Key Facts
- Duration
- 15 June – 8 July 1815 (23 days)
- French abdication date
- 22 June 1815
- Decisive engagement
- Battle of Waterloo, 18 June 1815
- Campaign ended by
- Convention of Saint-Cloud (surrender of Paris)
- Coalition
- Seventh Coalition vs. French Army of the North
Strategic Narrative Overview
French forces crossed the Sambre on 15 June, driving between the two Coalition armies. On 16 June, Ney held Wellington at Quatre Bras while Napoleon defeated Blücher at Ligny. Napoleon then pursued Wellington while detaching Grouchy to follow the Prussians. On 18 June, the Battle of Waterloo proved decisive: Wellington's army repulsed repeated French attacks, and arriving Prussian corps routed the French. Grouchy's simultaneous victory at Wavre could not offset the catastrophic loss at Waterloo.
01 / The Origins
Upon Napoleon's return from exile on Elba, the European Great Powers refused to recognise him as Emperor and declared war on him personally, still acknowledging Louis XVIII as France's legitimate king. Rather than await a coordinated Coalition invasion, Napoleon resolved to strike first, targeting the two Coalition armies—Wellington's Anglo-allied force and Blücher's Prussian army—cantoned in what is now Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
03 / The Outcome
After Waterloo, Napoleon returned to Paris seeking political support but failed, abdicating on 22 June 1815. A French Provisional Government took power and, unable to defend Paris against the pursuing Coalition armies, authorised delegates to negotiate surrender. The resulting Convention of Saint-Cloud ended active hostilities, and Napoleon was subsequently exiled to Saint Helena, permanently ending his rule.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Napoleon Bonaparte, Marshal Soult, Marshal Grouchy, Marshal Davout.
Side B
2 belligerents
Duke of Wellington, Field Marshal Blücher.
Kinetic Engagement Axis
Scroll horizontally to view full axis. Events plotted relatively.