Battle of Schweinkopf-Day One

We put out the word for Napoleonics last week and fought the first day of the Battle of Schweinkopf at the Rat Palace III in Red Oak. Glad to be back in business playing after several months of forced inactivity. Thank goodness the heater was finally working like it should. We use Clay's "Ninja Rules" and they work great! Good Job Clay!
Our Napoleonic armies represent a cross section of wargaming history. We have scads of "old school" Hinchcliffe, Minifig, infantry, artillery and cavalry. We've got Peter Guilder, Ed Phillips, Jim Cooper and Cleve Burton painted armies and figures on the table. We both started gaming when Hinchcliffe figures were the "gold standard. We now have Old Glory, Front Rank and Mirliton figures in the armies. We've got some great armies painted by some of the legends of the hobby. We definitely are blessed!


Now, step in the "way-back machine" and let's visit the first day of the Battle of Schweinkopf!

The Battle of Schweinkopf cannot be found in the battle reports of Soult, Napoleon, Archduke Charles nor the reports of either Tsar Alexander or Bagration. This was a "battle by mistake" as both armies were on the move looking for fresh fodder, German spirits and available Germans of the female persuasion.





Day One:
The French deployed along the road to Schweinkopf anchoring their line alongside a pig farm. Apparently the odor d' piggie didn't bother the swarthy French at all. They snuggled right up and awaited the Austrians. The Russians were content to move their artillery and commence a preliminary bombardment of the French on top of the rise to their front. Bagration's comment was noted as "these conscripts are fresh from the Ukraine, let them see the artillery before tasting a whiff of grape".

The Austrians did not hesitate and launched a double envelopment on the right flank, pushing the French from the pig farm. The Russians continued their bombardment due to a message from the Russian cavalry commander saying his brigade was delayed due to some bad sauerbraten and too much pilsner









Eventually the tardy Russian cavalry commander reported on the field with 3 regiments of Dragoons, 1 regiment of Cuirassiers and the elite Tsarina's Hussars, known lovingly as the "crabby hussars".

Bagration ordered the cavalry to immediately eliminate the pesky French Light Cavalry that was slowing the advance of the left wing. The cavalry battles were a wash with numerous French and Russian casualities for little tactical gain. A dust cloud in the distance announced the arrival of the French Heavies: Cuirassiers and Horse Grenadiers.



The center and right flank was hotly contested with the French taking hard causalities. The Austrians and Russians could not break the French line. We ended the first day with "huzzahs" and threats in a gentlemanly fashion.

The battle will take a siesta until next week. The game's afoot and the forces are deep into the fray!

Stay tuned!