IT was an exciting battle and very much in the balance until near the end.
Indeed at first the Pragmatic Army appeared in serious trouble as the cavalry on its left wing disappeared, but in the end the superiority of British musketry turned the tide.
The advantage we both thought I would get from siting my guns on the Einsamenhügel turned out to be illusory as their choice of targets was quickly reduced by my advancing foot.
Maurice, on the other hand, cleverly positioned his guns so they could support his right-flank attack without being masked by their own troops. However, this was not enough to turn the tide.
One particularly realistic touch came after Maurice's right-flank horse triumphed and seemed poised to swoop down on the unprotected flank of the British infantry. I was able to foil this by advancing the Hanoverian foot from the second line - their firepower deterring the French cavalry from attempting a charge.
However, we found that generally there was not enough incentive for players to maintain a historically-accurate second line.
Accordingly, I am tweaking the morale section of my rules by adding this clause:
A unit adds 1 to its morale throw if it has a friendly unit directly behind and able to reach it in two turns by normal movement, ie in the formation it is in and without any movement-variation addition. Exception: light infantry and artillery units cannot give support in this way.
Showing posts with label Battle of Einsamenhügel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Battle of Einsamenhügel. Show all posts
Thursday, March 24, 2016
The Battle of Einsamenhügel - Part Two
TURN FOUR (continued)
This proved a particularly bloodthirsty turn with the musketry duels resulting in the Pragmatic Army losing the Buffs and Royal Foot.
But it was even worse for the Franco-Bavarians, who lost the Champagne Foot, the Grenadiers de France and one battalion of Kurprinz Foot.
Units eliminated after four turns.Pragmatic Army: four (hussars, King's Own Horse and two battalions of foot)
Franco-Bavarians: six (hussars, one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons and four battalions of foot)
TURN FIVE
A relatively uneventful turn, except for the Kurprinz whose last remaining soldiers were eliminated by some well-directed artillery fire.
Units eliminated after five turns.Pragmatic Army: four (hussars, King's Own Horse and two foot battalions)
Franco-Bavarians: seven (hussars, one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons and five battalions of foot)
And at this point the turn became rather more eventful as, with the outcome of the battle no longer in doubt, Maurice conceded.
This proved a particularly bloodthirsty turn with the musketry duels resulting in the Pragmatic Army losing the Buffs and Royal Foot.
But it was even worse for the Franco-Bavarians, who lost the Champagne Foot, the Grenadiers de France and one battalion of Kurprinz Foot.
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| Overview of the battlefield from behind the Franco-Bavarian lines at the end of the fourth turn |
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| Close-up of the cavalry duel between the Modena Cuirassiers and Hohenzollern Dragoons, with the former getting much the better of it and the latter about to flee. In the centre background can be seen the Royal-Buff Grenadiers with the blue coats of the Dutch foot beyond them |
Franco-Bavarians: six (hussars, one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons and four battalions of foot)
TURN FIVE
A relatively uneventful turn, except for the Kurprinz whose last remaining soldiers were eliminated by some well-directed artillery fire.
Units eliminated after five turns.Pragmatic Army: four (hussars, King's Own Horse and two foot battalions)
Franco-Bavarians: seven (hussars, one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons and five battalions of foot)
And at this point the turn became rather more eventful as, with the outcome of the battle no longer in doubt, Maurice conceded.
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| Final view of the battlefield |
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| The victorious King George II with grenadiers from the Royal Foot |
Wednesday, March 23, 2016
The Battle of Einsamenhügel
BEFORE battle commenced, we agreed that an army would lose once it was reduced to less than half its starting number of units (rather than less than a third).
TURN ONE
I sent my forces in a general advance all along the front while Maurice sent forward his right flank but held back the Bavarians on his left.
Both sides' artillery had immediate success, with my Buffs and one of Maurice's Kurprinz battalions losing 50 percent effectiveness.
On the extreme right, from the Franco-Bavarian perspective, the first melee was fought when the two hussar squadrons clashed, each reducing the other by 50 percent.
TURN TWO
Easily the most significant event of this turn was the big cavalry melee on the French right flank.
The hussars again fought to a draw, each squadron reduced to just 25 percent effectiveness.
But the clash of heavy cavalry was disastrous to the Pragmatic cause - the Hanoverian Von Aldeleben Dragoons were cut down and sent packing by the Cuirassiers du Roy while the King's Own Horse were completely wiped out by the Colonel General Cavalerie, who suffered no loss of their own.
TURN THREE
The bloody hussar melee finally resolved itself...with both squadrons eliminated.
Meanwhile the superiority of British musketry asserted itself on my left flank, while Maurice on his left prudently chose not to order his Bavarian foot to open fire on my advancing infantry as my battalions would have been entitled to fire back despite having moved.
Finally, on my extreme right, the Modena Cuirassiers and Bavaria's Hohenzollern Dragoons - old enemies from our version of the Battle of Blasthof Bridge - came to blows, with the Austrians getting much the better of the first round of meleeing, eliminating one enemy squadron.
Units eliminated after three turns.
Pragmatic Army: two (hussars and King's Own Horse)
Franco-Bavarians: three (hussars, Picardie Foot and one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons)
TURN FOUR
(to be continued)
TURN ONE
I sent my forces in a general advance all along the front while Maurice sent forward his right flank but held back the Bavarians on his left.
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| Looking from behind the Bavarian Kurprinz Foot. Close together in the middle distance are the British grenadiers and the Royal Foot, who have King George with them |
On the extreme right, from the Franco-Bavarian perspective, the first melee was fought when the two hussar squadrons clashed, each reducing the other by 50 percent.
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| The first melee involves the Austrian Csáky de Keresztszegh and French Bercheny Hussars. The figure of Maurice can be made out near the centre of the photo with the blue-uniformed Cuirassiers du Roy |
Easily the most significant event of this turn was the big cavalry melee on the French right flank.
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| The cavalry clash, and the infantry prepare to exchange volleys |
But the clash of heavy cavalry was disastrous to the Pragmatic cause - the Hanoverian Von Aldeleben Dragoons were cut down and sent packing by the Cuirassiers du Roy while the King's Own Horse were completely wiped out by the Colonel General Cavalerie, who suffered no loss of their own.
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| My left-wing horse have all but disappeared, leaving the foot looking very vulnerable |
The bloody hussar melee finally resolved itself...with both squadrons eliminated.
Meanwhile the superiority of British musketry asserted itself on my left flank, while Maurice on his left prudently chose not to order his Bavarian foot to open fire on my advancing infantry as my battalions would have been entitled to fire back despite having moved.
Finally, on my extreme right, the Modena Cuirassiers and Bavaria's Hohenzollern Dragoons - old enemies from our version of the Battle of Blasthof Bridge - came to blows, with the Austrians getting much the better of the first round of meleeing, eliminating one enemy squadron.
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| Close-up of the red-coated Hohenzollern Dragoons taking on the Modena Cuirassiers |
Pragmatic Army: two (hussars and King's Own Horse)
Franco-Bavarians: three (hussars, Picardie Foot and one squadron of Hohenzollern Dragoons)
TURN FOUR
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| A bird's eye view from behind the Pragmatic lines at the start of the fourth turn |
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| Again at the start of turn four, this time from behind the Kurprinz Foot. Note that I have moved King George from the Royal Foot, where he was in mortal danger of going down with the battalion, to the safer station - I hope! - of being with the Royal-Buff Grenadiers |
Tuesday, March 22, 2016
Final Adjustments
ONCE both sides have deployed their forces, I allow each player to move up to three units. Again, the player uses a sketch map to mark the moves.
I responded to Maurice's set-up by ordering the Hanoverian horse into the front line on my left and switching my hussars from the right flank to the left. I also ordered the second squadron of Modena Cuirassiers into the front line on the right.
Maurice stood pat.
Finally we were ready for battle.
I responded to Maurice's set-up by ordering the Hanoverian horse into the front line on my left and switching my hussars from the right flank to the left. I also ordered the second squadron of Modena Cuirassiers into the front line on the right.
Maurice stood pat.
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| The amended view from behind the Pragmatic right flank, looking towards the Bavarians |
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| A close-up from behind the French foot |
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| But first ... the view the villagers of Bad Wörishofen had of the two armies stretching into the distance |
Adding The Armies
AS very much expected, my opponent, a dyed-in-the-wool Francophile, chose to take the Franco-Bavarians, and to sink his identity in that of his hero, Maurice de Saxe.
I was tempted to put the famous von Kornberg is charge of the Pragmatic Army as he served me so well in winning our refight of Blasthof Bridge from Charge!, and in leading the Austrians to victory over Frederick's Prussians at the Battle of Christmas Eve (both engagements were covered extensively in my previous blog).
But the Pragmatic Army was really a mostly British-run affair, so I plumped for being represented on the table by the illustrious figure of King George II.
We diced for choice of long side, and I won 6-5 after the first roll resulted in a 6-6 tie (perhaps the dice should have been checked at this point for loading).
I chose the side with the Einsamenhügel, and we proceeded to make sketches of our intended deployments before enacting them on the table.
Because I had the Einsamenhügel in my deployment area, I went for an aggressive formation as I was able to site my two batteries of Royal Artillery on the crest. From there they could survey the whole battlefield and be high enough to fire over friendly troops in front of them, at least until the armies came too close together.
In the front line, left to right in the photo, are Austrian Csáky de Keresztszegh Hussars and Modena Cuirassiers. Then come four battalions of British foot: Royal-Buff Grenadiers, Royal Foot, The Buffs and the 5th Marines, and on the extreme right is a squadron of the King's Own Horse.
Both the Modena and King's Own squadrons have cuirasses, and the combined grenadier battalion counts as elite for morale purposes.
The 5th Marines are a tribute to my paternal grandfather's regiment (he was a sergeant in the Royal Marines and won numerous fencing trophies at The Royal Tournament). They count as regular line infantry but can also fight as light infantry if needed.
In the second line, again left to right, is a second squadron of Modena Cuirassiers, a battalion of Dutch Buddenbrock Foot and, after the guns, two Hanoverian units: a battalion of Friedrich Wilhelm von Klinkowström Foot and a squadron of Von Aldeleben Dragoons.
My opponent, whom I shall refer to as his chosen alter ego Maurice for the rest of this battle report, selected an even more aggressive line-up, no doubt worried about my terrain advantage.
In the front line on the far left are three squadrons of horse: Bercheny Hussars, Cuirassiers du Roy and Colonel General Cavalerie. Both the squadrons of heavy horse have cuirasses, and the du Roy are elite. Maurice has positioned himself with them.
Between these cavalry and the two batteries of French 8pdrs are two battalions of foot: Grenadiers de France and Picardie. The Grenadiers are elite. Behind these battalions are two more: Navarre and Champagne.
Maurice has tasked the Bavarians with holding his clearly refused left flank. There are two battalions of Kurprinz Foot and two squadrons of Hohenzollern Dragoons.
There is a general view that the firepower of British foot at the time of the War of the Austrian Succession was superior to that of most other nations, but almost certainly not a match for the Prussians.
Accordingly, for this battle at least, the four battalions of British foot will have a 50:50 chance of adding 1 to every musketry throw.
I was tempted to put the famous von Kornberg is charge of the Pragmatic Army as he served me so well in winning our refight of Blasthof Bridge from Charge!, and in leading the Austrians to victory over Frederick's Prussians at the Battle of Christmas Eve (both engagements were covered extensively in my previous blog).
But the Pragmatic Army was really a mostly British-run affair, so I plumped for being represented on the table by the illustrious figure of King George II.
We diced for choice of long side, and I won 6-5 after the first roll resulted in a 6-6 tie (perhaps the dice should have been checked at this point for loading).
I chose the side with the Einsamenhügel, and we proceeded to make sketches of our intended deployments before enacting them on the table.
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| The Pragmatic Army |
In the front line, left to right in the photo, are Austrian Csáky de Keresztszegh Hussars and Modena Cuirassiers. Then come four battalions of British foot: Royal-Buff Grenadiers, Royal Foot, The Buffs and the 5th Marines, and on the extreme right is a squadron of the King's Own Horse.
Both the Modena and King's Own squadrons have cuirasses, and the combined grenadier battalion counts as elite for morale purposes.
The 5th Marines are a tribute to my paternal grandfather's regiment (he was a sergeant in the Royal Marines and won numerous fencing trophies at The Royal Tournament). They count as regular line infantry but can also fight as light infantry if needed.
In the second line, again left to right, is a second squadron of Modena Cuirassiers, a battalion of Dutch Buddenbrock Foot and, after the guns, two Hanoverian units: a battalion of Friedrich Wilhelm von Klinkowström Foot and a squadron of Von Aldeleben Dragoons.
My opponent, whom I shall refer to as his chosen alter ego Maurice for the rest of this battle report, selected an even more aggressive line-up, no doubt worried about my terrain advantage.
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| Looking from behind the Pragmatic lines to Maurice's Franco-Bavarians |
Between these cavalry and the two batteries of French 8pdrs are two battalions of foot: Grenadiers de France and Picardie. The Grenadiers are elite. Behind these battalions are two more: Navarre and Champagne.
Maurice has tasked the Bavarians with holding his clearly refused left flank. There are two battalions of Kurprinz Foot and two squadrons of Hohenzollern Dragoons.
There is a general view that the firepower of British foot at the time of the War of the Austrian Succession was superior to that of most other nations, but almost certainly not a match for the Prussians.
Accordingly, for this battle at least, the four battalions of British foot will have a 50:50 chance of adding 1 to every musketry throw.
The Set-Up
WE had a lot of fun using my random terrain generator to set up the table for its first battle.
The dice decreed two rivers, two hills and a built-up area, and we also let the dice decide where the rivers would flow, the size of the built-up area, etc.
Nearest the camera is the fast-flowing and high-banked Passer River, which turned out to be impassable to troops, and in the centre is the Einsamenhügel.
On the far side of the table is the spa town - little more than a village, really - of Bad Wörishofen, which is set on the Wörthbach River in the shadow of the Kneippberg.
The Wörthbach is impassable to artillery, except via the bridge, but can be crossed by infantry in one turn and cavalry in half a turn. Infantry would lose firing order while crossing.
The Kneippberg is steep, slowing troops to half speed, even while going directly downhill.
The Einsamenhügel is by no means so steep, slowing troops only by a third, and not at all if going directly downhill.
In practice, bearing in mind the size of the table, only the Einsamenhügel is likely to come into play.
The dice decreed two rivers, two hills and a built-up area, and we also let the dice decide where the rivers would flow, the size of the built-up area, etc.
Nearest the camera is the fast-flowing and high-banked Passer River, which turned out to be impassable to troops, and in the centre is the Einsamenhügel.
On the far side of the table is the spa town - little more than a village, really - of Bad Wörishofen, which is set on the Wörthbach River in the shadow of the Kneippberg.
The Wörthbach is impassable to artillery, except via the bridge, but can be crossed by infantry in one turn and cavalry in half a turn. Infantry would lose firing order while crossing.
The Kneippberg is steep, slowing troops to half speed, even while going directly downhill.
The Einsamenhügel is by no means so steep, slowing troops only by a third, and not at all if going directly downhill.
In practice, bearing in mind the size of the table, only the Einsamenhügel is likely to come into play.
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