If the hit song by the Swedish group "Abba" comes to mind when you hear the word "waterloo"
you may have a whole new picture in your mind after today's podcast.
When we're diving into the past to learn about the Napoleonic Wars and Napoleon's defeat
by visiting Waterloo, we'll stand at the top of the Lion's Mound with a military historian
to get a sense of what happened here.
Imagine 5,000 horses charging against the armies and more than 200 cannons here.
And why it's important to preserve these sights today? Waterloo is a short train bride from Brussels
and on many travelers day trip itineraries when visiting Belgium.
We're also discovering Brussels, called a capital of Art Nouveau architecture
on a cycling tour that you can sign up for if you visit.
It's like a little jewel and you see that there is a lot of glass,
the reason of building like that was to let the light enter in the house.
In the period of Art Nouveau it's very important that there is a lot of light in the house.
It's the Travels with Darley podcast, where traveling with the locals
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Just a half hour train ride south of Brussels we're exploring one of Belgium's most
important historic sights. It was here that on June 18th, 1815 Napoleon was defeated
for the final time, ending his career and ushering in a period of peace for Europe.
It's where tens of thousands of soldiers perished, were wounded, or captured.
It is Waterloo.
Visitors can learn about this historic battle at an interesting museum on site.
And while there's a lot to see inside, one of the best ways to immerse yourself in the history
and get a better sense of what played out here is to climb to the top of the Lion's Mound
to survey the battlefield.
Quite a climb to get up here.
Yes, you've got 226 steps.
Oh my.
Etienne Claude, an expert on the battle who organizes large-scale reenactments at Waterloo joins me
to help contextualize this bloody day in history, as we gaze out to the town of Waterloo,
and the lush green patchwork and countryside and farmland surrounding the lion's mound.
We're up here with this amazing view, but take me back to the battle of Waterloo.
What am I seeing?
Describe this to me.
Yes, you imagine 200,000 soldiers fighting in one day on the 18th of June,
on the south side, the French divisions of Napoleon,
with more cannons than the Allied armies, and then on the other side,
the famous soldiers of Wellington, and at the end of the day came the Prussian Army to help Wellington.
So it was an awful day because it trained just before the battle,
and everybody had some difficulties to approach the famous ridge of the Duke of Wellington.
And that's one of the success of the Duke that he imagined to put all these soldiers
at the re-site of the ridge, and to avoid the famous cannonballs of Napoleon.
So I would have heard the pounding of hooves from the horses. I would have heard cannons firing.
Imagine 5,000 horses charging against the armies, and more than 200 cannons here.
All the farms were burning, that he had to put squares to protect the army,
so that's an awful moment, an ugly moment.
Looking out here today, I see Waterloo, I see this beautiful farmland.
What looks the same and what looks different?
In fact, on this part of the battlefield, the countryside was
approximately the same, and then on the north side, then you have for sure the city of Waterloo and
of Braine-l’Alleud, with more than 60,000 inhabitants. So that's very different, but you can imagine
all the landscape due to this preservation.
Thanks to a 1914 law, much of the battlefield has been preserved,
and visitors can more easily imagine the battle by attending the annual Battle of Waterloo
Reenactment, each June. Another way to experience the battle is to enter the large rotunda,
where a 330-foot-long, 36-foot-high work of art epically demonstrates the event.
During the 19th century panoramic paintings like this were a popular form of entertainment.
People actually traveled to see these, and there were also traveling exhibitions,
and the paintings depicted battles, distant cities, beautiful landscapes, they showed people something
new. Now today, even with all of our technology, I find this impressive, so I can only imagine what
people thought back then. Often referred to as the imax of the past, only a small
percentage of these special works are still around today, including when at Gettysburg,
and one hereat Waterloo, helping modern travelers to step back in time and better relate to the past.
It's meeting local experts at places like Waterloo that helps further bring history to life,
and helps us learn from the past, anew. We're taking the train back to Brussels to explore the city
on two wheels. Brussels is a great city to explore by bicycle, and I've signed up for a unique
Art Nouveau architecture tour, with Pro Velo and guide Riet Naessens.
Developed in the 1880s through the First World War, the term Art Nouveau, or New Art, first appeared
in a Belgian journal. It's characterized by long organic lines and whiplash curves, often emulating
things found in the natural world. Especially popular in Brussels, around 500 buildings in the
Art Nouveau style remained today, and our first stop is in the Montagne Quarter.
This way of painting, the facade, is very typical of the turn of the century. It's made by Paul Cauchie
and it's a picture of a tree, the tree that grows at the ponds of Ixelles, where we are going now.
And so you see that there is gold also on it, it's real gold, it's gold leaflet,
and the colors are also typical, the red and the green colors, and caramel, we call it caramel,
you know, the brown color. So all these beautiful details, you just have to look up?
Yes. It's amazing what you see even in your own area when you stop to savor the details.
Not much further, we have another neighborhood to discover. Now have a look, we have just turned to
corner, we left turned, and we are already in a completely different neighborhood. We have a lot
of a new home houses here, built by Ernest Blerot. You see the balconies over there, they're really
very typical. In this area, raw iron balconies are particularly prominent.
This neighborhood was very fashionable around 1900, and afterwards it declined.
The neighborhood is on the rise again, with many buildings being restored and preserved.
Further down hill, we careen by one of Brussels' many green spaces.
So we are here in a neighborhood called the Ponds of Ixelles, it's very exclusive, it's
rather expensive to live. Reminds me of London, these buildings, and here to the left you have
Flagey, an important cultural center. This art deco style building, whose many concerts
in its outdoor cafes are a popular place to dine. Just around the corner, Riet takes me to see
an Art Nouveau gem. It's like a little jewel, it has been built by the architect Ernest Delune,
and here he played really with his name, the lune lune mince moon. So you have the full moon over there,
and also at the door gate, but you also have half moon and a quarter of moon.
On the top you have the study of the architect, that's where he worked, and you see that there is a
lot of glass. The reason of building like that was to let the light enter in the house.
In the period of Art Nouveau’ it's very important that there is a lot of light in the house.
Our final stop is a townhouse built by one of our new, those most important pioneers.
So here we are at the Avenue Louisa and we arrive at the most beautiful house of Brussels.
It is the Solvay Hotel, built by Victor Horta. So what is so special in that house is that
Horta received from Mr. Solvay, carte blanche. It means he could do whatever he wanted.
The price was not important. So je was that rich that he could afford all kinds of marble,
all kinds of luxury. The wooden steel facade and combination of materials for the carriage
entrance are just a few reasons why this townhome is part of UNESCO's World Heritage List.
You must imagine that this avenue, Avenue Louisa, was very fashionable in the 19th century.
People came on Sundays to admire the beautiful houses, the beautiful facades.
You must imagine that the Solvays were at their balcony to salute the people passing.
So this is a place where people would walk and admire the beautiful buildings,
and then the people that lived in them could share them off.
Yes, that's it.
While many Art Nouveau buildings were destroyed when the style fell out of fashion,
today these buildings are being restored and preserved in Brussels.
Nowadays they are not allowed to demolish buildings like that.
Lots of upkeep here in Brussels.
Lots of work.
Yes, there's a lot of work.
But it's worth it in the capital of Art Nouveau to keep this open air gallery alive,
and definitely worth it to explore with the locals on a bicycle.
I'm Darley Newman and I appreciate you taking the time to learn with me in Waterloo
and Brussels in Belgium.
If you like to travel, please subscribe to the Travels with Darley Podcast,
where I take you around the world with locals as the guides.
And look for my series on PBS and streaming.
I'll see you on the next adventure.
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