Battle of Wavre

battle_name=Battle of Wavre

Forces

The number of men listed in the order of battle would not be the same as men who took part in the battle of Wavre. Both armies had been engaged at the battle of Ligny where they had suffered casualties. The French about 11,500 and the Prussians about 22,000. To come to the number of men which the French are said to have had at the battle of around 31,500, then one must assume that the French formations at Wavre had suffered about half the French casualties at Ligny, which is not an unreasonable assumption. If one assumes that all three corps of the Prussian (IV corps did not fight at Ligny,) all suffered about the same loss then Thielmann corps would be about 7,300 men short of their battle order making about 14,700. There would also be a number of men not at the battle for other reasons, but as the campaign had only just started, there would not have been much of attrition due to sickness which was so common to armies in the field during the Napoleonic wars.

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