ABSTRACT
Hanoverian brigade commander, ordered to make a suicidal bid to retake the farmhouse of La Haie Sainte around 6.45 p.m. on 18 June 1815. An experienced officer, Ompteda had served in the Hanoverian Guards before transferring to the King’s German Legion and British service in 1807. A mental breakdown brought Ompteda back to Germany a year or so later, but by 1812 he had regained fitness, leading a battalion under Wellington in Spain. Ompteda saw out the remainder of the Peninsular War, and at Waterloo commanded the 2nd King’s German Legion Brigade, consisting of the 1st Light, 2nd Light, 5th Line and 8th Line Battalions.
