News from the Front Part 3 - Hougoumont and the bivouacs

We started off this morning in drizzling rain walking from La Belle Alliance along the route of attack by the Imperial Guard. The feeling in the group was very excited and full of anticipation. We had a rendezvous at Hougoumont for a showing round the farm at 1100. 

At the newly rebuilt North Gate I saw a familiar yet out of place little man with a strange face less than 4 feet in front of me... hmmm now who is this guy? someone I know from work? and why is he wearing a suit in this weather and on a farm track? No, it's..... Nigel Farage... eh??? and yes, it was. Doing his bit for Britain in a foreign land with absolutely no one knowing who he is and no one caring. Yes, the world does iron out its little wrinkles given time. 

Hougoumont was a fantastic experience. I had expected a bit of a tidy up and getting rid of the rubble. What we got was an absolute treat and one of the museum exhibits of the year! In the Great Barn they have produced a stunning Audio Visual experience with CGI, mechanical moving sculptures, light show, rock concert sound track and wonderful re enactment over lays. I have never in my life heard an audience clap before for a show which involved no human beings. It happened here, twice. 

Top it off with some of the pix in this post and you get the idea. The bivouacs were wonderful and the pictures tell the whole story. HLI, Avant Garde, Brunswicker Leib Battalion, 95th, KGL, Prussian Hussars, British Line battalions, Leger, Ligne, Garde Chasseurs and Grenadiers, Carabiniers, Grenadiers a cheval, Chasseurs a cheval, Spanish, Italian and Swiss battalions. We even had Austrian Cuirassiers and Uhlans!!

Tomorrow we will go to the first of the reenactments. Belgium has really done the 200th Anniversary justice so far. The buzz is palpable the atmosphere crackling with electric anticipation and the weather... well, it turned out nice again!