Captain Siborne’s Model, 1838
Wellington’s Waterloo
NAM 1975-05-56
The Battle of Waterloo on 18 June 1815 was the last great battle of the Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815) and marked the end of France’s attempt to dominate Europe. This model of the battlefield was made by Captain William Siborne (1797-1849) and shows the crisis point of a battle the Duke of Wellington (1769-1852) called ‘the nearest run thing you ever saw in your life’. It is based on the accounts of around 700 British officers who took part in the battle. When finished, the model made it look, quite rightly, as if the Prussians had helped win the day.
The furious Wellington, who claimed sole responsibility for the triumph, insisted Siborne depict the position of the armies at the start of battle instead. Siborne was leant on by the powers that be and he reluctantly removed thousands of hand-painted Prussian soldiers. Wellington saved face and Siborne died a broken man. By standing up for historical accuracy he stood accused of subverting a central element of national mythology: the conviction that Britain alone - and the genius of the Iron Duke in particular – had saved Europe from the tyranny of Napoleon.
Helmet taken from Tipu Sultan's palace, at the capture of Seringapatam, 1799
Tiger of Mysore
NAM 1971-07-3
This fabric and metal helmet is inscribed with texts from the Holy Qur’an describing the virtues of Allah and the Prophet Mohammed. The guard is decorated with tiger’s heads, the animal associated with Tipu Sultan, Muslim ruler of Mysore, one of the most formidable opponents of the British in India. During the late eighteenth century, Tipu, nicknamed the ‘Tiger of Mysore’, effectively opposed British rule in southern India. It was in campaigns like these that Arthur Wellesley, the future Duke of Wellington, said that he learnt much of his soldiering trade.
The defeat of Tipu by a joint Anglo-Indian force at Seringapatam in 1799 opened India to armed conquest. The helmet was presented as a symbolic gift to Lord Cornwallis, the first Governor-General of India. In his day, Tipu was demonized in the British media, rather as Saddam Hussein has been in recent times.
Skeleton of Napoleon's horse 'Marengo'
Boney's Mount
NAM 1963-09-89
Marengo was an Arab horse with a light grey coat, standing just over 14 hands high. Purchased by Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) after the Battle of Aboukir in 1799, he was named after the French victory at Marengo in 1800. At first glance, it would seem that Marengo was a suitable size for Napoleon who is also supposed to have been small in stature. Yet Napoleon was actually a perfectly respectable five feet six and half inches in height, slightly taller than the average Frenchman of 1800!
Whatever the debates about his size, Napoleon was a giant of world history. He contributed greatly to the reshaping of Europe. His destruction of the old régimes of Europe, his rationalization of antiquated legal systems and his preservation of the revolutionary principle of equality before the law still influence Europe today. He represented a radical threat to the British state. It was a threat answered by a reformed British Army that had been bloodied against the French during the Peninsular War (1808-1814).
Napoleon’s attempt to dominate Europe by force failed and he surrendered to the Allies after the French defeat at Waterloo on 18 June 1815. Reputedly ridden by the Emperor at the battle, Marengo passed into British hands when Napoleon was sent into exile. The famous horse died in 1831 and the skeleton was preserved and later passed to the Royal United Services Institute.
Saw used to amputate Uxbridge's leg at Waterloo, 1815
A bloody business
NAM 1960-02-3
This surgical saw was used by Surgeon James Powell, of the Ordnance Medical Department, at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815 to amputate the leg of Lieutenant General Henry Paget, Earl of Uxbridge. Amputation, without anesthetic, was often the only hope for soldiers who suffered badly damaged bones. It could prevent disease setting in and in many cases resulted in a rapid recovery. The wounded soldier had a leather tourniquet tied about eight centimetres (three inches) above the place where the cutting would be done.
A knife was then used to slice down to the bone, arteries pinned out of the way and then the surgeon would begin his work with the bone saw. The arteries were then sewn up and linen bandages were applied. The medical equipment used by Napoleonic surgeons was not impressive and each carried, usually in a travelling box, knives, saws, scalpels, tourniquets and forceps, with strops to sharpen the instruments. He also carried dressings, sutures and needles, and crude drugs, many of which were ineffective.
Uxbridge remained composed throughout the operation, which took place at a farmhouse, and once remarked that he did not think the saw was very sharp! It is said that some years later Uxbridge later revisited the place with two of his sons, found the table on which the operation had taken place, and ate dinner off it.
Gold Medal awarded to Sir John Moore, 1809
Hero of the Peninsular
NAM 1963-10-61-2
Napoleonic Generals, unlike their counterparts today, had to lead their men directly from the battlefield and had to be seen to be in the thick of the action. This explains why so many senior officers, from both sides, were killed or wounded during the Peninsular War (1808-1814).
Lieutenant General Sir John Moore (1761-1809) was a commander of British troops during that campaign. He had taken command following the removal of General Sir Harry Burrard for his signing of the Convention of Cintra in 1808. When Napoleon arrived in Spain with 200,000 soldiers, Moore withdrew northwards to the port of Corunna. There he fought a skillful rearguard battle on 16 January 1809 that kept the French from attacking his embarking army. Moore was mortally wounded during the engagement and buried in the ramparts of the town.
His French counterpart, Marshal Soult, was so impressed by Moore that he ordered a monument erected to his fallen foe as a sign of respect. This rare gold medal belonged to Moore and was only awarded to General Officers. It is engraved with the words ‘CORUNNA 1809’.
