What happened to the bones of the Waterloo battlefield?

What happened to the bones of the Waterloo battlefield?

In June 1815 the French army under the command of Napoleon was decisively beaten by an allied army led by Britain and Prussia at Waterloo in what is now Belgium. This titanic clash took a terrible toll on both men and animals. An estimated 20,000 men lost their lives that bloody day. As archaeologists have attempted to unpick the events of Waterloo a mystery has emerged. What has happened to the remains of the soldiers who fought there?


Very few human or animal remains have been found on the site of the battle. However, an international team of archaeologists and historians have joined forces in a bid to solve this enduring puzzle. A new discovery this summer has found some astonishing evidence to now say why that is. It seems enterprising profiteers likely plundered the site for illegal bone trading, predominantly for the European sugar industry.


Joining Dan on the podcast is Professor Tony Pollard archaeological director of Waterloo Uncovered, historian and scholar Rob Schaefer and Bernard Wilkin Senior Researcher at the Belgian State Archive. They discuss their theory about the fate of the Waterloo remains and why so few have survived.


The paper Tony recently published on graves at Waterloo is available to all as a free open access download - These spots of excavation tell: using early visitor accounts to map the missing graves of waterloo.


Warning: this episode contains frank discussion of dead bodies, animal carcasses, mass graves and amputations.


This episode was produced by Mariana Des Forges, the audio editor was Dougal Patmore.


If you'd like to learn more, we have hundreds of history documentaries, ad-free podcasts and audiobooks at History Hit - subscribe to History Hit today!


To download the History Hit app please go to the Android or Apple store.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jaksot(1489)

How did Andrew Jackson Change the U.S. Presidency?

How did Andrew Jackson Change the U.S. Presidency?

A hero to some, and a villain to others, the seventh president of the United States was a populist firebrand who reshaped America and left a legacy that still echoes today. In this episode, Dan dives ...

4 Touko 202541min

Germany After Hitler

Germany After Hitler

80 years ago, as the war in Europe drew to a close, the world began to come to terms with the horrors of the Third Reich. This is the story of the Nuremberg Trials, the first of their kind, that would...

1 Touko 202530min

The Death of Hitler

The Death of Hitler

Warning: this episode contains discussion of suicide.Berlin, April 1945: After nearly 12 years, the "Thousand-Year Reich" is crumbling. Isolated in a bunker beneath the city, as Soviet forces close in...

29 Huhti 202537min

The Dreyfus Affair: The Spy Scandal that Shook France

The Dreyfus Affair: The Spy Scandal that Shook France

It started with an inconsequential piece of military intelligence, scrawled on a piece of paper and left in a waste paper basket. But over the next decade, the infamous Dreyfus affair would mutate int...

27 Huhti 202536min

The Einstein Murders

The Einstein Murders

Warning: this episode contains discussion of suicide.In August 1944, German soldiers burst into the Florentine villa of Robert Einstein, cousin of the renowned physicist, Albert Einstein. As both a Je...

24 Huhti 202528min

A History of Popes

A History of Popes

Popes have shaped the history of the world. The Catholic Church has had a Pope for two thousand years, the first- tradition dictates- was St Peter, the fisherman turned disciple of Jesus. Pope 'Leo th...

22 Huhti 202544min

How Did the American Revolution Start?

How Did the American Revolution Start?

On 19th April, 1775, just over 250 years ago, the opening salvos of the American Revolutionary War were fired at the battles of Lexington and Concord. Elite British Redcoats went head-to-head with the...

20 Huhti 20251h 18min

The Battle of Berlin with Sir Antony Beevor

The Battle of Berlin with Sir Antony Beevor

Warning: this episode includes discussion of subjects like suicide and sexual assault that some listeners may find disturbing.80 years ago, the Soviets launched their final assault on the German capit...

17 Huhti 202536min

Suosittua kategoriassa Historia

olipa-kerran-otsikko
gogin-ja-janin-maailmanhistoria
mayday-fi
huijarit
mystista
totuus-vai-salaliitto
tsunami
rss-ikiuni
konginkangas
rouva-diktaattori
rss-subjektiivinen-todistaja
rss-i-dont-like-mondays-2
tiedetta-ja-sirkushuveja-vanhojen-aikojen-podcast
sotaa-ja-historiaa-podi
rss-kirkon-ihmeellisimmat-tarinat
historiaa-suomeksi
rss-iltanuotiolla
historian-nurkkapoyta
rss-kikka-forever
rss-kuningashuone