seven o'clock
We were drawn up on a nearly square tableland known as the Plain of Ayacucho , a league in circumference , and flanked right and left by rugged ravines . We had the village at our backs , and the only road by which we could retreat was effectually blocked . The Royalist army was perched just below the summit of a gigantic ridge called Condorcanqui , which formed the eastern boundary of the plain . At seven o'clock our regiment moved out , and the men of the third squadron , of whom Cordova had spoken , provoked much humour and good-natured chaff as they rode past on their baggage mules . It was thought that they would help to make a show , but no one suspected that later on , when ordered to remain in the rear , they would answer firmly , `` No , we will conquer or die with our comrades ! '' The cavalry , consisting of four regiments , was stationed in the centre , with an infantry division on either side , and a third in the rear as a reserve . About nine o'clock a great cheer rose from all parts of the plain : the Royalists were descending the craggy side of Condorcanqui .