The hero of Waterloo needed all his men to believe in him that day, but none believed in him more than his cook.
Charles Dickens’s ‘Household Words’ for 1851 recounted a summer visit to the site of the Battle of Waterloo in 1815, where the Duke of Wellington masterminded the defeat of Emperor Napoleon. Some of the tales told by the guides were of doubtful authenticity, but Dickens liked this one about the Duke’s personal chef.
William Howitt had some advice for Victorian tourists hoping for an authentic experience at the battlefield of Waterloo.
The Battle of Waterloo in 1815 created a tourist attraction for patriotic Englishmen hoping to connect with the Duke of Wellington’s legendary victory. Some tour guides, Charles Dickens cautioned, were inclined to fantasise, but happily an authentic voice was on hand.