Queen Anne then, came to the throne, and the command of the allied English and Dutch forces was taken by John Churchill, later Duke of Marlborough. He proved himself a great general. His first great victory was in the battle of Blenheim in 1704, followed by that of Ramillies two years later. The French had received so heavy a beating that the Grand Monarque sought peace; but the terms offered did not satisfy the victors. The war was not restricted to the Netherlands. The little country of Portugal was in the alliance; so too was, for a while, another small country, the Duchy of Savoy in the north-west corner of Italy. Later Savoy went over to the Habsburg party. The Emperor was on the side of the allies. Besides the Netherlands, the allies were victorious in Bavaria, in Italy, and for a moment in Spain itself. The approach of an English army to Madrid actually forced the king to leave his throne and his capital; but that advance was not maintained, the allies were defeated in Spain, and he was re-established. Between English and French, the war was fought so far from home as Canada--much to the English advantage in the peace by which it was concluded. But before Louis would make peace on terms that the allies were willing to accept, his armies had to suffer further defeat in the {111} Netherlands at the hands of Marlborough. Oudenarde in 1708 and Malplaquet in the following year are the places and dates of these two English victories which were really decisive of the war. Marlborough's success and the ascendancy which he and his duchess had gained over the queen, made him many enemies at home. We begin about this time to hear of the two great political parties, Tories and Whigs. Marlborough was of the latter party, which was in power till 1710, in which year they lost place to the former. Marlborough was dismissed from his command in the year following; and with his dismissal negotiations for peace were renewed. [Sidenote: Peace of Utrecht] It was not until 1713 that its terms were finally agreed, in the Peace of Utrecht; and in the main it gave the allies what they had fought for. Certain frontier fortress towns were ceded to the Netherlands by France. Louis, as representing the Habsburg house, gave up all claim to the Spanish Netherlands. The King of Spain was recognised as ruler in his own country, but renounced all right to the French Crown. On the other hand, it was the Peace of Utrecht that made Austria dominant for many years in Italy. In Canada, England gained a large territory from the French.