So much in life depends on the slightest chances, and nowhere moreso than in war. The Duke of Wellington, who commanded the winning forces, later stated that the battle was “the nearest-run thing you ever saw in your life.”
Napoleon commanded a French army 69,000 strong, while Wellington led a force consisting of 24,000 were British troops, with another 6,000 from the King’s German Legion, 17,000 Dutch troops, 11,000 from Hanover, 6,000 from Brunswick, and 3,000 from Nassau. Compared to Napoleon’s more disciplined and experienced force, Wellington’s was much less organised and coherent, especially the Prussian forces that were in the midst of a reorganisation.
But in the event, and despite the inevitable chaos and mischance of battle, the Anglo-Prussian Alliance was victorious. Defeat at Waterloo was the final reverse for Napoleon. From ruling most of Europe, he was reduced to a live lived in exile in St Helena, where he died six years later.
Referenced in:
Waterloo – ABBA
Waterloo – Iced Earth
Slattery’s Mounted Fut – Percy French
Lydia the Tattooed Lady – Groucho Marx
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Victor Hugo’s “Les Miserables” gives a great account of that battle too, though I doubt it’s in the musical.