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Following the French Revolution, Napoleon I of France began a series of European wars. His aim was the conquest of Europe. In 1803, Britain resumed war against France, following an appeal from the Maltese (objecting to Napoleon\'s seizure of the island in 1798). In 1805, Napoleon\'s planned invasion of Britain from Boulogne ended with Nelson\'s victory at Trafalgar, and in 1806, Napoleon instituted an attempted blockade - \'the Continental System\' - to isolate Britain from Europe. This finally collapsed after its rejection by Russia. Napoleon then made the fatal decision to invade Russia and was defeated by the Russian resistance, losing some 380,000 men.
Britain, Prussia, Russia, Austria and Sweden formed a new coalition, which defeated Napoleon at the Battle of the Nations at Leipzig, Germany. Napoleon abdicated and was exiled to the island of Elba.He returned to Paris in 1815, but was finally defeated at Waterloo by Wellington and his Prussian allies, on 18 June that year.
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