While the army of the Grand Alliance was occupied with the Siege of Lille, the Elector of Bavaria, Maximilian, made an attempt to capture Brussels.

Maximilian, expecting a swift victory, faced strong resistance from Colonel Pascale, the governor of Brussels, and his well-prepared garrison.

This was common knowledge even before the war, and French commanders had been complaining about the state of these newly acquired towns from the moment they occupied them in 1701.

[2][note 1] At the start of the 1708 campaign, the French, in a surprise attack, captured two of those weakly fortified major Flemish towns, Ghent and Bruges.

The unexpected fall of these cities exposed the vulnerability of the Allied positions, strained relations between the British and Dutch, and fostered discontent among the local Flemish populations.

[4] In November, as the 1708 campaign entered its final phase, the French forces, led by Marshal Vendôme, shifted their focus towards Brussels, the key administrative and political center of the Spanish Netherlands.

To lift the siege of Lille, Vendôme directed Maximilian of Bavaria, who had previously served as the governor of the Spanish Netherlands, to march on Brussels.

[5][6] The city's capture was seen as a crucial strategic objective for the French because the loss of Brussels would have made it nearly impossible for the Allies to repair and resupply Lille, whose fortifications had been severely damaged during the siege.

Additionally, the supply depots in Menen, Kortrijk, and Oudenaarde were nearly depleted, meaning that at the start of the following year, all of these strongholds could have been easily recaptured by the French.

[5][6] While it was still true that François de Pascale, the governor of Brussels, commanded a garrison of only 6,000 troops—too few to sustain a prolonged siege—these troops were strong enough to repel a direct assault on the city.

[7] On 26 November, Marlborough, bolstered by reinforcements from Prince Eugene, who had diverted as many troops as he could spare from the siege of Lille, advanced swiftly from Kortrijk.

The troops crossed the wide river using pontoon bridges, catching the French completely by surprise, which resulted in minimal resistance.

During this time, the strategically important post of Saint-Ghislain, which had been stripped of its garrison to support the siege of Brussels, was captured by a surprise raid led by the governor of Ath.

[14] Once it was confirmed that the Allied forces had successfully crossed the Scheldt, Prince Eugene swiftly returned to reinforce the siege around the citadel of Lille.

Marlborough's operation not only relieved Brussels but also reestablished the eastern supply line crucial for the besiegers of Lille and ensured the securement of winter quarters for his troops.

Marshal Boufflers, who had valiantly defended the city, was allowed to march out with honors, leading the remnants of his garrison back into France.

Marlborough and the Dutch deputies concluded that the capture of Ghent would be of great strategic value for ensuring the supply lines to Lille in the following year.

Although the year had started poorly for the Allies with the French capture of Ghent and Bruges, the masterful generalship of Marlborough and Eugene, combined with the skillful management of supplies by the Dutch deputies, had reversed the situation.