The Road to Philadelphia

A return to the AWI this week with a fictional scenario from the British advance on Philadelphia.  The American general Gates decided to make a stand on a river line, hoping to delay the British advance to allow a larger American force to coalesce.  Once again we used the 'Patriots and Loyalists' rules which always seem to produce a good game.

I commanded the American forces, 4 brigades of infantry, Woodford, Smallwood and Maxwell in the front line (left to right), with Carter in reserve.  The close terrain favoured the defence, but I decided not to defend too far forward. Only Woodford placed troops across the river, two battalions were on the wooded hill in the bottom left of the photograph below.

The view from the American left

 

 

 

 

 

Steve, commanding the British had his force organised into three brigades, Von Donop's German troops on his left, British line battalions in the centre and the elite grenadiers and converged light companies on the right.

First into action were Von Donop's men who pushed across the bridge to try and secure the field beyond.  The Jaeger made good progress, driving off the American riflemen and then turning their attention to the supporting battalions of militia.  The German fusiliers fared less well.  They deployed under fire and then moved towards the field only to be sent back across the river by telling volleys from the continental infantry.  The Americans did not have long to savour their victory; a battalion of grenadiers took the place of the fusiliers and after firing a volley they moved forward to cross bayonets with their opponents.

The grenadiers attack

In the melee that followed both sides suffered heavy casualties, but it was the Americans who broke and the battered remnants fled the field.  As the victorious grenadiers took the ground they were subjected to volleys from the American battalion which had been in support.  The casualties from these volleys proved too much for the Germans and they too broke, allowing the Americans to regain control of the field.

In the centre there was little action, the British brigade was making slow progress through the terrain, deployed to meet a threat that didn't materialise.  Smallwood's men, lining the hedgerows and fences readied themselves for the firefight to come.  The British 'right hook' was also making slow progress.  Woodford's men waited until the British were in close range and then opened fire.  The grenadiers suffered some losses, but their NCO's kept the men in formation and undaunted the grenadiers continued their advance.  Faced by this steady advance, the American line began to waver, especially as they lacked bayonets and could see that the British did not.

Woodford's men oppose the British advance

 A volley from the grenadiers, plus the sight of the converged light companies moving around their flank, was too much for the militia and they fell back through the woods, heading for the perceived safety of the far bank of the river. Their supports did not even wait to fire a volley, isolated and with their comrades heading for the river, they too felt that it was far safer to put some distance between themselves and those bayonets.  Whilst the fight for the hill had been going the American artillery, plus the remainder of Woodford's men had been trying to slow the advance of the rest of the British right hand brigade.  In this they had not been successful, in fact losses to British volleys had forced the infantry to fall back to reform, leaving the artillery as the sole defender of the ford.

In the centre, the British were at last making progress, two battalions were moving in support of Von Donop, whilst the remainder pinned Smallwood's men in position.  The skirmishers were particularly effective.  Their fire forced one of Smallwood's militia units to fall back and then they turned their attention on his artillery, which had been proving a nuisance.  The American gunners took to their heels, abandoning their guns, much to Smallwood's annoyance.

Smallwood's men hold the centre

 With British support, Von Donop made another attack on the field.  The reformed fusiliers fired volleys at the American defenders whilst a British battalion moved up on the Americans' flank.  A concerted charge proved too much for the Americans and they were driven from the field.  Maxwell's brigade was now in a bad way.  Two units destroyed, two more with casualties from the jaegers, they were only kept in the line by the presence of the brigadier.  I therefore committed the reserve brigade to the right flank to push back the Germans (who had also suffered quite heavy casualties) and perhaps regain control of the bridge.  It was just in time; as the men of Carter's brigade advanced, Maxwell's men broke and the brigade headed off to Philadelphia.  A new line was formed, but with Woodford's brigade also on the brink of collapse the American position seemed lost and Gates ordered Smallwood and Carter to fall back.  The British (and Germans) had suffered quite heavy casualties and were content to consolidate their control of the river crossings and regroup before advancing further.

A view from the American right at the end of the action.  Carter's men are forming a rearguard.