This, the fourth volume of Andrew Field's exceptionally desperate study of the Waterloo campaign from the French perspective, vividly depicts the often neglected final phase, the defeat and retreat of Napoleon's army. The text is based exclusively on French eyewitness accounts that provide an insider's view of the immediate aftermath of the battle and trace the history until the dissolution of the army in late 1815. Many French officers and soldiers wrote more about the retreat than about the disaster of Waterloo. Their memoirs provide an intriguing insight into the psychology of the French soldier. They also offer a first-rate record of their experiences and the spectrum of their reactions, from those who abandoned the colors and headed home, to those who continued to serve faithfully when all was lost. Napoleon's flight from Waterloo is an essential part of the narrative, but the main emphasis is on the fate of the defeated French army as experienced by the witnesses who lived through the final days of the campaign.