Journal of the Waterloo campaign, vol. 1 (of 2) : $b kept throughout the campaign of 1815Mercer, Cavalié
History
Journal of the Waterloo campaign, vol. 1 (of 2) : $b kept throughout the campaign of 1815
Mercer, Cavalié
Mercer, Cavalié, 1783-1868 -- Diaries; Waterloo, Battle of, Waterloo, Belgium, 1815 -- Personal narratives, British
the remains of my poor troop, quietly asked, “_How, sir?_” A glance
was sufficient to show him the impossibility, and away he went.
Our situation was indeed terrible: of 200 fine horses with which we
had entered the battle, upwards of 140 lay dead, dying, or severely
wounded. Of the men, scarcely two-thirds of those necessary for four
guns remained, and these so completely exhausted as to be totally
incapable of further exertion. Lieutenant Breton had three horses
killed under him; Lieutenant Hincks was wounded in the breast by a
spent ball; Lieutenant Leathes on the hip by a splinter; and although
untouched myself, my horse had no less than eight wounds, one of
which--a graze on the fetlock joint--lamed him for ever. Our guns
and carriages were, as before mentioned, altogether in a confused
heap, intermingled with dead and wounded horses, which it had not
been possible to disengage from them. My poor men, such at least as
were untouched, fairly worn out, their clothes, faces, &c., blackened
by the smoke and spattered over with mud and blood, had seated
themselves on the trails of the carriages, or had thrown themselves
on the wet and polluted soil, too fatigued to think of anything
but gaining a little rest. Such was our situation when called upon
to advance! It was impossible, and we remained where we were. For
myself, I was also excessively tired--hoarse, to making speech
painful, and deaf from the infernal uproar of the last eleven hours.
Moreover, I was devoured by a burning thirst, not a drop of liquid
having passed my lips since the evening of the 16th; but although,
with the exception of the chicken’s leg last night, I may be said to
have eaten nothing for two whole days, yet did I not feel the least
desire for food.
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