And lastly for today, a unit of cavalry for my Fescennia Campaign, the 6th Cavalry Regiment (Chasseurs-a-Cheval) of the Kingdom of Arcadia. The figures are from Perry Miniatures hard plastic 28mm Napoleonic range.
Sunday 28 February 2021
A new unit completed for my Sun King games. These are the Hesse-Kassel Erbprinz Dragoon Regiment. I have used a bit of "wargamer's licence" here. I have not managed to find uniform details for the 1670s for this unit, but I have some for a little later in the century - blue coats with red facings, so I have gone with that look. The flag is "made up", based on flags the unit had later on, but having less embroidery - it still uses the red-white striped lion of Hesse-Kassel and the blue field and gold fringe of the later flags. They look okay to me, but my apologies to any purists! If anyone can give me better information, I am more than happy to receive it, there being so little easily available data for this period of the Sun King's Wars. The figures are all from North Star's range.
Some more small items of scenery. The barricades are just oak twigs from the garden, stacked appropriately, with sand and gravel basing material and some flock. The wall/fences were made from gravel, long matchsticks and cocktail sticks, with some basing material and flock. I have decided that aged and untreated wooden fence post, rails, etc. look okay from a distance with Vallejo Medium Grey paint, dry-brushed over a black undercoat.
And here are the walls/fences in use for the first time on a Fescennia campaign battlefield:
Sunday 7 February 2021
SINSHEIM 1674
Historical Notes:
The scenario is based on the Battle of Sinsheim on
Terrain:
See accompanying map. The river, the Elsenz, is impassable along its entire length and can only be crossed at the bridge. A bonus to movement applies on all roads. The slope along the southern edge of the plateau is steep and will reduce movement for all units, unless they move along the roads, which negate the effect of the slope (however, the road bonus does not apply in this case). Hedges can be crossed by foot units, but they will count as unformed; no other types of units can cross the hedges. The buildings at A4 and A5 are substantial townhouses. Finally, the woods along the north edge of the table are there for “aesthetic purposes” but any unit compelled to enter them is assumed to have left the battlefield.
Orders:
The Allied army is to hold the town and prevent the French
crossing the river, but if unable to do so, the Allied army must prevent the
French establishing a bridgehead on the plateau to the north of the town.
The French army must capture the town, cross the river and defeat the Allied force with is deployed on the plateau to the north of the town.
Allied Army Deployment:
Town Guard A6-B6 1 x Foot Regt (Trained)
1 x Dragoon Regt (dismounted) (Trained)
Right Wing Cavalry A2-B2 1 x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x General ‘A’
Centre Cavalry B2-C2 1 x Cuirassier Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Cuirassier Regiment (Veteran)
1
x General ‘B’
Left Wing Cavalry D2 1 x Horse Regiment (Trained)
1
x General ‘C’
Baggage Train A1 1 x Baggage Train (Raw)
Allied Army Notes:
1) The Foot Regiment and the Dragoon Regiment (dismounted) must
deploy in line behind the rows of hedges in A6-B6.
2) The Horse Regiments and Cuirassier Regiments deploy in a single
line across the battlefield, each one adjacent to the next, from A2 to D2.
3) The Allied cavalry on the plateau cannot move until a French unit appears at the top of the open slope or along the hedges on the flanks.
French Army Deployment:
Advance Guard Enter A6 1 x Foot Regiment (Veteran)
1 x
General ‘Z’
Enter B6 1 x Dragoon Regiment (dismounted) (Veteran)
Centre Enter A6-B6 1 x Foot Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Foot Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Medium Gun
1
x General ‘Y’
Left Wing Enter on road
A6 1 x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x General ‘X’
Right Wing Entry on road
A6 1 x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1
x Horse Regiment (Veteran)
1 x General ‘W’
French Army Notes:
1) The Foot Regiment and Dragoon Regiment (dismounted) must enter
the table on Turn 1 in line, ready to attack the enemy at A6-B6.
2) The infantry units of the Centre can enter the table as soon as
the French commander wishes, ready to attack the enemy. However, the Medium Gun
Battery is deployed on a hill off the table to the south of B6. It is able to
bombard the enemy from that position – for simplicity’s sake, measure the range
from the edge of the table - from the start of the game if the French commander
wishes. If he wants to bring the battery on to the table, he must state the
turn on which he is ordering it forward and it will appear, in draught, at
Entry Point 1, two turns later.
3) The French cavalry cannot enter the table on the road in A6 until the Town in A5 has fallen, the bridge at B5 has been captured, and the French infantry are across the river. The cavalry must enter the table, one unit after another, moving along the road. Once across the bridge, they can move and deploy as the French commander wishes.
Victory Points:
Allied Army:
Hold the Town in A5 50 VP
Hold the Bridge in
B5 50 VP
Hold the House in
A4 20 VP
Per enemy unit
destroyed 5 VP
Per enemy unit in
rout 2½ VP
French Army:
Capture the Town in
A5 10 VP
Capture the Bridge
in B5 10 VP
Capture the House
in A4 10 VP
Capture the Baggage
Train in A1 50 VP
Per enemy unit
destroyed 5 VP
Per enemy unit in rout 2½ VP
Map:
The problem with Sinsheim as a battle is that the Allies were hampered by the fact they did not have a force with the right balance for the terrain on which they decided to fight. They were badly outnumbered in infantry, had no artillery, and, in reality, could not see what was happening down in the valley from their main cavalry position on the plateau, owing to the fact they had to pull back out of range of the French artillery to the south of the river Elsenz. If one is honest, the Duke of Lorraine, who was by far the better general on the Allied side, was correct: the Allies should not have stood and fought at Sinsheim. I think that, when they did decide to fight, the Allied commanders did not believe that the French could take Sinsheim and cross the bridges and establish a strong battle line on the edge of the plateau. However, the French displayed an élan on the day which overcame all opposition, and they were led by Turenne displaying all his military skills at almost his best. To get this balance right in a re-fight so that the Allied player has some chance of victory was rather a challenge!
In
terms of the terrain, I simplified the battlefield so that only what I saw as the
key features of the battle remained – the River Elsenz, Sinsheim, a bridge over
the river, the plateau and its slopes, the old castle north of the river, and
the two main defiles up onto the plateau. It also had to be able to fit onto a
6 feet by 4 feet table. The end result can be seen in the map and the photographs
of the re-fight. Sinsheim (originally a medieval walled town with a wet moat
and several bridges, as well as extensive gardens (which were really allotments
belonging to the townspeople), became two large houses with hedges around it,
the old castle became one large house, the bridges became one main bridge; the
plateau and defiles were easy to represent with the terrain hexes. The main
defile past the old castle was lined with hedges at that time and this was easy
enough to represent. However, the opposite edge of the battlefield was marked
by a vineyard on the plateau’s slopes; I do not have any scenery to represent a
vineyard, but a line of hedges seemed an appropriate alternative.
For
the opposing forces, knowing what each side had in terms of infantry, cavalry
and artillery and what would actually fit on a 6 feet by 4 feet table, playing
lengthways, allowed me to establish the two sides’ forces. Once I had
established how many Allied mounted units would fit on the plateau, I then
calculated how many cavalry units the French could have in proportion to the
original opposing strengths. There had to be at least one Allied infantry unit
in Sinsheim to defend it, along with a dragoon unit, and this then gave a
figure from which to calculate the numb of French foot units. Only the French
had artillery, so it was easy enough to give them a single battery. I also gave
the French better quality troops than their opponents as a way of reflecting
their élan on the day. In the end, the result of my re-fight seemed to suggest
I had got the balance about right.
After
that, I had to establish some ground rules and victory conditions for the
engagement which would make the French and Allies behave like the two opposing
armies in 1674.
Therefore,
the French have to take the town because they had to on the day because it
controlled the bridges; they have to take the bridge because it is the only way
over the river; they have to take the house representing the old castle because
they had to on the day in order to secure their hold on the left-hand defile;
they cannot bring their cavalry onto the table until they have the crossing
point and town because that was what happened on the day as well. After that,
they are still not going to win (as they wont have accumulated enough victory
points) unless they get their troops up onto the plateau and defeat the Allied
cavalry and capture the latter’s baggage train.
As for the Allies, I gave them victory conditions which make them try to hold on to the town and the bridge against their numerically superior opponents because that was what happened on the day, even though is going to be difficult to achieve. In addition, the cavalry on the plateau had to be made to stay there until the French reach the top of the slopes, partly because that was what happened on the day and partly because the Duke of Lorraine and Caprara could not see down into the valley from where they were on the plateau and so react to events around Sinsheim itself. The Allies can still win (as they will be ahead on victory points even after losing the town, bridge, and their infantry and dragoons) if they prevent the French capturing their baggage and wreck plenty of French units as well.
Orders of Battle for Sinsheim 1674:
I have not managed to find full details of the opposing forces, and there are some contradictions or differences in the sources, but my research has produced the following reasonably reliable information:
Allies:
900-1,500 Imperial Foot
Regiment = Strein
200-400
Imperial Dragoons (Saxon)
6,000-7,500
Horse
4,000 Imperial Cuirassiers
Regiments = Bournonville, Caprara
(1,300), Gondola (500), Lothringen,
Jung
700-1,500 Imperial Cavalry (
1,600-2,000 Lorraine Cavalry
Regiments = Du Houx, Viard, Du Puy, Thouvenin, Berrière, Mercy, Berger
French:
3,500 Foot
Regiments = Douglas, Du Plessis, La Ferté, Picardie (2,000 total)
Detachments
= Champagne, Turenne, Languedoc, Bourgogne, Hamilton,
Monmouth (1,500 total)
400-500 Dragoons
Regiments = La Reine
Company = Du Fay
5,000-5,500 Horse
Regiments = Pilloy, Coulanges, Colonel-Général, Royal-étranger,
Bulonde, Cornas, La Reine, Montferrier, Grignan, Prouville,
Bouillon, Armagnac, Montgeorge, Royal-Wallon, Coislin, Buzenval,
Locmaria, La Veuville, Royal
6 Artillery Pieces
Any more accurate information would be very welcome!
Friday 5 February 2021
A further batch of pictures from the Battle of Sinsheim:
The cavalry battle on the plateau begins to develop.
The French Condé Regiment of Foot in position behind the hedges on the left flank.
More cavalry action as the French mounted units hurry forward from the bridge onto the plateau.
The French La Fère Foot Regiment charged by the Dutch Waldeck Light Horse Regiment.
More French infantry moving up to support the Condé Regiment of Foot. The artillery never deployed for action in this game, but in the actual battle it played an important role in supporting the French foot on the left wing.
The final position when "time" was called. The Allies had only a few fresh units to hold off the French and had lost all the key objectives for the battle, including their baggage train, I hope to post the scenario details and a map of the table soon.
Thursday 4 February 2021
Some more pictures of the Battle of Sinsheim 1674:
The French Asfeld Dragoons have rushed the bridge in column; the Dutch Marwitz Dragoons try to hold them off with a volley.
The French dragoons about to charge their Dutch opposites, urged on by a French general (Turenne himself, perhaps?)
The French column along the road to the bridge,
with the first of their cavalry regiments appearing on the battlefield.
The French Condé Regiment of Foot marches up the left hand defile, past the single house,
towards the Allied right wing cavalry.
Squadrons of French light horse regiments moving along the road to the bridge.
The Asfeld Dragoons have driven off their Dutch opponents and La Fère Regiment of Foot moves off towards the right flank behind them.
Condé Regiment of Foot secures the hedges along the edge of the plateau; The Dutch Hoornbergh Light Horse Regiment can do little to prevent it.
The view from the French infantry's side: Allied cavalry regiments lined up on the plateau.
The French Asfeld Dragoons have moved up onto the plateau to support the French cavalry as it moves up the central defile to deploy. This triggered a reaction by the Allies - the Bamberg Cuirassier Regiment advanced to the attack.
The Dutch Waldeck Light Horse Regiment advances as well.
The French cavalry column crossing the bridge.
A wider view of the battlefield as the Allied cavalry respond to the arrival of the
French troops on the edge of the plateau.
Another view of the French cavalry column on the road to the bridge:
Villeroi Light Horse Regiment is in the foreground of the picture.
La Fère Regiment of Foot moving to the right along the river road.
A view of the French cavalry moving up to the plateau and to the right.
The Allied cavalry move forward, except in the background,
where they have retired out of range of the French infantry's muskets.
The Asfeld Dragoons stand to meet the Bamberg Cuirassiers attack, while in the background the Dauphin Light Horse Regiment charges their opponents. The French dragoons, unsurprisingly, were completely defeated by the Austrian cavalry and fled the field!
The French Royal Cravattes Light Horse Regiment. Their unusual name is a corruption of "Croats", a unit of which had served with the French army earlier in the 17th Century.
La Reine Light Horse Regiment, the only French "Royal" line cavalry unit to wear red coats with blue facings; the others wore blue coats with red facings.
Dauphin against Bamberg. Under the "fast play" rules I use, Cuirassiers operate in big squadrons of twelve figures, while Light Horse Regiments operate in squadrons of six figures. It represents well the solid mass of Imperial units which the French had to deal with by "wave attacks" involving charges by one squadron after another,
More pictures to follow...
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