Waterloo, Belgium
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Waterloo is a municipality in the Belgian province of Walloon Brabant.
On January 1, 2005 Waterloo had a total population of 29,230. The total area is 21.03 km² which gives a population density of 1,390.04 inhabitants per km².
One quarter of the current registered population are non-Belgian, most of whom work for institutions in Brussels, the capital of the European Union.
Waterloo is also home to St. John's International School, one of the largest and oldest international schools in Belgium.
Battle of Waterloo
Waterloo's claim to fame is the famous Battle of Waterloo (June 18, 1815) between the First French Empire of Napoleon Bonaparte and the Alliance of the Seventh Coalition (Great Britain, Prussia, Austria and others), under the main allied commanders, the Duke of Wellington and General von Blücher. There is a memorial in the form of a statue of a lion (looking towards France) on a hill, with 216 stairs. Other attractions related to the battle are the Wellington Museum and la Chapelle where Wellington is said to have made a prayer before going into battle.
Origin of the name
The placename, of Dutch origin, may mean either watercourse (cf Dutch waterloop or waterloos), or possibly the cattle shed of Walter, from the word loods for a cattle shed, and the personal name Walter, used either as a forename or a family name.See also
- Waterloo (disambiguation)
External links
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