- Beginning in 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte, a man of endless ambitions, led the French. At the height of his glory in 1812, Napoleon controlled most of Europe. In 1803, he began a plan to invade Britain. But in 1805, Admiral Horatio Nelson of Britain won a great victory over the French and Spanish fleets at Trafalgar, off the southern coast of Spain.
- Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815 in the Battle of Waterloo.
- In 1837, an 18-year-old woman named Victoria became queen. She reigned for 63 years, until 1901—the longest reign in British history. This period is called the Victorian Age. During this period, the British Empire reached its height. It included about a quarter of the world’s land and about a quarter of the world’s people. Wealth poured into Britain from its colonies. British industry continued to expand, and the country was called the workshop of the world. Railways and canals covered Britain, and telephone and telegraph lines linked the big cities. Literature and science flourished.
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