Military Subjects: Virtual Battlefields

 

The Battle of Ligny: 16 June 1815

Virtual Battlefield Tour

By Vic Powell

Numerous books have been written on the Waterloo Campaign. The Napoleon Series' first Virtual Tour was Waterloo. What has been missing, however is a tour of Napoleon's last victory: Ligny! The following are various views of the battlefield.

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    1. The Monument at Fleurus: the plaque and the Naveau Windmill.
    2. Close-up of the plaque commemorating the three battles of Fleurus.
    3. The Naveau Mill in Fleurus, which served as an observation post for Napoleon during the battle.
    4. Looking east from the Tombe de Ligny towards St. Amand. Napoleon stood on the Tombe de Ligny to watch the Imperial Guard attacked the Ligny.
    5. Looking east from the Tombe de Ligny towards La Haye Farm.


 

 

  1. Looking north east from the Tombe de Ligny towards the Bussy Mill.
  2. Looking north east from the Tombe de Ligny towards the Bussy Mill.
  3. Ligny as seen from the Tombe de Ligny.
  4. Looking north west from the Tombe de Ligny towards Sombreffe, where the Prussian 9th and 12th Brigades defended.
  5. Looking north west from the Tombe de Ligny towards Sombreffe where the Prussian 9th and 12th Brigades defended.



 

 

 

  1. The French Memorial in Ligny
  2. The Farm d'en Haut, a Prussian strongpoint in Ligny
  3. Plaque commemorating the French attack on the Farm d'en Haut.
  4. The Church of Ligny, site of fierce hand-to-hand fighting.
  5. Sombreffe Presbytery the site of Blucher's Headquarters on the 15th and 16th of June.



 

  1. Sombreffe Presbytery the site of Blucher's Headquarters on the 15th and 16th of June.
  2. French cannonball embedded in the wall of the cemetary in Sombreffe.
  3. Looking southwest towards the French position from the Tongrinne viewpoint. This area was occupied by Thielmann's Prussian III Corps.
  4. Looking south towards the French position from the Tongrinne viewpoint. The village of Boignee is in the treeline.
  5. Looking southeast from the Tongrinne viewpoint.

 

     


 

  1. The Tongrinne Heights, where Prussian artillery was posted.
  2. Map of the Ligny battlefield. From: Andrew Uffindell's The Eagle's Last Triumph: Napoleon's Victory at Ligny, June 1815. Used with permission by Greenhill Books.

 

Source:

I highly recommend Andrew Uffindell's The Eagle's Last Triumph: Napoleon's Victory at Ligny, June 1815, which is published by Greenhill Books. In addition to a detailed description of the battle, Mr. Uffindell also provides chapters on touring the battlefield.

 

Placed on the Napoleon Series: July 2001

 

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