Almost Cropredy Bridge ; An ECW scenario set in Kelhamshire

 Traditionally, the Sunday of the Phalanx Show weekend Steve hosts a big game for the Gentlemen Pensioners.  This year he selected an ECW game set in Kelhamshire using our in-house version of the Pike and Shotte rules.  The table was 16 feet by 6 feet and he had assembled around 1500 figures divided into 8 commands, 4 per side.

A view from behind the Parliamentary right flank

  

The Royalist army in march column

The scenario starts with the Lord Mechett's Royalist army marching north in column.  Half of the vanguard and half of the rearguard (both composed of cavalry) are off table.   Sir Victor Meldrew's forces appear on the Royalist flank, but only half the brigades are immediately available, the remainder are still making their way over various bridges and fords.

The Parliamentary infantry advance in the centre

There was soon action on both flanks as the opposing cavalry commanders tried to gain ad advantage.  The situation on the Parliamentary right was the most fluid, with units charging and counter-charging and the balance tilting one way and the other.

The Parliamentary cavalry attack their opponents who are still in column

A couple of photos provided by John
(the Royalist cavalry commander on this flank)

On the opposite flank, the Royalist cavalry commander was having difficulty recalling his leading units, but the leading infantry brigade continued marching forward and then deployed to give support.  This secured the Royalist right, but did mean that the central infantry were outnumbered.

The Royalist cavalry begun to form up, with their
infantry deterring an early Parliamentary charge

The impasse on the Royalist right/Parliamentary
left from both sides

In the centre, the Parliamentary infantry were having a few problems..  One unit  had 'blundered', received no orders and just stood in position  blocking the exit from the bridge.  This meant that a co-ordinated advance by all four brigades was not possible..  

The dragoons on the Parliamentary left deploy into some woods

In what was to prove a significant move, the cavalry commander on the Parliamentary left ordered his dragoons to move into some woods.  This one unit drew the attention of two Royalist infantry units , plus a gun even though the dragoons firepower was relatively small.  

The piecemeal advance of the Parliamentary infantry

The left hand Parliamentary infantry general gathered his units in the lee of the low hill in the centre and then advanced all of them together to threaten the Royalist centre.  His colleague on his right had got his first brigade forward at last, but the second was still crossing the bridge.  Nevertheless, the right hand infantry commander moved forward to engage the enemy, trading volleys, hoping to pin his opposite number in position.  For his part, the Royalist commander used just enough of his units to hold his position and maintained a reserve against possible setbacks.

The two infantry brigades on the left of the Royalist centre

Having made little progress exchanging volleys, the Royalist infantry commander decided to charge the Parliamentary infantry on the hill.  One of his units was stopped in its tracks by a telling volley, but the other continued up the slope into contact.  

There was no quick victory, but gradually the Parliamentarians gained the upper hand and pushed their assailants down the slope.  To the left of the melee the Royalists were gaining the upper hand in the musketry exchanges and the leading Parliamentary infantry unit was beginning to waver. Further to the left another Parliamentary infantry unit was pushing forward, but the courier carrying Meldrew's order for it to charge must have been unhorsed, because nothing happened.  Perhaps sensing a little unease among their opponents, the Royalists did not stand on ceremony and charged themselves.  A rather feeble volley did little to stop them and they crashed into the Parliamentary ranks.

More fighting in the centre

 On the Royalist right the cavalry battle had begun in earnest.  The Royalist commander had broadened his attack by moving round a small wood and forced his opponent to move his reserves to meet this threat.

Unfortunately, we now ran out of time, as some of the participants had to start their journey home.  A good day.  Thanks to Alasdair, Andy, Bob, Chris, Dave, John and Will for taking the various commands. Also, Steve for devising, setting up and umpiring the game and also explaining some of the finer points of the rules to those who were not familiar with them. 

The essential logistics ( a fine lunch) were provided by Gwen and Lynne.  

Perhaps it was as well for the Parliamentary cause that we stopped when we did.  The first cracks were starting to appear in the Parliamentary infantry I was commanding.  One unit was routing and a couple of others were shaken.

Phalanx

 Last Saturday the Gentlemen Pensioners were at the Phalanx Show organised by the St Helens Spartans.  We were supporting the Lance & Longbow Society and running our 'Crusades' participation game.  As usual there were plenty of willing helpers from the society to help unload and carry our figures and terrain. 

Here are photographs of  some of the games, unfortunately, I do not know which club put on some of the games .

East Lancashire Wargames Association put on this game representing the Assault on Louisburg, with nicely modelled small boats and scenery.

They also ran a Greek naval game

Next to our game was this Normans versus Anglo-Saxons  game, Hastings? which I think was provided by the Liverpool club.

The Independent 54mm Wargames Club moved from their usual big game to this Colonial era Foreign Legion skirmish

The Mailed Fist group had this Thirty Years War game.  

This is one of the mystery games.  It looks possibly Tudor era

A landing set in the Peninsular War, possibly the Hornblower scenario by Furness Warlords

All Hell Let Loose had this Battle of Scarif participation game.  The vivid blue and dramatic tower building really drew your attention to the game.

Now a few photos of our game, which we ran twice, with honours being even, one victory each to the Franks and Saracens. 

Overall, a very good day.  The venue is easy to get to, with plenty of free parking.  There are a good number of traders and a variety of games.  It did seem a bit quiet on the visitor front this year, but we did manage to inveigle a few members of the public to join in the game. So thank you to Jeff, Oscar and his Dad for trying out the rules, the Gentlemen Pensioners, Alasdair, Andy, Bob, Chris, John, Peter and Will for also taking part and Steve for helping with explanations and umpiring.  

Countdown to Phalanx

 This coming Saturday, the Gentlemen Pensioners will once again be putting on a game for the Lance & Longbow Society at the Phalanx Show run by the the St Helens Spartans.  Our game will be a fictional encounter from the period of the Crusades ( c 1095-1291) and is a participation game, so if you are attending the show, please feel free to drop by and perhaps join in.  We use our own version of the 'Lion Rampant' rules by Dan Mersey; all you will need to play is contained on a single A5 sheet.

A few photos of our trial run.

A general view of the set up

A rather disjointed Frankish advance

The Frankish right wing cavalry advance

On the opposite flank the Teutonic knights
come to a sticky end

We played through the game twice and each side had a victory, so hopefully that means that the game is fairly evenly balanced!  Many thanks to Bob, David and Steve for helping with the playtesting.