Napoleon was forty-five years old when he fought—and lost—the battle of Waterloo. The battle took place on June 18, 1815, in what is modern-day Belgium. It says a lot about Napoleon that he fought his last battle at such a relatively young age. Most generals at that time were considerably older than Napoleon. Von Blücher, for example, head of the Prussian forces at Waterloo, was seventy-three-years old.

But few generals have experienced the kind of rapid rise through the ranks enjoyed by Napoleon, whose remarkable military genius was recognized even by his most implacable enemies. His career in the French Army started at the tender age of sixteen, when he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the La Fère artillery regiment. Napoleon's subsequent rise was truly meteoric, and he was eventually promoted to Brigadier General at the astonishingly young age of twenty-four. It was from this exalted position that Napoleon launched his political career in France and, subsequently, the international stage, which ultimately led to his defeat at Waterloo.

How old was Napoleon when he died?

Napoleon was 51 years old when he died in exile on the island of St. Helena, in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. Born in 1769 on the French-controlled island of Corsica, he rose to prominence as an officer during the wars of the French Revolution. He rose quickly through the ranks of the army, commanding an army in Italy that achieved staggering successes against overwhelming odds in the late 1790s. He seized control of the French government in 1799, overthrowing the Directory. By 1806, he was Emperor of the French, and he led the nation in a series of bloody wars against coalitions made up of most of the other kingdoms of Europe. He was exiled to the island of Elba in 1814 after a series of disastrous defeats. He returned one year later to retake control of the French army, leading it to defeat at Waterloo. After this defeat, he was exiled to the remote island of St. Helena. He died of what was probably stomach cancer on the island in 1821.