charge his columns returned shattered and
thinned. Scarcely a gleam of success dawned upon Napoleon during the
whole day. In one of their attacks, indeed, the farmhouse of La Haye
Sainte was carried by the French; but it was not till the German
legion which defended it had perished to a man. Thus affairs stood when
Napoleon ordered his cavalry to charge the British infantry in squadrons
and in masses--to charge home, and to find a passage through their
glittering bayonets. Their efforts were determined, but they all proved
fruitless; the British infantry formed in squares, and the best of his
horsemen bit the dust. Still Napoleon's cry was "Forward!" thus goading
them on to destruction. Their overthrow was hastened by a charge
of British cavalry, which had hitherto been very little more than a
spectator of the battle. Seizing the moment favourable for the charge,
Wellington called up Lord Ernest Somerset's brigade of heavy cavalry,
consisting of the life-guards, the royal horse-guards, and the first
dragoon-guards, and directed them to charge the already crippled cavalry
of Napoleon. These regiments proved irresistible; horses and men fell on
every hand; and the French cuirassiers, whose breastplates had glittered
in so many battles and victories, were completely destroyed. When Lord
Ernest Somerset's brigade returned from their charge, they brought with
them about two thousand prisoners, and an imperial eagle. By this time,
about seven o'clock in the evening, every part of the French army,
except the guards, who had been kept as a reserve had been engaged,
repulsed, and beaten. The British loss in killed and wounded had also
been immense; but they had not lost a single position, and they were yet
full of heart and confidence in their leader. It was evident, indeed,
that even if no Prussians should arrive Napoleon would be defeated. At
this critical moment, however, a numerous body of men was seen in the
distance; and anxiety was depicted in the faces of both Napoleon and
Wellington. Napoleon hoped it might be Grouchy, and Wellington hoped it
might be Blucher. Onwards the moving mass came, and it proved to be the
Prussians under Blucher: he had left a body of men to confront Grouchy,
and hastened to support Wellington, As soon as the French generals
discovered who the new comers were, they advised Napoleon to retreat;
but although his defeat was now morally certain, his cry was still,
"Forward!" Calling forward his guard