Who defeated Napoleon Bonaparte and how it was decided at Waterloo

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To the question of who defeated Napoleon Bonaparte, the short answer is clear: The Seventh Coalition, under the Allied command of the Duke of Wellington and the Prussian Marshal Gebhard L. von Blücher, achieved a decisive victory at Waterloo. That day sealed the end of the Napoleonic Empire and led to the Corsicans' final exile to Saint Helena.

But the full story is much richer: a historical overview. Waterloo was not an isolated event, but the culmination of the Hundred Days, a very brief campaign in June 1815 that capped years of warfare, strategic errors, tenacious resistance, and increasingly fine-tuned Allied coordination. In these lines, we review the context, the protagonists, the minute-by-minute account of the battle, the numbers, the reasons for the defeat, and its enormous consequences for Europe.

What happened at Waterloo: date, place and protagonists

On June 18, 1815, about twenty kilometers south of Brussels, Napoleon's French Army of the North clashed with Wellington's Anglo-allied army, while Blücher's Prussian army came from the east. It was a day spent in mud after night rains that delayed movements and cannons, and which ended with the incontestable defeat of the French side.

The political-military result was immediate: Final fall of the First French Empire and Napoleon's exile to Saint HelenaThe Allied victory concluded the Hundred Days and underpinned the European order that would be born at the Congress of Vienna. Wellington and Blücher met that evening near La Belle Alliance to congratulate each other on the victory, and the name of the battle was established as "Waterloo."

Two large blocks participated in the field. France Front of Seventh Coalition composed of British, Dutch, Germans and Prussians, with support from Hanover, Nassau and Brunswick. Commanded by Napoleon and Ney on the French side; Wellington and Blücher for the AlliesThe numbers were overwhelming and the human cost, shocking.

• Belligerents: First French Empire vs. United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Kingdom of the Netherlands, Kingdom of Prussia, Hanover, Nassau and Brunswick.
• Commanders: Napoleon Bonaparte and Michel Ney (France); Arthur Wellesley (Duke of Wellington) and G.L. von Blücher (Coalition).

In direct forces in the main field: France gathered about 74.500 men (254 cannons)Wellington's army, 74.326 (156 cannons and a rocket section), and The Prussians had 51.401 (126 cannons). In casualties, it is estimated for the day of Waterloo around 41.000 French people and around 24.000 allies (around 17.000 Anglo-allies and 7.000 Prussians), figures that vary depending on the source but agree on the bloody nature of the clash.

The Hundred Days Campaign and the preceding battles

It all started when Napoleon escaped from Elba on February 26, 1815The Congress of Vienna declared him an outlaw, and the Seventh Coalition was formed. In mid-June, Napoleon advanced north to strike at Wellington and Blücher separately before they could unite; time was his enemy.

On June 15, the French captured Charleroi and crossed the Sambre. There was Prussian resistance at Marchiennes and Charleroi; the desertion of General Bourmont sowed confusion in the French IV Corps. That day, The French wings projected towards Quatre Bras (left) and Fleurus (right), with the Guard and the VI Corps in reserve.

At dawn on the 16th, two simultaneous clashes broke out: Quatre Bras (Wellington vs. Ney) and Ligny (Napoleon vs. Blücher). In Ligny, the Prussians were defeated but not destroyed; in Quatre Bras, the initiative of the Dutchman Constant de Rebecque maintaining the crossing against previous orders was vital to stopping Ney. The most controversial episode of the day was the back and forth of the I Corps of Drouet d'Erlon, which did not fight at either Ligny or Quatre Bras due to crossed messages, perhaps decisive if it had been used on either front.

On 17 June, Wellington withdrew in order to the studied position of Mont-Saint-Jean, near Waterloo; it rained cats and dogsThe mud soaked everything and the French artillery was hamperedNapoleon detached Marshal Grouchy to pursue the Prussians with some 30.000 men; ambiguous orders and the hesitation to "march to the cannon" recommended by Gérard isolated Grouchy, who would later fight at Wavre while the decisive battle was fought at Waterloo.

The same night from the 17th to the 18th, Blücher reorganized his forces, incorporating Bülow's IV Corps, and promised Wellington he would arrive on time. As luck would have it, that tight clock would end up making the difference.

June 18: From cannon fire to Allied counterattack

The Allied positions were anchored on three key points: Hougoumont on the right, La Haye Sainte in the center y Papelotte–La Haye on the leftNapoleon began the day trying to pin down Wellington by attacking Hougoumont, a fortified farm bordered to the south by a copse that became a battle within the battlePrince Jerome's regiments drove the Nassau regiments from the woods and orchard, but never took the interior; Hougoumont devoured French troops for hours without breaking the allied line.

The Emperor wanted to open with his favorite weapon, artillery. He formed a great battery (initially 80 guns, later reinforced) facing the Allied left wing. The soft ground caused by the storm reduced the ricochets of the shells and mitigated the devastating effect of the cannonade, despite causing casualties and breaking batteries on the Allied crest. Wellington, with his army retreated behind the ridge line, cushioned the impact.

At around 13:30 p.m., Ney launched the d'Erlon's Great Assault against the Allied center-left, with brigades in closed columns that gained the crest under shrapnel and rifle fire. Picton's division, a veteran of Spain, resisted with heavy losses; British heavy cavalry (Household and Union Brigades) counterattacked with spectacular success, capturing French eagles, but broke down in pursuit and suffered a counterattack from cuirassiers and lancers. Picton fell deadThe French attack was repulsed, but the price was high.

In the afternoon, when Napoleon was briefly absent, Ney interpreted the Allied withdrawal as a repositioning of lines. and ordered massive cavalry charges (Milhaud's IV Corps, followed by the Guard cavalry and even Kellermann's III Corps). The Allied cadres, four bayonet rows, withstood wave after wave of bombardment, bombarded between charges; the British and their allies responded with disciplined fire, supported by light cavalry counterattacks. These Successive charges exhausted the French cavalry without breaking the line.

Meanwhile Bülow's Prussians were beginning to reach the French right flank (around 16:30 p.m.), breaking through to Plancenoit, where house-to-house fighting ensued. At 18:00 p.m., La Haye Sainte fell into French hands After a fierce defense by the KGL, which ran out of specific rifle ammunition, a forward French battery rained shrapnel down on the Allied center, wounding Alten, Kielmansegge, Halkett, and the Prince of Orange himself. Ney called in infantry to finish off the center, but Napoleon was absorbed in holding off the Prussians at Plancenoit.

The supreme reserve remained. Around 19:30 p.m., the Imperial Guard advanced "in echelon" through the center-right sector, with cadres of the Middle Guard and battalions of the Old Guard in the second line. Ney, riding his fifth steed of the day, led the push. A portion of the Anglo-Allied lines gave way, but The British Maitland Guards, crouching behind the ridge, rose up at point-blank range and routed the hunters; the 52nd Light Infantry maneuvered on the flank and completed the breakthrough. On the other axis, the Dutch division of Hunt (General Bajonet) counterattacked with artillery and bayonets, surrounding the grenadiers of the Middle Guard. The mythical phrase “La Garde recule” spread like wildfire. and panic broke out.

In the end, Plancenoit ended up falling to the Prussians increasingly numerous, despite the tenacity of the Young Guard, which suffered losses exceeding 70%. The last cadres of the Old Guard covered the retreat around La Belle Alliance; Wellington ordered the general advance waving his hat, and the Allied line tumbled down the slope onto a broken French army.

The Allied pursuit continued well into the night. Wellington and Blücher greeted each other near La Belle Alliance Around nine o'clock. Everywhere, wounded, abandoned cannons, and scenes of desolation typical of a great defeat; not in vain did the Duke say: “Nothing is sadder than a battle won.”.

Orders of battle and figures

In Waterloo, the Northern Army It presented 104 battalions, 113 squadrons, and 254 guns (about 74.500 men after deducting previous losses and forces under Grouchy). On the front line: I Corps (d'Erlon), II Corps (Reille), VI Corps (Lobau), III and IV Cavalry (Kellermann and Milhaud) and, in reserve, the Imperial Guard.

• Anglo-allies in the main field: 74.326 men (approx. 28% Dutch/Nassau, 38% British, 10% KGL, 23,7% Hanover/Brunswick) and 156 cannons; part of the army remained garrisoning Hal (mostly around 32.000 militia).
• Prussians: 51.401 combatants and 126 cannons arrived at Waterloo that day, within the framework of an Army of the Lower Rhine of more than 126.000 men (304 pieces) distributed in four corps (Zieten, Pirch, Thielmann and Bülow).

The balance of the entire five-day campaign in the Netherlands (June 15–19) is Ligny, Quatre Bras, Waterloo and Wavre:

• Ligny (June 16): French 65.731 and 210 cannons (plus 10.000 that did not enter in time) vs. Prussians 93.174 and 210; estimated casualties: 13.700 French and 18.800 Prussians (plus desertions).
• Quatre Bras (June 16): French ~24.000 and 60–92 guns vs. Anglo-Allies ~36.000 and 42; casualties: ~4.000 French and ~5.200 Allies.
• Waterloo (June 18): 74.500 French and 254 guns; Allies up to 140.000 including the Prussians (initially 74.300 Anglo-Allies and 156 pieces); losses: ~41.000 French and ~24.000 Allies (17.000 Anglo-Allies, 7.000 Prussians).
• Wavre (June 18): Grouchy (~33.000 and 80 guns) vs. Prussians (~17.000 and 48); losses of 2.500 and 2.400 respectively.

In the campaign as a whole, the following is calculated: France 122.700 troops (366 cannons); Prussia 126.300 (304); Anglo-Allies 112.000 (222), with total casualties of approximately 64.600 French people, 40.200 Prussians y 22.600 Anglo-alliesThe margins of error depend on counts and sources, but the scale and outcome are indisputable.

Who defeated Napoleon and why

In operational terms, Wellington and Blücher defeated Napoleon together: the first maintaining a resilient and calculated defense on the Mont-Saint-Jean crest, the second bristling at the French right flank until breaking Plancenoit. At his side, key figures tipped the balance: Gneisenau secured the union with Wellington after Ligny; Zieten He reinforced the allied left in time; bulow opened the Prussian front with two decisive brigades in mid-afternoon; Rebecca's held Quatre Bras on the 16th; and Hunt culminated the counterattack in the final stretch of the day.

On the French side, Grouchy formally carried out his order to pursue the Prussians but He did not march “to the sound of the cannon” towards Waterloo when he could have tried; Ney, the “brave of the brave”, almost broke the allied center but exhausted its cavalry in repeated charges and could not coordinate infantry and artillery at the critical moment after the fall of La Haye Sainte. confusing management of d'Erlon's I Corps On the 16th, Napoleon was deprived of a potentially decisive element at Ligny or Quatre Bras.

• Terrain and weatherThe mud dampened French artillery and slowed deployments; Wellington's ridge protected his line.
• Allied cooperation: Anglo-Prussian strategic coordination based on prior commitments and effective messaging on the key day.
• Previous wear: The empire was burdened by years of war, hardship and desertions, and with a Europe mobilized against it.
• Time: Napoleon's great enemy in June 1815; every hour of delay favored the Prussian arrival.

And, in the background, British financial and industrial superiority He supported coalitions, armed armies and paid debts at rates lower than those of the French. Continental Blockade It sought to suffocate the United Kingdom, but it pushed France to control from Lisbon to Moscow, igniting nationalism (German, among others) and opening up unassailable fronts. Russian campaign 1812 was the great drain of men, horses and morale, a wound that Waterloo only finished opening.

Previous defeats that eroded their power

The fall of Napoleon was not a matter of a single day. Trafalgar (1805) cancelled his naval project; The Spanish War of Independence (1808–1814) was an endless attrition; and from 1812 onwards, a series of coups undermined the imperial potential.

• Second Bassano (1796) y Caldiero (1796): early tactical setbacks against Alvincz in Italy.
• Siege of Acre (1799): failure of the expedition to Egypt and Syria.
• Aspern-Essling (1809): first major setback on land, with the death of Marshal Lannes.
• Krasnoi (1812): a blow during the Russian retreat, after the Pyrrhic victory at Borodino.
• Leipzig (1813): the “Battle of the Nations”, massive defeat by the Sixth Coalition.
• La Rothière, Laon and Arcis-sur-Aube (1814): consecutive blows in the French campaign that forced the first abdication.

By the summer of 1815, The French reserve cushion and domestic political space were exhausted.Waterloo was the final act of a tragedy that had been years in the making.

Consequences: Congress of Vienna and the New European Order

After Waterloo, the Allies entered France while desertions and political maneuvering grew in Paris. Napoleon abdicated in favor of his son, but on July 8 he was restored to power Louis XVIII; Marshal Ney was executed for treason, and the "White Terror" was unleashed against Bonapartists and liberals. Unable to flee to the United States, Napoleon He surrendered to the British and was deported to Saint Helena, where he would die in 1821.

At the international level, the Congress of Vienna finished the map: France returned to its borders of 1790/1792, paid heavy reparations and suffered a Allied occupation. They were born Holy Alliance (Russia, Austria and Prussia) and the Quadruple Alliance (with the United Kingdom), whose objective was to preserve order and stifle revolutionary outbreaksThe Confederation of the Rhine was replaced by the German Confederation, and continental hegemony was shared between Austria, Prussia and Russia, while Great Britain expanded its maritime empire (Malta, Ceylon, Cape, Mauritius, etc.).

The Spanish case illustrates well the geopolitics of the time: despite the enormous effort against Napoleon, Spain was practically excluded from the distribution and would later suffer the French intervention of 1823 (the “One Hundred Thousand Sons of Saint Louis”) to support Ferdinand VII. Within the subsequent concert, the Prussian Zollverein was sowing the seeds of a future German unity based on economics. The peace lasted, with ups and downs, to Crimea (1853), when the balance was blown out of the water.

A less epic and more macabre note: Recent research has pointed to the bone trade from battlefields such as Waterloo to sugar industry kilns, with exhumations reported in the 1830s; another, hardly heroic, trace of the Europe emerging from the conflict.

Waterloo definitively answered the question that prompted this article: Napoleon was defeated by a broad, well-funded and coordinated coalition, with Wellington holding and Blücher finishing, on a day where mud, tactical decisions and the clock played against him; and he defeated him, too, A decade of wear and tear, strategic errors (Russia, Continental Blockade) and a Europe mobilized by British money and the heartbeat of nationalismJune 18th marked the end of the story, but it had been a long time coming.