Battle of Waterloo: the conflict marked the end of Napoleon Bonaparte’s empire

June marks the end of the Napoleonic era (1799-1815). On June 18, 1815, the final conflict took place: the Battle of Waterloo. Discover the story of a character who marked the history of the world.

At Waterloo, the territory where Belgium is today, the French general’s troops were defeated and Napoleon was taken into exile on the island of St. Helena, an English colony in the South Atlantic.

Born on the French island of Corsica, Napoleon Bonaparte is one of the best-known and most influential political leaders of recent centuries.

Napoleon’s rise occurred in the years following the French Revolution (1789), which overthrew the monarchy and established the French First Republic.

In 1795, after participating in the suppression of an attempted royalist coup, Napoleon was appointed commander of the French army in Italy.

Napoleon distinguished himself in resistance campaigns, one of which was in Toulon, and at the age of 24 he was appointed brigadier general.

On 9 November 1799 Napoleon became First Consul of France. While in office, he staged a coup, which became known as the 18th Brumaire and ended the revolutionary period.

During the consular period, Napoleon accumulated power and popular support until he was crowned emperor in 1804, the year marking the beginning of the Napoleonic Empire.

In 1806, the emperor implemented the Continental Blockade, prohibiting trade relations between the countries of continental Europe and England.

Napoleon expanded his empire by winning battles such as Austerlitz, or the Battle of the Three Emperors, in what is now the Czech Republic, in 1805, at the height of the Napoleonic Wars.

Tension in Europe increased with the gigantic invasion of Russia by Napoleon’s troops in 1812. In the midst of the harsh Russian winter, Napoleon suffered a dramatic defeat, with the loss of over 500,000 men.

In 1814, troops from several countries invaded Paris and brought about Napoleon’s first downfall. The emperor abdicated and was exiled to the island of Elba in the Mediterranean Sea.

Napoleon, who still enjoyed considerable popular support, managed to escape the island and take over the government of France again with military support.

This new government, however, succumbed after one hundred days with Napoleon’s defeat at the Battle of Waterloo and his exile on St. Helena.

Napoleon had seven brothers and two of them – Luciano Bonaparte and José Napoleão Bonaparte (photo) – held political positions during his empire.

For 13 years, Napoleon was married to Josephine de Beauharnais, who was Empress of France between 1804 and 1810.

Son of judge Charles Bonaparte (photo), the emperor married Maria Luisa of Austria in 1809, a union that produced Napoleon’s son Francisco Carlos José Bonaparte, Napoleon II.

The heir to the French throne died of pneumonia at just 21 years old. In 1852, his cousin Luis Bonaparte, Napoleon’s nephew, was crowned Napoleon III.

The remains of Napoleon Bonaparte lie in a sumptuous tomb in the Musée des Invalides, Paris.

In 2023, the film “Napoleão” was released, by Ridley Scott, with Joaquim Phoenix in the lead role. The film focuses on the general’s battles and rise to power in France.