On the 31st December 1815 Thomas Leonard of Lucan was discharged from military service being “unfit for further military service”.
Thomas Leonard joined the 1st Battalion of the 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot on the 10th January 1815, having previously served 2 years in an recorded Regiment. At the time of his discharge he was 18 year’s old. Having served for a total of two years and 348 days, he would have been only 15 on his enlistment.
During the Battle of Waterloo on the 18th June 1815, the 1st battalion of the 27th Regiment faced the French at La Haye. The Battalion was the only Irish Regiment present at the battle. When attacked by French Cavalry they formed into defensive “Infantry Squares” (shown in the picture above). While highly effective against attacking cavalry, the tight formation of the Infantry squares made the Regiment susceptible to artillery fire from the cannons which the French had moved into close range. Cannon balls ripped through the densely formed 27th Regiment, inflicting dreadful casualties.
At around 6.30pm French forces successfully took the strong point at La Haye Sainte Farm and brought forward sharpshooters, who rained volleys of musket fire down on the battalion. The men of the 27th Regiment who were still formed into a defensive Infantry square took severe casualties from both artillery and musket fire, suffering almost 500 casualties out of a total of 747 men. Despite being described as “lying dead in a square” the surviving men of the 27th Regiment managed to hold their formation without breaking. A captured French general later said:
“I have seen Russian, Prussian and French bravery, but anything to equal the stubborn bravery of the regiment with castles I never before witnessed”.
The casualties suffered by the 27th Regiment were amongst the highest of Regiments present at the battle.
Thomas Leonard’s discharge papers note:
“in consequence of his left arm being amputated with the Enemy at Waterloo on the 18th June 1815 is considered unfit for further service abroad, and is proposed to be discharged”.
Remarkably, Thomas Leonard survived his wounds, with records showing an increase to his pension on the 8th of November 1864; forty-nine years after the battle. Despite being entitled to a campaign medal for his service during the Battle of Waterloo, Thomas Leonard’s name does not appear on the pages for those of the 27th regiment of Foot in the Waterloo Medal Roll, nor does his name appear in the supplementary pages that follow, suggesting that he never apllied for his medal. No records for his death have found to date.
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