Waterloo Battlefield

MY review six years ago of Bob Cordery's The Portable Napoleonic Wargame continues to generate traffic to my website.

This prompted me to again go through the book (for the umpteenth time!), and was one of the reasons behind the decision to refight Waterloo this month.

Another reason for the refight is that last year I bought Napoleonic French and British 10mm armies from Transylvania-based Wofun.

They were for a tabletop version of Mike Lambo's boardgame Battles Of Napoleonic Europe, using Hexon II hexes from Nottinghamshire-based Kallistra.

It should be fun putting my purchases together for Cordery's big-battle gridded rules from his Napoleonic book.

I have started by creating a 14x9 grid (north is at the top of the picture)

It must be remembered that a major battle such as Waterloo took up no small amount of ground.

In this case the battlefield was about 2.5miles (4km) long, and so the tabletop should not be cluttered with too much scenery.

But it has to include the significant features, which in my view numbered five.

1. The ridge, running west-east, along which Wellington drew up the Allied army.

2. In front of the west end of the ridge was the fortified chateau of Hougoumont, together with its orchard and garden.

3. In the centre, directly below the ridge, was the farmhouse of La Haye Sainte.

4. In front of the east end of the ridge was the hamlet of Papelotte, which, like Hougoumont, had been fortified.

5. In the middle of the ridge, slightly further back from the rest of the high ground, was an elm tree, which Wellington chose as the best place for him to view the battle.

Battlefield, with scenery added

Close-up of Hougoumont

La Haye Sainte, with Wellington's elm in the background

Papelotte