This officer was apparently leading the 1er chevau-legers-lanciers at Waterloo however Lieutenant-Colonel Guillaume-Felix du Dumanoir appears to have been in command it until a Prussian cannon ball took his head off. Can anyone give me more details of both issues i.e. Dumanoir or Dubessy leading the regiment, and also "a Prussian cannon-ball"? Why Prussian, were his regiment in action against Bluecher?
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As far as I know, Dubessy was never colonel of the 1er régiment de chevau-légers lanciers. He retired from active service on 18 October 1814 as colonel of the 24th Dragoon Regiment. He was reactivated as colonel of the 2nd Dragoon Regiment during the Hundred Days but retired a second time on 29 May 1815 already. François-Joseph Planzeaux followed him as colonel of the regiment. So, Dubessy would not have been present at Waterloo, at all.
Jacquinot became colonel of the 1er régiment de chevau-légers lanciers (from 16 August 1814: 1er régiment de lanciers) on 5 August 1813, and remained so during the First Restoration as well as during the Hundred Days. He was the regiment's colonel at Waterloo.
Martinien shows Dumanoir as killed, but as Chef d’Escadron.
That would seem to fit with the Pétiet quote of a Squadron commander being beheaded.
We know that Jacquinot had at least one horse shot from under him. It is not beyond belief that whilst he was dismounted command may have devolved onto another temporarily?
The Regiment was certainly under artillery fire at Plancenoit, August Pétiet noting:
“A cannonball smash into the flank of the neighbouring cavalry division, of Lieutenant General Subervie. The ball beheaded one squadron commander, took two legs off the horse of another and killed the mount of ….Jacquinot, commander of the 1st Lancers and brother of the divisional general. At a stroke, the three senior officers of the 1st Lancers were down.”
To further muddy the waters, Adkin has the 1st Lancers commanded by Col Jacquinot (the brother of GOC of 1st Cav Div) at the outset of the campaign!
Part of Subervie’s division the 1st were deployed on the left at Ligny opposite the Prussian right wing. At Waterloo they found themselves in support of VI Corps in holding back the Prussian advance on Plancenoit.
So perfectly possible that Dumanoir succumbed to Prussian artillery at either action.