#WaterlooRemembered - Day 1 Here. We. Go! The fortnight of Waterloo commemorations kicks off with me discussing the real Waterloo story, and some of the main areas of debate, ahead of the first interview tomorrow (which looks at some of the forgotten foreign forces). Fresh episodes will be released every day between now and the 18th June. Please share widely, and join the discussion. https://anchor.fm/the-napoleonicist/episodes/Waterloo-Whats-the-real-story-ef164s
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Thanks for the pod cast, I have an ever so slightly different opinion. In my view neither Wellington nor Blücher were at all surprised by Boney at all, contrary a trickle of deserters kept them much better informed than Boney himself.
Boney'a attack at Charleroi failed abysmally to split the Allied Army, in fact that they could wage the battle of Quatre Bras/Ligny at the 16th speaks for itself.(they wouldn't have accepted battle unless they were convinced to support each other) - a completely split army couldn't have done that.
Those are, unfortunately in my view - seen as dual battles, some French thought is was one - commenting when attacking Blücher they did attack the left wing of the Allied Army.
Indeed, I see it as one battle as well, it had catastrophic tactical (Drouet's lack of interference in either one of those battles) as well as operational consequences. Those results were the deciding factors for the Campaign of 1815, Belle Alliance was already lost by the result of the 16th of June.
Did anybody at all read
Der Verrat im Kriege 1815, von J. von Pflugk- Harttung. Jahrbücher für die deutsche Armee nnd Marine: September, Oktober [1903]. Nr. 384: S. 262-282, Nr. 385: S.370-392: https://books.google.com/books?id=hBnbpvtm9bAC&pg=RA1-PR86 https://archive.org/stream/bibliographiede23dietgoog#page/n291/mode/1up/search/Verrat Pflugk Harttung, J. von “Der Verrath im Kriege 1815.” In: Jahrbücher für die Deutsche Armee und marine (1903), nr.384 and 385 p.262-283, 370-393 "Das I. Korps Zieten bei Belle-Alliance und Wavre 1815", von J. von Pflugk- Harttung. Jahrbücher für die deutsche Armee nnd Marine: January-June 1903. [S. 197]. “Das I. Korps Zieten bei Belle Alliance und Wavre" in diesen Jahrbüchern 1908, S. 197 [Februar 1903] und “Das I. preussische Korps bei Belle Alliance", ebendort, 1906 [1905], S. 148. Jahrbücher für die deutsche Armee und Marine. Geleitet von Keim. 1906 [Juni]. Pflugk-Harttung, "Zum Verhalten des I. preussischen Korps bei Belle-Alliance” Nach Angaben eines Augenzeugen. Pp. 679-.682. https://books.google.com/books?id=LNoVAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA679