European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 14, 1967, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Waterloo a Battle of strategists Model figures Combine with background painting for realistic Battle scene at Waterloo museum. Prussian marshal Bluecher whose two corps sent to Wellington helped decide the Battle. Is photos a grim Napoleon seemingly broods Over the course of the historic Battle at a Waterloo Wax museum. Waterloo Street signs Point to villages which were strategic Points for troops of both sides. By Sid Whipple staff writer a Century and a half after the bloody Battle at Waterloo a otherwise undistinguished belgian town nine Miles South of Brussels political and military historians Are still Debat ing the tactics of the two great strategists the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte and the effect of the titanic struggle on world history. The Story of Waterloo its Triumph Sand tragedies its gallantry and glory is still vividly told at the Battle  museum an immense panoramic painting Cinema reproductions portray ing the sounds of carnage confusion and destruction maps photographs an texts for studying the scene from the top of a Man made Hill under which60,000 victims of War lie buried All Combine to give a visitor a sense of having been there on the Field during the fateful  s first step after his escape from the Isje of Elba in february 1815, his drive to Paris at the head of a delirious population and cheering army had been a cautious sounding out of opinion would the enemy coalition let him retain his re gained throne or would they continue to fight for the Bourbon dynasty Louis xviii who had reigned in Paris by Courtesy of the allies had fled to Ghent on Bonaparte s  discovered that far from accepting the situation the coalition would elect to fight and that in Addi Tion to the Anglo dutch forces of93,000 men and the prussians 116,000 under marshal Gebhard von Bluecher both Austria and Russia would dispatch heavy forces to engage him wherever he chose to attack. Acting on the principle that the Best defense is a Good offence Napoleon decided to engage his nearest enemies the Anglo dutch army under Welling ton and the prussians under Bluecher before the austrians and russians could swing into action. Against a combined enemy Force of More than 200,000 men Napoleon had 124,000 men and 370 pieces of heavy artillery. But the coalition s armies were not combined. Wellington s head quarters was at Brussels Bluecher s at Namur Belgium. Napoleon s plan therefore was on that had served him in Good Stead in some of his most spectacular successes he would split the enemy defeating Bluecher and preventing him from join ing Wellington then turning on Welling ton to Complete the  be successful the plan required Quick action. The Allied Cantonment were spread Over an area 90 Miles wide and 30 Miles deep. To mobilize on on Ewing would take six Days of Man Euver ing. To join in Force at the Center a Charleroi would take at least three Days. Allied Headquarters seemed strangely unaware that Napoleon was about to move although it must have known of the direction in which he would strike. There was a sound of revelry by night in Brussels on the eve of Waterloo in the words of Lor Byron. The Duke of Wellington and his Young officers simply were having a  utmost secrecy Napoleon concentrated his troops in three column around the towns of Philipp Eville Beau Mont and solve and after leaving Paris june 11, had them ready on the morn ing of june 14 to March Over the fron tier towards Charleroi. The allies had t made a move. Military commentators who for 150 years have argued Over the strategic mistakes both of Napoleon and Wel Lington seem inclined to believe tha Bonaparte s Overall plan was in their words perfect and that it failed Only through the ineptitude of two of his marshals Michel Ney who commanded the left Wing of his army and the Marquis Emmanuel Grouchy who commanded the right. They Are accused of inexcusable de lays of misinterpreting orders or fail ing to carry them out of failure to follow up initial successes. In rebuttal some historians insist that Napoleon s order were not explicit enough that the emperor was suffering from stomach trouble and Over fatigue that he seemed  was guilty says Benjamin Brussels f Battlefield of Waterloo constant a French Swiss writer and politician at the very inception of Little lapses in time the sum of which in the coming four clays made up a tale of neglect that ruined an operation which in Conception and opening is equal us any he Ever  let during the first 24 hours All seemed to be going smoothly if slowly for the French army. It crossed the Sabre River and crashed through the Allied outposts into Charleroi practically at the Center of the front and potentially in position to prevent Blue Cher s prussian army on the East from joining Wellington s Anglo dutch troops on the West. In a fierce Battle at the town of sign which ended Only when night fell on june 15, a Battle in which Victory swayed alternately Between Bluecher s and the emperor s battalions under Grouchy the prussians were forced to withdraw. This Victory would have Bee perhaps decisive if the corps under count d Erlon marching and counter marching under conflicting orders from Napoleon and Ney had Ever reached the scene of the Battle. But it had not and As a consequence Bluecher Al though suffering great losses 12,000 men and 21 guns was Able to Reform his army and eventually to tie up with Wellington. On the morning of june 17, Napoleon appeared to be satisfied with the previous Day s operations although hews annoyed at d Erlon s failure to arrive and play his part in the Oligny Bat the. And he was particularly angry at Ney for failing to capture the import ant quatre bras a belgian Crossroads position which he had been ordered Todo. Ney excused himself by saying that he believed he faced Wellington s whole strength and that he did t have sufficient forces to develop such an engagement. Napoleon sent Grouchy with 33,000men, to harass the retreating prussians who he mistakenly believed would re tire to their Namur base. But Grouchy was slow in the follow up of his Earl Victory and his troubles were aggravated by a storm that turned roads into quagmires drenched the men and dampened their powder. Grouchy s me covered a Mere 10 Miles that Day per mitting Bluecher to continue slogging his Way toward a Junction with Welling ton. Bluecher was a remarkable  years old and considered to be something of a rum pot like  s. Grant he had immense resiliency. In the Battle at Oligny his horse had been shot out from under him and he had been hauled from be Neath it bruised and battered. But he later helped himself to a big slug of schnapps bathed his sore legs in Brandy and mounted another horse according to one of his aides. In a message to the Duke he prom ised to Send two corps to Wellington s assistance requesting Only a few hours to refresh his troops after their Batter ing at Oligny. If he had sent Only on corps As Wellington had requested most historians concur in the opinion that the Battle of Waterloo would have ended in Victory instead of disaster forthe French emperor. During the night of june 17-18, Wel Lington established his position at mount Saim Jean a Ridge to the South of the Village of Waterloo. The bulk of his troopers were admirably sheltered behind the Crest of the Ridge comparatively Safe from expected bombard ment by Napoleon s heavy artillery Only 1,300 Yards away and in Plain sight of Wellington s Advance posts. The English commander position says Theodore Dodge in his lengthy study a a p o 1 e o a was chosen with Fine tactical judgment and every part of it had Long before Bee studied and  Advance posts had been manned at Hougo Umont la have Sainte and a Large unnamed Sand pit in front of the Duke s Center. Welling ton counted on this defense to hold up the French until Bluecher s two corps could reach the Field. After a Long and fatal delay Napoleon opened the engagement by Send ing a division against  later he showered a tem pest of Iron on the Long Ridge of Lahaye Sainte. Wellington s sheltered battalions were unscathed. And then an hour later Napoleon saw a dense Black Cloud emerging from a wooded area at Wellington s left flank. It was one of Bluecher s corps under coun Friederich Buelow. The emperor sent a message togrouchy12 hours too late to hurry up and neutralize von Buelow but Grouchy was stymied Miles away from the action. T 12 the stars and stripes thursday september 14, 1967 the stars and st9ipes he Battle raged with varying successes for French and English throughout the afternoon and Early eve Ning. Additional prussian troops arrive Don the scene to fill the places of the English and dutch  massive attack on Wellington s Cen Ter by Napoleon s mighty old guar was thrown Back and finally at about eight o clock the French lines wavered and broke. With the exception of a few heroic battalions Napoleon s army be came a flying rabble and Napoleon himself was on his Way Back to Paris to face a sullen and unresponsive set of  s failure to achieve final Victory according to Christopher hib Bert author of Waterloo Napoleon s last Campaign Mentor 1967may betrayed to three Radical defects in his conduct of War the first a military one i Libbert writes was Over centralization of com Mand the second a political one was his unrealistic policy and his third grand strategical one that the Means he relied upon to accomplish his policy could at Best Only Lead to an  finally in the Light of current Politi Cal conditions Hibbert s observations on the working of Napoleon s mind maybe significant for he writes in his struggle with England he Napoleon saw the Basic solution of All the questions. Which were agitating the world and individuals there fore Napoleon told the Duke of Vicenz England was his sole enemy he was working against England alone and since their the English Trade had ramifications everywhere he had to pursue them everywhere. It was out of this Pursuit that his idea of a Universal Empire arose. For a weapon with which to destroy eng land the Continental system became an instrument whereby a new Worl Conception would be realized a vision of Europe United in Concord that is unanimous  Page 13