Waterloo

The New York Times–bestselling historian's "masterly . . . concise, pacy, and well-argued account" of Napoleon's final defeat ( The Sunday Telegraph). June 18, 1815, was one of the most momentous days in world history, marking the end of twenty-two years of French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars. On the bloody battlefield of Waterloo, the Emperor Napoleon and his hastily formed legions clashed with the Anglo-Allied armies led by the Duke of Wellington—the only time the two greatest military strategists of their age faced each other in combat. With precision and elegance, Andrew Roberts sets the political, strategic, and historical scene, providing a breathtaking account of each successive stage of the battle while also examining new evidence that reveals exactly how Napoleon was defeated. Waterloo is "a vivid, thoughtful, and blessedly concise account" of the battle that "marks the beginning of the modern era" ( Kirkus, starred review).