Game 81 : Marengo June 13th 1800 : part I

We are back to northern Italy in 1800. The French have attacked the advance guard of the Austrians. This is where we start the game. The French will attack, then be counter-attacked as the Austrians are heavily reinforced. The game will continue until the French arrive to hopefully reinforce their own, now isolated, advance guard.

The game will be fought over 2 weekends. This is from the 1st weekend where we played until the initial French forces were driven back, essentially to their start lines and have now been reinforced by the rest of their army.

This is looking along the battlefield from the south. The French advance from the right of the picture, the east. The Austrians start with 5 btns of light troops, an artillery battery and a regiment of cavalry. The French arrive with 16 btns of infantry, 2 artillery batteries a single regiment of cavalry.

This is looking directly at Marengo. The French advance will be on this road (from the bottom of the pic). The Austrians are spread very thinly, the Marengo garrison consisting of a single btn of Grenz.

To the left of Marengo are some vineyards where French light infantry advance to try and close the flank down. They were opposed by Austrian jaegers. The French had the numbers but the Austrians did not break until they had lost nearly half their numbers.

As the French advanced on Marengo, someone shouted "boo" and the Austrian Grenz fled after firing a single volley! The French are pursuing, to the stream wondering what to do next.

Austrian reinforcements pour onto the battlefield from their single entry point at the western end of the road and immediately attack Marengo. The French are eventually forced to relinquish their hold as volleys from 3 btns slowly dwindle their numbers.

The French are in full retreat and Austrian troops take up position to the right of Marengo. It is at this point that the French start to reinforce their long awaited for reinforcements, literally back at their start positions. We've now reached the end of the weekend and the first part of the battle. These games play out very differently to pitched battles with huge armies. This battle was played from first contact with very few actual formations in contact and fighting. It slowly escalates, flanks get turned, numbers tell and "hey presto" the games seem to play the same way as the battle occurred historically. We must the doing something right!!

French Formations	Losses %			Austrian Formations	Losses%
	Infantry	Cavalry	Artillery		Infantry	Cavalry	Artillery
				Melas
Victor	-	-	25	O’Reilly	-	-	29
1st Brigade	11	-	-	1st Brigade	8	-	-
2nd Brigade	11	-	-	2nd Brigade	29	-	-
3rd Brigade	24	-	-	Cavalry Brigade	-	4	-
4th Brigade	-	3	-
				Ott	-	-	4
				1st Brigade	4	-	-
				2nd Brigade	0	-	-
				3rd Brigade	0	-	-
				Cavalry Brigade	-	20	-

The casualties above represent those suffered during the first part of the engagement. ASs both armies have separated, with reinforcements tasking position in their respective lines, both armies have retrieved stragglers so using our rules, units have turned to their starting strengths (really view it as -have recovered their elan).

 Normal crowd of willing Generals to the slaughter. Next up is the continuation of the battle.