A damn close run thing: 200 years on, this amazingly restored model shows the full extent of the Battle of Waterloo - and how many did not survive the day
- Diorama at the Green Jackets Museum in Winchester shows the extent of the battle in June 1815
- It features five key moments in the battle's progress as well as several more light-hearted vignettes from the day
- There are 21,500 soldiers and 10,000 horses depicted in the diorama - far fewer than the number in the battle
- The model was made in the 1970s and has now been restored in time for the battle's 200th anniversary
An enormous diorama which shows the full extent of the Battle of Waterloo has gone on display to mark the 200th anniversary of the conflict.
The model contains more than 30,000 figures, and illustrates all the key moments of the battle which allowed the Duke of Wellington to defeat Napoleon's forces.
It was built in the 1970s, but fell into disrepair before being restored to its former glory just in time for the battle's bicentenary, which falls on June 18 of this year.
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Model: This diorama shows the full extent of the Battle of Waterloo, which took place almost exactly 200 years ago
General: Napoleon, pictured riding a white horse, is shown directing his troops in the unsuccessful attempt to defeat the British forces
Victor: Wellington, wearing a blue jacket with his right arm outstretched, won the battle and has been known as one of Britain's greatest generals ever since
Light-hearted: The diorama shows little vignettes such as a British soldier relieving himself against a tree
The 25sq/m model has 21,500 soldiers and 10,000 horses, illustrating not just the major military events of the battle but also a number of light-hearted vignettes.
Despite the enormous scale of the diorama, the number of troops featured is just a third of the true number who were killed or wound in the battle - and less than 10 per cent of the total number who took part.
It is on display at the Royal Green Jackets Museum in Winchester, where it will serve as the centrepiece for the commemoration of the Battle of Waterloo.
The diorama was not intended as a snapshot of the battle at any one point, but instead it depicts five different key stages in the progress of the conflict.
Crucial: One of the key moments depicted is the battle for Hougoumont, a fortress which was successfully defended by Wellington
Melee: The British forming a square in the face of attacks from Napoleon's troops
Charge: The Scots Greys making an intervention in the battle, whose 200th anniversary is this year
Indomitable: A farmer successfully defended his vegetable patch even as the battle raged all around him
Busted: Two British soldiers are depicted trying to sneak off with their regiment's entire ration of gin
The first is the Battle for Hougoumont, a castle successfully defended by Wellington, followed by the attempt by d'Erlon Corps to attack Wellington's centre, which was repelled by Lieutenant General Sir Thomas Picton.
Next is the Charge of the Heavy Brigade, the Allied cavalry offensive that scattered the French infantry, then the unsuccessful French cavalry attacks on Wellington's centre and right flank.
The final crucial moment depicted is the attack of the Imperial Guard, Napoleon's last desperate throw of the dice, which led to the guard being forced to retreat for the first time ever.
Both the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte can be found on the model astride their horses directing the battle.
There is also a grim depiction of Major General Sir William Ponsonby meeting his end - being speared by a group of French lancers.
Grim: Major General William Ponsonby being cut down by a group of French lancers during the battle
Onslaught: French troops trying to break through the gates of Hougoumont, as the British guard the walls
Help: A wounded soldier being escorted off the battlefield by his wife, who was apparently acting as a camp nurse
Family: Women and children in the back of a cart on the edges of the Waterloo battlefield
Quagmire: Men, carts and horses get stuck in a muddy pit and try to haul their equipment out
Lighter moments include a Belgian farmer defending his prized vegetable patch while the battle rages around him, two English soldiers getting drunk on gin and an infantryman relieving himself against a tree.
A large French fighter who was known as 'The Enforcer' can be seen trying to break down an English barricade with an axe.
Museum curator Vere Hayes said: 'There are so many vignettes within the diorama.
'One of my favourites is the gardener at Hougoumont. He and his family meant to escape before the battle but left it too late. He is portrayed on the model protecting his cabbages. Many French attackers saw him during the battle and laughed at his actions.
'The 200th anniversary of Waterloo is a landmark commemoration of a decisive victory that brought peace to Europe after years of conflict.
'Whilst thousands will be making the trip to Belgium to participate in and witness re-enactments on the battlefield, we can bring the battlefield to Britain.'
Late arrival: Von Blucher leading the Prussian troops onto the battlefield, in a decisive intervention
Repair: The diorama was in a poor condition before being restored ahead of the anniversary
Spruced up: These images show how the figures were covered in dust before their recent restoration
Conservation: Kelvin and Mary Thatcher used a vacuum cleaner to help remove the grime which had built up
Conservationists Kelvin and Mary Thatcher spent five months cleaning the figures on the diorama, and glued back together scores of severed limbs, lost swords and displaced cannonballs.
Mr Hayes added: 'The diorama was made in the 1970s by Valhalla Models and acquired by the museum in the 1980s. But it never had a top put on it so has got extremely dusty over the years.
'Kelvin and Mary Thatcher took it apart in 16 sections and took four sections at a time back to their home in Norfolk where they cleaned each individual figure using an air hose and a vacuum cleaner.
'They have done a fantastic job and it is great to be able to see the incredible detail so clearly.'
THE BATTLE WHICH CHANGED THE COURSE OF EUROPE'S DESTINY BUT COULD HAVE ENDED VERY DIFFERENTLY
The Battle of Waterloo on June 18, 1815 stopped the advance of Napoleon across Europe and sent the great French emperor into exile for a second and final time.
France's troops were defeated by a multi-national coalition, led by the British army under the command of the Duke of Wellington.
The armies amassed near the town of Waterloo in modern-day Belgium, not far from the border with France, and it was the French who made the first move around 11am.
The two sides clashed for 10 hours, with the British fending off repeated attacks from the French, until Marshal Blücher arrived at the head of a Prussian army.
This was the decisive intervention which finished Napoleon off, allowing Wellington to counter-attack and forcing the Frenchman to surrender.
The battle forced Napoleon from the throne of France, leading to his exile on St Helena - but Wellington later admitted it was 'the nearest-run thing you ever saw in your life'.
Despite the popular image of Waterloo as a heroic endeavour, it was also the scene of brutal slaughter as thousands of troops were killed, with the French bearing the brunt of the losses.
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