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The Battle of Waterloo

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This is part 5 of my battlefield series. It's to Waterloo, yes where Napoleon of France was defeated for the final time. Living here in southern Belgium makes it easy to get to these battlefields. Waterloo is about 20 Minutes from where we live.

The Battle of Waterloo

Butte du Lion from afar

I’d had been to the waterloo battlefield before when I live in Germany.  This time I went with the family.  This trip we went on 7 May 06.  We’ve been back since but I didn’t take my camera that time.  The actual battle happened on 18 Jun e1815.   I could go into the details of the battle but this isn’t a history lesson, it’s a travel blog.  There are several things you can do and/or visit here but unfortunately there aren’t any remains of the battlefields left.  The whole battle ground is now farm land, unlike some of the WW 1 and WW 2 battlegrounds in Belgium and Northern France.   The best and most obvious thing is the Butte du Lion.

In the panorama
  A huge mound was constructed using ground taken from parts of the battlefield.  Take the 226 steps up the statue of a lion and a map and view of the entire battlefield.  Next to the Butte du Lion is the panorama.  It displays paintings that show the battle.  Across the street is a wax museum with several of the main characters form the battle.   The wax figures are dressed with uniforms from each side.  It’s ok but a little pricey I think.  After those 3 things we took the train of tour tram thing around the battlefield.  A nice little ride and the guides tell you where many things happened but once again,  there isn’t much left and I have to use my imagination a little.   On this trip we didn’t visit Napoleon’s final headquarters but I did go there the first trip.  It’s a small little museum and worth the time and money to see in my opinion. 

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Butte du Lion from afar
Butte du Lion from afar
In the panorama
In the panorama
In the panorama
In the panorama
Butte du Lion
Butte du Lion
climbing up the Butte du Lion
climbing up the Butte du Lion
The Panorama building from the But…
The Panorama building from the B
The 226 steps.
The 226 steps.
The battlefield from the Butte du …
The battlefield from the Butte d
Map of the battlefield
Map of the battlefield
the statue
the statue
Butte du Lion
Butte du Lion
The panorama
The panorama
The wax museum
The wax museum
Butte du Lion
Butte du Lion
wax museum
wax museum
on the guided tour of the battlefi…
on the guided tour of the battle
on the guided tour of the battlefi…
on the guided tour of the battle
on the guided tour of the battlefi…
on the guided tour of the battle
on the guided tour of the battlefi…
on the guided tour of the battle
Waterloo battlefield and Butte du Lion
I did a travel blog about waterloo, it’s linked to this. When I was writing the summary I started thinking it was more like a review. So I just copied and pasted the summary from my blog to here.

I’d had been to the waterloo battlefield before when I live in Germany. This time I went with the family. This trip we went on 7 May 06. We’ve been back since but I didn’t take my camera that time. The actual battle happened on 18 Jun e1815. I could go into the details of the battle but this isn’t a history lesson, it’s a travel blog. There are several things you can do and/or visit here but unfortunately there aren’t any remains of the battlefields left. The whole battle ground is now farm land, unlike some of the WW 1 and WW 2 battlegrounds in Belgium and Northern France. The best and most obvious thing is the Butte du Lion. A huge mound was constructed using ground taken from parts of the battlefield. Take the 226 steps up the statue of a lion and a map and view of the entire battlefield. Next to the Butte du Lion is the panorama. It displays paintings that show the battle. Across the street is a wax museum with several of the main characters form the battle. The wax figures are dressed with uniforms from each side. It’s ok but a little pricey I think. After those 3 things we took the train of tour tram thing around the battlefield. A nice little ride and the guides tell you where many things happened but once again, there isn’t much left and I have to use my imagination a little. On this trip we didn’t visit Napoleon’s final headquarters but I did go there the first trip. It’s a small little museum and worth the time and money to see in my opinion.

Over all it’s a nice time but if it’s battlefield remains, like bunkers and trenches, then I recommend Verdun, Ypres, Vimy Ridge, or The Somme or another WW 1 and WW 2 battlefield. But if you’re a history nut or looking for something else to do in Belgium then this is for you.
Butte du Lion
The Panorama
226 Steps
The Battlefield from the Butte d
sylviandavid says:
How interesting! I didn't know it was in Belgium... Thanks for sharing this! sylvia
Posted on: Jan 11, 2009
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