Bailén AAR
We playtested a scenario based on the
battle of Bailén over the past couple of weeks, running through it
three times. The first was between our regulars, Ted and Phong, with
me refereeing, and the Spanish won handily. The second time I played
it through solo with an even more devastating result for the French.
Third time was lucky, and a more
protracted and interesting battle, with the French winning
decisively. (My brother Jim played the Spanish in his first outing
with these rules so some of that inexperience may have influenced the
outcome!) Regardless, a bit more tweaking and the scenario should be
ready to share, if anyone is interested.
Our group is really quite new to
Napoleonics, but there was a dearth of scenarios for Spain that I had
seen so far, especially those that were just between the Spanish and
the French, so Bailén, arguably the first major battle in the
Peninsular conflict and certainly one of the few where the Spanish
triumphed, seemed like a good place to start. With about a corps per
side it made for a good starter battle where we could come to grips
with some new rules and move toy soldiers around. And I finally had
painted the pieces I needed for a battle of this scale.
The scenario ignores the disastrous
piece meal attacks that Dupont threw against the Spanish, and is a
bit of a what-if that assumes that the French waited until all their
forces that were historically engaged on that day had arrived. It
also ignores the severe heat and lack of water that especially wore
down a French army that had just marched throughout the night. In the
end, the odds are still on the Spanish side, but it makes for a more
even conflict which, and with a bit of luck, we've shown the French
can carry the day. The game was played on a 4.5' X 5/ table in 1/72
scale using the Age of Eagles rule set. Figures are mainly Hat with
some Italeri, Emhar and Zevda in the mix.
The French objective is to break
through the Spanish lines and join with Vedel, who is marcing towards
Bailén from the west, before game end which corresponds with the arrival of General Castaños' forces on the French rear, marching from Andujar.
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| The scenario map. The French start deployed in the olive groves to the west (left) while the Spanish are arrayed north and south of the road to Andujar on the high ground, forward of the crest line (red line). |
1. The battle commences
The Spanish are arrayed on the heights
west of Bailén on two hills divided by the road to Andujar as the
French enter out from the cover of the orchard groves bordering the
Rumblar (bottom).
2. Spanish line west of Bailén, Coupigny's division
On the lower hill south of the road
is the Belgian general Coupigny's division, two brigades composed
mostly of conscripts, but stiffened by a battery of 6 pdrs. and the
Cataluña light
infantry, split between brigades and giving skirmish capabilities to
the two formations. A small brigade of cavalry are held in reserve
and out of sight outside of Bailén.
3. View from Spanish right
On the hills to the north of the road
is Reding's division arrayed in line of battle. He is also
functioning as the corps commander, with three brigades under his
direct command. These are better troops, two of the brigades
including Walloon Guards, Swiss and Irish mercenaries while the third is the grenadiers of the Spanish line
regiments, brigaded separately. They have two batteries of cannon in
support as well as a small brigade of dragoons, held back in reserve.
4. Cavalry in reserve
5. French infantry advance on Spanish
left
The French intention to throw all of
their infantry against the Spanish left is made immediately obvious
as they move forward, Pannetier's brigade in the lead with Chabert's
and Schramm's Swiss following. The French are a bit wary of their
Swiss mercenaries' loyalties, their having been recently in Spanish employ
and now integrated into Dupont's corps. They know full well that
their counterparts and compatriots are likely in the army that faces
them.
6. French artillery brought up road
Dupont sends his artillery up the road,
a single battery emplaced between his infantry and cavalry divisions.
The remaining French artillery is still trapped on the road from
Andujar, mired amongst the endless wagons of loot stolen from
Cordova.
7. Chausseurs and dragoons on the
French left
On the French left Frescia's two
cavalry brigades (Prive's dragoons and Dupre's chausseurs a cheval)
move cautiously from the olive groves but remain a healthy distance
form the Spanish cannon. It is the French commander's hope that their
presence may be enough to dissuade the Spanish from shifting some of
their stronger right wing to the left.
8. Spanish charge…
Taking advantage of a disordered French brigade as a result of cannon fire, in the first surprise move of the
battle one of the Spanish brigades abandons its high ground advantage
and charges down to engage. It successfully
drives the lead French brigade back and briefly stalls their advance.
9. And retreat to the crest of the hill
Realizing it is in a perilous situation
the Spanish retreat in line of battle to join up again with its sister
brigade on the hill.
10. Spanish driven off crest
In what develops into a seesaw battle
the French rally and drive Coupigny's division off the crest, but are
unable to take advantage of the situation. The Spanish quickly regain
the high ground.
11. Dupre's chausseurs threaten Spanish
right
Meanwhile on the Spanish right Dupre's
chausseurs advance on the Spanish flank (bottom), moving forward out of the
enemy cannon field of fire and threatening to charge the Spanish
unsupported line. The dragoons, intended to accompany them, fail to
receive Frescia's orders and stay put – something which in the end
works to the French advantage.
12. French artillery in trouble
In the second surprise move of the
battle Reding's cavalry burst out from their position west of Bailén
and overrun the French artillery. In a breakthrough charge they wheel
on the French dragoons, who spur to meet them, driving them back. But
the French have now lost a major asset – their lone battery – and
their dragoons find themselves embroiled with the Spanish cavalry.
13. Chabert's brigade pounded, Spanish
regain crest
In a disastrous mélee Chabert's
brigade is driven off the crest with heavy casualties and forced into
square by an attack by Coupigny's cavalry. The Spanish infantry, now
in supported line of battle, regain the crest to confront Schramm's
Swiss and Pannetier.
14. Schramm's Swiss in action on the
crest
15. Reding on the crest
From the crest of the more northern
hills Reding observes the battle. Coupigny's right holds firm, while
in the distance Reding's cavalry, outnumbered, are driven back after
overrunning the French cannon. He shifts his grenadier brigade to the
right to support his right flank, worried about the French
chausseurs' advance.
16. Spanish right pulls back
For the second time Reding wheels back
his right flank and their attached cannon, keeping the chausseurs in
the cannons' field of fire. While staying a safe distance from the
enemy horse, he tries to shape his grenadiers into a supporting line
behind his lead brigade in expectation of the French charge, but the grenadiers respond sluggishly.
17. Chausseurs seize the moment
Meanwhile the chausseurs have other
plans…
18. And turn the Spanish right
Waiting for the gap on the Spanish
right to become large enough to allow them to charge past and behind
the Spanish lines.
19. Meanwhile on the left
Coupigny's brigades have once more
become separated, with one holding off the Swiss while the second
stays put to where it has retreated outside Bailén.
20. Overview
At the bottom right Coupigny holds off
the Swiss at the crest but is unable to bring his second brigade
forward. But the French are having troubles of their own, with
Chabert's battered brigade (lower left) unable to move out of square
and Pannetier stalled out (bottom middle) on the west side of the
crest, unable to support the embattled Swiss.
Meanwhile in the centre the French
dragoons form up after counter charging the Spanish cavalry while
Reding finally begins to respond to the threat on his far left,
moving a brigade down to pour fire into the dragoons flank. But the
rest of his force, intact and the strongest Spanish elements
available, are slow to get turned around and confront the French
horse now ranging behind their lines (upper right).
21. Chausseurs run amok
The chausseurs charge in, destroying a
Spanish battery that had limbered up and was moving to bring its guns
to bear to the rear.
22. And carry a second Spanish battery!
Their breakthrough charge carries them
to a second Spanish battery, and suddenly the Spanish are reduced to
one.
23. Dragoons move to support French
right
With their flank enfiladed, rather than
become embroiled with the Spanish cavalry the dragoons move to
support the infantry on the French right. Frescia, with his second
brigade over the hill and far away, takes direct command of his
dragoons.
24. Schramm's brigade maintains
pressure
Still on its own, Schramm's Swiss
mercenaries force the Spanish back towards Bailén.
25. Pushing the Spanish back
In the lower right the Swiss force
Coupigny's division back, keeping them disordered and off balance.
Meanwhile Barbou desperately tries to get his infantry over the
crest, but accurate Spanish cannon fire keeps them from resuming
their advance.
26. Spanish dragoons hit French from
flank
Chabert's bedevilled brigade finally
gets out of square only to be hit by Spanish cavalry from the flank,
driving them back with more losses. The Spanish breakthrough charge
carries on to clash with Pannetier's brigade, having the not
unwelcome effect for the French of driving them over the crest they
have been unable to move over on their own volition.
27. Overview
Another overview helps makes sense of
the vast brawl the battle has become. At the top the Spanish under
Reding finally start to get turned around and moving towards the
focus of the battle, threatening the chausseurs who are regrouping,
winded, after their battery death-dealing charge.
Below one of Redings' battalions along with
his cavalry start to form some sort of line in support of Coupigny's
lone battery on its hill.
Bottom center Coupigny's cavalry find
themselves in a bad situation, winded and outflanked by the French
dragoons. Bottom right Chabert's spent brigade stands disordered
while Pannetier's, also disordered, is at least finally over the
crest and within marching distance of supporting Schramm's battle
with Coupigny's division outside of Bailén.
As the French objective is to break
through the Spanish lines and exit towards Vedel's advancing
division east of Bailén, the way forward is now looking quite open.
28. French dragoons rout Spanish
cavalry
With the enemy caught flat-footed and
outflanked, Frescia's dragoons easily rout Coupigny's dragoons and
then wheel and obliterate Reding's horse as well.
29. Spanish left in deadly danger…
Coupigny's infantry are assaulted by
Pannetier's and Schramm's brigades as well as Dupre's chausseurs,
charging down from the north. Worn and attacked from three
directions, their demise is writ clear.
30. And collapses!
Both Spanish brigades are completely
destroyed in the disastrous mélee.
31. Dupont moves majority of forces
beyond Bailén
With the Spanish right, still intact
and slowly moving in, Dupont sees the way clear and moves off three
of his brigades, the chausseurs and Barbou's infantry division.
Chabert still stays, wavering and spent, on the far side of the hill
(lower left) unable to get his troops moving, while in the upper
right, the French dragoons move to exit as well.
32. Too late
Reding's infantry marches down towards
Bailén and manages to loose off a few volleys into the retreating
dragoons.
33. Dragoons withdraw
34. Chabert's brigade destroyed
Abandoned and alone, Chabert's
diminished brigade is unable to get going and Reding's third brigade
advances. With the aid of cannon fire the French brigade is
annihilated, a small Spanish victory within their larger defeat, as Dupont's forces batter their
way through the enemy line and move on to join up with Vedel to the
west. As the last French exit the very first of General Castaños' force arrive from Andujar, too late to
influence the outcome of the battle.
The results of the battle left the French with an overwhelming victory, destroying two cavalry and two infantry brigades as well as two of the three Spanish batteries, while exiting their forces from the board as per the scenario objective. The Spanish in turn overran the lone French battery and destroyed the largest of the French infantry brigades but in the end failed in keeping the French from breaking through and escaping to the east.
Spanish Order of Battle lst Division: Lt. General T. Reding (Right Wing) 3/Wallon Guard Infantry Regiment 852 Voluntarios de Barbastro Infantry Regiment 331 Tercio de Tejas 436 Olivencia Dragoon Regiment 160 Numancia Dragoon Regiment 140 la Reina Dragoon Regiment 100 Montesa Cavalry Regiment 120* (1 sqdn.) Farnesio Cavalry Regiment 213 lst Voluntarios de Granada Infantry Regiment 525*(3rd and 6th Btn.) Irlanda Infantry Regiment 1824*(1st Bt.) Reina Infantry Regiment 795 6th Voluntarios de Granada Infantry Regiment 343 Corona Infantry Regiment 854* Jaen Infantry Regiment 922* (2 cos.) Reding #3 (Swiss) Infantry Regiment 1100 Milicia Provincial de Jaen 500* Garrochistas de Utrera (Lancer Regiment) 70 Garrochistas de Jerez (Lancer Regiment) 34 Sappers (2 cos) 166 2nd Division: Mariscal de Campo Marques de Coupigny (Left Wing) Voluntarios de Cataluña Infantry Regiment 1178 Fijo de Ceuta Infantry Regiment 1208 Provincial de Granada Infantry Regiment 400* Provincial de Trujillo Infantry Regiment 290 Provincial de Bujalance Infantry Regiment 403 Provincial de Cuenca Infantry Regiment 501 Provincial de Ciudad Real Infantry Regiment 420 Voluntarios de Granada Infantry Regiment 912 Borbon Cavalry Regiment 333 España Cavalry Regiment 120 Sapper Company (1 co) 100
(Note: Asterix mark Spanish units that, partially or wholey, were part of the rearguard west of Bailén and therefore not part of
this battle.)
French Order of Battlelst Division: General de division Barbou 1. Brigade: General de brigade Pannetier 1 and 2/3rd Legion of Reserve 1743 2/1st and 2/2nd Garde de Paris 941 Imperial Guard Marines 550 2. Brigade: General de brigade Chabert 1,2 and 3/4th Legion of Reserve 2458 2/4th Swiss Regiment (Red french uniform) 602 1 Battery foot artillery Division Rouyer: General de Division Rouyer (not present) Brigade: General de brigade Schramm Reding & Preux Swiss Regiment (Blue Spanish uniform) 1573 Division Fresia: General de division Frescia Brigade: General de brigade Prive lst Provisional Dragoon Regiment 720 2nd Provisional Dragoon Regiment 640 2nd Provisional Curiassiers (1/2 regiment) 300 Brigade: General de brigade Dupre lst Provisional Chasseur a Cheval Regiment 510 2nd Provisional Chasseur a Cheval Regiment 580
