Waterloo Campaign: Ligny through Wavre to Waterloo Waterloo Campaign: Ligny through Wavre to Waterloo After their defeat at the Battle of Ligny (16 June 1815) the Prussians successfully disengaged and withdrew to north to Wavre where they reorganised and then three corps advanced westward to attack the right flank of the French army at the Battle of Waterloo. The French were desultory in the aftermath of Ligny. Napoleon wasted the morning of 17 June by taking a late breakfast and going to see the previous day's battlefield before organising a pursuit of the two Coalition armies. He took the reserves and marched with Marshal Ney in pursuit
Waterloo Campaign: Ligny through Wavre to Waterloo Wavre (nor'-nor'-west) was about with some larger minor road leading there. After considering his options, Grouchy decided to advance to Wavre and engage whatever Prussians he found there, and so aid Napoleon by preventing those Prussians from moving towards Waterloo. Grouchy arrived at Wavre at around 16:00 and immediately engaged the Prussian III Corps (Thielemann's), which was acting as the rearguard of the Prussian army and which had been about to leave for Waterloo) in what became the Battle of Wavre. The Prussian advance to the Waterloo battlefield was impeded by the swollen streams, which had turned their valleys into