Waterloo was the battle that ended Napoleon's dreams of a European empire unified under his rule. Christopher Hibbert creates portraits of Napoleon and Wellington, of the French, English and Prussian armies, and a strategical, step-by-step reconstruction of the events that led up to the battle and the battle itself. Divided into three parts, the first studies Napoleon and his rise to power, the second describes Wellington and the allied armies, while the third reconstructs the battle of Waterloo. A final summary investigates the significance of the battles on world history.