Napoleon is considered one of the greatest tactical minds in military history. But even the best can be knocked down, as the Duke of Wellington proved when he defeated Napoleon’s forces at Waterloo in 1815.
Beginning in 1812, Napoleon started to suffer the first significant defeats of his military career, suffering through a disastrous invasion of Russia, losing Spain to the Duke of Wellington in the Peninsula War, and enduring total defeat against an allied force by 1814.
Exiled to the island of Elba in the Mediterranean, he escaped to France in early 1815 and set up a new regime. As allied troops marched on the French frontiers, he raised a new Grand Army and marched into Belgium. He intended to defeat the allied armies one by one before they could launch a united attack.
On 16 June, 1815, he defeated the Prussians under Gebhard Leberecht von Blucher at Ligny, and sent 33 000 men, or about one-third of his total force, in pursuit of the retreating Prussians.
On 18 June, Napoleon led his remaining 72 000 troops against the Duke of Wellington’s 68 000-man allied army, which had taken up a strong position about 19km south of Brussels near the village of Waterloo.
In a fatal blunder, Napoleon waited until midday to give the command to attack in order to let the ground dry.
The delay in fighting gave Blucher’s troops, who had eluded their pursuers, time to march to Waterloo and join the battle by late afternoon.
In repeated attacks, Napoleon failed to break the centre of the allied stronghold.
Meanwhile, the Prussians gradually arrived and put pressure on Napoleon’s eastern flank.
At 6pm, the French, under Marshal Michel Ney, managed to capture a farmhouse in the allied centre and began decimating Wellington’s troops with artillery.
Napoleon, however, was preoccupied with the 30 000 Prussians attacking his flank and did not release troops to aid Ney’s attack until after 7pm.
By that time however, Wellington had reorganised his defences, and the French attack was repulsed.
Fifteen minutes later, the allied army launched a general advance, and the Prussians attacked in the east, throwing the French troops into panic and then a disorganised retreat.
The Prussians pursued the remnants of the French army, and Napoleon left the field.
French casualties in the Battle of Waterloo were about 25 000 men killed and wounded and 9 000 captured, while the allies lost about 23 000.
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