Ligny

The Battlefield

 Ligny (Ferrais - 18th Centurty)

Our Route

Our Ligny visit started with the extant windmill at Fleurus. This was Napoleon’s main observation post at the start of the battle. At the time it was situated at the edge of Fleurus but you can see the village has clearly extended over the past two hundred years.

The Mill at Fleurus

Fleurus Mill from the game Incredible Courage - 100 Days: Ligny
Artist: Rick Barber
© Grognard Simulations Inc.

From here it is a short drive to the Château de la Paix.

Château de la Paix

Napoleon spent the night after the battle here and troops bivouacked in the neighbouring farm.

La Paix farm

Take a right at the crossroads by the farm and drive to Saint Amand. The church is very distinctive on the approach and Ligny church is visible to the right. To your left are the fields over which the Imperial Guard advanced around 6pm. Drive past the church and on to La Haye Farm where it is worth parking up for a closer look. This farm was the centre of the Prussian defence against the Imperial Guard.

Ligny - from the Game Waterloo
© The Avalon Hill Game Company

Ligny and Surrounding Area - From L'Armee du Nord Game
Artist: Rick Barber
© 1993, Clash of Arms Games a division of
Theatre Of the Mind Enterprises, Inc.

Ligny - From the game La Bataille de Ligny
Artist: Rick Barber

© 1991, Clash of Arms Games a division of
Theatre Of the Mind Enterprises, Inc.

Ligny - From the game Le Retour de l'Empereur
Artist: Didier Rouy

© Pratzen Editions

Moulin de Bussy - From the game La Bataille de Ligny
Artist: Rick Barber

© 1991, Clash of Arms Games a division of
Theatre Of the Mind Enterprises, Inc.

From Saint Amand, drive the short distance to Brye. Take the main route through Brye and pick up the Rue Joseph Scohy. Opposite an energy company’s office, take a right and drive a few yards to a farm on your left. Immediately in front of the farm is the now dry fish pond that sat in front of the Brye/Bussey windmill. The mill itself, a wooden structure, is long gone. Despite the lack of elevation it provided Blucher as his main observation point, and despite the more recent farm blocking much of the line of sight, there remains a fine, little changed, vista of the battlefield; from Ligny church all the way to Wagnelée.

Turn around and, opposite the energy offices, take a right down the Rue Sombreffe towards Ligny. Descend down into the valley of the Ligne, along the village’s winding lanes, and pull in at the Ligny Museum (1) on the left. This has ample parking signposted by various flags flying in the breeze.

Two views of the Ligne;
the first from the Ligny Bridge
and the second from outside of the village

The Ligny sites we visited are all in close proximity to one another so timings are omitted. We parked at the aforementioned ‘Napoleon’s Last Victory’ Museum. Unfortunately this was closed on the day of our visit (Open: ) but it look promising and not so large it will demand a long visit. From the museum we walked to the Bicentennial Memorial (2) (unfortunately the gun barrel is not from the battle). From here it is a very short walk to the Ferme d’en Haut/de la Tour (3), the church (4) and the Ferme d'en Bas (5). These three buildings are in very close proximity and were practically adjacent when, at the time of the battle, the church was surrounded by a cemetery. The church is not the original, but it is possible to picture these three buildings providing a daunting obstacle.

Whilst here we also followed the line of the Prussian retreat (6) out of the village and towards Wavre and we also visited the approximate site of the Ligny Chateau (7) (now entirely razed from the face of the earth) neither of these diversions provided any real insight into the battle and so we would suggest you spend your time in the museum instead.

Be warned, Ligny is simply a set of abodes; there are few shops or bars. All but one that we found were closed. There is a restaurant at the museum which, though we did not visit it, will probably be the best place to eat (we settled for a sausage a bag of crisps/chips and a packet of cookies as we walked along). Better still, head for somewhere like Sombreffe or Gembloux to dine.

Tour de Wavre en Francais

Een tour van Ligny. With dankzij Eddy Claes

Ligny - Espagnol