Ligny

14 June
15 June
Ney's Orders
Lack of Haste
16th June
Troop Dispositions
The Battle
Appendix
French Army
Prussian Army
Battlefield in 1982
Tactical Deployments
Bibliography
Photographs

The Battlefield in 1982.

In April 1982 my partner and I visited the battlefield of Ligny, in the province of Hainault, Belgium. We managed to obtain a room at the Auberge du Marshal Ney, in Fleurus. Although we were told that the hotel was officially closed until May, the patron opened up a room and served dinner to us once he found out about our interest in the battle. The building itself was said to have been used by Marshal Ney on the night of the 15^th June 1815, however there are another two or three habitations within four or five miles of Fleurus which also claimed the same distinction!

The town of Fleurus itself has played host to the armies of France many times in the past, from Luxembourg 1696, Jourdan 1794, to Napoleon in 1815. It is known locally as, ‘La Ville des Trois Victories Françaises.’ A brochure from 1958 gives details of the Festivals that took place here, including a, ‘Féte communales historique et Napoleon,’ but alas during our visit we were informed that these had ceased to occur. Maybe the good people of Fleurus once more celebrate the three victories of France considering the massive upsurge of enthusiasm for all things Napoleonic?

The ‘Moulin Naveau’ (windmill) is situated on the left hand side of the road leading out of Fleurus to Gembloux, and was used by Napoleon as an observatory during the battle of Ligny. At the time of our visit it was in very good condition, although whether or not the original windmill was made of brick is debateable, many paintings of the battle showing it to be a wooded structure? At the foot of the windmill is the monument celebrating the three French victories at Fleurus.

From here we drove to the Château de la Paix, which Napoleon used as his Head Quarters on the night of the 16^th June. The Chateau was being renovated at the time, so we did not have chance to look around inside, but judging from its size it must have accommodated most of Napoleon’s staff as well as his own personal retinue of servants. 

From the Chateau we struck out across the French front line towards the right wing of their position, just in front of the villages of Boignée and Balatre. This part of the field was held, on the Prussian side, by elements of General Thielemann’s corps. The two villages mentioned above are a little forward of the Linge stream, which by itself constitutes no great obstacle, but was, even at the time of our visit, surrounded by very marshy meadowlands and these may have presented problems for the attacker. With this being said, one wonders why Napoleon only covered this area with the cavalry corps of Exelmans and Pajol? Maybe, allowing for the sate of the ground, these troops were only placed here to contain the Prussian left wing, and why Theilemann’s corps was not used to better effect on this part of the field seems strange since, besides from a couple of battalions scattered among the French cavalry, only General Hulot’s division of Gérard’s corps were effectively engaged against the Prussians on this sector. Roads were under construction and new buildings being erected during the time of our visit, and it is possible that the best views of the battlefield around this area, as well as much of the actual terrain itself has now gone forever.

After a quick coffee at Tongrinelle, we drove to Sombreffe. Here the wall surrounding the Churchyard has a cannonball concreted into the stonework. Apparently this battlefield memento was found by a local builder who was repairing the wall around the church and decided to incorporate it into the stonework-nice touch! Many of the larger barns and farms in Sombreffe were used as makeshift hospitals during the battle.

Returning from Sombreffe we followed the course of the Linge stream along to Ligny itself. Here we found the 24 pdr(?) French cannon that sits (or sat) under a very dubious covering of concrete and bending metal supports! A plaque gave the date of the battle, and the information that the cannon itself was used in the battle. I very much doubt if this enormous piece of ordnance would have been used by the French, and rather suspect that it was placed there by some well meaning souls who did not know much about field artillery? Ligny village itself was the scene of a very bloody struggle. It changed hands several times during the battle, and the church and large farmhouses became the focus of some gruesome hand-to-hand combats; the farms of En-Haut and En-bas in particular witnessed much severe fighting. It is said that the little Linge stream, which flows through the centre of the village, and is only a meter or two wide, became so choked with bodies that it enabled the forces of both sides to use them as a human bridge.

Leaving Ligny we took the road to St Amand, which is situated roughly one and a half kilometres due west. This village, like Ligny, was also hotly contested by the Prussians under Ziethen and the French corps of Vandamme. The ground to the south west of the village was covered in tall crops during the battle, and the approaching French columns were only visible by the tops of their shakos and their standards-crops in those days growing far taller than our modern hybrid varieties. St Amand itself is set forward of the Linge stream, the road crossing the latter to the north at a small appendix to the village known as St Amand la Haye. There is also another hamlet about three-quarters of a kilometre to the north west of St Armand called, Hameau de St Amand. Both sides furiously contested all three places. It was at Hameau de St Amand that the French division of General Girard attacked so vigorously that its losses in killed and wounded, as well as those worn out by the persistent combat, caused it to be left behind, and it consequently took no further part in the campaign

Taking the road from St Amand la Haye one arrives, after about one kilometre, at the village of Wagnelée. This marked the extreme left of the Prussian position, and was covered by elements of cavalry and horse artillery. Behind Wagnelée, and stretching back towards the village of Brye and Sombreffe, the Prussian corps of Pirch I was ranged in several columns, its right thrown back, or refused, facing the village of Marbais. The views around this part of the field are (were?) excellent, and not too much had been done in terms of building construction, thus allowing an unobstructed panorama of the whole front line, both Prussian and French. Walking across to the farm of Bussy, which Blücher made his Head Quarters during the battle, one also obtains a splendid view of the whole battlefield. Anyone standing here will readily understand Wellington’s concern about the Prussian dispositions. The ground is slightly elevated from the little valley of the Linge stream, and devoid of any cover. For the French artillery, one within range, the Prussian masses must have presented an ideal target.

Leaving Bussy we drove back through St Amand and stopping at the Tombe de Ligny. I never asked the history of this, what appears to be a man made mound. If it a tumulus, then the only other I have come across before of a similar construction was at Ramillies. Maybe they are indigenous to this area of Belgium? Whatever it was built for it is certainly worth the climb to the top for the marvellous views of the battlefield. We hung around at the bottom wondering if, or how we could get access to the mound, it being fenced-off in those days. We noticed some grass covered steps leading to the top and stopped a passing workman to find out where we should ask permission to climb to the top. Off he went, and after a few minutes came back with a bunch of keys. After unfastening the gate at the bottom, he warned us of the state of the steps, and then off he went again saying he would come back and lock-up when we had finished our sightseeing! I do indeed urge anyone who wishes to take panoramic shots of the battlefield to seek out and climb this mound.

I have been back to Ligny four times since 1982, but each time I have never been able to do the whole battlefield as we did then. Taking small parties of tourists who are really only interested in seeing the field of Waterloo, can be depressing to the military historian, and I am always reminding my groups of the words of John Naylor in his work, ‘Waterloo’ (Batsford Books 1960), “The tremendous reversal of fortune at Waterloo has eclipsed Quatre-Bras and Ligny, and the strategy which gave rise to them, just as it has redeemed Wellington’s grossest errors. Yet without the events of the 15^th and 16^th of June, Ligny and Quatre-Bras, Waterloo is no more than Hamlet without the Prince.”