234th ANNVERSARY OF A BATTLE.....

Francis' Brigade on the Patriot right flnk...

This weeks 28mm AWI game that I arranged at the SESWC was based on the Battle of Hubbardton 7 July 1777 using Black Powder Rules. We used it as a further test of an amended turn sequence which has been proposed in the "& Blenheim" rule modifications by Ian Hopping available on the Yahoo BP Forum.

 Some History
The Battle of Hubbardton was a battle of the American Revolutionary War that took place on July 7, 1777. Hubbardton is a community in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The town was named for Thomas Hubbard, a landholder. It is still a quiet rural area as the population was 752 at the 2000 census.

A Patriot force of 1,200 men, primarily composed of New Hampshire, Massachusetts and Vermont Continentals acting as a rearguard covered the retreat of the Patriot army retiring from Ticonderoga. They were attacked by a pursuing force of approximately 1,000 British, loyalist and German troops commanded by Simon Fraser and Friedrich Riedesel.

The Setup
The game was fought across a 6ft by 4ft table. Given the table size we used the 66% version of the movement and ranges but left proximity and command radius at the standard 12 inches. The terrain was assumed to be wooded except for an area of open ground in the centre of the table. The 24 figure units were classed as standard units, the 12 to 16 figure units as small units. The figures are mainly Front Rank, with Foundry Jaegers and Old Glory British Light infantry. Colin Jack commanded the British Army with Hugh Wilson leading the German reinforcements. Mr Ray Neal of New Haven, Connecticut commanded the Patriots.

Background and Patriot Briefing
In June of 1777 British Lieutenant General John Burgoyne's forces pressed southward from Canada on Lake Champlain, as part of Burgoyne's plan to split off New England from the rest of the American colonies.

As they closed in on Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence in Orwell, Vermont, American Major General Arthur St. Clair made the difficult decision to withdraw from these forts and save his troops for a future encounter. General St Clairs troops left Fort Ticonderoga on 6th July 1777 hastening to put as much ground between themselves and the pursuing army of General Burgoyne in their retreat to the south. The weather was hot and the march, along the rudimentary track through the forest, was heavy going. After 26 miles the Americans reached Hubbardton, a minute hamlet. St Clair marched on, leaving Colonel Seth Warner and his Green Mountain Boys to await the rearguard of Colonel Francis’ 11th Massachusetts and Hale’s 2nd New Hampshire Regiments.

Once the rearguard reached Hubbardton, Francis and Hale decided to camp overnight in the hamlet to allow their men to recover from the rigours of the evacuation of Ticonderoga and the long march. They assumed they had outstripped the British and German troops and put out no proper picquet line.

Now at 5:00am as your camp is stirring for breakfast you hear musket shots from the north and the picquet rushes in to say that the British are upon you. You have to hold this position as long as possible to prevent them closing up on the main army.

PATRIOT OB
CinC Col Seth Warner 7

Col Ebenezer Francis
11th Massachusetts 24 figures
New York Militia 24 figures

Col Nathan Hale
2nd New Hampshire 24 figures
Green Mountain Men 24 figures
Riflemen 12 figures skirmishersskirmishers

Col Livingston (to south in direction of the main army)
Albany Militia 16 figures
Newark Militia 16 figures

Militia initially hald the British Line....

Background and British Briefing
In June of 1777 British Lieutenant General John Burgoyne's forces pressed southward from Canada on Lake Champlain, as part of Burgoyne's plan to split off New England from the rest of the American colonies.

As they closed in on Fort Ticonderoga and Mount Independence in Orwell, Vermont, American Major General Arthur St. Clair made the difficult decision to withdraw from these forts and save his troops for a future encounter. General St Clair’s troops left Fort Ticonderoga on 6th July 1777 hastening to put as much ground between themselves and the pursuing army of General Burgoyne in their retreat to the south. The weather was hot and the march, along the rudimentary track through the forest, was heavy going. After 26 miles the Americans reached Hubbardton, a minute hamlet.

Brigadier Simon Fraser has pressed the pursuit and that night camped near to Hubbardton knowing the Freiher Riedesel and his Germans were camped 3 miles further north.

Your Indian scouts report that at least the rearguard of the rebel army has decided to camp overnight in the hamlet of Hubbardton to allow their men to recover from the rigours of the evacuation of Ticonderoga and the long march. The scouts report that the rebels have put out no proper picquet line.

Your force resumed the advance at 3am based upon an understanding with Riedesel that he will march at the same time to your support. At 5pm you have upon the Americans as they are breakfasting, and promptly order the attack.

BRITISH OB
CinC Gen Simon Fraser 8

Major Robert Grant
24th Regiment 24 figures
Combined grenadiers 16 figures
Combined light infantry 16 figures
Loyalists 12 figures skirmishers

Maj Gen Friedrich Adolf Riedesel - Freiher zu Eisenbach
Breymann’s Grenadiers 16 figures’s Grenadiers 16 figures
Brunswick Jaegers 12 figures skirmishers

Grenadiers move into the clearing....

How the game played
The action opened with the British left advancing rapidly to engage the Patriot left who they mistook to be all militia. It was a Patriot trick of dressing a unit of Continentals in buckskin! The British right advanced slowly closing up on the clearing.

The 24th Line closed to short range of the militia who disordered them with their first volley. The British replied using their First Fire and did not score a single hit. Appalling shooting! Eventually the 24th charged home on the militia and broke them which caused the supporting 11th Massachusetts to retire. Then the 24th and the Light infantry scored 4 unsaved shooting hits on the 11th Massachusetts who broke and fled as well.

On the British right the Grenadiers supported by the Loyalists had become engaged in a fire fight with the riflemen and the Green Mountain Boys. At this point the German (actually Brunswick) reinforcement column under Riedesel arrived and moved to support the Grenadiers.

Grenadiers stalled in front of the Green Mountain Boys...

The Green Mountain boys advanced into the clearing to engage the Grenadiers while the New Hampshire unit swung round on the Patriot left to envelope the Loyalists. The New Hampshire men blundered and retired back to their starting point. The Green Mountain Boys were more than holding their own against the British and Brunswick grenadiers but were undone when the British left wing unit’s - the 24th Line and the Light infantry moved against them. The Lights charged and meleed with the riflemen while the 24th hit the Green Mountain Boys in the flank and after 2 rounds of hand to hand combat broke them. It was obvious by this point that Livingston's column was not going to arrive - there was a very low chance that they would - historically the troops he tried to march to the action refused and continued to retreat.

The game ended at this point which was clearly a British victory with 3 Patriot units broken and the British army intact. Heroes of the day were the British 24th line, the Patriot Riflemen who held of the Light infantry for 2 rounds of melee and the Green Mountain Boys who did well until weight of numbers overcame them.

Victorious British left wing swings into the centre...

This is the first time in any of our AWI BP games that the British Army has won! This was despite the British shooting, which except for 1 turn, was truly appalling - a barrage of 1s and 2s. Possibly because the game was played on 7th July the date of the actual battle.

Rule changes
We used the amended turn sequence in this game and my revised rules for moving in forests. In addition we decided that it was more realistic not to allow units to interpenetrate as part of a charge move.

Patriot Riflemen hold British Light infantry....

What happened historically
The Americans formed a line stretching through wooded country, with hills on each flank. Fraser sent his grenadiers to climb the hill to the American left and outflank them. The hill was steep and the encircling move took longer than expected. In the meantime Colonel Francis attacked advanced around Fraser’s left flank, reinforced by some of Hale’s regiment who were returning to the battlefield. Fraser, whose force was inferior in numbers to the Americans, found himself in some difficulty. Eventually the Grenadiers crossed the difficult terrain to engage the American left flank whilst the German troops under Riedesel arrived and attacked the American right. Under this attack the Americans finally gave way with Col Francis being mortally wounded.

Casualties:
British and German casualties were 14 officers and 195 soldiers. American casualties were 12 officers and 300 soldiers. As the British held the field the American wounded were mostly captured.

Follow-up:
The American retreat to the South continued with the British failing to pursue. The casualties were high in this battle for the number of troops involved, reflecting the determination of the American Continental Regiments.

Engaged

Approx 1,000 to 1,200 Americans, 850 British and 180 Germans.