A Waterloo Battle Site Recovered British A 69th Foot Brown Bess Musket Bayonet Scabbard Formerly In the Sgt Major Cotton Museum Collection at Waterloo. Acquired From Auction Of The Exhibits Due To The The Museum Closure in 1909

A Battle Of Waterloo souvenir, from The Cotton Museum Collection at Waterloo. A Brown Bess musket bayonet scabbard from 69th Regiment of Foot that fought with distinction at Quatre Bras and Waterloo

In very good, immediately post battle recovered condition. The leather is superb, as are the brass mounts, nicely regimentally marked for the 69th numbered to gun 541

Before the Battle of Waterloo the 69th were stationed south of Brussels, near the crossroads of Quatre Bras. Here on 16 June Dutch & British fought the vanguard of the French army. Both sides suffered heavy losses of over 4,000 men, and the Allied army was forced to fall back towards Brussels, planning to make a stand at Waterloo.

During the Waterloo Campaign of 1815, the 2nd Battalion of the 69th (South Lincolnshire) Regiment of Foot earned a tragic but famous place in British military history. Composed of young, relatively inexperienced soldiers—with an average age of 21 and nearly 30% under the age of 18—the battalion was thrown into the crucible of two of the era's most intense engagements in a matter of 48 hours.

At the Battle of Quatre Bras, the 69th Foot suffered one of the most severe tactical setbacks experienced by any British unit during the campaign. During the battle of Quatre Bras, the 69th were charged by a mass of French cavalry. They attempted to form up into squares, with their bayonets pointing outwards. This formation was almost impossible for cavalry to attack, as their horses would refuse to charge onto a mass of spear-pointed bayonets. However, possibly due to confusing orders from their inexperienced commander the Prince of Orange, the 69th were unable to get into squares in time. Two companies were caught in the open, and hacked down by French sabres, almost to the last man.

In this slaughter, a French cuirassier (armoured cavalry soldier) cut down Ensign Duncan Keith, who carried the King’s Colour. This flag was personally presented to the regiment by the monarch, and served as a rallying point and source of pride for the troops.

The 69th suffered 38 killed and 115 wounded out of 546 men. At the Battle of Waterloo on 18 June, there were too few men to form a defensible square, and they were forced to join forces with the 33rd Regiment of Foot to fight.

At Waterloo, the 69th had their revenge upon the French cavalry, as the horsemen charged the British squares several times, suffering appalling losses from musket- and cannon-fire. Captain Alexander Mercer of the Royal Horse Artillery said the French “were smashed to fragments” on the British squares “like waves beating against rocks”.


This was purchased from the auction of the Cortton Collection, by the Hamilton family, in 1909, battlefield and antiquity relic collectors for over 100 years {prior to 1909}, acquiring pieces for the descended family collection of the late 10th Duke of Hamilton of Scotland

Edward Cotton was a veteran of the 7th Hussars who became a renowned battlefield guide and innkeeper. He wrote 'A Voice from Waterloo' and gathered a massive collection of battlefield relics. After the museum closed in 1909, roughly 3,000 items, along with the hotel contents and goodwill, were auctioned off in Brussels


An extract from an 1862 publication;
HOTEL DU MUSÉE,
AT THE FOOT OF THE LION MOUNT.
This Hotel, kept by a niece of the late Sergeant-Major Cotton, is situated in the very centre of the field of Waterloo, and is strongly recommended to visitors on account of its proximity to the scenes of interest connected with the great battle, and also for the excellent accommodation and comfort it offers at moderate charges.—See Bradshaw’s continental Guide.

The last photo in the gallery shows a photograph of one section of the collection in the museum of Waterloo, taken in around 1900, showing all the weapons of Waterloo en situ, including all the protagonists {British, French, Prussian and Belgian muskets, swords, pistols, armour uniforms, etc}. The museum was founded and owned by a veteran of the 7th Hussars who personally fought at Waterloo. Another photo shows the front page of his collection catalogue

Pictures in the gallery of the Cotton Museum Auction pamphlet and labels, for information and historical context only. Out of interest, a few years ago half a French cuirass from the Cotton Museum Auction sold for 6000 gbp.

As with all our items, every piece will be accompanied by our fully detailed Certificate of Authenticity, based on over 100 years of our Brighton family trading

Code: 26424