1863 - Col. Schneider‘s charge

15mm, "Pickett‘s Charge" and Mike‘s and Peter‘s ACW miniature collection for a re-fight of the famous semi-historical battle of Col. Schneider‘s charge. Bart and Mike were the Rebel‘s while me, Alisdair and Peter were fighting for the end of slavery!!!

Nobody told me (Col. Schneider) that the ultimate objective was to get the hill just in front of me - but funnily enough I was the only later charging the dirty and cowardly Southerners! Alisdair did his thing, what ever that was, probably mistaken another hill with no Rebels on it for the objective while Peter was taking all the bullets for us sinners in the centre of the Battle. I use the term loosely, as the cluster of  mis-judged skirmishes hardly deserves that term ...

Well, so I threw away my cigar, climbed on top of my horse and ordered my brigade to attack that hill and then charge. The lads advanced very quick only to stop once to hesitate together with the enemy in a kind of trans american lull. Then we climbed that "rolling" stone and as the fence was a few paces too far away, (the cowardness of the rebels knows no bounds) the boys hesitated only to pick up their rifles and send Johnny Reb (played by Bart) back to Atlanta! the regiment retreated -  a gap in the fence!!!

Then Col. Schneider (me) charged and despite heavy rifle fire and gun cannister, we made it to the fence and fought the scumbags! But God wasn't on our side and I threw very badly from then on ...

We got pushed back and fled very disgracefully down hill, got shot at again and broke, all the New Yorker petty shop owners/rabble were running back to Manhattan and their mothers, damn! How should I tell that my ex-West-Pointlers-mates ... ? Ah, I will light a cigar and dribble something of an successful Schneider‘s charge at the hill that was at first very successful ... something along the lines of ... I threw away my cigar ...

My glorious brigade

Bart‘s rebel cowards

Initial set up 

Lads, advance!

at the bottom of the hill in 2 seconds

while Peters legions were crawling

while we paused for re-loading

Peter attracted some fire

up the hill - for glory -  fire!

The Rebel aimed too high ...

 ... as the Lord said ... but you reap what you saw ... 

then we gave back the favour, NY-style

while already reinforcements were on their way

The Rebels in disarray ...

my iron(y) Brigade finally charges!

but the dices .... 

Meanwhile on the other side of the battle

the unimportant hill is in our hands

my fighting tin can brigade ...

gets too much of the lead and ... 

and runs away ...

Dirty Rebels jubilant

and shoots fleeing men into the back ... typical!

The Great Polish-Lithuanian hussars with lances and feathers ...

... are called hussars, but only in this period, even when they have long sticks!!! Later you must call them lancers, and never anything else, but I digress...

This Thursday it was, 15mm, By Fire & Sword, and true to my word, I choose the Swedish side (with Campbell as the main commander), even when we knew we would be outnumbered. While Peter, Chris and Alisdair choose the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. All of the magnificent figures came from Barts impressive collection (and  I think it was his complete collection - all of them beauties!!!).

The scenario I believe as well from Bart or it was from the rulebook (BF&S) as he umpired. We, the Swedish, had the most points, although on the table it rather looked the opposite, as if the the majority were lost to the Swedish teamster union. We were told to hold the line, while 2 wagons should arrive and pass behind us ... but of course they were late, not enough bakhshish. So Campbell formulated a secret victory condition, which he whisperd in my ear: "If we still stand at the end of turn 4, we won..." , morally, I guess is what he really meant.

We had the first turn and missed the opportunity to soften up the polish cavalry (all misses), but who can really shoot at men clad in feathers ... (yaah ...OK  ... the Spanish and the Anglo-Saxons ... I should have let Campbell throw the dice ...) Then the Polish charged with 3 units of winged hussars, as it turns out it wasn't enough to repulse and beat the old veteran Swedes (old swedes are hard to chew on!?!), which mentally demoralised our opponents from the start.

What amazes me is that even when we were doing fine (dice wise) we had to retreat, so we developed a overwhelming tactical superiority out of it. We lost the fights, saved the morale, retreat, and stood our ground again (albeit with less men). All the Commonwealth aristo-cats could do was repeatedly throw the Poles (feathered hussars) against us. I guess the other half of their (most of the time immobile) army were disenfrenchised Lithuanians.

Only in the 4th turn, we were pushed back from the hill and the unlanced, but still very much quick-winged Hussars rushed in front of the two wagons and captured them and our cheese crackers (symbol of our steadfast unwavering moral superiority). Naah,  actually I confess, I ate them beforehand. So technically we lost, but according to Campbell, we nearly won - which is still a loss in my books, but I ate that as well.

All in all it was a great game, and I enjoyed it very much ('cmon it‘s a renaissance game!!!). I get to learn the rules a little bit more every time we play. It must be an era that gives Polish players a great pride to play the invincible hussars, which makes me wonder what went wrong with the great state in the end ... when did they loose their boni ... but that seems to be another story another time ...

The Polish side ...

My Swedish guns and Infantry

The Lithuanian side

and the Commonwealth side... 

vs overwhelming Swedish centre and Campbells cavalry surrounding ...

all my guns were primed well

until the Polish Hussars with their longer lances came ...

lots of them (3 units)

we took the hits

won some combats and still ... no poles on the hill

on the road more of the same ...

in turn 3 finally the teamster stopped their strike (the cheese crackers are the Swedish morale)

Again the hussars charged in

And again my Swedish veterans took the hits

and still we send them back

at the end of the 3rd turn

Campbells dragoons were dismounting

and his Reiters were actually doing right repulsing the hussars again ... 

but then in the 4th turn ...

the end of battle ...

The Prinz von Savoyen Dragoons

If you paint an 7YW Austrian army, this unit is a must have. As my (hobby) funds are in a similar depleted  situation of that of Empress Maria Theresia, I was opting for Crusader miniaures, and I think, I got my value for money.

History wise this dragoon regiment was founded 7th February 1682 by Heinrich Count of Kueffstein and through its very busy history, it has seen a lot: in the Turkish wars, in the War of the Spanish Succession it was operating mainly in the Italian theatre and others. During the Seven years war it was in Boehmia at Prague, Kolin, Korbitz, Maxen, Torgau and Reichenbach and covered itself with many distinctions (with Colonel Count Lyndon) and suffered also some heavy losses. They were allowed the unique privilege in the Austrian army of wearing red with black facings. While asked about this in a report, the Empress simply noted: 'Lyndon‘s regiment is good.'

But before all its the beauty of their uniform, while the historically inclined might find that their  cross-belts were natural leather, I enhanced them to white purely out of fashionable reasons. That bit of pipe clay, ‘com on!

Monday, the 19th of July, 1815, near Waterloo ...

DISCLAIMER: If you think this is the actual battle of Waterloo, Pustekuchen! Read further on your own peril! It‘s just the day after ...

54mm (yes, we are getting older and all need glasses), Napoleonics, Rules system, I‘m sorry I forgot , but something along the lines of To the drums and shakos (???). This time Mike surprised us with this excellent scenario and his lovely miniatures. Bart was playing a Polish hussar commander who lost his horses and his chutzpah, understandably after the events of the night before. And (MDF) Mike and (old and new)Mike himself and some lost French troopers were helping him to get out. Me (as Prussian reserve), Chris (as Prussian Jaeger and LI), and Peter and Campbell (as British Line and LI) and Alisdair (as British Cavalry) were hunting him down. One would get points for every killed man, double the officers etc... may the best team win!

So the French Infantry (Mike and Mike) tried to hold us off while Bart thought to await Alisdairs cavalry and shoot him to pieces ... Haha! But the allies were fleet-footed and quick. And shortly we were surrounding the French stragglers and shot them back to hell again. The rules worked really fine for this kind of skirmish, the little brown tokens aren't morale they indicated units that had shot!

Alisdair came later onto the table on the other side of the road were Bart tried to and nearly did annihilate him ... we decided to pull him off before that. Yes, he had the team permission to withdraw! That was a good decision and we finally won point wise 12 to 10 points!

My line of Prussians

Campbell or Peters British

The French and the Polish Hussar Captain

and their initial setup

But soon Chris sneakily flanked them out of the woods

Peters Brits stormed the walls

Campbells line behind a wall

And the "Polish-Frech" unit left over the bridge already

My Line and reserve arrived and shot volleys into the French

.. which they didn't survived

Then Mikes French were coming out of a burned down house!

And Alisdairs hussars arrived!

The shooting continued

... ach re-loading!

But then Alisdair retreated!

View from the bridge ... a man hunt!

yes very vindictive we shot most of them down ...