In celebration, here's another account from Maudit at Waterloo
Observing the Battle This humorous anecdote we can assume is based at the time of the French Cavalry attacks.
“Placed with the left ahead, as we ha been at Ligny, the 3e and 4e Grenadier regiments lined the crest of the first position occupied by the Comte d’Erlon. From there, almost all their squares were able to gaze, at their ease, on the imposing spectacle which revealed itself before them at three quarter cannon range; for such was the distance between la Belle Alliance and the top of the Mont Saint Jean ridge. But the two senior regiments of Grenadiers, finding themselves on a small reverse slope, were reduced to stamping around in impatience in the thick mud in which we sank to the ankles.
Our own view was only some clouds of smoke floating in the air, and as a distraction, the muffled sound of twenty batteries. Bored with our inaction and with nothing to see, we demanded and obtained, as at Ligny, to be able to go and visit some comrades who were with the forward units. We stopped at the square of the 2e Grenadiers who were in front of us. ‘Are you looking for Monsieur S___’ some grenadiers said to us, laughing. ‘Well, see that tree a hundred paces to our right, he is there.’ Indeed, we soon saw him suspended 20 to 30 feet from the ground, in the foliage of an oak. In a few seconds we were at his side, but we were no alone; the tree bent under the weight of ten or twelve other officers, NCOs and grenadiers, in the same way as in public festivities or grand reviews, the trees of the Champs-Elysees and the Champs-de-Mars bent under the weight of the curious who invaded them, even at Planchenoit, each tree had been taken by assault up to the top!
From there, we could distinctly see all the movements of the combatants, and sometimes the tricks of the Scottish infantry, using the wheat as cover to surprise our skirmishers: we sometimes saw them running to save themselves from groups of our cavalry. These tricks were often repeated, and kept us amused, for each moment some entertainment seemed to be born of this game. Our skirmishers also set ambushes, but with less evidence of success: the English, because of their dominating ground, identified their least movements.
Shells often exploded near us and their fragments were lost in the branches of the trees or in the hedges that surrounded us. A ball, coming at full force, firmly struck an apple tree twenty paces from us, and threw into the orchard the five or six grenadiers that were installed in it; we all laughed at their misadventure that, happily for them, had no unfortunate consequences.
We were also spectators of the Brilliant charges that have been described. Numerous ‘bravos’ were shouted by us!...Ah! If only we had been able, at this moment of crisis, to offer them the support of our bayonets!
But the Emperor who we could see in the middle of his headquarters 400 yards away, was alone able to give us orders. Our voices at least, followed the cavary into the middle of the melee!...
The trees that were to our right, hid us entirely from the Prussians attack, but their balls started to pass over our heads, with those of the English, a fusillade also seemed to be approaching from Planchenoit, each of us climbed down from our open-air amphitheatre, and rejoined his square. On re-entering mine, our friend S___ had the sorrow to see seven of the grenadiers of his company, spread lifeless and horribly mutilated; it was the ravage of a single cruel ball that had fallen amongst this company!
On return to our battalion, a thousand questions were asked of us, as if we had returned from a great journey…”
