Since his first days in power he aroused controversies that continue today. Napoleon created a new form of government in France, reshaped the boundaries of Europe, and influenced revolutionaries and nationalists the world over. The eagle (his preferred symbol) had taken its last flight. When he lost his final battle at Waterloo in Belgium in 1815, the victors sent him to the faraway island of Saint Helena, where he died in 1821. Forced into exile on the island of Elba, Napoleon escaped to fight one last time.
Within two years the powers allied against him had captured Paris. In 1812 he invaded Russia, where he won most of the battles but lost an army in the process. His fall from the pinnacle of power was almost as startling as his rise. Celebrating Napoleon’s Birthday on the Island of St.
