A bloody sweep across Belgium

 From near Yres we drove east to Hannut via three battlefeilds.

At Oudenarde where Marlborough smashed the French in 1706.  There were no markers or display boards, but we identified the field of battle by comparing modern & historical maps.  It was made difficult by villages having two or three names - French, Walloon & sometimes English that have usually morphed significantly in 300 years.   The key manouvre was a cavalry sweep around the French left after pinning the front of their line (while Eugene kept the rest of the French busy on the Allied right).  We identified the ground where the Allied cavalry made their move.

We'd all been to Waterloo before, but it was on the way & the weather was perfect.

We did lunch at the Restaurant 1815 on the field.
 

There's nothing spectacular at Ramilies 1708, but although unmarked, it was easy to find as the village of Ramilies is in the centre of it & all you need is a compass to orientate the opposing lines.  The French had a strong position behind the creek running through Ramilies.  Marlborough attacked Ramilies & the French left to draw in their reserves while he massed most of his cavalry behind a slight rise on his left.  Then he sent a massive cavalry charge across the plain in the pic to smash the French right.