Napoleaon's Defeat at Waterloo

Napoleaon's Defeat at Waterloo

  • Submitted By: Moqx
  • Date Submitted: 02/19/2009 9:43 AM
  • Category: History Other
  • Words: 807
  • Page: 4
  • Views: 412

For more than 10 years Napoleon Bonaparte expanded and ruled the French empire which eventually controlled most of Europe before he was exiled from France in 1813. Then in 1815, upon learning that the French government was weak and faltering, Napoleon decided to make a heroic return. As he marched to Paris, many members of the army and the Imperial Guard still loyal to Napoleon joined him. Once in Paris Napoleon assumed almost immediate control since King Louis XVIII had fled upon hearing that Napoleon was returning with an army. Although Napoleon was loved in France he was hated by the rest of Europe which had fought with him for so long. At a conference in Vienna, the major powers of Europe consisting of Austria, Prussia, Russia, and Great Britain allied together and pledged to stop Napoleon from regaining his former power at all costs. Napoleon was now forced to enter into war in order to remain emperor of France and the stage was set for the Waterloo campaign.
Napoleon knew that France would not stand nor could it afford another long war so he knew he had to act fast. He felt that he must be the first to strike but he could only muster a field army of 125,000. The Allies, however, had 400,000 at arms with a potential of 700,000. Napoleon knew his only hope was to take on the enemy armies one at a time. He decided to attack the two nearest armies which happened to be in Belgium. They were the Duke of Wellington with about 68,000 English troops in Waterloo and General Blucher with 80,000 Prussians to the east of Waterloo. Napoleon believed that Wellington would retreat to the British fleet at Ostend to the north because that’s what the British had done in a similar battle in 1809. Once Wellington was defeated, Napoleon planned to take out Blucher after which Napoleon hoped the Allies would settle for peace.
On June 15, 1815 Napoleon crossed into Belgium with his army. The following day he encounters Blucher’s army about 10 miles south of...

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