The Field of Waterloo The Field of Waterloo The Field of Waterloo is a poem by Sir Walter Scott, written and published in 1815. After the allied victory at the battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815, Scott travelled to Belgium in August, and was one of the first British civilians to visit the battlefield. Scott was hoping to recover his expenses by publishing an account of his travels (in the form of imaginary letters), published as "Paul's Letters to His Kinsfolk" (1816). The profits from Scott's poem about the battle were intended to go to a fund for widows and orphans of soldiers.
Battle of Waterloo day he withdrew northwards, to a defensive position he had reconnoitred the previous year—the low ridge of Mont-Saint-Jean, south of the village of Waterloo and the Sonian Forest. Napoleon, with the reserves, made a late start on 17 June and joined Ney at Quatre Bras at 13:00 to attack Wellington's army but found the position empty. The French pursued Wellington's retreating army to Waterloo; however, due to bad weather, mud and the head start that Napoleon's tardy advance had allowed Wellington, apart from a cavalry action at Genappe, there was no substantial engagement. Before leaving Ligny, Napoleon had ordered Grouchy,