Why did Napoleon loose at Waterloo?

Answer 1

Primarily because of the pluck and tenacity of the ordinary UK soldier who simply refused to yield ground to the French. They engaged the French until the Prussians could close the gap and strike the French flank at Waterloo.

Answer 2

Napoleon believed that Waterloo was going to be a quick and easily winnable battle. The Emperor had fought all over Europe and defeated almost everyone but he had never faced Wellington and didn't know what the Iron Duke was capable of. Despite not knowing what his adversary was capable of he held Wellington in contempt and believed he could just sweep the British commander away and march on Brussels with little effort.

Wellington had chosen the Battlefield. He had chosen Waterloo because it was a very good defensive position which, without careful observations, didn't look as such. It had his preferred reserves slope behind which he could hide his true strength from his enemy and protect his men from their guns. He had also seen the importance of Papelotte, Le Haye Sainte and Hougoumont, which he garrisoned and fortified. Hougoumont and Papelotte stood at opposite ends of Wellington's flank and thus offered him a way to succor his flank from his enemy while Le Haye Sainte stood in his center. If Hougoumont fell then the battle would be Napoleon's.

Before the battle it rained heavily and turned the ground to mud. Wellington's position dried quicker than Napoleon's and gave him an edge there.

People often try to lessen Wellington victory by saying "he only won because the Prussians arrived" but this is irrelevant because Waterloo was only fought because Blucher had promised to support Wellington. In the morning before the battle Wellington sent dispatches to find Blucher and tell him that he would fight at Waterloo if Blucher could promise him a Corps in support but if the Prussian could not then Wellington would withdraw towards Brussels. Blucher's reply came later that same morning and Blucher had promised support. If Blucher hadn't promised at least a Corps in support Wellington would not have risked the battle.

Before the battle began General Nicolas Soult, who had been one of Wellington's adversaries in the Peninsular War, suggested Grouchy should be recalled from his pursuit of the Prussians to rejoin the main force against Wellington. To this Napoleon reportedly replied "Just because you have all been beaten by Wellington, you think he's a good general. I tell you Wellington is a bad general, the English are bad troops, and this affair is nothing more than eating breakfast." Later Napoleon's brother Jerome told him of a rumour that the Prussians were coming in support, Napoleon dismissed this, saying that the Prussians would need two days to recover from their defeat at Ligney and would be dealt with by Grouchy when they had.

Wellington had given orders for Hougoumont to be defended to the last man. Napoleon's initial attack on Hougoumont was repulsed and every attack following that was repulsed. Hougoumont became a drain on the French as the battle began as they failed to take it and Wellington's forces endured.

The French artillery opened fire on the British line but was too far away to be accurate. The wet ground prevented the cannon balls from bouncing as they would usually and Wellington's position gave him protection from the worst of the fire.

Soon Napoleon saw the Prussians marching towards Waterloo and sent a message to Grouchy to march towards Waterloo himself and attack the Prussians but Grouchy was too far away to reach the battle. One of Grouchy's subordinates advised him to march to the sound of the guns but Grouchy stuck to his original orders to march to Wavre and would fight with the Prussian rear guard there.

D'Erlon's change of formation on the march against Wellington at Waterloo (having learnt from fighting the Iron Duke in the Peninsular War) allowed the French to have greater fire power but restricted their maneuverability. It was initially effective and d'Erlon began pushing Wellington's forces. He cut off Le Haye Sainte from the rest of Wellington's army and pushed up the slope but then Thomas Picton managed to stop the advance at the cost of his life.

The British Heavy Cavalry charged. There was no more powerful cavalry in the world than the British Heavy Cavalry but they were undisciplined and simply rampaged when loosed. As such they were not as maneuverable as their French counterparts. They drove the French infantry back but overstretched themselves and lost control and were cut down as Napoleon loosed part of his own Cavalry against them.

With the Prussian's coming quickly to the field Napoleon began to rush. He threw his reserve except for his Imperial Guard against the Prussians to stop their advance. He now knew he had to defeat Wellington and had to do it quickly.

At this point Michel Ney made a major blunder. Mistaking the movement of casualties to the rear as the beginning of a retreat he sought to exploit it. He rallies the cavalry and sent them in but upon crossing the ridge the French Cavalry were presented with British squares and could do nothing. Time and again they charge and time and again they failed. Without any artillery to support them their action was useless and after all this effort the French Cavalry was spent.

Realizing that his cavalry charge had accomplished nothing Ney sent in a combined arms attack of Infantry and Cavalry along the same route the purely cavalry attack had gone. Initially this had success but Wellington committed the Household Brigade of Cavalry under Uxbridge and French attack was slowed and eventually repulsed.

Then Le Haye Sainte fell and the Prussians began to arrive. At Plancenoit the Prussians and French fought bitterly. The French gained control of the village but the Prussians continued to attack and the French there were caught in fierce fighting for the rest of the battle. The Prussian Corp's Blucher had promised Wellington arrived and slotted in immediately on Wellington's left and succored it.

Napoleon now threw in his last ace. The Old Guard were sent against Wellington's exposed center but they were stopped, repulsed and broken and Wellington ordered to advance. The battle was Wellingtons!

Now also the Prussians took Placenoit and all hope for the French was lost.

Answer 3

Napoleon lost the battle of Waterloo for a number of reasons: 1. The weather. It rained heavily the night before the battle so Napoleon could use neither his guns nor his cavalry to his best advantage. His guns sank in the mud and his cavalry could not charge uphill in the muddy conditions. 2. Wellington's tactics were brilliant. He would not move from the high ground into the boggy valley, so the French had to take the battle to him, uphill and through mud. 3. Wellington used a tactic called the "thin red line" and hid his troops. Napoleon was surprised by this. 4. Blucher came to Wellington's aid and tipped the balance of power in his favor. 5. Napoleon is quoted as saying that said he lost Waterloo because of the "obstinate bravery of the English troops" 6. Reportedly, Napoleon;s abilities were impaired during the battle because he was ill.

Answer 4

Napoleon has to use the strategy of the central position. He knows exactly what he is doing. He has defeated the Prussians at Ligny & the British have retired from Quatre Bras. And then the rain comes. Artilley & Caissons do not like mud. Horses do not like mud. Nothing moves quickly. Napoleon needs speed. And he needs to rely on his subordinate commanders. Grouchy ?? No, not Grouchy. Grouchy is not the man needed to get after the Prussians: Ney is who Napoleon should have switched wings with. Once the Prussians join the field at Waterloo the game is up, there are simply far, far too many of them..........

Answer 5

Napoleon was not his old self at Waterloo, he complained of pain in his stomach which may have made it difficult to concentrate on the work in hand.
He left too many things to his marshals who made too many mistakes.
Grouchy didn't keep Blucher away from the battle as he was supposed to and Ney should not have committed his cavalry in the way he did.

Answer 6

Because he got stuck and strugled to get through admiral Nelson's crew of Ships. And soon he lost most of his ships and then he set off back home to France.

Answer 7

The UK troops held the battlefield until the Prussians could march to the field and attack Napoleon's forces.