Solovyov in Tsarist Russia 1796.

Ney personally led a cavalry division in an attack.

He is indeed a brave person, and he can do a lot on many occasions.

However, he rarely commanded cavalry in such attacks before; Napoleon always had some cavalry commanders under his command.

To be honest, Grouchy, who switched careers halfway through his life, is probably even better in this regard.

For Ney, today's luck wasn't too bad. Although several of his mounts were killed, he himself was still unharmed.

No one questions this guy's bravery, but people may have overlooked the fact that he also needs an external brain.

Because of Berthier's jealousy, Jomini went to Russia.

But Ney was different from Blücher; he only lost his mind when he was carried away. He had done this several times before, and even with Jomini by his side, no one could stop Botzen from making mistakes on the wrong marching route.

This time, Ney decided to deploy cavalry only after observing some unusual movements on the British front lines.

The British were not unprepared; fighting on the hillside was largely a precaution against such an attack.

The infantry quickly formed hollow squares at the battalion level, which could be used to defend against cavalry charges.

Ney also realized the trouble; even the French heavy cavalry would find it difficult to break through such a defensive line at this time.

These cavalrymen needed to coordinate, and after Ney's mount was killed once again, he returned and changed to a different horse.

He realized that rushing forward now would indeed be quite difficult.

If you want to get anything done, you'll always need reinforcements.

Napoleon was also watching at this moment, but he was watching Grouchy's side.

"Your Majesty, an army has appeared in the southeast."

“This time it should be Grouchy. I’ve already seen their signal. If it had been any later, the sunlight would have prevented him from sending the signal. Soult, did you know that Mr. Goethe actually studied optics, although his theories seem to be somewhat outdated?”

Yes, as an enthusiastic reader, he also visited the author's home.

Bringing this up is partly to ease the current tension.

The pressure is indeed immense for the French.

It was only a matter of time before the Prussian army was stopped by the troublemakers in the Vendée, given that there were tens of thousands of people behind them.

Even though the Vendée Division and the Imperial Guard were equally capable fighters, their force of just over 10,000 men, along with Lamarck's division, couldn't withstand such a large-scale attack.

The sooner Grouchy joined the battle, the more advantageous it would be for Napoleon.

Meanwhile, Wellington has received new reports that the Prussian army is close to deploying, and in addition to Bülow, who has been fighting the French, two more corps will soon be able to join the battle.

However, Wellington did not want to launch any offensive tactics; he simply wanted to stay put and wait for the Prussians to arrive before launching a joint counterattack.

Napoleon was well aware of the situation because he had fought Solovyov once in Reims.

Speaking of which, my eldest nephew is much more enthusiastic than Wellington.

That was when the Prussian army had already collapsed, and he set a trap by squatting on the riverbank, trying to buy time for the main Allied forces hundreds of kilometers away. Then, when Napoleon was dealing with Schwarzenberg, he ran to Paris to raid his home base.

Wellington was just waiting to get beaten up; he didn't make any positive moves there.

His occasional counterattacks were merely to disrupt the French army's operations; he intended to wait for the Prussian troops to join him.

While both involve squatting in the same spot, this particular method is even more hateful to the attacking side.

"Your Majesty, what should we do now?"

"Except for Freon, who cannot go up yet, the rest of the troops must be mobilized. Hand over command of the Royal Guard to Davout, and let Ney focus on leading the cavalry."

"His Majesty."

Soult's talkativeness has made Napoleon realize the mistakes he made in his personnel arrangements.

However, we have no choice but to make do. Actually, sending Soult to command an army on the front line would be more effective than sending those two men.

Ney is prone to losing his temper, which makes him more suitable for the reserve team.

Dawu is fine, but he usually only leads army-level troops, and his personality is somewhat unlikable, so he is not well-liked among his colleagues.

But in crucial moments, he is absolutely loyal.

Moreover, Davout's wife was Demid's aunt, effectively excluding Murat, and among the marshals, he was actually the one closest to his family.

As for Bernadotte, because he always slacked off during battles, Napoleon only assigned him to recruit troops and serve as Cano's assistant.

In terms of ability, there's not much to say. Apart from the retreat from Russia and the foolish mistakes made in Egypt, he has always performed exceptionally well, often even exceeding Napoleon's expectations.

At this critical juncture, with the situation tense on the front lines, Napoleon entrusted the Imperial Guard to Davout, but still held onto the Frion Division, precisely because Grouchy had not yet arrived on the battlefield.

However, he was always able to make up his mind, and his orders to Davout were very clear: launch an attack on La Hire, have the Imperial Guard push up Saint-Jean Hill, and have the artillery get close and fire to put further pressure on the British.

As for the 1st Army, it was now back in Daeron's hands.

Meanwhile, on Reye's side, Jerome, who had been setting fires, had completely thrown the two sides into chaos.

Wellington now saw the situation and decided to put the remaining infantry who could still fight, along with the guards who had not come down the mountain to support Ougoumont, on the front line, waiting for the French army to launch further offensives.

By separating Davout and Ney, Napoleon himself is now personally involved on the battlefield, no longer willing to take the lead.

"Uncle, are you alright now?"

"Ah, how many people helped me get here this time. Demid, first, there was the financial aid from your mother, part of which came from our rivals. Then there was the money from your grandmother, and of course, this hemorrhoid cream."

Before the battle began, Napoleon was still applying hemorrhoid cream, but he was finally able to command the troops.

The emperor himself had to participate in the event to inspire the army.

The exhausted French troops at the front, upon hearing that the emperor had joined forces with the Imperial Guard, began shouting "Long live the emperor!"

The officers who had defected to the British before the Imperial Guard launched their attack had not expected this turn of events.

He informed the British of some of the French army's movements. Napoleon himself was even relatively far from the battlefield, but now things were not quite right.

Whenever the French veterans shouted "Long live the Emperor," their morale soared, and they threw themselves back into the attack.

As for the Imperial Guards who had already reached the front, when they were handed over to Dawu, the marshal also realized the seriousness of the problem.

Even with Morland's arrival, Emperor Freyon was still in their grasp. The only good news they received from Morland was that Grouchy was approaching.

If Grouchy were to enter the battlefield and replace Frion and the Imperial Guard cavalry who had not yet been deployed with the small force of the 6th Army, the Imperial Guard would be just like the old 3rd Army, except without Güdan.

"Your Excellency Marshal, the Emperor has ordered us to take command of you and capture the British positions on the ridge."

"It's a pity that only you came, but that's enough."

After Moreland's division joined the battle, Drouot bombarded La Haye St Farm, inflicting heavy losses on the British.

However, the British German Legion was stubborn; they would stay there unless they were driven out by the French with bayonets.

Seeing the French army's further fierce attack, Wellington gritted his teeth and sent some reinforcements to La Hyde. If they could not hold off the French here, the situation would be very dire.

As for the cavalry, Napoleon himself had not yet made up his mind about what to do.
Ney led a cavalry division up, but failed to do anything to the British and had to retreat.

But he also noticed that the British just squatted there and wouldn't come down.

Therefore, he had his staff send another signal.

After Napoleon received the document, he looked at Demid and asked him to inquire about the artillery situation.

Drouot's side still has plenty of ammunition, but the problem is that they're running out of rockets.

"That's all, Your Majesty."

When Napoleon saw it, he knew that this stuff was consumed quickly and replenishing it wouldn't be so easy.

It's no wonder that the British and Russian armies only fought for a short while on the battlefield.

The British also fired the Congreve rocket today, but it wasn't as effective as the French's.

"Fire the rest of the rockets."

"Your Majesty, what about the target?"

“You studied mathematics and physics at the Polytechnic, not military science. So you can only manage the trajectory of these things, and on the battlefield you can only fire them according to orders. These rockets are used to strike the British troops on the ridge, right behind Lahai St Farm.”

At that time, artillery had limited range.

However, the Congreve rocket had a maximum range of 4.5 kilometers, while the Russian version of this rocket was improved by the French to have a range of 5 kilometers.

Therefore, they can always strike targets ahead from a relatively rear position.

After recalculation, the rockets finally managed to fire again just in time for the Guards' attack.

But the accuracy was still poor. Napoleon looked through the telescope and muttered, "This thing is really inaccurate."

"Your Majesty, but this is all we have."

"It can explode around the enemy and create chaos. I don't expect this rocket to hit any houses, it's enough if it lands around the British lines."

After the rockets were fired, Napoleon finally committed more troops.

Ney added several cuirassier regiments to the battle, but only after Davu launched his attack.

If only cuirassiers go up like that, it will be as futile as his previous attack.

This was a lesson learned; when the Imperial Guard moved, Ney's cavalry also began to line up, preparing to slowly enter the battlefield before launching an attack.

Using cavalry too early would obviously deplete horsepower, and the number of times these warhorses can charge in a battle is also limited.

As for Davu's attack on Lahai Saint, it didn't seem to go as expected in the end.

The bayonet charge quickly drove out the remaining British troops from Lahai St Farm, while Wellington watched the battlefield unfold with bated breath.

Bearskin hats have appeared in the French's reorganized troops, which means the Guards have arrived.

He then ordered a portion of the infantry to await further orders and to fire a volley at the French troops attempting to storm the ridge.

However, whether this tactic will actually work is another question.

Although Wellington noticed details on the battlefield that many others missed, he also overlooked the changes in the standard weapons used by the French army.

This misjudgment is understandable, after all, the French charged with bayonets from the start, even more reckless than the Russians.

Before giving the order, he made a point of checking the situation at the front.

Previously, one of his adjutants was hit by shrapnel from a French shell and seriously wounded.

Wellington, who was right next to them, was completely unharmed at the time.

Sometimes, some commanders seem to be blessed with good fortune.

"Sir, what should we do now?"

"Wait for these Frenchmen, wait until they get close before opening fire."

When an officer asked a question, Wellington answered it with nonchalant ease.

In short, at this time, the commander-in-chief must not panic.

These are still some of the longest days of the year, and if the fighting continues at this intensity, it will continue for a long time.

It might not even end today; the outcome won't be known until June 19th.

Or make this decision at night.
The French Guards are getting closer and closer. In fact, among these people, although they are called the old Guards, some of them were promoted from other units, or were reorganized from middle-aged Guards into the old Guards.

Compared to the original Imperial Guard, their combat effectiveness was somewhat diminished, but their morale remained high.

Perhaps Louis XVIII's greatest contribution to the anti-French coalition was that he disbanded a significant portion of the army, particularly the Imperial Guard, which was scattered and many members were dismissed; it has yet to be fully reassembled.

Through his telescope, Napoleon could already see the Imperial Guard pulling down the British flag at La Hyde Farm.

In addition, Reye's last remaining reserve force also joined the battle from Ney's side.

The situation for the British appears to be dire. Wellington has committed all but a few cavalry units to the battlefield on the left flank, and his infantry reserves are even fewer.

The most troublesome thing was that a Hanoverian cavalry regiment had already broken up and even fled through the forest toward Brussels, completely ignoring the officers' reprimands. All the news coming in was that the British army was going to fail.

Panic was threatening to plunge Brussels into chaos.

When the British and French arrive, they're unlikely to have a good time here. The only exception is the French, who might try to win them over because there are many French-speaking people around Brussels.
The decisive blow between the British and French armies on the battlefield was about to strike. (End of Chapter)