Question

Research the Battle of Blenheim. Then write an essay defending Wilhelmine’s position that the battle was a “wicked thing” or Kaspar’s position that it was a |   “great victory.”

Answer 1

The battle was fought near the village of Blenheim, in Bavaria, on the left bank of theriver Danube, on August 13, 1704. The French and Bavarians, under Marshall Tallard and Marsin, were defeated by the English and Austrians, under the Duke of Marlborough and Prince Eugene. After thousands of casualties, and vast civilian destruction, the battle ended. It was arguably among the most important battles of the 18th century, and the  turning point of the War of the Spanish Succession.
Southey uses a skull, as it is the most unique part of the human body. This makes;  you recognise that the skull was once part of a human body that was ruthlessly killed, and again emphasises the pointlessness of war

After finding the skull, Peterkin immediately asks what it is. Kaspar tells him that it is part of the remains of a soldier who died at Blenheim. Wilhelmine then asks Kaspar to describe the war and explain its causes. Kaspar can describe what the war was like , at Blenheim, but he cannot explain why the belligerents went to war. Nor does he seem curious about the causes. All that matters to him is that Austria and England won a glorious victory.

Old Kaspar unquestioningly accepts the loss of innocent women and children in the Battle of Blenheim as one of the prices of the glorious victory. His complacent attitude  is not unlike that of modem politicians who dismiss the deaths of innocent civilians in   arenas of war by referring to them with the impersonal phrase “collateral damage.”