13. That Waterloo was the battle which saved Europe from Napoleonic domination is a myth
When Napoleon returned from his exile in Elba he made his peaceful intentions known to the monarchs of Europe, though they quickly formed yet another coalition to depose him. The French emperor was forced to rearm quickly, and to strike quickly, in the hope that an early victory could prevent another major war. But even if the Emperor had scored a decisive victory over the Prussians and British at Waterloo the Austrians, Prussians, Russians, and others were still mobilizing armies which would have crushed the French, exhausted by years of warfare. The battle of Waterloo saved France from total devastation through another protracted war.