Waterloo: The History of Four Days, Three Armies, and Three Battles

From the New York Times bestselling author and master of martial fiction comes the definitive, illustrated history of one of the greatest battles ever fought—a riveting nonfiction chronicle published to commemorate the 200th anniversary of Napoleon’s last stand.

On June 18, 1815 the armies of France, Britain and Prussia descended upon a quiet valley south of Brussels. In the previous three days, the French army had beaten the Prussians at Ligny and fought the British to a standstill at Quatre-Bras. The Allies were in retreat. The little village north of where they turned to fight the French army was called Waterloo. The blood-soaked battle to which it gave its name would become a landmark in European history.

In his first work of nonfiction, Bernard Cornwell combines his storytelling skills with a meticulously researched history to give a riveting chronicle of every dramatic moment, from Napoleon’s daring escape from Elba to the smoke and gore of the three battlefields and their aftermath. Through quotes from the letters and diaries of Emperor Napoleon, the Duke of Wellington, and the ordinary officers and soldiers, he brings to life how it actually felt to fight those famous battles—as well as the moments of amazing bravery on both sides that left the actual outcome hanging in the balance until the bitter end.

Published to coincide with the battle’s bicentennial in 2015, Waterloo is a tense and gripping story of heroism and tragedy—and of the final battle that determined the fate of nineteenth-century Europe.

How did the fate of Europe come down to a single, blood-soaked valley south of Brussels?

• Meticulous Research Meets Storytelling: Experience the battle through the eyes of a master of historical fiction, who combines a novelist’s eye for drama with a historian’s dedication to fact.
• The Commanders' War: Follow the strategic duel between the Duke of Wellington and Napoleon Bonaparte as they meet on the battlefield for the first and final time.
• Firsthand Accounts: Live the battle through the letters and diaries of the soldiers and officers who were there, from the generals on the ridge to the men in the mud.
• The Full Campaign: Understand the crucial context of the days leading up to the final confrontation, including the brutal fights at Ligny and Quatre-Bras.
• Detailed Battle Maps & Illustrations: Visualize the troop movements and battlefield tactics with beautifully rendered maps and illustrations that clarify every phase of the conflict.

Bernard Cornwell is the author of over fifty novels, including the acclaimed New York Times bestselling Saxon Tales, which serve as the basis for the hit Netflix series The Last Kingdom. He lives with his wife on Cape Cod and in Charleston, South Carolina.