Battle Report - Bussaco 2 - Ney's Assault

After trying the scenario of Reynier's attack on the left, Will and I thought we would have a go at Ney's assault.  For this battle we swapped sides; I took the French and Will the Allies. Once again we used Command and Colors (C&C) rules.

Here is the C&C map of the battlefield:

And the battlefield laid out looking across from the Allied positions on the ridge, with the village of Sula in the centre.  The Allies have pushed light troops out to the left of, and in the village itself.  Looking to the right there is a second small village, Cerquedo.  Both of these villages would be the scene of bitter fighting.

The battle began with the French moving in the centre, to clear out the advanced light troops and secure Sula as a jumping off point for the attack on the Allied ridge:

The French piled in more infantry and quickly overwhelmed the defenders of the village and the Allied light infantry were pushed back.

Looking along the ridge, the French attack is pushing into the Allied centre.

With cavalry in support the French infantry continue their push into the centre, but casualties are mounting and the Anglo Portuguese units begin to consolidate their defence on the ridge.

With the French assault in the centre beginning to slow down the french launch a second assault on the Allied right with the aim of capturing the village of Cerquedo and turning the Allied flank

The Allies form a defence line to resist the French attack

The French, pushing forward, run into stiff opposition

It's a classic case of French column vs British line and to make matters worse for the French the left hand British troops are Grenadier Guards, whose volleys are devastating.  In short order the three French columns are destroyed.

The assault in the centre is also beaten back as the French begin to run out of steam.

The French exhaustion point is reached and the Allies win the day with a resounding victory.  It looked so promising at the early stages, but the heavily defended ridge proved too much for the French.

As before, we used Command & Colors rules.  All of the figures were from Will's 20mm collection and very fine they look too!

Battle Report- Bussaco

A couple of weekends ago, Will and Emma visited for a couple of games.  Will brought his extensive collection of 20mm Anglo Portuguese and French armies, while I had set out the terrain.  We had decided to refight the battle of Bussaco, September 1810, which was an attack by Reynier against the right of the allied line.  For rules we used the Command & Colors (C&C) Napoleonic set, including use of the cards.

Will and Emma played the French, while I had the Anglo Portuguese army, sitting upon the ridge.

Here is the map of the battlefield (copyright Command & colors):

Unfortunately in the excitement of getting started I forgot to take pictures until after the game was underway, so this report gives an overview of the action rather than a blow by blow account:

To kick off the French began their assault in the centre and on their left, with the stream village and woods on the other flank creating a constraint:

The French initial main effort was a thrust in the centre that was heavily defended by the allies.

The French are beaten back, losing heavily:

The allies then counter-attacked, driving into the French centre, ending the French assault.

Over on the allied right/French left, things remain quiet with the French not wishing to attempt an assault over the stream.

The French now shifted attention to the allied left, with an assault by several regiments.

Once again the stiff allied defence of the ridge prevented any real progress for the French as each assault was countered and pushed back.  By now French losses were mounting steadily.

A final attempt on the ridge was made by a major French cavalry attack in the centre forcing some of the Portuguese into squares and forcing a battery to pull back.

French supporting infantry advance from the village, but too far away to assist the cavalry who were impotent against the allied squares:

Unfortunately for the French this attack came too late with the loss of a general and more casualties taking them over their casualty threshold.  As in the real action, Reynier's assault fails.

After lunch, we decided that we should attempt Ney's assault further along the ridge.