The Napoleonic Wars, a series of wars between France and a number of European nations, lasted from 1799 to 1815. They were a continuation of the wars of the French Revolution, in which the Habsburgs and other dynastic rulers of Europe combined in an effort to overthrow the revolutionary government of France and restore the French monarchy. French forces conquered much of Europe, but suffered a disaster in Russia in 1812. Rising nationalist resistance in Europe and military setbacks eventually forced Napoleon to abdicate in 1814. He returned from exile on the Isle of Elba to suffer a final defeat at the Battle of Waterloo in 1815.