Case Studies 1850-1900 Flashcards
Waterloo, events of 15th June 1815
Napoleon took an army across the French border in an attempt to defeat the other powers of Europe.
Napoleon led the main body of his army in the centre.
Marshal Ney led his left, Marshal Grouchy led his right
The Duke of Wellington led troops from Britain, the Netherlands and the German states.
Field Marshal Blücher led a Prussian army
Waterloo, events 16th June 1815
Clashes at
Quatre Bras, Wellington fought a Skirmish with Marshal Ney
15km away at Ligny, Napoleon, commanding Grouvhy’s forces, inflicted heavy casualties on the Prussian army.
Waterloo, events 18th June
Napoleon’s manoeuvring had seperated the British and Prussian armies. He sent Grouchy, with 33,000 men, to keep them away.
Wellington’s troops were intact.
Near the Belgian town of Waterloo:
-wellington in defensive position with 50,000 infantry, 12,000 cavalry and 5,000 gunners
-Napoleon prepared to attack with 70,000 men
Waterloo, Wellington’s position was good defensively because:
-drew up his troops on the reverse side of a ridge (limited impact of enemy artillery)
-set up two positions in front of the ridge to break up the french assault: one at chateau of Hougoumont (held by coldstream guards), other at a farmhouse at la Haye Sainte (held by the King’s German legion)
Waterloo, Napoleon had to attack to win but:
-he was suffering with piles. Was bad tempered with generals and couldn’t ride his horse around to survey the battle. Delayed the start of the battle.
-sent 33,000 troops, ordering marshal Grouchy to persue the Prussian reinforcefments. Blücher (Prussian) held off Grouchy and escaped with 70,000 troops which arrived at waterloo in the late afternoon. Grouchy’s troops were wasted.
Waterloo, 11:30am: Napoleon launched an 84 gun artillery bombardment
-soft ground swallowed cannon balls and cannisters, preventing injuries feom ricoshets and shrapnel. Many shots missed because of the ridge.
-at the same time, Napoleon’s infantry attack the chateau, hoping to trick Wellington into diverting his central troops there, was fought off by 2000 coldstream guards infantry squares (protected by muskets and bayonets). These gave protection from all sides, the hollow centre held artillery and injured men
Waterloo, 1:00pm: Napoleon’s main attack on the centre
-by this time, the Prussians had begun to arrive
-Napoleon could’ve attacked three hours earlier
-he sent infantry in collumns 200 men wide, lacking the firepower of lines and was hit by enemy fire
Waterloo, 3:00pm: Napoleon regrouped his troops and….
…renewed the assualt. He could have withdrawn and joined Grouchy’s 33,000 but fought on instead. Sent Ney’s troops against the farmhouse in Wellington’s centre. Went badly at first
Waterloo, 4:00pm: Ney captured the farmhouse
Set up artillery 270 metres away from the British. Napoleon refused to send reinforcements from his 25,000 imperial guard.
-wellington leads German troops from Brunswick to strengthen the centre of his line
-fearful they’d desert, he lined up cavalry brigades behind them
-seeing the Brunswick troops were giving way, he personally led a group of grenadiers to plug the gap
Waterloo, 7:00pm Napoleon sends in the Imperial guard
He did this too late. Blücher’s full force had now arrived. Napoleon was outnumbered and overrun. Wellington ordered a general advance and the French were driven
Waterloo, 9:00pm
25,000 out of 70,000 French were killed or wounded
Waterloo, Wellington’s good decisions
-formation, he used his environment to his advantage (used ridge effectively)
-used infantry lines and squares
-made himself visible to his troops
What does Waterloo tell us about the nature of warfare circa 1700-1800
-high casualty figures due to firepower at close range
-basic weapons from 1700 still being used (bayonets, flintlock, basic artillery)
-main difference was scale in terms of numbers and casualties.
Battle of balaclava, Thin red line
Preperations/leadership had been poor; Raglan didn’t reinforce his defences. Russian troops were almost able to break through the British base at Balaclava.
-Only the 93rd Highland regiment prevented them from doing so
-Thin red line showed the power of a disciplined infantry with more modern rifles and how effective this was against a cavalry charge
Battle of balaclava, Charge of the Light Brigade significance
showed incompetance of commanders as the light brigade (cavalry) charged a heavily defended Russian position without reinforcement from heavy brigade
