Waterloo - And Its Lasting Historical and Political Imprint

By John Callahan - Blog II 

I think we walked over 10km today, possibly 15. This took place at Waterloo, site of the battle which ended Napoleon’s bid to reestablish his empire. As the guide for this part of the trip, my challenges were multiple. First, why visit a battlefield on a trip to study the future of Europe. Second, how to impart the important issues of the battle itself without causing intense boredom in the group. Everyone seemed to survive, and to learn something, so I call it a great success.

Waterloo ended the Napoleonic Wars, and is often, and rightly, heralded as the dawn of modern Europe. The political balance of power system which was established at the Congress of Vienna and sealed in blood with the victory at Waterloo endured for a hundred years, and, during that time, served prevent all out great power wars. Waterloo was the result of several brilliant strokes and a series of miscalculations with the end result that the French Army of about 75,000 men faced off against, and was defeated by, a coalition army of about 110,000 English, Dutch, Belgians, Germans, and Prussians. That this coalition even existed was a diplomatic success story, that the French did as well as they did in spite of the odds equally so.
To sum it up, the allies had learned Napoleon’s methods during 20 years of being defeated by him. Napoleon himself was aging, and no longer capable of both running a country and being a battlefield general at the same time. One or the other, perhaps, but not both.
We visited several key locations on the field. We began at the famous Lion Mound for an overview of the battle and the British defensive positions We then examined the Chateaux of Hougomont, scene of heavy fighting and rightmost key to the British position. The Chateaux is now, FINALLY closed for much needed repairs, since it has decayed much over the years. Hopefully the folks who stole the crucifix from the chapel will be liberally punished. We then crossed to the French side of the field to understand what the situation looked like from the French point of view, and then observed the avenues of advance of the Prussians as they attacked the French right. There is something about actually walking on the ground that is a very different experience from standing on the hill, or viewing things from a map.
Finally, we returned to the British line to see the point where Napoleon’s famed Imperial Guard were defeated, and his dreams of renewed conquest shattered. Again we were all reminded of how steep the slope that the French had to climb was.
Of all the battles of the Napoleonic wars, or perhaps of history, it is Waterloo that is perhaps the best well known. Today the group learned what made the allied victory, and a relatively peaceful century for Europe, possible.