1890 Large Antique Print- Battle of Waterloo 1815 - Capture of The French Guns

1890 Large Antique Print- Battle of Waterloo 1815 - Capture of The French Guns

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1890 Large Antique Print- Battle of Waterloo 1815 - Capture of The French Guns :
$15.00

A superb double-page engraving published in The Illustrated London News magazine of June 14, 1890 entitled :
\"Capture of French Guns by the Union Brigade at Waterloo\"-see below.
Good condition with central fold as originally published. One brown spot top right - see scan. Image size 18 x 12 inches.
This is an original antique print and not a reproduction. Great collectors item for the historian - see more of these in Seller\'s Other Items which can be combined for mailing at no extra cost.
NOTE FREE MAILING - International mailing is unfortunately expensive. If you buy 3 of these double-page engravings (I have listed a great selection) international mailing would be free. If you buy 2 then domestic mailing is free.
Battle of WaterlooFrom Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaFor the 1913 film, seeThe Battle of Waterloo (1913 film).Battle of WaterlooPart of theWar of the Seventh Coalition
Battle of WaterloobyWilliam SadlerDate18 June 1815LocationWaterloo, thenNetherlands, present-day Belgium; 15 km south of Coalition victoryBelligerentsFranceSeventh Coalition:
United and leadersNapoleon I
Michel NeyDuke of Wellington
Gebhard von BlücherStrength73,000[1]
    50,700 infantry
  • 14,390 cavalry
  • 8,050 artillery and engineers
  • 252 guns
Total: 118,000

Anglo-allies: 68,000[2][3]

    United Kingdom: 25,000 British and 6,000 King\'s German Legion
  • Netherlands: 17,000
  • Hanover: 11,000
  • Brunswick: 6,000
  • Nassau: 3,000[4]
  • 156 guns[5]

Prussians: 50,000[6]Casualties and lossesTotal: 41,000
    24,000 to 26,000 killed, wounded including 6,000 to 7,000 captured[7]
  • 15,000 missing[8]
Total: 24,000

Anglo-allies: 17,000

    3,500 killed
  • 10,200 wounded
  • 3,300 missing[9]

Prussians: 7,000

    1,200 killed
  • 4,400 wounded
  • 1,400 missing[9]
[show]
  • v
  • t
  • e
Hundred Days

TheBattle of Waterloowas fought on Sunday, 18 June 1815, nearWaterlooin present-dayBelgium, then part of theUnited Kingdom of the Netherlands. AFrench armyunder the command ofNapoleonwas defeated by the armies of theSeventh Coalition, comprising an Anglo-allied army under the command of theDuke of Wellingtoncombined with aPrussianarmy under the command ofGebhard von Blücher.

Upon Napoleon\'s return to power in March 1815, many states that had opposed him formed the Seventh Coalition and began to mobilize armies. Two large forces under Wellington and Blücher assembled close to the north-Eastern border of France. Napoleon chose to attack in the hope of destroying them before they could join in a coordinated invasion of France with other members of the coalition. Waterloo was the decisive engagement of theWaterloo Campaignand Napoleon\'s last. According to Wellington, the battle was \"the nearest-run thing you ever saw in your life\".[10]The defeat at Waterloo ended Napoleon\'s rule asEmperor of the French, and marked the end of hisHundred Daysreturn from exile.

Two days before the battle, Blücher\'s Prussian army had been defeated by the French atLigny. Wellington decided to offer battle upon learning that the Prussian army had regrouped and was able to march to his support. Wellington\'s army, positioned across the Brussels road on theMont-Saint-Jeanescarpment, withstood repeated attacks by the French in a defensive mode, until, in the evening, the Prussians arrived in force and broke through Napoleon\'s right flank. At that moment, Wellington\'s Anglo-allied army counter-attacked and drove the French army in disorder from the field. Pursuing coalition forces entered France and restoredKing LouisXVIIIto the French throne. Napoleon abdicated, eventually surrendering to CaptainMaitlandofHMSBellerophon, part of the British blockade, and was exiled toSaint Helenawhere he died in 1821.

The battlefield is located in Belgium, about 15 kilometres (9.3mi) south ofBrussels, and about 2 kilometres (1.2mi) from the town ofWaterloo. The site of the battlefield today is dominated by a large monument, theLion\'s Mound. As this mound was constructed from earth taken from the battlefield itself, the contemporary topography of the battlefield near the mound has not been preserved.

Contents[hide]
  • 1Prelude
  • 2Armies
  • 3Battlefield
  • 4Battle
    • 4.1Preparation
    • 4.2Hougoumont
    • 4.3First French infantry attack
    • 4.4Charge of the British heavy cavalry
    • 4.5The French cavalry attack
    • 4.6The capture of La Haye Sainte
    • 4.7Arrival of the Prussian IV Corps: Plancenoit
    • 4.8Zieten\'s flank march
    • 4.9Attack of the Imperial Guard
    • 4.10Capture of Plancenoit
    • 5Aftermath
    • 6Analysis
      • 6.1Historical importance
      • 6.2Baron Jomini\'s view of the reasons for Napoleon\'s defeat
    • 7The battlefield today
    • 8See also
    • 9Notes
    • 10References
    • 11Further reading
    • 12External links

    Prelude[edit]Main article:Waterloo CampaignStrategic situation in Western Europe in 1815: 250,000 Frenchmen faced a coalition of about 850,000 soldiers on fourfronts. Napoleon was forced to leave 20,000 men in Western France to reduce a royalist insurrection.

    On 13 March 1815, six days before Napoleon reached Paris, the powers at theCongress of Viennadeclared him an outlaw.[11]Four days later, theUnited Kingdom,Russia,Austria, andPrussiamobilised armies to defeat Napoleon.[12]Napoleon knew that once his attempts at dissuading one or more of theSeventh Coalitionallies from invading France had failed, his only chance of remaining in power was to attack before the coalition mobilised. If he could destroy the existing coalition forces south of Brussels before they were reinforced, he might be able to drive the British back to the sea and knock the Prussians out of the war. An additional consideration was that there were many French-speaking sympathisers in Belgium and a French victory might trigger a friendly revolution there. Also, the British troops in Belgium were largely second-line troops; most of the veterans of thePeninsular Warhad been sent to the United States and Canada to fight theWar of 1812.[13]

    Map of the Waterloo campaignThe resurgentNapoleon\'sstrategy was to isolate the Allied and Prussian armies and annihilate each one separatelyNapoleon\'s headquarters during the battle, the Caillou (\"Pebble\") Farm

    Wellington\'s initial dispositions were intended to counter the threat of Napoleon enveloping the Coalition armies by moving throughMonsto the south-west of Brussels.[14]This would have cut Wellington\'s communications with his base atOstend, but would have pushed his army closer to Blücher\'s. Napoleon manipulated Wellington\'s fear of this loss of his supply chain from the channel ports with false intelligence.[15]By June, Napoleon had raised a total army strength of about 300 thousand men. The force at his disposal at Waterloo was less than one third that size, but they were nearly all loyal and experienced soldiers.[16]He divided his army into a left wing commanded byMarshal Ney, a right wing commanded byMarshal Grouchyand a reserve under his command (although all three elements remained close enough to support one another). Crossing the frontier nearCharleroibefore dawn on 15 June, the French rapidly overran Coalition outposts, securing Napoleon\'s \"central position\" between Wellington\'s and Blücher\'s armies.

    Only very late on the night of 15 June, was Wellington certain that the Charleroi attack was the main French thrust. In the early hours of 16 June, at theDuchess of Richmond\'s ballin Brussels, he received a dispatch from thePrince of Orangeand was shocked by the speed of Napoleon\'s advance. He hastily ordered his army to concentrate onQuatre Bras, where the Prince of Orange, with the brigade ofPrince Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar, was holding a tenuous position against the soldiers of Ney\'s left wing.[17]Ney\'s orders were to secure the crossroads of Quatre Bras, so that, if necessary, he could later swing east and reinforce Napoleon.

    Napoleon moved against the concentrated Prussian army first. On 16 June, with a part of the reserve and the right wing of the army, he attacked and defeated Blücher\'s Prussians at theBattle of Ligny. The Prussian centre gave way under more heavy French assaults but the flanks held their ground. Ney, meanwhile, found the crossroads ofQuatre Braslightly held by the Prince of Orange, who repelled Ney\'s initial attacks but was gradually driven back by overwhelming numbers of French troops. Firstly reinforcements and then Wellington arrived. He took command and drove Ney back, securing the crossroads by early evening, too late to send help to the Prussians, who were defeated at the Battle of Ligny on the same day. The Prussian defeat made Wellington\'s position at Quatre Bras untenable, so the next day he withdrew northwards, to a defensive position he hadreconnoitredthe previous year—the lowridgeof Mont-Saint-Jean, south of the village ofWaterlooand theSonian Forest.[18]

    The Prussian retreat from Ligny went uninterrupted and seemingly unnoticed, by the French.[19]The bulk of their rearguard units held their positions until about midnight and some elements did not move out until the following morning, ignored by the French.[19]Crucially, the Prussians did not retreat to the east, along their own lines of communication. Instead, they too fell back northwards—parallel to Wellington\'s line of march, still within supporting distance and in communication with him throughout. The Prussians rallied onBülow \'​s IV Corps, which had not been engaged at Ligny and was in a strong position south ofWavre.[19]

    Napoleon, with the reserves, made a late start on 17 June and joined Ney at Quatre Bras at 13:00 to attack Wellington\'s army but found the position empty. The French pursued Wellington but the result was only a brief cavalry skirmish inGenappejust as torrential rain set in for the night. Before leaving Ligny, Napoleon ordered Grouchy, commander of the right wing, to follow up the retreating Prussians with 33,000 men. A late start, uncertainty about the direction the Prussians had taken and the vagueness of the orders given to him meant that Grouchy was too late to prevent the Prussian army reaching Wavre, from where it could march to support Wellington. By the end of 17 June, Wellington\'s army had arrived at its position at Waterloo, with the main body of Napoleon\'s army following. Blücher\'s army was gathering in and around Wavre, around 8 miles (13km) to the east of the city.

    Armies[edit]TheDuke of Wellington, a veteran general of thePeninsular War, commanded an army of British, Dutch, and German forces.Main article:Order of Battle of the Waterloo Campaign

    Three armies were involved in the battle: Napoleon\'sArmée du Nord; a multinational army under Wellington; and a Prussian army under Blücher.

    The French army of around 69,000 consisted of 48,000 infantry, 14,000 cavalry, and 7,000 artillery with 250 guns.[20][21]Napoleon had used conscription to fill the ranks of the French army throughout his rule, but he did not conscript men for the 1815 campaign. All his troops were veterans of at least one campaign who had returned more or less voluntarily to the colours. The cavalry in particular was both numerous and formidable, and included fourteen regiments of armouredheavy cavalryand seven of highly versatilelancers.

    Wellington claimed that he himself had \"an infamous army, very weak and ill-equipped, and a very inexperienced Staff\".[22]His troops consisted of 67,000 men: 50,000 infantry, 11,000 cavalry, and 6,000 artillery with 150 guns. Of these, 25,000 were British, with another 6,000 from theKing\'s German Legion. All of theBritish Armytroops were regular soldiers but only 7,000 of them werePeninsular Warveterans.[23]In addition, there were 17,000 Dutch and Belgian troops, 11,000 fromHanover, 6,000 fromBrunswick, and 3,000 fromNassau.[4]

    Prince of Orange, commander of the Anglo-alliedI Corps.

    Many of the troops in the Coalition armies were inexperienced.[a][b]The Dutch army had been re-established in 1815, following the earlier defeat of Napoleon. With the exception of the British and some from Hanover and Brunswick who had fought with the British army in Spain, many of the professional soldiers in the Coalition armies had spent some of their time in the French army or in armies allied to the Napoleonic regime. Barbero states that in this heterogeneous army the difference between British andforeigntroops did not prove significant under fire.[24]

    Wellington was also acutely short of heavy cavalry, having only seven British and three Dutch regiments. TheDuke of Yorkimposed many of his staff officers on Wellington, including his second-in-command, theEarl of Uxbridge. Uxbridge commanded the cavalry and hadcarte blanchefrom Wellington to commit these forces at his discretion. Wellington stationed a further 17,000 troops atHalle, 8 miles (13km) away to the west; they were not recalled to participate in the battle but were to serve as a fallback position should the battle be lost.[citation needed]They were mostly composed of Dutch troops underPrince of Orange\'s younger brotherPrince Frederik of the Netherlands. According to Hofschröer, the best Dutch troops were at Halle and he questions the reasons for their placement at Halle.[25][c]

    The Prussian army was in the throes of reorganisation. In 1815, the former Reserve regiments, Legions, andFreikorpsvolunteer formations from the wars of 1813–1814 were in the process of being absorbed into the line, along with manyLandwehr(militia) regiments. TheLandwehrwere mostly untrained and unequipped when they arrived in Belgium. The Prussian cavalry were in a similar state.[26]Its artillery was also reorganising and did not give its best performance– guns and equipment continued to arrive during and after the battle. Off-setting these handicaps, however, the Prussian Army did have excellent and professional leadership in its General Staff organisation. These officers came from four schools developed for this purpose and thus worked to a common standard of training. This system was in marked contrast to the conflicting, vague orders issued by the French army. This staff system ensured that before Ligny, three-quarters of the Prussian army concentrated for battle at 24 hours notice. After Ligny, the Prussian army, although defeated, was able to realign its supply train, reorganise itself, and intervene decisively on the Waterloo battlefield within 48 hours.[27]Two and a half Prussian army corps, or 48,000 men, were engaged at Waterloo– two brigades underFriedrich von Bülow, commander of IV Corps, attackedLobauat 16:30, whileZieten\'sI Corps and parts ofGeorg von Pirch \'​s II Corps engaged at about 18:00.

    Battlefield[edit]The famousmorne plainedescribed byVictor Hugoand theLion\'s Mound.

    The Waterloo position was a strong one. It consisted of a long ridge running east-west, perpendicular to, and bisected by, the main road to Brussels. Along the crest of the ridge ran theOhainroad, a deepsunken lane. Near the crossroads with the Brussels road was a large elm tree that was roughly in the centre of Wellington\'s position and served as his command post for much of the day. Wellington deployed his infantry in a line just behind the crest of the ridge following the Ohain road. Using thereverse slope, as he had many times previously, Wellington concealed his strength from the French, with the exception of his skirmishers and artillery.[28]The length of front of the battlefield was also relatively short at 2.5 miles (4.0km). This allowed Wellington to draw up his forces in depth, which he did in the centre and on the right, all the way towards the village ofBraine-l\'Alleud, in the expectation that the Prussians would reinforce his left during the day.[29]

    In front of the ridge, there were three positions that could be fortified. On the extreme right were the château, garden, and orchard ofHougoumont. This was a large and well-built country house, initially hidden in trees. The house faced north along a sunken, covered lane (usually described by the British as \"the hollow-way\") along which it could be supplied. On the extreme left was the hamlet of Papelotte. Both Hougoumont and Papelotte were fortified and garrisoned, and thus anchored Wellington\'s flanks securely. Papelotte also commanded the road to Wavre that the Prussians would use to send reinforcements to Wellington\'s position. On the western side of the main road, and in front of the rest of Wellington\'s line, was the farmhouse and orchard ofLa Haye Sainte, which was garrisoned with 400 light infantry of theKing\'s German Legion.[30]On the opposite side of the road was a disused sand quarry, where the95th Rifleswere posted as sharpshooters.[31]This position presented a formidable challenge to any attacking force. Any attempt to turn Wellington\'s right would entail taking the entrenched Hougoumont position; any attack on his right centre would mean the attackers would have to march betweenenfilading firefrom Hougoumont and La Haye Sainte. On the left, any attack would also be enfiladed by fire from La Haye Sainte and its adjoining sandpit, and any attempt at turning the left flank would entail fighting through the streets and hedgerows of Papelotte, and some very wet ground.[32]

    The French army formed on the slopes of another ridge to the south. Napoleon could not see Wellington\'s positions, so he drew his forces up symmetrically about the Brussels road. On the right was I Corps underd\'Erlonwith 16,000 infantry and 1,500 cavalry, plus a cavalry reserve of 4,700. On the left was II Corps underReillewith 13,000 infantry, and 1,300 cavalry, and a cavalry reserve of 4,600. In the centre about the road south of the innLa Belle Alliancewere a reserve including Lobau\'s VI Corps with 6,000 men, the 13,000 infantry of theImperial Guard, and a cavalry reserve of 2,000.[33]In the right rear of the French position was the substantial village ofPlancenoit, and at the extreme right, theBois de Pariswood. Napoleon initially commanded the battle from Rossomme farm, where he could see the entire battlefield, but moved to a position nearLa Belle Allianceearly in the afternoon. Command on the battlefield (which was largely hidden from his view) was delegated to Ney.[34]

    Battle[edit]Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, who had led one of the coalition armies defeating Napoleon at theBattle of Leipzig, commanded the Prussian armyPreparation[edit]

    Wellington rose at around 02:00 or 03:00 on 18 June, and wrote letters until dawn. He had earlier written to Blücher confirming that he would give battle at Mont-Saint-Jean if Blücher could provide him with at least one corps; otherwise he would retreat towards Brussels. At a late-night council, Blücher\'s chief of staff,August Neidhardt von Gneisenau, had been distrustful of Wellington\'s strategy, but Blücher persuaded him that they should march to join Wellington\'s army. In the morning Wellington duly received a reply from Blücher, promising to support him with three corps.[35]From 06:00 Wellington was in the field supervising the deployment of his forces. At Wavre, the Prussian IV Corps under Bülow was designated to lead the march to Waterloo as it was in the best shape, not having been involved in theBattle of Ligny. Although they had not taken casualties, IV Corps had been marching for two days, covering the retreat of the three other corps of the Prussian army from the battlefield of Ligny. They had been posted farthest away from the battlefield, and progress was very slow. The roads were in poor condition after the night\'s heavy rain, and Bülow\'s men had to pass through the congested streets of Wavre and move 88artillery pieces. Matters were not helped when a fire broke out in Wavre, blocking several streets along Bülow\'s intended route. As a result, the last part of the corps left at 10:00, six hours after the leading elements had moved out towards Waterloo. Bülow\'s men were followed to Waterloo first by I Corps and then by II Corps.[36]

    Napoleon breakfasted off silver plate atLe Caillou, the house where he had spent the night. WhenSoultsuggested that Grouchy should be recalled to join the main force, Napoleon said, \"Just because you have all been beaten by Wellington, you think he\'s a good general. I tell you Wellington is a bad general, the English are bad troops, and this affair is nothing more than eating breakfast\".[37]However, Napoleon\'s surprisingly dismissive statements should not be taken at face value, given the Emperor\'s maxim that \"in war, morale is everything\" and that praising the enemy is always wrong, as it reduces one\'s morale. Indeed, he had been seen engaging in such pre-battle, morale-boosting harangues on a number of occasions in the past and on the morning of the battle of Waterloo he had to deal with his chief of staff\'s pessimism and nervousness and had to respond to several persistent and almost defeatist objections from some of his senior generals.[38]Later on, being told by his brother,Jerome, of some gossip overheard by a waiter between British officers at lunch at the \'King of Spain\' inn in Genappe that the Prussians were to march over from Wavre, Napoleon declared that the Prussians would need at least two days to recover and would be dealt with by Grouchy.[39]Surprisingly, Jerome\'s overheard gossip aside, the French commanders present at the pre-battle conference atLe Caillouhad no information about the alarming proximity of the Prussians and did not suspect that Blücher\'s men would start erupting onto the field of battle in great numbers just five hours later.[40]

    Battle of Mont-Saint-Jean

    Napoleon had delayed the start of the battle owing to the sodden ground, which would have made manoeuvring cavalry and artillery difficult. In addition, many of his forces hadbivouackedwell to the south ofLa Belle Alliance. At 10:00, in response to a dispatch he had received from Grouchy six hours earlier, he sent a reply telling Grouchy to \"head for Wavre [to Grouchy\'s north] in order to draw near to us [to the west of Grouchy]\" and then \"push before him\" the Prussians to arrive at Waterloo \"as soon as possible\".[41]

    At 11:00, Napoleon drafted his general order: Reille\'s Corps on the left and d\'Erlon\'s Corps to the right were to attack the village of Mont-Saint-Jean and keep abreast of one another. This order assumed Wellington\'s battle-line was in the village, rather than at the more forward position on the ridge.[42]To enable this, Jerome\'s division would make an initial attack on Hougoumont, which Napoleon expected would draw in Wellington\'s reserves,[43]since its loss would threaten his communications with the sea. Agrande batterieof the reserve artillery of I, II, and VI Corps was to then bombard the centre of Wellington\'s position from about 13:00. D\'Erlon\'s corps would then attack Wellington\'s left, break through, and roll up his line from east to west. In his memoirs, Napoleon wrote that his intention was to separate Wellington\'s army from the Prussians and drive it back towards the sea.[44]

    Hougoumont[edit]Main article:HougoumontClément-Auguste Andrieux\'s 1852The Battle of Waterloo

    The historian Andrew Roberts notes that \"It is a curious fact about the Battle of Waterloo that no one is absolutely certain when it actually began\".[45]Wellington recorded in his dispatches that at \"about ten o\'clock [Napoleon] commenced a furious attack upon our post at Hougoumont\".[46]Other sources state that the attack began around 11:30.[d]The house and its immediate environs were defended by four light companies ofGuards, and the wood and park by HanoverianJägerand the 1/2nd[e]Nassau.[47]The initial attack by Bauduin\'s brigade emptied the wood and park, but was driven back by heavy British artillery fire, and cost Bauduin his life. As the British guns were distracted by a duel with French artillery, a second attack by Soye\'s brigade and what had been Bauduin\'s succeeded in reaching the north gate of the house. Sous-Lieutenant Legro, a French officer broke the gate down with an axe. Some French troops managed to enter the courtyard. The 2ndColdstream Guardsand2/3rd Foot Guardsarrived to help. There was a fierce melee, and the British managed to close the gate on the French troops streaming in. The Frenchmen trapped in the courtyard were all killed. Only a young drummer boy was spared.

    Gate on the north side assaulted by the1st Légèrewho were led bysous-lieutenantLegros[48]

    Fighting continued around Hougoumont all afternoon. Its surroundings were heavily invested by French light infantry, and coordinated attacks were made against the troops behind Hougoumont. Wellington\'s army defended the house and the hollow way running north from it. In the afternoon, Napoleon personally ordered the house to be shelled to set it on fire,[f]resulting in the destruction of all but the chapel. Du Plat\'s brigade of the King\'s German Legion was brought forward to defend the hollow way, which they had to do without senior officers. Eventually they were relieved by the71st Foot, a British infantry regiment. Adam\'s brigade was further reinforced byHugh Halkett\'s3rd Hanoverian Brigade, and successfully repulsed further infantry and cavalry attacks sent by Reille. Hougoumont held out until the end of the battle.

    I had occupied that post with a detachment from General Byng\'s brigade of Guards, which was in position in its rear; and it was some time under the command of Lieutenant-Colonel MacDonald, and afterwards of Colonel Home; and I am happy to add that it was maintained, throughout the day, with the utmost gallantry by these brave troops, notwithstanding the repeated efforts of large bodies of the enemy to obtain possession of it.

    —Wellington,[49]

    When I reached Lloyd\'s abandoned guns, I stood near them for about a minute to contemplate the scene: it was grand beyond description. Hougoumont and its wood sent up a broad flame through the dark masses of smoke that overhung the field; beneath this cloud the French were indistinctly visible. Here a waving mass of long red feathers could be seen; there, gleams as from a sheet of steel showed that the cuirassiers were moving; 400cannon were belching forth fire and death on every side; the roaring and shouting were indistinguishably commixed—together they gave me an idea of a labouring volcano. Bodies of infantry and cavalry were pouring down on us, and it was time to leave contemplation, so I moved towards our columns, which were standing up in square.

    —Major Macready, Light Division, 30th British Regiment, Halkett\'s brigade,[50]

    The fighting at Hougoumont has often been characterised as a diversionary attack to draw in Wellington\'s reserves which escalated into an all-day battle and drew in French reserves instead.[51]In fact there is a good case to believe that both Napoleon and Wellington thought that holding Hougoumont was key to winning the battle. Hougoumont was a part of the battlefield that Napoleon could see clearly,[52]and he continued to direct resources towards it and its surroundings all afternoon (33battalions in all, 14,000troops). Similarly, though the house never contained a large number of troops, Wellington devoted 21battalions (12,000troops) over the course of the afternoon in keeping the hollow way open to allow fresh troops and ammunition to reach the buildings. He moved several artillery batteries from his hard-pressed centre to support Hougoumont,[53]and later stated that \"the success of the battle turned upon closing the gates at Hougoumont\".[54]

    First French infantry attack[edit]Map of the battle.Napoleon\'s units are in blue,Wellington\'s in red,Blücher\'s in grey.

    The 80 guns of Napoleon\'sgrande batteriedrew up in the centre. These opened fire at 11:50, according toLord Hill(commander of the Anglo-Allied II Corps),[g]while other sources put the time between noon and 13:30.[55]Thegrande batteriewas too far back to aim accurately, and the only other troops they could see were skirmishers of the regiments of Kempt and Pack, andPerponcher\'s2nd Dutch division (the others were employing Wellington\'s characteristic \"reverse slope defence\").[56][h]Nevertheless, the bombardment caused a large number of casualties. Though some projectiles buried themselves in the soft soil, most found their marks on the reverse slope of the ridge. The bombardment forced the cavalry of the Union Brigade (in third line) to move to its left, as did the Scots Greys, to reduce their casualty rate.[57]

    At about 13:00, Napoleon saw the first columns of Prussians around the village ofLasne-Chapelle-Saint-Lambert, four or five miles (three hours march for an army) away from his right flank.[58]Napoleon\'s reaction was to have Marshal Soult send a message to Grouchy telling him to come towards the battlefield and attack the arriving Prussians.[59]Grouchy, however, had been executing Napoleon\'s previous orders to follow the Prussians \"with your sword against his back\" towards Wavre, and was by then too far away to reach Waterloo. Grouchy was advised by his subordinate,Gérard, to \"march to the sound of the guns\", but stuck to his orders and engaged the Prussian III Corps rear guard under the command ofLieutenant-GeneralBaronJohann von Thielmannat theBattle of Wavre. Moreover, Soult\'s letter ordering Grouchy to move quickly to join Napoleon and attack Bülow wouldn\'t actually reach Grouchy until after 20:00.[citation needed]

    A little after 13:00, I Corps\' attack began. D\'Erlon, like Ney, had encountered Wellington in Spain, and was aware of the British commander\'s favoured tactic of using massed short-range musketry to drive off infantry columns. Rather than use the usual nine-deep French columns deployed abreast of one another, therefore, each division advanced in closely spaced battalion lines behind one another. This allowed them to concentrate their fire,[60]but it did not leave room for them to change formation.

    The formation was initially effective. Its leftmost division, underFrançois-Xavier Donzelot, advanced on La Haye Sainte. The farmhouse was defended by theKing\'s German Legion. While one French battalion engaged the defenders from the front, the following battalions fanned out to either side and, with the support of several squadrons ofcuirassiers, succeeded in isolating the farmhouse. The King\'s German Legion resolutely defended the farmhouse. Each time the French tried to scale the walls the outnumbered Germans somehow held them off. The Prince of Orange saw that La Haye Sainte had been cut off and tried to reinforce it by sending forward the Hanoverian Lüneberg Battalion in line. Cuirassiers concealed in a fold in the ground caught and destroyed it in minutes and then rode on past La Haye Sainte, almost to the crest of the ridge, where they covered d\'Erlon\'s left flank as his attack developed.[61]

    At about 13:30, d\'Erlon started to advance his three other divisions, some 14,000men over a front of about 1,000 metres (1,100 yards), against Wellington\'s left wing. At the point they aimed for they faced 6,000men: the first line consisted of the Dutch 1st \"Brigade van Bylandt\" of the 2nd Dutch division, flanked by the British brigades of Kempt and Pack on either side. The second line consisted of British and Hanoverian troops underSir Thomas Picton, who were lying down in dead ground behind the ridge. All had suffered badly at Quatre Bras. In addition, the Bijlandt brigade had been ordered to deploy its skirmishers in the hollow road and on the forward slope. The rest of the brigade was lying down just behind the road.[62][i]

    At the moment these skirmishers were rejoining their parent battalions, the brigade was ordered to its feet and started to return fire. On the left of the brigade, where the 7th Dutch Militia stood, a \"few files were shot down and an opening in the line thus occurred.\"[63]The battalion had s and was unable to close the gap.[j]D\'Erlon\'s troops pushed through this gap in the line and the remaining battalions in the Bylandt brigade (8th Dutch Militia and Belgian 7th Line Battalion) were forced to retreat to the square of the 5th Dutch Militia, which was in reserve between Picton\'s troops, about 100 paces to the rear. There they regrouped under the command of ColonelVan Zuylen van Nijevelt.[k][l]A moment later the Prince of Orange ordered a counterattack, which actually occurred around 10 minutes later. Bylandt was wounded and retired off the field, passing command of the Brigade to Lt. Kol. De Jongh.[64]

    D\'Erlon\'s men ascended the slope and advanced on the sunken road,Chemin d\'Ohain, that ran from behind La Haye Sainte and continued east. It was lined on both sides by thick hedges, withBylandt\'sbrigade just across the road while the British brigades had been lying down some 100 yards back from the road, Pack\'s to Bylandt\'s left and Kempt\'s to Bylandt\'s right. Kempt\'s 1,900 men were engaged by Bourgeois\' brigade of 1,900 men of Quiot\'s division. In the center,Donzelot\'sdivision had pushed back the Bylandt. On the right of the French advance was Marcognet\'s division lead by Grenier\'s brigade consisting of the45e Régiment de Ligneand followed by the25e Régiment de Ligne, somewhat less than 2,000 men, and behind them, Nogue\'s brigade of the21eand45eregiments. Opposing them on the other side of the road wasPack\'s9th Brigade consisting of three Scottish regiments: theRoyal Scots, the 42ndBlack Watch, the 92nd Gordons and the44th Foottotaling something over 2,000 men. A very even fight between British and French infantry was about to occur.[65]

    The French advance drove in the British skirmishers and reached the sunken road. As they did so, Pack\'s men stood up, formed into a four deep line formation for fear of the French cavalry, advanced, and opened fire. However, a firefight had been anticipated and the French infantry had accordingly advanced in more linear formation. Now, fully deployed into line, they returned fire and successfully pressed the British troops; although the attack faltered at the centre, the line in front of d\'Erlon\'s right started to crumble. Picton was killed shortly after ordering the counter-attack and the British and Hanoverian troops also began to give way under the pressure of numbers.[66]Pack\'s regiments, all four ranks deep, advanced to attack the French in the road but faltered and began to fire on the French instead of charging. The 42nd Black Watch halted at the hedge and the resulting fire-fight drove back the British 92nd Foot while the leading French45e Ligneburst through the hedge cheering. Along the sunken road, the French were forcing the Allies back, the British line was dispersing, and at two o\'clock in the afternoon Napoleon was winning the Battle of Waterloo.[67]

    Charge of the British heavy cavalry[edit]

    Our officers of cavalry have acquired a trick of galloping at everything. They never consider the situation, never think of manoeuvring before an enemy, and never keep back or provide a reserve.

    —Wellington,[68]Charge of the Scots Greys at Waterloo.

    At this crucial juncture, Uxbridge ordered his two brigades of British heavy cavalry—formed unseen behind the ridge—to charge in support of the hard-pressed infantry. The1st Brigade, known as the Household Brigade, commanded by Major-GeneralLord Edward Somerset, consisted of guards regiments: the1stand2nd Life Guards, theRoyal Horse Guards(the Blues), and the1st (King\'s) Dragoon Guards. The2nd Brigade, also known as the Union Brigade, commanded by Major-GeneralSir William Ponsonby, was so called as it consisted of an English, the1st (The Royals); a Scottish,2nd (\'Scots Greys\'); and an Irish,6th (Inniskilling); regiment of heavy dragoons.[69][70]

    British Household Cavalry charging

    More than 20years of warfare had eroded the numbers of suitable cavalry mounts available on the European continent; this resulted in the British heavy cavalry entering the 1815 campaign with the finest horses of any contemporary cavalry arm. They also received excellent mounted swordsmanship training. They were, however, inferior to the French in manoeuvring in large formations, cavalier in attitude, and unlike the infantry had scant experience of warfare.[68]The Scots Greys, for example, had not been in action since 1795.[71]According to Wellington, they had little tactical ability or common sense.[68]

    The two brigades had a combined field strength of about 2,000 (2,651 official strength); they charged with the 47-year-old Uxbridge leading them and a very inadequate number of squadrons held in reserve.[72]There is evidence that Uxbridge gave an order, the morning of the battle, to all cavalry brigade commanders to commit their commands on their own initiative, as direct orders from himself might not always be forthcoming, and to \"support movements to their front\".[73]It appears that Uxbridge expected the brigades ofSir John Ormsby Vandeleur,Hussey Vivianand the Dutch cavalry to provide support to the British heavies. Uxbridge later regretted leading the charge in person, saying \"I committed a great mistake\", when he should have been organising an adequate reserve to move forward in support.[74]

    Sergeant Ewartof the Scots Greys capturing the eagle of the 45ème LignebyRichard Ansdell

    The Household Brigade crossed the crest of the Allied position and charged downhill. Thecuirassiersguarding d\'Erlon\'s left flank were still dispersed, and so were swept over the deeply sunken main road and then routed.[75]The sunken lane acted as a trap, funnelling the flight of the French cavalry to their own right and away from the British cavalry. Some of the cuirassiers then found themselves hemmed in by the steep sides of the sunken lane, with a confused mass of their own infantry in front of them, the 95th Rifles firing at them from the north side of the lane, and Somerset\'s heavy cavalry still pressing them from behind.[76]The novelty of fighting armoured foes impressed the British cavalrymen, as was recorded by the commander of the Household Brigade.

    The blows of the sabres on the cuirasses sounded like braziers at work.

    —Lord Edward Somerset,[77]

    Continuing their attack, the squadrons on the left of the Household Brigade then destroyed Aulard\'s brigade. Despite attempts to recall them, they continued past La Haye Sainte and found themselves at the bottom of the hill on blown horses facing Schmitz\'s brigade formed insquares.[citation needed]

    To their left, the Union Brigade suddenly swept through the infantry lines (giving rise to the legend that some of the92nd Gordon Highland Regimentclung onto their stirrups and accompanied them into the charge).[m]From the centre leftwards, the Royal Dragoons destroyed Bourgeois\' brigade, capturing the eagle of the 105thLigne. The Inniskillings routed the other brigade of Quoit\'s division, and the Scots Greys came upon the lead French regiment, 45thLigne, as it was still reforming after having crossed the sunken road and broken through the hedge row in pursuit of the British infantry. The Greys captured the eagle of the 45thLigne[78]and overwhelmed Grenier\'s brigade.[79]These would be the only two eagles captured from the French during the battle.[79]On Wellington\'s extreme left,Pierre François Joseph Durutte\'s division had time to form squares and fend off groups of Greys.

    Private of the Chevau-légers of the line (lancers) who routed the Union Brigade.

    As with the Household Cavalry, the officers of the Royals and Inniskillings found it very difficult to rein back their troops, who lost all cohesion. Having taken casualties, and still trying to reorder themselves, the Scots Greys and the rest of the Union Brigade found themselves before the main French lines.[80]Their horses were blown, and they were still in disorder without any idea of what their next collective objective was. Some attacked nearby gun batteries of the Grande Battery.[81]Though the Greys had neither the time nor means to disable the cannon or carry them off, they put very many out of action as the gun crews were killed or fled the battlefield.[82]Sergeant Major Dickinson of the Greys stated that his regiment was rallied before going on to attack the French artillery: Hamilton, the regimental commander, rather than holding them back cried out to his men \"Charge, charge the guns!\"[83]Napoleon promptly responded by ordering a counter-attack by the cuirassier brigades of Farine and Travers and Jaquinot\'s twoChevau-léger(lancer) regiments in the I Corpslight cavalrydivision. Disorganized and milling about the bottom of the valley between Hougoumont andLa Belle Alliance, the Scots Greys and the rest of the British heavy cavalry were taken by surprise by the counter-charge ofMilhaud\'scuirassiers, joined by lancers from Baron Jaquinot\'s 1st Cavalry Division.[84]

    As Ponsonby tried to rally his men against the French cuirassers, he was attacked by Jaquinot\'s lancers and captured. A nearby party of Scots Greys saw the capture and attempted to rescue their brigade commander. However, the French lancer who had captured Ponsonby executed him and then used his lance to kill three of the Scots Greys who had attempted the rescue.[80]By the time Ponsonby died, the momentum had entirely returned in favour of the French. Milhaud\'s and Jaquinot\'s cavalrymen drove the Union Brigade from the valley. The result was very heavy losses for the British cavalry.[85][86]A counter-charge, by British light dragoons under Major-General Vandeleur and Dutch-Belgian light dragoons andhussarsunder Major-General Ghigny on the left wing, and Dutch-Belgiancarabiniersunder Major-General Trip in the centre, repelled the French cavalry.[87]

    All figures quoted for the losses of the cavalry brigades as a result of this charge are estimates, as casualties were only noted down after the day of the battle and were for the battle as a whole.[88][n]Some historians, Barbero for example,[89]believe the official rolls tend to overestimate the number of cavalrymen present in their squadrons on the field of battle and that the proportionate losses were, as a result, considerably higher than the numbers on paper might suggest.[o]The Union Brigade lost heavily in both officers and men killed (including its commander, William Ponsonby, and Colonel Hamilton of the Scots Greys) and wounded. The 2nd Life Guards and the King\'s Dragoon Guards of the Household Brigade also lost heavily (with Colonel Fuller, commander of the King\'s DG, killed). However, the 1st Life Guards, on the extreme right of the charge, and the Blues, who formed a reserve, had kept their cohesion and consequently suffered significantly fewer casualties.[90][p]On the rolls the official, or paper strength, for both Brigades is given as 2,651 while Barbero and others estimate the actual strength at around 2,000[89][q]and the official recorded losses for the two heavy cavalry brigades during the battle was 1,205 troopers and 1,303 horses.[91][r]

    Jan Willem Pieneman: The Battle of Waterloo (1824), detail. Duke of Wellington, centre, flanked on his left by Lord Uxbridge in hussar uniform. On the image\'s far left, Cpl. Styles of the Royal Dragoons flourishes the eagle of the 105emeLigne. The wounded Prince of Orange is carried from the field in the foreground.

    Some historians, such as Chandler and Weller, state that the British heavy cavalry were destroyed as a viable force following their first, epic charge. Barbero states that the Scots Grey were practically wiped out and that the other two regiments of the Union Brigade suffered comparable losses.[92]Other historians, such as Clark-Kennedy and Wood, citing British eyewitness accounts state, however, that the heavy brigades, far from being ineffective, continued to provide valuable services. They counter-charged French cavalry numerous times (both brigades),[93][94][95][96]halted a combined cavalry and infantry attack (Household Brigade only),[97][98][99][100]were used to bolster the morale of those units in their vicinity at times of crisis, and filled gaps in the Anglo-Allied line caused by high casualties in infantry formations (both brigades).[101][102][103][104][105]This service was rendered at a very high cost, as close combat with French cavalry, carbine fire, infantry musketry and—more deadly than all of these—artillery fire steadily eroded the number of effectives in the two brigades.[s]At 6 o\'clock in the afternoon the whole Union Brigade could field only 3 squadrons, though these counter-charged French cavalry, losing half their number in the process[94]At the end of the fighting the two brigades, by this time combined, could muster one squadron.[106][94][107][104]

    14,000 French troops of D\'Erlon\'s I Corp had been committed to this attack. The I Corps had been driven in rout back across the valley costing Napoleon 3,000 casualties[108]including over 2,000prisoners taken.[109]Also some valuable time was lost, the charge had dispersed numerous units and it would take until 16:00 hours for D\'Erlon\'s shaken corps to reform. And although elements of the Prussians now began to appear on the field to his right, Napoleon had already ordered Lobau\'s VI corps to move to the right flank to hold them back before D\'Erlon\'s attack began.

    The French cavalry attack[edit]Marshal Neyleading the French cavalry charge

    A little before 16:00, Ney noted an apparent exodus from Wellington\'s centre. He mistook the movement of casualties to the rear for the beginnings of a retreat, and sought to exploit it. Following the defeat of d\'Erlon\'s Corps, Ney had few infantry reserves left, as most of the infantry been committed either to the futile Hougoumont attack or to the defence of the French right. Ney therefore tried to break Wellington\'s centre with cavalry alone.[110]InitiallyMilhaud\'sreserve cavalry corps of cuirassiers andLefebvre-Desnoëttes\'light cavalry division of the Imperial Guard, some 4,800sabres, were committed. When these were repulsed,Kellermann\'sheavy cavalry corps andGuyot\'sheavy cavalry of the Guard were added to the massed assault, a total of around 9,000cavalry in 67squadrons.[111]When Napoleon saw the charge he said it was an hour too soon.[108]

    \"FrenchCuirassiers\", by Louis Dumoulin.

    Wellington\'s infantry responded by formingsquares(hollow box-formations four ranks deep). Squares were much smaller than usually depicted in paintings of the battle – a 500-man battalion square would have been no more than 60 feet (18m) in length on a side. Vulnerable to artillery or infantry, squares that stood their ground were deadly to cavalry, because they could not be outflanked and because horses would not charge into a hedge of bayonets. Wellington ordered his artillery crews to take shelter within the squares as the cavalry approached, and to return to their guns and resume fire as they retreated.[112][113]

    Witnesses in the British infantry recorded as many as 12assaults, though this probably includes successive waves of the same general attack; the number of general assaults was undoubtedly far fewer. Kellermann, recognising the futility of the attacks, tried to reserve the elitecarabinierbrigade from joining in, but eventually Ney spotted them and insisted on their involvement.[114]

    A British eyewitness of the first French cavalry attack, an officer in the Foot Guards, recorded his impressions very lucidly and somewhat poetically:

    About four p.m., the enemy\'s artillery in front of us ceased firing all of a sudden, and we saw large masses of cavalry advance: not a man present who survived could have forgotten in after life the awful grandeur of that charge. You discovered at a distance what appeared to be an overwhelming, long moving line, which, ever advancing, glittered like a stormy wave of the sea when it catches the sunlight. On they came until they got near enough, whilst the very earth seemed to vibrate beneath the thundering tramp of the mounted host. One might suppose that nothing could have resisted the shock of this terrible moving mass. They were the famous cuirassiers, almost all old soldiers, who had distinguished themselves on most of the battlefields of Europe. In an almost incredibly short period they were within twenty yards of us, shouting\"Vive l\'Empereur!\"The word of command, \"Prepare to receive cavalry\", had been given, every man in the front ranks knelt, and a wall bristling with steel, held together by steady hands, presented itself to the infuriated cuirassiers.

    —Captain Rees Howell Gronow, Foot Guards,[115]\"The artillery officers had the range so accurately, that every shot and shell fell into the very centre of their masses\" (Original inscription and drawing afterGeorge Jones).

    In essence this type of massed cavalry attack relied almost entirely on psychological shock for effect.[116]Close artillery support could disrupt infantry squares and allow cavalry to penetrate; at Waterloo, however, co-operation between the French cavalry and artillery was not impressive. The French artillery did not get close enough to the Anglo-allied infantry in sufficient numbers to be decisive.[117]Artillery fire between charges did produce mounting casualties, but most of this fire was at relatively long range and was often indirect, at targets beyond the ridge. If infantry being attacked held firm in their square defensive formations, and were not panicked, cavalry on their own could do very little damage to them. The French cavalry attacks were repeatedly repelled by the steadfast infantry squares, the harrying fire of British artillery as the French cavalry recoiled down the slopes to regroup, and the decisive counter-charges of Wellington\'s light cavalry regiments, the Dutch heavy cavalry brigade, and the remaining effectives of the Household Cavalry. At least one artillery officer disobeyed Wellington\'s order to seek shelter in the adjacent squares during the charges.Captain Mercer, who commanded \'G\' Troop,Royal Horse Artillery, thought the Brunswick troops on either side of him so shaky that he kept his battery of six nine-pounders in action against the cavalry throughout, to great effect:[t]

    I thus allowed them to advance unmolested until the head of the column might have been about fifty or sixty yards from us, and then gave the word, \"Fire!\" The effect was terrible. Nearly the whole leading rank fell at once; and the round shot, penetrating the column carried confusion throughout its extent... the discharge of every gun was followed by a fall of men and horses like that of grass before the mower\'s scythe.

    —Captain Cavalié Mercer, RHA,[118]A British square puts up dogged resistance against attacking French cavalry.

    For reasons that remain unclear, no attempt was made tospikeother allied guns while they were in French possession. In line with Wellington\'s orders, gunners were able to return to their pieces and fire into the French cavalry as they withdrew after each attack. After numerous costly but fruitless attacks on the Mont-Saint-Jean ridge, the French cavalry was spent.[119]Their casualties cannot easily be estimated. Senior French cavalry officers, in particular the generals, experienced heavy losses. Four divisional commanders were wounded, nine brigadiers wounded, and one killed – testament to their courage and their habit of leading from the front.[114]Illustratively, Houssaye reports that theGrenadiers à Chevalnumbered 796 of all ranks on 15 June, but just 462 on 19 June, while the Empress Dragoons lost 416 of 816 over the same period.[120]Overall Guyot\'s Guard heavy cavalry division lost 47per cent of its strength.

    Guard Lancerswith theGrenadiers à Chevalin support.[u]

    Eventually it became obvious, even to Ney, that cavalry alone were achieving little. Belatedly, he organised a combined-arms attack, using Bachelu\'s division and Tissot\'s regiment of Foy\'s division from Reille\'s II Corps (about 6,500infantrymen) plus those French cavalry that remained in a fit state to fight. This assault was directed along much the same route as the previous heavy cavalry attacks.[121]It was halted by a charge of the Household Brigade cavalry led by Uxbridge. The British cavalry were unable, however, to break the French infantry, and fell back with losses from musketry fire.[122]

    Uxbridge recorded that he tried to lead the Dutch Carabiniers, under Major-GeneralTrip, to renew the attack and that they refused to follow him. Other members of the British cavalry staff also commented on this occurrence.[123]However, there is no support for this incident in Dutch or Belgian sources.[v]Meanwhile, Bachelu\'s and Tissot\'s men and their cavalry supports were being hard hit by fire from artillery and from Adam\'s infantry brigade, and they eventually fell back.[121]Although the French cavalry caused few direct casualties to Wellington\'s centre, artillery fire onto his infantry squares caused many. Wellington\'s cavalry, except for Sir John Vandeleur\'s and Sir Hussey Vivian\'s brigades on the far left, had all been committed to the fight, and had taken significant losses. The situation appeared so desperate that the Cumberland Hussars, the only Hanoverian cavalry regiment present, fled the field spreading alarm all the way to Brussels.[124][w]

    The storming of La Haye Sainte by Knötel

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