After the fighting: What we know about history of the Quatre Bras battlefield since 1815

By Severine Angers

Over two hundred years after the battle, the battlefield of Quatre-Bras is still mainly farmlands, but the bois de Bossu is now missing from the landscape. The woods played a crucial part in the action of the 16th of June 1815, as heavy fighting took place under the cover of the trees. In the aftermath of the Waterloo Campaign, as a token of gratitude, the Duke of Wellington was given the title of the Prince of Waterloo and some lands between the city of Nivelle and the Quatre-Bras. At the Duke’s request, the woodland was cleared for the timber. Throughout the nineteenth century, the region became a prosperous agricultural and industrial area, especially with the cultivation of beets and the development of the sugar industry.

Quatre-Bras found itself in the midst of war again as German forces occupied the area during both the First and Second World Wars. The Allies liberated Quatre-Bras in the early days of September 1944, and, considering its strategic location at the crossroads of four main cities, the liberation of the area proved crucial in enabling the Allies’ quick advance into Belgium which was completed in February 1945.

Today, Quatre-Bras is one of Belgium’s busiest crossroads. Those who take the time to stop and wander can find monuments to the men who fought and fell during the battle of Quatre-Bras, standing as reminders of the fierceful action that took place on the 16th of June 1815. However, the battlefield is slowly disappearing as more residential developments spring up. In 2016, the farm of Quatre-Bras, located at the heart of the action, was demolished after an eight years long battle to save the building. A block of flats now stands in its place. The farm of Gemioncourt, therefore, remains one of the last standing witnesses of the prequel to Waterloo.