Battle of Waterloo
1815 · 19th Century
On June 18, 1815, French forces under Napoleon Bonaparte fought two Coalition armies near Waterloo, Belgium. The Duke of Wellington commanded British, Dutch, Hanoverian, Brunswick, and Nassau units, while Field Marshal von Blücher led Prussian forces. The Coalition armies defeated Napoleon's forces. The battle ended the Napoleonic Wars and Napoleon's political career.
Key Figures
Napoleon BonaparteArthur Wellesley, Duke of WellingtonGebhard Leberecht von BlücherMichel Ney
Locations
Waterloo BattlefieldLa Belle Alliance
Topics
NetherlandsnapoleonbattlesFranceUKwarEurope
Connected Events — 3 Connections
Napoleon's defeat at Waterloo created the immediate necessity for the Congress of Vienna to redesign Europe's political order and contain France's imperial ambitions Congress of Vienna
Waterloo ended the Napoleonic Wars that Tolstoy depicted in War and Peace; the novel epilogue addresses the post-Waterloo settlement impact on Russian aristocratic families War and Peace
Haiti's independence weakened Napoleon's imperial finances and forced him to sell Louisiana Territory to fund European wars, contributing to the imperial overextension that led to his defeat at Waterloo Haiti Declares Independence
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