John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough

John Churchill (1650–1722) was a British general during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701–1714). Following his victories at the battles of Blenheim (1704), Ramillies (1706), Oudenarde (1708) and Malplaquet (1709), he was appointed 1st Duke of Marlborough. He sought to establish his family seat at Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire but it was not completed until 1733. Marlborough was a direct ancestor of Winston Churchill, who authored Marlborough: His Life and Times in four volumes.