At the beginning of the campaign the French army numbered 124.5A8 men-89.415 infantry. 23.595 cavalry, 11,578 artillery with 344 guns. Wellington commanded 93,717 men-69,29 infantry, 11,879 cavalry, 9,406 artillery and eirneers, with 1% guns. The Prussian forces ander Bhicher amounted to 1209M men —99, 715 infantry, 11,897 cavalry and 9,360 artillery, with 312 guns. Wellington's forces, composed of Englishmen, Dutch, Belgiant, Nassauers, Gennans and Brunswickers, were stationed in tionerous cantonments scattered over a large area around Brussels, and to the westward of the Brussels-Charleroi pike leading to the south, with the coast as their hate. Of Blarher's force the First corps, under Ziethen, au at Charleroi, the Second, tinder Pirch, at Namur, the Third, under Thielmann, at Ciney tacked the Prussians at Ligny, and after three hours of severe fighting, defeated them and captured 21 guns. The battle was desperate and bloody; about 12,000 Prussians fell, and in the final charge of the Guard, Blucher himself was wounded. This was Napoleon's last vic tory. As the result of the battle, he assumed that the Prussians had been routed and were retreating to their base by way of Namur and Liege, when, as a matter of fact, under the direction of Gneisenau, Blucher's chief of staff, they were moving northward and con verging on W'avre, with the intention of join and the Fourth, under Bulow, at Liege, with the Rhine as their base.
The movement began on 13 June. The French army advanced rapidly northward, -tossed the Sambre on the afternoon of tne 15th, attacked Ziethen's position, drove him hack upon Fleurus, and occupied Charleroi. A portion of the army then continued the ad vance through Gosalies to Quatre-Flrac where they met a force of 25,000 men under Welling ton, on the afternoon of the 16th, and after several hours of hard fighting were driven hack upon Frames In the meantime. with 'he intention of blocking the road between and Somhreffe so as to separate the forces under M'ellington and Illiicher, the troops ccenmanded by Napoleon himself at ing Wellington, with whom they were in con stant communication. About noon of the 17th, Napoleon detached Grouchy with 3&000 men to pursue and complete the defeat of the Prus sians driven back at Ligny, while he himself wZith the main body of the armyjoined Ney and followed Wellington, who, although vic torious at Quatre-Bras, had been forced to fall back northward toward Brussels on ac count of the defeat of the Prussians at Lim. Wellington's retrograde movement was con tinned during the whole of the 17th, until he had reached the heights of Mont Saint Jean. Omni four miles south of the village of Water loo, where the Prussians could join him by way of Ohain and Wayre. Here he selected his position, and confident of their assured support, he awaited the advance of the em peror.
On the afternoon of the 17th, when Na poleon reached Marbain. he received the in formation that the Prussians defeated at Ligny had not retreated to Namur and Liege, and he sent a message to Grouchy informing him of that fact, and instructing him to find out if the Prussians were moving to a junction with Wellington. When Grouchy received this mes sage he was actually farther from the Prus sians than the Prussians were from Welling ton, and about the time he reached Gembloux, about 10 o'clock on the night of the 17th, only rear of Wellington's position, and thus cut off his retreat in the direction of Brussels and his base of supplies. The best authorities con cede that the plan was admirably conceived.
About 8 o'clock on the morning of the 18th, Wellington drew up his forces in line oT battle, but although the rain which had been falling all night ceased about that time, the attack by the French was postponed so that the ground might be in better condition for artillery move ments. A little before 9 o'clock Napoleon re viewed his lines, and about 10 o'clock he sent instructions to Grouchy to advance upon the Prussians at Wavre. The battle commenced to learn that the Prussians had really marched to Wavre, the main French army had reached the field of Waterloo and bivouacked opposite the forces of Wellington. It was past mid night when Napoleon inspected the position of both armies. The main line of Wellington's forces occupied an advantageous position along the highway that runs from Braine la Lend to Wavre by way of Ohain, with the centre resting on the Brussels-Charleroi pike, while strong outposts held the farm house of La Haye Sainte directly in advance of the centre, the hamlets of La Haye, Papellotte, and Smohain on the extreme left, and the chateau of Hougomont on the right. His force
consisted of 67,661 men-49,608 infantry, 12, 408 cavalry and 5,645 artillery with 156 guns. Of these the British troops numbered only about 24,000. Napoleon had 71,947 men-48, 950 infantry, 15,765 cavalry and 7,232 artillery with 246 guns. He arranged his troops in two lines diagonally across the Brussels-Charleroi pike, the right resting on Frischcrmont, and the left across the road to Nivelles, with a strong force of infantry, cavalry and artillery stationed in the rear on both sides of the Charleroi pike near Rossomme.
Early on the morning of the 18th, he dic tated his plan of battle, the direct object of which was to capture the village of Mont Saint Jean lying on the Charleroi pike directly in the at 11.30. As a diversion, a division of Reille's corps assaulted the British position at Hougo mont, were repulsed, and were supported by division after division until the entire Second corps were in action against Wellington's left, and therefore did not take any part in the main attack on the British centre by D'Erlon about 1.30. In this attack, the advanced troops of the British right, composed of Bylandt's brigade, were easily routed, but the advancing French received a terrific fire from Picton's brigade, and being charged by the British cavalry, fell back in great disorder. Here General Picton who probably commanded the British right was killed. In the meantime, as sault upon assault was made by the French on La Haye Sainte, which occupied the greater part of the afternoon, while for two hours, from 4 to 6 o'clock, under the personal direc tion of Ney, the splendid cavali-v divisions of the French were hurled against the British right-centre, •but failed to break the formation of a single British souare. The cavalry at tack being unsupported by infantry, Ney was compelled to withdraw for lack of about 6.30, just as La Haye Sainte was taken. too late to le of any advantage. About the middle of the afternoon Napoleon discovered the advance guard of the re-enforcing Prus sians on the hills of Saint Lambert about three miles away upon his right, and realized for the first time that the entire Prussian torte had miaveded in concentrating at Wavre. and were now on hand to aid Wellington. He im mediately detached Lobau with the Sixth corps, to intercept the new enemy, and sent a message to Grouchy, ordering him to return. Grouchy in the meantime, having moved off to Wavre in search of the Prussians, did not get this message until evening.
Lobau being unable to check the advance of the Prussians, the Young Guard was sent to re-enforce him, and then, believing that his right was secure, Napoleon massed the eight remaining battalions of the Imperial Guard for a final attack upon Wellington's centre. Sup pwted by a terrific artillery fire, and led by Priam, the Guard advanced, while D'Erlon hurled the First corps against the British right. D'Erion's assault was effective, but the Guard, decimated by a heavy fire from kfaidand's brigade, supported by those of Ha!ken and Elphinstone, were repulsed with terrific loss sad fell back in complete disorder before the impetuous charge of the 52d regi ment. Just then, about 7.30, the main body of the Prussians arrived, and going right into action, attacked the French right and threw n into confusion. At that moment, Welling ton. seeing that victory was assured, ordered a general advance of his lines and decided the contest. His troops, however, were too far gone to engage in the pursuit, which was taken up by the Prussians with vigor, and the retreat soon became a rout. Napoleon left the field in the centre of a square of the Imperial Guard. He left this at (,enappe, and strived at Charleroi at daybreak with a small escort of horsemen. He reached Paris 21 lane, and signed the second abdication on the V.d. The entire campaign had lasted but three days, and the battle itself, one of the most re markable and terrible of modern times, was decided in eight and a half hours. The French lost in killed, wounded and missing, about 31,000 men, and the Allies, about 23,000.
Bibliography.— The literature upon the subject is very extensive, but for the most reliable and exhaustive information consult Ropes, J. C., 'The Campaign of Waterloo' (New York 1892); Chesney, 'Waterloo Lec tures' (London 1W4), and Gardner, 'Quatre Bras, Lim and Waterloo' (London 1882).