The Siege of Ariën-aan-de-Leie
LOW COUNTRIES, Ariën-aan-de-Leie (Airé). AR 50 Sols (30x31mm, 15.24 g). War of the Spanish Succession issue. Besieged by the Austrian and English troops under the command of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and François-Eugène de Savoie. Dated
1710. Crowned coat-of-arms / Blank. Korchnak 9; Mailliet pl. I, 5; KM 16.1 (French States). Some faint porosity and double striking, hairlines. Near EF.
Throughout its history, the town of Ariën-aan-de-Leie was besieged numerous times. During the War of the Spanish Succession, the Alliance forces, under the command of John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough and François-Eugène de Savoie laid siege to the town with Marlborough’s headquarters near the Priory of St. Andrew. After a siege of two months, the Marquis de Goesbriand, governor of the town, surrendered, handing over the city keys to Marlborough.
