░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░░
░░░░░░▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒▒░░░░░░
░░░░▒▒▒▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▓▒▒▒░░░░
__/) ░░▒▒▓▓████████████████████████▓▓▒▒░░ (\__
|~~| ░▒▓██ ██▓▒░ |~~|
|__| ░▒▓█ W A T E R L O O █▓▒░ |__|
^ /||\ ░▒▓█ 18 JUNE 1815 █▓▒░ /||\ ^
/|\ |||| ░▒▓█ █▓▒░ |||| /|\
/ | \ |||| ░▒▓█ "La Garde recule!" █▓▒░ |||| / | \
/ | \ |||| ░▒▓██ ██▓▒░ |||| / | \
══════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════
▲▲▲ ▲▲▲ ▲▲▲ WELLINGTON NAPOLEON ▲▲▲ ▲▲▲ ▲▲▲
░░░░░ ░░░░░ ░░░░░ Mount St. Jean La Belle Alliance ░░░░░ ░░░░░ ░░░░░
╔════╗╔════╗╔════╗ ╔════╗╔════╗╔════╗
║████║║████║║████║ ← ALLIED FORCES ║▓▓▓▓║║▓▓▓▓║║▓▓▓▓║
╚════╝╚════╝╚════╝ FRENCH FORCES → ╚════╝╚════╝╚════╝
A meditation on the Battle of Waterloo
Sunday, June 18, 1815. Near the village of Waterloo in present-day Belgium.
Napoleon had escaped from Elba in March 1815, rallied his army, and marched north to defeat the Coalition armies before they could unite. On June 16, he beat Blücher's Prussians at Ligny. Now he turned on Wellington.
Wellington chose his ground: a ridge south of Waterloo, with fortified farms at Hougoumont, La Haye Sainte, and Papelotte anchoring his line. He needed to hold until Blücher arrived.
Napoleon needed to break Wellington before the Prussians appeared.
1. Hougoumont (11:30 AM - evening): Napoleon attacked the fortified farmhouse to draw Wellington's reserves. The fight raged all day but Wellington sent few reinforcements. The farm never fell.
2. D'Erlon's Attack (1:00 PM): 16,000 French infantry advanced in massive columns. British cavalry counter-charged brilliantly but overextended and was destroyed.
3. The Cavalry Charges (4:00-6:00 PM): Marshal Ney, seeing movement behind Wellington's ridge, thought the Allies were retreating. He launched cavalry charges without infantry support. Magnificent, futile. The British squares held.
4. La Haye Sainte Falls (6:00 PM): The farm in Wellington's center fell when defenders ran out of ammunition. Crisis point. Napoleon could have broken through.
5. The Imperial Guard (7:00 PM): Napoleon committed his last reserve — the undefeated Imperial Guard. They advanced through fire and smoke. Wellington's hidden troops rose from the wheat. Point-blank volleys shattered the columns. 'La Garde recule!' The unthinkable. The Guard retreated. The army collapsed.