Skeletons from the battle of Waterloo have been uncovered – news Trøndelag

Historians estimate that more than 20,000 soldiers were killed during the Battle of Waterloo in 1815. At that time, it was the troops of the Duke of Wellington who defeated French battalions led by Napoleon Bonaparte. Thus, Napoleon’s dreams of a great empire were shattered. But since then, very few of the dead soldiers have been found. One theory is that the bodies were stolen and sold as fertilizer. Now, however, British archaeologists have had a breakthrough: – We have what looks like a complete human skeleton. Next to it, we have found an amputated leg, says Professor Tony Pollard in a press release. He has led the excavation, and is employed at the University of Glasgow. Only happened once before The discovery is said to have been made in an area where one of the field hospitals was located during the war. “We do not know if this person was killed in combat, or if he was a patient who died at the hospital,” says Pollard. Together with colleagues, the professor has been working on the old battlefield since 2015. This is the first time they have discovered a pit like this. Professor Tony Pollard has worked as an archaeologist at battlefields for 20 years, and he says the finds at Waterloo are extremely rare. Photo: Chris van Houts / Chris van Houts – It’s incredibly rare. Only one complete skeleton has been excavated from the battlefield before, and that happened when they built the museum. The new excavation also led to the discovery of several horse bones, according to archaeologists. It is believed that many thousands of horses were also killed in the battle. In 2019, remains of three amputated bones were discovered in the area. At that time, the work was interrupted due to the pandemic. Tony Pollard has been conducting excavations on battlefields for 20 years, and says he has never experienced similar finds. – We do not get closer to the harsh reality of Waterloo than this. Archaeologists have had a break in the excavations due to the pandemic. This complete skeleton is the second ever found near the battlefields. Photo: Chris van Houts / Waterloo Uncovered Arouses strong feelings among soldiers Among those who have been involved in digging out the bone remains are old war veterans. Rod Eldridge is one of them. He says the findings evoke many emotions. – Finding human remains can evoke a number of strong emotions. From excitement over discovery to sadness and reverence. This is probably a soldier, just as those who dig them out are, he says. It is believed that many of the dead were burned at the stake after the battle, while others were sent to Britain as human manure. In addition, experts believe that bodies were probably piled up in mass graves, and that these graves have not yet been discovered. Now they hope to reveal more in the time to come. They will do this with the help of geophysical surveys. This skeleton comes from a horse. Like the soldier, it was not found far from the field hospital. Photo: Chris van Houts / Waterloo Uncovered



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