LONDON.- Letters written to the future monarch George IV by the Duke of Wellington and the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte – one proclaiming victory, the other defeat – will go on display at Windsor Castle from 31 January 2015. They are part of an exhibition and themed visit, Waterloo at Windsor: 1815 – 2015, which includes items seized from the battlefield, historic documents from the Royal Collection and the Royal Archives, and contemporary prints and drawings.

Dated 13 July 1815, Napoleon's letter of surrender was written to the Prince Regent 25 days after the allied victory at Waterloo and signed by the Emperor himself. Addressed to 'Your Royal Highness', the letter pleads for the 'hospitality of the British people' and calls on the Prince as the 'most powerful, the most constant, and the most generous of my enemies' for protection. Seeking refuge, the Emperor compares himself to Themistocles, a Greek statesman who threw himself on the mercy of the Persian ruler Artaxerxes and was subsequently received with honour.

On receiving the letter the Prince declared, 'Upon my word, a very proper letter: much more so, I must say, than any I ever received from Louis XVIII'. Despite this, Napoleon's request for protection was refused, and the Emperor was sent to exile on the island of St Helena, where he remained until his death in May 1821. The letter of surrender will go on display alongside other Napoleonic memorabilia, including a lock of the Emperor's hair and a star of a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Légion d'Honneur, worn by Napoleon.

A letter sent by the Duke of Wellington to the Prince Regent following the battle will go on display for the first time. The Duke led the allied armies to victory, fighting alongside 72-year-old Field-Marshal Blücher of Prussia, nicknamed 'Marshal Forwards' because of his eagerness in battle. Sent just 14 days after the battle, the letter was a response to the Prince's 'most gracious letter of the 22d June'. The Duke writes, 'Your Royal Highness will again have saved the World', perpetuating the Prince Regent's own belief in his important role in the military and political triumph over Napoleon, despite having never seen active service. As a lasting monument to the battle and subsequent peace, the future King commissioned the magnificent Waterloo Chamber at the heart of Windsor Castle, filling it with portraits of the key political and military figures associated with the campaign.

Among other historic documents going on display are letters to the Prince Regent from members of the royal family in the immediate aftermath of the battle. In one, the Queen of Württemberg, the Prince Regent's sister and the wife of King Frederick of Württemberg, congratulates the Prince on 'the glorious Victory' which had 'enabled the Duke of Wellington to render his name and that of the British Army immortal'. Referring to the war as having 'threatned the ruin of Europe', she expresses her 'pleasure to see Great Britain pacify the Globe' and her pride in 'belong[ing] to so brave and noble a Nation'.

A letter sent to the Prince by his mother, Queen Charlotte (wife of George III), expresses the fear of Napoleon and relief following the conclusion of the war. Congratulating her son 'upon the Glorious Success this Nation has obtained over the Tyrant of the whole World', the Queen's letter laments the loss of young officers and the 'Valiant Men' who had fought in the war.

Exhibition curator, Kate Heard of Royal Collection Trust said, 'It is very exciting to be able to display both these letters as part of the Waterloo at Windsor exhibition. These vivid and important documents provide a fascinating insight into the minds of the Duke and the Emperor almost directly after the Battle of Waterloo.'