Segovia 1808: A Polemos General de Division refight

The next playtest battle I had a go at from Michael Hopper's forthcoming volume on the Spanish side of the Peninsular War is an action I wasn't very aware of, the taking of Segovia by the French on 6th June 1808. Their main objective apparently was to secure the large quantity of cannon that were in storage at the Royal Military Academy. I am not sure which account Michael based the battle on, so I won't comment on any historical issues here. I used Polemos General de Division for the game again.

For the detailed forces, you will have to get Michael's book, when it is released. For my version of his scenario, I used the following:

 

Imperial France:

C-in-C: General Frere (Capable)

8-9 bases of Infantry, 1 base of Artillery (8pdr Foot)

Spain:

C-in-C: General Cabellos (Poor)

8 bases of Infantry, 1 base of Artillery (8pdr Foot)

The Spanish were all Raw SK0. The French had 2 bases of Trained SK2 infantry, 2 bases of Trained SK1 infantry, and four-five bases of Raw SK1 infantry. The French Raw infantry were distinctly less Raw than the Spanish, so an intermediate category between Raw and Trained would be most suitable, if there is design space in your rules. In Shako 1st Edition I would probably have gone for 'Second Rate'.

My calculations had the French with 9 bases but for some reason, I only put 8 on the table. I just can't remember why I did that!

The slopes around the Alcazar castle onn the high ground are impassable. The river can only be crossed at the bridges or ford.

The Set-Up:

The Imperials advance from the bottom-right, with the Spanish defending the town.

A closer look at Segovia.

And at the French.  The better Frenh troops are concentrated on the left, the Legion of Reserve battalions are on the right (I had forgotten to put the artillery out at this part of the set-up, but it does arrive before the battle)!

The Battle:

The French attack on their right, towards the furthest slope

...is this the first time the Fusiliers of this Legion of the Reserve have heard the pas du charge in anger? One would have thought so...

'All the soldiers of Europe believe that no enemy can withstand their bayonets, and they are all correct' - the French infantry successfully push the Spaniards back - this threatens the Spanish guns, which had been preventing the remaining French units from supporting the attack

Like so - the remaining French are still struggling to get forward, not fancying the accuracy of the Spanish gunnery

The Spaniards counter-attack to try and restore the situation

The struggle is intense, with Spanish casualties mounting in particular...

until they can resist no more, and are pushed back deeper into the town

Some of the leading Spanish units run, some surrender; the French reform a little, ready for the next stage of the advance

It is slow going for the 15th Light and 2nd Swiss, trying to get forward

But eventually they get close enough to launch an attack

The Spanish infantry are hard-pressed in front, then the remaining French begin their attack toward their left-rear...

At this point, the Spanish infantry break and run! However, the Spanish artillery has sent the 15th Light recoiling back (bottom-right)

However, the advance of the Reserve Legion has penned the Spaniards still fighting back around the castle, whilst the remainder who haven't surrendered, have fled over the ford

Game Notes:

Another neat, good fun game; relatively straightforward for the French, but then it was in real life too.  The French need ideally to find a point where the defence is just a bit more awkwardly arranged and thus a bit easier to exploit. The Spanish weren't a total walkover - the photos perhaps don't show very well that some of the infantry fights were very close, as well as the Spanish artillery keeping the best French troops out of the battle for the whole game! Troops crowded into built-up areas are not always in the optimal position for defence, as recoils and fall back results tend to disorder more of the supports, weakening morale overall (mechanically in Polemos General de Division increasing the chances of a formation morale collapse, as a regiment or division gives up, even though some of its constituent units were still relatively undamaged). This seems to reflect reality rather well, with its great asymmetries of casualties suffered between units in the same battle: defeat is as much down to the situation as losses. As ever, although they are mechanically similar in many ways, the difference between the close combat/morale-based General de Division rules and the firepower based Ruse de Guerre is quite stark sometimes! In GdD, you have to attack with bayonet or sabre for really decisive results, or hope that your opponent will tackle your steady infantry line head on, ideally uphill. These are the only ways. Sure, maybe your artillery might help to make a weak point, but that's it. In Ruse de Guerre, you will wait until your artillery or skirmishers have made an actual dent in the enemy's line before you attack.

Figures by Baccus 6mm, buildings are a mixture of Battlescale and Leven.