Blenheim
2 of the 6 encyclopedias on this shelf carry an entry for Blenheim. Both are reproduced below, so you can see where they agree and where they differ.
Aiton's Encyclopedia (1910)
blen'im, a village of Bavaria situated twenty-three miles northwest of Augsburg. Several important battles have taken place in its vicinity, the chief of which, known as the battle of Blenheim, occurred August 13, 1704. Marlborough and Prince Eugene, at the heads of the united forces of Holland, England, Austria, and the German Empire , won a notable victory over the forces of France and Bavaria. It is estimated that about 100,000 men were engaged, about evenly divided between the opposing sides. The French lost 10,000 killed and wounded; many were drowned in the Danube, and 13,000 were taken prisoners. In consequence of this victory the name Blenheim became popular in England. The government of Queen Anne rewarded Marlborough handsomely. A fine estate near Oxford was presented to him, and its name was changed to Blenheim Park. A magnificent palace, called Blenheim House, was erected on it at an expense of $3,000,000. The battle of Blenheim is the subject of a well known poem by Robert Southey, closing: "And everybody praised the duke, Who this great fight did win." "But what good came of it at last?" Quoth little Peterkin. "Why, that I cannot tell," said he, "But 'twas a famous victory." See Marlborough
Collier's New Encyclopedia (1921)
a village in Bavaria on the Danube. Near it was fought, Aug. 13, 1704, during the war of the Spanish Succession, the famous battle of Blenheim (or Höchstadt, from another village in the vicinity), in which Marlborough and Prince Eugene, commanding the allied forces of England and Germany (52,000 men), gained a brilliant victory over the French and Bavarians (56,000). The victors lost some 12,000 in killed and wounded; the vanquished 40,000, including prisoners, of whom Villars was one. Here, the French defeated the Austrians, June, 1800. variety of
What Has Changed in the Last Century
The battle itself has not moved: 13 August 1704 near the Bavarian village of Blindheim on the Danube, Marlborough and Eugene against the French and Bavarians. Collier's slipped in 1921 on one name — the French commander taken prisoner was Marshal Tallard, not Villars, who was not present. What has changed is the English side of the story: Blenheim Palace near Woodstock, given to Marlborough by a grateful Queen Anne, was the birthplace of Winston Churchill in 1874 and was inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987; Churchill is buried in Bladon churchyard about a mile away. Southey's poem, quoted by Aiton's in 1910, is still the first thing many English readers know about the battle.
Written for this edition, 2026.