A Lego exhibition depicting the life of French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, marks the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo.  

On June 18, 1815 British and Prussian forces defeated Napoleon's French army. With 50,000 dead, it was the final blow to the empire Napoleon established, and is best known as the Battle of Waterloo.

200 years on, the Belgian town of Waterloo looks at various milestones in Napoleon's life through Lego.

French designer Eric Jousse is behind the team that put in thousands of hours of brick work.

Twenty people - modellers and builders - worked on the Waterloo exhibition using about one million building blocks. This represented around 1,000 hours of construction work.  

Waterloo Alderman Yves Vander Cruysen, says Lego provided a creative lens to view an important milestone. 

"Here, we wanted to do something for children, who generally come with their parents and grandparents. This exhibition meets our expectations. It allows a better understanding of the Battle of Waterloo and the 'Empire' period for all generations in a playful way."

Rounding out the exhibit are Lego impressions of the emperor's iconic bicorn, his throne and a reworking of painter Jacques-Louis David's well known work, 'Napoleon Crossing the Alps."