THE people of Wellington are being asked to attend a meeting next week if they want to get involved in marking the 200th anniversary of the Battle of Waterloo - one of Britain's most famous-ever battles.

The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday, June 18, 1815, near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, around 15kms south of Brussels.

A French Army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by the armies of the Seventh Coalition comprising of an Anglo-allied army under the leadership of the Duke of Wellington.

Two hundred years on and community interest company, Point Three, and Carnival committee chairman, Dave Rylatt, are urging people to attend a meeting which takes place at 7.30pm on Monday (January 26, 2015) in Rule 7 on the High Street, Wellington, to decide on the best ways to commemorate and celebrate the anniversary.

Point Three director Peter Watts said they wanted to bring people together to organise a series of events as a Battle of Waterloo Commemoration because it was felt the town should be leading the way in marking this special anniversary because of its links to Arthur Wellesley, better known as the Duke of Wellington.

He said: "We really want people to come along to the meeting to discuss ideas on what they feel Wellington should be doing to honour this important historic event.

"We are already in discussion with National Trust, members of Wellington Town Council and national media organisations to discuss ways to celebrate the anniversary and we hope to stage a concert if possible.

"We are aiming to organise other opportunities for schools, community groups and businesses to get involved and would like to hear from organisations if they are planning any events, to offer our help."

Other events which are being discussed are a walking tour around Wellington aimed at school children in Years 1-6, competitions for children to enter and possible links with this year's Wellington Carnival.

Wellington gave its name to the first Duke of Wellington, Arthur Wellesley. The Wellington Monument was built at nearby Wellington Hill and created to celebrate the victory at the Battle of Waterloo.

It is hoped there will be many exciting events taking place throughout 2015, not just in June. For further details visit http://www.pointthree.org.uk/ or email manager@pointthree.org.uk or call 07761 485657.