Napoleon’s Grand British Holiday

Napoleon Bonaparte’s long reign of terror in Europe was finally brought to an end at the Battle of Waterloo in June 1815. Attempting to flee to America, the fallen emperor surrendered when his ship was intercepted by the British navy. While the Prince Regent considered Napoleon’s optimistic request to reside in England, the prisoner was held off the Devon coast on the warship HMS Bellerophon. Prefaced with a summary of the key campaigns during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, author Mike Holgate takes up the story during the aftermath of the Duke of Wellington’s momentous victory at Waterloo, recounting public reaction, newsworthy incidents, eye witness accounts and anecdotes recorded during Napoleon’s fateful two-week mid-summer sojourn in England.