William III also appointed him Chief Marshal.
War of the Spanish Succession In 1702, he served under the joint command of Marlborough and the Earl of Athlone. During the Siege of Venlo, a dispute arose with General Obdam. Ouwerkerk had been appointed General of the Cavalry in 1701, while Obdam received the same rank in 1702. As a result, Obdam sought to alternate command with Ouwerkerk, but Ouwerkerk insisted on retaining sole authority. A temporary compromise was reached by assigning Obdam to lead the cavalry at Venlo, while Ouwerkerk commanded the cavalry with the field army.
In February 1703 Athlone died which created another complex dilemma for the Dutch regenten, as both Obdam and Ouwerkerk were eligible to succeed Athlone. Both men had long and distinguished military careers behind them and belonged to the most prestigious families in the country. Like all officers of the time, they were highly sensitive about matters of promotion and seniority. It was therefore decided to postpone the appointment to Field Marshal. Since two armies were needed, they could be assigned separate commands to avoid serving under each other. Obdam led the Siege of Bonn under Marlborough, while Ouwerkerk took command of the army that covered the siege near Maastricht.
Action at Tongeren and Maastricht
However, the English troops assigned to Ouwerkerk's army were slow to arrive. On 9 May, while Marlborough and Obdam were still besieging Bonn, Villeroi and Boufflers advanced on Tongeren with 57 battalions and 103 squadrons. They knew that Ouwerkerk's forces were not yet at full strength due to the delayed English reinforcements and that his Dutch troops were scattered across their cantonments. Their aim was to overrun Tongeren and catch Ouwerkerk's army off guard. However, the two battalions stationed there managed to hold out for an entire day before surrendering, buying Ouwerkerk enough time to withdraw under the protection of Maastricht's guns. By the time the English troops finally arrived, his force had grown to 38 battalions and 71 squadrons.
Despite their significant numerical advantage, the French did not immediately press the attack, instead allowing four days to pass without action. This gave the Allies valuable time to strengthen their positions. However, unaware of the full size of the French force, Ouwerkerk had not fortified all locations equally. It wasn't until the night of 13 to 14 May that the French army advanced, but progress was slow due to darkness and heavy rain. By around seven o'clock, both armies were finally positioned for battle.
The right flank of the Allied position was anchored on the brook flowing past Lonaken into the Meuse, while the left was shielded by the artillery of Maastricht. In front of the left wing lay the village of Caberg, where a contingent of troops was stationed. Between Caberg and the right flank, the front line was bordered by a partially sunken road, with the remaining defences bolstered by hastily constructed entrenchments.
At first, the French seemed poised to attack the right flank, but around four in the afternoon, Villeroi judged an assault to be too risky and ordered a retreat. This decision dealt a significant blow to French morale and undermined confidence in their commanders. For the Allies, who had narrowly avoided a potentially disastrous defeat, this turn of events was tantamount to a victory. Ouwerkerk's leadership was widely celebrated throughout the army.
Promotion and independent command
After the capture of Bonn, it was decided to lay siege to Antwerp. Ouwerkerk joined Marlborough at the main army, whose task was to keep the main French force occupied. Meanwhile, Obdam, together with the renowned but notoriously difficult engineer-general Menno van Coehoorn, was assigned two smaller divisions with the task of breaking through the French lines and encircling Antwerp. On 27 June, Coehoorn's division succeeded in breaching the lines, but because Marlborough and Ouwerkerk failed to keep Villeroi's army occupied, a Franco-Spanish force surrounded Obdam's detachment. In the ensuing Battle of Ekeren, Obdam became separated from his troops, fled the battlefield, and sent word that his army had been annihilated. When it later became clear that General Slangenburg had preserved the force, Obdam fell into disgrace and was never again entrusted with command in the Dutch army.
This incident once again highlighted the poor relations between the various generals in the Allied army. Slangenburg and Coehoorn despised each other, while Count Noyelles also harboured a deep dislike for Slangenburg. Marlborough and Ouwerkerk, according to the Earl of Albemarle, did not get along at the start of the campaign either. Marlborough and Albemarle both agreed that waging war under these circumstances was impossible. Although the relationship between Marlborough and Ouwerkerk improved significantly, Ouwerkerk remained, according to Albemarle, highly stubborn and refused to take advice from anyone. Nicolaes Witsen wrote about the generals: "It resembles the wrath of Babel, in confusion and division of sentiments." Unsurprisingly, the rest of the campaign proved largely unsuccessful.
In August. The Duke of Marborough, dissatisfied with the gains made that year, hoped to be allowed to plan an attack on the fortified French lines defending Brabant. However, his proposal divided the council of war. The generals of the right wing of the army, supported Marlborough. However, the left wing of Ouwerkerk consisting mainly of Dutch generals, such as Dopff and Albemarle, was strongly opposed to they plan. The officers of the small army under Slangenburg also opposed the plan. Strong opposition and the fact that some of Marlborough's original supporters, cooled in their zeal ultimately meant that the Dutch field deputies did not feel able to give Marlborough permission to attack the French lines. Although Huy, Limbourg and Geldern fell into Allied hands, the Allies failed to bring Villeroi to battle and to break through the French lines.
For the 1704 campaign, the Dutch regenten finally appointed Ouwerkerk as Field Marshal. However, this decision once again caused friction among the Dutch generals. Slangenburg felt slighted because Ouwerkerk was not only a few months his junior in rank—a significant factor at the time—but also did not really outshine him in leadership skills or military achievements. As a result, Slangenburg refused to serve under Ouwerkerk's command. Other generals also threatened to leave the army but were eventually persuaded to stay. Only Coehoorn remained dissatisfied and offered his services to the army of Savoy. However, he died in March before his plans could be realised.
During the campaign of that year Marlborough marched with a part of the Allied troops to the Danube to support the Holy Roman Emperor and which would lead to the Battle of Blenheim. Ouwerkerk took command of the remaining troops in the Low Countries, but his campaign was constrained by cautious instructions from The Hague. The Dutch government, anticipating that the decisive front of 1704 would be in Germany, was reluctant to commit to major operations in the Netherlands and urged Ouwerkerk to avoid unnecessary risks. Meanwhile, his opponent, the Franco-Spanish commander Bedmar, had been ordered to maintain a defensive stance. As a result, neither side engaged in decisive action.
Ouwerkerk made three lacklustre attempts to break through the French lines and oversaw an ineffective bombardment of Namur. The most tangible Allied gain was the capture of Fort Isabella, though this victory held little strategic significance. While he succeeded in keeping French and Spanish forces occupied in the region, his overall lack of success led to mounting frustration within the Dutch army.
1705 In 1705, Ouwerkerk once again held overall command of the troops in the Low Countries. Meanwhile, Marlborough had led a contingent to the Moselle in an attempt to force a breakthrough, but his efforts proved futile. As Villeroi, with a considerably larger army than Ouwerkerk, laid siege to Huy, Marlborough abandoned his campaign on the Moselle and swiftly returned to the Low Countries with his troops and reassumed command. Huy fell after two weeks but was swiftly retaken. The Allies then refocused their efforts on breaching the French defensive lines guarding Brabant. Ouwerkerk commanded the left wing of the Allied army, which launched a diversion on 17 July, enabling Marlborough to break through the lines at Elixheim.