The Battle of Waterloo and its Effect on Today’s Artillery
SSG Aviles-Torres, SSG Blackburn, SSG Letalu,
SSG Mageo, SSG Rodgers
13B40 001-18
Senior Leaders Course
SFC Metz
The Battle of Waterloo and its Effect on Today’s Artillery
Napoleon Bonaparte, one of the world’s greatest military strategists, led the French at the Battle of Waterloo. During his time as a General, even in defeat, his tactics in the way he used artillery were beyond reproach. His successes and errors made throughout the Battle of Waterloo had a direct effect on how we use artillery today.
The Battle of Waterloo, which took place on 18 June 1815, was the final battle of the Napoleonic wars and ended Napoleon’s reign as emperor. The French marched
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As the battle went on, the Prussian Army was fast approaching. When Napoleon received word of the impending Prussian arrival, he decided to send 20,000 troops, to his left flank, to intercept the Prussians. Although, this was a sensible approach, it severely weakened the main attack. The French finally push through and took La Haye Sainte (the estate in the center of the Battlefield) but, this would end up being a small victory in a battle that would have an inevitable outcome. The British retreated their men, behind the ridge, in an attempt to hide them from the French viewpoint. The French, thinking they had the British on their heels, sent their elite soldiers (Old Guard) up the middle of the battlefield and over the ridge. Unknowingly to the French, Duke Wellington hatched a plan to hide some of his troops. As the Old Guard begins its assault, of the British center line, they are surprised by British troops lying in wait, on their flanks, in the high corn fields. The Old Guard is routed by three horse batteries attacking their flanks. With the Prussian Army destroying the left flank of the French Army, Wellington sounds the general charge. The charge is successful in pushing back the French lines. Napoleon regroups his Old Guard and orders them to attack. By this time, the Old Guard is down to under 200 men. Once again, Wellington uses his plan to hide
Napoleon Bonaparte will remain in the heart of many French nationals as one of the greatest military leaders that the nation has had when it comes to warfare history. In 1799, Napoleon launched a series of wars, which historian call, “Napoleonic wars” in a bid to extend the territory of France in Europe. Many historians argue that the Napoleonic wars were a continuation of the earlier war under the tag, French revolution in 1789. The French revolution in itself had so many influences in Europe, especially with the armies who felt the greatest impact of the revolution. The revolution brought with it many changes, especially in the production of modern mass weapons with the conscription in place. The new improvements in weaponry made Napoleon seek hegemony in the entire Europe sparking his quest to expand and increase the revolutionary and territorial borders of France. Napoleon, Corsican aristocrat, who was a minor, rose to the position of emperor in France because of the revolution and his idea was to sweep the entire Europe with the reforms brought about by the revolution (Dwyer 32). The idea was to liberate the continent so that all citizens had a chance to take the helm of leadership and do away with the issue of kinship rule. Napoleon was a symbol of change, and although at some point, he comes out as a dictator, he was progressive and created rationalization of governance and all the social
During his reign he strived to reestablish French aristocracy, which was eliminated in the French revolution. He began this by putting his family and loyal friends into power giving those titles of the nobility. His power continued to expand across much of western and central continental Europe. It wasn’t until Russia left the continental system that the French would engage in a full scale battle. This battle lead to the downfall of Napoleon rule. With the invasion of Moscow, his army suffered heavy casualties which would then be considered the Battle of Borodino. Russians set fire to the city, forcing Napoleons army to starve, due to harsh weather freeze, and die off. This action became the defeat and end of the Napoleonic Wars.
The United States Army is over 240 years old, and for every war the Army has been in, field artillery has played an essential role. The artillery and infantry have always worked hand in hand, a requirement if fire support is to be in direct support of maneuver. Artillery preps and shapes the battlefield; setting the conditions for battle. Throughout the conflict in Vietnam, specifically the Battle at LZ Gold, the Army made essential changes and improvements to the tactics, techniques and weaponry of field artillery to meet the ever-changing demands of battle.
Despite being aware that they would be subjected to an enemy who was battle-hardened and well-entrenched at the high ground, the Kitcheners were determined to give a hand in each of the three battles. By providing the details above, it is well evident that Keegan gives an account of the need for self-sacrifice if a battle is to be won. Self-sacrifice requires one to disregard the threat posed to them by the battle and approach warfare with a high-level of confidence.
1814, the Treaty of Ghent was signed which called for the end of the war to take effect in
After the French monarchy was overthrown on August 10, 1792, Napoleon decided to make his move up in the ranks. After this, Napoleon started becoming a recognized officer. In 1792, Napoleon was prompted to the rank of captain. In 1793, he was chosen to direct the artillery against the siege in Toulon. He seized ground where he could get his guns in range of the British ships. Soon after Toulon fell, Napoleon was promoted to the rank of brigadier general. In 1795, he saved the revolutionary government by controlling a group of rioting citizens by using a famous technique of his. He loaded a bunch of pellets into a cannon and fired it at the crowd. Napoleon was made commander of the French army in Italy. He defeated four Austrian generals in succession, and each army he fought got bigger and bigger. This forced Austria and its allies to make peace with France. But after this, Napoleon was relieved of his command. He was poor and was suspected of treason. Napoleon had no friends. No one would have suspected what Napoleon would do next. In 1796, Napoleon was appointed to put down a revolt in Paris. He calmly took complete control of the situation. He had his men shoot all the rebels in the streets. The French government was saved, but they decided to form a new government called the Directory. Under the new government, Napoleon was made commander of the French army in Italy. During this campaign, the French realized how smart Napoleon was. He developed a tactic
In “The Face of Battle,” John Keegan analyzed the experiences of the individuals involved in the battles of the Somme and Waterloo; he thoroughly examined the advancements of industrialization in warfare and battle strategy between 1815 and 1916. The industrialization of modern warfare during the battle of the Somme, while progressive, was very much still in its experimental stages. While the inventions during this time period were later evolved into much more useful products, it seems as though the organized warfare in Waterloo was much more effective; the soldier’s mediocre training for the Somme was obvious in the chaotic events that occurred. While each battle was disastrous in their own ways, industrialization certainly improved means of warfare and the experience that the soldiers had.
The final battle of the war was the Battle of New Orleans. On January 8, 1815, the U.S. and British faced off in a much needed battle to end the war. The poorly trained soldiers of the U.S. held their ground against the well-equipped British forces. Miraculously, more than 2,000 British soldiers were either killed or
In 1775, thirteen colonies began a fight for their independence from Britain’s rule. Without formal training in artillery tactics or a proper armament of artillery pieces, early units had to overcome adversity and hardship. But with courage and dedication the artillery and its leadership were able to play a vital role in the success on the battlefields, and ultimately the victory resulting in America earning its freedom.
In the battle of Waterloo there are noticeable changes compared to the battle of Agincourt besides the change in weapons. The first is the size and organization of military units on the field as show in John Keegan’s diagram, cavalry and infantry are spread throughout the field with artillery placed within infantry units, this is has created a spread out line rather than a tight knit line used in the battle of Agincourt, allowing more movement and opportunity to inflict more damage on the enemy. The second noticeable difference is the men used in battle, rather than it being aristocratic vassals of the king and their vassals, it was men as
Everyone knows that Napoleon was a great leader and commander but it is not as cut and dry as popular history makes it out to be. His great victory at Austerlitz cemented him as one of the greatest commanders in history. This battle is was a tactical masterpiece up there with Gaugamela and Cannae. However, there is more to analyze here than just the battle itself. Many aspects of war include mobilization, supply, training, moral, army structure etc. and all play a part in Napoleon’s victories and the creation of the French Empire. Another variable to consider is the quality of the armies led by Tsar Alexander I of Russia and the Holy Roman Emperor, Francis II of Austria. The focus here is to look at how these aspects played a role in
One of the largest casualty producing battles in American history was the Battle of Gettysburg, and it was largely attributed to the artillery. Due to effective leadership, advanced tactics superior fires, the Union Army was able to influence the tide of the battle. The Artillery used during the Battle of Gettysburg was essential to the Union forces’ victory.
Impressed by his feats the five main military leaders asked Napoleon to invade England, instead he offered a plan to invade Egypt. After he got the okay to do so Napoleon took over the Egyptian army and its main leaders (www.history.com, www.thefreesource.com). In 1799 Napoleon overthrew the French Directory in an attempt to gain more power. After the defeat he was the leading political figure to most historians (www.history.com). As leader Napoleon improved not only the military of France but also the economy and other parts of the French empire. He helped reform the banks and education system as well as improving the arts and sciences. But his biggest contribution was the Napoleonic code, which was a big part of the legal system in France.(www.history.com, www.thefreesource.com, www.bbc.co.uk). In 1804 Napoleon declared himself emperor of France, which was meant he was the sole leader of this great empire (www.history.com). Napoleon won many battles and his reign stretched from the edge of the border of Spain to Italy and also some parts in Austria and Egypt. It was a strong and powerful empire at the time. The start of Napoleon’s downfall began when Russia broke agreements with France. So Napoleon brought about 600,000 troops into Russia to attack but the Russians were prepared and had the perfect strategy to defeat the French army. The Russians would retreat and keep the French marching
Not long after the brief and uneasy peace formed by the Treaty of Amiens, Britain resumed war against what was then Napoleonic France in May of 1803; hostilities would continue until the British victory at the battle of Waterloo in 1815, roughly 12 years of war that caused various degrees of chaos and destruction. The return to war required the continuation of the mass enlistment of the previous years, especially as fears of a Napoleonic invasion floated over the heads of the English. The famous general Napoleon, forging a path to becoming emperor, had made no secret of his intentions to invade England, spreading his fear and chaos before he even reached English soil.
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military leader and eventual political leader in France who was able to seize power during the end of the French Revolution of the late 1790's and early 1800's. Napoleon was the leader of France from 1804 to 1815 and mostly remembered as a leader in a cycle of European battles. He institutionalized the changes brought about by the French Revolution and sought to spread them throughout Europe. It has been long debated the factors that allowed Napoleon to seize power and eventually crown himself emperor. Such factors that have been considered have been Napoleon's personality, his military exploits, the failings of the Directory, support of the people and army and even sheer luck.