Waterloo: The Defeat of Napoleon's Imperial Guard: Henry Clinton, the 2nd Division and the End of a 200-year Old Controversy“This in-depth study of the nuts and bolts of a single division is without a doubt the best book I have ever read on Waterloo.”—The Napoleon Series Winner of the 2017 Society for Army Historical Research Templer Medal This is the most detailed account of the 2nd Division at Waterloo ever published. It is based on the papers of its commander Sir Henry Clinton, and it reveals for the first time the previously unrecognized vital role this division made in the defeat of Napoleon. Author Gareth Glover explains how the division was placed ahead of the main allied squares thus impeding the charges of the French cavalry, and how the 2nd Division supported the defense of Hougoumont, considered by the Duke of Wellington as the key to his victory on 18 June 1815. Perhaps the most significant aspect of this book is the description of the defeat of Napoleon’s Imperial Guard. Just how the incomparable Guard was stopped and then driven from the battlefield is explained in detail. Once and for all, this 200-year controversy is finally resolved. “Does a superb job of dissecting the controversy over whether it was Adam’s Brigade or the Guard’s Brigade that was instrumental in defeating the Imperial Guard.”—The Napoleon Series |
Contents
Napoleon Returns | |
The 2nd Division is Born | |
Starting Positions | |
Battle Commences | |
Into the Cauldron | |
The Cavalry Charges | |
The Guard Advances | |
The Aftermath | |
The March to Paris | |
Paris | |
Preparations for | |
War Clouds Gather | |
War Breaks Out 1516 June | |
The Retreat 17 June | |
A Night to Forget | |
Appendix 1 | |
Appendix 2 | |
Notes Select Bibliography | |
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Common terms and phrases
1st Battalion 1st Line Battalion 2nd Battalion 95th 2nd Division 2nd Line 3rd Line Battalion 71st Foot Adam advance ammunition arms army arrived artillery attack author's Waterloo Archive Battalion 95th Foot Battle of Belle-Alliance Battle of Waterloo Belgium Bremervorde Brevet British Brussels Cambronne Captain Clinton’s diary entry Colonel Halkett column commanding officer companies corps cuirassiers Drummers Duke of Wellington enemy Ensign Field Officer fire formed front Genappe guns halted Hanoverian Hanoverian Brigade Henry Clinton’s diary Henry Clinton’s letter horse Hougoumont Hugh Halkett Imperial Guard Inspection Report dated June King’s German Legion Landwehr Battalion Leeke Lieutenant Colonel Light Battalion Light Brigade Line Battalion KGL Lord Hill Major moved Napoleon Nivelles o'clock Osnabrück Osnabrück Battalion position Prince of Orange Prussians Quakenbrück Rank and File rear ridge road Salzgitter Salzgitter Battalion Sergeants shot Siborne's Waterloo Letters Sir Henry Clinton skirmishers soldiers square Subalterns Waterloo Archive volume wounded