Page Number | Note/Query | Explanation |
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331 - | Tried their luck at cock-shies | You get a ball to knock something off its perch - knock it and its yours.
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334 - | Pakenham's body is enclosed in a cask of spirits to bring back. | This was not uncommon, they did this with Nelson. Sailors were
not generally happy about carrying dead bodies, and there is some story about sailors sneakily drawing on the spirits in the barrel during the voyage
without knowing there was a body in there.
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334 - | Sent to Lamberts brigade as AAG | (Assistant Adjutant General)
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336 - | Alarum - | Obscure, for Alarm
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338 - | Mi Enrique, Mi Enrique! Esta Muerto! El no vendra nunca nunca! | My Harry, My Harry! He's dead! He won't come back, never never!
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338 - | Un acto de locura - | an act of madness
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341 - | Muy perfido - | very perfidious
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342 - | exchange volunteer straps for a pair of rifle wings - | When soldiers enlist as volunteers, they are
distinguished by straps, usually white - otherwise their uniform is identical to a regular recruit. Once they are commissioned
or enlisted then they exchange them for proper identification - Epaulettes
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344 - | Harry's brigade consisted of four old Peninsula Regiments, | the 4th (Kings own), 27th (?), 40th (2nd Somersetshire), and 81st (no name)
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344 - | The divisions were topsy turvey - | Picton's division had been the 'fighting third' now he had the 5th. In fact Alten had the thrid division in Waterloo, where he was severely wounded.
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346 - | the Slashers - | a nickname which
was given to the 28th regiment of foot during the American war.(Thanks to Mark Pottenger)
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346 - | The Cameron Highlanders - | the 79th
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347 - | the night of the 15th - | the sound of firing the day of the 16th - from the British/Netherland troops at Quatre Bras. A battle fought that day against the French see Waterloo
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348 - | triste | sad
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349 - | chausee | shod - wearing shoes.
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350 - | the confusion before Waterloo was widespread. | Wellington had already selected the land as the place to make the stand against Napoleon. The army was given their orders on the night of the 15th and marched early on the morning of the 16th of June, the day Quatre Bras was fought. Many accounts of the time talk about marching columns up lanes and meeting up with other columns there - exchaning information to find out if they were in the right place and right direction. Many of the lanes they were using were just that farm tracks that were muddy and slow going for troops, guns, horses, artillery etc. When they all finally met at Waterloo there was probably a lot of rumour and fear, natural for such a tense situation prior to a battle, and probably exacerbated by the tenuous nature of the some of the army which were either inexperienced or not committed to the battle.
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352 - | Un beso de despidida - | A farewell kiss.
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355 - | the action at Waterloo in brief | had begun at 11am and for much of the day was a desparate situation for the Allied forces. By late afternoon the tide had turned.
Waterloo
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355 - | A commissary! - | Not very well liked were the commissary - they were usually either forward, or behind the
march of the army. There were frequent problems with the commissary who had to ration, were short of everything - often including money for pay which
generally strained relations with the men and did not put them in an entirely popular light.
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355 - | the reverse slope. | Wellington had a tendency to pick battlefields where he did not need to reveal
the full strength of his forces to his enemy. He did this by using sites with slight reverse slopes, Napoleon could
never be quite sure how many men he had in reserve on the reverse slope of the battlefield and out of sight. The reverse
slope also worked as a shield for his men. Engagements generally began by firing heavy artillery at one another. On the
reverse slope the balls skidded over the top of everyones heads rather than causing chaos.
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360 - | Loco - | Crazy
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364 - | Old Douro - | the Duke of Wellington
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364 - | George has been shot through the liver - | George Simmons, and he does survive and writes his memoirs.
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365 - | Who's alive? - | almost a quarter were killed at the battle of Waterloo.
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