the loss of some of the american colonies in the american war of independence was regarded as a national disaster and was seen by some foreign observers as heralding the end of britain as a great power. in europe, the wars with france dragged on for nearly a quarter of a century, 1793–1815. victory over napoleon at the battle of trafalgar (1805) and the battle of waterloo (1815) under admiral lord nelson and the duke of wellington brought a sense of triumphalism and political reaction.