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Choose a battle you have studied and explain why it was won or lost. -…
Choose a battle you have studied and explain why it was won or lost.
Introduction
In this paragraph I need to explain the battle I am talking about and the three reasons why it was won
Battle of Waterloo facts for intro
18th June 1815
Between French and British (with Prussian help)
Napoleon led French, Wellington led British and Blucher led Prussians
Napoleon had escaped the Isle of Elba, to France where Louis XVIII ran away.
He gathered troops as he marched through France
He advanced over the border at Charleroi
Wellington was already stationed there and had support from the Prussians. He heard of the French arrival whilst attending the Duchess of Richmond's Ball on the 15th June.
On the 16th June Napoleon fought two battles simultaneously: Battle of Ligny against the Prussians and the Battle of Quatre Bras against the Anglo-Dutch.
Three reasons why won: Wellington's brilliance, Napoleon's failures and luck.
Paragraph 1: Wellington's Brilliance
At 7:30pm he fooled Ney into thinking they had retreated and hid in the long grass. He then commanded his soldiers to rise up as the Imperial Guard advanced up the hill and fought them at point blank range.
He was an inspirational commander and remained amongst his men to lead them. He was nearly killed several times.
He refused to be drawn by Napoleon's tactics and stuck to his position and battle plan playing a defensive battle.
He had inspired loyalty in his allies (several on the battlefield). This was shown particularly with the Prussians, who could have retreated after the Battle of Ligny, but they marched as fast as they could to join up with the British to fight.
He formed defensive squares which scared off the French cavalry at 3:30pm
He held onto Hougoumont Farm despite the pressure. The Coldstream Guards managed to shut the doors just in time, and killed all of the French that were there apart from an 11 year old drummer Boy.
Wellington spread his infantry in lines just 2 men deep. This allowed them to cover more of the battlefield and fire more efficiently
Wellington investigated what the land of the battlefield was like. He knew he had to keep hold of the farmhouses there as they would provide shelter for his men so he put his best soldiers there to defend them. Hougoumont, La Haye Sainte and Pappelotte were the name of the farms. He also held the reverse slope tactic which was crucial for shielding his men and allowing them to hide.
Paragraph 2: Napoleon's Failures
When he fell ill he put Marshal Ney in charge
Ney was a rash decision maker
He ordered a cavalry charge at 3:30pm without infantry support
Napoleon delayed the start of the battle to 11:30am as the battlefield was too muddy for the cavalry and made it hard to move artillery. But this became an advantage as it allowed Wellington to rest his troops and more time for the Prussians to arrive.
Napoleon fell ill from piles and irritability and found it hard to ride his horse and command the troops, and was unable to make proper decisions.
He used 33,000 men to slow the Prussians after the Battle of Ligny, but ordered them to 'pursue' not 'stop' them. This meant the Prussians ran faster. The men also returned to the battlefield exhausted.
He became obsessed with taking Hougoumont farm and poured men into taking it, which he didn't manage to do.
He hoped that Wellington would be tempted to move troops from the centre to Hogoumont farm, but Wellington refused to do this.
He thought the British were retreating from the battlefield (they were just hiding in the long grass). He sent the Imperial Guard (his elite force) to attack. Under heavy fire from Major-General Maitland’s foot guards and other allies, the Imperial Guard halts, waves and finally breaks. They are asked to surrender, but refuse: (‘The Guard dies, but it does not surrender’)
He lost the battle and was exiled to St Helena
The French cavalry advanced in narrow columns 6 men wide and thousands of men deep. This made it hard to fire simultaneously and covered only a small portion of the battlefield.
Napoleon put his artillery (guns) at the front of the battle - this meant they could not reach all the areas of the battlefield.
Paragraph 3: Lucky Factors
Napoleon fell ill and had to retreat from the Battlefield. Wellington commented that his presence on the battlefield was the equivilent of 30,000 men, so by not being there he wouldn't be inspirational.
It rained the night before the battle. This allowed more time for the Prussians to arrive to help Wellington
It was lucky that Wellington heard of Napoleon's advance at the Duchess of Richmond's Ball on the 15th June as this allowed him to talk tactics with his officers.
Conclusion
In this paragraph I need to decide which reason is the most important and explain why. The best answers will compare all three reasons to explain why their choice is the most important.
