Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo. There were many important moments in that decisive battle – a battle that changed the course of European history. But according to the Duke of Wellington, the most crucial moment was the closing of the gate at Hougoumont.
On June 18, 1815 Napoleon faced a British army commanded by Wellington. A Prussian army under Blucher was separated from their British allies and possibly coming to link up with the Brits. Napoleon’s chances of success depended on destroying Wellington before Blucher’s reinforcements arrived. Napoleon had disdain for the fighting ability and leadership of Wellington. He planned to bludgeon his way through Wellington’s center. To prepare for the decisive blow, Napoleon wanted a diversion to force the British to weaken their center. On the right side of the British line was a chateau/farm called Hougoumont. By attacking it, Napoleon figured Wellington would be forced to move units from his center to bolster the defense of the farmstead. He assigned this diversion to his brother Jerome. In the late morning, the French soldiers moved forward. They easily pushed the British out of a woods and then an orchard on the outskirts of the chateau. Unfortunately for the French soldiers, the area between the orchard and the wall of the chateau was about 30 yards of clear ground. When the French entered this area, they were met by a storm of steel coming from British muskets being fired from loopholes in the wall around the chateau. British Lt. Col. James Macdonnell had only about 3,500 men to face Jerome’s 14,000, but the defensive position was very strong. It needed to be because Wellington’s order to Macdonnell was to “defend to the last extremity.” The French were repulsed, but they kept trying. Jerome made around eight failed assaults. And yet he refused to give up. The orchard changed hands several times. What was supposed to be a diversion became an all-out attempt to take the chateau. Jerome called for reinforcements from Reille’s Corps and so more and more French infantrymen were poured into the maelstrom. And yet, Wellington was not compelled to weaken his center, although he did send reinforcements from his reserves.
One of the most famous moments in the battle occurred when the second assault broke into the interior when a giant Frenchman named Lt. Legros, called “L’Enfonceur” or “The Smasher”, used an axe to break the gate open. He and thirty or so others entered and the tide seemed to be turning. Macdonnell led a counterattack that killed all the French (except according to legend a French drummer boy). The gate was closed. Although a crisis had passed, the fighting continued for a total of 9 hours. At one point, a brave Englishman drove an ammunition wagon through intense fire to resupply the garrison. Later, the French tried bombarding the interior. The chateau was burned to the ground and some wounded were burned to death. But at the end of the day, the farm remained in British hands. Napoleon suffered 7,500 casualties and got nothing for it. After the battle, Wellington opined: “The success of the battle turned on the closing of the gate at Hougoumont.”
https://projecthougoumont.com/defence-of-hougoumont/
https://warfarehistorynetwork.com/2015/06/18/defending-hougoumont-during-the-battle-of-waterloo/
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