QUATRE BRAS
Napoleon escaped from Elba on January 26, 1815; on March 19 he reached
Fontainebleau, and Louis XVIII. fled from Paris. Instantly the flames
of war were rekindled throughout Europe. England hurried her best
troops into the Netherlands, where a great army under Wellington
was assembling. Amongst the first of the regiments to embark were
naturally the famous Rifles. Kincaid had persuaded himself that his
fighting days were ended, and he was peacefully shooting woodcocks in
Scotland when summoned to join his regiment at speed. His battalion had
sailed, and he caught the first boat leaving Leith for Rotterdam. It
took ten days to reach the coast of Holland, and then went helplessly
ashore. Kincaid got safely to land, and pushed on to Brussels, when he
found his battalion forming part of the fifth division under Picton.
A fortnight's pause followed, while the Prussian and English armies
watched and listened for the first sign or sound which would show where
Napoleon's blow was about to fall. It was the fate of the Rifles to
take a gallant part in the stern fight at Quatre Bras, and Kincaid
tells the story very graphically:--
"As our division was composed of crack regiments under crack
commanders, and headed by fire-eating generals, we had little to
do the first fortnight after my arrival beyond indulging in all
the amusements of our delightful quarter; but, as the middle of
June approached, we began to get a little more on the _qui vive_,
for we were aware that Napoleon was about to make a dash at some
particular point; and, as he was not the sort of general to give
his opponent an idea of the when and the where, the greater part of
our army was necessarily disposed along the frontier, to meet him
at his own place. They were, of course, too much extended to offer
effectual resistance in their advanced position; but as our division
and the Duke of Brunswick's corps were held in reserve at Brussels,
in readiness to be thrust at whatever point might be attacked, they
were a sufficient additional force to check the enemy for the time
required to concentrate the army.
"We were, the whole of June 15th, on the most anxious lookout for
news from the front; but no report had been received prior to the
hour of dinner. I went, about seven in the evening, to take a stroll
in the park, and meeting one of the Duke's staff he asked me, _en
passant_, whether my pack-saddles were all ready? I told him that
they were nearly so, and added, 'I suppose they won't be wanted, at
all events, before to-morrow?' to which he replied, in the act of
leaving me, 'If you have any preparation to make, I would recommend
you not to delay so long.' I took the hint, and, returning to
quarters, remained in momentary expectation of an order to move. The
bugles sounded to arms about two hours after.
"To the credit of our battalion, be it recorded that, although the
greater part were in bed when the assembly sounded, and billeted
over the most distant parts of that extensive city, every man was on
his alarm-post before eleven o'clock in a complete state of marching
order; whereas it was nearly two o'clock in the morning before we
were joined by the others.
"As a grand ball was to take place the same night at the Duchess
of Richmond's, the order for the assembling of the troops was
accompanied by permission for any officer who chose, to remain for
the ball, provided that he joined his regiment early in the morning.
Several of ours took advantage of it.
"Waiting for the arrival of the other regiments, we endeavoured to
snatch an hour's repose on the pavement; but we were every instant
disturbed, by ladies as well as gentlemen, some stumbling over us in
the dark--some shaking us out of our sleep to be told the news--and
not a few conceiving their immediate safety depending upon our
standing in place of lying. All those who applied for the benefit
of my advice, I recommended to go home to bed, to keep themselves
perfectly cool, and to rest assured that, if their departure from the
city became necessary (which I very much doubted), they would have at
least one whole day to prepare for it, as we were leaving some beef
and potatoes behind us, for which, I was sure, we would fight rather
than abandon!
"The whole of the division having at length assembled, we were put in
motion about three o'clock on the morning of the 16th, and advanced
to the village of Waterloo, where, forming in a field adjoining the
road, our men were allowed to prepare their breakfasts. I succeeded
in getting mine in a small inn on the left-hand side of the village.
Lord Wellington joined us about nine o'clock; and from his very
particular orders to see that the roads were kept clear of baggage,
and everything likely to impede the movements of the troops, I have
since been convinced that his lordship had thought it probable that
the position of Waterloo might, even that day, have become the
scene of action; for it was a good broad road, on which there were
neither the quantity of baggage nor of troops moving at the time to
excite the slightest apprehension of confusion. Leaving us halted,
he galloped on to the front, followed by his staff; and we were soon
after joined by the Duke of Brunswick, with his corps of the army.
"His Highness dismounted near the place where I was standing, and
seated himself on the roadside, along with his adjutant-general.
He soon after despatched his companion on some duty; and I was
much amused to see the vacated place immediately filled by an old
beggar-man, who, seeing nothing in the black hussar uniform beside
him denoting the high rank of the wearer, began to grunt and scratch
himself most luxuriously! The Duke showed a degree of courage which
few would under such circumstances; for he maintained his post until
the return of his officer, when he very jocularly said, 'Well,
O----n, you see that your place was not long unoccupied!' How little
idea had I, at the time, that the life of the illustrious speaker was
limited to three short hours!
"About twelve o'clock an order arrived for the troops to advance,
leaving their baggage behind; and though it sounded warlike, yet we
did not expect to come in contact with the enemy, at all events, on
that day. But, as we moved forward, the symptoms of their immediate
presence kept gradually increasing; for we presently met a cartload
of wounded Belgians; and, after passing through Genappe, the distant
sound of a solitary gun struck on the listening ear. But all doubt
on the subject was quickly removed; for, on ascending the rising
ground where stands the village of Quatre Bras, we saw a considerable
plain in our front, flanked on each side by a wood, and on another
acclivity beyond, we could perceive the enemy descending towards us
in most imposing numbers.
"Quatre Bras, at that time, consisted of only three or four houses;
and, as its name betokens, I believe, stood at the junction of four
roads, on one of which we were moving; a second inclined to the
right; a third, in the same degree, to the left; and the fourth, I
conclude, must have gone backwards; but, as I had not an eye in
that direction, I did not see it. The village was occupied by some
Belgians, under the Prince of Orange, who had an advanced post in a
large farmhouse at the foot of the road, which inclined to the right;
and a part of his division also occupied the wood on the same side.
"Lord Wellington, I believe, after leaving us at Waterloo, galloped
on to the Prussian position at Ligny, where he had an interview
with Blucher, in which they concerted measures for their mutual
co-operation. When we arrived at Quatre Bras, however, we found him
in a field near the Belgian outpost; and the enemy's guns were just
beginning to play upon the spot where he stood, surrounded by a
numerous staff.
"We halted for a moment on the brow of the hill; and as Sir Andrew
Barnard galloped forward to the headquarter group, I followed, to
be in readiness to convey any orders to the battalion. The moment
we approached, Lord Fitzroy Somerset, separating himself from the
Duke, said, 'Barnard, you are wanted instantly; take your battalion
and endeavour to get possession of that village,' pointing to one
on the face of the rising ground, down which the enemy were moving;
'but if you cannot do that, secure that wood on the left, and keep
the road open for communication with the Prussians.' We instantly
moved in the given direction; but, ere we had got half-way to the
village, we had the mortification to see the enemy throw such a force
into it as rendered any attempt to retake it, with our numbers,
utterly hopeless; and as another strong body of them were hastening
towards the wood, which was the second object pointed out to us, we
immediately brought them to action, and secured it. In moving to that
point, one of our men went raving mad, from excessive heat. The poor
fellow cut a few extraordinary capers, and died in the course of a
few minutes.
"While our battalion reserve occupied the front of the wood, our
skirmishers lined the side of the road, which was the Prussian line
of communication. The road itself, however, was crossed by such
a shower of balls, that none but a desperate traveller would have
undertaken a journey on it. We were presently reinforced by a small
battalion of foreign light troops, with whose assistance we were in
hopes to have driven the enemy a little farther from it; but they
were a raw body of men, who had never before been under fire, and, as
they could not be prevailed upon to join our skirmishers, we could
make no use of them whatever. Sir Andrew Barnard repeatedly pointed
out to them which was the French, and which was our side; and, after
explaining that they were not to fire a shot until they joined our
skirmishers, the word 'March!' was given; but march to them was
always the signal to fire, for they stood fast, and began blazing
away, chiefly at our skirmishers too, the officers commanding whom
were every time sending back to say that we were shooting them: until
we were at last obliged to be satisfied with whatever advantages
their appearance could give, as even that was of some consequence
where troops were so scarce.
"Bonaparte's attack on the Prussians had already commenced, and the
fire of artillery and musketry in that direction was tremendous; but
the intervening higher ground prevented us from seeing any part of it.
"The plain to our right which we had just quitted had likewise become
the scene of a sanguinary and unequal contest. Our division after we
left it deployed into line, and, in advancing, met and routed the
French infantry; but in following up their advantage they encountered
a furious charge of cavalry, and were obliged to throw themselves
into squares to receive it. With the exception of one regiment,
however, which had two companies cut to pieces, they were not only
successful in resisting the attack, but made awful havoc in the
enemy's ranks, who, nevertheless, continued their forward career, and
went sweeping past them like a whirlwind up to the village of Quatre
Bras, to the confusion and consternation of the numerous useless
appendages of our army who wore there assembled waiting the result of
the battle.
"The forward movement of the enemy's cavalry gave their infantry
time to rally; and strongly reinforced with fresh troops, they again
advanced to the attack. This was a crisis in which, according to
Bonaparte's theory, the victory was theirs by all the rules of war,
for they held superior numbers both before and behind us; but the
gallant old Picton, who had been trained in a different school, did
not choose to confine himself to rules in those matters. Despising
the force in his rear, he advanced, charged, and routed those in his
front, which created such a panic among the others that they galloped
back through the intervals in his division with no other object in
view but their own safety. After this desperate conflict the firing
on both sides lulled almost to a calm for nearly an hour, while each
was busy in renewing their order of battle.
"The battle, on the side of the Prussians, still continued to rage in
an unceasing roar of artillery. About four in the afternoon a troop
of their dragoons came, as a patrol, to inquire how it fared with us,
and told us in passing that they still maintained their position.
Their day, however, was still to be decided, and, indeed, for that
matter, so was our own; for, although the firing for the moment had
nearly ceased, I had not yet clearly made up my mind which side had
been the offensive, which the defensive, or which the winning. I
had merely the satisfaction of knowing that we had not lost it; for
we had met fairly in the middle of a field (or, rather unfairly,
considering that they had two to one), and, after the scramble was
over, our division still held the ground they fought on. All doubts
on the subject, however, began to be removed about five o'clock. The
enemy's artillery once more opened, and on running to the brow of
the hill to ascertain the cause, we perceived our old light-division
general, Count Alten, at the head of a fresh British division, moving
gallantly down the road towards us. It was, indeed, a joyful sight;
for, as already mentioned, our division had suffered so severely
that we could not help looking forward to a renewal of the action,
with such a disparity of force, with considerable anxiety. But this
reinforcement gave us new life, and, as soon as they came near
enough to afford support, we commenced the offensive, and driving in
the skirmishers opposed to us, succeeded in gaining a considerable
portion of the position originally occupied by the enemy, when
darkness obliged us to desist. In justice to the foreign battalion
which had been all day attached to us, I must say that, in this last
movement, they joined us cordially and behaved exceedingly well. They
had a very gallant young fellow at their head; and their conduct in
the earlier part of the day can therefore only be ascribed to its
being their first appearance on such a stage.
"Leaving General Alten in possession of the ground which we had
assisted in winning, we returned in search of our division, and
reached them about eleven at night, lying asleep in their glory on
the field where they had fought, which contained many a bloody trace
of the day's work. The firing, on the side of the Prussians, had
altogether ceased before dark, but recommenced with redoubled fury
about an hour after; and it was then, as we afterwards learnt, that
they lost the battle.
"We lay down by our arms near the farmhouse already mentioned, in
front of Quatre Bras; and the deuce is in it if we were not in
good trim for sleeping, seeing that we had been either marching or
fighting for twenty-six successive hours."
In the retreat from Quatre Bras to Waterloo, made necessary by the
defeat of Blucher at Ligny, the Rifles formed part of the rearguard.
Says Kincaid:--
"_June 17._--As last night's fighting only ceased with the daylight,
the scene this morning presented a savage, unsettled appearance; the
fields were strewed with the bodies of men, horses, torn clothing,
and shattered cuirasses; and, though no movements appeared to be
going on on either side, yet, as occasional shots continued to be
exchanged at different points, it kept every one wide awake. We had
the satisfaction of knowing that the whole of our army had assembled
on the hill behind in the course of the night.
"About nine o'clock we received the news of Blucher's defeat, and of
his retreat to Wavre. Lord Wellington, therefore, immediately began
to withdraw his army to the position of Waterloo. Sir Andrew Barnard
was ordered to remain as long as possible with our battalion, to mask
the retreat of the others; and was told, if we were attacked, that
the whole of the British cavalry were in readiness to advance to our
relief. I had an idea, however, that a single rifle battalion in the
midst of ten thousand dragoons, would come but indifferently off in
the event of a general crash, and was by no means sorry when, between
eleven and twelve o'clock, every regiment had got clear off, and we
followed before the enemy had put anything in motion against us.
"After leaving the village of Quatre Bras, and passing through our
cavalry who were formed on each side of the road, we drew up at
the entrance of Genappe. The rain at that moment began to descend
in torrents, and our men were allowed to shelter themselves in the
nearest houses; but we were obliged to turn out again in the midst of
it in less than five minutes, as we found the French cavalry and ours
already exchanging shots, and the latter were falling back to the
more favourable ground behind Genappe; we therefore retired with them
_en masse_ through the village, and formed again on the rising ground
beyond.
"While we remained there we had an opportunity of seeing the
different affairs of cavalry; and it did one's heart good to see how
cordially the Life Guards went at their work. They had no idea of
anything but straight-forward fighting, and sent their opponents
flying in all directions. The only young thing they showed was in
every one who got a roll in the mud (and, owing to the slipperiness
of the ground, there were many) going off to the rear, according to
their Hyde Park custom, as being no longer fit to appear on parade! I
thought at first that they had been all wounded, but, on finding how
the case stood, I could not help telling them that theirs was now the
situation to verify the old proverb, 'The uglier the better soldier!'
"The roads as well as the fields had now become so heavy that our
progress to the rear was very slow; and it was six in the evening
before we drew into the position of Waterloo. Our battalion took
post in the second line that night, with its right resting on the
Namur Road, behind La Haye Sainte, near a small mud cottage, which
Sir Andrew Barnard occupied as a quarter. The enemy arrived in front
in considerable force about an hour after us, and a cannonade took
place in different parts of the line, which ended at dark, and we lay
down by our arms. It rained excessively hard the greater part of the
night, nevertheless, having succeeded in getting a bundle of hay for
my horse, and one of straw for myself, I secured the horse to his
bundle, by tying him to one of the men's swords stuck in the ground,
and, placing mine under his nose, I laid myself down upon it, and
never opened my eyes again until daylight."