Battle of Dunzling - A Polemos General de Division AAR

Dunzling, 19 April 1809:

This scenario is from Michael Hopper's Eagles Over Bavaria.  Featuring a little-known clash, it recreates an Austrian attempt to separate Davout's Corps from the remainder of the Imperial Army.  Most of Davout's Corps were in action at Teugn-Hausen this day (I have done a Teugn-Hausen scenario before), so the Austrians led by Rosenberg confront a French force mainly of light infantry and cavalry and led by Montbrun, which aims to delay or stop the Austrian attack.

The Forces:

Imperial France:
C-in-C: Montbrun (Decisive)
Gilly's Bde: 1 base of Trained Infantry, 3 bases of Trained Light Infantry,
Pajol's Division (Decisive): 2 bases of Veteran Light Infantry, 4 bases of Trained Light Cavalry
Guiton's Division (Decisive): 4 bases of Trained Cuirassiers

Austria:
C-in-C: Rosenberg (Plodding)
Somariva's Division (Plodding): 7 bases of Trained Infantry, 2 bases of Trained Light Cavalry, 1 base of Horse Artillery
Hohenlohe's Division (Capable): 8 bases of Trained Infantry, 1 base of Foot Artillery
Artillery Reserve: 2 bases of Foot Artillery

The French are trying to retain control of Dunzling (right) and a presence in the woods to the West (left).  The Austrians are trying to capture Saalhaupt (top-left).

The Set-Up:

French forces are divided between Pajol's division around Dunzling (right) and Gilly's brigade (left) deployed in the woods (left)and around Saalhaupt (top-left)

Gilly's light infantry in the woods

With a battalion garrisoning Saalhaupt.

Pajol's infantry hold Dunzling and his cavalry are stationed just outside

The Battle:

Montbrun brings forward his cuirassier division from reserve

Hohenlohe's division enters to threaten towards Saalhaupt.

Whilst Somariva's troops move towards Dunzling

Somariva sends an infantry regiment forward to threaten that place

Whilst the remainder of his troops march towards Pajol's cavalry

Hohenlohe, at the head of two battalions, advances towards the cuirassiers

Somariva brings his troops towards Pajol but does not yet commit to an attack

His forward units deploy to maximize firepower

Rosenberg (centre) brings forward his artillery - this attack is going to be done correctly

Meanwhile Somariva's troops demonstrate towards Pajol, who has massed his cavalry - Montbrun joins him (top-left)

Meanwhile Hohenlohe is manoeuvring behind his foward battalions to threaten both the cuirassiers and the infantry in the woods

Rosenberg's artillery starts to play upon Dunzling, with some effect

Montbrun takes the bold move of ordering the battalion in support in Dunzling to leave the buildings and threaten the flank of the troops facing Pajol's cavalry (centre-right)

A wider shot

Sniper fire and poor Austrian artillery practices rob the fire of any further effect - Rosenberg is kept busy getting his artillery back into line

He then launches a desperate bayonet charge to drive back the French light infantrymen...

Inspired by his hat-waving and harangues, the Austrians get the upper hand...

Casualties are heavy on both sides, but the French are forces to withdraw!

Inspired, Somariva launches his cavalry and horse artillery against Pajol's troopers!

First one French regiment is worsted and broken...

And then another!

Hohenlohe, feeling that the flank of his column is now adequately protected, launches his column forward towards the trees (top-right)

The position in the Austrian Right

Feeling that events are rapidly turning against him, Montbrun orders Guiton's Cuirassiers to charge!

Whilst he and Pajol lead the remaining French Hussars and Chasseurs against the Austrian infantry outside Dunzling

The Austrians waver...

Meanwhile, Guiton's Cuirassiers have been seen off by the Kaiserlichs in fine style!  Three of the four Cuirassier unts have suffered heavy casualties

Whilst the remaining Austrian infantry threatens the woods

Despite some disorder in the Austrian ranks, they held and drove the French light cavalry off (centre-top)

A little more musketry is applied and the Cuirassiers run for it!

Whilst Pajol's cavalry end up feeling much the same way

Pajol's division withdraws in its entirety...

And the French are in full retreat - Rosenberg has isolated Davout's Corps from the rest of the French Army!

Game Notes: A quick, enjoyable game although a little one-sided since the French had no luck at all, except in the uselessness of the Austrian Foot artillery!  It wasn't so much that any individual combat should have gone the French's way, but at least one or two of the combats should have.  The key combat was actually Rosenberg's bayonet charge which prevented Montbrun's bold decision to use Pajol's reserve battalion in an offensive rather than defensive role from working.  Montbrun could feel let down by this - the odds were about 2:1 in his favour that the French would win the combat and drive the Austrians back and then perhaps create an opportunity for his cavalry to exploit.  After this, all of the combat slightly favoured the Austrians, but it was unusual good luck for them that the French got nowhere.  The rules used favour infantry over cavalry more than in most sets I think, which obviously helped the infantry-heavy Austrians in this scenario.

Rules used were Polemos General de Division, figures by Baccus 6mm, buildings mainly from Leven.

Battle of Reinhausen - A Polemos General de Division AAR (Second Battle)

Once again, with feeling...

I re-loaded the Reinhausen scenario from the last game of Polemos Napoleonics since the board was set up already and I felt like trying out a couple of different tactics to try and confirm or deny some of my inuitions about the previous refight.

The orders of battle and the mission were generally the same, however this time I deployed the French artillery on the river bank protecting the main approach to Reinhausen.

The Set-Up:

Note the French artillery pre-positioned by the river bear Reinhausen (centre)

Another view

And another one, focusing more on the French around and in the village and the approaching Austrian force.

The Battle:

This time, the French artillery makes it worth apparent early, driving back the Austrian attackers as they form up, and allowing the French to reinforce Reinhausen.

The Austrians do manage to launch an attack onto "the hot corner" - the edge of the village of Reinhausen.

But they are driven back with loss! First and second blood to the French, although the Austrian artillery and skirmishers have done some damage to the French defenders

Rather than spend time reforming his defeated first column, the Austrian general merely launches his second column into the attack...

The French make just as short work of this attack and the Austrians are now forced to regroup their whole force!  The French commander busy himself getting his lead battalion re-organized...

The Austrian commanders still cannot perceive a better solution than a direct assault, so a third head-on attack is tried...

And is thrown back with further heavy losses!  The Austrian commander moves a cavalry regiment forward (centre-left) to provide target practice for the French artillery but also to screen his infantry attacks...

Again, emphasizing attacking rather than organization, a fourth assault is ordered forward...

Heavy casualties are caused on both sides...

And this time it is the French who have had enough and are forced to fall back to the other part of the village!  Their supporting units become somewhat demoralized and the Austrian commander, seeing his moment, orders his Dragoons forward (centre)...

Davout faced a very difficult decision at this point: he was able to order a quick return into Reinhausen before the Austrians could advance or he could spend time re-organizing his men but lose half of the village...he chose the former course, and the French fusiliers re-occupied their vacated positions (centre-left)

The Austrian force, itself re-organized, presses forward again  against the distinctly shaky looking French...

And this time there is no escape: the leading French battalion is routed and their supports are both shaken and disorganized (centre)

And without further shots being fired, the entire French regiment routs back over the bridge!

The French chasseurs grimly holding onto the edge of Reinhausen against the Austrian masses (centre/centre-left) look very vulnerable to being cut-off from the bridge by the Austrian Dragoons (centre-top)

Davout leads another battalion across the river (right) to try and stave off disaster

The final French battalion in the town has been evicted, broken and is now in full retreat (bottom-left), demoralizing the French on the other side of the bridge as they fled (bottom-centre)

With the major part of Reinhausen now entirely occupied by Austrian infantry (left), the Austrians unleash their Dragoons against the French infantry at the bridge, who are already shaken, although Davout is there to command them in person (centre)

A series of faultless volleys decimated the Dragoons and sends them off in flight!

Not a good day to be an Austrian Dragoon...

However, a combination of the dire situation and some effective shooting from the Austrian infantry in the village breaks the French battalion guarding the bridge..

And French morale collapses entirely!  The isolated French light infantry battalion (extreme-right) has to surrender before it gets to fire a shot...

Game Notes: A really good game, more exciting than the first try.  Again, the scenario threw into relief the focus of the rules on shock rather than attrition: the French infantry were initially very successful in throwing back the Austrian attacks, but lacked a mechanism by which they could convert this into decisive defeat (it is very hard although not impossible in these rules to break opponents by fire alone, even close range defensive fire).  Conversely, although the Austrians suffered many setbacks, they were always able to rally and then attack again without having lost any effectiveness.  What one thinks of all this will be entirely dependent upon one's view as to the importance of attritional fire combat in Napoleonic warfare. 

As ever, rules were the Polemos Napoleonic set, the figures were by Baccus 6mm and the buildings a mixture of Timecast and Total Battle Miniatures.