Napoleon therefore at first offered to abdicate in favor of his son,
but, when he found that would not be sufficient, he signed an
unconditional abdication on April 11, 1814. He was given the
sovereignty of the island of Elba, and the Bourbons, in the person of
Louis XVIII., were restored to the throne of France. But the condition
of affairs was very precarious. The return of the Bourbons was most
unpopular. It indeed restored the parliament, but it unsettled the
position of public men and the title to estates. The army was
disgusted at the appointment to commands of emigres who had fought
against France. The Church began to cause alarm to the holders of
national property; and by the release of prisoners and the return of
the garrisons of German fortresses, very large numbers of Napoleonic
soldiers became dispersed over France. The coalition, too, broke up,
and fresh alliances began to be sought with a view to check the
aggressive spirit which Russia seemed inclined to manifest. Altogether
affairs in Europe and France were in such a state as to make it not
impossible that the magic of Napoleon's name might replace him in
power. He accordingly resolved on making the attempt, left Elba on
February 26, 1815, and landed on the French coast on March 1st. On the
20th he entered Paris, having been joined by the army.

Europe had declared war against him, and a new coalition had been
formed, but only two armies were immediately ready to take the field;
a mixed force under the Duke of Wellington in Belgium, and a Prussian
army under Bluecher in the Rhine provinces. The English army had its
base on the sea, and the Prussian on the Rhine, so that they had
diverging lines of operation. Napoleon's idea was to strike suddenly
at their point of junction before they could concentrate, push in
between them, drive them apart, and then defeat each separately. The
plan was unexceptionable, resembling that of his first campaign in
1796, and the opening moves were successfully carried out. Napoleon
left Paris on June 12th, his army being then echeloned between Paris
and the Belgian frontier, so that the point where the blow would fall
was still doubtful. On the 15th he occupied Charleroi, and was between
the two allied armies, and on the 16th he defeated Bluecher at Ligny
before Wellington could come to his assistance. So far all had gone
well with him; but now, apparently, his energy was not sufficient to
cope rapidly with the difficulties