Halle Campaign – Day 7

Campaign Map on 8 November 1813

1^st and 2^nd Russian corps refuse to retreat after the first battle of Gerbstedt

They redeploy to hold the town.

3^rd and 4^th Russian corps take advantage of a lull to resupply and redeploy

All four Russian corps have adequate supplies

Davout is faced with a difficult decision

Night has robbed him of his deserved victory at Gerbstedt

However both 2^nd and 14^th corps are down to one day’s supplies

He should resupply and rally his routed brigades

However he wants to attack before the Russians can recover from first Gerbstedt

He orders another attack at daybreak

Second battle of Gerbstedt  

The Russians have more infantry, but less artillery

Davout is present to command the battle

He also has his best corps, 2^nd Young Guard, almost at full strength

He creates an artillery reserve by taking artillery from both corps

They deploy at short range of the town

A weak Russian battery opens fire, and they both return fire

This counter battery fire proves particularly ineffective

The Young Guard storm the town, but are held at bay and defeated

This is largely because a full strength elite Russian brigade is the garrison

Although the Russians lose more casualties than the French they still win

They hold the town at the end of the battle, and have more formed infantry

The French have lost 4800 casualties and five brigades in rout

The Russians have lost 7700 casualties and three brigades in rout

Campaign Notes   

This wargame was further proof that our games really are very unpredictable.

Although outnumbered in infantry, the French were a much stronger army than the Russians.  Each army had two corps, and one corps on each side were much depleted from the first battle of Gerbstedt.

However each army has one almost untouched corps.   The Russians had a standard corps, but the French had a Young Guard corps.   This consisted of four average infantry brigades and an elite heavy cavalry brigade.   The Russians had a Cossack brigade.

But more important the French had two artillery batteries against one Russian battery which already had 10% casualties.   With their superior cavalry they could expect to be able to deploy their artillery very close to the enemy.

As the game progressed the French artillery proved much less effective than expected.   They failed to inflict any casualties on the two infantry brigades forming the garrison of Gerbstedt.

With some confidence I, as French player, sent in my four guard brigades to sort out the Russian centre.   Three broke and routed the Russian infantry outside the town, for the loss of one brigade.   The remaining three brigades then turned their attention to the town.

There are two sections to each town, each require one infantry brigade as garrison.   The French artillery concentrated on the left hand section.   The three guard brigades stormed the right hand section.    This section was held by an elite Russian grenadier brigade.  

A garrison gets extra combat points, but these were equalled by extra points for three brigades attacking.   A combat is then fought for each attacking brigade.  All three are fought at the same time, so casualties from one combat does not affect the other.   Despite this I was very unimpressed when two of my guard brigades lost their melee, broke and ran away.   The third was a draw, with 10% casualties on both attacker and defender.  In addition the Russian brigade has suffered another 10% from the two combats which they won. The French lost the second round of melee, and also ran away.

Worse was yet to come.   The Russian brigade now had 30% casualties, but still held the town section.   The French had one last infantry brigade available.  The Westphalian brigade was full strength, but it was also poor quality conscript.   In the twelfth (and last) move of the game I sent them in to take the town.   They failed, and also ran away.  

At nightfall the Russian grenadiers still held their half of the town.   They had suffered 40% casualties (minus 4 on combat and morale tests) and must have failed any further attack, or even any forced morale due to a nearby rout.   But the game had ended, and they had won.

Great game, even though I lost.