Between eight and nine o'clock in the evening, the troops in Brussels
received orders to be ready to fall in at a moment's notice, and at
the same time six day's bread and biscuit was issued to each man. This
was rather too much, for the _soft staff of life_ was so bulky, that
few of the men could stow the whole of it away. In many instances,
therefore, the bread was either left in the street, or with those on
whom the soldiers were quartered. About half-past eleven, the bugles
and bag-pipes gave signal to prepare for battle. At the first sounds of
the warlike instruments, the fifth division flew to arms, and a little
after mid-night was drawn up in the park and Place Royal in marching
order. At half-past three we moved out of Brussels by the Namur gate,
and directed our march upon the then obscure, but now immortalized
village of Waterloo. Close to this place we halted from half-past eight
till nearly eleven, when we resumed our arms, and proceeded towards
the enemy, followed by the Brunswick infantry. At one, we halted on
a height in rear of Genappe for a quarter of an hour, and then again
advanced, and on descending the height, the thunder of the enemy's
artillery was for the first time heard in the distance; and about
half-past two we arrived at Quatre-Bras, just in time to prevent that
post falling into the hands of the enemy.
Various circumstances conspired to render the defence of this post a
measure of indispensible necessity. At the village, or rather large
farm-steading of Quatre-Bras, the highway from Brussels to Charleroi
is intersected by another, running from Nivelles, &c. to St Amand and
Ligny, where father Blucher and his gallant children had just engaged
in mortal combat with their inveterate enemies. To have tamely yielded
up, or abandoned this position, therefore, on the 16th, would have
placed the whole of the Prussian army in a situation of great and
imminent peril, for by doing so we would have left their extreme right
so completely uncovered, that as soon as Ney saw us fairly out of the
road, he would have carried his troops from Quatre-Bras to St Amand
in a couple of hours, and in the heat of the conflict with Napoleon,
attacked the right of Blucher with fatal effect. Of this there can be
no doubt; and I conceive there can be as little, that had Marshal Ney
been permitted to throw such a preponderating force into the scale
against the Prussians on the afternoon of the 16th of June, they
must have suffered a severe defeat. Their line of communication with
us would, in all probability, have been cut off--the original plan of
operations rendered abortive, and the allied army placed in a perilous
situation.
On first coming in sight of the French, we found their right wing
resting on the heights of Frasne, and their left stretching across the
plain as far as the wood of Bossu. The latter skirted the right of the
road from Brussels, till it passed the village about 150 yards. But
although it run no farther in that direction, the wood extended a great
way to the right, bounding numerous fields of wheat and rye, which lay
between it and the French position, and which for some time tended to
screen the enemy, not from our fire, but from our view.
The ridge on which Quatre-Bras stands runs in some degree parallel to
that of Frasne, but is not so high. Perceiving it to be the Marshal's
intention to obtain possession of the crown of the eminence at
Quatre-Bras, our General dispatched the foreign troops into the wood of
Bossu, and the eighth brigade, 28th, 32d, 79th, and 95th rifles, under
Major-General Sir James Kempt, into the plain on the left, to prevent
the columns of the Marshal obtaining possession of the road leading to
Ligny. In this movement, the eighth brigade was supported by the third
battalion royals, second battalion 44th, and 42d regiment, and the 92d
regiment was ordered to line a bank on the right of the road leading
from Quatre-Bras to St Amand, on which the Field Marshal and his staff
had taken post. The Brunswick infantry were stationed partly in rear
of the left of the Highlanders, and partly in the wood on the right of
the village. The Hanoverian brigade was formed on the left, and rather
in rear of the 92d, and the Brunswick cavalry took post close to the
houses of Quatre-Bras.
The eighth brigade moved down the slope of the eminence in beautiful
order, and commenced the grand struggle in fine style. But the numbers
of that brigade formed such a striking contrast to those of the enemy,
that many of our oldest officers looked forward with uneasiness to the
issue of the conflict. But the 16th of June was not the first day on
which the gallant Kempt and his brave associates had met their enemies
under similar circumstances. Nothing discouraged, therefore, by the
numerical superiority of their opponents, they rushed to the combat
with the spirit of lions, and, after a dreadful struggle, forced the
foe to retire. In a quarter of an hour the work of death was renewed on
both sides with increased fury. As before, the enemy were again on the
point of yielding, when Ney dispatched fresh troops to their relief.
On perceiving the Marshal deploy fresh battalions towards our left,
the Duke of Wellington gave orders to the Royals, 42d, and 44th, to
take part in the battle. The French infantry, assisted by a powerful
and well-served artillery, and a numerous and highly equipped cavalry,
displayed a considerable degree of personal bravery, fancying no doubt
that a few charges of the different arms united, would either force
their opponents to retire, or place them in their hands as prisoners
of war. Unsupported by any artillery or cavalry, however, save a few
pieces of the former, and the mounted corps of the Duke of Brunswick,
our companions braved every attempt to penetrate their squares with the
most unshrinking firmness, and invariably drove back the enemy with
great loss.
About four o'clock the Duke of Brunswick, at the head of his cavalry,
passed the right of the 92d regiment, to charge a body of French
cuirassiers considerably in advance. Led by their undaunted Prince, the
Brunswickers pushed forward in gallant style, and conducted themselves
admirably, till, perceiving the Duke fall from his horse mortally
wounded, the whole were seized with a panic, and retired towards
Quatre-Bras, hotly pursued by their opponents. This unfortunate affair
gave the French a temporary advantage, and inspired them with fresh
courage. Elated with their success, and seeing no troops in their front
to arrest their progress, the enemy advanced with all the audacity of
conquerors, conceiving, no doubt, that the battle was decided. The
92d regiment, hitherto kept hid from the view of the enemy, were now
ordered by the Duke, to be prepared to give them a warm reception.
The orders of their illustrious General, who was then along with them,
were obeyed with the utmost alacrity. Still keeping themselves out
of sight of the assailants, the Highlanders permitted almost all the
fugitives to pass to the rear, and then starting to their feet, they
poured a most destructive flank fire upon the French cavalry, who were
rapidly advancing along the highway, and laid many of them in the
dust. The survivors, not expecting such a reception at a point where
they imagined resistance had ceased, fled in the greatest confusion.
One of their officers having advanced nearly to the houses before
he discovered his danger, made an attempt to escape by the road on
which the 92d regiment was posted. On turning the head of his horse
to make a neck-or-nothing sort of a dash down the road, every one
imagined his object was to find a passage for his sword to the heart
of our commander. First one mounted officer, and then another, periled
their lives to save that of their General, but their opponent neatly
parried their cuts. All eyes were now rivetted on the Duke, confidently
anticipating a fatal result. In a twinkling, the officer was within
a few paces of the Field-Marshal, whose serenity on this, as on all
other occasions throughout that day, was universally noticed, and
loudly applauded. He passed, however, without even looking at the Duke,
on which our eyes again glistened with joy. But in order to prevent
the hair-brained youth causing a similar hubbub amongst us, a few men
of the 6th and 7th companies, 92d regiment, fired at him, killed his
horse, and wounded himself severely, a ball passing through each foot.
He was instantly removed to the rear, and afterwards to Brussels;
where, being quartered in the same house with an officer of the 92d
regiment, he candidly acknowledged that his only object was to escape.
Disappointed in his attempt upon the village, Ney again directed an
attack against our extreme left. For some time his operations were all
of an offensive character, and consisted of a multiplicity of attacks,
sometimes with cavalry, sometimes with infantry, and not unfrequently
with both, assisted in their murderous work by a numerous artillery.
Having neither cavalry nor artillery to back their personal exertions,
the seven British infantry regiments found it necessary to throw
themselves into squares, to sustain with effect the dreadful charges
of their mounted opponents. In forming square, some of them were more
expert than the rest; but with one exception, none of them sustained
any loss, but such as was occasioned by the fire of the enemy.
Perceiving that the British had no intention of retiring, or deploying,
so long as they were surrounded with so many opponents, the French at
length adopted the rather ticklish proceeding of galloping up to the
muzzles of the British muskets, and endeavouring to provoke our men
to throw away their fire, by discharging their carbines and pistols
into the centre of our squares, to which they were most anxious to find
a passage. In this, however, they were most completely disappointed;
for nothing could induce our companions to depart from a system, which
experience had clearly demonstrated to them was the best they could
adopt, under the trying circumstances in which they were placed. All
the attempts of the enemy, therefore, to induce our soldiers to part
with their ammunition proving fruitless, the French, irritated at their
obstinacy, attacked our squares sword in hand, but were always forced
to make a precipitate flight, leaving the ground around each square,
covered with their killed and wounded.
About five o'clock another attempt was made to wrest Quatre-Bras
out of our hands, but with no better success than the former. Soon
after this, the brigade of Guards, under Major-General Maitland, and
third division, commanded by Lieutenant-General Sir Charles Alten,
arrived to our assistance. Never did troops receive a more seasonable
reinforcement. The Guards were thrown into the wood of Bossu, on the
right of the village, and the third division moved along the road
leading to Ligny, till they passed the Royals, &c. when they halted,
and formed the left of our line. As each battalion hurried past us,
it was loudly cheered by every man in the Highland corps. Yes, tears
of joy bade them welcome to share our perils and our glory, and our
best wishes followed but too many of them to their last and silent
abode. Leaning against a bank when the 73d regiment approached us, and
unconscious at the time that I had the pleasure of being known to any
member of that corps, I felt something like surprise when Lieutenant
----, a genuine Irishman, jumped out of his place, and grasping my hand
as firmly as a vice, said, "----, how are you, my old boy? this duty is
not quite so pleasant, I fear, as that in which you and I were engaged
the last time we met at Athlone, devouring _poldowdies_, and swallowing
whisky punch." On admitting the fact, the warm-hearted Irishman flew
like lightning after his battalion, promising to call on me and renew
the conversation next morning. But alas! how little do we know what is
before us,--in an hour he was no more.
As the third division proceeded along the road to their destination,
the enemy were not very sparing of their shot and shell. Their
tremendous salvos, however, we could but feebly return, having received
but a slender addition to our original numbers.
The enemy, conceiving that the troops composing the third division,
were those who had baffled their cavalry to obtain possession of
Quatre-Bras, lost no time, after the rear of the division had cleared
the village, in making the necessary preparations to renew his efforts
to obtain the key of our position.
Under cover of a heavy cannonade, Ney pushed forward two columns of
infantry; one by the highway leading from Charleroi to Quatre-Bras,
and the other by a hollow, or kind of ravine, in front of the wood of
Bossu, towards the same point. On the left of, and fronting the road
to Charleroi, two hundred yards in front of Quatre-Bras, there was a
house of two floors, from the rear of which ran a thick hedge, a short
way across a field. On the right of the road, and immediately opposite
to the house, there was a garden, surrounded with a thick hedge. In the
face fronting the road there was a small gate, from which a gravel walk
led to a similar one on the opposite side. The house and hedge were
occupied by the enemy's advanced guard, and their main body, twelve or
fifteen hundred in number, had taken post about one hundred paces from
the rear of the garden, when the Field-Marshal gave us orders to charge.
The order was no sooner given, than every man of the 92d regiment,
about 600 in number, appeared in front of the bank, behind which they
had reposed for four hours. Colonel Cameron, accompanied by General
Barnes, the Adjutant-General, advanced by the highway, at the head
of the grenadiers and first company. The other companies, by an
oblique movement to their right, directed their march upon the same
points,--the house, garden, and hedge;--the enemy pouring on us a
deadly fire of musketry from the windows of the house, and from the
hedge on the left of it, till we succeeded in driving them from both,
which was not accomplished without a severe loss. Amongst the officers
who fell at this time, was the brave Cameron, who, on receiving his
mortal wound, retired from the field, regretted by the whole regiment.
But, although we had forced the enemy to relinquish their hold of
the house and hedge on the left of it, the principal part of our
duties remained to be performed. Although their advanced guard had
been driven back, the main body shewed no disposition to retire. On
the contrary, they poured on us showers of musketry, sufficient to
appal soldiers of more experience in those matters than one half of
those who fought on the plains of Quatre-Bras. In fact it required
no little exertion to keep some of the young soldiers in the ranks;
for, perceiving the French so much more numerous than themselves, and
that the garden-hedge, though very thick, afforded them no protection;
the danger appeared to some of them so very great, that but for their
veteran companions, and the attention of the officers to their duties,
they might have been induced to retire.
But from this disagreeable situation we endeavoured to extricate
ourselves in the following manner. The only obstacle between us and
the enemy being the garden, it was proposed to move a portion of the
battalion round and between it and the wood of Bossu, another division
round the left, or lower side of the garden, and a third to open a
passage for itself through the garden, by entering at the front gate.
Being of this party, we accomplished our task of forcing the gates with
some little difficulty, for the fire of the enemy was truly dreadful;
and we could not take any steps to render it less effective, till the
whole battalion could be brought to bear upon the enemy. At length,
however, all the three columns arrived at their appointed stations.
Seeing our friends on the right and left ready, we moved out at the
rear gate, and quickly formed in front of the hedge. On this formation
being accomplished, the signal of readiness was given, when the whole
joined in three hearty cheers, and then, with the irresistible bayonet
in their hands, advanced to the work of death.
Who is able to describe the feelings of the combatants at this
momentous crisis? Who can paint the inward workings of every mind, when
the Highlanders advanced, either to drive the enemy from the field,
or leave their mangled bodies on the plains of Quatre-Bras?--language
is inadequate to do it. Suffice it, therefore, to say, that for a few
seconds the French appeared quite resolved to await our assault; but on
perceiving that we really intended to close with them, they wheeled to
the right-about, and attempted to escape by a hollow in front of the
wood, along which their left column had previously advanced. As soon as
they turned their backs, we poured in upon them a volley of musketry,
which did great execution; and thereafter, each man did every thing in
his power to prevent them effecting their escape, and so well did our
lads do their duty, that at every step we found a dead or a wounded
Frenchman. Many of the latter affected to treat the whole business very
lightly; whilst others, even in the very agonies of death, ceased not
to echo the cry of their more fortunate brethren, of Vive l'Empereur.
Never was the fire of a body of men given with finer effect than that
of the 92d, during the pursuit of the enemy, which continued for
fully half a mile, and until the advance of a corps of French cavalry
rendered it prudent to retire into the wood of Bossu. In fact, before
we parted, their column, at first so formidable in numbers, was reduced
to a skeleton.
This was the last serious attempt made by Ney to obtain possession of
Quatre-Bras, but he continued to dispute the wood, and various portions
of the ground on the left, till after nine o'clock, when every prospect
of victory having vanished, he withdrew his troops, _and left us in
possession of the ground which they occupied at the commencement of the
engagement_.
About ten o'clock, the piper of the 92d took post at the garden in
front of the village, where, after tuning his chanter, and setting
his drone in order, he attempted to collect the scattered members of
his regiment. Long and loud blew Cameron; but although the hills and
the valleys echoed the hoarse murmurs of his favourite instrument,
his ultimate efforts could not produce above a half of those whom his
music had cheered on their march to the field of battle. Alas! many of
them had taken leave of this bustling world. Many of them were then
lying weltering in their blood in the fields or in the woods, and not
a few of them in the farm-yard of Quatre-Bras. Of thirty-six officers
who went into action, eleven only escaped unhurt, six being killed or
mortally wounded, two slightly wounded, and seventeen severely. Soon
after this, the 92d regiment retired behind the houses of Quatre-Bras
to take a little repose after the fatigues of this memorable day. The
other corps remained all night nearly on the same ground they held at
the close of the conflict. The Field Marshal retired to Genappe.
Immediately after the close of the battle, our light cavalry began
to arrive in the vicinity of Quatre-Bras; and at an early hour next
morning, the whole of the army had arrived at points whence they could
be readily moved to wherever their services might be required.
About three o'clock in the afternoon of the 16th, Napoleon attacked
the Prussian army in its position at Ligny, with the right wing and
centre of his army, together with all his Imperial Guards; and after a
desperate engagement of six hours, in which neither party asked or gave
quarter, Bonaparte, by one of those tremendous charges of his cavalry,
which on so many former occasions had commanded success, again secured
the victory. The loss of each army was tremendous. But severe as the
loss of the Prussian army was at Ligny, how much more would that loss
have been increased, had not Divine Providence miraculously delivered
their great Leader from the hands of his enemies? On returning from
an unsuccessful charge of the Prussian cavalry, the horse on which
Blucher was mounted was wounded by a musket ball. Instead, however,
of arresting the speed of the animal, the wound rather increased it,
till it dropped down dead. Stunned with the fall, the veteran General
could not remove himself from under the horse. With the animal above
him, and only one Prussian officer near to render him assistance,
Prince Blucher saw the enemy approach, and even pass him. It would be
worth a kingdom to know what passed in the breast of the illustrious
hero on this trying occasion. The brave Prussian army defeated and
annihilated--France again sole arbitress of the Continent--and himself
exhibited to the gaze of a Parisian populace, as the prisoner of that
individual, who, above all men on earth, he most detested, must have
passed before his eyes, as some of the consequences likely to follow
in the train of his misfortunes. Fortunately, however, for himself--for
his country--and for Europe--the Prince was soon relieved from this
distressing, and to him, humiliating situation. For, on missing their
leader, the Prussian cavalry instantly turned round, and like a
torrent, rushed down upon their pursuers with such fury, that a few
minutes served, not only to drive back the enemy upon their infantry,
but to rescue the venerable warrior, and place him once more at the
head of his valiant followers.