On 23 June 1815 both Houses of Parliament passed Votes of Thanks to the Duke of Wellington for the ‘consummate ability, unexampled exertion, and irresistible ardour' that he showed at the Battle of Waterloo. Similar votes were passed to Wellington's principal officers, Prussia's Marshal Blücher, and the soldiers of the allied armies.

The Secretary of State for War, Earl Bathurst, moved the Vote of Thanks in the House of Lords. In his speech, Bathurst gave an extended account of the battle based on Wellington's Waterloo Dispatch, which had delivered news of the great victory only two days earlier.

Use the menu on the left to view the other pages of this document