Waterloo, the Downfall of the First Napoleon: a History of the Campaign of 1815

Waterloo, The Downfall Of The First Napoleon: A History Of The Campaign Of 1815 by George Hooper. In this sweeping historical account, Hooper traces Napoleon's return from Elba, the formation of the new European anti-Napoleonic coalition, and the climactic campaigns of June 1815 that culminated in the Battle of Waterloo. The book presents a two-part structure: an examination of Napoleon's political and military strategy, the Allied preparations in Belgium led by Wellington and Blücher, and the sequence of engagements from the invasion of Belgium through Ligny and Quatre Bras to Waterloo; followed by the rapid collapse of Napoleon's fortunes, his abdication, and the subsequent restoration of the Bourbon monarchy. Hooper emphasizes the interplay between strategic vision and logistical constraints, the exhausting toll of mobilization on both sides, and how coalition warfare produced a decisive European settlement. Drawing on English, French, German, and Dutch authorities, the work aims for both broad accessibility and rigorous reconstruction of events. It offers a historically grounded portrait of Waterloo as a turning point that reshaped the continent's political landscape.