As soon as this was done two French columns of infantry, preceded by a battalion in line, advanced along the edge of the wood, while a heavy mass of cavalry advanced along the Ghent road, and threatened the Brunswickers with destruction.  The Brunswick, Dutch, and Belgian skirmishers fell back before those of the French.  The Duke of Brunswick placed himself before a regiment of lancers and charged the French infantry; but these stood steady, and received the lancers with so heavy a fire that they retreated in confusion on Quatre Bras.  The duke now ordered the infantry to fall back in good order, but by this time they were too shaken to do so.  The French artillery smote them with terrible effect; the infantry swept them with bullets; the cavalry were preparing to charge.  No wonder then that the young troops lost their self-possession, broke, and fled in utter confusion, some through Quatre Bras others through the English regiments on the left of the village.

At this moment the gallant Duke of Brunswick, while striving to rally one of his regiments, received a mortar wound.  He died a few minutes later, as his father had died on the field of Jena.  The Brunswick hussars were now ordered to advance and cover the retreat of the infantry; but as they moved toward the enemy they lost heart, turned, and fled from the field, the French lancers charging hotly among them.  So closely were the two bodies mixed together that the Forty-second and Forty-fourth which were posted on the left of the road, could not distinguish friend from foe.

Before the former regiment had time to form square the French were upon them, and for two or three minutes a desperate hand-to-hand conflict took place between bayonet and lance.  The Forty-fourth did not attempt to form a square.  Its colonel faced the rear rank about, and these poured so tremendous a volley into the French cavalry that they reeled back in confusion.  Two companies of the Forty-second which had been cut off from the rest were almost annihilated; but the rest of the square closed in around French cavalry who had pierced them and destroyed them to a man.  The Twenty-eighth also repulsed the enemy.

“What do you think of it now, Conway?” Captain O’Connor asked as the French retreated.

“I feel all right now,” Ralph said; “though I thought just now that it was all over with me.  A big Frenchman was just dealing a sweeping cut at me when a musket shot struck him.  Still this is a thousand times better than standing still and being pounded by their artillery.  I confess I felt horribly uncomfortable while that was going on.”

“I dare say you did, lad.”

The Duke of Wellington had, upon the fall of their commander, in vain endeavored to rally the flying Brunswickers.  As he was so engaged the cavalry column swept down upon him.  He put spurs to his horse and galloped to the spot where the Ninety-second were lying behind a ditch bordering the road.  The French were close to his heels.  He shouted to the men of the Ninety-second in front of him to throw themselves down, and setting spurs to his horse leaped the ditch and the men behind it, and instantly the Highlanders poured so terrible a volley into the French cavalry that a hundred saddles were emptied.