About nine o'clock it cleared up, but on
account of the rainfall no movement was made by the French till
towards twelve o'clock.
On the night of the 17th the Duke of Wellington made every portion of
his army take up the position it was to occupy on the following day.
He slept a few hours at the village of Waterloo and rose early in the
morning to write letters, giving orders what was to be done in case
the battle was lost: although he felt sure of winning.
Before leaving the village he saw to the preparation of hospitals for
the wounded, and to the arrangements made for the distribution of
the reserves of ammunition. Then mounting his favourite charger,
Copenhagen, he rode to the positions where his men were posted, and
made a careful and thorough inspection. The farm house of Hougoumont,
where some of the most furious fighting of the day took place,
received his special attention.
Having thus done all that a commander could do to ensure the success
of the day, he rode back to the high ground from which he could
command a full view of the battle, and with a face calm and serene
waited for the French attack.
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