June 16, 1815 · Belgium / Hundred Days Theater
June 16, 1815
Fought simultaneously with Ligny, Quatre Bras was a hard-fought engagement at a road junction critical to keeping Wellington's and Blücher's armies in communication. Marshal Ney initially faced a small Allied force and should have overwhelmed it quickly, but hesitated fatally in the morning hours. As the afternoon progressed, Wellington fed reinforcements piecemeal into the battle, narrowly preventing a French breakthrough. General Picton's Scottish infantry repulsed a massive French cavalry charge, and the Highlanders of the 92nd Regiment won particular glory. D'Erlon's corps, which might have been decisive at either Quatre Bras or Ligny, was marched back and forth by conflicting orders and contributed nothing to either engagement.
Commanders