Quatre Bras Historical Wargame

For Christmas my daughter got me Prelude to Waterloo: Quatre Bras by Andrew Field.  This book features the French perspective of the battle and has an excellent series of maps.  As I have the entire order of battle for both sides in this encounter at a 1:20 ratio, I thought I would try to recreate it through a series of scenarios.  My only real limitation was the size of my table, so portions of the battle may have to be broken down into two different scenarios from the same hour fought separately.

This is the full map from the book

This is the portion of the map that fits on my table.

The battle begins at 2:00.  The late start will have a very negative effect on the outcome for the French.  To start, a thinly deployed Dutch/Belgian division of fairly low grade troops will do its best to buy time for Wellington's redcoats to arrive.  Ney's first objective is to push up the road and secure a ridge that shelters the farm of Gemioncourt.  His advance is shielded by an immense swarm of skirmishers.  His artillery greatly outnumbers the allied guns.  Here is what the table looks like as the battle is about to begin.

Bachelu's Division with the targeted ridge in the background

Bachelu's artillery.

Bijveld's lone battery and the 27th Jagers will delay the French hoards for as long as possible.

Ney's secondary objective is to cut the road towards Ligny.  To that end, he wants to secure the village of Peraumont.  He sends a brigade of lancers and a large regiment of light infantry to accomplish this task.  They find the village empty.

The outskirts of Peraumont at the extreme edge of my table.

Wathier's lancers on their way to the objective.

Here are some of the other units that will be a part of the initial advance.

Two battalions of the 2nd Nassau deployed int the Bossu Wood

Campi's Brigade of Bachelu's Division

Gauthier's Brigade of Foy's division on the French left

Hubert's chasseurs on the extreme left flank

Jamin's Brigade of Foy's division ready to attack straight up the road towards Quatre Bras.

It's 2:00.  The battle is read to begin.

My Latest Napoleonics

I bought myself a Christmas present through Warlord Games: a box of late Victrix French infantry and then some officers, casualty figures and a small group of engineers made by Warlord Games.  Here are some of the pictures.

Warlord Games French engineers

Warlord Games British officers (figure on the left painted as a Portugese colonel)

Warlord Games French officers (grenadier head taken from the Victrix infantry box)

Victrix grenadier company

Victrix infantry command stand with Warlord mounted colonel.

Victrix voltiguers

Victrix line company

The whole battalion

Warlord Games French casualty stands

My collection of these 28mm plastic figures has grown to be formidable and includes infantry, cavalry and artillery.  I want to get a box of the new Victrix French artillery and add another box of Victrix British artillery.  Perhaps one day I'll actually put them on the table and have the two forces slug it out.

Middle School Gaming Event

Today I was able to host my first event for our Military History in Miniature Club.  12 students participated, along with two alumni who ventured over from the high school.  The majority of the club wanted to play Flames of War.  This game was entirely student led and had 10 of the 12 members participate.  I added a small game of Sharpe's Practice that attracted the other two students and we had a great game as well.  I was able to use my Napoleonic figures for this go.

In the Flames of War game, it looked like the Germans got the better of the Americans based on the number of flaming hulks I saw towards the end of the day.  I was involved in my Shape's Practice game and wasn't able to pay much attention, but everyone seemed to be having a very good time.  The two student leaders did a good job of keeping things moving.

The German armor at the start of the game.

The American armor.

Turn One: The Germans advance.

Here they are using the wood to cover their attack.

Turn 3: German armor getting the upper hand.

The Germans secure the farmhouse on their side of the table.

The end of the game.

In the Sharpe's Practice game, the French outnumbered the British significantly, but the redcoats had the advantage of solid cover.  The French player moved out boldly, his cards coming up all at once.  The British player elected not to garrison the buildings in the town in the first turn and this would come back to haunt him later.  The French units closed quickly and, due to the way the cards fell, got most of the first shots.  The French player rolled well and the British casualties began to mount.  The 1/63rd's 1st company charged a portion of Sharpe's riflemen defending a wall and killed them to the man, including the gallant Captain Sharpe.  The voltiger company was able to occupy three of the town's buildings that same turn and that was the beginning of the end.  Some British reinforcements arrived, but were too late to alter the situation.  This was clearly a French victory.

The beginning of the game.

The French right.

The defense of the town.

A section of the Royal Foot Artillery coming up to add to the town's defense.

The French player moves up his artillery.

The French close in for the attack and overwhelm the outnumbered riflemen.

It was a very good start to our wargaming year.  It's a good group of kids and a few of them are investing in figures of their own.  That's a big step forward towards raising up the next generation of gamers.

2016 Preview

For Christmas my oldest daughter gave me Prelude to Waterloo by Andrew Field.  This gives a French perspective to the battle of Quatre Bras.  It has some excellent maps and it has inspired me to take on the project of developing scenarios for the various phases of the battles.  I have the complete order of battle for each side, and now I know where and when the French forces joined the battle.

As for my painting table, I believe the second half of a commission I started last December will be coming my way.  In addition to that, I took advantage of Warlord Games' after Christmas sale to pick up some mounted officers and French infantry which should be arriving in the next week or so.  Between these two projects, I should be keeping busy for a little while.  I'll post pictures as they become available.

Christmas Eve Battle for the Crossroads

Continuing a long held tradition of setting up a battle for Christmas time, this year I pulled out a couple of units I don't get to use much: Picton's 5th Division with the support of Ponsonby's dragoon brigade versus my Old Guard formations of infantry and cavalry.  The objective was a town and crossroads situated on a hill.  Both sides were given the task of taking and holding the town and the crossroads it sat upon.

The objective.  The British will be attacking from the left, the French from the right.

All of the brigades were given assault orders, so everything was in motion from the start.

The British army, with Hanoverians in the foreground.

The French Guard infantry.  The cavalry is in the background.

Both sides advanced steadily.  The British were closest to the town, and therefore had an advantage.

The French Guard infantry on turn two

The Guard Chasseurs a Cheval, with the Lancers in support.

The British left.

On turn three the two cavalry forces prepared to charge.  The French had the advantage on this flank numerically.  They also had two Old Guard Horse Artillery batteries to take on a lone British RHA battery.

Ponsonby's Dragoons.

The columns of Old Guard cavalry.

As the infantry continued to advance, the two cavalry formations lunged at each other.  The British lost the first melee against half of the Guard Chasseurs and were forced to retreat.  The second British unit, however, rolled a double six against the other half of the chasseurs and routed them!  Being British, they failed their pursuit test and had to continue on into the supporting Polish Lancers of the Guard on the next turn.

The routed chasseurs suffered 25% casualties.

The pursuit into the Lancers.

An Old Guard 12lb battery unlimbers to take on a RFA battery.

The Old Guard Grenadiers get to the top of the hill.

Kempt's brigade in close support of Ponsonby's cavalry.

This is the melee that the British horse lost.

Von Hinke's Hanoverians advance on the British right.

 On turn six both sides lit up with volleys of musketry and artillery.  The dense columns of Old Guard paid dearly for every foot they advanced.  In the follow-up cavalry battle, the dragoons pushed back the stationary lancers.  But the Scots Greys were routed by the defensive fire of the Old Guard Horse Artillery they were charging.  On the ensuing brigade morale check a double one was rolled, so the British horse were no longer in the fight for the foreseeable future.

The Scots Greys before their calamitous charge.

The morale brigade test was as bad as it could be.

As the cavalry battle swirled on the flank, the infantry of both sides finally came to grips with each other.  An Old Guard batallion confidently charged a conscript batallion of Hanoverians.  The defensive volley inflicted one casualty which all believed would have little effect on the outcome.  But a very poor morale roll by the French saw the assault stall and the batallion faltered.

The Old Guard attack is stalled.

The 95th Rifles blaze away at the Chasseurs of the Guard.

This is where the battle left off.  In the next few turns, the French cavalry and artillery are sure to punish Kempt's brigade as it will be forced into square and have to endure the cannister of the Old Guard Horse Artillery batteries.  Two additional batteries of Old Guard Foot Artillery will also be coming into action.  It could be some very rough times for the Red Coats.

Warlord Games French Infantry and Perry British Lt. Dragoons

I have been offline for too long.  Here are some shots of what I have been painting lately.  I really enjoy painting the 28mm figures.  There is so much detail and I think they turn out quite well, especially when in formation from a bit of a distance.