Original French or British Waterloo 1815 Grenade Ball with Long Crude Fuze Tube - Purportedly Recovered from Waterloo Battlefield

Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. This is a very interesting piece that will become a centerpiece of any ordnance collection. This extremely crude and pitted ball grenade dates to the Napoleonic era, and is inscribed on one side with WATERLOO / 1815 which would denote that it was found on the Battlefield of Waterloo, one of the most important and well-known battles in human history. This grenade cannot be converted to an explosive device and is not available for export.

The grenade is spherical and made of cast iron. The first grenades were small iron spheres filled with gunpowder fused with a length of slow-match. These types of grenades weighed around 1.5 kg and were equivalent in size to a four-pound cannonball (Crowdy 2015). These types of hand grenades were used during land combat and on Naval vessels. One of the more common munitions aboard warships during the late 18th century and early 19th century was the hand grenade, used for close quarter action. Examples were recovered from HMS Pomone that also had their original fuse in place (Henry 2004). Hand grenades of this kind were used during the Napoleonic era (1799−1815) and were used by both the French and British.

This example measures roughly 3 ¾” in diameter with a roughly 5” long “fuze” tube inserted through the hole, with the other end sticking out of the bottom of the grenade. The tube appears to be rolled iron and the crude edges can still be seen. The side of the grenade is inscribed:

WATERLOO
1815.

We have no provenance or information to back up the claim that this was recovered at Waterloo. It is extremely crude and heavily pitted and does appear ground dug.

Grenadiers were a specific type of soldier during the late 18th century to the early 19th century, in the earliest days they were tasked with throwing grenades during combat. They had to be at the forefront of the fight to light the fuse and throw at the appropriate moment to minimize the opportunity for the enemy to throw the grenade back. They were selected for being strong, tall and skilled enough to throw them far enough away so as not to harm themselves or their comrades. Such skills led to grenadiers being regarded as an elite fighting force and they were easily identified by their head-gear from ordinary musketeers. The uniform included a belt tube that held the match for lighting the fuse, a feature that was retained in later grenadier uniforms.

This is a very interesting piece, the first grenade from this period we have offered. Comes ready for display.