Trafalgar and Waterloo: The Two Most Important Battles of the Napoleonic Wars

Over the course of its history, England has engaged in an uncountable number of battles, but a select few have been celebrated like the Battle of Trafalgar, one of the most important naval battles in history. Before the battle, Napoleon still harbored dreams of sailing an invasion force across the English Channel and subduing England, but that would be dashed on October 21, 1805 by a British fleet that was outnumbered and outgunned.

That morning, Admiral Horatio Nelson’s fleet, 27 strong, bore down on the Franco-Spanish fleet, approaching at right angles in two columns. French Admiral Pierre-Charles Villeneuve’s disposition was conventional - a single line of battle, ill formed due to the very light winds and the poor seamanship of many of the crews. Traditional naval warfare strategies called for approaching an enemy fleet in one line and then creating a parallel line that allowed as many guns as possible to fire. At the same time, that kind of line of battle allowed for admirals to signal during battle, and it made retreating in an orderly fashion easier. After all, if an enemy’s ships pursued during a retreat, they would break their own line. The problem with that strategy as Nelson saw it is that the ability to retreat meant fighting a decisive naval battle would be made much more difficult. Thus, at Trafalgar he employed a completely innovative strategy. The British plan was to punch straight through the enemy line with two approaching columns of ships, which would cut the Franco-Spanish fleet’s line in three, prompting the melee that they knew would capitalize on their tactical superiority.

At 11.45 a.m. the Victory hoisted Nelson’s famous signal: “England expects that every man will do his duty”. While Nelson led one advancing column, the second column was led by Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood in the Royal Sovereign, and Collingwood told his officers, "Now, gentlemen, let us do something today which the world may talk of hereafter." By the time the Battle of Trafalgar was finished, Nelson had scored arguably the most decisive victory in the history of naval warfare.

Waterloo is the most famous battle in modern history if not all of history, and appropriately so. Gathering an army of 100,000 men, Napoleon marched into what is now Belgium, intent on driving his force between the advancing British army under the Duke of Wellington and the Prussian forces under Marshal Blucher. It was the kind of daring strategy that only Napoleon could pull off, as he had at places like Jena and Austerlitz.

At Waterloo, however, it would end disastrously, as Napoleon’s armies were unable to dislodge Wellington and unable to keep the Prussians from linking up with the British. The battle would end with the French suffering nearly 60% casualties, the end of Napoleon’s reign, and the restructuring of the European map. Simply put, the next 200 years of European history can be traced back to the result of the battle that day in 1815.

Trafalgar and Waterloo comprehensively covers the entire campaign, analyzes the decisions made by the battle’s most important leaders, and explains the aftermath of the Allies’ victory and the legacies that were made and tarnished by the battle. Along with a bibliography, maps of the battle, and pictures of important people and places, you will learn about the Battle of Waterloo like you never have before.

© 2025 Charles River Editors (Ebook): 9781475332827

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Ebook: 2 Mei 2025