Battle of Pultusk, 26 December 1806
Posted: Tue Jan 30, 2024 11:59 am
We had a game this past Saturday, 27 January 2024 at Firefly (first game of the year for us!). We gamed the Battle of Pultusk, Poland that occurred 26 December 1806 between the French Empire forces and the 4th Coalition forces, otherwise referred to as the French and the Russians. We used the hand drawn map of the actual battle to set up the terrain, there was a river that split, an escarpment that funneled to a road junction and a bridge that led to Pultusk and several wooded areas.
The Russians set up elements of the 2nd Division on the road adjacent to the escarpment, which included 1 x 6-pdr large foot battery, 1 x 6-pdr horse battery, 1 x 12-pdr large foot battery, and 2 battalions of grenadiers. The Left Detachment, which included elements from various other nearby divisions, set up in the woods located just to the right of the road leading to Pultusk. This included 2 x 12-pdr large, foot batteries, 5 x musketeer battalions, 3 x Jager battalions, and 5 x Horse Tartar squadrons. The 3rd Division was on the move, situated between the bridge and Pultusk, and it consisted of 12 x musketeer battalions.
The French consisted of:
Elements of V Corps (Marshal Jean Lannes)
Advanced Guard (General Claparede)
3 x Light Infantry battalions
7 x Hussar cavalry squadrons
1st Infantry Division (Louis Gabriel Suchet)
7 x Line Infantry battalions
2nd Infantry Division (Theodore Maxime Gazan de la Peyriere)
3 x Light Infantry battalions
3 x Line Infantry battalions
Artillery (Louis Foucher de Careil)
6 x 6-pdr foot battery
Both sides had reserves that would later come in based on a staggered timetable.
The Russians ordered "Maneuver" for 2 of their of their divisions and "Hold" for one division. My desire was to move the 2 grenadiers and their artillery down the road, closer to the bridge as they were too exposed at their starting point. The CiC and the two front line division commanders did okay with their command points but 3rd division had a poor commander, and a 1 was rolled on two consecutive turns. So no points for that division, hence they stayed where they were.
The French mostly ordered "Engage" or "Attack", except when they had to order one unit to "Retreat", so to make room for another division.
As expected, the elements of 2nd Division held for 3 turns but were eventually overrun by the overwhelming majority of French advancing on them. The 12 pdrs were neigh ineffective as were the grenadiers, as once the French were in range they charged and somehow kept the Russian grenadiers disordered. However, the 2nd was a thorn in the French's side, until they weren't. The Left Detachment performed far better, as they took infantry charge after infantry charge, and artillery barrage after artillery barrage and kept on ticking. The Left Detachment lost 1 musketeer battalion and the French lost 1 infantry battalion. Overall, the French took heavy loses and had some battalions disordered. On the 3rd turn the 3rd Division finally moved up. However, considering the time and how much further the French had to go before they could take the town of Pultusk, we decided to call it a draw and end it for the day.
Below are some of the photo highlights...
-
-
-
-
We plan on gaming the same battle but at a regimental scale on a larger playing surface, this will give the involved forces more maneuvering room, especially when the reinforcements show up. We hope to do this on Saturday, 10 February 2024 @ 9:00
We'll keep everyone interested, informed, as the time draws nearer.
The Russians set up elements of the 2nd Division on the road adjacent to the escarpment, which included 1 x 6-pdr large foot battery, 1 x 6-pdr horse battery, 1 x 12-pdr large foot battery, and 2 battalions of grenadiers. The Left Detachment, which included elements from various other nearby divisions, set up in the woods located just to the right of the road leading to Pultusk. This included 2 x 12-pdr large, foot batteries, 5 x musketeer battalions, 3 x Jager battalions, and 5 x Horse Tartar squadrons. The 3rd Division was on the move, situated between the bridge and Pultusk, and it consisted of 12 x musketeer battalions.
The French consisted of:
Elements of V Corps (Marshal Jean Lannes)
Advanced Guard (General Claparede)
3 x Light Infantry battalions
7 x Hussar cavalry squadrons
1st Infantry Division (Louis Gabriel Suchet)
7 x Line Infantry battalions
2nd Infantry Division (Theodore Maxime Gazan de la Peyriere)
3 x Light Infantry battalions
3 x Line Infantry battalions
Artillery (Louis Foucher de Careil)
6 x 6-pdr foot battery
Both sides had reserves that would later come in based on a staggered timetable.
The Russians ordered "Maneuver" for 2 of their of their divisions and "Hold" for one division. My desire was to move the 2 grenadiers and their artillery down the road, closer to the bridge as they were too exposed at their starting point. The CiC and the two front line division commanders did okay with their command points but 3rd division had a poor commander, and a 1 was rolled on two consecutive turns. So no points for that division, hence they stayed where they were.
The French mostly ordered "Engage" or "Attack", except when they had to order one unit to "Retreat", so to make room for another division.
As expected, the elements of 2nd Division held for 3 turns but were eventually overrun by the overwhelming majority of French advancing on them. The 12 pdrs were neigh ineffective as were the grenadiers, as once the French were in range they charged and somehow kept the Russian grenadiers disordered. However, the 2nd was a thorn in the French's side, until they weren't. The Left Detachment performed far better, as they took infantry charge after infantry charge, and artillery barrage after artillery barrage and kept on ticking. The Left Detachment lost 1 musketeer battalion and the French lost 1 infantry battalion. Overall, the French took heavy loses and had some battalions disordered. On the 3rd turn the 3rd Division finally moved up. However, considering the time and how much further the French had to go before they could take the town of Pultusk, we decided to call it a draw and end it for the day.
Below are some of the photo highlights...
- Overall view of Battlefield
- The last Grenadier still fighting
- The Right is Holding
- The 3rd Division w/ reinforcements is moving up
We plan on gaming the same battle but at a regimental scale on a larger playing surface, this will give the involved forces more maneuvering room, especially when the reinforcements show up. We hope to do this on Saturday, 10 February 2024 @ 9:00
We'll keep everyone interested, informed, as the time draws nearer.