The year is 1815 and, on a sun-drenched afternoon in Brixham, a baker by the name of Michelmore is rowing his small boat out into the bay.

Laden with loaves, rolls and buns, he is hoping to sell his produce to the men aboard the intimidating Royal Navy warships which arrived off the coast earlier that morning.

Food on the vessels is notoriously poor, and Michelmore knows he can make good money if he is the first one there to sell his produce.

Britain - still riding a wave of euphoria following her victory over the French at Waterloo a month earlier - has announced a national holiday, so Michelmore has three children who would usually be at school helping him in his boat instead.

After latching onto one particularly huge ship named Bellerophon with his boat hook, Michelmore announces his presence - and his boat-load of bread.

Napoleon Bonaparte

But rather than being welcomed with their fresh produce with open arms, they are told to keep their distance.

“If we want bread we’ll come ashore and fetch it,” bellows an officer. "And if you don’t let go we’ll sink you.”

John Smart, one of the schoolboys on the small boat, looks up to see a sentry pointing his musket at them. He then puts down his weapon, before picking up 'a large cannon ball, which he held exactly over my head... To my great relief Michelmore let go and we were soon out of harm’s way'.

Michelmore and the boys are perplexed. Why are sailors who are usually so eager to enjoy freshly-baked bread turning them away?

It is then that Smart notices someone: “At one of the lower-deck ports a man nodding violently to us... His eyes caught mine for an instant as he put his fingers to his lips with a warning gesture.”

Michelmore continues to row away, only for the man to throw a bottle into the water. They keep an eye on the bottle and, after making sure the sentries are no longer watching, they make a detour and collect it.

Smart grabs the small black bottle from the water, uncorks it and stares in amazement at the six words scrawled on it.

"We have got Bonaparte on board.”

HMS Bellerophon making sail out of Torbay with the defeated Emperor Napoleon aboard, painted by Thomas Luny

From Emperor to outlaw

Napoleon came to power in the years following the French Revolution, and in 1804 he crowned himself Emperor of France.

From 1803 to 1814, France fought a series of conflicts across Europe. Despite a series of incredible victories for Napoleon, they culminated in his disastrous invasion of Russia in 1812.

More costly defeats ultimately saw Napoleon abdicate, and he was exiled to Elba - a small island off the coast of Italy - in 1814.

However, this did not last long, and less than a year later he escaped back to France where he remained popular.

He quickly amassed an army, but Great Britain, Russia, Austria, and Prussia quickly declared him an outlaw and assembled a huge army to end his reign for good.

It was known as the Hundred Days, and it came to a shuddering halt at Waterloo.

The Battle of Waterloo in 1815

'The nearest-run thing you ever saw'

After some smaller clashes, the two armies faced off at Waterloo on June 18, 1815.

Napoleon knew time was against him: in front of him was the Duke of Wellington, and the Prussian Army was only a matter of miles away and marching to help the British.

The French attacked repeatedly but could not force their way past the red coats and, by late afternoon, the Prussians started arriving.

Napoleon knew the game was up and, despite a desperate last throw of the dice with his best troops, he was beaten.

It was 'the nearest-run thing you ever saw', said Wellington later.

He fled first to Paris, then Rochefort on France's western coast where he contemplated fleeing to America. But with British ships blocking every port as they hunted for him, he decided against it and surrendered to Captain Frederick Maitland on HMS Bellerophon on July 15.

Napoleon Bonaparte on board the Bellerophon in Plymouth Sound by Sir Charles Locke Eastlake, which is the only one to be painted from life by a British artist

Waterloo to Torbay

Maitland received orders from the Admiralty to make for the nearest British port, so he headed for Torbay.

Somewhat optimistically considering France had been at war with Britain almost continuously for the last 23 years, Napoleon had actually written a letter to the Prince Regent appealing to the 'hospitality of the British Nation'.

"Exposed to the factions which divide my country, and to the enmity of the great powers of Europe, I have terminated my political career, and I come, like Themistocles, to throw myself on the hospitality of the British Nation," he wrote.


He continued: "If H.R.H. sees no objection to granting me passports to go to the United States, it would be my intention to go there. But I do not desire to go to any other colony. If I cannot go to America, I wish to stay in England,assuming the name of Muiron or Duroc.

"I would need a house large enough for my staff....If the Government intends to provide me with a superintendent, he must not be jailer but a man of quality and honour."

Unsurprisingly, his request was refused.

Instead, he found himself a prisoner aboard Bellerophon, which arrived off the Torbay coast early on the morning of July 24 as the victors decided what to do with him.

'Quel bon pays' he reportedly said when he saw the Devon coastline: What a beautiful country.

Many people headed out to the Bellerophon to catch a glimpse of Napoleon

From Torbay to Plymouth...then back to Torbay

Napoleon later said that the view reminded him of the Bay of Ferrajo on Elba, where he had first been exiled.

Despite repeated pleas though, Maitland rejected his request to be allowed on shore.

Debate continues over where Bellerophon actually dropped anchor, with both London Bridge and Berry Head mentioned in accounts.

Another version reads: “They reached Torbay on 24th, where Maitland took up position near the Orestone whence his masts could be seen from Teignmouth Den over Hope’s Nose.

"In reply to his signals he was ordered to prohibit communication with the shore and await Admiralty orders three leagues out at sea.”

There was a certain irony that he ended up off the coast in Torbay. Not only were smugglers in the area said to do a roaring trade with their French counterparts for cognac and French wine, but the South Devon coastline had actually benefited hugely in a tourism capacity.

Berry Head

With continental Europe off-limits due to war, wealthy people had flocked to Devon for their holidays instead.

It was also close to British naval bases, making it ideal for officers and their wives.

Berry Head Fort had also been built to protect the area from French invasion.

After Smart read the message in the bottle, he returned to shore and 'in five minutes after we reached shore there was not a soul in Brixham, except babies, ignorant of the news'.

The area soon became overwhelmed with people flooding in to try and catch a glimpse of the fallen Emperor.

It was soon decided to move Bellerophon to Plymouth, which was more secure and better-equipped to deal with the huge crowds. But this simply drew even more curious onlookers - one source estimated 10,000 people per day were streaming into the area.

Pubs, restaurants and hotels were doing a fine trade, but the Royal Navy was concerned and so returned to Torbay several days later.

Napoleon was captive of Captain Maitland on board Bellerophon

Life on board

Napoleon was showered with gifts from the public, including flowers, fruit and cards.

People would go out in small boats dressed in their finest clothes, hoping to catch the emperor's eye as he enjoyed one of his many strolls on deck.

At 6pm each evening, a gong would sound and he would head below deck for dinner.

Despite being treated well, Napoleon and his companions were becoming frustrated at not being allowed on shore.

Napoleon’s guardian, Lord Keith, wrote: “You cannot imagine what a crowd we have here.The inns are full and the sea covered with swarms of small boats.

Napoleon takes his last look at England while aboard the Bellerophon off Berry Head in 1815

"I conceive that I must be particularly vigilant, for the ‘General’ and his suite are convinced that once they set foot on shore, no power on earth can bring them back again. They are determined to disembark. It is all they talk of and they are becoming very aggressive.”

Alas, there was to be no stepping foot on English soil.

On July 30 - a day before the official announcement - Maitland informed his captive that he would be exiled to St Helena in the Atlantic Ocean, almost 5,000 miles away.

On August 7, Napoleon and his loyal group boarded Northumberland and sailed to his final destination.

There, he lived out the final six years of his life in poor conditions, unhappy and ill.

He died on May 5, 1821.