First commissioned in 1685, Carpenter took part in the 1689 to 1691 Williamite War in Ireland, before being transferred to Flanders in 1692 for service in the 1688 to 1697 Nine Years War. A talented cavalry leader, he held senior positions in the Allied expeditionary force that fought in Spain during the War of the Spanish Succession. Wounded several times, he was captured at Brihuega in 1710, then later exchanged.