Waterloo (Belgium) - (AFP) - An archaeological expedition led by British researchers has unearthed new human bones at the site of the Battle of Waterloo in Belgium, a discovery described as "extremely rare" more than two centuries after the battle took place.

Historians estimate that more than 20,000 soldiers were killed at Waterloo, 20 kilometers south of Brussels, on June 18, 1815 alone, when the allied forces, which were mostly British and Dutch under the authority of the Duke of Wellington, succeeded in repelling Napoleon's battalions.

This was one of the worst armed confrontations in history, and it put an end to Bonaparte's dreams of a great empire, and caused tens of thousands of wounded.

New bones were discovered around Mont-Saint-Jean farm, where the Englishman Wellington had established the main field hospital for the Allies.

"We found what looked like a complete human skeleton. Next to it we found another amputated leg. We don't know if the body was brought here from people in the neighborhood or if it belonged to an injured person who died," said Professor Tony Pollard of the University of Glasgow, one of the mission directors. in the hospital".

"On Napoleon's battlefields, this type of ancient relic is very rare. This is the first time we have been in front of such a large cemetery," the archaeologist added.

The excavation project is being supervised by the Belgian Walloon Region administration and the Waterloo Uncovered charity, which brings together archaeologists, archeology students and war veterans. It was launched in 2015 to mark the bicentenary of the battle.

In 2019, the remains of three amputated legs were discovered at the site. Then the search campaign stopped due to the outbreak of the Corona virus.

The Belgian news agency "Belga" said that the searches are supposed to be repeated every year in Waterloo for a period of two weeks.