Russian Generals

Over the weekend I finished a group of nine mounted generals and ADCs for the Russian Napoleonic army. These are the three new packs released by the Perrys in recent months. I will use these to represent the senior command. I haven’t really sorted out how they will be grouped, so they are not a yet based, but here they are in some possible grouping combinations.

Bagration

Uvarov

ADC

Possible group 1

Barclay de Tolly
Poor old Barclay arrived with a terrible casting flaw where the casting had split and it looked as though someone had taken a meat cleaver to his head and split him ear to ear (I think the casting had been removed from the mould when the metal was too hot). Rather than wait a month or more for a replacement figure to arrive I chose to repair him with some green stuff. I think the surgery was a success.
 

Wittgenstein

ADC

Possible group 2

Tuchkov

Shuvalov

ADC

Possible Group 3

Since there will be used in a game coming up in a couple of weeks time, I will need to get the basing soon…probably over the coming weekend.

1st Westpahalian Hussar Regiment, No. 8

This week’s Franco-Prussian War unit is the 1st Westpahalian Hussar Regiment, No. 8. Formed in early 1815 from a squadron each of the 2nd, 3rd and 6th Hussars it served in the 100 Days campaign as the 8th Hussars. The following year the Regiment was brought up to strength with the addition of the 4th and 5th squadrons and was renamed 8th Hussar Regiment (1st Westphalian). It participated in the first Schleswig-Holstein War in 1849 and was renamed again in 1861 to 1st Westpahalian Hussar Regiment, No 8.

It fought again in Denmark in 1864 and in Army of the Maine in the western theatre of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866. In 1870 it was assigned to 13th Division, VII Corps, First Army.

In 1888 it was renamed again as Grand Duke Nicholas of Russia (1st Westphalian No 8) and on the accession of Nicholas to the throne in 1897 to Emperor Nicholas II of Russia (1st Westphalian No 8). Mobilised in 1914 it started the Great War on the Western Front, before transferring East in November of that year. In 1916 the regiment was dismounted and in May 1917 with the removal of the Tsar the regiment changed its name again, back to 1st Westphalian Hussar Regiment, No. 8. In 1918 the regiment returned to the Western Front where they were merged with other dismounted cavalry regiments to form the 14th Cavalry Rifle Division. It took a major part on the defensive battles until the end of the war. It was demobilised in 1919.

To round out the week we played an American War of Independence game today.  I had intended to get my AWI French on the table, but managed to leave the tray at home. At least my Brutish and Hessians made it to the table. I only managed to take a few photos of what was a rather short, but enjoyable game.

  

7th Jäger Battalion

This week’s offering from the 1870 Prussians is the Westpahalian Jäger Battalion No. 7. Formed in 1815 from many of the disbanded volunteer jäger units and elements of the Bergischer Jägers as well as some Schaumburg-Lippe, Saxon and Nassau infantry, the battalion entered service as the Rhenish Jäger battalion, with a permanent garrison in Wetzlar from 1818.

It fought in the First Schlegwig-Holstein War and in 1860 was renamed the Westphanian Battalion Number 7. It saw action in the Danish War of 1864, fighting at Missunde and Düppel. Two years later it formed a part of the Elbe Army and fought at Münchengrätz and Königgrätz.  It was attached to the VII Corps in the restructure of 1867 and fought with that corps in 1870, with battle honours for Spicheren, Borny and Gravelotte.

It was mobilised in 1914 as apart of the 26th Infantry Brigade and spent the entire war on the Western Front. It was disbanded in December 1918.

In the organisation of 1870 each North German Corps was assigned one jäger battalion. The battalion number always matched the corps to which they were attached and generally recruited in the same region. The South German firmations had a different organisation with a higher ratio of jägers to line troops, with one battalion attached to each brigade (sometime two battalions in some Bavarian brigades).

The jägers were trained in the tradition of light infantry where small groups of skilled riflemen lurked in concealing terrain harassing line troops, picking off officers and NCOs. However, in many ways the title jäger, much like those of grenadiers and fusiliers, was becoming obsolete by 1870 where they fought, in the opening battles certainly, pretty much as any line infantry unit - in company lines. At Spicheren the 3rd Jägers clambered up a ravine on the western face of the Rotherberg along with several other line infantry battalions and attempted to storm the crest, only to be pinned down in battalion line by French fire. At that same battle the 7th Jägers, again in battalion line, turned the extreme left of the French line and compelled them to abandon their position. On the same day at Froeschwiller the 11th Jägers had just formed in line after crossing the Sauerbach when they were attacked in the flank by the 3rd Tirailleurs Algériens and driven back across the stream in disorder. They reformed and later stormed the Lansberg Farm only to be later thrown out of there when attacked by the 3rd Zouaves. The attack of the Lauenburg jäger battalion number 9 at Gravelotte in close order battalion line, officers leading the advance, was captured by Ernst Zimmer in this painting. 

While I am happy with the overall result of this unit, I struggled with these figures because as nice as the poses are they seemed rushed in design: the detail is indistinct, the faces are bland and there were a number of casting flaws. 

Färdiga!

According the Google translate “färdiga” means “finished”, and finished this Swedo-Finnish army is…well apart from the generals, so maybe it should be “nästan färdig” (again consulting the gospel according to  Google this means “almost finished”  - apologies to any Swedish speakers if this has an incorrect or offensive meaning). As I type this I thought I could have been really smart and said “Finnished!” I always seem to think of the smart comments after the fact.

The final unit in the Swedish Napoleonic collection is the Tavastehus Infantry Regiment. Recruited from Tavastehus County (Hämeenlinna in Finnish), an inland region immediately north of  modern day Helsinki, it could trace its ancestry back to 1626. The regiment participated in the Thirty Years' War in Pomerania, and in Charles X Gustav's Polish War in 1655. In the Great Northern War it first garrisoned Riga then Viborg, surrendering to the Russians when that fortress fell in 1710. 

The regimental colours

Reformed, the regiment operated in the southeastern section of Finland and was later involved in the Norwegian Campaign of 1718. In 1741 it was engaged with Russia in the Hats War (that although it would make an interesting background for a campaign was not fought over hats, but was named after the Swedish Hats political party who sought to recover land lost in the Great Northern War) and fought at the Battle of Lappeenranta. It fought the Russians again in Gustav III's Russian War in 1788–1790. 

In 1792 the regiment was expanded, incorporating the Uusimaa and Hämeenlinna dragoon regiments. It was heavily involved in the Finnish War of 1807-09, fighting in most of the early battles, but surrendered along with most of the Finnish Army at Kalix in March 1809. At the conclusion of the war the regiment was disbanded.

Above are the two battalions: the first on the left, the second on the right.

A full army parade will follow when time permits.

More Prussian Guns

Another couple of light gun set rolled out of the arsenal over the weekend to join the Second Field Division, 7th Field Artillery Regiment. I have managed a little bit of variety by exchanging a couple of figures within the sets.

Loading the gun…

Firing the gun…

Both guns together…

All four guns completed to date together…

The Battle for the Crossroads.

We finally managed to gather the clan for a game (bar one player who came down with the plague yesterday). The most pleasing thing was that our host, who has been very ill for the last couple of months, was able to join us (and did so in full uniform for the occasion).

The scenario was an American Civil War game titled “Take the Crossroads”, although the crossroads themselves were of no particular importance other than the convergence of the roads in the area. The Confederates have moved to flank the Union Army and their force of three infantry divisions and a cavalry division converged on the crossroads before forming and striking the enemy flank off to the north.

First contact is west of the crossroads where a force of Union cavalry of divisional strength has been encountered by a Confederate infantry division advancing from the west. Further Confederate forces (a cavalry division and two infantry divisions) are approaching along the road from the south, the cavalry leading, but they are still some distance away from the crossroads. Three Union infantry divisions were racing to support their cavalry and were to be expected to approach along the roads to the north and northeast. 

Above is a very rough sketch map of the terrain that was largely open. The dashed lines represent wooden fences, although this is not the exact positioning of the fences. All of the buildings were small farmhouses, not big defensive positions, and at best they can hold one skirmish stand (1 firing die). There are some clumps of trees and areas of scrub that will be disordering to troops, will block line of sight, but will not provide cover. The hills are gentle.

I not am going to try to describe the sequence of events. Instead I will simply  provide a host of images, in no particular order.

In the end it was a draw, perhaps slightly in the Confederate favour, but it kept nine of us happily and out of mischief on a miserably wet Sunday. I am sure my friend Keith at Bydand Blog will have a a view of the game from his side of the table.