Battle of Wheeler's Creek ends

The Battle of Wheeler's Creek has come to an end.  Despite the valiant efforts of His Majesty's soldiers, the Americans were able to fight off the British advance and inflicted stunningly high casualties in the process.

In the top middle of the picture you can see the casualty markers of the British regiments.  In the forefront are those of the Hessian grenadiers.  (to enlarge the photos, just click on them.)

The Bristish and Hessians had more success on their right, driving in the two brigades of American militia.  But behind them was a solid line of fresh Continentals.  Further attacks were deemed futile and so the King's men retreated back across the creek to await developments.  Washington considered a counter-attack, but as darkness was drawing a curtian across the bloodied landscape, he decided otherwise.  It is probably just as well since the British had several cannons in their line that would have dealt out death in bucket fulls.

A fresh wave of British infantry deployed to attack, but the American line was literally untouched by the previous assaults, so the charge was called off.

In this shot you can see the Hessians make progress against the American militia.  Note the many casualty rings, however, that adorn the mercenaries.

Forward up the slopes

The second stage of the Battle of Wheeler's Creek is well under way.  I got two turns in today.  There were mixed results for the British and Hessians.  On their left, the Americans licked the enemy with some vicious volleys and blasts of cannister.  Two more battalions were routed from the field and others were disordered by their departure.

The British take a beating attacking the Americans defending a stone wall

   On the right flank, however, things went a little better.  The casualties were still very high, but some progress was made.  A battery was captured, a unit of militia was shaken by a thundering volley and another unit was pushed back into the woods by the same charge that captured the guns.  It's up to the supporting units now to continue to press the attack.

Despite terrible losses, the Hessians make some headway against the American militia

Phase two of Wheeler's Creek is underway

After taking a few days off, the battle has been resumed!  We left off with the British pushing back Alexander's fifth division.  The first turns of this new round saw the Americans disengaging their forward line and exiting the field.  It will now be up to the second line to settle the manner.

The American militia await the attack

The British are pressing the attack with the Hessian grenadiers and Grey's and Agnew's brigades on their left.  On the right, Knyphausen't fresh division is going to take on the American militia units dug in in the woods.

Knyphausen's Hessians get ready to attack.

The disciplined ranks of the British and Hessians appear to be unstoppable.  The first turn of the attack sees them moving forward relentlessly.  But on the second turn, they move into cannister range and the situation changes dramatically as two units are routed from the field.  The momentum has truly shifted to the American side.

In the top picture, the Hessian grenadiers aren't able to withstand the losses they suffer and turn tail and run, disordering and shaking up the unit supportin them.  The second picture shows the same thing happening on the right flank.  It's a whole new ballgame

Wheeler's Creek continued

Turn seven was relatively calm as both sides had to reorganize after the British attack. 

The British have cleared the fenced road and now control the heights. (To enlarge the photos, just click on them.

The American guns made good their escape, but only because of the sacrifice of Nash's North Carolina brigade that took two point blank volleys from some Hessians and British regulars.

Only dead and wounded remain on the field from Nash's North Carolina brigade.  But the guns have been saved.

As the Americans are pulling back, Knyphausen's division makes its appearance on the field.  This is Grant's brigade leading the way.  Phase one of the battle is just about over.  The next objective is to cross Wheeler's Creek and attack the hills that the town sits upon.  Losses have been heavy on both sides.  The British guards and grenadiers are no longer able to participate due to heavy casualties.

These are the lead elements of Knyphausen's division making their way on to the field.  It will be their job to attack across the creek into the teeth of the American defenses.

More of Wheeler's Creek

Turns five and six. The volleys continued and both sides lost heavily. The Guards, having lost 33% of their strength, disengaged, as did the New Jersey regiments that faced them. But behind the boiling clouds of battle smoke, the British had moved up some fresh units for a decisive push.

The volleys continue to take a heavy toll on both sides, but neither will back down

Behind the battle smoke are over 360 British Guards dead and wounded

Turn seven. On the British right three attacks went in. The Americans were stubborn in their defense, but ultimately had to give ground, yielding most of the fenced road to the King’s men. On the left, the elite light units of both sides fought a bloody mele until both battalions were forced to withdraw to regroup.

Once again, the bayonette does its job in driving back the rebels

Unthinkable!  The Guards have had enough.

No one is left in the woods except the dead and wounded.

Wheeler's Creek continued

Turn three of the game saw the British Grenadiers surprise the Americans with a first volley.  However, the damage was not significant. (click on the photos to enlarge them.)

On turn four, both sides first fired and the losses mounted.  Both sides lost a stand, but passed all of their morale checks.  But the British definitely got the worst of it.

On the other flank, the British light infantry kept up a hot fire and inflicted some casualties, allowing the guards and Hessian grenadiers to advance without being fired upon.

Battle of Wheeler's Creek

I am starting a new battle now that all of my troops are home safely from Camp VIP.  I painted up a few more regiments of American militia and wanted to see them in action.  This is a fictional battle, with the Americans defending in depth.  In front, they have a formidable line of Continentals.  Behind that are more Continentals and the large militia division.  The picture below is after two turns, just before the first volleys.This picture is of the American line at the start of the game.  Wheeler's Creek is behind them.

Figures Sold!

I must have priced the FIW figures right, because they sold right away with several offers coming in just a day.  It was a beautiful collection and I think I found them a good home.

figures for sale

I painted up a large collection of French and Indian Wars figures that I know I'll never get around to using, so I am offering the whole collection up for sale.  There are 324 total infantry figures and 8 mounted officers.  The photographs contain portions of each of the types of figures for sale.  The asking price is $280 plus $10 postage.  This is a brand new collection that has never been used.  It's ideal for skirmish games.  Email me at dukewin@ix.netcom.com if you are interested.