The Fall Campaign - Part 3

The Situation

Simply put, the French Army is scattered between Sedro Wooley, Mount Vernon, Conway, Arlington and a few points in between. The main chunk of the Allied Army is leaving Arlington after a night action at Swede Hollow with the intent of crossing the Stillaguamish River at Conway and escaping northward (or at least to Fidalgo Island).

Other parts of the Allied Army are north of Burlington, at Conway (on the west side of the river), or guarding the approaches to Fidalgo Island. The French Army is attempting to cut off the Allied Army at Conway. That seems simple enough...sort of. Did I add that the Allies are low on ammunition, have one company of artillery, and a lot of unorganized men who could be a problem? I didn't think so. Life is not rosey for the Allied commander.

There is a ford at Conway (as well as the Bridge). The two French Blesois Regiments are dug in at Conway, in two redoubts and the town itself. And the French Army is marching to relieve them as fast as units can get straightened out and on the road.

Referee's Notes - I had to do some calculating, along with TripMaker and Map Quest. Both Allied and French troops were converging on Conway, and I had to calculate how long it would take to get them there ("there" being within 1 mile of Conway). I assumed the following:

1. Couriers travel at 8 mph;


2. One hour after receiving orders, units march;


3. Units march at 2 mph, including cavalry;


4. Proper march discipline would be followed.

The Situation "Develops"

The Allied Army had left Arlington at 10 AM. They had rested, had eaten, and had managed to resupply some ammunition. They had even recovered some guns and artillery ammunition that the French had not yet sent south as trophies (enough to form a battery). They were planning on marching to Bryant, then west on the Stanwood-Bryant road, then north on the main road to Conway. They had a total of 16 miles to go. They chose this route as it bypassed the French forces west of Arlington, and it might disguise where they were going (for a bit). Unbeknownst to them, all of the Allied cavalry was put in the van, leaving none to cover the rear. The Atrasos Cavalry promptly scouted them, and I arbitrarily ruled that they soon knew which way the Allies were going. The earliest the Allies could get to Conway was 6 PM.

The French Commander Ponders....

Starting at 7 AM, the first couriers went north from the small French force holding on west of Arlington. This merely reported the facts, as known at the time: the Allies had attacked from up the valley and Arlington was swamped with fugitives. The commander of the Atrasos Cavalry reported that the pursuing force sent after the Allied army was in full retreat or scattered (he had no word from the 1/1st Germans, they had been falling back under pressure when last seen), and that the Allies were now entering Arlington. More couriers followed:

• 8:00 AM - The Allied army is in Arlington, looting, and so on. French forces west of Arlington are 3rd Germans, Atrasos Cavalry and fragments of 2/1st Germans. Even allowing for exaggeration, something bad had happened. Patrols were now attempting to ascertain more, but ther was a lot of Allied Cavalry around Arlington (he named the units);


• 9:00 AM - looting has subsided. Reports are that the commander of the Allied army is at Arlington. This is based upon scouting and direct observation;


• 10:30 AM - Allied troops are marching north on Route 9. Patrols have been sent north on the main road with orders to scout the Stanwood-Bryant road and report both to HQ and the commander of the Atrasos Cavalry

Another Referee Note - I was playing the part of the French Commander west of Arlington. The French were coming from Sedro Wooley (14 miles), Burlington (9 miles) and Mount Vernon (5 miles). But they had to get their orders. And that could occur only after the French commander realized what was going on.

...and Acts

The French Commander was at Mount Vernon, along with 14 battalions of infantry and four regiments of cavalry. Mount Vernon is 22 miles from Arlington, 25 if you go by side-roads. The first courier arrived at 10 AM. Just after the noon courier had arrived (sent at 9 AM), the French commander began sending his own couriers. By 1 PM the couriers had arrived at Sedro Wooley and Burlington, and the troops were on the road by 2 PM. The forces at Mount Vernon had marched at 1 PM. They would start arriving at Conway at 3:30 PM.

The troops from Burlington would arrive at 6:30 PM. Those from Sedro Wooley would arrive at 9 PM (dark is at 8 PM). Clearly this was going to be a mis-match, but on who's side?

The Armies Start Converging

The French - Fourteen battalions of infantry, a battery of artillery and four regiments of cavalry arrived at Conway at 3:30. The French Commander had been there with an Advanced Guard, surveying the scene. He sent cavalry patrols farther south, looking for the Allies, and he pressed forward right behind them. Reports came in. The Allies were advancing up the main road, but were still well short of Conway. The French Commander saw the opportunity, and ordered his men forward into the hills. They would try to occupy the same positions they had occupied before, only facing the other way round.

By 5:30 PM he had his troops depoloyed for battle, their front covered by a dry streambed, their left on a steep hill, their right hanging a bit, but the ground dropping steeply to the Stillaguamish. It wasn't the best position, but it would do.

The four battalions of infantry, the advanced guard that had been at Burlington, had stopped in Mount Vernon to guard the bridge. But they had two regiments cavalry with them. Those had been sent ahead. They had force-marched on a good road in dry weather, so they made 4.5 miles/hour. They arrived at 5:00 PM, and were deployed in a second line by 5:30. The force from Sedro Wooley had marched through Mount Vernon. They would not make it to this fight in time. The French Commander debated whether he should use them or not. After some thought he had them stop in Mount Vernon. This was a gamble, but if things didn't go well here, he would still have a force in being. And if any Allied troops crossed the river, the troops in Mount Vernon could also cross the river and maybe catch some of the Allied troops as they worked their way across Fir Island. Splitting his force like this was a risk, but he decided it was worth it.

The Allied Commander was a little surprised to contact the French around 4:00. He had hoped to take them more by surprise than he obviously had. But if a fight was necessary, then so be it. He didn't have many choices, but on the off-chance that something could be found, he sent patrols to his right to see if they could find a way through, say, MacMurray, and north to Sedro Wooley. Might as well cover all chances.

As the skirmishing increased the Allied Commander sent all of his cavalry forward. This shoved the French Cavalry back a bit, and allowed him to see the French position. The position wasn't unassailable, but any assault would be desperate. Still, he thought an attack could always be stopped by night. And when it was, maybe his men could escape to the right. His mind made up, he ordered his troops to shake out into line of battle for a fight.

The Forces
The Allied forces numbered 26 battalions of somewhat beat-up and tired infantry, along with eight regiments of cavalry and a scratched together artillery. Morale was not high, a lot of regiments were now M4 instead of M5. This reflected that the troops had marched and fought for the last 20 hours without adequate rest or nourishment. The exhaustion levels of the troops were changed to reflect that. All told, the French could muster (theoretically) 19,000 men for this action.

The French forces were outnumbered better than 2:1 in foot. They had had only minimal time to prepare, but the ground was broken, and the men were of good morale. One welcome reinforcement, the 2nd Germans came marching in from MacMurray on the Colonel's own initiative (actually referee's initiative). This boosted the French troops to 15,000 men.

The French were present first, and arrayed themselves in the traditional two lines, with Croissant and Navarre in the first line (left to right) and Provisionaire General, Procurer General, and the 2nd Germans as part of the second line (reading left to right). TheProvincial Grenadiers were held out of the line of battle and slightly detached to the left en potence as a flank guard. The Horse was deployed in two formations to the left of the foot, with the cavalry of the Maison the farthest out on the left. The rest of the cavalry was deployed with Bartillart and Courvoisier in the first line, and Absinthe and Crapaud in the second. The artillery was on the right next to a steep slope that protected their flank.

The Allies deployed the English on the left with the Dutch in the center. The cavalry was massed on the right in two lines. The mob of fugitives was sent to the far left. By 7 PM everyone was in position. Knowing that sunset was within the hour, the Allied Commander told his men there would be no battle unlessthe French attacked. Instead, every regiment sent out their pickets, and the men were quietly pulled back. His scouts had found a flank road.

The Allies Slip Away
The French commander ordered up the four battalions left at Mount Vernon. He toyed with a night attack (I reminded him of the first fight of the campaign), then ordered his pickets to cover the front and his men to be up before dawn. The Allied Commander rested his troops until midnight, then sent one regiment of cavarly and the mob of unorganized men wading across the ford in the Stillaguamish. The noise and uproar this caused brought the French Commander to the front to see what was going on. After some thought he ordered some troops forward to see what was happening.The troops from Navarre move forward in the dark, clashing with the troops of the 100-Acre Woods Foresters. The noise was loud, and the firing fierce, but the troops were too far away to hurt each other very much. Casualties were very few, more from men tripping over things in the dark than actually being hit by bullets.

While this was going on, the main Allied Force was quietly moving to their right, well beyond the line of French pickets. They found the road the scouts had uncovered, and the troops made their way along it as quietly as possible. Everyone was tense. By orders, no muskets had been loaded to prevent any accidental shots giving away the game, and all noisy items had been left behind in the camps. By 1 AM the bulk of the Allied army was on the road and descending from the hills onto the Conway-MacMurray road. There the leading elements were turning east to MacMurray, where they would then turn north towards Sedro Wooley. That's when trouble erupted.

Things Heat Up
The French Army had long planned to deploy on this very ground (back before the campaign started this was their chosen battlefield). The men knew every path and road in the area. And the commander of the French Maison cavalry kept hearing things to his front. So he sent out scouts. They returned with reports of Allied pickets in the area, lots of Allied pickets in the area. Being a cavalry officer, the commander of the Maison was not without enterprise. He sent for the nearest infantry, the Provinicial Grenadiers, roused his men, passed word to the line cavalry beside him, and sent a messenger to the Army Commander. All of that done, and his men ready by now, he moved forward with the intent to cause as much mischief as possible.

Referee's Note - I handled the action near the ford as a probe rather than as an attack. This meant the troops advanced until they could see "something", at which time quite likely firing would break out (throw 1d6, firing breaks out on a 3-6, I threw a 4). The men would halt to fire. This caused panic among the unorganized men (very logically) and it also pinned the English to the area (not realized by the Allied commander). On the other flank, the French commander had told me he wanted his pickets "well-forward and active". So this meant there was a chance to find out what was going on (throw 1d6, discover on a 5 or 6, check every hour; at 1 AM I threw a 6). Deciding that the nobility in the French army were likely to be head-strong and aggressive (especially cavalry commanders in the Maison du Roi), I decided that the local commander would do the professional thing (send messages), but he would also go stick his finger in the hornet's nest to see what happened. But he wasn't entirely stupid, he had those grenadiers handy, too. I decided that it would take an hour to get everything ready, so at 2 AM we would have things happening. I played this out in 30 minute turns.

The Engagement
For maximum impact the French deployed all three units in one line, the Grenadiers a Cheval on the left, Maison du Roi next to them, and the Provinicial Grenadiers on the right. They moved forward with orders to "smash everything in front of them". They hit the line of Dutch infantry in column of march. The regiments Limbeek and Westmalle, near the tail of the column, were caught totally by surprise and scattered in the first charge. The French cavalry pursued those men vigorously, while the Grenadiers wheeled to the west and hit the next unit they found, Kriek. Again, the Grenadiers closed to melee, utilizing their SHK. It wouldn't have mattered, Kriek was in column of march and unable to defend itself. But when Fortune smiles, it smiles hugely. The dice were thrown anyway, and up came a pair of 6's. Kriek was removed from the Allied order of battle. Two other regiments were behind Kriek, Dalrymple and Murray. Dalrymple had warning of what was going on and managed to deploy. The Grenadiers slammed into them anyway. Dalrymple inflicted one hit on the Grenadiers, but took two in return. As Dalrymple disintegrated, Murray had a chance to go stationary. The English were coming up behind them, and the Buffs were on their flank in support. But the French line cavalry was showing up, now, as well as more French infantry. Everyone could see this was only going to end one way. By 5:00 AM the Allied troops still present were surrendering at discretion.

The Allied Commander wanted to turn back and fight the French, but now his army was too strung out to deploy. So he pressed on, writing off a good chunk of his forces. His cavalry reached MacMurray at 6 AM, with what was left of the foot right behind them. The troops turned north towards Sedro Wooley. Safety, of sorts, was only a few miles away. As the morning wore on, the Dutch cavalry stayed behind to form a rearguard, while the English cavalry raced ahead to guard the Sedro Wooley-Mount Vernon road. By 10 AM the bulk of his men were across the river. The action was over, what was left of his army was safe, and he could now try to figure out how to explain what had happened (after he figured it out) in this most unsatisfactory campaign.

The Reckoning
The Allied Army lost all of the English Foot captured, and five infantry other regiments just removed, killed, wounded, captured. They also lost most of the unorganized men rounded up as captives (the cavalry regiment that had escorted them made it back to safety after a long and somewhat hair-raising escape). All told, the Allies lost 12,500 men from all causes (of which 7,500 were in organized units). The French lost scarcely 500 men in this action, mostly last ditch shots, or attempts to stop the Grenadiers when they got on a roll. In terms of battle casualties, the Allies lost 1,500 men.

The Campaign Winds Down

When the Allied Army crossed the river at Sedro Wooley, this effectively ended the campaign. Oh, there were still odds and ends to clean up. There were a couple of German Regiments in Allied service that could be captured if they were unlucky, but things were so confusing after the Battle of Conway Heights that nobody remembered. The German regiment opposite Conway decamped early in the morning, and marched to the bridge to Fidalgo Island. There they joined up with the other German regiment. Covered by the Frambozen Cavalry, this tiny force, less the battalion watching Anacortes, marched up Chuckanut Drive. Though it took a couple of days, they were able to arrive in Bellingham without molestation (though a bit hungry). Just over 1,500 unorganized men made the march out with them. The battalion watching Anacortes was lifted off Fidalgo Island a day later by the Allied Navy. That marked the official end of the campaign. There were no more Allied troops south of the border, nor were there likely to be any time soon. Several days later the Autumn Rains started, ending the season for marching.

The Allied Army was a mere shadow of what it had been. The French were better off, but only just.

The objectives of the Allies, to extend their control over the Skagit River Basin, and control of Whidbey Island and Anacortes and hence the lower Sound, were not met. The campaign could be judged a complete failure. The political fall-out was complex (and outside the scope of this narrative). But peace feelers were extended during the rainy season, and Spring did not bring a new campaigning. In all essentials, peace broke out. This, of course, laid the groundwork for a future war, but that is another story.

A Comment on the Tactical Rules

The battles were fought using the 1st Edition of Volley & Bayonet by Frank Chadwick. All of the cavalry were on regimental bases, which made them very fragile (one hit/regiment).

If I were to fight the campaign again (and we did, sort of), I would put the cavalry on brigade bases. This is mostly because the doctrine of the time was already migrating to the use of cavalry brigades as opposed to regiments. This was in large part because of the recognition of two factors. First, that individual regimental strengths varied widely, depending upon the success of the Colonel-Proprietor. Second, that cavalry was best used en masse. Dragoons, however, would be on regimental stands because my reading of the literature of the period indicates that this was the way it was usually done.

Now the 2nd Edition of the rules is out, Volley & Bayonet, The Road to Glory. I would use these the next time the two sides face off. When will that be? Well, there was another campaign that followed the one I'm currently detailing, a campaign that emphasized scouting (one side didn't). That will get detailed later.

A word on armies/rules/&c. All of my Marlburians are for V&B. I've tried various other rules for the period, and like V&B for its subtlety and simplicity. Long gone are the days when I felt complexity gave a better game.

I saw this in a game of Wagram I read about using the rules Two Hundred Years Ago. This club lovingly painted up every battery, battalion and regiment from that battle. They rented a hall. They laid the troops out. They got through three turns(!) and then had to pick up. I read the rules and concluded that a simple time-motion study precluded ever doing anything with them aside from small actions.

Historically most wargames rules work best with small forces. This is partly because the foundations of the hobby were from (mostly) WW2 gaming, and there you didn't think of divisions, the gamers who had been through that war thought in terms of companies/troops and battalions (at the highest level). Scotty Bowden changed that with Empire 1. Suddenly my 1:20 Napoleonic army (2 divisions) became two corps! I felt like a corps or army commander, not a glorified regimental commander. And part of Scotty's secret was a time-motion study that simplified the mechanics. But even so, by the end of a battle spread over three or four of our days, we would be so exhausted that we'd just say "throw the dice and we'll look it up if it's close."

Years ago I did Alte Fritz, a 1:75 set of Seven Years War rules. I simplified the mechanics as much as I could, and you could handle a reasonable sized battle on the table. The largest we did was 35+ battalions and 60 squadrons on a side. That was an epic fight that took a good part of a day. Clearly improvements could be made.

Jeff Cox and I took the DBA concept and did Little Big Battles. There a player could handle a corps without a problem, often two. And Jeff and I did one epic battle where we had multiple corps each. But the average player had no problem handling even the extra-large Austrian corps of 1809. The secret was a close attention to time-motion, and the DBA concept of rolling morale and combat results up as one throw.

The only other set of rules that I've enjoyed for large actions (what I prefer) are the V&B rules. I confess that my first experience was very negative, but that was partly because the guy putting the game on at Enfilade! was a nice guy who didn't know the rules all that well. Jeff and I tested them by trying our best to abuse the daylights out of them. It left a sour taste in our mouths.

I went back a few months later after an ACW V&B game. True, I was hung out to dry by my Army Commander (I had Sickles Corps on Day 2 of Gettysburg), but so was Sickles, partly through his own folly. But I cobbled together a line after the initial shock, and managed to fall back in some order and pull more of my troops out of the fight than Sickles (or after he was wounded, Humphries) did. And what was going on felt like what I'd read. I decided to give the rules another try.

I did, and my Marlburians all went on V&B stands. I also mounted my 1813 Prussians for V&B, but haven't touched my 1806 French or any of my SYW troops. We'll see about what happens in the future.

Why didn't I try Napoleon's Battles? I did, and it makes an interesting story. Jeff and I were at a local hobbystore, and the guys there were putting on the Battle of Teugen-Hausen (1809 Campaign). Jeff took the French, and I was given a corps of Austrians. The main Austrian force deploys on a ridge, and my corps was coming up through some woods on their right. The French (Davout's troops) assaulted the ridge, carried it, and swept the Austrians aside.

Jeff didn't just power into the Austrians in a Napoleonic style banzai charge, get mangled, and then have to fight hard with his second division to hold his line while the Austrians massed on his flank. This was unheard of! Instead he massed his forces, and pinned the Austrians in front while trying to turn their left flank. Unheard of! In fact one of the guys who normally gamed with the rules dismissed Jeff's flank attack as something that couldn't work because "the end battalion will simply face". So Jeff got behind the Austrians and hit them from three sides. Their line folded at once.

I took one look at this, and at too many French for my columns of march to hold back. So I used my Advanced Guard division to punch the French back while everyone turned around and marched away. The Advanced Guard division fell back as a mobile rearguard, and after a couple of bad experiences the French followed up cautiously.

The same guys were going to put on Wagram using these rules, and they called me about a month before. They wanted me to take an Austrian Corps because I was "a careful, cautious commander". For some reason this sends my friends into paroxysms of laughter. I declined politely.

I didn't like the feel of Napoleon's Battles (just like I didn't like Piquet). Call it personal preferences. I have not tried Sam Mustapha's Grand Army. For now I'll stick with V&B, and if I want SYW, Age of Reason. For Napoleonics...right now it's a reworked Empire 2, or Guard du Corps. Negotiations are on-going (there are other games involved). We'll see what happens.

Action at Swede Hollow

The Fall Campaign (continued)

The Action at Swede Hollow

Preliminaries

Three days after the Battle of Arlington, the commander of the Allied Army made the decision to cut his way out of the mountains. His decision came as a result of careful pondering (and discussion with the referee). He had the following unpalatable facts on his plate:

1. the nearest "safety" was in Sedro Wooley (at least), 83 miles away by his current route;


2. if he turned east at Concrete, it was over 400 miles before he could be "in supply";


3. he had precious little food;


4. he had almost no ammunition, except that carried in the pouches of a few regiments not engaged at Arlington;


5. he had no artillery;


6. he had several thousand unorganized men looting, marauding, and eating everything in sight;


7. the French were sure to get to Sedro Wooley first, blocking him in the mountains (he could not see how to get an organized force through the mountains back to Bellingham - referee input, isn't going to happen);


8. the French were pursuing him with cavalry (one regiment) and infantry (at least two regiments) - referee observation, he finally began scouting;

Based on the above, his choices were few:

1. he could surrender - unacceptable;


2. he could force march to Sedro Wooley and try to cut his way out;


3. he could try to go west over the mountains and back to the coastal area - no. This would destroy the army.


4. he could turn on his pursuers.

Of these choices, 2 and 4 were the most "reasonable". But Option #2 meant he would have 83 miles to go with a starving army. The French would have plenty of time to get there first and dig in. He would then have to assault prepared defenses covered with artillery. His chances of winning under those circumstances were nil.

Option #4 offered his best chances. Now that he was doing scouting (he had cavalry superiority), he was learning all sorts of things. One of the more interesting things was that his pursuit consisted of two infantry regiments, 1/1st Germans and 2/1st Germans. He concluded that a bayonet assault would do the trick, and so ordered one. But the units picked for the assault would also be the ones that had ammunition, just in case (as referee I informed him that his chances of winning any given round of combat decreased by not having ammunition, though I didn't tell him by how much - all hits he made would be subject to saving throws, and his opponent got a +1 on his chances to hit).

The Pursuing Force

The pursuing force were left in the hands of the referee with orders to "keep after them, but don't get in over your head". I asked about "digging in every night". The French commander wanted to know how long it would take, and I said "a couple of hours, at least, maybe more". As this would mean the Allies "got away" (his words), he said no, don't. Just "keep close". So I decided that the troops pursued, camped every night with a picket line out, but didn't take "extraordinary" precautions. They did clash repeatedly with the Allied Cavalry, but those were a lot of "facing and staring" contests.

The Fight at Swede Hollow - The Forces

The ground at Swede Hollow broadens out (sort of), stretching all four pursuing German battalions out so they covered the entire front. The 2/1st Germans were on the left with their left flank resting on the stream, the 1/1st Germans were on the right with their right flank resting on steep and heavily wooded (cavalry proof) ground. There were pickets from the Atrasos Cavalry in front, but the bulk of the regiment was behind the German infantry (they were on the left as the ground was "suitable"). Both German regiments had both battalions in line. They were, after all, "sweeping up" the Allies.

The Allies coming down on them were in two columns of three Dutch regiments each, followed by the English. The Allied commander also decided to push a force past the Germans on their left, cross the stream (if they could find a ford) and try to turn the enemy flank. This force consisted of the following regiments: Huegenot, Dalrymple, Murray, and the Frambozen Cavalry.

The assault columns (from front to back) consisted of regiments:

Left Column          Right Column
 Grosch               Koninck
 Amstel               Westmalle
 Grootdefeatfontein   Kofferdam

Referee decisions:

1. all casualties would be permanent, though most would be "fugitives";


2. this would be played in half-hour turns, though the ground scale would not change;


3. I would roll 1d6 for surprise: 4 - 6 meant the Germans were alerted and could go stationary, 1 meant total surprise and the German regiment was disordered;


4. Once a unit was ordered in, the player had no control over it, the unit would "keep advancing";

Swede Hollow - The Fight

The Allied commander gave the order to advance at 12:30. I rolled for surprise for each column: I threw a 3 for the right column, and 5 for the left column. The flanking column was ordered forward at the same time, but I did not have to roll for surprise just yet.

1:00 AM Turn

Grosch attacked the 2/1st Germans. Grosch went disordered (the Germans were already disordered), and Grosch took a hit.
Koninck attacked the 1/1st Germans and were disordered. Koninck took a hit and fell back.

1:30 AM Turn

Amstel attacked the 2/1st Germans. 2/1st Germans took a hit and the Germans were forced back. Westmalle attacked the 1/1st Germans. Both were disordered. Westmalle lost the melee result throw. Huegenot came to the stream and forded it well behind the 2/1st Germans. Atrasos Cavalry were now mounted and ready for action.

2:00 AM Turn

Grootdefeatfontein attacked the 2/1st Germans just as Huegenot came at them from the rear. Dalrymple crossed the stream. 2/1st Germans took a hit and routed from the melee. They ran into Huegenot and Dalrymple. Most of the regiment threw down their weapons and surrendered (referee decision). Kofferdam attacked the 1/1st Germans, and took 2 hits(!). Clearly the 1/1st Germans were not to be trifled with tonight. Kofferdam routed and was removed.

2:30 AM Turn

1/1st Germans were now outflanked. They pulled back into the trees and sacrificing their stationary status. Amstel came at the 1/1st Germans. Both sides took a hit. Both sides rolled on the morale dice (three times) before Amstel backed away. Atrasos Cavalry fell back, along with fugitives.

3:00 AM Turn

1/1st Germans broke contact (nobody could reach them), pulling back uphill deeper into the trees. Westmalle, Amstel and Koninck faced them and made a flank guard. Everyone else "kept moving".

4:00 AM Turn to 6:00 AM Turn

The Allies flowed down the valley like a torrent. The battle was over, but the Allied player was enjoying this too much and insisted we continue.

6:00 AM Turn

Atrasos Cavalry clashed with the 1st British Cavalry at Oso. No casualties on either side, the British fell back on the melee result throw. Dutch regiment te Paard comes up and deploys to the flank of the Atrasos Cavalry.

6:30 AM Turn

Atrasos Cavalry falls back before being flanked. The Allied pursuit rolls on.

8:00 AM Turn

The Allies reach Arlington. The 3rd Germans have already fallen back to west of Arlington. Referee rules that the battle is over.

Order of Battle and Losses
French
1/1st Germans..........M5,EFD,PT,NE....[ ][x]
2/1st Germans..........M5,EFD,PT,NE....[x][x][x]
Atrasos Cavalry........M5,HVY..........[ ]

Dutch
Grosch.................M5,EFD,PT,NE....[x][ ]
Amstel.................M5,EFD,PT,NE....[x][ ][ ]
Grootdefeatfontein.....M5,EFD,PT,NE....[ ][ ][ ]
Koninck................M5,EFD,PT,NE....[x][ ][ ]
Westmalle..............M5,EFD,PT,NE....[ ][ ][ ]
Kofferdam..............M4,EFD,PT,NE....[x][x]
Huegenot...............M5,EFD,PT,NE....[ ][ ]
Dalrymple..............M4,EFD,PT,NE....[ ]
Murray.................M5,EFD,PT,NE....[ ][ ]
Frambozen Cavalry......M5,HVY..........[ ]
1st British Cavalry....M5,HVY..........[ ]
te Paard...............M5,HVY..........[ ]

Losses:
French - 3,000 men present, 2,000 casualties from all causes
Allies - 12,000 men present, 2,500 casualties

Commentary

Nothing really surprising here. The Allies had the force to make this work, and they were just going to keep going until they broke through. However it might not have happened. It all depended on the surprise roll. Clearly the commander of the 1/1st Germans did what he was supposed to. But the commander of the 2/1st Germans really didn't have much of a chance. When the Huegenot Regiment came at them from behind, they were surrounded, and it was only a matter of time.

As an exercise, it was interesting. I'm not sure I would care to try it again. The victory conditions would have to be carefully crafted (look at the casualties the Germans inflicted). What was refreshing was that the Allied commander kept his overall goal in mind: get through, don't stop to wipe out the Germans. Get the army out. Thus this could be marked down as an "educational" opportunity. We'll see if he makes anything of it.

Part 2 - The Fall Campaign

The Fall Campaign (continued)

The situation

The Allies are in a pretty mess. Their main army is retreating from the vicinity of Arlington, falling back in some disorder up Route 530. Only the Danes are still in the area, and they are marching north as fast as they can, accompanied by a host of stragglers, knocked loose from the ranks by the Battle of Arlington. There is a German regiment at MacMurray, one at Conway, and one holding the approaches to Fidalgo Island (one battalion) and blockading the very small garrison of Anacortes (with the other battalion). There is no field artillery (captured at Arlington), and the only cavalry is the Danish Cavalry regiment Bryggeri. Things couldn't get much bleaker.

Actually, they aren't. The Allied authorities in Bellingham and Vancouver found three more infantry regiments to send south, Leff, Palm, and VanZandunz. When coupled with the two of the three German regiments in the area, and the four Danish ones, a semi-respectable field force of 10 regiments, 12,000 men can be assembled (one German regiment will stay to watch Anacortes).

The Danish Commander Decides

The Danish Commander (the player who had commanded the Allies at Clear Lake) was the ranking officer in the area. He had a number of choices to make. When I asked, he listed them for me as these:

1. Retreat everyone to Fidalgo Island;


2. Mass in Burlington with the cavalry watching Sedro Wooley;


3. Spread the troops around, two regiments at Conway, two regiments at the east end of the Mount Vernon Bridge to Fidalgo Island, two regiments north of Mount Vernon, and a detachment of some kind at Sedro Wooley.

I asked him for his decision. He asked my input. I told him that, speaking as the politicians, he should defend everything, or, failing that, he should mass everyone in Burlington to defend the approaches to Bellingham.
After some thought, he ordered Option #2:

1. The Danes to retreat to Sedro Wooley, break the bridge, and move to Burlington, the cavalry would watch Sedro Wooley and fall back on Burlington if pressed;


2. The Germans at MacMurray to join with the Danes;


3. The Germans at Conway to stay where they were for one day, then to fall back to Fredonia if pressed or threatened;


4. The Germans watching Anacortes and the approaches to Fidalgo Island to stay there;


5. The Dutch regiments from Bellingham to march to Burlington.

His plan (when pressed) was to defend the direct route to Bellingham, and yet leave something to watch Anacortes. He figured that when things settled out, that place could still be taken. He also figured that any force that marched up the Skagit River to fight the Main Army would have its flank threatened by whatever he put at Sedro Wooley.

The French Pursuit


The French were trying to do a number of things:

1. Pursue the beaten Allies toward Darrington;


2. Round up the fragments of the Allied army (the Danes) headed north;


3. Seize the road from Sedro Wooley to Concrete to trap the main Allied Army in the mountains;


4. Seize Mount Vernon

The map here to the left will help sort out some of what everyone was considering. But keep in mind that the Allies had few supplies (and little ammunition), they had 83 miles of mountain marching from Arlington to Sedro Wooley, and they could expect to fight a battle at the end of it.

A few minutes of pondering these objectives will show that few of them are mutually exclusive. You have to have enough force to chase the Allies, and get enough force to Mount Vernon, and yet move fast enough to get to where you want to go, and.... The French Commander had already sent a force up the river after the Allies (1/1st and 2/1st Germans and the Spanish Atrasos Cavalry). He then ordered the following movements and dispositions:

1. The bulk of the cavalry and the Aquaviva Dragoons to go to Mount Vernon to seize the bridge;


2. After reaching Mount Vernon, one cavalry brigade to press up US 20 to find the Allies;


3. Advance on two fronts:
   
   1. the Right Wing French to pursue the Danes. They will probably head directly for MacMurray and then Sedro Wooley. This force will attempt to bring them to battle and destroy them.
   
   
   2. The Left Wing to advance up the main road through Conway to Mount Vernon. They will try to seize the crossing over the Skagit at Mount Vernon, head-off the Danes, and, perhaps, snap up any of the German units in the area.


4. The Spanish infantry to follow the right wing;


5. The 3rd Germans to occupy Arlington, the 2nd Germans to occupy MacMurray.

The French commander concluded that these measures should be sufficient to bottle up the Allies and bag the whole lot.

The Allied Commander Ponders

The Allied Commander was in a bad situation, and he knew it (after a brief conversation with the referee). He had lost a lot of men and all of his field artillery, and he was trying to sort out what to do next. He had a force pursuing him, and he had very little in the way of supplies. Most of his wounded (except the walking wounded) had been captured, so the army he had left was mostly fit to fight (sort of). He had an 83 mile march ahead of him, on mountain roads with little food or supplies. And he knew the French would be waiting for him behind fixed defenses when he did show up. He didn't fancy making a series of frontal assaults on redoubts. It hadn't worked at Mount Vernon, why would anyone think it would work now? He studied the roads, trying to find a way out. The only one he could see was to continue to Concrete, then take US 20 over the mountains, and then turn north. The trouble was, assuming he did that, and assuming he could find the food, and assuming he could then either get far enough north as to get on a road that led him back to his bases (and that would avoid the bad weather, how much of an army would he have left? (Referee answer: none, but I didn't tell him that. I did tell him that it was 408 miles, and it was autumn, and let him draw his own conclusions). That meant he had to try something else. He weighed the possibilities and came up with an answer.

The New Allied Plan

First, the Allied Commander took stock of his forces to see what he had to work with. It was not encouraging. Then he shifted a few things around, and ordered his troops to turn and march back to Arlington. He knew he had the 1st and 2nd Germans behind him, he figured a night bayonet assault should chase them off. And then it would be a forced march to Arlington to gather whatever food he could find, followed by an escape. As turned in to me, the plan was:

1. Night bayonet assault to cut through the pursuing German regiments;


2. Force march to Arlington to find food and anything else lying around (such as ammunition);


3. March north on the main road to Conway;


4. Cross the river at Conway (by bridge or ford) and march to La Conner and north to Fidalgo Island;


5. if possible, continue past the Fidalgo Island crossing and get to Burlington;


6. if he couldn't get to Burlington, either turn on to Fidalgo Island, or proceed to Chuckanut drive.

Referee's Reaction

Well, on the ballsy scale, this had to rank right up there. I had to do the terrain for the night bayonet attack. What with one thing and another, I would play the part of the commander of the Germans. Then I would see what happened. This, I concluded, would be interesting (a much over-used word).

The Plans put into action

The first two days after the Battle of Arlington, the Allies slowed to 4 miles/day. The French moved to MacMurray, and then on to Sedro Wooley. The Danish commander, by ordering forced marches, managed to get to Sedro Wooley with the Allies hot on his heels. There was a spirited little action at the Sedro Wooley bridge, but the French commander decided not to push it. The Danes had gotten away.

The German regiment at Conway saw the French Army descending on them, and pulled back to the little redoubts on the west side of the river left over from the Spring Campaign and rebuilt during the initial actions of the Autumn Campaign. The French commander dropped off two infantry regiments (both Blesois regiments) to watch them, and continued north. He had a brigade of cavalry and the Aquaviva Dragoons with him. These troops stormed across the bridge at Mount Vernon, and ran into the new Dutch regiments. These troops were on the hills just north of Burlington, and were basically unassailable by the forces on hand. Their regimental guns bombarded the French troops, so the French fell back to just south of Burlington. The French Craupad Cavalry Brigade was sent to Fidalgo Island to watch anything in the area.

The Allies struck on the night of the third day after the Battle of Arlington. Surprise was complete, but the fighting was fierce. The referee decided to style this as the Action at Swede Heaven. The Atrasos Cavalry covered the retreat, at least until daylight, when they rallied at Oso. They made a front that slowed the Allies briefly, until the Dutch Cavalry regiment te Paard and the English 1st Cavalry came up. After a cavalry skirmish Atrasos withdrew. The 1/1st Germans had been cut off when they made a stand north of the Stillaguamish River. After some fighting, they were contained, and bypassed. Now they withdrew deeper into the hills and sat for a day, finally emerging after the bulk of the Allied army was past. They did grab up a few stragglers, but that was all. The fate of the 2/1st Germans was a bit harsher. They had been overwhelmed in the fighting, but fragments managed to fall back with the cavalry. Most of the fugitives made their way to Oso, where they surrendered after the retreat of the Atrasos Cavalry.

The stream of fugitives alerted the 3rd Germans that something was amiss. They tried to set fire to the accumulated stores, and then fall back across the battlefield of Arlington, taking refuge on the heights to the west of the battlefield. There, in the late afternoon, they were joined by the Atrasos Cavalry and the remnants of the 2/1st Germans amounting to about two companies worth of very disorganized men. The Allied cavalry raced into town with pre-emptory orders to fight any fires and secure the area. The first infantry on the scene were moved north over the Stillaguamish River as a flank guard, while the rest helped put out the fires. Most of the stores were saved, and the Allied Army dined well that night.

The French...React(?)

Contact with the troops at Arlington was interrupted by the Allied attack. But the French commander didn't get word that something was amiss until the next day. His first reaction was to send cavalry south to find out what had happened. He had spread his cavalry far and wide, it would take at least a day to get anyone south far enough to find out anything. So he sent infantry patrols as well. They ran into Allied patrols at Pilchuck Creek, and a brief skirmish erupted with almost no casualties on either side. A few travel-stained soldiers from 1/1st Germans came into the lines after the clash. The local commander sent out additional patrols that night. There were an awful lot of Allied soldiers where there shouldn't be. He sent that information, and the men from the 1st Germans north. At the same time couriers from the Atrasos Cavalry picked their way north along the old highway. They got across the river at Milltown, and within a couple of hours their reports were in the hand of the French commander. The entire Allied army was present at Arlington. This wasn't a feint (the reports from the Germans had made him think so). The officer on the heights west of Arlington had spent some time patrolling and gathering information on the Allied units present. Except for some critical ommissions, this was the entire Allied army. A few might still be on the road to Darrington and Concrete, but probably not that many.

The situation was now "clarified". The French commander decided that if he couldn't trap the Allies in the mountains, he could trap them elsewhere. He resolved to march south to at least Conway, and block the Allies there. He reasoned quite simply: they would have to attack to get through him, he would not have to attack at all. He had a chance to trap the Allied army and destroy it. This was too good an opportunity to pass up. He issued orders that all troops were to gather at Conway for battle. He did detail that a force of two regiments was to dig in at MacMurray, along with the well-traveled Aquaviva Dragoons. He didn't want anyone escaping that way, and the units involved, Chef de Fer and Royal Boullibaise should be able to fight perfectly well from defenses despite their weakened condition.

The Forces Gather

The one thing the Allied commander lacked was time (the French commander lacked this, too, though he didn't realize it). After a rest and a meal (and an important re-supply of ammunition), he had his men on the road north of Arlington (Route 9) before first light. A rearguard was detailed to keep the bivouac fires still burning. The Allied commander's plan was simple. March to Bryant, then west to the main road, then north to Conway. Then he'd cross there to Fir Island. If he moved fast enough the next place anyone could block him would be west of Mount Vernon.

Referee's Note - now we had another foot race, again to Conway. For being a town consisting of a tavern, a grain silo (very small), a motel and a couple of stores, plus that all-important bridge, it was amazing how it kept figuring in the decisions made in the campaign. The French regiments of Blesois were there already. There orders were to hold until relieved (I'd asked for orders for them). On the face of it, the French are closer, but they're scattered, and orders have to go to them (at 5 mph - average courier speed). The Allies are more concentrated, and the commander has told me he wants "forced marches". Interesting may be an over-used term, but it is accurate.

Narrative Resumes The commander of 1st and 2nd Blesois had a good idea of what was coming - the entire Allied army. He considered his situation - not good. He did not see many options, not given his orders. He had a couple of redoubts, and he knew help was coming (the courier got to him quickly). He put his men in the redouts, dug the rest into the hamlet, and prepared for a last stand.

The Stand at Conway continues in the next part.

Losses At Arlington

Battle of Arlington

The Battle of Arlington

                 Order of Battle:
English    English Foot  exh: 14 Lt. General Sir Percy Poundflesh
Lord Lovaduck’s.........M6,PT,EP,BN [x][x][x]
100-Acre Wood Frstrs....M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
d’Escoigne-d’Escoigne...M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][x]
The Buffs...............M5,PT,EP,BN [x][ ][ ]
Lord Rakehell’s.........M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][x]
Bartleshire Yeomanry....M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][ ]
Lestrade’s Rgt..........M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][x]
McAlpin’s Fusiliers.....M5,PT,NE [x][x][x]
H.M.O.R.L.EB.5th.Fus....M5,PT,EP,BN [x][ ][ ]  
.
English Cavalry exh 3 General Sir Humphrey Passingas
1st Regiment............M5,HVY  [x][ ]
Buffs/Irish Mtd Fus.....M5,HVY  [ ][ ]
d’Escoigne-d’Escoigne...M5,HVY  [ ]
.
English Artillery exh 1
Light Gun...............M5,PPA  [x] captured
.
Dutch  Dutch Infantry exh 16 General the Elector von Hesse-Lickenboot
Van Kofferdam...........M5,PT,EP,BN [x][ ]
Grosch..................M5,PT,EP,BN [x][ ][ ]
Amstel..................M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
De Koninck..............M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
Huguenot Regiment.......M4,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ]
Limbeek.................M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ]
Hoegaarden..............M4,PT,EP,BN [x][ ]
Westmalle...............M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
Grootdefeatfontein......M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
Kriek...................M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]
Dalrymple (Scots).......M5,PT,EP [x][ ]
Colyear (Scots).........M5,PT,EP [x][x]
Murray (Scots)..........M5,PT,EP [ ][ ]
.
Dutch Cavalry  exh 4 Lt. General Minor Picadillo
Dopplebock Cavalry......M5,HVY  [x]
Trippel Cavalry.........M5,HVY  [x]
Frambozen Cavalry.......M5,HVY  [ ]
te Paard................M6,HVY  [x]
de la Gruyere Cavalry...M5,HVY  [ ]
van Emmenthaler Cav.....M5,HVY  [ ]
Bluntschli Cavalry......M5,HVY  [x]
.
Dutch Artillery exh 2 Major van Klickenhammer
Medium Gun #1...........M5,PPA  [x] captured
Medium Gun #2...........M5,PPA  [x] captured
Medium Gun #3...........M5,PPA  [x] captured
.
  Total = 75 hits = 37,500 men
.
French  Right Wing  exh 9 General Pain-grillé
1/Intendant General.....M5,PT,EP,EFD....[x][x][x]
2/Intendant General.....M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
1/Blesois...............M4,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
2/Blesois...............M4,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
1/Chef de Fer...........M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
2/Chef de Fer...........M5,PT,EP,EFD....[x][ ]
Royal Boullibaise.......M4,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
.
Germans  exh 7 Lt. General von Struttenmarsch
1/1st Germans...........M5,PT,NE,EFD....[ ][ ]
2/1st Germans...........M5,PT,NE,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
1/2nd Germans...........M5,PT,NE,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
2/2nd Germans...........M5,PT,NE,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
3rd Germans.............M5,PT,NE,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
.
Left Wing  exh 9 Mestre-de-Camp Pollo e Vino
1/Croissant.............M4,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
2/Croissant.............M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
1/Navarre...............M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
2/Navarre...............M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ]
Provisionaire Genl......M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
Grenadiers..............M6,PT,NE,SHK,EFD[ ][ ][ ]
Procurer General........M4,PT,EP,EFD....[x][ ][ ]
.
Maison du Roi  exh 2 Lt. General Le Comte d'Langoustine
Maison du Roi...........M6,HVY,SHK......[x][ ]
Grenadiers a cheval.....M6,HVY,SHK......[ ][ ]
.
Line Cavalry  exh 3 Mestre de Camp Margrave von Schnecke
1/Bartillart............M5,HVY..........[x]
2/Bartillart............M5,HVY..........[x]
1/Courvoisier...........M5,HVY..........[ ]
2/Courvoisier...........M5,HVY..........[ ]
Duc d’Absinthe..........M5,HVY..........[ ]
Crapaud.................M5,HVY..........[x]
.
French Artillery exh 2 Major van Marteau
Heavy Gun #1............M5,PPA..........[ ]
Heavy Gun #2............M5,PPA..........[ ]
Medium Gun..............M5,PPA..........[ ]
.
Spanish  Spanish Foot  exh 11 General Lope de Vaca
De Vaca.................M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
La Mancha...............M5,PT,EP,EFD....[x][x][ ]
Dulcinea de Tolosa......M5,PT,EP,EFD....[x][ ][ ]
De Borracho.............M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
Governor General’s......M5,PT,EP,EFD....[ ][ ][ ]
Torta...................M5,PT,EP,EFD....[x][ ][ ]
Don Juan................M4,PT,EP,EFD....[x][x][ ]
.
Spanish Horse  exh 3 General The McTavish of McTavish
Atrasos Cavalry.........M5,HVY..........[ ]
1/Governor General’s....M6,HVY..........[x]
2/Governor General’s....M6,HVY..........[x]
Santiago................M5,HVY..........[x]
.
Total is 85 hits = 42,500 men

The Battle of Arlington

The Battle of Arlington

The Ground

The ground west of Arlington is flat, broken only by South Portage Creek (dry on the day of battle). There was high ground on both sides of the flood plain forming the battlefield. To the north was the Stillaguamish, to the south there was just open ground. There was a knoll behind each line, both sides put artillery on their respective knolls. The infantry engagement took place north of Portage Creek (for the most part), while some infantry, and all of the cavalry, was to the south of the creek.

The Plans

The French Plan envisioned a hook with the left wing turning the Allied flank and advancing into the town of Arlington.

The Allied Plan was to press the French all along the front and use the superior numbers and quality of the Allied infantry to beat the French.

Referee's note - though the Allies thought they outnumbered the French, and they did in terms of troops in theater, the French brought more men to the battle. This was a rude surprise to the Allied commander. Both commander's plans were...not well thought out, as will appear in the narrative below.

French Deployment

French Foot

The French Foot was divided into four columns. With the exception of one Spanish regiment, the various national contingents were kept as separate columns. By dividing his force this way, the French commander said he wanted a certain amount of flexibility. He had some idea of the consequences of the Exhaustion rule, and thought this was a nice division between exhaustion and rallying.

1st Column - French (right to left):
1st Blesois, 2nd Blesois, 1st Chef de Fer, 2nd Chef de Fer, Procurer General, 2nd Intendant General, 1st Intendant General

2nd Column - French (right to left):
Provincial Grenadiers, 1st Croissant, 2nd Croissant, Provisionaire General, Royal Boullibaise, 1st Navarre, 2nd Navarre

3rd Column - Spanish (right to left):
La Mancha, Don Juan, Borracho, Dulcinea de Tolosa, de Vaca, Torta

4th Column - German (right to left):
3rd Germans, 1/1st Germans, 2/1st Germans, 2/2nd Germans, 1/2nd Germans, Governor General's

French Cavalry

The French Cavalry was divided in terms of quality rather than nationality. Thus Governor General's Horse served with the Maison du Roi.

1st Column (right to left):

1st line: Grenadiers a Cheval, Maison du Roi, 1st Governor General's

2nd line: Santiago, Atrasos, 2nd Governor General's

2nd Column (right to left)

1st line: 1st Bartillart, 2nd Bartillart, Crapaud

2nd line: Absinte, 1st Courvoissier, 2nd Courvoissier

French Artillery

The French heavy guns were deployed on the knoll behind Royal Boullibaise (behind the second line). The French medium guns were kept limbered between the Germans and the French 2nd Column.

The French Army was deployed with the 1st Column in the front line with the Spanish to their left. The French 2nd Column formed behind the 1st Column, with the Germans behind the Spanish. All cavalry was massed on the French right flank. The 1st Cavalry Column was deployed to the right of the cavalry, with the 2nd Cavalry Column to their left, both columns in two lines.

Allied Deployment

The Allied commands were divided up by Nationality. After rereading the Exhaustion rules, the Allied commander decided to go for large forces that would be harder to exhaust. The other side of this is that rallying disordered units becomes very difficult when the action becomes general. This contributed to the Allied problems in the battle.

English Foot (right to left) in one line
Lovaduck, d'Escoigne-d'Escoigne, Bartleshire Yeomanry, Buffs, Rakehell, 5th Fusiliers, Lestrade, 100-Acre Woods Foresters, McAlpin's Fusiliers

Dutch Foot (right to left) in two lines

1st line (left of the English): Hoegaarden, Amstel

2nd line (behind Hoegaarden and Amstel): de Koninck, Huegenots

2nd line (behind the English): Dalrymple, Colyear, Murray, Grosch, van Kofferdam, Grootdefeatfontein, Limbeek

Dutch Horse (right to left)

1st line (next to the foot): Frambozen, van Emmenthaler, Dopplebock

2nd line (behind 1st line): Trippel, Bluntschli, de la Gruyere

Anglo-Dutch Horse (right to left)

1st line: te Paard, d'Escoigne

2nd line: 1st Cavalry, Buffs/Irish

The Allied Cavalry was deployed to the left of the Dutch Foot, with the Anglo-Dutch Horse on the far left flank. The English Foot was one command. The Dutch Foot were one command except for the regiments of Hoegaarden, Amstel, de Koninck and Huegenots, who formed a separate command. The cavalry were divided into two commands: Dutch, and Anglo-Dutch. The English Artillery was with the Scots (Colyear). The Dutch artillery was between the Dutch commands in the second line.

Action Commences

10 AM Turn

French - Everyone advanced on the enemy (10"). Bands played a spirited selection of airs.

Allies - The Allied line advanced 11". The Hoegaarden command was pivoted to the left to present a refused flank.

11 AM Turn

French - The French commander noted he overlapped the English line on his own left. He advanced the Spanish to melee, with La Mancha getting on the flank of Lovaduck's and firing into their flank. d'Escoigne-d'Escoigne broke, opening up a gap in the Allied line and isolating Lovaduck. The rest of the French infantry held, going stationary. The French cavalry advanced to melee the Allies, only the Grenadiers a Cheval holding out to one flank. The English line recoiled with heavy losses. In the cavalry scrum, 1st and 2nd Bartillart and Crapaud were destroyed, rendering the entire French line cavalry exhausted. The French 1st Cavalry column was thrown back on morale throws.

Allies - The Dutch line cavalry advanced to engage the French 2nd line, only to be thrown back. te Paard and the rest of that part of the Anglo-Dutch column advanced on the French Guard 2nd line cavalry sending the French horse reeling. At the end of the turn the Spanish Horse and French Line Horse were exhausted. In the infantry fight, the English fell back to straighten out their line and try to get fresh units in the front line. Desultory fire continued on this flank.

Referee's comment - This incident in the battle did not sit well with the referee, not because of the tactics, but because of what happened. See the Referee's Notes from this battle for further comment.

12 PM Turn

French - The Spanish surged forward again, and once more got around the English line, smashing Lovaduck from front and flank, and flanking the entire English line. In the center the French advanced, engaging the rest of the English. The fighting was heavy without a clear winner on either side. The cavalry fight died down, with both sides busy rallying.

Allies - The English counterattacked, shoving the Spanish back with heavy losses (to the English). The Scots advanced to form a new flank (refused). While Dutch cavalry rallied, the Anglo-Dutch cavalry advanced, chasing off the French opposite them.

Referee's comment - This was the one valid Allied attack with their foot. The Allied player seemed upset that the English didn't sweep all before them by virtue of their being English, and seemed really annoyed that it was the Spanish who were doing him the most harm. He clearly did not like rules that did not give a "special advantage" based upon Nationality.

1 PM Turn

French - the Spanish and Guard Horse fell back precipitately, forming column and marching away to the west. The Germans advanced behind the Spanish while the Spanish reorganized their lines. Firing continued to rage in the center as the English counterattack spent itself. The English Foot went exhausted.

Allies - the Dutch cavalry attacked the French 2nd line horse, only to be thrown back with severe losses (they went exhausted). The Anglo-Dutch cavalry reorganized (i.e. they got back under command/control).

Referee's comment - the Allied commander has now received an education about flanks. The French commander managed to parlay a small advantage (an overlap) into a tactical success due to aggressiveness, and the Allied commander's ignoring his flanks.

2 PM Turn

French - the French Guard Horse re-entered the battle, deploying on the west edge of the battlefield. Anyone trying to turn the flank of the French foot would have this cavalry on their flank. The Provincial Grenadiers and 1st and 2nd Croissant refused a flank, forming behind the dry slough that crossed the battlefield right here. Elsewhere, the Spanish and Germans advanced together, turning the Scots flank and shoving them back hard. Other German units renewed the advance in the center, putting more pressure on the Allies.

Allies - the Scots were pulled back yet again to form a new flank. The Hoegaarden command came under pressure from the Germans and was pulled back. Generally the Allies now had one line of foot.

Referee's comment - Initiative now resides strictly with the French. Their mounted arm is in a sorry way, but their foot, especially the Spanish, are well on the way towards winning this battle.

3 PM Turn

French - 2nd Governor General's advanced unhindered into Arlington (winning the battle). Meanwhile the Germans and Spanish meleed the Scots and the remnants of the English, routing them all. They had now clearly flanked the entire Scots/English/Dutch line. The Germans continued their pressure in the center, preventing any detachments to that flank.

Allies - the cavalry was pulled back to form a new front facing the foot. The foot was pulled back as much as possible (6") and the right flank was refused yet again. Grosch and Kofferdam counterattacked (with Hesse-Lickenboot at their head) throwing back the 1st Germans in a rout en echelon, and unhinging the Spanish and Germans long enough that the rest of the foot could begin to march away.

4 PM Turn

French - things were in a real mess with troops all intermingled, and command and control all messed up. The troops stopped while they were sorted out and command and control were re-established.

Allies - the Allied foot broke contact and marched away.

Referee's comment - A debatable pause by the French. He is in a position to totally smash the Allied army, but the French player was getting confused about who was in which command, and so paused to straighten it all out and get everyone back in line. Keeping the pressure up might have yielded much bigger results than had occurred so far.

5 PM Turn

French - the French lines advanced, with troops joining 2nd Governor General's in Arlington. North of the town fresh troops were seen in earthworks, so the pursuit was called off.

Allies - there was no clear retreat route away from the battlefield, and the army headed east in small groups, passing south of Arlington and seeking the safety of the hills.

Aftermath

The French had cut the Allied retreat route, so the referee ruled that there were "substantial" Allied losses from straggling. The Allied army retreated through the night, trying to reach one of the fords over the Stillaguamish River. French pursuit over the river was stopped by the Danes holding the bridge over the river, while the Danish horse covered the main road west of Arlington. Some French troops pursued along Route 530, intercepting Allied troops near Trafton, which led to a brief action.

The Danes held until the next morning, when they withdrew, blowing the bridge behind them. The main route was forced in the morning, and French troops were sent north towards Conway. The cavalry were ordered to try to reach MacMurray.

Battlefield Casualties

Allies - 8,500 men out of 37,500 (22.67%)

French - 4,500 men out of 42,500 (10.58%)

Commentary

To quote a French general of another war, "Well, sire, you have had your battle, and it is a lost one." The Allies were going to get only fragments back from this battle. To a large extent, this battle decided the campaign. There were still things to decide (siege of Anacortes), but that would settle itself out as minor notes to the crescendo of this battle.

From set-up to take-down, this battle took 3.5 hours, including 2.5 hours of actual playing.

The Battle of Clear Lake

The Embarrassing Little Affair at Clear Lake

Pre-Battle Narrative

While the main armies were contending with each other west of Mount Vernon, the commander of the Allied forces at Sedro Wooley nursed his grievances. His part in The Plan had been clear, he was to occupy Sedro Wooley. He had done so. That he had been a day later than expected, that his troops had marauded through friendly territory, that the enemy had gotten away from Sedro Wooley and broken the bridge south of town, those weren't his concerns. He had done what he had been ordered to do. Was that any reason to take troops away from him?

He had just been ordered to send virtually all of his troops back to the main army, but he had been specifically ordered to stay in Sedro Wooley. From being a column commander with an important and difficult role in the campaign, he had been reduced to an outpost commander lacking enough troops to even defend his own front. He felt the injustice keenly. And he resolved to do something about it. If he forced his way over the Skagit River at Sedro Wooley, and planted himself firmly astride the enemy line of supply, he would have won the campaign in a single blow. And if his Commander bungled his operations around the fringes of the Sound, as he suspected was all too likely to happen, then the only logical replacement would be the enterprising officer at Sedro Wooley who had performed brilliantly despite being hampered by his superior.

He studied the maps of the area, finally finding a ford well upstream of Sedro Wooley at the very small town of Hamilton. He would march upstream to Hamilton, force a crossing if necessary, then march on old roads down to Clear Lake. From there it would be a short two mile walk to put himself firmly astride the enemy line of supply. He pondered the risk, then issued orders. If he moved fast, he could accomplish this before anyone realized what he was up to.

The French commander opposite Sedro Wooley was the commander of the Spanish Aquaviva Dragoons, Colonel Don Juan de Amore Apropriado (a gallant Spanish gentleman). He had his men constantly patrolling between the bridge at Sedro Wooley and Mount Vernon. He even had a few enterprising men slipping across the river every night to keep tabs on the Allied camps. So it was no surprise when the Allied infantry suddenly drew three days of rations and were seen in the evening light to be filing east from Sedro Wooley.

He pondered crossing the river and seizing the town. But the Allies had left a battalion behind, more force than he could evict with a handful of dragoons. He considered other options. The Allies were clearly up to something. They could be going upriver to Concrete, but why? There were three possibilities: first, they could be going to exact contributions of food from the up-valley people; second, they could be part of an elaborate feint designed to draw the dragoons out of position; or, third, the Allied commander could be trying to outflank the dragoons and force a crossing of the river.

These all made sense, though he thought #3 was a bit of a reach. But he could send patrols up the river on the French side and see what was going on. He had no doubts they could move fast enough to get ahead of the Allies. After all, his men were mounted, the Allies were on foot. And, further, he was only sending patrols, not an entire marching column.

An hour after the first Allied soldier started east, patrols of the Aquaviva Dragoons slipped eastward into the darkened hills to shadow them.

At midnight the situation changed. Allied infantry swarmed across the ford at Hamilton and formed up on the south side of the Skagit river. After some confusion, guides found the right roads, and the men marched southwest. When the last troops were across, the Allied commander ordered a halt to let the men rest. Dawn was still a couple of hours off, and he used the time to consult with his guides. By the map he still had 12 miles to go, 12 miles of rugged mountain marching. He decided that he could make better time during the day, so he would wait until daylight before resuming.

Don Juan was now convinced that he had a real problem on his hands. He had at least 4,000 Allied troops bearing down on him, and the only help he could count on would be a few troops he might be able to coax out of Mount Vernon. He sent several couriers off to lay out the situation as he saw it, and plead for at least a battalion of infantry. But even if they marched the moment they received the message, the earliest they could possibly arrive would be mid-morning. In all likelihood they would be even later than that. Until then, everything was going to depend upon the weapons his men carried. In the predawn darkness he rode east and southeast, looking for good defensive terrain.

Dawn lit the sky, and the Allied commander got his men moving. He could hear a distant murmur from somewhere to the west; to his trained ear it sounded like an engagement of some kind. He dismissed it because there was nothing he could do to influence that battle. But secretly he was pleased. If there was a battle going on, it meant his commander had miscalculated in some way and had run in to the French troops. That could lead to all sorts of problems, possibly even a disaster. And if a disaster happened, who could they turn to but the officer who had succeeded when everyone else had failed?

Don Juan found the right battlefield for his dragoons in the woods southeast of Clear Lake. His right flank was protected by a lake. His left flank was open, but the woods he was in were very thick and the ground was steep. He was on slightly rising ground with a stream to his front and clear communications to the rear. The road the enemy was using ran right through his position. It was better than anything else his men had found. He issued orders, and the men began throwing up a hasty little breastwork, just a few logs and bundles of limbs piled one on the other so they had some protection. After all, he had just a few hundred dragoons against 4,000 infantry, and he needed every advantage he could get.

The hours crawled by, and the Allied infantry struggled towards Clear Lake. The sounds of battle to the west grew sharper and sharper, then finally dying away. The Allied commander began to worry about his holding troops out of that fight. But if he could seize the crossing at Sedro Wooley, it would negate whatever mistakes his superior had made. He stressed that to his officers. Heartened, they urged their men on.

Contact was finally made just after noon. The Allied force came marching up the road towards Clear Lake with just a few pickets out in front. The men crossed the creek by a small bridge and started up the slope. As they did so, all hell broke loose.

Referee's Notes

This was done as a mini-campaign while the main battle at Fredonia was raging to the west. See the map to the right. The Allies were approaching from the right edge of the map, and the Dragoons were deployed behind the line of breastworks running vertically on the map. The lake is just off the lower edge of the map, but the ground between the end of the breastworks and lake is very steep and filled with fallen trees.

The campaign system was right out of Charles Grant, though the scouting system was from On to Richmond. The trouble is, one commander sent out patrols, the other commander didn't (guess which one). The Allied commander, who was treating it like a board game, walked into an ambush. He had three linear regimental stands, and was facing an enemy of unknown size in a draw. He had neglected to do any scouting, so he had no idea what he might be walking into, or what force he was facing in front of him. When he did make contact, the odds were against him.
He had thick woods and a stream to cross, going uphill. Admittedly it was against skirmishers, but the situation did not look good. His men were piled up behind him, and it would take time to sort everything out and get a proper attack going. Add some mishandling of troops, and the situation was one that could get out of hand in a hurry.

Game Narrative Resumes

12:00 turn

Allied phase The leading Allied unit, Van Kofferdam, moves into contact with the French dragoons, stopping when contact was made (per the rules they may not be in contact, so stop ½" away).


French phase French troops advance and melee Van Kofferdam. Morale - Van Kofferdam fails, being disordered by the woods and in march column. Allies throw 1 die, hitting nothing. The French throw and cause a hit. Van Kofferdam, being already disordered, routs, running back through the other two units and pushing them back, and causing a disorder on each.

1:00 turn

Allied phase The Allied commander decides to deploy. Everyone has a disorder on them, the lead regiment, Van Kofferdam, is routed. He rallies them. At the end of the turn everyone is deployed with disorder on them. The Allied commander isn't sure what is in front of him (he neglected to study the listing of enemy uniforms he had). He decides to find out by simply marching up to it. That will happen next turn as he sorts through the traffic jam.


French phase The French sit in their hasty works and crack jokes at the Allied expense.

2:00 turn

Allied phase Grosch advances up the road, now deployed for battle. They stop just in front of the French works, and open fire. A 3, they miss. The Dragoons fire back. A 6, a possible hit. The Allied player rolls a saving roll, and fails it, a definite hit.


French phase French sit in their hasty works and hope their reinforcements show up. They shoot, and miss. The Allied return fire misses.

3:00 turn

Allied phase Advance to melee! The Allied infantry is already disordered, and attacking the French in their hasty works in the woods. They check morale. A 4, a failure. They are already disordered, so they rout. The French check morale: a 2, they're happy as can be.


French phase Even though the urge to smash the Allies is there, the French commander keeps in mind that he has skirmishers against formed line. He stays in his works and waves his flags defiantly. His only positive action is to send yet another courier off, pleading for help.

4:00 turn

Allied phase This isn't getting anyone anywhere. He has two units with permanent disorders on them and has lost 2 SP with nothing to show for it. He sends Amstel to his right to outflank this position. They can only move at half speed, so this will take a while. In the mean time he pushes Van Kofferdam back into musket range of the French to pin them in place. He fires, hitting nothing, but neither do the French with their return fire.


French phase As expected, here comes the flanking maneuver. Well, it was a nice little fight. But it will be at least next turn, maybe the one after that before the Allies can do anything (the woods and the hill makes them move 3" per turn.). With nothing else to do, he fires. A 4, nothing. The Allies return fire, also a 4. Nothing.

5:00 turn

Allied phase Ponderously the Amstel wheels so they can charge the French in the flank. In the meantime the desultory fighting over the hasty works continues with no hits on either side.


French phase Sunset is at 7 p.m. The French commander knows he can't stay here, but he is sure he can keep the Allies amused until 7 p.m. by falling back and making a new fight. Reluctantly he pulls his men out of his works and marches west. He doesn't mount up.

6:00 turn

Allied phase At last! They're gone! Amstel occupies the hasty works and presses west. They see the French occupying the hamlet of Clear Lake, but can't get to them to engage them. They also see two battalions of blue-clad infantry, the medium blue favored by the German infantry in French service, not the dark blue worn by the Germans in Allied service. That changes things. Clearly the opportunity is gone. The Allied commander fails to notice that the way is clear for him to march north to the bridge at Sedro Wooley. Instead, he turns his men around, picks up what wounded he can, and falls back.


French phase Don Juan was never so happy as he was the moment he saw the first infantryman from the 2/2nd Germans show up. He mounts his men and pulls back behind the Germans. Everyone has seen the Allies pull back, but nobody knows if this means they will resume their attack in the morning, or if they are conceding defeat.

7:00 turn

Allied phase The Allied commander puts his men into column and marches east, back the way he came. Stragglers lose themselves in the woods. He won the engagement, sort of, well, he held the field of battle. That has to count for something. He marches 2 miles, and then camps. He decides he will cross the river in the morning. In the mean time he will have plenty of time to compose his report on this reconnaissance in force. Yes, that's what it was. Just probing the enemy's positions on the south side of the river. And somewhere, in the paperwork, he'll muddy the trail on his losses.


French phase The French send a few patrols to keep an eye on the Allies. Everyone else makes camp and starts telling stories about their bravery during the day. One troop of dragoons marches back to the broken bridge at Sedro Wooley to remind the Allies who owns this side of the river.

Orders of Battle:

French

  Aquaviva Dr ..........M5,EFD,PT,SK [ ]

  2/2nd Germans ........M5,PT,NE,EFD [ ][ ] unengaged



Allies

  Van Kofferdam ........M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][ ]

  Grosch ...............M5,PT,EP,BN [x][x][ ]

  Amstel ...............M5,PT,EP,BN [ ][ ][ ]



key:  x = casualty

Losses:

French losses were insignificant ("an officer reported an epaulet shot off").

Allied losses. On paper the Allies lost 4 SP, which works out as 1,000 men. As the French did not follow up, the referee ruled they recovered 50% of their losses and all of their routed. Their net loss was 250 men out of Grosch and 250 out of Van Kofferdam. Both regiments initially lost their regimental guns, but as the French did not follow up, they stopped and collected them as they retreated.

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Commentary

This was a nice little "affair" that was a sideshow from the main action happening a few miles to the west. It was a frustrating day for the Allied commander. He wasn't sure how much he had opposing him. He compounded it by not scouting, and walked into an ambush, which cost him one regiment (don't play against a late modern era gamer who knows the rules, and, more importantly, understands how to do an ambush). He then got his second regiment bloodied, though in fairness, with line troops against skirmisher he had a good chance to win that one (the breastworks made the difference, otherwise it's no contest).

It was just bad luck on his part. Then, having tried to bull his way through, he now sought to outflank the position. Again, a pretty good idea. But the trouble was, he was in heavy woods on broken ground, which reduced his movement to 3" per turn.

He had a time limit and he just couldn't get it done in the time. When he saw the regiment of infantry deploying in front of him, he stopped. His command wasn't exhausted, but they were close. And he would be disordered, with cavalry (he wasn't sure they were dragoons as he did not know the enemy uniforms; he saw mounted people and that was enough) on his flank. It was better to call it off, cut his losses, and leave. One thing I did ask him, and, no, he never thought of putting two regiments side by side and trying to bull through.

The French player was very happy with the whole thing. He had lucked out in the one serious attempt at combat, but wasn't going to complain. This was a much better end to the whole thing than he'd thought it would be.

Final notes: the mini-campaign part took 30 minutes to do; the battle took about 20 minutes to do. If I had it to do over again I might try a different scale. But maybe not. This one worked pretty well as it was.