The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday the 18th of June 1815 at Mont St Jean, 5 km south of Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Imperial French army under the command of Napoléon was defeated by the Anglo-Allied army under the command of the Wellington and the Prussian army under command of Blücher It was the culminating battle of the Waterloo Campaign and Napoleon’s last. The defeat at Waterloo put an end to Napoléon’s rule as Emperor and marked the end of his Hundred Days return from exile from the Isle of Elba off the cost of Italy.
Two Imperial Eagles were taken at the Battle of Waterloo; the Royal Dragoons captured the eagle of the 105th Ligne and Sergeant Ewart of the Scots Greys captured the eagle of the 45th Ligne. The Eagle bore the same significance to French Imperial regiments as the colours did to British regiments – to lose the Eagle would bring shame to the regiment, who had pledged to defend it to the death.
The Lion Mound took three years to build and was completed in 1826. There are 226 steps to climb to the top of the 42.5 metre high mound. That’s one step for every horse and mule within ‘G’ Troop of the Royal Horse Artillery at the start of the Battle of Waterloo. It’s a further 9 metres from the top of the mound to the top of the lion. During the German occupation in World War II, the Luftwaffe installed a radio beacon on the mound.
During its heyday, one of the French Cuirassier Regiments implemented a particularly demanding selection test for its potential officers. Each candidate having been given three horses, three bottles of champagne and three willing ladies, had three hours to consume and bed the lot as well as riding a thirty kilometre course, not necessarily in that order, to pass the selection test.
Itinerary
Below is an example itinerary. As each tour is bespoke, you will receive confirmation of your personal itinerary with your booking confirmation.
- St. Joseph’s Church, Waterloo *1
- The Wellington Museum, Waterloo
- The Panorama
- The Lion Mound *2
- Wellington’s centre
- Zieten’s cross roads
- Le Haye Sainte
- Papelotte
- Le Caillou – Napoléon’s HQ
and Museum - Belle Alliance and the French Monument
- Walk the way of the Imperial Guard’s
final attack - Château Farm of Hougoumont
- Mercer’s Ridge
- The Prussian Monument and
Plancenoit *3
* Notes
- If there are no services taking place
- The itinerary may change dependent on weather conditions on the day
- Time and light permitting