Carlist Wars AAR Huesca

Hi All


We played the battle of Huesca today over at Chez Chris Flowers in glorious sunshine (albeit that the sun was outside and we were in) managed to get mildly sunburned eating lunch outside.


Anyway we played the amendments to Blackpowder, firing before moving and Brigade break tests rather than just melting away. The amends I am pleased to say gave a great game.


The battle we chose was Huesca, the scenario from Kingscarbines book "All Honour is Lost" currently being re-printed and an excellent buy if you are interested in the period.

Huesca is an interesting battle. A single Division of Isabelino troops including the French Foreign Legion attacked the whole Carlist army whilst it was unprepared and spread out across the Town of Huesca with only a strong brigade of Navarese entrenched in a churchyard slow them down. The Carlist Cavalry arrives move two and the Isabelino Cavalry move 3. The Isabelino foot piecemeal on the role of a dice.

The map gives you an idea of initial layout. Three brigades of Isabelino foot attack in separate columns over open ground.

Here is out interpretation of the battle with me in the middle of the table looking more than a little bit gormless.

In the foreground is the churchyard with its Naverese garrison of four battalions and a field gun. to the left the town of Huesca and to the right Steve tried to figure out which troops are his from the three brigades of Isabelino foot in front of him.

A shot of the churchyard with its stoic garrison



The three brigades of Isabelino foot with the Legion in the foreground as they prepare to advance.

The central Brigade under the wonderfully names General Van Halen advances slowly as the left brigade assaults the Churchyard.



 

 A closer view of the left brigade just before it is thrown back in disorder from the Navarese earthworks.

 Steve ponders how to take the Churchyard, sorry Steve I don't see how the clipboard will help.

 A better view of the chapel and the four battalions of Navarese.

 The left Isabelino brigade falls back to lick its wounds casualty markers and disorder markers all round thank you.

Isabelino generals ponder their next move.

At last the Legion on the right get going only to find they are blocked by 6 squadrons of Carlist Cavalry which have finally woken up and advances out of the town to try and slow down the advance of the liberals.

 The Carlist Cavalry hold the Isabelino right column up and are able to badly damage a unit of the Centre Brigade as well., as two battalions of Navarese debauch from the churchyard to prevent the Isabelino centre flanking them, at this point with things in the balance the die roles to get the Carlists in the town moving finally start to pay off and the first brigade marches out of town to conform the forces of Liberalism..

So with things in the balance I am going to leave you on the cliff edge and follow up with a further post soon, mainly because Chris hasa number more photos to get over to me so I can finish the second half of the battle with some thoughts on the rule amends.

I hope this whets your appetite, come back later in the week for the second instalment.