Napoleonic batrep - The Battle of Klyastitsy 1812

The weekend before last the Rejects got together for one of Posties Napoleonic games.

But as you may have seen on Lee's blog at the end of last month, there was a  little difference.

The Little Rejects made an appearance!

Me and Postie have been talking about it for a few months, getting some of the kids involved. So we were joined by Richard's son James, Lee's daughter Emily and my 2 youngest daughter 

Holly & Nieve.

 The Setup

The Battle of Klyastitsy (also called the Battle of Yakubovo) was a series of engagements that took place as the French advanced on St Petersburg. The game starts as both armies head towards each other. The Russians appear to outnumber the French but they are facing superior quality troops and commanders determined to break through. A couple of units of mounted Cossack's are hidden in the woods on the french flank but they will probably be more of an annoyance to the french than a real threat. It all depends of the timing of their appearance...

Order of Battle

French

6th Corp c/o Marchal St Cyr (Overall commander James)

   1st Combined Infantry Division c/o Gen Wrede  Heavy Gun Battery (James)

       1st Btn - 2nd Infantry(2), 6th Infantry (2), 2nd Lt Inf (1), Bavarian Line, Medium Gun Battery

       2nd Btn - 3rd Infantry (2), 7th Infantry (2), 4th Lt Inf (1), Bavarian Line, Medium Gun Battery

   2nd Combined Infantry Division c/o Gen Merle (Richard)

       3rd Btn - 4th Swiss (Elite) (3), 3rd Provisional Croatian Rgt (2), Lt Gun Battery

       4th Btn - 56th Line (4), Medium Gun Battery

   3rd Combined Cavalry Division c/o Gen Corbineau (Holly)

       5th Btn - 23rd & 24th Chasseurs a cheval

       6th Btn - 7th & 20th Chasseurs a chaval, 8th Cheau-legers (Lancers) 

Russians (1st Army of the West)

1st Corp c/o Lt Gen Wittgenstein (Overall commander Emily)

    5th Infantry Division c/o Maj-Gen Berg (Lee)

        1st Btn - Sieski Rgt (2), Kalvgski Rgt (2), Hvy Gun Battery

        2nd Btn - Permski Rgt (2), Mogilevki Rgt (2), Lt Gun Battery

        3rd Btn - 23rd Infantry, 24th Jagers, Lt Gun Battery

    14th Infantry Division c/o Maj-Gen Sazanoff (Ray & Nieve)

        4th Btn - Tulski Rgt (2), Navaginski Rgt (2), Hvy Gun Battery

        5th Btn - Tanginski Rgt (2), Estlanski Rgt (2), Lt Gun Battery

        6th Btn - 25th Jagers (2), 26th Jagers (2), Lt Gun Battery

    1st Cavalry Division c/o Maj-Gen Kazoffskoi (Emily)

        7th Btn - Riga Dragoons, Yamburg Dragoons, Grodno Hussars

        8th Btn - Don Cossacks, 10th Canton of Bachkirs Cossacks, Ural Cossacks (Militia)
        Opolchenie Militia Battalion being raised in the town.

The plan was pretty simple for us Russians.....

Just hold the lines and wait for the onslaught.

Emily was on the Russian right flank with our Cavalry. Facing Holly with the French Cavalry. 

We had a Baldrik supplied Cunning Plan?

We hid our Cossack units in the woods to our right. And hoped Holly would charge in so we could hit her in the flank,,,,more on that later.

The French line up

The set up

The French James, Richard and Holly, win the initiative and move first.

We were surprised at the speed of James' movement.

Me & Nieve were going to find it hard to redeploy our lines??

Lee's command in the centre 

Lee pulled his artillery up onto the hill.

They do look a tad exposed??

James and Nieve both open up with their artillery.

James moves forward again

and we pull back to give us more time.

The March of the Bavarians

The Horse deploy their horses in line ready to charge.

Our plan to move troops to our left has failed

they're not going to make it before James hits us.

James charges in!!

And so do Holly & Emily

But

We reveal our Cunning plan!

The French are quite rightly worried.

Lee Still hasn't moved!!!

While its absolute chaos on the left flank!

Richard always says that James a Demon with the dice!!

And he very much is!!

(Trying to keep the language down, incase the kids read it!)

Mixed fortunes for both sides, both win melees pushing the enemy back.

The Russian lines look a little straighter, but I don't think James cares!

Disaster for Holly and her French Cavalry

Emily's dice were just too good, winning 2 out of the three melee's

Holly's lone beaten foe can be seen fleeing the field.

Holly, half of Emily, Lee and Nieve

Demon James won't give up and charges in again.

Nieve damages the Bavarian's as they come in, but they still hit.

As do these, luckily for me, it wasn't a flank attack!

Now the Cossacks come and play.

In the rules Cossacks can only charge into the flank or rear of a unit or a disordered unit.

Holly's Lancers are charge frontally and y the flank. While her disordered Chasseurs are also hit.

Richard moves up his Swiss to do battle with Lee's Russian lines

Phew! Me and Nieve win a melee!

But its still looking dodgy.

There are a lot of disordered Russian units on the field (those with yellow markers)

A shot from the French side of the table.

Its looking very bad for Holly's French!

Richard, Holly, Lee, Emily & Postie

A very busy battlefield

Even the Opelchenie try and get into the action!

The French left collapses

Emily's dice were just too hot for poor holly!

And on the final throw of the dice poor James, fails a brigade morale check, meaning the whole brigade falls back 12 inches.

Richard then threw in the flag with James and Holly's permission of course!!

What a crackin game!
 It was always going to be a hard slog for the French but they gave it their best shot. James was, as I already said a Demon with both tactics and dice, poor Holly was unfortunately, caught out with the flank attack with Emily's Cossacks and great dice throwing, while Nieve thoroughly enjoyed herself, even if she did have to pop off for 2 hours halfway through to go to her friends party!
I think this will be happening more frequently!
Its so great that the kids have embraced all their Dad's hobby!