Hougoumont (farmhouse)
Encyclopedia
Château d'Hougoumont is a large farmhouse situated at the bottom of an escarpment near the Nivelles
road in Braine-l'Alleud
, near Waterloo
, Belgium
. The escarpment is where British and other allied forces faced Napoleon
's Army at the Battle of Waterloo
on June 18, 1815.
The name "Hougoumont" is derived from "Gomme Mont" which means "Gum hill". It was built on a little hill with pine trees around it, from which pine gum was collected to make turpentine
.
Napoleon planned to draw Wellington
's reserve to Wellington's right flank in defence of Hougoumont and then attack through the centre left of the British and allies' front near La Haye Sainte
.
Before the battle started, Hougoumont and its gardens, located on the allies' right flank, were garrisoned and fortified by the 1st Battalion, 2nd Nassau Regiment, with additional detachments of jägers
and landwehr from von Kielmansegge's 1st (Hanoverian) Brigade. The light company of the 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards
under the command of Lt-Colonel Henry Wyndham, was also stationed in the farm and chateaux, and the light company of the 2nd Battalion, Third Guards
, under Lt-Colonel Charles Dashwood, in the garden and grounds. The two light companies of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions, First Guards
were initially positioned in the orchard, under the command of Lt-Colonel Lord Saltoun
. Lieutenant-Colonel James Macdonnell
, Coldstream Guards, had overall command of Hougoumont. (The Guards units were all drawn from General John Byng's 2nd (British) Brigade.)
Wellington recorded in his despatches "at about ten o'clock [Napoleon] commenced a furious attack upon our post at Hougoumont" Other sources state that this attack was at about 11:30. The historian Andrew Roberts notes that, "It is a curious fact about the battle of Waterloo that no one is absolutely certain when it actually began."
The initial attack by Maréchal de Camp Bauduin's 1st Brigade of the 6th Division emptied the wood and park, but was driven back by heavy British artillery fire and cost Bauduin his life. The British guns were distracted into an artillery duel with French guns and this allowed a second attack by Maréchal de Camp Baron Soye's 2nd Brigade of the 6th Division. They managed a small breach on the south side but could not exploit it. An attack on the north side by elements of the 1st Brigade of the 6th Division was more successful. This attack led to one of the most famous skirmishes in the Battle of Waterloo — Sous-Lieutenant Legros, wielding an axe, managed to break through the north gate. A desperate fight ensued between the invading French soldiers and the defending Guards. In a near-miraculous attack, Macdonell, a small party of officers and Corporal James Graham
fought through the melee to shut the gate, trapping Legros and about 30 other soldiers of the 1st Legere inside. All of the French who entered, apart from a young drummer boy, were killed in a desperate hand-to-hand fight. The French attack in the immediate vicinity of the farm was repulsed by the arrival of the 2nd Coldstream Guards
and 2/3rd Foot Guards. Fighting continued around Hougoumont all afternoon with its surroundings heavily invested with French light infantry and coordinated cavalry attacks sent against the troops behind Hougoumont.
Wellington's army defended the house and the hollow way running north from it. In the afternoon Napoleon personally ordered the shelling of the house to cause it to burn, resulting in the destruction of all but the chapel. Du Plat's brigade of the King's German Legion was brought forward to defend the hollow way, which they had to do without any senior officers, who were then relieved by the 71st Foot, a Scottish light infantry regiment. Adam's brigade, further reinforced by Hugh Halkett's
3rd (Hanoverian) Brigade, successfully repulsed further infantry and cavalry attacks sent by Reille and maintained the occupation of Hougoumont until the end of the battle.
Hougoumont was a part of the battlefield that Napoleon could see clearly and he continued to direct resources towards it and its surroundings all afternoon (33 battalions in all, 14,000 troops). The French forces sent in to attack Hougoumont included:
Similarly, though the house never contained a large number of troops, Wellington devoted 21 battalions (12,000 troops) over the course of the afternoon to keeping the hollow way open to allow fresh troops and ammunition to be admitted to the house. He also moved several artillery batteries from his hard-pressed centre to support Hougoumont.
Project Hougoumont, supported by, amongst others, the current Duke of Wellington, writer Bernard Cornwell
and historian Richard Holmes
, has been set up to oversee funding to restore and preserve Hougoumont for the long-term future.
Nivelles
Nivelles is a Walloon city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant. The Nivelles municipality includes the old communes of Baulers, Bornival, Thines, and Monstreux....
road in Braine-l'Alleud
Braine-l'Alleud
Braine-l'Alleud is a Walloon municipality located in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant, about 20 kilometers south of Brussels. The Braine-l'Alleud municipality includes the former municipalities of Braine-l'Alleud proper, Ophain-Bois-Seigneur-Isaac, and Lillois-Witterzée. It also includes...
, near Waterloo
Waterloo, Belgium
Waterloo is a Walloon municipality located in the province of Walloon Brabant, Belgium. On December 31, 2009, Waterloo had a total population of 29,573. The total area is 21.03 km² which gives a population density of 1,407 inhabitants per km²...
, Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The escarpment is where British and other allied forces faced Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
's Army at the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
on June 18, 1815.
The name "Hougoumont" is derived from "Gomme Mont" which means "Gum hill". It was built on a little hill with pine trees around it, from which pine gum was collected to make turpentine
Turpentine
Turpentine is a fluid obtained by the distillation of resin obtained from trees, mainly pine trees. It is composed of terpenes, mainly the monoterpenes alpha-pinene and beta-pinene...
.
June 1815
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, KG, GCB, GCH, PC, FRS , was an Irish-born British soldier and statesman, and one of the leading military and political figures of the 19th century...
's reserve to Wellington's right flank in defence of Hougoumont and then attack through the centre left of the British and allies' front near La Haye Sainte
La Haye Sainte
La Haye Sainte is a walled farmhouse compound at the foot of an escarpment on the Charleroi-Brussels road. It has changed very little since it played a very important part in the battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815...
.
Before the battle started, Hougoumont and its gardens, located on the allies' right flank, were garrisoned and fortified by the 1st Battalion, 2nd Nassau Regiment, with additional detachments of jägers
Jäger (military)
Jäger is a term that was adopted in the Enlightenment era in German-speaking states and others influenced by German military practice to describe a kind of light infantry, and it has continued in that use since then....
and landwehr from von Kielmansegge's 1st (Hanoverian) Brigade. The light company of the 2nd Battalion, Coldstream Guards
Coldstream Guards
Her Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....
under the command of Lt-Colonel Henry Wyndham, was also stationed in the farm and chateaux, and the light company of the 2nd Battalion, Third Guards
Scots Guards
The Scots Guards is a regiment of the Guards Division of the British Army, whose origins lie in the personal bodyguard of King Charles I of England and Scotland...
, under Lt-Colonel Charles Dashwood, in the garden and grounds. The two light companies of the 2nd and 3rd Battalions, First Guards
Grenadier Guards
The Grenadier Guards is an infantry regiment of the British Army. It is the most senior regiment of the Guards Division and, as such, is the most senior regiment of infantry. It is not, however, the most senior regiment of the Army, this position being attributed to the Life Guards...
were initially positioned in the orchard, under the command of Lt-Colonel Lord Saltoun
Alexander Fraser, 17th Lord Saltoun
Lieutenant-General Alexander George Fraser, 17th Lord Saltoun KT GCH, KCB, was a Scottish representative peer and a British Army general who fought in the Napoleonic Wars and the First Anglo-Chinese War....
. Lieutenant-Colonel James Macdonnell
James Macdonnell
General Sir James Macdonnell, GCB, KMT, KCH was the third son of Duncan Macdonnell of Glengarry.- Military career :In 1794, he was a lieutenant in the 78th Regiment of Foot; in 1795, he was Captain in the 17th Dragoons....
, Coldstream Guards, had overall command of Hougoumont. (The Guards units were all drawn from General John Byng's 2nd (British) Brigade.)
Wellington recorded in his despatches "at about ten o'clock [Napoleon] commenced a furious attack upon our post at Hougoumont" Other sources state that this attack was at about 11:30. The historian Andrew Roberts notes that, "It is a curious fact about the battle of Waterloo that no one is absolutely certain when it actually began."
The initial attack by Maréchal de Camp Bauduin's 1st Brigade of the 6th Division emptied the wood and park, but was driven back by heavy British artillery fire and cost Bauduin his life. The British guns were distracted into an artillery duel with French guns and this allowed a second attack by Maréchal de Camp Baron Soye's 2nd Brigade of the 6th Division. They managed a small breach on the south side but could not exploit it. An attack on the north side by elements of the 1st Brigade of the 6th Division was more successful. This attack led to one of the most famous skirmishes in the Battle of Waterloo — Sous-Lieutenant Legros, wielding an axe, managed to break through the north gate. A desperate fight ensued between the invading French soldiers and the defending Guards. In a near-miraculous attack, Macdonell, a small party of officers and Corporal James Graham
James Graham (soldier)
James Graham was an Irish non-commissioned officer in the British Army during the Napoleonic wars, recognised as the "bravest man in the army". Serving in the Coldstream Guards, he was commended for his gallantry during the defence of Hougoumont, at Waterloo...
fought through the melee to shut the gate, trapping Legros and about 30 other soldiers of the 1st Legere inside. All of the French who entered, apart from a young drummer boy, were killed in a desperate hand-to-hand fight. The French attack in the immediate vicinity of the farm was repulsed by the arrival of the 2nd Coldstream Guards
Coldstream Guards
Her Majesty's Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards, also known officially as the Coldstream Guards , is a regiment of the British Army, part of the Guards Division or Household Division....
and 2/3rd Foot Guards. Fighting continued around Hougoumont all afternoon with its surroundings heavily invested with French light infantry and coordinated cavalry attacks sent against the troops behind Hougoumont.
Wellington's army defended the house and the hollow way running north from it. In the afternoon Napoleon personally ordered the shelling of the house to cause it to burn, resulting in the destruction of all but the chapel. Du Plat's brigade of the King's German Legion was brought forward to defend the hollow way, which they had to do without any senior officers, who were then relieved by the 71st Foot, a Scottish light infantry regiment. Adam's brigade, further reinforced by Hugh Halkett's
Hugh Halkett
General Baron Hugh Halkett, GCH, CB, was a British soldier during the Napoleonic Wars and later a general of infantry in the Hanoverian service.-Early career:...
3rd (Hanoverian) Brigade, successfully repulsed further infantry and cavalry attacks sent by Reille and maintained the occupation of Hougoumont until the end of the battle.
The battle's significance
The Hougoumont battle has often been characterised as a diversionary attack to cause Wellington to move reserves to his threatened right flank to protect his communications, but this then escalated into an all-day battle which drew in more and more French troops but just a handful of Wellington's, having the exact opposite effect to that intended. In fact there is a good case that both Napoleon and Wellington thought Hougoumont was a vital part of the battle. Certainly, Wellington declared afterwards that "the success of the battle turned upon the closing of the gates at Hougoumont".Hougoumont was a part of the battlefield that Napoleon could see clearly and he continued to direct resources towards it and its surroundings all afternoon (33 battalions in all, 14,000 troops). The French forces sent in to attack Hougoumont included:
- nearly the entire II Corps under the command of General Count Honore Reille, consisting of detachments of the 6th Division under the command of JeromeJérôme BonaparteJérôme-Napoléon Bonaparte, French Prince, King of Westphalia, 1st Prince of Montfort was the youngest brother of Napoleon, who made him king of Westphalia...
, (Napoleon's brother), the divisions of Comte Maximilien Foy (9th), Guilleminot and Joseph Bachelu (5th) - KellermannFrançois Étienne de KellermannFrancois Étienne de Kellermann, 2nd Duc de Valmy was a French cavalry general noted for his daring and skillful exploits during the Napoleonic Wars...
's cavalry corps
Similarly, though the house never contained a large number of troops, Wellington devoted 21 battalions (12,000 troops) over the course of the afternoon to keeping the hollow way open to allow fresh troops and ammunition to be admitted to the house. He also moved several artillery batteries from his hard-pressed centre to support Hougoumont.
Hougoumont today
Hougoumont remained an active farm until the end of the 20th century, after which it became the property of the Intercommunale (1815). By June 2006, the farm appeared to be in a degraded state. The walls, which were once near pristine white, have become a dirty yellow. Several walls are cracked and parts are clearly damaged, most notably the right-hand door post of the north side gate.Project Hougoumont, supported by, amongst others, the current Duke of Wellington, writer Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell
Bernard Cornwell OBE is an English author of historical novels. He is best known for his novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe which were adapted into a series of Sharpe television films.-Biography:...
and historian Richard Holmes
Richard Holmes (military historian)
Brigadier Edward Richard Holmes, CBE, TD, JP , known as Richard Holmes, was a British soldier and noted military historian, particularly well-known through his many television appearances...
, has been set up to oversee funding to restore and preserve Hougoumont for the long-term future.
External links
- Holmes, RichardRichard Holmes (military historian)Brigadier Edward Richard Holmes, CBE, TD, JP , known as Richard Holmes, was a British soldier and noted military historian, particularly well-known through his many television appearances...
, Project Hougoumont, retrieved 2 June 2010 - Military TimesMilitary TimesMilitary Times is a monthly military history magazine, published by Current Publishing and the Chelsea Magazine Company.- Overview :Military Times is edited by Dr Neil Faulkner, with George Clode, and published by Luke Bilton. The magazine covers all aspects of military history, from battles of...
, Save Hougomont at the Battlefield of Waterloo, retrieved 26 Mar 2011 - Hugo, VictorVictor HugoVictor-Marie Hugo was a Frenchpoet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist and exponent of the Romantic movement in France....
, Les Miserables, Volume II, Book First. Waterloo Chapter II. Hougomont, retrieved 2 June 2010 - Staff, Waterloo: The Hougoumont Farm, Trabel.com and Arakea.com, retrieved 2 June 2010