What do you think?
Rate this book
Waterloo
Book ...an the cutting off of England, the financier of the Allies, from the Continent. There was present a population many elements of which sympathised with him and with the French revolutionary effort. Finally, the allied force in Belgium was the least homogeneous of the forces with which he would have to deal in the long succession of struggle from which even a success at this moment would not spare him.From all these causes combined, and for the further reason that Paris was most immediately threatened from this neighbouring Belgian frontier, it was upon that frontier that Napoleon determined to cast his spear. It was upon the 5th of June that the first order was sent out for the concentration of this army for the invasion of Belgium.In ten days the 124,000 men, with their 370 guns, were massed upon the line between Maubeuge and Philippeville, immediately upon the frontier, and ready to cross it. The way in which the frontier was passed and the river Sambre crossed before the first ...
104 pages, Paperback
First published December 31, 2010
About the author
Hilaire Belloc
613 books419 followersJoseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc, French-born British writer, is considered a master of light English prose and also widely known for his droll verse, especially
The Bad Child's Book of Beasts
in 1896.
The sharp wit of Belloc, an historian, poet, and orator, extended across a large literary output and strong political and religious convictions. Throughout his career, he prolifically wrote across a range of genres and produced histories, essays, travelogues, poetry, and satirical works.
Cautionary Tales for Children collects humorous yet dark morals, and the historical works of Hilaire Belloc often reflected his staunch Catholicism and critique of Protestant interpretations. He led advocates of an economic theory that promoted and championed distribution of small-scale property ownership as a middle ground between capitalism and socialism, alongside Gilbert Keith Chesterton, his close friend.
In politics, Hilaire Belloc served as a member of Parliament for the Liberal party, but the establishment disillusioned him. His polemical style and strong opinions made him a controversial figure, who particularly viewed modernism, secularism, and financial capitalism as threats to traditional Christian society in his critiques.
The sharp wit of Belloc, an historian, poet, and orator, extended across a large literary output and strong political and religious convictions. Throughout his career, he prolifically wrote across a range of genres and produced histories, essays, travelogues, poetry, and satirical works.
Cautionary Tales for Children collects humorous yet dark morals, and the historical works of Hilaire Belloc often reflected his staunch Catholicism and critique of Protestant interpretations. He led advocates of an economic theory that promoted and championed distribution of small-scale property ownership as a middle ground between capitalism and socialism, alongside Gilbert Keith Chesterton, his close friend.
In politics, Hilaire Belloc served as a member of Parliament for the Liberal party, but the establishment disillusioned him. His polemical style and strong opinions made him a controversial figure, who particularly viewed modernism, secularism, and financial capitalism as threats to traditional Christian society in his critiques.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
August 14, 2025
I love Hilaire Belloc as a historian, but I don't recommend this free version unless you are very good at visualization, have access to maps of the battle scenes, have actually been to Waterloo and/or can't afford to read the book any other way. Belloc repeatedly references maps and diagrams which are not included in this free version. Frustrating to say the least. Fortunately, Dh and I visited the battleground sites of Waterloo (Friday-Sunday, 16-18 June 1815, then in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium) many years ago when we were stationed in Germany, so I have memories of what the area looked like. Even so, I still want to go back and find the book(let)s and/or maps we purchased while there if possible. I can see the whole thing in my minds' eye but not so clearly as formerly; we were there in the late 1980s.
It's an interesting battle, which actually was a series of battles fought over three days and, in that respect, reminded me of Gettysburg. Each day's battles depended on so many little flukes, assumptions, misinformation, time it took for messages to get from one general to another as well as to get the troops into position to fight. The various companies had to be strung out over the narrow roads in order to travel and then quickly brought into formation when they arrived at their destination and/or encountered the enemy. Also, the success of, or mistakes made, during each day's fighting then enhanced the position or compounded the difficulty for the next day. Belloc avers, along with most historians, that Napolean actually lost Sunday's battle two days earlier when he was unable to completely finish off the Prussian army at Ligny. Largely due to miscommunications, the emperor did not get the reinforcements he so desperately needed, so the Prussians went free to flank him on the left on the final day while he was fully engaged with Wellington's forces on the right.
I was reminded again that Waterloo wasn't Napolean's actual "Waterloo", a term usually applied to someone's irrecoverable demise. His actual "Waterloo" was his misguided march into Russia, thinking he could subdue the vast stretch of Russian territory. He sealed his own doom when he did that. While he did lose the Battle of Waterloo and that ultimately sealed his fate, it was near the end for him going into the battle, regardless of its outcome.
5 stars for the book; 3 for this version. For a visual see: Strategic Situation at time of Waterloo Campaign.
It's an interesting battle, which actually was a series of battles fought over three days and, in that respect, reminded me of Gettysburg. Each day's battles depended on so many little flukes, assumptions, misinformation, time it took for messages to get from one general to another as well as to get the troops into position to fight. The various companies had to be strung out over the narrow roads in order to travel and then quickly brought into formation when they arrived at their destination and/or encountered the enemy. Also, the success of, or mistakes made, during each day's fighting then enhanced the position or compounded the difficulty for the next day. Belloc avers, along with most historians, that Napolean actually lost Sunday's battle two days earlier when he was unable to completely finish off the Prussian army at Ligny. Largely due to miscommunications, the emperor did not get the reinforcements he so desperately needed, so the Prussians went free to flank him on the left on the final day while he was fully engaged with Wellington's forces on the right.
I was reminded again that Waterloo wasn't Napolean's actual "Waterloo", a term usually applied to someone's irrecoverable demise. His actual "Waterloo" was his misguided march into Russia, thinking he could subdue the vast stretch of Russian territory. He sealed his own doom when he did that. While he did lose the Battle of Waterloo and that ultimately sealed his fate, it was near the end for him going into the battle, regardless of its outcome.
5 stars for the book; 3 for this version. For a visual see: Strategic Situation at time of Waterloo Campaign.
April 12, 2021
An older account, but Belloc’s clear prose ably describes the battle. Even though you’re not there, the author can almost make you see the struggle. Which is a good thing, because the maps that are mentioned in the text are not in the Kindle edition. Can’t argue with the price: it’s free.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews