WATERLOO. 



command to concentrate on the extreme of its pofition, 

 near the great road from Bruffels to Charleroi, and in a line 

 between Nivelles and Namur. The fifth divifion of the 

 Britifh army, with the corps of the duke of Brunfwick- 

 Oels, left Bruffels about 2 a. m. on the i6th, and advanced 

 towards the pofition where the whole army was ordered to 

 aflemble. 



One brigade of the Dutch troops, which was in advance 

 towards Charleroi, had been attacked, when the Prufiians 

 fell back on the 15th, and driven from its advanced pofition 

 near Frafnes ; but the prince of Orange having moved up 

 another brigade of the fame army, they were able to repulfe 

 the enemy, and in the evening they regained the greater part 

 of the ground which had been loft throughout the day. 

 On the morning of the i6th, prince Blucher, who was 

 determined to meet Buonaparte with all his ftrength, had 

 pofted the army under his command on the heights between 

 the villages of Brie and Sombref, and to fome diftance 

 beyond Sombref. In front of this line, he occupied the 

 villages of St. Amand and Ligny with a very confiderable 

 force. 



Buonaparte, as foon as he had pafled the Sambre, direfted 

 the great body of his force againft the Pruflian line. Mar- 

 (hal Ney, who commanded the left wing, was direfted to 

 advance by Goflelies and Frafnes, and attack the Britifti 

 pofition ; his force confifting of the firft and fecond corps 

 of infantry, and four divifions of cavalry. 



The third, fourth, and fixth corps, with the guard in re- 

 ferve, were ordered to attack the Pruffian pofition in front, 

 while the fifth corps under Grouchy, and a divifion of 

 cavalry, were detached towards Sombref, on the Namur 

 road, with the view of manoeuvring on that flank. 



On debouching from Fleurus, Buonaparte had an oppor- 

 tunity of reconnoitring the pofition of marfhal Blucher with 

 more precifion. He immediately placed the firft corps be- 

 longing to the left wing under Ney, with two divifions of 

 heavy cavalry, behind the village of Frafnes, on the right, 

 and at a little diftance from the Bruffels road, where it was 

 to form a referve, that could be brought up to fupport 

 either his attack upon the PrufGans, or Ney's attack upon 

 the Jiritilh. The third corps was ordered to advance in 

 column to carry the village of St. Amand, while the 

 fourth corps, fupported by the guard and the cavalry, was 

 ordered to attack Ligny. 



The enemy advanced in overpowering mafles upon St. 

 Amand, where the aftion firft commenced on the morning 

 of the 1 6th. The brave Pruffians defended this part of 

 their advanced pofition with great firmnefs, and it was not 

 till after a long and fanguinary conflift, that they were 

 obliged to yield for a time to fuperior numbers. The 

 fourth corps commenced its attack upon the village of 

 Ligny about mid-day, and by one o'clock p.m. the aftion 

 may be faid to have become general throughout the whole 

 of the extended line of the allied Britifti and Pruffian armies. 

 Grouchy by that time had attacked the extreme left beyond 

 Sombref, and Ney had come in contaft with the advance of 

 the army under the duke of Wellington, near Frafnes. 

 But it was in the villages of St. Amand and Ligny, that 

 the greateft ftruggle for viftory took place, between the 

 contending armies. There the battle continued for five 

 hours, it may be faid, almoft in the villages themfelves, as 

 the movements forwards and backwards, during that period, 

 were confined to a very narrow fpace. Frefti troops were 

 conftantly moved up on both fides ; and as each army had 

 immenfe mafles of infantry behind that part of the village 

 which it occupied, thefe ferved to maintain the combat, as 

 they were continually receiving reinforcements from the 



rear. Upwards of 200 pieces of cannon were direfted 

 againft the villages, and they were frequently on fire in 

 many places. 



About 4 o'clock, prince Blucher placed himfelf at the 

 head of a battalion of infantry, and charged with them into 

 the village of St. Amand. After a dreadful ftruggle, he 

 gained pofleflion of the greater part of it. The enemy 

 were panic-itruck, and the viftory feemed fo doubtful, that 

 Buonaparte was obliged to fend in all hafte for the firft. 

 corps, which he had left in referve near Frafnes ; at the very 

 moment too, that it had become equally neceflar^' to marflial 

 Ney, whofe columns, having been repulfed by the fifth 

 divifion of Britidi infantry, were retiring in great con- 

 fufion. 



The advantage which Blucher had fo nobly gained, was 

 of little importance to the general aftion in which his troops 

 were engaged. At Ligny, the battle ftill raged with 

 unabated vigour; and though the evening was far advanced, 

 the viftory remained undecided. The badnefs of the roads, 

 and the difficulties which general Bulow had to encounter 

 in his march, prevented his corps from getting up on the 

 1 6th ; fo that Blucher had only three corps of his army in 

 pofition ; and though they had repulfed every attack which 

 had been made upon them, the danger was becoming urgent, 

 as all the divifions were engaged, or had already been fo, 

 and there was no referve at hand. 



As the night advanced, the enemy, favoured by the dark- 

 nefs, made a circuit round the village of Ligny, with a divi- 

 fion of infantry on one fide ; and, without being obferved, 

 got into the rear of the main body of the Pruflian army, at 

 the fame moment that fome regiments of cuirafliers forced 

 their paflage on the other fide of the village. This move- 

 ment decided the day, and ficld-marflial Blucher was obliged 

 to commence his retreat ; yet his brave columns, though 

 furprifed, were not difmayed. They formed themfelves 

 into folid mafles, and, repulfing every attack which the 

 enemy made upon them, retired in perfeft good order to 

 their original ground, upon the heights above the village, 

 and from thence continued, unmolefted, their retrograde 

 movement upon Wavre. 



This movement of the marftial's rendered neceflTary a 

 correfponding one on the part of the duke of Wellington ; 

 and he retired from the farm of Quatre Bras upon Genappe, 

 and thence upon Waterloo, the next morning of the 17th 

 at 10 o'clock. 



The duke of Wellington, having given orders for the 

 army under his command to concentrate on the left, pro- 

 ceeded with the fifth divifion and the duke of Brunfwick- 

 Oels' corps, in the direftion of Charleroi. About two 

 o'clock on the afternoon of the i6th, the head of the Britifh 

 column reached the farm of Quatre Bras, fo named from its 

 ftanding near where the roads from Bruffels to Charleroi, 

 and from Nivelles to Namur, crofs each other. The ad- 

 vance of the enemy under Nej', who had again driven the 

 Dutch troops from their pofition near Frafnes, had nearly 

 reached the fame fpot ; and general Kempt's brigade had 

 fcarcely time to deploy from the great road, before it was 

 attacked by the enemy's cavalry, fupported by heavy mafles 

 of his infantry, Nothing could exceed the daring intre- 

 pidity of the French troops at this moment ; their fuccefs 

 on tlie 15th, and confidence in their leader, added to the 

 natural bravery of the troops, made them advance with 

 almofl a certainty of viftory. The fudden appearance of 

 overwhelming mafles of cavalry, and the rapidity with 

 which they charged our infantry, before they had time to 

 throw themfelves into fquares, created fome little confufion 

 in one or two regiments. Indeed, fo daring were the 



French 



