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What happened when Archduke Charles occupied Madrid in 1710?

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Illustration of the Battle of Blenheim showing cavalry and infantry in combat, fallen soldiers, and smoke rising from cannon fire across a hilly battlefield. — War of the Spanish Succession The Battle of Blenheim (August 13, 1704), was the most famous victory of John Churchill, duke of Marlborough, and Eugene of Savoy during the War of the Spanish Succession.

During the War of the Spanish Succession, the occupation of Madrid by Archduke Charles (the Austrian claimant to the throne) was a temporary event in a conflict marked by shifting control. While the archduke and his allied forces managed to occupy the capital twice during the war, these successes were not permanent.1

In the autumn of 1710, following the archduke's presence in the city, the situation turned decisively in favor of the Bourbon monarch, Philip V. Philip's commander, the duke of Vendôme, successfully recaptured Madrid for the king. Shortly thereafter, Vendôme secured further military victories by forcing the British general James Stanhope to surrender at Brihuega and defeating Austrian forces under Guido von Starhemberg at Villaviciosa. These events effectively confined the Austrian presence to Catalonia and ensured that Philip V remained on the Spanish throne.23