This Christmas my wife gave me a little gem of a gift from Dodo Press, 'The Battle of Dorking; Reminiscences of a Volunteer' written by George Chesney in 1871.
Full text here: http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks06/0602091h.html (http://gutenberg.net.au/ebooks06/0602091h.html)
This marvellous little short story charts an alternate history following the Franco-Prussian War, when Britain hastily declared war on Prussia...
I finished the book on boxing day and immediately set about turning this into a wargame. I deceided on Baccus' Polemos FPW rules, and tapped Leon up for a British and Prussian army. This week we began what will likely be a 2-3 week battle at the club (ahead of our long-planned 'Operation Sealion campaign).
And so, here's part 1 of the Battle Report for...
The Battle of Dorking 1871 (Reminiscences of a Volunteer)
Objectives
Panic was spreading out of Whitehall as the initial counterattack at Brighton was crushed. A hasty defence line was formed across the North Downs, and the British threw everything they had into the fray. Most brigades were filled with militia and untrained volunteers who only a week or two before were farmers and clerks. The Dorking Gap was a weak point in the defensive line, representing a vital road and rail junction through to London, however with most of the better formations committed to defending Guildford and Reigate, the line at Dorking was held by raw troops, bolstered by a single regular brigade of Scots Guards and a squadron of cavalry. Their only real strength was the artillery batteries from Winchester. With this rag-tag force they had a simple order; ‘hold Dorking and the ridge between Guildford and Reigate at all costs and for as long as possible’.
The Prussians were advancing north following their unopposed landings on the south coast. Initial British counter attacks at Brighton had been repelled easily and the fresh divisions were now heading towards London with all haste. Two main attacks were focussed on Guildford and Reigate, but between them the Prussian command had identified the town of Dorking as a key objective. It was a road and rail hub and the Dorking Gap represented the only easy route north across the North Downs ridge. Three divisions were dedicated to taking this town and given expressed orders to do with quickly and with minimum losses. Leatherhead and Epsom lay beyond and it was anticipated that these towns would also be defended. So the battleground was set…
Deployment
The previous night had been chaotic for the British. The troops in Dorking had forcibly evacuated most of the civilians north by train and road. At the same time, troops had flooded in from all directions. Tired and thirsty, looting and violence had broken out in and around Dorking as discipline among the raw soldiers broke down. By 10am order had been restored and the three divisions had been deployed along the North Downs Ridge, with a sizable garrison in Dorking itself. At dawn a brigade of Scots Guards arrived from Guildford and hastily deployed into Dorking. More troops and reinforcements were expected to arrive shortly to bolster the thin red line defending the way through to London.
To the west of the town, the inexperienced troops followed the orders of their brigade commanders and deployed their artillery throughout the line. In Dorking itself and to the east, the artillery formed into powerful batteries.
The British commanders chose not to position troops in the forward position south on Leith Hill, ceding the ground to the Prussian skirmishers who were left to scout unhindered.
The British 'thin red line' to the east of Dorking on Box Hill
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141945.jpg)
The strong point in Dorking
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141946.jpg)
The line to the west between Dorking and Guildford
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141947.jpg)
Meanwhile, the Prussians advanced steadily through the night, careful to conserve their strength. Forward skirmishers made it onto Leith Hill and were able to survey the chaos in the town overnight. They also marked the dispositions of the deploying British allowing their commanders to form their plan of attack. Unfortunately there was some confusion over the severity of the southern ridge terrain meaning some of the Prussian artillery was poorly deployed. A single division was dedicated to engage Dorking directly from the south, while two full divisions were focussed on an identified weak point in the British line for about a mile west of the town.
The main Prussian advance to the west of Leith Hill
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141948.jpg)
The overall starting deployments...
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141949.jpg)
The battle (morning)
At 10am the battle began proper with the Prussians scaling the Leith Hill ridgeline en masse.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141950.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141953.jpg)
A single division was tasked with harassing Dorking from the south east, mainly to prevent the British redeploying, and to exploit any opportunities.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141951.jpg)
They advanced in good order, deployed their heavy artillery in range and proceeded to shell the British artillery in the south of the town, throwing them into disorder and bringing them to the point of breaking. Only desperate efforts from the local battery commanders prevented the British gunners from abandoning their positions and fleeing north..
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141961.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151963.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151964.jpg)
Meanwhile two Prussian divisions fell over themselves in the desperate, chaotic struggle up the ridgeline. Once over and through the light woods on the gentle northern slope they found themselves walking into sporadic British artillery bombardments.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141957.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141955.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141956.jpg)
Command confusion reigned and the Prussians struggled to deploy their artillery to support the infantry who were now advancing across the road to attack on column up the main North Downs ridge. Only six of the available fourteen batteries set up in time to support the first attacks.
The Prussian infantry struggled up the main ridge into the teeth of the British brigades and batteries arrayed across the crest.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5141960.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151966.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151967.jpg)
Vicious close fighting took its toll on the Prussians and at the point of the focussed attack many battalions fell back in disarray, but remarkably only a single battalion broke. Despite these losses, the raw British troops wavered and fell back from the crest opening a gap for the Prussians to exploit.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151965.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151969.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151970.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking/P5151969-1.jpg)
By 1pm, two further British brigades had arrived, one north of Dorking, the other over on the western flank, but in the middle things were looking troublesome for the British. The stifling heat of the morning, that had slowed the Prussian advance, had broken into a cooling light rain, an the Prussians were beginning to press their advantage.
Word had reached both the British and Prussian commanders in the area that the Prussians had broken through to the west at Guildford…
Can the British rally their line and plug that gap to stop the Prussians breaking through?
Or can the Prussians exploit their breach and roll up the British lines?
The fate of Dorking, London and Great Britain rests in the balance!
To be concluded next week...
Very nice. :)
IanS
Wow love the look of this game 8)
And love the whole idea as well 8)
And I live within artillery range of the battlefield :o
Well done guys :D
Great idea for a 'what if' game, campaign etc. Nice looking table etc 8).
Excellent looking game there Luddite - very nice indeed 8)
How do you find the FPW Polemos rules?
http://www.archive.org/search.php?query=%22imaginary%20wars%22%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts%20AND%20mediatype%3Atexts
The Internet archive has a number of books covering similar territory. See link above to "Imaginary Wars" which includes the "Battle of Dorking" as well as gems such as "Hindenburg's March on London" and "The coming conquest of England"
Dave Turner
It does look a good game - but slightly spoiled by the "spilllage of smarties" ;D
I haven't tried Polemos FPW and I am led to beleive that with every adaption of the rules they get better, but my own experience of them left me feeling slightly cold.
They are certainly not pick up and play, neither are they solo friendly. I have made up FPW lists for BP although they have not been playtested. I would imagine that set would play better than Polemos, but again thats purely from my own experience
Quote from: nikharwood on 13 March 2011, 01:18:01 AM
How do you find the FPW Polemos rules?
This was the first time we'd used them so we were a bit worried they'd bomb.
However, they are very good.
Quick, easy to use and understand, yet with a serious depth of play that relies on the players making critical decisions each turn;
How much do you invest in gaining the initiative?
How much do you invest in attacking the enemy?
How much do you invest in rallying your own forces?
They also model the battle friction of FWP era battles well. It seems that to break the opposition you have to combine artillery bombardments with infantry closing to finish off the opposition, and coordinating your troops to achieve that is very much a skill to be mastered...
They were also very simple to tweak for Prussian vs. British rather than vs. French...
As Nosher points out the only downside is the need to use counters to mark status.
We very much liked them and are even considering getting the Ancients set due out shortly to start an Ancients campaign.
Cool looking game, really looks like a big battle not a skirmish.
An interesting alt history. Did you collect figures to game this conflict or is it another way to use existing figures? Are the French going to take on the Zulus? ;)
I had some British for my other VSF gaming but i expanded these and purchased the full Prussian force (cheers Pendraken!)
As to future use...the Zulu Wars are one possible onward use. I'm also considering getting the French for a proper FPW campaign, and maybe some Afghans for a bit of Northwest Frontier gaming.
There is of course, also the VSF battles on Mars to be considered, as well as a few other possibilities...
So we moved into week two of the battle - the afternoon.
By mid-afternoon, the battle developed into three distinct actions.
in the centre, the Prussians continued there remorseless march up the Northdowns ridge to the west of Dorking. The remaining British troops there, consisting raw conscripts, steadily broke and fled from the disciplined Prussian close action. Soon a gap about a mile wide on hilltop was open and the Prussians were pushing their reinforcement through.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211945.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211946.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211958.jpg)
The British desperately tried to redeploy their batteries to enfilade the Prussians, but the dastardly Hun's quick marching got through the danger zone before much damage could be inflicted.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211954.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211955.jpg)
The Prussians had broken through the final line of defence! London now lay before them...but not quite yet. The British division perched on Box Hill, and who had not moved all morning, now upped stumps and marched through Dorking to meet this threat.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211948.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221977.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211949.jpg)
The massed Prussian batteries were finally able to take a rest, watching with satisfaction as the infantry flooded through the holes the guns had made.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211960.jpg)
The British reserves from the west also began to march over to cover the gap.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211963.jpg)
The Prussians however had a couple of batallions already at the railway line north of Dorking (actually these troops had conducted and uncontrolled pursuit and found themselves fortuitously out of position!) and so were ready to meet the main body of British troops marching over from Box Hill.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221979.jpg)
The second action took place at about 3.30pm. News had reach both forces a couple of hours earlier that Guildford to the west had failed to stop the Prussians breaking through. Freed from that battle an entire Prussian division hastily marched through the rain to attack Dorking. their arrival was a surprise to the Prussians as much as the British!
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211956.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211957.jpg)
The British line turned about to meet these exhausted Prussians before they could get themselves organised...
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211962.jpg)
...however, the Prussian discipline told and they were able to form a decent defensive line in time to meet the raw British troops.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221974.jpg)
The British had, however, stopped the Prussians advancing on Dorking, for now at least.
By mid afternoon, the third and perhaps most crucial action began in earnest. All morning the Prussian and British artillery had exchanged fire to the south of Dorking itself. Finally the superior Prussian fire began to tell and the British positions faltered.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211950.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211951.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5211952.jpg)
The Prussian infantry went into the city around 3.00pm driving off the remaining batteries.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221968.jpg)
However the south of the town was held by the elite Scots Guards and so the Prussians didn't quite make the headway they were expecting, and with the British raw troops swinging out from the northern suburbs, bitter close ranged fighting broke out across the south of the town and the surrounding farmland.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221970.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221970.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/P5221972.jpg)
So, as the evening approaches and the battle moves into its final phase the Prussians definately seem to have the upper hand having broken the British line and with their forces now in Dorking itself. But things still hang in the balance. The British still have enough force in the field to hold the line, if only they can get their inexperienced troops into the right positions.
However, the more experienced commanders of the Prussian army sit confident on their horses...they see the line is broke and are sure that Dorking will fall, and the road to London and victory will be open by sunset...
To be concluded next week...
Dorking CAN NOT fall!
Bring troops up through Leatherhead and rapid deployment using the 465 bus (runs every 1/2 hour) with troops from the east surrey stationed in Kingston.
Get some artillery up on whiney hill in Chessington and fight back damit man!
I can't risk Tolworth falling to the Prussians! How will I be able to fight the British Civil war if you go and lose to the Hun! ;D
There are no more troops.
The colonial forces from Indian and the other territories are still weeks away. Those brave men dying at Dorking, Guildford, and Reigate only days before were clerks, factory workers, and farmhands...
Which...was Chesney's point i feel...
That said, the British are doing everything they can to plug the gap and stem the tide of Bosh beastliness... :D
Top-notch stuff Luddite - this is really inspiring -definitley making me want to reach for the dice... 8)
Very nice batrep indeed! Reads like a comic book! Inspiring stuff.
Cheers chaps.
It's easy to get inspired and to be inspiring with the Pendraken miniatures in the frame!
:D
Quote from: Luddite on 21 March 2011, 12:24:13 AM
It's easy to get inspired and to be inspiring with the Pendraken miniatures in the frame!
:D
THAT wont get any Freebies though...... m/ =O
Quote from: ianrs54 on 21 March 2011, 10:14:27 AM
THAT wont get any Freebies though...... m/ =O
Might be enough to get his order sent out a bit quicker though...! :P
And so to the third and final wek of the Battle of Dorking, and as the afternoon wanes and the rain gets heavier, things are looking bleak for the British. The Prussians have broken through to the west of Dorking, but there are enough British left to plug the gap, with an entire fresh division still on Box Hill to the east.
And the action opens at the Prussian breach. The forces there reorder themselves after the hard fighting up the North Downs ridge and turn on the exposed flanks of the British to the west.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5281966.jpg)
The British batallions striggle to redeploy as the raw troops and inexperienced commanders panic at the advance of the professional Prussian soldiers along the crest of the ridge. The British reinforcements are tied up dealing with the Prussian division that arriaved from Guildford earlier in the afternoon.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5291979.jpg)
And after a few more hours, as the rain fell harder and the light of the day began to wane, the British line collapsed completely.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5291983.jpg)
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5291978.jpg)
The British division double-timed off of Box Hill, flooding in columns round the north of Dorking. If only they could form a defensive line here they may yet halt the exhausted Prussian troops.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5281973.jpg)
Unfortunately a fresh Prussian line had filed into position to meet and stop the British cold. The Brave British men who only a week or two before had been farmhands and clerks couldn't match the sheer ferocity of the close fighting of the Prussians and the attempted reinforcement was halted and fell into disarray.
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5281965.jpg)
Meanwhile, in Dorking itself, Prussian artillery finally told and the British guns broke opening the way for the main Prussian infantry assault on the town itself. The British Guard batallions stepped up to meet the dastardly Bosh in the alleyways of the south of the town and held their lines well...
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5281960.jpg)
...but the raw conscripts to the west gave way under sustained Prussian artillery and nfantry fire opening the way into the north of the town. Even the Prussian reserve heavy cavalry came out for a bit of the show!
(http://i286.photobucket.com/albums/ll102/sjhhej/Dorking%20week%203/P5281964.jpg)
Dorking was overrun, the North Downs ridge was open and as night fell, the remaining British troops broke and fled north into London. Nohing now stood between the Prussian invaders and the surrender of the British government...it was all over.
And so our battle had the same outcome as George Chesney's short story! Interestingly, none of the players had read the story beforehand, but the battle played out almost exactly as it was described by Chesney. Their deployments, and battle plans were almost identical. The only difference i saw was that in Chesney's story, the guards come out of Dorking whereas the players ensured they remained in the town.
It was an excellent battle, lots of fun, and a real challenge for both sides.
Next up...Operation Sealion. :D
Cracking stuff Luddite - even if those dastardly Prussians overcame our lads!
Cheers Nik.
Aye it was a hard battle for both sides. the Prussians struggled early on, getting across the terrain in good enough order to force their way through the British line. But once they did break through and restore their order, it became almost impossible for the British to recover.
As i said, the players had no forewarning or foreknowledge of the book, but they deployed and formed battle plans that were almost identical to how George Chesney describes things happening!
Maybe he played Kreigspiel!! :D
The British were hamstrung by poor commanders, which wasn't too bad while their original positions held, but once they needed to redeploy, the confusion that reigned meant they just couldn't bring enough reserves in.
Also, being raw troops against the trained Prussians (using Baccus' Polemos rules), once the Prussians got into close quarters, the British simply couldn't stand...as it should be?!
Overall, i'm happy that the project came off as i'd planned. Now to use the figures for other things...just receives the French army from Leon, so i'll be painting that up for a bit of Franco-Prussian War action, and that'll give me three full colonial forces for my VSF strand...now to sort out the Martian forces. ;)
I must say a nice set up write ups Luddite :). I'm a great fan of 'what if?' type conflicts as it's a good way of using troops you like that often didn't get to fight each other. Also good that they will form the core of your VSF forces. What will you use for the Martians?
Well i've already got a core of 'beast man' type Martians (supported by Minotaurs and spiders). These i've seen as spawn slaves of the 'cephalim overlords' (and their machines).
On my VSF Mars there are three main races;
1. The beastmen
Figures used: Fantasy beasment / minotaurs / spiders.
2. The cephalim (in their decadent and failing ziggurat cities connected by ancient canals). They are puser-intelligent and build the tripods and other machines, as well as using the beastmen as slave labour.
Figures used: Unsure yet. Possibly the Dungeon monsters rangs -DN6 Evil trapper, or DN11 Floating squid (Leon, any chance of HG Wells MArtian figures? ;) :D). Not sure what i'll do for the 'metal men' (robots and tripods yet. I know Pendraken do Tripods but they're based on Jeff Wayne-era images and i want something closer to what HG Wells describes. I may have to look at scratch-builds.
3. 'Red Men' Nomadic sand dwellers that roam the dying deserts and wastes looking for technology from the 'old times' (before Mars started to die).
Figures used: I'm planning to use a mix of Afghan tribesmen from the 'Colonial 1890's North West Frontier' range, perhaps with some bits and bobs mixed in from other ranges. Inotice there's a range of 'Giant Sand Worms', so i might include these in a bit of 'Fremen' type action. Any chance of some pictures of these worms Leon?
The plan is to have Germany, France and Britain in a 'scramble fo Mars' colonial campaign, resisted by a coalition of the various Martian factions, forced to cooperate by the Earthman invasions. Of course the cephalim have rockets with which to launch a counter invasion! ;)
Quote from: Luddite on 29 March 2011, 10:50:27 AM
I know Pendraken do Tripods but they're based on Jeff Wayne-era images and i want something closer to what HG Wells describes. I may have to look at scratch-builds.
That's not what the 'Estate of HG Wells' thought... ;)
Quote from: Luddite on 29 March 2011, 10:50:27 AM
I notice there's a range of 'Giant Sand Worms', so i might include these in a bit of 'Fremen' type action. Any chance of some pictures of these worms Leon?
There's a couple here which BlackEd entered in the Painting Comp:
(http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p435/BlackTemplarDad/Black%20Templar/Warmaster/Demon%20Army/DSC_0047pdc.jpg)
(http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p435/BlackTemplarDad/Black%20Templar/Warmaster/Demon%20Army/DSC_0044pdc.jpg)
(http://i346.photobucket.com/albums/p435/BlackTemplarDad/Black%20Templar/Warmaster/Demon%20Army/DSC_0048pdc.jpg)
Excellent write up all the way through, Luddite! I enjoyed that a lot! Not sure if the Prussians were already called the Bosch back then though :D
Quote from: Pruneau on 29 March 2011, 01:22:07 PM
Not sure if the Prussians were already called the Bosch back then though :D
Agreed. Boche wasn't used until WWI. Hun was around since about 1900 i think. I suppose at the time it would have been 'Dutch'?
Woops - finger trouble. Meant to say that the term Hun comes from 1914, George V I think, described the German army as a horde of ravening huns,m or somthing similar.
IanS
Quote from: ianrs54 on 29 March 2011, 04:31:19 PM
Woops - finger trouble. Meant to say that the term Hun comes from 1914, George V I think, described the German army as a horde of ravening huns,m or somthing similar.
IanS
Really?
I thought it came from Kaiser Willhelm II's 'Hun' speech in 1900.
http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=755 (http://germanhistorydocs.ghi-dc.org/sub_document.cfm?document_id=755) :)
@Leon
Cheers for the worm pic mate. Lovely!
Well, a truly marvellous game - something unexpected...
I was British Commander in Chief for my sins...our brief was to hold the line, and to ensure that Dorking did not fall. We deployed across the width of the table, and secured Dorking itself with our elite Highland unit.
Unfortunately, our scouting wasn't what it should be, and we deployed a good chunk of our force to defend a river which turned out to be uncross-able. Our in-efficient command structure meant redeploying wasn't a viable option, a nightmare scenario....eventually our brave volunteers fell to the might of the Prussian Military Machine!
An excellent game overall, using the Polemos rules from Baccus. Rules are interesting, with a lot of really good ideas, though I can't help but think they are perhaps a little clunky in places - perhaps it's my age, but i don't really enjoy a mathematics when working out combat results!
That's only a minor point though, and an excellent game was had by all!
Tonight we're giving the GHQ Microarmour rules another bash after a successful first attempt - we're playing a rather large Battle of the Bulge scenario, using Pendraken figs of course....!!!!
Very nice indeed, what artillery did the British field, also what was the rifle?
At the risk of getting whistled off I would like to ... gulp ... criticise your initial dispositions. IMHO you should have put a battalion into the woods on Leith hill, it slows them down and keeps that dreaded artillery at arms length just a bit longer; also your R flank had no reserve! Apart from that it was fine!
Well that was quite something! It's also given me food for thought for my upcoming 10" square terrain modules.
DP :-bd