Battle of Dranesville; Fairfax County, December 20th 1861.

The details in this blog are my personal interpretation of  historical events. any mistakes are my own. Most of the detail I gained from Wikipedia. I had to do a bit of digging on the net for the regiments that were present but I cannot guarantee the accuracy of the list I have presented.

 

 This action was preceded by a reconnaissance and foraging operation from Centreville moving north, led by the Confederate General J. E. B. Stuart. At about the same time, General Ord of the Union army was moving his Corps east, along the south bank of the Potomac River to clear any Confederate forces from Loudon and Fairfax County.

Ord left half his Union force [ 5,000 ] at Colvin Run Mill so that he would not be outflanked. Neither force was aware of the other until both forces reached the area  south east of Dranesville. General Ords force, having driven off some Confederate cavalry piquets, was just resuming the march eastward when Jeb Stuarts force was encountered coming from the south.

UNION ARMY, 5,000 = 5 pts x 5 = 25 pts.

1 General and C-in-C [ Edward Otho Cresp Ord ] @ 1 point.

1 General [Lt Colonel Thomas Kane ] @ 1 point.

13th Pennsylvania Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2 pts = 4 pts.

6th Pennsylvania Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2 pts = 4 pts.

10th Pennsylvania Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2pts = 4 pts.

12th Pennsylvania Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2pts = 4 pts.

9th Pennsylvania Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2pts = 4 pts.

The Rearguard Infantry = 1 stand of 3rd class Skirmish Infantry @ 1 point.

1st Pennsylvania Cavalry = 1 stand of 3rd class Cavalry @ 1 point.

Battery A,  Hezekiah Easton. = 1 stand of Light Artillery @ 1 point.

CONFEDERATE ARMY, 3,800 = 3.8 pts x 5 = 19 pts.

1 General [ James Ewell Brown Stuart ] @ 1 point.

11th Virginia Infantry = 3 stands of 3rd class Line Inf @ 1 point = 3 pts.

1st Kentucky Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2 pts = 4 pts.

10th Alabama Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2 pts = 4 pts.

6th South Carolina Infantry = 2 stands of 2nd class Line Inf @ 2pts = 4pts.

1st Carolina Cavalry Company = 1 stand of Cavalry @ 1 point.

Company C, 2nd Virginia Cavalry = 1 stand of Cavalry @ 1 point.

Georgia Battery, Sumter Flying Artillery = 1 stand of Light Artillery @ 1 point.

Here are the opposing armies ready for battle;

Notes;

 * You may wish to supply Dismount Markers for the Cavalry. If so, they have no points value, a basic die is rolled for the stand when firing or in combat.

* With regard to the Light Artillery, I dont know if these Batteries had the equipment to be true Horse Artillery given supply problems of the armies in the west. Therefore these guns can only move two squares in any direction.

* You can use the "Regimental" style movement I set out in a previous American Civil War blog or, if desired move the stands individually as normal. I have read that formations suffered from a lack of senior Officers which led to confusion within and between friendly units during a battle. More often it was down to the individual bravery of soldiers on both sides that would lead to the success or failure in battle.

The battle;

* The Confederates move first and fire first on the first Game-Turn.

* From Game-Turn 2 until Game-Turn 8, both sides will throw a die to determine who gets the Initiative Point for that Game-Turn.

* If you play this Game solo it’s best to stick with the basic 2-player Game-Turn sequence.

* As this battle is in the Western Theatre all ranges are for smoothbore weapons. Again I am basing this assumption on supply problems.

* The winner after eight Game-Turns, will be the side that suffers the lower casualties. Once both sides discovered each other, neither side was prepared to back down, although the Confederates did so after their waggons were safely away.

* If the Confederates loose the higher number of stands they can force a draw if they can get a waggon into Dranesville and back to the Confederate base line by the end of Game-Turn 8.

* As you can see in the battle set-up picture above, the waggons are off the road. The waggons can start their move from the first two squares at the Confederate base edge. The waggons cannot move through wooded areas.

CREDITS;

The figures are a mix of mostly Miniature Figurines and Peter Pig with some Essex Miniatures. The waggons are Peter Pig.

The buildings are Peter Pig. The hills were made by Brian at Essex Miniatures. Two are home made.  Most of the wood 0utline bases are from S and A Scenics. The trees are from various manufacturers. The roads are made from thin cardboard.

The square figure stands are made from picture framing cardboard. The round mdf command stands are made by Minibits.

Battle of Fredericktown ; Madison County, Missouri; October 21st 1861.

 This blog is my personal interpretation of the historial action as a wargamer. Any errors are my own. The positions of the formations and the numbers involved are also my best guess due to the limited information I had access to.

At this time skirmishes and partizan activity were taking place all over Missouri in order to secure the state for either the Union or the Confederacy. In the South-Eastern part of the State, the 1st Division of the Missouri State Guard were raiding Union Facilities. General Merriwether "Jeff" Thompson led this formation aided by Colonel Aden Lowe.

The Union Army sent Colonel Joseph B. Plummer aided by Colonel P. Carlin to bring Thompsons actions to an end. When the Union force advanced to Fredericktown, Thompson,s force was pushed 12 miles south. Thompson did not want to give up the town so, after securing his supply waggons, he decided to lead another attack against the Union position.

In order to lure the Union troops forward Thompson positioned one Regiment forward of his main line with an old 12lb field gun hoping to spring a trap-----,

Here are the armies  positioned for the battle;

Confederate Forces; 1st Division; Missouri State Guard.

1st Division 1,500 = 1.5 x 20 = 30 points.

Brigadier Merriwether "Jeff" Thompson @ 1 point.

Colonel  Aden Lowe @ 1 point.

1st Missouri Line Infantry Regiment; 2 x 2nd class infantry stands @ 2 pts = 4 points.

2nd Missouri Line Infantry Regiment; 2 x 2nd class infantry stands @ 2 pts = 4 points.

3rd Missouri Line Infantry Regiment; 2 x 2nd class infantry stands @ 2 pts = 4 points.

4th Missouri Line Infantry Regiment; 2 x 2nd class infantry stands @ 2 pts = 4 points.

1st Cavalry Regiment; 3 x 2nd class line Cavalry stands @ 2 points = 6 points.

2nd Cavalry Battalion [ Stoddard County Rangers ] 1 x 3rd class Cavalry @ 1 point.

13th Missouri Light Artillery [ Harris,s Battery] 1 x Heavy Artillery stand @ 2 points

  "         "               "         "            [Harris,s Battery] 1 x Light Artillery stand @ 1 point.

2 x  Supply Waggons @ 1 point = 2 points.

Union Army; South Western Missouri.

1,800 = 1.8 x 20 = 36 points.

Colonel Joseph B. Plummer [ Commanding] @ 1 point.

Colonel William P. Carlin @ 1 point.

8th Winsconsin Infantry; 4 x stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 pts = 8 points.

11th Missouri Volunteer Infantry; 4 x stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 pts = 8 pts.

17th Illinois Infantry; 4 x stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 pts = 8 points.

1st Indiana Cavalry Regt; 2 x stands of 2nd class Line Cavalry@ 2 pts = 4 points.

Captain Stewarts Illinois Cavalry; 1 x stand @ 1 point.

1st Mississippi Light Artillery Battery; 3 x stands of Light Artillery @ 1 pt = 3 points.

2 x Supply Waggons @ 1 point = 2 points.

This is the map;

Notes;

This is a Regimental  level game. A slightly alternative method is that the stands of each Infantry  Regiment when moved, must stay in adjacent squares to each other even diagonally. All infantry are classed as Line so these stands can only move through the face of a square, not diagonally.

If one stand of a Regiment suffers a "MOVE BACK" as a result of FIRE or COMBAT, Then on the movement phase of the next Game-Turn the stands of that Regiment must be moved to be adjacent to each other.

According to the maps I have seen, the Cavalry Regiments were operating in independant Squadrons/ Companies ? therefore the Cavaly stands do not have to be adjacent to each other.

Dismounted Cavalrymen are classed as skirmishes so can move in any direction.Some mounted cavalry are only 1 point. If they dismount the dismounted cavalry only get a basic die roll for the stand.

In regard to the Artillery, The Confederate Artillery positioned their guns individually. The Union Artillery were kept together.

I,m surmising that because this action took place early in the War and in the Western theatre, where both sides suffered supply problems, All the weapons would be smoothbore.

Also, I don't know if the Light Artillery had horses or not so I went with the two square move distance.

Victory conditions; 

The winner will be the side that has lost the lower number of stands at the end of  8 Game-Turns.

The battle was fought on a 3 foot x 2 foot  (90cm x 60cm) board

Credits,

The figures used in the scenario are a mix of Peter Pig and Miniature Figurines with some Essex Miniatures, all 15mm.

The flags are from the Peter Pig range as are the Supply Waggons.

The Hills are mostly by Brian at Essex Miniatures. One hill was made from a garden kneeling pad from Wilkinson’s Stores!

Most of the wood outline bases were made by S and A Scenics with some made from cardboard.

The buildings I think all came from Peter Pig. The roads are made from thin cardboard.

The snake fencing was made by MBM Scenery in 10mm.

The trees were made by various manufacturers.

The square bases were cut from picture framing cardboard 40mm square ( one and nine sixteenths of an inch Imperial) and the round MDF stands are from Minibits.

 

Most of the information on this battle was obtained from internet searches of American Battlefield Trust sites.

2nd Bull Run ( Battle of Manassas) 29th & 30th August 1862.

Well, this battle was more involved than I thought. Not having an in- depth knowledge of the war, there were a couple of points I found confusing.

One item is that there were two formations designated as 3rd Corp. Anyway, I digress.

This battle came about because, Robert E. Lee managed to out-manoeuvre Pope. Lee also managed this because of the mental stamina of the men under his command.

The battle of Brawners Farm took place South of Stoney Ridge a few days before Manassas. Although a small action it was no less sanguine, with both sides standing toe-to-toe in close range fire. Even the Officers suffered.

Amongst the Confederates, Taliaferro was wounded three times and General Ewell had his leg shattered by a minie ball which led to amputation.

This was a foretaste of events to come. Jackson had found an excellent position on the wooded
hillside of Stony Ridge from which to fight a defensive battle.

Jackson was also aided in his defense by an unfinished railway embankment. Knowing that Longstreet was on his way in support Jackson  settled his men in position for the coming battle.

The Union General Pope finally found out where Jackson was, having found out about the battle of Brawners Farm. However, Popes army as well as his battle plan was in total chaos thanks to the speed and hard marching of the Confederate forces.

The Union Army gradually assembled from all points of the  compass in front of Jackson's position as Pope sent forward any formations
within marching distance.

The battle was fought over two days. On the first day (the 29th ), Jackson was against the Union Generals; Siegel, Heinztelman and Reno
plus a Division led by John F. Reynolds.

Longstreet, with Lee, turned up later on the first day. As much as Lee wanted Longstreet to attack to take the pressure off Jackson, Longstreet demurred wanting to know what was in front of him.

Jackson's men held on, at one point throwing rocks at the advancing Union forces due to a shortage of ammunition.

On the 2nd day, ( the 30th ) Longstreet attacked!!;

Confederate Army of Northern Virginia.
Left Wing ( 29th August)
24,000 = 24 points.

Major General Stonewall Jackson @ 2 points.
General Ambrose P. Hill @ 2 points.

3 stands of 1st class Line Infantry @ 3 points = 9 points.
3 stands of 2nd class Line infantry @ 2 points = 6 points.

1 stand (A ) James E.B Stuart,s cavalry;
dismounted @ 1 point = 1 point.

1 stand ( B ) Fitzhugh,s cavalry;
dismounted @ 1 point = 1 point

3 stands of Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 3 points.

Union Army of Virginia;
Formations present on the 29th  August
48,000 = 48 points.

1st Corp ;

Franz Siegel ; @ 1 point.
6 stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points = 12 points.
2 stands of Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 2 points.

3rd Corp ( from the Army of Potomac )

Samuel Heinztelman @ 1 point.
4 stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2points = 8 points.
2 stands of Heavy Artillery' @ 2 points = 4 points.

9th Corp;

Jesse L. Reno @ 1 point.
4 stands of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points = 8 points.
2 stands of Heavy Artillery @ 2 points = 4 points.

John F. Reynolds @ 1 point. Reserve Division;
1 stand of 1st class Line Infantry @ 3 points = 3 points.
1 stand of 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points = 2 points.
1 stand of  Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 1 point.

Notes;

● This 1st battle will last for 8 turns.

●The Confederate Army get the Initiative Point on every turn even when they move 2nd.

● The Confederate Army moves 1st on the
first game turn. All other Game-Turns are
diced for as usual.

● The line of trees count as a wooded area.

● The railway embankment counts as a Trench
or low earthworks.

The Battlemap;

The Battle. The first day;

The second day, 30th August 1862;

Confederate Army of Northern Virginia

Right Wing; 26,000 = 26 points.

Major General James Longstreet @ 2 points.

Nathan " Shanks" Evans @ 2 points.

4 stands of 1st class Infantry @ 3 points = 12 points.

4 stands of 2nd class Infantry @ 2 points = 8 points.

2 stands of Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 2 points.

Union Army of Virginia = 22,000.

5th Corps;

Fitz-John Porter @ 1 point.

5 stands of 2nd class infantry @ 2 points = 10 points.

1 stand of Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 1 point.

3rd Corp;

Irvin McDowell @ 1 point.

4 stands of 2nd class Infantry @ 2 points = 8 points.

1 stand of Horse Artillery @ 1 point = 1 point.

As you can see on the map, those Stands that are positioned on the table for the 2nd  battle are marked in red.

This second picture shows the stands that show up on the 2nd day.

Robert E. Lee turned up late on the first day with Longstreet.
The Union General John Pope finally arrived on the second day.
Although both Generals were present, they did not directly influence the battle so they have no points.

The Confederate Cavalry are worth 1point.  When dismounted, the cavalrymen  have zero points and a basic die is rolled for their firing and close combat.

The two Confederate stands positioned on the
flank of Chinn ridge can be bought on during
the 2nd battle. The Confederate  player throws
a die 6 at the start of their chosen Game Turn.
A six must be thrown for these two stands to
be moved onto the table.

The first and second day of the battle are played as two games each of 8 Game Turns. At the end of the first game, the Confederate player may reorganise any Stands still positioned on or around Stoney Ridge.

Bull Run can only be crossed at the bridges.

Well, this is my interpretation of the battle.
All done on a 3 foot x 2 foot table with 15mm
figures.

The figures shown in the pictures are Peter Pig and Miniature Figurines with a few Essex Miniatures.
The flags are by Peter Pig. The square bases are cardboard and the round bases are 40mm MDF From Minibits ( Pendraken ).

The Battle of Ceder Mountain 9th August 1862

The letters and numbers are references on the map below.

Union Forces;

2nd Corps; 8,800 = 8.8points x 3 = 27 points rounded up.

E) C-C Nathaniel P Banks @ 1 point

Williams Division;

D) Alpheus Williams @ 1 point.

A) Crawford, 1 x 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points.

1 x 1st class Line Infantry @ 3 points.

B) Gordon, 1 x 1st class Line Infantry @ 3points.

C) 1 Heavy Rifled Battery @ 2 points.

Augers Division;

F) Christopher Auger @ 1 point.

G) Geary 1 x 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points.

H) Prince 1 x 2nd class Line Infantry @ 2 points.

J) Green 1 x 1st class Line Infantry @ 3 points.

L) 2 x Light Rifled Artillery Batteries  @ 1 point = 2 points.

K) Bayards Cavalry Brigade ( 1 stand) @ 3 points. This brigade can dismount if required. This stand would be represented by 1 stand of horses ( 0 points) and 1 stand of dismounted cavalrymen at 2 points.

Confederate Forces

Jackson= 15000 = 15pts x 3 = 45pts.

A. P. Hill = 10,000 = 10pts x 3 = 30pts.

( 8 ) :  C-in-C :  Stonewall Jackson = 2pts.

Ewell,s Division.

( 1 ) : Richard Ewell = 1pt.

( 2 ) : Trimble :  2 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ) = 4pts.

( 3 ) : Forno :  2 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ) = 4pts.

( 5 ) : Early  : 1 x 1st class Line Infantry = 3pts. 1 x 2nd class Line Infantry = 2pts. = 5pts.

( 4 ) : 3 x Heavy Smoothbore Batteries (2pts) =6pts.

Winder,s Division.

( 6 ) : Charles Winder ( 1pt ).

( 7 ) : Ronald ( stonewall ) 2 x 1st class Line Infantry ( 3pts ) = 6pts.

( 9 ) : 3 Heavy Smoothbore Batteries ( 2pts) = 6pts.

( 10 ) : Taliaferro: 2 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ) = 4pts.

( 11 ) : Garnet : 3 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ) = 6 pts.

Hill,s Division.

( 17 ) Ambrose Powell Hill ( 1pt ).

( 12 ) Thomas : 2 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ) = 4pts. 1 x 1st class Line Infantry 3pts. = 7pts.

( 13 ) Branch : 2 x 1st class Infantry ( 3pts ) = 6pts.

( 14 ) Pender : 2 x 1st class Infantry ( 3pts )= 6 pts.

( 15 ) Archer : 1 x 2nd class Line Infantry ( 2pts ).  2 x 1st class Line Infantry ( 3pts ) = 8pts.

( 16 ) 2 x Light Smoothbore Batteries ( 1pt ) = 2pts.

NOTES.

■ Only the Divisional Commanders are represented in the battle, but
I have listed the Brigade Commanders should you want to do your
own recreation.

■  The Union Army moves first on every Game-Turn.

■ The Union Army gets the initiative point on every Game -Turn.

■ Ceder Creek can be forded.

■ General Winder.
If a field gun in an adjacent square to General Winder is removed as a casualty, General Winder himself is also removed.

After a one Game-Turn gap, the General himself is restored asGeneral Taliaferro ( pronounced Toliver ).
General Winder was mortally wounded sighting the guns.

A.P. Hill,s Division.

No stand of A.P. Hill,s Division can be moved until a stand of Union troops
enters the wood on the South side of the Wheatfield ( marked with an " x " ).

Special movement.

The 2pt infantry are Line infantry. They can move in any direction but
cannot be diced for " avoidance".

Light Field Guns of 1pt can move as Horse Artillery.

Army Equipment.

All muskets are rifled = 3 squares range.

Rifled Cannon = 6 squares range.

Confederate Cannon are minus 1 when firing. ( poor ammiunition.)

Victory Conditions.

《1》The Confederates must remove 5 stands of Union troops by
the end of Game-Turn 8.

《2》The Union must get 2 infantry stands into the woods ( even if they get removed ) and must not loose more than 4 stands by the end of the 8th  Game-Turn. ( not including Generals ).

《3》The Confederates win if the Union army leaves the field
before the end of the 8th Game-Turn.

Well, as before this is my take on the battle based on my own perceptions. Myself and my Wife Joyce have played this twice and I have solo gamed it once. The Confederates can win but they do suffer!

On the day of battle it was extremely hot and the Cofederates suffered from the heat.

 There was also great confusion with the orders as General Jackson didn't let his Divisional Commanders know what he intended.

 General Hill got very angry with Jackson. His Division was further back to the left of the road, but I've represented his Division on table with conditions, as his Division came into the battle piecemeal.

On the Union side, Banks was still smarting from previous defeats. He was ordered to take up a defensive position.

However he was itching to redeem himself and ordered an attack not realising he was outnumbered 3-to-1!!.

I used dismounted cavalry markers for the 2pt infantry stands.

I used 15mm figures and those shown are from Miniature Figurines, Peter Pig and Essex.
The flags are by Peter Pig as are the buildings.

The hills were made by Brian at Essex.
The trees are by various manufacturers.
The outline bases for the wooded areas are by S and A Scenics.

The rivers, road and fields were made from thin cardboard.

The snake fencing is ready painted in 10mm and from
Northumbria Painting Service and MBM Scenery.

This is how the battle was set up on a 3 feet x 2 feet ( 90cm x 60cm ) table with 2 inch ( 50mm ) squares.

A map of the battlefield;