The Battle of Oudenarde was fought in 1708 during the War of the Spanish Succession. Allied forces under Marlborough and Eugene defeated the French. The victory became part of a wider political contest over empire, succession and the balance of power in Europe.

Such battles fed English poems, sermons and journalism praising Marlborough or attacking the costs of war. They form the political background to Augustan satire, where poets tested the language of glory against debt, party and suffering.