49 U S A ( To l l - f r e e ) 1- 877- 381- 2 9 14 E m a i l inf o@the culturalexperience.com Napoleonic Ney’s statue placed on the site where he was executed; at Les Invalides we pay our respects to the Emperor himself; and end our day at the wonderful Musée de l’Armée with its fine Napoleonic collection. This evening we dine at the legendary historic Le Procope brasserie, familiar to many a revolutionary and a young Napoleon, whose pawned hat is proudly displayed in its foyer. Day 3 – L ove & D eath. Drive to elegant residence of Malmaison, beloved by both Napoleon and Josephine, where we discuss their early years of happy marriage, its role during the Allied occupation of Paris when Tsar Alexander and others came to visit Josephine before her untimely death, and Napoleon’s last days after Waterloo spent in final contemplation. Returning to Paris we visit the little museum that celebrates France’s highest honour, the Legion d’Honneur, ending our day at the Hotel de Charost, the former home of Napoleon’s sister Pauline, and today the British Embassy where we enjoy tea and a guided stroll around its gardens. Day 4 – A dvance to Belgium. Like the French army in June 1815, so we set off for ff for ff Belgium. En-route we will visit the Imperial chateau of Compiegne with its Napoleonic collections from both Empires and stop briefly at Peronne, scene of the last action fought by the British Army in 1815. Thence to Beaumont, from where Napoleon launched his strike, before tracing the route of the French army through the lovely Sambre valley. Continue to Waterloo where we check in to our hotel for the remaining four nights. Day 5 – W ellington. Enter the Duke of Wellington, who had recently arrived in Brussels to take command of the Allied Army. We visit the magnificent Grand Place in the centre of medieval Brussels and walk through the city to the Royal Palace to see where he lived, worked and relaxed nearby. We describe his reaction, at the Duchess of Richmond’s Ball, to Napoleon’s surprise crossings of the Sambre, and then follow his deployment from Brussels south to Waterloo where we visit his headquarters in the town – now the Wellington Museum. Day 6 – Ligny & Quatre Bras. This morning we continue Wellington’s progress south to check Napoleon’s advance into Belgium. We witness his meeting with Blucher at the Prussian Army command post above Ligny and remain on site to see how the ensuing bloody battle for the villages and bridges across the Ligny Brook panned out. We then follow Wellington back to the crossroads at Quatre Bras to witness the parallel clash between his Anglo-Dutch Army and the other Wing of Napoleon’s army. Without a decisive result at either location, Wellington was forced to withdraw back towards Brussels and we finish the day by following his route back to the ridge which becomes the battlefield of Waterloo – and finally return to dine in Waterloo town that night – as did Wellington. Day 7 – Waterloo. Today we return to survey the battlefield as Wellington did. We also view the field from Napoleon’s perspective before then visiting the recently restored Hougoumont Farm on Wellington’s right flank where Napoleon opened his attack. From there we climb onto the ridge to witness Napoleon’s infantry attack designed to punch through the Allied centre, and see how it was defeated by the charge of the British heavy cavalry. We walk down the ridge to see how allied riflemen defended the outposts in the famous Sandpit and farm of La Haye Sainte. After lunch, we move to the area of the French cavalry attacks - defeated by Wellington’s accurate artillery and steady infantry squares. Finally, we transfer to Plancenoit on the French right flank to describe the belated arrival of the Prussians and enjoy a peaceful drink in the pretty village square - reminding ourselves that this was the scene of some of the bloodiest fighting of the whole battle. Day 8 – W aterloo 2. We return to the battlefield to walk the route of the Imperial Guard’s final attack up onto the ridge and see where they were dramatically defeated by Wellington’s elite Guards and Light troops. We conclude our visit to Waterloo by visiting the excellent new Waterloo Visitor Centre. Then back to Brussels to catch our Eurostar train getting us back to London by early evening. Waterloo Napoleon at Fontainebleau