Hundred Days

Hundred Days. The Hundred Days marks the climactic final chapter of the Napoleonic Wars, beginning with Napoleon Bonaparte's dramatic escape from exile on Elba and his return to power in France. This period, characterized by intense military and political maneuvering, culminated in his decisive defeat at the Battle of Waterloo and the permanent restoration of the Bourbon monarchy. The episode reshaped the post-war settlement in Europe and solidified Napoleon's legacy as one of history's most formidable military commanders.

Background and context

Following his forced abdication in April 1814 after the disastrous French invasion of Russia and the War of the Sixth Coalition, Napoleon was exiled to the Mediterranean island of Elba under the terms of the Treaty of Fontainebleau. The victorious allied powers, including Great Britain, Austria, Russia, and Prussia, convened the Congress of Vienna to redraw the map of Europe and restore pre-revolutionary order, reinstating Louis XVIII as King of France. Dissatisfaction with the Bourbon Restoration grew within the French Army and among the populace, as the new regime struggled to reconcile revolutionary gains with royalist traditions. Meanwhile, reports of political friction among the allies in Vienna reached Napoleon, suggesting a fragmented opposition to any potential action he might take.

The return from Elba

On 26 February 1815, Napoleon, with a small force of about 1,000 men, audaciously sailed from Portoferraio aboard the brig *Inconstant*, evading patrolling British and French warships. He landed near Golfe-Juan on 1 March, initiating his march northward through the Alps via the Route Napoléon. His progress became a triumphant procession as units of the French Army, sent to arrest him, instead defected to his cause, including the legendary moment with the 5th Infantry Regiment at Laffrey. Entering Grenoble and then Lyon unopposed, Napoleon's support snowballed, compelling a panicked Louis XVIII to flee Paris for Ghent. On 20 March, Napoleon arrived at the Tuileries Palace, reclaiming power and initiating the period known as the French rule of the Hundred Days.

The Waterloo campaign

Faced with the immediate formation of the Seventh Coalition, Napoleon mobilized the Armée du Nord for a pre-emptive strike into the Southern Netherlands, aiming to defeat the allied armies of the Duke of Wellington and Field Marshal Blücher before they could combine. The campaign opened with French successes at the Battle of Quatre Bras and the Battle of Ligny on 16 June 1815. However, Napoleon's failure to decisively destroy the retreating Prussian Army proved critical. On 18 June, the main French assault against Wellington's allied army at Waterloo was finally broken by the timely arrival of Blücher's Prussians at Plancenoit. The simultaneous Campaign in the Vendée and the Neapolitan War against Joachim Murat in Italy further distracted French resources, but the defeat at Waterloo was decisive.

The second abdication and aftermath

Returning to Paris in defeat, Napoleon abdicated for a second time on 22 June 1815 in favor of his son, Napoleon II, though this proclamation was ignored by the coalition and the reinstated French Provisional Government of 1815. He initially sought asylum in the United States but, after the HMS *Bellerophon* blocked his escape at Rochefort, he surrendered to Captain Frederick Lewis Maitland. The British government, under Lord Liverpool, subsequently exiled him to the remote island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic. The brief war concluded with the Second Bourbon Restoration and the signing of the more punitive Treaty of Paris (1815), which imposed significant financial reparations and military occupation on France.

Historical significance and legacy

The Hundred Days cemented the final downfall of Napoleon Bonaparte and ended two decades of nearly continuous European warfare, ushering in a prolonged period of relative peace often termed the Pax Britannica. The episode profoundly influenced the final acts of the Congress of Vienna, leading to the establishment of the more robust Concert of Europe system designed to maintain the balance of power and suppress revolutionary movements. In French collective memory, the period evolved into the foundational myth of the Bonapartist legend, later exploited by Napoleon III. The campaign, particularly the Battle of Waterloo, has been extensively studied in military academies worldwide and immortalized in cultural works from Victor Hugo's Les Misérables to the paintings of William Sadler.

Category:Napoleonic Wars Category:1815 in France Category:Conflicts in 1815