eleven o’clock
Launching his cavalry and artillery by the road to Brussels , he hoped thus to cut off the communication of the British with their own left , as well as with the Prussians , for whom he trusted that Grouchy would be more than a match . The reserves were in consequence all brought up to the centre . Seven thousand cavalry and a massive artillery assembled upon the heights of La Belle Alliance , and waited but the order to march . It was eleven o'clock , and Napoleon mounted his horse and rode slowly along the line ; again the cry of `` Vive l'Empereur ! '' resounded , and the bands of the various regiments struck up their spirit-stirring strains as the gorgeous staff moved along . On the British side all was tranquil ; and still the different divisions appeared to have taken up their ground , and the long ridge from Ter-la-Haye to Merke-braine bristled with bayonets . Nothing could possibly be more equal than the circumstances of the field .