Waterloo

[Kai Stemm]

Hello
I'm doing research on the battle of Waterloo and I am asking if you have anything on the lead up to the battle.
Thanks

 

[mikewint]

Depends, how far back? Wellington took control of British, Portuguese, and Spanish forces in the Peninsular war ousting Napoleon from Spain and Portugal. In 1814 after Napoleon's disastrous attack on Russia the French army numbered lass than 100,000 men. Coalition armies took Paris and Napoleon was forced to abdicate. On April 11 he was exiled to Elba. Royalists in France grabbed power and supported by Coalition armies Louis XVIII was restored to power.
On Feb 26, 1815 Napoleon escaped from Elba and landed in France. Louis XVIII had sent troops (Napoleons old 5th Regiment led by Marshal Ney) to capture or kill him. The soldiers however rallied to him and together they marched on Paris. Louis XVIII fled and Napoleon returned to power and very quickly raised an army of 140,000 men, most his old imperial soldiers.
As luck would have it representatives of Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia were meeting in Vienna when word came that Napoleon had escaped. Thus, also very quickly, the 7th Coalition was formed. and war on France was declared on March 25th.
The Coalition had intended to surround France on all side and march on Paris however only Wellington's Anglo-allied army in Belgium was ready to fight though von Blucher's Prussian force was forming to join Wellington.
Napoleon by this time had decided to attack Belgium and capture the port of Brussels. Napoleon deployed his forces along the border and sent Marshal Ney to attack the Prussians. After a fierce battle Ney forced the Prussians to retreat BUT did not destroy them. Napoleon, by the evening of June 17 had brought his army to the village of Waterloo.
Thus on the morning of June 18th just a few miles outside of the village 140,000 men faced each other. The battlefied was about 2 miles wide by 2/3 of a mile across. On the north side were 67,000 men of Wellington's 7th Coalition and on the south were 73,000 French troops. von Blucher's Prussian army was mauled but still very much intact and moving towards Waterloo. It had rained heavily that night and the field was a mud pit. After dawn the skies cleared and the sun came out.
And Napoleon did nothing. He had awakened early, conferred with his Generals over maps, reviewed his troops, refused to order an attack and rode to a small inn at the rear of the lines, sat in a chair with his elbows on his knees and face in his hands. An officer later wrote that he appeared to be in a stupor. It was not until 11:30 a.m. that he roused himself and ordered the attack.

 

[Kai Stemm]

Depends, how far back? Wellington took control of British, Portuguese, and Spanish forces in the Peninsular war ousting Napoleon from Spain and Portugal. In 1814 after Napoleon's disastrous attack on Russia the French army numbered lass than 100,000 men. Coalition armies took Paris and Napoleon was forced to abdicate. On April 11 he was exiled to Elba. Royalists in France grabbed power and supported by Coalition armies Louis XVIII was restored to power.
On Feb 26, 1815 Napoleon escaped from Elba and landed in France. Louis XVIII had sent troops (Napoleons old 5th Regiment led by Marshal Ney) to capture or kill him. The soldiers however rallied to him and together they marched on Paris. Louis XVIII fled and Napoleon returned to power and very quickly raised an army of 140,000 men, most his old imperial soldiers.
As luck would have it representatives of Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia were meeting in Vienna when word came that Napoleon had escaped. Thus, also very quickly, the 7th Coalition was formed. and war on France was declared on March 25th.
The Coalition had intended to surround France on all side and march on Paris however only Wellington's Anglo-allied army in Belgium was ready to fight though von Blucher's Prussian force was forming to join Wellington.
Napoleon by this time had decided to attack Belgium and capture the port of Brussels. Napoleon deployed his forces along the border and sent Marshal Ney to attack the Prussians. After a fierce battle Ney forced the Prussians to retreat BUT did not destroy them. Napoleon, by the evening of June 17 had brought his army to the village of Waterloo.
Thus on the morning of June 18th just a few miles outside of the village 140,000 men faced each other. The battlefied was about 2 miles wide by 2/3 of a mile across. On the north side were 67,000 men of Wellington's 7th Coalition and on the south were 73,000 French troops. von Blucher's Prussian army was mauled but still very much intact and moving towards Waterloo. It had rained heavily that night and the field was a mud pit. After dawn the skies cleared and the sun came out.
And Napoleon did nothing. He had awakened early, conferred with his Generals over maps, reviewed his troops, refused to order an attack and rode to a small inn at the rear of the lines, sat in a chair with his elbows on his knees and face in his hands. An officer later wrote that he appeared to be in a stupor. It was not until 11:30 a.m. that he roused himself and ordered the attack.

You just covered what I needed thanks

 

[Capt. Vick]

Damn Mike, that was an education brother. Thanks!

 

[mikewint]

Well, you know Jim I've always tried to raise the moral and intellectual standard around here...

 

[pbehn]

I read two books on.the peninsula war, three on Nelson and his battles,two on Waterloo one on Napoleon and one on his campaigns. Waterloo was a battle that was at least thirty years in the making and it changed the world completely, all sorted out in a day, it could be said that it marked the end of the first world war.

 

[Graeme]

rode to a small inn at the rear of the lines, sat in a chair with his elbows on his knees and face in his hands. An officer later wrote that he appeared to be in a stupor. It was not until 11:30 a.m. that he roused himself and ordered the attack.

Hemorrhoids?...

 

[Crimea_River]

Well, you know Jim I've always tried to raise the moral and intellectual standard around here...

And how's that been working out for you so far, Mike?

 

[mikewint]

WELL............

 

[Crimea_River]

As I thought.

 

[mikewint]

But I keeps bailing the boat with my pitchfork

 

[Deltafan]

Depends, how far back? Wellington took control of British, Portuguese, and Spanish forces in the Peninsular war ousting Napoleon from Spain and Portugal. In 1814 after Napoleon's disastrous attack on Russia the French army numbered lass than 100,000 men. Coalition armies took Paris and Napoleon was forced to abdicate. On April 11 he was exiled to Elba. Royalists in France grabbed power and supported by Coalition armies Louis XVIII was restored to power.
On Feb 26, 1815 Napoleon escaped from Elba and landed in France. Louis XVIII had sent troops (Napoleons old 5th Regiment led by Marshal Ney) to capture or kill him. The soldiers however rallied to him and together they marched on Paris. Louis XVIII fled and Napoleon returned to power and very quickly raised an army of 140,000 men, most his old imperial soldiers.
As luck would have it representatives of Britain, Austria, Prussia, and Russia were meeting in Vienna when word came that Napoleon had escaped. Thus, also very quickly, the 7th Coalition was formed. and war on France was declared on March 25th.
The Coalition had intended to surround France on all side and march on Paris however only Wellington's Anglo-allied army in Belgium was ready to fight though von Blucher's Prussian force was forming to join Wellington.
Napoleon by this time had decided to attack Belgium and capture the port of Brussels. Napoleon deployed his forces along the border and sent Marshal Ney to attack the Prussians. After a fierce battle Ney forced the Prussians to retreat BUT did not destroy them. Napoleon, by the evening of June 17 had brought his army to the village of Waterloo.
Thus on the morning of June 18th just a few miles outside of the village 140,000 men faced each other. The battlefied was about 2 miles wide by 2/3 of a mile across. On the north side were 67,000 men of Wellington's 7th Coalition and on the south were 73,000 French troops. von Blucher's Prussian army was mauled but still very much intact and moving towards Waterloo. It had rained heavily that night and the field was a mud pit. After dawn the skies cleared and the sun came out.
And Napoleon did nothing. He had awakened early, conferred with his Generals over maps, reviewed his troops, refused to order an attack and rode to a small inn at the rear of the lines, sat in a chair with his elbows on his knees and face in his hands. An officer later wrote that he appeared to be in a stupor. It was not until 11:30 a.m. that he roused himself and ordered the attack.

Sorry, but :

-Wellington beated the french troops (Under the command of Junot) in 1808 in Portugal. But Wellington was accused of disobedience. He had to return to England to be tried. He came back in the Peninsula only in 1809.
-Napoléon was in Spain only from November 1808 to January 1809, where he defeated some Spanish little armies and began the pursuit of the British army to La Corogne. But he must quit Spain to go in Austria because of the beginning of a new war by Austria. At this time Wellington was not in the Peninsula.
-During all the time of the Peninsula war the French troops won almost all the battles against the Spanish and Portuguese troops, but had to fight the Portuguese and Spanish guerilla.
-Wellington won almost all the battles against the french troops in West Spain (he lost only a few little battles and won numerous great battles). But from 1809 to 1812 he retreated to Portugal each time that the french were too numerous to fight.
-From 1813 the Frenchs had to strengthen the other fronts and Wellington never retreated again and attacked the Frenchs from Spain to the South-West of France (Bordeaux-Toulouse).
-In East Spain the french general Suchet won almost all the battles against the british troops (these battles were not as big as the battles in West-Spain). But in 1813 he was forced to retreat in order not to be surrounded because of the great victories of Wellington in West-Spain.
From 1802 the Duke of Cumberland carried out the training of the british troops and invented the new tactic of the "thin line" to allow a larger number of shooters at the same time. In Portugal, in Spain and in South-West of France Wellington used this tactic at the best, always selecting very suitable defensive sites (at least from 1808 to 1812. From 1813 to 1814 he had the advantage of the number and attacked). During all the Peninsula War the Frenchs were unable to counter this Wellington way of war.

-Marshal Ney never commanded the 5th Regiment (I know it's sometimes in movies and even in television documentaries but it's wrong).
.The 6th of March of 1815, one battalion of the 5th Regiment (commanded by major Lessard) rallied to Napoléon near Grenoble.
.Ney rallied Napoléon on the 18th of March with 6000 men.

-Marshal Ney never commanded the french army against the Prussians before Waterloo. It's Napoleon who beated the Prussians (it was the battle of Ligny).
.At the same time Ney was engaged in a batlle against the Wellington's troops in Les quatre bras. At the beginning of the battle the Frenchs were more numerous than the Britishs (twice more) and had the advantage. But Wellington received reinforcements and the Britishs were twice more than the Frenchs and Wellington got the advantage. But Wellington learned the Victory of Napoléon against the Prussians in Ligny and retreated then to Waterloo.

-It was not because of "a stupor" that Napoléon began the battle at 11H30 but because the "the field was a mud pit". At the beginning Napoléon wanted to begin the battle at 07H00. But it was not possible because of the rain fell the day before. And all the french troops were not arrived on the battlefield at 07H00.

-According to some auhtors "A stupor" came later, in the afternoon before or when Ney engaged the French Cavalry without autorisation against the squares of the British army. But according to some other authors this "stupor" never happened.

-For Waterloo Napoléon had not all the French troops. After the victory of Ligny he sent an army (35 000 men) to pursuit the Prussian army (Napoleon thought that he had almost destroyed the Prussian army in Ligny). But this French army found only the smallest army corps of the Prussian army. And the three greater army corps of the Prussian army were already in order again and on their way to Waterloo...