The FOURTH HORSE were afterwards encamped near the banks of the Geete, in South Brabant, where the army was attacked by a French force of superior numbers commanded by the Duke of Luxembourg. The regiment was posted on this occasion towards the left of the line, near the village of _Neer-Landen_, to support the infantry in this quarter, and passed the night before the action under arms. On the 19th of July, as the first rays of morning light glanced upon the hostile armies, the French were discovered in order of battle, and a sudden burst of artillery from the batteries of the allies sent forward a shower of balls, which, rending the ranks of the enemy, formed a prelude to the sanguinary conflict which followed. For some time the fighting was limited to the infantry and artillery, and the FOURTH HORSE were spectators of the fray; yet a cannon shot or two occasionally plunging into the ranks, laid several troopers and their horses dead on the plain. At length the enemy forced the right of the allied army, and routed the Hanoverian and other foreign horse in that quarter, when King William ordered to their aid the British squadrons on the left. Instantly moving from their post, the FOURTH HORSE and other English cavalry gallopped to the scene of conflict, and each squadron charging the moment it arrived, the torrent of battle, which was sweeping the plain, was stayed,--the leading squadrons of the enemy were broken,--and the British horsemen, mixing fiercely in the combat, displayed their native valour and intrepidity. Yet the cavalry and infantry on the right wing, having already quitted the field, the chivalrous horsemen of Britain were unable to resist the superior numbers of the enemy which came pouring down on every side; and they were ordered to retire, a movement which was not executed without some confusion and considerable loss.[18] The French remained masters of the field, but the number of their killed and wounded exceeded that of the allies.[19] The FOURTH HORSE, having retired from the field of battle by the bridge at Neer-Hespen, proceeded that night to Tirlemont. They were subsequently encamped near Brussels, and after taking part in several manœuvres and skirmishes, they returned to their former station at Ghent. [Sidenote: 1694] On the 24th January, 1694, King William conferred the Colonelcy on Lieut.-Colonel Cornelius Wood (an officer of signal merit, who had frequently distinguished himself), from the Seventh Horse, now Sixth Dragoon Guards.