The Battle of Waterloo

Battle of Waterloo
Part of the Waterloo Campaign
Battle of Waterloo by William Sadler
Date 18 June 1815 Location Waterloo, then Netherlands, present day Belgium; 15 km (9.3 mi) south of Brussels 50°40′49″N 4°24′42″E / 50.68016°N 4.41169°E / 50.68016; 4.41169Coordinates: 50°40′49″N 4°24′42″E / 50.68016°N 4.41169°E / 50.68016; 4.41169 Result Decisive Coalition victory
Belligerents
First French Empire	Seventh Coalition:  United Kingdom  Netherlands Hanover Nassau Brunswick  Prussia
Commanders and leaders
Napoleon Bonaparte Michel Ney	Duke of Wellington Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher
Strength
Total: 73,000 50,700 infantry 14,390 cavalry 8,050 artillery and engineers 252 guns	Total: 118,000 Anglo-allies: 68,000 United Kingdom: 25,000 British and 6,000 King's German Legion Netherlands: 17,000 Hanover: 11,000 Brunswick: 6,000 Nassau: 3,000 156 guns Prussians: 50,000
Casualties and losses
Total: 41,000 24,000 to 26,000 killed, wounded including 6,000 to 7,000 captured 15,000 missing	Total: 24,000 Anglo-allies: 17,000 3,500 killed 10,200 wounded 3,300 missing Prussians: 7,000 1,200 killed 4,400 wounded 1,400 missing
Location within modern-day Belgium, then a part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands

Total: 73,000

Total: 118,000
Anglo-allies: 68,000

Total: 41,000

Total: 24,000
Anglo-allies: 17,000

Prussians: 7,000

The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday, 18 June 1815, near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. A French army under the command of Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated by two of the armies of the Seventh Coalition: an Anglo-led Allied army under the command of the Duke of Wellington, and a Prussian army under the command of Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Prince of Wahlstatt.

Upon Napoleon's return to power in March 1815, many states that had opposed him formed the Seventh Coalition, and began to mobilize armies. Wellington and Blücher's armies were cantoned close to the north-eastern border of France. Napoleon chose to attack them in the hope of destroying them before they could join in a co-ordinated invasion of France with other members of the coalition. Napoleon successfully attacked the Prussians at the Battle of Ligny, while at the same time attacking the British at the Battle of Quatre Bras. Despite holding his ground at Quatre Bras, the defeat of the Prussians forced Wellington to withdraw to Waterloo. Napoleon sent a third of his forces to pursue the Prussians, who had withdrawn parallel to Wellington. This resulted in the separate and simultaneous Battle of Wavre with the Prussian rear-guard.