The British Soldiers’ Battle of Waterloo Monument

At the heart of the famous Hougoumont farm stands a striking monument: two bronze British soldiers, frozen in a moment of extreme tension, closing the large north gate of the courtyard with all their might. This scene pays tribute to one of the decisive moments of the Battle of Waterloo. On 18 June 1815, French troops launched a massive attack on the farmhouse, a strategic point on the Allied right flank. In a chaos of fire and shouting, the Coldstream Guards, supported by other British units, managed to close the gate just in time, preventing the French soldiers from entering the enclosure.

The Duke of Wellington later said that «  victory depended on the closing of that gate ». The monument, unveiled in 2015 to mark the bicentenary of the battle, pays tribute not just to these two men, but to all the British soldiers who fought on that day. Installed on the very spot where it all happened, it invites visitors to relive this key moment, as close to history as possible.