{"id":83,"date":"2018-02-15T13:59:28","date_gmt":"2018-02-15T13:59:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/?p=83"},"modified":"2018-02-23T12:24:28","modified_gmt":"2018-02-23T12:24:28","slug":"trip-to-waterloo-8-11-february-2018-by-megan-king","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/2018\/02\/15\/trip-to-waterloo-8-11-february-2018-by-megan-king\/","title":{"rendered":"Trip to Waterloo 8-11 February 2018 by Megan K"},"content":{"rendered":"

As someone who had very little knowledge of the Napoleonic Wars prior to visiting Waterloo, my experience there was eye-opening, to say the least. In my native Pennsylvania, students of history are predominately instructed on topics relating to Native Americans, the Imperial Crisis of the American Revolution, the Civil War and Reconstruction, World War II, and the Civil Rights Movement.\u00a0 My only previous connection to the 20-year conflict in general was through a fifth-grade lesson on the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812, where we learned of the bombardment of Fort McHenry and Francis Scott Key\u2019s penning of the Star-Spangled Banner<\/em>.\u00a0 In fact, to add to my shame, the earliest I can recall gaining any insight into the legend of Napoleon Bonaparte was through the Ben Stiller film Night at the Museum<\/em>.\u00a0 On the bright side, the narrow scope of American-centric history made me all the more appreciative of the opportunity to participate in the Age of Revolution project.<\/p>\n

Our journey began with a visit to the Ambulance Museum of Mont Saint-Jean, which fabulously illustrated the absolute brutality of the Battle of Waterloo. The exhibits we visited emphasized a sense of humanity within the battle.\u00a0 The people involved in this decisive battle were not just soldiers, they were fathers, husbands, brothers, and sons who battled in grimmest of conditions.\u00a0 Many met violent ends and those who were lucky enough to survive were often left mentally and physically damaged.\u00a0 After this humbling introduction to the engagement, Dr. Tim Bowman provided an extremely insightful talk to set the stage for the next day\u2019s battlefield walk.\u00a0 Discussing the military strategies exercised by both sides as well as the weaponry utilized, the Age of Revolution crew was thoroughly prepared to visit the scene of the crime.<\/p>\n

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After a fueling up with a plate of dumplings and a good night\u2019s sleep, we took on the 1815 Memorial Museum, la Butte du Lion, and Hougoumont. Honestly, I could have spent the entire day exploring the Memorial Museum alone.\u00a0 The materials were so well presented and the artifacts were so well curated that I spent half of my time marveling at the layout of the museum and half of my time surveying the actual items it houses.\u00a0 The next step, or steps I suppose, 225 of them to be exact, was visiting the Lion\u2019s Mound.\u00a0 Not only did I realize how out of shape I am, I also came to fully realize the extent of the catastrophe at Waterloo.\u00a0 Standing on top of the Mound, I was able to look out, recalling Dr. Bowman\u2019s illustration of the battle, and truly appreciate the efforts and the tenacity that both sides brought to the table during this immense clash.\u00a0 Afterward, a short stroll to Hougoumont provided the group with an intriguing and endearing account of Britain\u2019s successful endeavor to prevent the property from falling into Napoleon\u2019s hands.\u00a0 As a historian with rather limited experience but quite high interest in military history, I was baffled by the fact that some 26,000 troops engaged in the fight for Hougoumont and its surrounding area.\u00a0 To say that the second day of our excursion left an impression would be an absolute understatement.<\/p>\n

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Our last full day in beautiful Belgium started with a talk by Dr. Ambrogio Caiani at Napoleon\u2019s headquarters. If it hadn\u2019t been for the excruciatingly windy conditions, I could have listened to Dr. Caiani discuss the location and its significance all day.\u00a0 After a quick pit stop to warm up with a cup of tea, we headed back to utilize the meeting rooms at the Memorial Museum, hearing several fascinating sessions on sources and objects and how these materials can provide substance to any lesson in revolutionary history.\u00a0 Speakers such as Arthur Burns and several University of Kent ambassadors enlightened us on not only how to access these resources, but additionally how to take advantage of physical items and allow them to bring history to life for students.\u00a0 To conclude a wonderful weekend of exploring, the group headed to the National Army Museum in Brussels where we were able to freely roam through the exhibits, exploring the history of the Belgian military.\u00a0 After such an informative weekend, I genuinely cannot believe how little I knew about the Napoleonic Wars a few days prior, and I am exciting to continue learning about the conflicts independently.<\/p>\n

As a former primary school teacher, I really appreciate that the project provides educators with the tools necessary to better understand this era of history as well as to present the material in a way that fully engages a younger audience. I enjoyed the fact that the trip was inclusive of those with a minimal understanding of the Battle of Waterloo in addition to those with extensive knowledge of the historical significance. \u00a0Not only were the organizers of the trip always willing to provide a deeper background into the unfolding of the events, the museums and monuments we attended as a group were accessible and very well assembled.\u00a0 After a brilliant weekend of networking, meeting fellow historians, and hearing about the specific historical interests of others, I can confidently say that the opportunity to work on the Age of Revolution project as a PhD student at the University of Kent is an absolute privilege.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As someone who had very little knowledge of the Napoleonic Wars prior to visiting Waterloo, my experience there was eye-opening, to say the least. In my native Pennsylvania, students of history are predominately instructed on topics relating to Native Americans, the Imperial Crisis of the American Revolution, the Civil War and Reconstruction, World War II, … Continue reading Trip to Waterloo 8-11 February 2018 by Megan K<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51227,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[189298,655,158285],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/51227"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=83"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":94,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/83\/revisions\/94"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=83"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=83"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.kent.ac.uk\/ageofrevolution\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=83"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}