Russell King Homer's History

July 15, 1815

While the world in the summer of 1815 was largely fixated on the aftermath of the Battle of Waterloo, July 15 specifically marks the definitive end of the Napoleonic era. It was the day the “Emperor of the French” finally ceased his resistance, shifting the global power balance toward the British Empire and ushering in a century of relative European stability known as the Pax Britannica.

The Great Surrender: July 15, 1815

After his defeat at Waterloo on June 18 and his subsequent abdication on June 22, Napoleon Bonaparte attempted to flee France for the United States. However, with British naval blockades tightening around the French coast, he found himself trapped at the port of Rochefort.

  • The HMS Bellerophon: On the morning of July 15, Napoleon boarded the British warship HMS Bellerophon. He famously surrendered to Captain Frederick Maitland, famously stating in a letter to the Prince Regent of England: “I come, like Themistocles, to throw myself upon the hospitality of the British people.”
  • The Exile’s Journey: While Napoleon hoped to be allowed to settle quietly in England, the British government—fearing his influence and potential for a second return—decided to exile him to the remote South Atlantic island of Saint Helena. He remained on the Bellerophon as it sailed for England, where crowds would later flock to the docks just to catch a glimpse of the man who had dominated Europe for over a decade.

Global and National Context (July 1815)

  • In the United States: The country was in the “Era of Good Feelings” following the Treaty of Ghent, which ended the War of 1812. President James Madison was overseeing a period of rapid westward expansion. The U.S. was also dealing with the “Year Without a Summer”—a global climate anomaly caused by the 1815 eruption of Mount Tambora, which led to severe crop failures and famine across the Northern Hemisphere.
  • In England: The nation was jubilant but exhausted. The Duke of Wellington was hailed as a national hero, and the government was beginning to shift its focus from war-time mobilization to the economic recovery of the post-Napoleonic world.

Birthdays: Notable Figures Born on July 15

  • 1815: Jean-Delphin Alard: A prominent French violinist and composer who became a leading figure in the French violin school of the mid-19th century.
  • 1815: John Boswell: A prominent figure in 19th-century history, though notably, July 15 is shared by many influential thinkers of this era who would shape the Victorian and post-Napoleonic cultural landscape.

Mortality: Notable Figures Who Passed Away

  • 1815: Joachim Murat: Though his formal execution occurred on October 13, 1815, the political “death” of the former King of Naples and Napoleon’s brother-in-law was finalized during this July period as the Bourbon monarchy was restored in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
  • 1815: Count Pyotr Bagration (Reburial context): While the Russian general died in 1812, July 1815 was a time when many of the “Heroes of 1812” were being honored and reburied in Russia as the new European order was established at the Congress of Vienna.

The Historical Significance: Napoleon’s surrender on the Bellerophon closed the book on the French Revolution’s expansionist phase. It paved the way for the Congress of Vienna’s final acts, which redrew the map of Europe to prevent any single nation from ever dominating the continent again.