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Battle of Waterloo dig reveals how dead were treated with dignity

Human and animal remains were separated in attempt to respect fallen combatants, site excavation suggests

An archaeological dig on the battlefield of Waterloo has unearthed how even in the brutality of war the dead and wounded were treated with dignity.
The carefully excavated “gore pit” at the foot of the Duke of Wellington’s field hospital has revealed how human and animal remains were kept separate in an attempt to show respect for the deceased.
More than 20,000 men were killed on June 18 1815 during the 12-hour battle to halt Napoleon’s advancing forces, in what is considered one of the bloodiest days in the history of the British Army.
The shallow trench was dug to quickly clear the hospital of any gore during and after the fighting.
It became the final resting place of only the second-ever full skeleton discovered after the battle. The trench was also used to deposit amputated limbs, as well as dead horses and beef cattle.
Caroline Laforest, of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences, said the skeletal remains were likely those of a young cavalry soldier who died after suffering blunt force trauma to the head.
The unknown soldier’s body was carefully moved into the trench with hands under his armpits, the final resting position of the corpse suggests.
Meanwhile, a makeshift barrier of tin ammunition boxes stripped from soldiers’ leather satchels was used to carefully separate the human and animal remains.
Prof Tony Pollard, the archaeological leader of the dig, said: “The layout of the trench, with all animal remains on one side of the ammunition box barrier and all the human remains on the other, strongly suggests that the men who buried this individual attempted to offer him a level of dignity and respect despite the horrific scene they would have found themselves facing while clearing the field hospital of the dead.”
He added: “I can’t think of any other site that has this combination of elements – it’s truly unique, within Napoleonic archaeology and beyond.”
The excavation, led by Waterloo Uncovered, a British charity set up to support struggling veterans, has been meticulously poring over the trench since 2019.
The team, including John Dawson, a Grenadier Guards veteran, who was shot in the head in Afghanistan, discovered the remains of at least six new human limbs, which were mainly legs amputated below the knee.
Experts on the ground said the remains provided clues about how the injuries were sustained, with some legs missing ankles and feet that had likely been blown away by cannon balls.
Evidence of brutal amputation techniques was also discovered. Surgeons did not use traditional bone saws, instead opting to disjoin limbs before pulling them clean from an injured soldier’s body.
Surgeons carried out more than 500 amputations in one day at the field hospital at the Mont-Saint-Jean farm, which was located less than 500 metres behind the Allied front line, it is believed.
Eyewitness accounts described how body parts were “piling up in all four corners of the courtyard”.
In the part of the trench dedicated to animal remains, evidence was found that wounded horses were ushered in before being put down with a musket round to the head.
Even a horse that was discovered with a cannonball lodged in its chest cavity was placed with the same respect as animals that were euthanised in the pit.
The remains of butchered cows were also found alongside the battlefield horses.
Napoleon was known to travel with a herd of cows to ensure his armies were well-fed with fresh food.
Many of the surviving soldiers vacated the battlefield within a day, while a group of around 100 local Belgians was hired to clear the dead.
Bodies were burnt and buried over a period of about 10 days.
However, remains in the area from the battle are rare because many bones were later scavenged to make fertiliser and help produce refined sugar. During the process of refining sugarcane, bone char is used to remove impurities and whiten the sugar. 

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