50 free Battle of Waterloo trivia questions with answers — history quiz, new questions added Aug 2026.
The Battle of Waterloo ended Napoleon's Hundred Days and two decades of European war in a single sodden Sunday. On 18 June 1815 Wellington's multinational army held a ridge south of Brussels against everything the French threw at it, until Blücher's Prussians broke in on the flank and the Imperial Guard fell back for the first time. Wellington called it the nearest-run thing you ever saw in your life. These 50 questions cover the campaign: the Congress of Vienna outlawing Napoleon, the crossing at Charleroi, the Duchess of Richmond's ball, Ligny and Quatre Bras, and Grouchy's wrong turn to Wavre. Then the day itself: the reverse slope, the elm tree, Hougoumont's north gate, the grande batterie, Picton's death, the Union Brigade and its two eagles, Ney's cavalry against the squares, the fall of La Haye Sainte, Plancenoit, Müffling and Zieten, Maitland's Guards, 'La Garde recule', and Wellington waving his hat from Copenhagen. And the aftermath: the casualties, the diamonds in Napoleon's carriage, Saint Helena, Waterloo teeth, the bones sold to a sugar factory, the Lion's Mound and the coin France objected to. Every answer is cited to a page we checked and comes with a short explanation, so you learn something even when you miss. Play it solo or print it for a pub quiz history round.
30 of 50 questions with answers and explanations. Play the quiz
Q 01On what date was the Battle of Waterloo fought?
18 June 1815
It was a Sunday, and Napoleon abdicated for the second time just six days later.
Q 02In which modern country does the battlefield lie?
Belgium
In 1815 the area belonged to the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.
Q 03Which coalition defeated Napoleon at Waterloo?
Seventh
It formed in a hurry after his return from Elba in March 1815.
Q 04Who commanded the Prussian army at Waterloo?
Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher
His three corps arrived through the afternoon and fell on the French right flank.
Q 05By what name was the battle known contemporaneously to the French?
Mont Saint-Jean
The Prussians preferred La Belle Alliance, after the inn where the two commanders met.
Q 06What was the period of Napoleon's return to power in 1815 called?
The Hundred Days
It ran from his arrival in Paris in March to the restoration of Louis XVIII.
Q 07At which battle on 16 June did Napoleon defeat the bulk of the Prussian army?
Ligny
The Prussians withdrew in good order and were back in the fight within 48 hours.
Q 08Which crossroads battle on 16 June kept Wellington from reinforcing the Prussians?
Quatre Bras
The Prince of Orange and Prince Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar held the position against Ney's left wing.
Q 09Which separate battle on 18–19 June tied up a third of Napoleon's army?
Wavre
Grouchy beat Thielemann there the next morning, but 33,000 French troops never reached Waterloo.
Q 10Which battle was the only bloodier single day of the Napoleonic Wars?
Borodino
Leipzig was bloodier overall but lasted several days.
Q 11How did Wellington famously describe the battle?
The nearest-run thing you ever saw in your life
He also called his own force an "infamous army, very weak and ill-equipped".
Q 12How many days after Waterloo did Napoleon abdicate?
Four
Coalition forces entered Paris on 7 July.
Q 13What is the decades of relative peace after 1815 often called?
Pax Britannica
The phrase "meeting one's Waterloo" entered the language for a catastrophic reversal.
Q 21What large tree served as Wellington's command post for much of the day?
An elm
It stood near the crossroads of the Ohain road and the Brussels road.
Q 22What defensive technique did Wellington use to hide his strength from the French?
The reverse slope
Only his skirmishers and artillery were visible from the French ridge.
Q 23Which fortified château anchored Wellington's right flank?
Hougoumont
It held out all day, even after Napoleon had it shelled and set on fire.
Q 24How many King's German Legion light infantry garrisoned La Haye Sainte?
Q 14On 13 March 1815 which gathering declared Napoleon an outlaw?
The Congress of Vienna
That was six days before he even reached Paris.
Q 15Who commanded the French right wing sent to pursue the Prussians?
Marshal Grouchy
He was still obeying orders at Wavre the next morning while the main army collapsed.
Q 16Near which town did the French cross the frontier before dawn on 15 June?
Charleroi
The move seized a central position between Wellington's and Blücher's armies.
Q 17At whose ball in Brussels did Wellington learn the speed of the French advance?
The Duchess of Richmond's
He received the dispatch in the early hours of 16 June and ordered a concentration on Quatre Bras.
Q 18What percentage of Wellington's 74,000 troops were British?
38%
Another 10% were the King's German Legion; the rest came from the Netherlands, Hanover, Brunswick and Nassau.
Q 19Who was Wellington's second-in-command and cavalry chief?
Lord Uxbridge
His leg was shattered by grape-shot late in the day and amputated.
Q 20What monument, completed in 1826, dominates the Waterloo battlefield?
The Lion's Mound
It was built from 300,000 cubic metres of earth taken from the centre of the British line.
400
They held the centre almost all day until their ammunition ran out.
Q 25Which regiment held the sandpit opposite La Haye Sainte as sharpshooters?
The 95th Rifles
The disused quarry sat on the other side of the Brussels road from the farm.
Q 26At breakfast, Napoleon called Wellington what kind of general?
A bad one
He added that the English were bad troops, perhaps to stiffen his pessimistic staff.
Q 27Why did Napoleon delay the start of the battle?
The ground was sodden
Heavy overnight rain made manoeuvring cavalry and artillery difficult.
Q 28Which of Napoleon's brothers led the initial attack on the château on Wellington's right?
Jerome
His division was meant to draw in Wellington's reserves; it was the French who got sucked in.
Q 29Which French officer broke open the château's north gate with an axe?
Sous-Lieutenant Legros
The British closed the gate behind the intruders, and every Frenchman trapped inside was killed.
Q 30How many guns formed Napoleon's grande batterie?
80
It was too far back to aim accurately at troops hidden on the reverse slope.