I decided to do something a bit different with this post. I’ve been to many, many museums over the years and have walked many battlefields. I even used to run battlefield tours to Normandy for cadets and regular military personnel. However, I’ve never posted any of them on this blog. A recent conversation with Willz of this parish, regarding his wonderful model forts for his forthcoming 1762 Siege of Havana game, led me to think of the very similar forts and batteries utilised by the defending Spanish forces during Admiral Nelson’s attack on Tenerife in 1797.
I expect that many of you reading this (especially the Brits) will have been to Tenerife or one of the other Canary Islands. However, most tourists to Tenerife rarely venture outside of the resorts such as Los Cristianos, Playa de Las Americas, Costa Adeje and Puerto de la Cruz, but it is an amazing island to explore, particularly the high-altitude volcanic moonscape of the El Teide National Park (just as long as it doesn’t go boom while I’m visiting). It is rather good fun to make a small snowman up on the volcano and then stick him in a cold-bag and drive downhill to put him on the beach among the sunbathers…
Even those brave souls who venture away from the beaches might still be completely unaware of the fascinating military history of the island and the truly excellent little Military Museum of the Canary Islands. The museum is situated in the modern-day capital city of Santa Cruz, which is situated on the east coast, near the northern tip of the island, roughly one hour’s drive along the TF-1 motorway from the main resort areas around Los Cristianos.
This little gem of a museum is housed within the 19th Century Almeyda Fort and is completely free to visit. The museum is normally open from 0900hrs to 1500hrs, except on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, when the hours are shortened to 1000hrs to 1400hrs. It’s closed on Mondays. There’s free parking and an excellent restaurant on site and it’s only a relatively short walk from the centre of Santa Cruz. We always tend to park in the underground car park at the Plaza de España and walk to the museum while the girls go and do something ‘more interesting’.
Nelson’s fleet bombarding Castillo San Cristóbal in 1797
The Plaza de España has added bonuses, as in 1797 it was the epicentre of the battle, being the site of the main fortification, the Castillo San Cristóbal. It’s easy to miss, but next to the entrance to the underground car-park is another entrance to the underworld; this one takes you down to the exposed (now subterranean) bastions of Castillo San Cristóbal and a nice little exhibition on the battle, which includes the actual gun (named El Tigre) that took off Nelson’s arm.
El Tigre
From Plaza de España, walk north along the harbour-front (where all the cruise ships park up) and you’ll eventually see the steep outer bank of the fort on your left (now with the museum restaurant terrace along the top). The main entrance is round the back, in Calle de San Isidro and the fort sits within a triangular piece of land in the fork between two main roads. If you find yourself at a large 1940s fascist statue of General Franco being carried on angel’s wings (which is at the apex of the fork in the roads), you’ve gone too far.
Anyway, here are some photos from two of my visits in 2013 and 2016. Since then they’ve restored a lot of the vehicles stored outdoors, including beautiful restorations of some horse-drawn wagons dating from the Spanish Civil War. They’ve also built canopies to protect the vehicles and helicopters from sun and rain. Apologies for the strange angles of many photos; this is due to the fact that most exhibits are behind glass, so I needed to find angles that would eliminate or at least reduce reflection and glare.
Above: The harbour of Santa Cruz (aka Santa Cruz de Tenerife, to avoid confusion with many other cities and towns of the same name), photographed in 1890, shortly after construction of the Almeyda Fort was completed in 1884 (and which can be seen just to the right of the bay). Tenerife was always a major hub of Spanish transatlantic trade and a major sugar-producer in its own right, having been attacked numerous times by the English/British Royal Navy, starting with Sir Francis Drake (El Draco) in 1586, who notably attacked the fortified sugar-plantation manor at Adeje, near the southern tip of the island. El Draco‘s landing site is still called the Baranco del Inglés (Ravine of the English) and is reasonably well known to tourists as the spot where paragliders land their terrified passengers on the beach.
Consequently, a major programme of fortification was instigated during the 17th Century and at Santa Cruz, the still-magnificent Castillo de San Juan Bautista (aka Castillo Negro) near the modern-day opera house was built at this time, along with the original Castillo de San Cristóbal and other defences that have long-since vanished.
These fortifications had a major test in 1657, when Santa Cruz was attacked by the English fleet of Admiral Robert Blake. The Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife of 1657 (the first of three battles to bear that name) was a total success for the English fleet; the formidable coastal defences (consisting of multiple forts, batteries and three lines of infantry breastworks) proved to be no match for English naval gunnery and a complete Spanish silver fleet of 16 ships was sunk at anchor, for the loss of only one English ship. However, the silver plate had already been offloaded and it was (mostly) eventually delivered safely to Spain.
A second major attack came in 1706 during the War of Spanish Succession, when Admiral John Jennings attempted an amphibious assault on Santa Cruz, intending to seize control of the town as a precursor to seizing Tenerife as a whole. This time the fortifications proved too much of an obstacle to overcome, with the guns of Castillo San Cristóbal and several previously-unidentified shore batteries causing considerable casualties among the landing force. The Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife of 1706 was therefore a Spanish victory. With the scoreboard at one-all, there would therefore have to be a decider…
Santa Cruz remained largely undisturbed through all the Anglo-Spanish wars of the middle part of the 18th Century, but the establishment in 1796 of a new alliance between Spain and Revolutionary France resulted in the British Royal Navy returning for a re-match in 1797. The intervening 91 years had seen yet more improvement to the fortifications, with yet more forts and batteries being built and the main Castillo San Cristóbal being upgraded to a more modern, four-bastioned design. A fortified harbour breakwater-wall had also been built and this structure had yet another fortified battery at the tip.
Clearly undeterred by Jenkins’ abject failure 91 years earlier, on 22nd July 1797 Admiral Horatio Nelson launched another frontal assault.
The Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife of 1797 was another disaster for the British. With the first two attempts at landing on 22nd & 23rd July having failed, Admiral Nelson took personal control of the third attempt on the 24th. However, the defending General Gutiérrez had used the time to bring more militia in from as far away as Guía de Isora, Garachico and Güímar, as well as the regular garrison of the fortress at Puerto de la Cruz on the other side of the island, so the defenders were stronger than ever. They were also joined by untold numbers of armed civilians. The third wave therefore ran into a hail of fire and Nelson’s own landing party took severe losses. Among the losses was Nelson’s arm, which legend states was destroyed by grapeshot from El Tigre.
Nelson was immediately taken back to his flagship HMS Theseus for surgery. In the meantime, some 350 men under Captains Troubridge and Hood had fought their way into the town, but following a failed assault on the gate of Castillo San Cristobál, soon found themselves trapped within the walls of the convent of La Consolación, whose tall black & white tower is very obvious on the horizon of the 1890 photo above (it’s now known as the church of La Concepción). An attempt to relieve the trapped force failed miserably, with the loss of the cutter HMS Fox, several small boats and many men. However, Gutiérrez was magnanimous in victory and offered the besieged force the right to march back to their ships with full military honours.
This generous act of chivalry on was gratefully received by the British and resulted in an exchange of gifts (cheese and booze) between Nelson and Gutiérrez, followed by a warm correspondence between the two men until Gutiérrez’s death from ill-health in 1799. Nelson, Troubridge and Hood vowed never to attack Tenerife again and remained true to their word.
However, the British, French and other growing world powers remained a threat to Spanish possession of the Canary Islands, so the programme of fortification continued, with the Almeyda Fort being built during the 19th Century, as well as numerous modern coastal batteries and beach-defences until well into the 20th Century. Those fears were not entirely unfounded, as in late 1941/early 1942 Britain and Canada came remarkably close to executing a plan to take the Canary Islands by force (Operation PILGRIM), due to the perceived threat of a German-Spanish alliance attempting to seize control of Gibraltar, the Azores and Cape Verde Islands.
Above: Anyway, back to the museum… Here’s a close-up of the previous photograph, showing the freshly-completed Almeyda Fort in more detail. The fort consisted of a main half-moon (‘D’-shaped) casemated battery, surrounded by half-octagonal outer works, surrounded in turn by a ditch and earthen glacis (on the near slope of the glacis can be seen the zig-zag remains of 18th Century infantry breastworks and the Santa Isabel Battery). These outer works mostly consisted as infantry positions, though included another casemated battery facing the sea. However, artillery technology had progressed rapidly during the thirty years it took to build the fort and when completed in 1884, Almeyda Fort was already obsolete!
Above: This photo from 1908 shows that Fort Almeyda had been heavily modified in the intervening 18 years to make it more useful in the modern era. As can be seen, the earth glacis had been removed from the northern side of the fort (i.e. the side facing the camera), with the spoil then then used to fill the ditch on the seaward side, thereby making a far thicker glacis that would hopefully capable of stopping modern naval artillery shells. This new glacis therefore buried the embrasures of the seaward battery and a new battery, consisting of modern breech-loading guns in open positions, was therefore established on top of the former casemated battery.
Above: My Beautiful Assistant Ian here for scale, in front of the original half-moon inner works of the Almeyda Fort, which now forms the core of the museum.
Above: This photo is taken from much the same angle as the old photos, showing the former casemated battery on the left. The open-topped gun-positions on top of the casemates were at some point enclosed within four concrete casemates, as can be seen here and in the aerial view at the top of the article.
Above: The old, curving casemates of the main fort hold a magnificent collection of artefacts and models, arrayed on two floors, as well as numerous other side-rooms, the central ‘cloister’, the outer courtyards and the old outer-works and outbuildings. It’s a lot to pack in to just four hours!
Above: The museum houses a magnificent model of Nelson’s attack, showing Santa Cruz exactly as it was in 1797, complete with all the fortifications. Here, Nelson’s fleet bombards the shoreline, but things have clearly already gone horribly wrong ashore!
Above: The centre of Santa Cruz, as viewed from the south.
Above: The southern suburb of Santa Cruz. The dark-coloured line marks the position of infantry breastworks. The small redoubt at the point of the breastworks on the left is the San Telmo Battery. Further to the left and out of shot, is the the small rectangular San Francisco Battery (part of which can still be seen in a ruined state today, next to the modern opera house) and the magnificent 17th Century Castillo de San Juan Bautista (aka Castillo Negro or ‘The Black Castle’). The large building with the tall black and white tower is the convent of La Consolación (now known as the church of La Concepción), where 350 British troops and sailors managed to hold out until the surrender.
Above: Moving further along the coast, we see the large, rectangular La Concepción Battery, which is attached to the front of the massive, fortified Customs House (Casa de la Aduana). The yellow-painted building to the left is the Artillery Headquarters, which was also fortified and defended by Spanish troops. Near the top of the picture, to the left of the ravine, is the black tower of the convent of Santo Domingo, which represented the high-water mark of British penetration into the town.
Above: Right in the centre of the waterfront is the principle fortification defending Santa Cruz, the Castillo San Cristobál and the new dock, tipped with a half-moon battery. The wall projecting at 45 degrees from the right-hand bastion of the fort is where El Tigre was positioned, being sited to enfilade the beach. The fort was demolished at the start of the 20th Century and most of it is now an underground car-park, topped with a large public square called the Plaza de España. However, the two seaward bastions were excavated and revealed about 20 years ago; as mentioned above, you can go underground to see them, along with the gun El Tigre and a very nice exhibition about the Battle of 1797.
The square behind the fort is the Plaza de la Candelaria, where the surrendered British forces paraded and presented honours to the Spanish defenders before marching back to the boats.
Above: North of the Castillo San Cristobál is a beautiful ornamental gateway (which is still in situ), which leads on to an avenue of trees and the rectangular Rosario Battery. A little way inland, with the large square in front and botanic gardens behind, is the convent of San Francisco, which also acted as a defensive strongpoint.
Above: Further still along the beach is the half-moon San Pedro Battery, which was a far more considerable fortification than most of the batteries.
Above: Defending the northern exit from the beach are two more batteries; the Santa Isabel Battery on the left and the San Antonio Battery on the right. The Almeyda Fort was built immediately behind the Santa Isabel Battery. There’s another very small battery, the El Pilar Battery at the apex of the upper breastwork, just in front of the small, isolated house. At the extreme right of the photo is a complex of infantry positions covering the flank, which extend inland, along a ravine from the round tower of Castillo de San Andrés, which guards the mouth of the ravine (and which still exists in a ruined state).
Parked in front of the fortifications are a French frigate and a Spanish frigate, as well as a number of smaller Spanish naval vessels, whose guns provided valuable extra firepower to the defence, while many of their crews fought ashore as infantry and additional gun-crew.
Out of shot to the right are three more batteries named La Candelaria, Santa Barbara and San Miguel, and the formidable Castillo de Paso Alto.
Above: The southern portion of an 18th Century map of the defences.
Above: The central portion of the map; note that the dock had not yet been built and there are a few batteries missing, so this probably dates back to the early 18th Century (possibly the time of Jenkins’ attack of 1706).
Above: The northern position of the map, showing the Castillo de Paso Alto, defending the northern end of the line.
Above: A model of the Castillo San Cristobál and the new dock.
Above: An architect’s plan of the Castillo San Cristobál before the dock was built.
Above: An architect’s drawing of the Castillo San Cristobál, including the new dock.
Above: A model of the San Pedro Battery.
Above: An architect’s drawing of the San Pedro Battery.
Above: A model of the Castillo de Paso Alto.
Above: A model of the La Concepción Battery. This was typical of most of the battery positions; a simple, rectangular structure with a few administrative and accommodation buildings and low defensive walls facing the sea and flanks, but lacking defences on the landward side.
Above: An architect’s drawing of the San Miguel Battery – another rather formidable structure.
Above: A model of the convent of Santo Domingo. This was the high-water mark of the British assault in 1797. The dark brown pinewood balconies, doors and window-frames, with whitewashed walls and dark volcanic masonry are absolutely typical of old Tenerifean architecture.
Above: Another painting of the Battle of 1797, showing the British assaulting the dock and Castillo San Cristobál.
Above: Spanish gunners fire from one of the northern forts, with the Castillo San Cristobál in the distance. San Pedro? Unfortunately, I didn’t take a close-up photo of the information plate.
Above: The Sencilla (‘Regimental Colour’ in British terms) of the Garachico Militia Regiment.
Above: The Ordenanza (‘King’s Colour’ equivalent) of the Guía de Isora Militia Regiment. The arms are from the first half of the 18th Century and the reigns of Phillip V (1700 to 1746) or Ferdinand VI (1746 to 1759).
(There was also Louis I who reigned very briefly in 1724, following the abdication of Phillip V. However, Louis only survived a few months and the crown reverted to Phillip V later that same year.)
Above: A portrait of Lieutenant General Antonio Gutiérrez de Otero y Santayana, defender of Santa Cruz de Tenerife. He’s wearing the uniform of the ‘Africa’ Infantry Regiment (6th in order of seniority among Spanish line infantry regiments), indicated by the black lapels and cuffs, while collar with black piping and yellow metal. This portrait dates from the 1790s and was probably painted from life.
Gutiérrez was born on 8th May 1729 and had a long military career, fighting in Italy during the War of Austrian Succession, in North Africa and even deploying to the Falkland Islands during a confrontation with Britain in 1770. Appointed as Governor of the Canary Islands in 1791, he was aged 68 when Nelson attacked and was suffering badly from asthma. Nevertheless, he demonstrated inspirational and tireless leadership during the defence of Santa Cruz and won considerable honours for his efforts. However, his illnesses soon got the better of him and he died at Santa Cruz on 15th May 1799. He is buried at the scene of his greatest triumph, in the church of La Concepción (the former convent of La Consolación).
Above: There is also this modern portrait of Gutiérrez, though I’ve no idea whose uniform he is wearing. Perhaps one of the local militia regiments, or merely an artistic fancy? Gutiérrez is also listed as being commissioned into the ‘Del Rey’ (1st) Infantry Regiment, but they had purple facings, not light blue. The red waistcoat also seems unlikely. However, he is shown wearing the Order of Alcántara, which was awarded for his bravery at Santa Cruz. There are sadly some other fanciful modern paintings showing fantasy uniforms for both Spanish and British, which aren’t worth showing here.
Above: A captured jack from HMS Emerald, which had been used by one of the landing-parties as a colour. HMS Emerald was a 36-gun frigate of the Amazon Class and 90 of her Marines and crew, including Captain Thomas Troubridge fought ashore, with 17 being killed. Note the rather rough, non-standard design of this jack. Perhaps knocked up at last minute, specifically to act as a rallying-point for troops ashore?
Above: Another jack, similarly captured from one of the landing parties, or possibly recovered from the sunken HMS Fox. This jack is of far better quality and of the standard pattern.
Above: A modern reconstruction of the uniform of the Santa Cruz Militia Regiment.
Above: An 18th Century Sencilla, attributed to the regular ‘Canarias’ Infantry Battalion. However, as there are none of the usual corner-medallions showing the regimental crest, it could honestly belong to any regiment.
Above: An 18th Century Ordenanza of the La Laguna Militia Regiment. Note the corner-medallions showing the regimental crest of the El Teide volcano. This style, incorporating the Ragged Cross of Burgundy normally seen on the Sencilla, was carried in the mid-18th Century, being typical for Spanish regiments of the Seven Years War and the early part of King Carlos III’s reign. However, it’s not inconceivable that this type was still being carried by militia units in 1797.
Above: An 18th Century Ordenanza of an unknown regiment. The arms are from the first half of the 18th Century; from the reigns of Phillip V or Ferdinand VI.
Above: Another unidentified Ordenanza. I think these are probably from the reign of Carlos IV (1788 to 1808) or Ferdinand VII (1808 to 1833).
Above: And yet another unidentified Ordenanza from the first half of the 18th Century and the reigns of Phillip V or Ferdinand VI.
Above: The sinking of the cutter, HMS Fox.
Above: A reproduction Sencilla of the ‘Fixed Regiment of Spanish Luisiana‘ from the late 18th Century.
Above: The surrendered British forces parade on the Plaza de la Candelaria and march past Castillo San Cristobál, back to their boats.
Above: A model of the same scene. The memorial at the bottom of the square is still there, though the cross was removed during the early 20th Century.
Above: The muzzle of a Spanish gun with a very distinct direct hit from a Royal Navy roundshot.
Above: My Beautiful Assistant Ian, with a Spanish Royal Artillery NCO in one of the casemates.
Above: These are the casemates that were already obsolete when Fort Almeyda was finished in 1884. They were then buried between 1890 and 1908, in order to provide a thick earthen glacis to protect the modern breech-loading battery on the roof. These casemates have apparently been massively upgraded since our last visit and are now filled with artefacts and exhibitions.
Anyway, that’s enough of the Battle of Tenerife. The museum has plenty to more to look at and is unusual from a British perspective, in that all our military museums (and those I visit in continental Europe) largely revolve around WW1 and WW2, with perhaps a nod to the Cold War Central Front and the artefacts tend to be a bit ‘samey’. Spain of course, didn’t directly participate in either of the World Wars, so this place is packed with artillery and smallarms that I’d never even heard of.
Above: A cuirass which once belonged to the French 3rd Provisional Heavy Cavalry Regiment (formed from elements of the 5th, 9th, 10th, 11th & 12th Regiments of Cuirassiers). However, the regiment was destroyed on 21st January 1810 at the Battle of Mollet with around 250 men and sets of Cuirassier equipment falling into Spanish hands. The remnants of the regiment were absorbed into the 13th Cuirassiers.
The Spanish meanwhile, formed a new regiment, the Coraceros Españoles (Spanish Cuirassiers), who wore the captured armour over red coats, with green facings and horse-furniture.
Above: Part of the museum’s magnificent smallarms collection.
Above: It was somewhat refreshing to be positively encouraged by the supervising staff to pick the weapons up and play with them!
Above: The uniform of the Colonel of the ‘Princesa’ Hussar Regiment, circa 1833.
Above: The museum houses an amazing collection of model artillery and artillery-vehicles that was donated from a private collection sometime around 2010.
Above: Who doesn’t love a collection of models…?
Above: As well as the collection of artillery models, the museum also acquired a massive collection of incredible naval models and other artefacts from a former maritime museum in Puerto de la Cruz.
Above: Another ship. This one’s got a red hull… That’s the limit of my naval knowledge…
Above: More ships… This one has a hell of a lot of guns. Santissima Trinidad, perhaps? The collection also includes smaller models of all the British ships engaged in the battle of 1797.
Above: There’s also a very nice gallery devoted to the Spanish Army’s engagements in North Africa, about which I know even less than I do about naval warfare…
Above: A Spanish Civil War flag from 1936, belonging to the Battalion of Patriot Volunteers of Las Palmas.
Above: Another Spanish Civil War flag, this one being from 1937 and belonging to the ‘Death Battalion’. Contrary to first impressions, this was actually an anti-fascist unit of Italian anarchist volunteers fighting for the Republic.
Above: Mortars, various.
Above: The very attractive cloistered inner courtyard of the main fort.
Above: My Beautiful Assistant Ian models this massive 16th Century gun; one of the museum’s oldest artillery pieces. This gun, named Hercules, saw action in all three assaults on Santa Cruz. Note the mirror above, to enable the inscriptions on the top of the barrel to be easily seen by visitors. The cloister has many other guns, including on my last visit, a German 7.5cm PaK 40, which isn’t in these photos.
Above: The oldest piece in the museum is this mediaeval breech-loader.
Above: A Skoda M1914 100mm Field Howitzer.
Above: A Deport 75mm Field Gun.
Above: A Maxim-Nordenfelt 57mm Quick-Firing Gun.
Above: A Vickers 75mm Anti-Aircraft Gun.
Above: The legendary 8.8cm FlaK 18 anti-aircraft gun.
Above: A Vickers 5.5-inch Coastal Gun.
Above: The Vickers 5.5-inch Coastal Gun viewed from the rear.
Above: The Cañón de Montaña de 75/22 M1941 75mm Mountain Gun.
Above: The Cañón Contracarro de 60/50 M1954 60mm anti-tank gun. For a post-WW2 anti-tank gun designed in the era of the British Centurion, US M26 Pershing and Soviet IS-3, this was a very anaemic design. It was apparently capable of penetrating 129mm of armour at 1,000yds, which (assuming that’s at an angle of 0 degrees) is actually inferior to the British 6pdr of WW2.
Above: Naval Reinosa Obús de Campaña de 105/26 M1950 105mm field howitzer.
Above: Vickers Obús de Campaña de 105 105mm field howitzer. This interesting weapon was built under licence by Naval Reinosa and in the original M1922 105/22 version, was widely used by both sides during the Spanish Civil War. However, this is the 1950s upgraded version with a longer barrel and the original wooden wheels replaced by pneumatic wheels for motorised transport. All versions used carriages originally designed for the British 18pdr and 25pdr. I’m not sure what the designation was for this version.
Above: An Oerlikon 20/70 20mm anti-aircraft gun.
Above: An Oerlikon 20/120 Twin-Mount 20mm Anti-Aircraft Gun.
Above: An Oerlikon 20/120 20mm Anti-Aircraft Gun.
Above: An M55 Quadruple Browning .50-Calibre Anti-Aircraft Gun. This is the US M45, but the Spanish had a slightly different mount and called it the M55.
Above: A Spanish Army wagon from the Spanish Civil War. This has since been beautifully restored and along with the helicopters and other vehicles outside, is under a canopy to protect it from the elements.
Above: A two-wheeled wagon from the Spanish Civil War, seen here in mid-restoration.
Above: A 1970s-vintage US M813 truck, again modelled by my Beautiful Assistant.
Above: More Cold War US kit; an M110 203mm Self-Propelled Howitzer.
Above: Here’s a lovely example of a home-grown Spanish AFV of the Cold War, the VEC (Vehiculo de Exploracion de Caballeria). This vehicle first appeared in the mid-1980s and became the cutting edge of the Spanish Army’s Light Armoured Cavalry Squadrons, replacing the venerable M41 Walker Bulldog light tank and Panhard AML-90 armoured car. While not based on the same chassis, it shares many mechanical components with the Spanish Army’s BMR series of wheeled AFVs. The first 30 of 340 vehicles were armed with Rheinmetall 20mm cannon and the remainder were meant to be fitted with an Oerlikon 25mm chain-gun, though this was changed at last-minute to the US M242 25mm Bushmaster. The last 100 vehicles were fitted with the turrets and 90mm guns from retired AML-90s, being known as the VEC-H90. In addition to the vehicle crew, the VEC also carries two dismountable scouts. This example was lacking its main armament when I took these photos, but has since been fully restored.
Above: Another uniquely Spanish piece of Cold War kit; the Teruel is a multiple-launch rocket artillery system based on a Pegaso truck chassis and carrying 40x 140mm rockets. The Spanish Army only operated a single battalion of these.
Above: The ubiquitous Bell H-13 Sioux.
Above: The Bell UH-1H Iroquis or ‘Huey’. The H model was a stretched version of the classic UH-1B and 60 of them served with the Spanish Army for 52 years from 1971 to 2019.
Above: The M41 Walker Bulldog light tank. These were delivered to Spain from the USA during the 1950s & 60s and equipped the Spanish Army’s armoured cavalry regiments, before finally being replaced in the late 1980s, as mentioned above, by the VEC.
That’s enough for now! I’m off to Tenerife again in March 2025, so I think the museum is due a return-visit to see what’s new. I thoroughly recommend a visit if you happen to find yourself in Tenerife and sober enough to drive up the TF-1…
Then again…
The 18th Century arms-race continues this week, with yet more reinforcements for the Army of Louis XV. You can never have enough French infantry, so here are another eight battalions; four battalions apiece from the 
Above: The 
Above: The Du Roi Regiment was one of the larger infantry regiments in the army, being consistently organised throughout its existence as four battalions. 
Above: The Du Roi Regiment was dressed in the usual off-white, unbleached wool coat (often interpreted as ‘grey’), though was slightly more colourful than most regiments, with blue cuffs, tail-turnbacks, waistcoat and breeches. The exact shade of blue is a matter of some uncertainty, being depicted as everything from ‘French’ or ‘Royal’ blue to light sky-blue. I’ve opted for the medium ‘Turquin’ blue shown in most artistic depictions. 
Above: The Colonel’s Flag of the Du Roi Regiment had the usual white cross on a white field, but the arms of the cross were decorated with fleurs-de-lys and in 1753 had the motto ‘PAR DECORI VIRTUS’ added to the arms of the cross. The ordonnance flags had the same decoration, though with alternating red and green cantons (green uppermost at the hoist). 
Above: The Du Roi Regiment, somewhat unsurprisingly, dressed its drummers in the King’s Livery of blue with red cuffs and smallclothes and lace of mixed silver and crimson.
Above: The 
Above: The Grenadiers de France were organised into four ‘brigades’. These brigades were battalion equivalents, each comprising 12 companies and numbering some 720 men of all ranks when at full strength (which like almost all French units, was rarely, if ever achieved). 
Above: Sources disagree as to whether the Grenadiers de France had whitened belts or if they were just left in their natural colour. I went with natural leather, but should probably have gone with white, as that seems to be the colour shown in most artistic depictions. The cartridge pouch is always shown as natural leather. One thing to note is that the waist-belt for the sword (which for the rank-and-file was of the curved grenadier pattern) was apparently worn over the coat by the rank-and-file and under the coat by NCOs and officers.
Above: The Grenadiers de France as mentioned above, did not have a single Colonel, so there was no Colonel’s flag (some speculative designs are seen in sources and wargames flag-sheets, though these are apparently incorrect). Each brigade therefore carried Ordonnance flags of the same pattern. These had the usual white cross, emblazoned with the Arms of France, with cantons of alternating dark blue and white. Most sources show the dark blue canton uppermost at the hoist, though Kronoskaf disagrees and has it the other way around. The blue cantons were each decorated with 18 fleurs-de-lys, arranged in four rows (5-4-5-4) and the white cantons were each decorated with 18 blue grenades with red flames.
A few weeks ago, our old mate and 
Above: The opening situation as seen from behind Allied lines. General von Luckner’s mixed corps of Hanoverian and Brunswicker light troops, grenadiers and cavalry is deployed on the left flank.
Above: To Luckner’s right, General Griffin’s small corps of Hessian and Hanoverian infantry is deployed along the crest of a ridge and forms the left wing of the Erbprinz’s main line, supported by a light position battery of Hanoverian 6pdrs. General von Oheimb’s small reinforcing corps of Brunswick and Hanoverian infantry has just arrived on the battlefield and forms a second line behind Griffin’s infantry.
Above: General von Grothaus’ British, Hanoverian and Hessian cavalry regiments have formed a widely-spaced line well to the rear of the main position. On Grothaus’ left, General Webb’s small column of British and Hanoverian infantry is just marching on to the field. 
Above: General von Kielmansegg’s large corps of Hanoverian and British infantry is deployed further along the right, along the edge of woodland. Several British and Hanoverian 6pdr position batteries are deployed on a knoll in front of the right flank, guarded by Geyso’s Hanoverian grenadier battalion.
Above: With worrying reports of French infantry moving through the densely-wooded hills on the right flank, Kielmansegg has positioned a flank-guard, consisting of two British regiments, the 50th and 51st, along a steeply-banked road and just reinforced it with a further Hanoverian regiment.
Above: Forward of Kielmansegg’s flank-guard, a detachment of picquets guards the bank of a small stream.
Above: The whole battlefield, as viewed from the south, with the Allies on the right and the French on the left.
Above: The Duc de Broglie has just arrived on the field and takes position on the highest point, alongside the Comte de Guerchy’s freshly-arrived position batteries.
Above: On the extreme French right flank, the Marquis de Poyanne’s corps of Carabiniers forms up on high ground, well out of Allied artillery range, to threaten the Allied left flank from a distance. 
Above: Keeping the Allies’ attention fixed in the centre is Baron de Clausen’s corps. Like Luckner’s corps opposite them, this is a mixed advanced guard, consisting of two regiments of Liégeois infantry (the Horion and Vierzet Regiments), the Turpin Hussars, Beauffremont Dragoons, the light infantry of the Volontaires du Dauphiné and the massed Grenadier and Chasseur companies from Rooth’s corps. 
Above: Advancing against the Allied left wing is the Comte de Guerchy’s massive corps, consisting of seventeen infantry battalions. However, they have had a hard march to the battlefield and are arriving piecemeal. Guerchy watches from the heights as the Navarre Brigade (4 battalions of the Navarre Regiment and one from the La Marche-Prince Regiment) advances directly toward the Allied battery and Kielmansegg’s infantry.
Above: Some distance to the rear, the Du Roi Regiment arrives, followed by the Orléans, Dufort and Auvergne Regiments. Visible on the left are the massed dragoon squadrons of the Volontaires du Dauphiné and Volontaires de Flandre.
Above: On Guerchy’s left, the eight battalions of the Marquis d’Amenzaga’s corps (four battalions of the La Tour-du-Pin Regiment and two each from the d’Aumont and La Couronne Regiments) have already pushed into the wooded hills and valleys to outflank the Allied line. 
Above: The light infantry of the Volontaires de Flandre push forward through the woods, ahead of d’Amenzaga’s battalions.
Above: To d’Amenzaga’s rear is the right wing of the Irish Jacobite Comte de Rooth’s corps. The Royal-Suédois Regiment (here represented by three battalions of blue-coated Germans) form Rooth’s right wing.
Above: In the centre of Rooth’s corps are the grey-coated German Royal-Deux-Ponts Regiment and the red-coated Swiss Castellas Regiment.
Above: The left flank of Rooth’s corps and indeed, the entire French army, is formed by two more Swiss regiments; Eptingen and Diesbach. The dense woodland on the hills has prevented most of the French infantry from deploying their battalion guns, but the Swiss have managed to deploy some of theirs in the open ground of the left flank.
Above: As the massed position batteries open fire on Kielmansegg’s infantry, the Navarre Brigade advance into the teeth of a storm of shot from the massed British and Hanoverian guns.
Above: The Du Roi and Orléans Brigades deploy into a deep battle formation and follow the Navarre Brigade into the maelstrom (possibly breaking the all-time record for the number of bounce-throughs from a single shot). On the hilltop to their left is another battery of light position guns; this one belonging to Rooth’s corps.
Above: Guerchy’s attack signals a phased advance all along the French line, as Clausen’s corps now also begins to advance.
Above: In a short time, Poyanne’s Corps of Carabiniers has also joined the general advance.
Above: The Duc de Broglie watches with satisfaction as his artillery pummels the Allied lines without mercy and the juggernaut of Guerchy’s infantry prepares to smash into the enemy line. However, is that a new enemy column in the distance…?
Above: At the head of Guerchy’s column, the Navarre Regiment is taking a hard pounding, but no battalions have yet broken in the face of the Allied firepower. On the Allied side, Kielmansegg has drawn his left wing in to form a second line.
Above: D’Amenzaga’s infantry advance through the wood and look set to crush the Allied right flank. The Volontaires de Flandre make very short work of the tiny detachment of Hanoverian picquets.
Above: Ignoring the withering hail of canister fire from the British and Hanoverian batteries (who to be fair, would struggle to hit a regiment of elephants parading in close order…), the Navarre Regiment closes with the British-Hanoverian gun-line, forcing most of the gunners to run to the protection of Geyso’s grenadiers.
Above: [SCENARIO SPOILERS!] With the Allied right flank about to be overwhelmed by French infantry, fickle fate plays a hand! The Duc de Broglie, having spotted an Allied column approaching in the distance, misjudges the size of the column and, fearing that he is about to be attacked by the entire Allied army, sends out a flurry of confused orders, halting the attack! Rooth’s Swiss-German corps on the left flank reacts by immediately turning about and retreating back to their starting positions!
Above: D’Amenzaga’s corps, deep in the woods, mills about in confusion and adopts a defensive posture.
Above: However, d’Amenzaga’s light troops, the Volontaires de Flandre, have already reached the road and now lay down a persistent harassing fire on the two British battalions and their supporting battalion gunners. [For once, Andy’s dice-rolling doesn’t fail him and the Volontaires keep rolling consistent sixes!]
Above: Unfortunately for the Allies, the only French formation to continue with the attack is also the most powerful formation on the field! Guerchy’s corps alone has as many infantry battalions as the entire Allied force. Interestingly, Guerchy decides not to immediately launch a charge with his leading battalions, opting instead to engage in a brutal exchange of musketry and canister.
Above: With Kielmansegg having shortened his line in order to create a second support line, Guerchy takes advantage of the situation by extending his own line, pushing the Du Roi Regiment out on the right. 
Above: In the meantime, the British gunners make short work of the French battalion guns to their immediate front, though are soon forced to join their comrades in seeking shelter among their supporting infantry lines.
Above: At last, an ADC arrives from army headquarters to get d’Amenzaga’s corps moving again!
Above: Prince Camille of Lorraine’s cavalry corps arrives and immediately moves to attack!
Above: Clausen’s corps and Poyanne’s Carabiniers however, are still milling about in a state of confusion, waiting for fresh orders.
Above: The pause in the French attack has provided the Allies with vital time to reinforce the right flank with Oheimb’s and Webb’s corps.
Above: Grothaus’ Allied cavalry corps (4 squadrons of Hessian dragoons, 2 of British dragoons, 3 of British dragoon guards and 6 of Hanoverian horse) has been dispatched to the right flank, in an effort to prevent Rooth’s Swiss-German corps from crossing the open ground and enveloping the flank of the Allied infantry.
Above: However, by the time they reach the stream, all they can see are Swiss-German backs disappearing back into the trees!
Above: Despite the breathing-space given by the stuttering French attack, it’s all going horribly wrong at ‘Kielmansegg’s Korner’! The first French charge was halted by fire, but attritional losses suffered by the Allied battalions at that point are rapidly becoming unsustainable. With the threat on the right flank diminished, Kielmansegg swings his two right-flank battalions out to face the main attack and drive back the deeply-irritating Volontaires de Flandre…
Above: However, a second charge by the Navarre Brigade destroys Kielmansegg’s first line, sweeping away Geyso’s Hanoverian grenadier battalion, the Hanoverian Laffert Regiment, the British 51st Foot (Brudenell’s) and two of the three position batteries! The deeply-irritating Volontaires de Flandre meanwhile, seem immune to Allied fire as they pick off the last of the British battalion-gunners.
Above: Their wheel to the left proved fortuitous, as the 50th Foot (Carr’s) and the Plessen Regiment suddenly find themselves in the front line!
Above: On the left of Kielmansegg’s line, the Hanoverian Bock Regiment suddenly find themselves being the last remnant of the first line, facing the entire Du Roi Regiment alone.
Above: To the right of the Bock Regiment, the Wangenheim Regiment forms up on the left of the British 50th Foot, supported by the Reden Regiment. However, the morale of Kielmansegg’s corps is starting to waver…
Above: At long last, d’Amenzaga finally gets his corps into action as the La Tour-du-Pin Regiment smashes into the Hanoverian Plessen Regiment on the extreme right flank of the Allied line.
Above: As d’Amenzaga’s battalions frontally assault the red-coated line, the Deeply Irritating Volontaires de Flandre move to the flank.
Above: Having already suffered heavy losses, the 50th Foot can take no more and break, leaving a yawning gap in the centre of what remains of Kielmansegg’s line!
Above: Similarly, on Kielmansegg’s left, the Bock Regiment finally collapses in the face of the Du Roi Regiment.
Above: D’Amenzaga’s assault destroys the gallant Plessen Regiment, though now faces new enemies in form of Webb’s small British-Hanoverian corps.
Above: To Webb’s left, Oheimb’s small Brunswick-Hanoverian corps, led by the Hanoverian Dreves Regiment, advances in a desperate attempt to hold the wood. In front of them, Kielmansegg’s last two units, the Hanoverian Wangenheim and Reden Regiments, finally break and run!
Above: Guerchy watches with grim satisfaction as his leading regiments finally steamroller into the wood.
Above: As the La Tour-du-Pin Regiment of d’Amenzaga’s corps forms up on Guerchy’s left, the d’Aumont and La Couronne Regiments are squeezed out and have to form a third and fourth line. What a bore it must be to have so many battalions… And as of yet not having even lost ONE of them! Not that I’m bitter…
Above: As the fugitives from Kielmansegg’s corps stream past them, Webb’s three battalions; the Hanoverian Jung-Zastrow and British 5th (Hodgson’s) and 24th (Cornwallis’) Regiments of Foot, form a hasty line across the road. Webb is heard to utter an expletive, “Bugger me, that’s a lot of Frenchmen!” Nevertheless, Webb’s first act is to finally annihilate the Deeply Irritating Volontaires de Flandre (pleasure before business in this instance).
Above: At the bottom of the picture, the two battalions of the Brunswick Zastrow Regiment (not to be confused with their Hanoverian neighbours, the Jung-Zastrow Regiment) form up on the left of the Hanoverian Dreves Regiment. However, this has left a rather large, battalion-sized gap between Oheimb’s and Webb’s corps.
Above: The Thin Red Line… Probably about to become a pink smear…
Above: Things might be going horribly wrong on the right flank, but at least the left flank is secure… Oh, hang on…
Above: As Prince Camille’s cavalry shake out into battle-formation, they are joined at last by Poyanne’s Carabiniers and Clausen’s corps, who have finally received orders to renew the attack. In particular, the Turpin Hussars and Beaufremont Dragoons from Clausen’s corps form up on Camille’s left flank and join the charge.
Above: Waiting on the ridge for the French cavalry are Griffin’s Hessian and Hanoverian infantry, alongside Luckner’s Hanoverian cavalry. Three of Prince Camille’s brigades lead the charge, supported by the fourth brigade and the Carabiniers. The Turpin Hussars also get a rush of blood to the sabre and launch a rather unwise charge on the Hessian Gilsa Regiment.
Above: The view from the French side. The Carabiniers are subjected to sniping from the Brunswick Jäger in the copse to their flank, but this has little effect (unlike the French light infantry, who seem to have telescopic sights and guided munitions…)
Above: The frontal assault on Griffin’s Hessian infantry proves to be a disaster for the French cavalry! The Turpin Hussars and one of Prince Camille’s brigades are utterly smashed against the blue-coated wall and flee the field!
Above: The Cavalry battle on the flank however, does result in some limited success for the French horse, as the Hanoverian Walthausen and Heise Regiments of Horse are thrown back. The Luckner Hussars however, have better luck and repulse their attackers. However, the defeated French horse manage to rally behind Poyanne’s Carabiniers.
Above: Having defeated the Hanoverian horse, the Royal-Cravate Cavalry Brigade decides to press its advantage and wheels to charge the Hessian Malsburg Regiment, on Griffin’s left flank. However, the Hessian infantry, having already destroyed one French cavalry brigade, successfully beat them off.
Above: Having defeated one French cavalry brigade, the Luckner Hussars decide not to press their luck and instead retire to rally out of range of French retaliation. As for the Hanoverian Horse…
Above: Although most of the French cavalry were defeated, there is now a huge gap in the Allied line between Griffin’s Hessian infantry along the ridge and Luckner’s Hanoverian grenadier battalions on the hill. The French also still have a large body of cavalry in reserve, with which to exploit the gap. 
Above: Guerchy’s infantry, having rolled over Kielmansegg while barely breaking step, suddenly find their seemingly unstoppable advance halted by Oheimb and Webb. French infantry casualties rapidly mount and at last, French battalions begin to break.
Above: Over on the far flank, Rooth has turned his corps back toward the battle, but faced by a mass of Allied cavalry, he decides to play it safe by contracting his line and deploying in greater depth. The German brigade therefore forms column [as indicated by the arrow markers] and marches across the front of the Swiss brigade to form two lines.
Above: D’Amenzaga’s eight battalions are now fully formed up on Guerchy’s left, but are making absolutely no headway against Webb’s British battalions.
Above: On Guerchy’s right, a single detachment of Brunswicker battalion guns has caused a remarkable amount of damage to the Du Roi and Orléans Regiments (the only bright spot in a generally dismal display by the Allied artillery). This detachment of guns is the only unit guarding a huge, yawning gap between Oheimb’s and Griffin’s corps. Guerchy orders the Orléans, Dufort and Auvergne Regiments (eight battalions) to silence that battery and drive through the gap.
Above: Pride comes before a fall… The Orléans Regiment’s charge is shredded by effective canister fire from the heroic Brunswick gunners and to everyone’s astonishment, the infantry break and run!
Above: Although the Brunswick Artillery Corps has managed to hold its ground, the Hanoverian Schulenburg Regiment on Griffin’s right flank has been broken by the combined effects of long-range French heavy artillery and Clausen’s light infantry. The gap between the Allied infantry formations has now widened to an unsustainable degree and a couple of battalion gun detachments are simply not going to stop the French infantry, no matter how lucky they get!
Above: With all their available targets now destroyed, masked by friendly troops/terrain or withdrawn out of range, the deadly French position guns finally fall silent.
Above: The Duc de Broglie watches with satisfaction as the battle continues to go well. The Volunteer Dragoons meanwhile, with nothing better to do on the left flank, decide to parade for the headquarters staff… “Mon Dieu! Is it Christmas already, Colonel…?”
Above: The grinding battle of attrition continues in the wood, but at last the Allies are starting to do real damage to Guerchy’s infantry, as a battalion of the Navarre Regiment and two battalions of the Du Roi Regiment are broken! However, that really is only a pinprick in the side of the French juggernaut.
Above: Rooth’s corps continues its re-deployment as a desultory duel breaks out between opposing detachments of battalion guns.
Above: Grothaus’ Allied cavalry have been waiting patiently for Rooth’s infantry to come back out into the open ground. However, an ADC arrives from Prince Ferdinand, ordering Grothaus to march at once for the left flank and counter the potential French breakthroughs in that sector. 
Above: Webb’s infantry fight on under the assumption that the cavalry are protecting their open right flank…
Above: Over on the opposite flank, it’s the Carabiniers’ turn to charge. However, Wersabé’s Hanoverian grenadiers are made of sterner stuff and send them packing!
Above: As the rest of the French cavalry pour over the ridge and through the gap, rescue for the Hessians arrives in the nick of time, in the form of Bischhausen’s cavalry (consisting of 4 squadrons of Hessian horse, 4 squadrons of British dragoons and 5 large squadrons of Prussian hussars)! The Hessians charge the French horse head-on, supported by the British and Prussians. 
Above: With the cavalry distracted, Clausen’s infantry press home their assault on Griffin’s Hessians. The two Liégeois regiments (the Horion Regiment in the fore, with the Vierzet Regiment in support) charge the Hessian Prinz Carl Regiment, but are halted by a withering volley. The massed French grenadiers meanwhile have more luck, throwing the Hessian Gilsa Regiment back off the ridge. 
Above: On the opposite flank, the greatest military mistake since Olaf The Hairy bought 10,000 battle-helmets with the horns on the inside is taking place…
Above: As he sees the Allied cavalry turning and marching away, Rooth can’t believe his luck! 
Above: And nor can Webb… His lads have been solidly holding off the French infantry, but with French battalions marching past his left flank and now the massive formation approaching his right flank, the only option is to retreat.
Above: As Grothaus ‘advances in a retrograde direction’, he is rather surprised to see a couple of French battalions emerge from the ‘friendly-held’ woods!
Above: Unlike the Hanoverian horse, the Hessian horse manages to rally following its drubbing at the hands of the French horse. The British dragoons rally alongside them, following their counter-drubbing.
Above: The above-mentioned defeat of the French horse by the British dragoons has resulted in the first major tactical reverse for the French! The French brigade failed to rally following its defeat and fled to the rear, closely followed by the remainder of Prince Camille’s corps! That now leaves only Poyanne’s corps of Carabiniers and these are soon set upon by the Hanoverian and Prussian hussars!
Above: However, the Carabiniers still have plenty of fight left in them and the hussars are swept aside. The Hanoverian Luckner Hussars are completely broken in this action. The veteran Prussian Ruesch Hussars however, suffer heavy losses but manage to rally. The Carabiniers play it safe and fall back to rally behind their support squadrons.
Above: Griffin’s corps is now in deep trouble. The Hanoverian Schulenberg Regiment was broken some time ago and the Hessian Gilsa Regiment has been thrown back, leaving only two isolated Hessian regiments (Malsburg on the left and Prinz Carl on the right) still fighting on the ridge. However, this is now reduced to one regiment, as the Prinz Carl Regiment is finally overwhelmed by Clausen’s infantry. “Thank you Major von Bülow, I agree that now might be a good moment to move the army headquarters…”
Above: In the woods, Oheimb’s corps has fought bravely, but is slowly being ground down as Guerchy brings his full strength to face them. The Navarre, Du Roi and Orléans Regiments have all suffered heavy losses, but Oheimb has lost the Hanoverian Dreves Regiment and the brave Brunswick artillery detachment. Only the two battalions of the Brunswick Zastrow Regiment remain in action and they now grudgingly give ground, in an effort to prevent them from being turned on both flanks.
Above: The view from behind Guerchy’s corps as they attack Oheimb’s Brunswickers. The Auvergne Regiment is out of shot to the right, marching to attack Oheimb from the flank. At the far edge of the wood, the survivors of the Navarre Regiment, together with the single-battalion La Marche-Prince Regiment have broken through and seem to be marching on to Hanover!
Above: On Webb’s right flank, his battalion guns have just switched to canister against Rooth’s rapidly-approaching phalanx of Swiss and Germans, but they just keep coming!
Above: FINALLY, Rooth orders his men to charge!
Above: “Don’t worry lads, the cavalry will cover our flank! They’re just over th… Hang on, where in the name of Madame Pompadour’s Purple Posing Pouch are our bloody cavalry?!”
Above: It was at this point that the Allies, our personal morale broken, conceded defeat. Rooth therefore never got to actually launch his charge. Rooth made a note in his diary… “
Above: Over on the left flank, Griffin’s two remaining Hessian battalions have somehow managed to maintain their discipline, but look set to be swept away by Clausen’s corps. However, the still-intact cavalry corps of Bischhausen and Grothaus should be able to mount an effective rearguard now that Prince Camille’s French cavalry have been driven off.
Above: Poyanne’s Carabiniers are still in the fight, though one of the two wings has taken very heavy casualties.
Above: Luckner’s Brunswick Jäger-Corps and Hanoverian grenadier battalions continue to sit on their hill-top, no doubt wondering what all that noise is…
As mentioned last time, we’d decided to 
As mentioned before, I’ve also given my Hessian infantry the dark blue breeches shown in the paintings by David Morier from the 1740s and early 1750s (above). These were almost certainly gone by the time of the Seven Years War, but they do make the Hessians look distinctly different to the Prussians and Brunswickers and I like ’em (which is all that matters, tbh).
Above: The ‘Prinz von Anhalt’ Infantry Regiment wore a dark blue coat with red lapels, cuffs, turnbacks and shoulder-strap. The uniform may also have included a red collar, though this may only have been added from 1761 onward. The lapels, cuffs and cuff-flaps were edged with white lace. Buttons were white metal. Neck-stocks were black. Waistcoats were white, as probably were the breeches. Hats had white lace and mid-blue pompoms. Belts for all Hessian regiments were white and this included musket-slings, though musket-slings changed to Prussian-style red leather sometime after 1760 and before 1775.
Above: The ‘Prinz von Anhalt’ Infantry Regiment as seen from the rear. As with all Hessian infantry regiments, the drummers wore the same uniform as the rank-and-file, though heavily decorated with red & white national lace. The drums were brass and for this regiment had red and white striped hoops.
Above: Here we see Prinz Carl Leopold von Anhalt-Bernburg with his own regiment. This model actually featured in 
Above: The 
Above: The ‘Mansbach’ Infantry Regiment wore the usual dark blue Hessian coat with white lapels and cuffs, yellow ‘metal’ and a pair of yellow buttonholes on the cuff-flaps and below each lapel. Shoulder-straps were probably blue (Kronoskaf says no strap, but Morier shows a blue strap, which I think more likely). Waistcoats were white, as probably were the breeches. Neck-stocks were red. The tail-turnbacks were probably red, though Morier shows them as white during the 1740s and early 1750s (see the grenadier painting above). Hat-lace and pompoms were white.
Above: A rear view of the ‘Mansbach’ Infantry Regiment. The regiment’s drummers again wore the same uniform as the rank-and-file, with red & white national lace. The regiment’s drums were brass, with blue and yellow striped hoops.
Above: The 
Five minutes later they’d once again become ‘The White Regiment’…
Above: The Leibgarde zu Fuß had red lapels, collar, cuffs, tail-turnbacks, shoulder-straps and neck-stocks. Buttons were silver and there was a white aiguillette on the right shoulder. The lapels were decorated with lace buttonholes. There were also three lace buttonholes immediately below each lapel, a further three buttonholes on each pocket and yet another three buttonholes on each side of the rear-waist. There were three buttons above each cuff, within a ‘ladder’ of lace. The cuffs and pockets were also edged with regimental lace, which was white with two red ‘toothpaste’ stripes (at this scale it could be argued that the lace would look pink, though I find that it looks best left the dominant colour, white). Waistcoats were pale yellow and breeches were probably white. Hats were edged with white lace and decorated with white-over-red pompoms. Drummers wore the same uniform with heavy lace decoration and yellow/red drum-hoops. Officers had silver lace.
Above: The Hesse-Cassel Artillery Corps. I actually covered the Artillery Corps in 
Above: The Hesse-Cassel Artillery Corps. I actually covered the uniforms in Part 7, but just to quickly recap; the Hessian gunners were dressed very similarly to Prussian gunners, so I used Eureka Miniatures Prussian Artillery figures. Unlike the Prussians however, their coats had lapels, so I ‘paint-converted’ them. Facings and pompoms were crimson, buttons were white metal and small-clothes were straw.
Above: The Hesse-Cassel Artillery Corps. I’ve painted all my Hessian guns in their rather striking scheme of white wood with red metalwork. However, given that they lost their arsenals very early in the war and had to be re-fitted by their allies, it’s reasonably likely that their gun-carriages would be in a variety of colours. But that would be rather dull…
Above: Lieutenant General Christian Albrecht von Oheimb. Despite being one of the more senior Hessian officers of the Seven Years War, I can find precious little information about this officer beyond the portrait shown on the right, one mention of him from 1747 as a Major in the ‘Gräffendorff’ Regiment of Horse and another of him from 1769 when, as governor of the fortress of Rinteln, he was awarded a state honour. 
Above: I decided to paint Lieutenant General Christian Albrecht von Oheimb in the uniform of his original regiment, the former ‘Gräffendorff’/’Miltitz’ Regiment of Horse, which briefly carried his name from 1759 to 1760. This was primarily because I like the uniform of white with medium green facings and gold buttons. For the later battles listed above, he’d probably be wearing the new uniform of the Gens d’Armes, being a Prussian-style cuirassier uniform in buff, with red collar and cuffs, as shown in his portrait above.
Above: Lieutenant General Heinrich Wilhelm von Wutginau. Born in 1698, Wutginau joined the Hessian Army in 1718 and in 1747 won promotion to Major General. At the outbreak of the Seven Years War, Wutginau was promoted to Lieutenant General and was was appointed as commanding general of Hessian troops in the field. At Minden in 1759 he commanded the largest of eight Allied columns and distinguished himself. Following the Battle of Vellinghausen in 1761, Ferdinand of Brunswick wrote to King George II, singling Wutginau out for his ‘exceptional bravery’. However, the strains of campaigning had taken their toll on Wutginau and in February 1761 the old Hessian war-horse resigned his command, handing over to the Prince of Anhalt. He spent the rest of his days as governor of Reihenfels fortress and in 1772 was promoted to General of Infantry. He died in 1776, aged 79. Sadly, I can’t find a portrait of him.
Above: Lieutenant General Heinrich Wilhelm von Wutginau was appointed as Chef of the Leibregiment from 1760, so I’ve painted him in the uniform of that regiment. This uniform consisted of the usual blue coat with red collar, cuffs and linings, though without lapels. Officers had gold lace buttonholes in pairs on the breast, another pair above each cuff and a single buttonhole on each side of the rear-waist. Small-clothes were yellow.
Above: Lieutenant General Eitel Ludwig Philipp von und zu Gilsa. Born in 1700, Gilsa was commissioned into the Hessian ‘Prinz Georg’ Infantry Regiment in 1715 and fought in the Wars of Polish and Austrian Succession. By the start of the Seven Years War he had risen to the rank of Colonel, being Commandant of the ‘Prinz Carl’ Infantry Regiment. Soon promoted to Major General, he commanded a brigade at Hastenbeck and was later distinguished at Krefeld and Minden. In 1759 he was promoted to Lieutenant General and became Chef of the former ‘Fürstenberg’ Infantry Regiment (now re-named ‘Gilsa’). He continued to serve with distinction during the war and died at home in 1765,
Above: Lieutenant General Eitel Ludwig Philipp von und zu Gilsa here is wearing the uniform of his own ‘Gilsa’ Infantry Regiment, to which he was appointed Chef in 1759. The regiment’s uniform was fairly plain, with red cuffs, lapels and linings, gold buttons, straw waistcoat and no lace. The portrait above shows him wearing a coat decorated with gold lace, but it would appear that this depicts him as a younger man (he was 59 in 1759), so presumably is the uniform of one his previous regimental appointments. 
Above: The Jäger-Corps. Hesse-Cassel had actually been the first German state to raise a corps of jäger, doing so as early as the 17th Century. By the start of the Seven Years War, the corps consisted of two foot companies, each of around 100 men. This increased to four foot companies during the winter of 1758-1759 and by mid-summer a further two horse companies had been added. The Hessian Jäger-Corps provided excellent service throughout the war; not only as part of the petit-guerre, but also in direct support of the main armies in battle. The corps served as the model to be followed by various other jäger corps raised by national armies and the innumerable freikorps. The Hessian Jäger-Corps went on to achieve nothing short of legendary status during the 
Above: The uniform of the Jäger-Corps consisted of a dark green coat with matching small-clothes. The coat had crimson lapels, collar, shoulder-strap and tail-turnbacks and brass buttons. Belts were white (they changed to red leather by the 1770s), rifle-slings were red leather and cartridge pouches were black. Neck-stocks were black. Hats were unlaced and lacked pompoms, though were decorated with green cockades (these green cockades became something of a universal badge among Allied light troops).
Above: Although I haven’t yet painted them, the mounted companies of the Jäger-Corps wore much the same uniform and were also armed with rifles, though had golden hat-lace, tall cavalry boots and light cavalry sabres. Horse furniture was green, edged crimson, with a crimson blanket-roll. Given their tall boots, I will probably paint my spare 
Above: As this was a club open day, I’m not ashamed to admit that I slightly changed the geography in a shameless attempt to show off my new fort. The city of Cassel has therefore been moved to where the village of Sanderhausen should be (see the vintage map above)!
Above: The fortress is pure decoration for the purposes of the game, but it does make a rather nice back-drop.
Above: Two of the three battalions of the German Royal-Deux-Ponts Regiment were left behind to guard the lines of retreat through Sanderhausen and Cassel, so here they are garrisoning the ravelin.
Above: Nothing beats a good ravelin in the mornin.
Above: The Duc de Broglie peers at the Hessian positions. “Good news, Sir! Our spies report that the Holy Roman Umpire has left Doug’s Purple Dice of Doom at home!” The Duc nods in satisfaction at this welcome news…
Above: The French infantry deploys in a single line, with the cavalry forming a widely-spaced second line. 
Above: I must confess that I forgot to take another photo after giving the Duc (Andy) the option of re-deploying his position batteries; he moved them from the right wing (as shown above) to the left wing, in front of the French battalions.
Above: Two French regiments (Beauvoisis and Rohan-Montbazon) form the left wing, along with the light infantry of the Chasseurs de Fischer and volunteers from the German Bentheim Regiment.
Above: The right wing is formed by three German battalions (from the Royal-Deux-Ponts and Royal-Bavière Regiments) and four Swiss battalions (from the Diesbach and Waldner Regiments), with the flank screened by the skirmishing grenadier companies of the Royal-Deux-Ponts Regiment.
Above: On the heights, Prince Ysenburg (Kirk) affects a deliberate calm and nonchalant air in defiance of the odds arrayed against him as he reads today’s copy of Die Sonne.
Above: Prince Ysenburg’s Hessian army is massively outnumbered, but occupies a strong position on the heights, with its flanks anchored on woodland and the fortified farm of Ellenbach.
Above: Unlike the last game when I had to use Hanoverian regiments as proxies, this time I’d painted enough new Hessian infantry regiments to fill the ranks. The only remaining interlopers are the Schaumburg-Lippe-Bückeburg Regiment standing in for the Invalid Battalion and the Prussian ‘Kleist’ Freikorps-Husaren standing in for the Hessian Husaren-Corps.
Above: The Hessian right flank is anchored on the thickly-wooded bank of the Fulda River and the woods are occupied by the massed grenadiers of the Hessian militia, as well as the Hessian Jäger-Corps and some huntsmen from the militia (yes, I know jäger means ‘hunter’, but these are actual huntsmen, drafted into the militia, not Jäger in the military sense). 
Above: The main Hessian line in the open ground is formed by two regular infantry regiments (Ysenburg and Canitz) on the flanks, with two militia regiments (Wurmb and Gundlach) in the centre and a weak battalion of ‘Invalids’ (i.e. pensioned-off veterans) in reserve, with a position battery positioned on the left flank. The massed Hessian cavalry are formed up behind the battery.
Above: On the extreme Hessian left flank, the Ellenbach Farm is garrisoned by the Freywald Militia Regiment, supported by some more militia huntsmen and an unidentified unit of Hanoverian Jäger. 
Above: The French position battery also quickly finds the range and Hessian infantrymen begin to fall to long-range roundshot.
Above: As French shot bounds through the infantry line, some unfortunate cavalrymen and invalids also fall victim to stray rounds.
Above: On the bank of the Fulda, the French chasseurs push forward, seeking prey.
Above: However, the French left wing has not yet been given orders to advance and Colonel Fischer recalls the more impetuous of his men. For now, the light infantry are limited to taunts and cat-calls through the trees.
Above: As the French right wing advances into the copse on the spur above Ellenbach, the Hessian artillery begins to claim victims, but their fire doesn’t seem to be anywhere near as effective as the well-handled French guns.
Above: In a very short time, the Invalids, having suffered a storm of shot actually directed at the first line, decide that they have already done their time in the army and break and run to the rear! The Hessian horse on the left also continue to suffer a steady trickle of casualties from the ‘overs’. Casualties in the main infantry line meanwhile, remain remarkably light.
Above: As the Swiss pass through the copse, the blue-coated Royal-Bavière Regiment remains in the open ground and at last begins to suffer heavy casualties from the Hessian guns. The German battalion guns find themselves to be no match for the Hessian gunners and are quickly destroyed. Then, as the Swiss emerge from the copse, they march straight into a hail of canister fire from the Hessian battery, as well as musketry from Ellenbach and rifle-fire from the Hanoverian Jäger!
Above: On the French right flank, nearest to Ellenbach Farm, the Swiss Waldner Regiment fire a devastating volley into the Hessian Husarencorps, but it’s not quite enough to stop them and the regiment’s 1st Battalion is broken. The hussars decide not to push their luck in the face of approaching French cavalry and retire to rally back on the heights. In the centre of the melee, the 1st Battalion of the Swiss Diesbach Regiment manages to beat off the Hessian Prinz Friedrich Dragoons, though their 2nd Battalion, already shredded by canister, is crushed by the Hessian heavy horse!
Above: Having broken the Swiss battalion, the Hessian horse charge on into the 1st Battalion of the Royal-Bavière Regiment. However, the Germans are made of sterner stuff and the Hessians are repulsed! Nevertheless, the heavy losses suffered by the French right wing have gravely sapped the morale of the Swiss and German infantry.
Above: Bavarian jubilation at having repelled the cavalry is short-lived, as the Hessian infantry have just received orders to mount a limited attack. In a move surprising everyone, the Hessian line charges down the hill! The heroic 1st Battalion of the Royal-Bavière Regiment manages to halt the Hessian Canitz Regiment with fire, but the 2nd Battalion is not so lucky and is swept away by the Gundlach Militia.
Above: The Duc de Broglie suddenly realises that he has another German battalion (1st Royal-Deux-Ponts) hiding among the grey coats of his Frenchmen! He contemptuously orders these cowards up the hill to join their doomed comrades! With the Swiss-German assault failing, he also realises that he may have left it to left to commit his left wing! He sends an ADC over to order the French infantry to attack.
Above: The sudden slump in morale doesn’t seem to be bothering the Swiss Diesbach Regiment, which charges and destroys half of the Hessian position guns! At Ellenbach meanwhile, the Swiss battalion guns are making life miserable for the Freywald Militia.
Above: The Swiss may well have bitten off more than they can chew…
Above: The French cavalry, their earlier march to the right flank having been halted by Broglie, mass south of the copse. On the right, the grenadiers of the Royal-Deux-Ponts Regiment are doing remarkably well against the Hanoverian Jäger.
Above: In Ellenbach, the Freywald Militia have suffered some losses from the Swiss battalion guns, but have inflicted a steady trickle of casualties on the passing Swiss battalions and proven themselves to be a very painful thorn in the side of the French attack.
Above: The Hessian cavalry have suffered heavy losses, but are now rallied and have Switzers to their front. General Oheimb orders the charge!
Above: In the woods near Ellenbach, the Hanoverian Jäger are on the point of breaking in the face of the determined enemy grenadiers!
Above: The Swiss Diesbach Regiment pushes its luck and charges the next gun-battery! However, the Hessian heavy horse charge once again, passing through their own gunners to crash into the impertinent Switzers!
Above: The Swiss Diesbach Regiment is crushed and the Hessian horse, having learned their lesson from last time (and with fresh French cavalry approaching), retire to their own lines to rally. In the distance, the remnants of the Swiss Waldner Regiment launch a desperate charge on Ellenbach, but are halted by the defenders’ fire. [NB for some reason we also removed the Hessian battery, but that was a mistake, as they’d been saved by the cavalry!]
Above: With the loss of the Diesbach Regiment, the French right wing have finally had enough and break and run en masse! In the woods, the grenadiers of the Royal-Deux-Ponts Regiment are also forced to withdraw (along with the section of battalion guns) and the Hanoverian Jäger breathe a sigh of relief!
Above: However, the rout of the Swiss-German infantry has now cleared the way for the French cavalry to mount their own attack.
Above: On the French left, the two remaining infantry regiments begin their advance up the slope and at last the French position battery falls silent, masked by the advancing ranks. In the woods, Colonel Fischer finally allows his chasseurs to move forward to engage the Jäger.
Above: The Hessian infantry have suffered some disruption from the incessant French artillery fire, but they calmly wait at the top of the slope for the French to come to them.
Above: Colonel Oheimb stands with his exhausted cavalry and hopes that they can recover some of their strength before the French horse arrive.
Above: Sadly for General Oheimb, the French cavalry are not going to allow him that luxury!
Above: As the French infantry close to musketry range, the French heavy horse charge the Canitz Regiment, on the left flank of the Hessian infantry. The Canitz Regiment manages to hold off the French horse, but the Hessian infantry have no time to catch breath before a second wave of French horsemen charges!
Above: In the woods, the skirmish has intensified; the Hessian militia huntsmen have fled the scene, as have the volunteers from the French Bentheim Regiment. Nevertheless, the Hessian Jäger and the Chasseurs de Fischer continue to slug it out on the bank of the Fulda.
Above: On the eastern flank, the French Nassau Hussars and the Apchon Dragoons are shot to bits as they attempt to pass by the Hanoverian Jäger and Freywald Militia. Seeing easy prey, the Hessian Husarencorps and Prinz Friedrich Dragoons charge down the slope. However, fortune smiles on the French hussars this day, as the Hessian charge turns into a disaster and both Hessian cavalry regiments break and flee the field! 
Above: Our chronicler sadly missed a part of the action here; the first charge by the French infantry was largely halted by fire, but the 2nd Battalion of the Rohan-Montbazon Regiment managed to charge home and break the Wurmb Militia. On the flank meanwhile, the second charge by the French horse was decisively halted on the bayonets of the heroic Canitz Regiment.
Above: The French charge again! This time, despite flanking fire from the Hessian grenadiers in the wood, all four French infantry battalions manage to charge home on the Ysenburg Regiment (with the buff flag) and the Gundlach Militia (with the dark blue flag).
Above: On the flank, the first brigade of French horse has rallied and now has yet another go at the Canitz Regiment!
Above: The French infantry charge this time, is a complete success! The Hessian infantry fail to halt the charge with firepower and despite their strong position on the hill, are unable to withstand the French onslaught. The earlier loss of the Wurmb Militia, in the very centre of the Hessian line, has crippled Hessian cohesion and the remaining battalions crumble in the face of the solid phalanx of French bayonets!
Above: To everyone’s surprise, the Ysenburg Regiment, being one of the better regular regiments in the Hessian line as well as being the army commander’s own regiment, fails to rally and keeps running! The Gundlach Militia however, retain their honour and manage to rally near Prince Ysenburg’s headquarters. They turn to face the enemy once again.
Above: On the left of the Hessian line however, the incredible Canitz Regiment stands like a stone wall! They’ve beaten off an infantry assault and no fewer than three cavalry charges, despite being exposed at the end of the line (thanks in no small part to the exhausted Hessian heavy horse, who provide vital rear support to the Canitz Regiment, but who dare not launch another charge). This last cavalry charge has ended in disaster for the French horse, who are broken on the wall of bayonets and who are joined in their rout by the rest of the French cavalry division!
Above: At Ellenbach meanwhile, peace descends upon the battlefield.
Above: With the Hessians having lost a large chunk of their army, things could now go horribly wrong for Prince Ysenburg. However, the Prince manages through force of will (and a good die-roll, to be fair) to hold his command together!
As mentioned in the comments section of 
Above: 
Above: Infanterie-Regiment ‘Imhoff’, like all Brunswick troops, wore a very Prussian-style uniform, consisting of a blue coat with white lapels, turnbacks, Swedish-style cuffs and small-clothes, brass buttons, blue shoulder-strap, no collar and no lace. The hat had white lace, a black cockade and three pompoms, coloured white over blue. The regiment’s grenadiers had a Prussian-style grenadier cap with a blue bag, white band, white lace, a white-over-blue pompom and brass plate and grenade badges. Neck stocks were black. Belts were white, though musket slings appear to have been of red leather, in the same style as the Prussian army.
Above: A rear view of Infanterie-Regiment ‘Imhoff’. Note that the coat turnbacks were white, rather than the Prussian-style red. Cartridge-pouches were black with a brass plate and scabbards were black with brass fittings.
Above: Lieutenant General Philipp Ernst Freiherr von Imhoff was released from prison in May 1758, to find that the situation had changed rather dramatically. Brunswick was now very much back in the war, with the new Allied commander-in-chief being none other than Prince Charles of Brunswick’s brother, Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick. However, Imhoff had been relegated to second-in-command of the Brunswick contingent, as command had now passed to the Hereditary Prince (or Erbprinz) of Brunswick, Charles William Ferdinand.
Above: Brunswick’s Artillery Arm was very weak and simply just provided battalion guns to the infantry battalions in the field and gunners for the duchy’s fortresses. There was no position artillery component. The Brunswick artillery arm initially in 1757 had 272 men and a collection of 2pdr and 3pdr pieces (six of each) and a pair of howitzers. In 1760 this increased to 320 men (equipment unknown).
Above: The Brunswick Artillery Arm was uniformed very similarly to the Prussians, with a blue coat, red collar, turnbacks and Swedish-style cuffs, brass buttons and straw small-clothes. Buttonhole lace took the form of elaborate golden ‘Brandenbourgs’, arranged 1, 2 and 3 from top to bottom on the breast, a pair on each cuff and a pair on each tail-pocket. Hats had white lace, a black cockade and two black-over-white pompoms at the corners. Officers had striking red small-clothes, gold ‘Brandenbourgs’ and gold scalloped hat-lace. The colour of gun-carriages is simply unknown, though the general convention among wargamers is to give them light blue Prussian-style carriages with black ironwork (which they did have during the French Revolutionary Wars), so I’ve gone with that.
Above: For my Brunswick Artillery, I’ve used 18mm 
Since starting my Seven Years War French army in February 2021 with the 
The Chasseurs de Fischer were initially raised in 1742 during the War of Austrian Succession. At this time, the French army of the Duc de Broglie was blockaded within Prague by the Austrians. However, with such a huge perimeter to cover, the Austrians had nowhere near enough forces to fully surround the city with earthworks and troops and as a consequence, the siege was rather ‘loose’ and there was plenty of work on both sides for scouts and raiders around the city. An enterprising German native of Lorraine by the name of Johann Christian (or ‘Jean Chrétien’) Fischer was therefore prompted to raise a company of freebooters from the servants of French officers within the garrison (Fischer himself is sometimes described as a ‘servant’ or even ‘cook’) and this irregular unit proved highly successful, even managing to recapture cavalry mounts that had been captured by Austrian hussars.
With the commencement of what would become the Seven Years War, the Chasseurs de Fischer were ordered on 1st January 1756 to be expanded once again; this time to 220 men (five foot companies of 40 men and one horse company of 20 men). A second order on 26th October 1756 massively expanded the horse component; the unit would now consist of four companies of 50 foot and four companies of 75 horse, for a total of 500 men.
The next few years saw hard campaigning for the Chasseurs de Fischer, with the regiment being engaged in the capture of Marburg, the 
As we were planning to refight the 
Other interpretations include mirliton caps in black or green with white lace and fleur-de-lys badge or cocked hats (though the cocked hats don’t appear to have appeared until right at the end of the Seven Years War), red pointed cuffs, red round cuffs, red lapels, aurore fringed epaulette, red fringed epaulette, red shoulder strap, red bags for the grenadier caps, black belts, buff belts, white belts, black cartridge pouches, natural leather pouches, black gaiters, white gaiters… And we haven’t even discussed the uniforms of the regiment’s Chasseurs à Cheval! I don’t think I’ve ever encountered a unit that has quite so many contradictory sources and quite honestly, I lost the will to live while trying to work out what was ‘correct’! I think it’s probably true to say that all variants were worn by some part of the regiment for some part of its existence!
I’ve not found any figures wearing pokalem caps (none I’d want to buy, anyway…), though Prussian fusilier caps might be similar if you filed them down a bit and if you could be bothered… However, 
I haven’t yet painted the Chasseur à Cheval squadrons for the Chasseurs de Fischer, though I have painted one mounted officer figure (a French hussar officer by Eureka Miniatures) to represent Fischer (though a dedicated Fischer figure with that strange hat would be nice). I won’t therefore go into great detail about the Chasseur à Cheval uniform here and will save that dose of excitement for when I want to show them here. However, it generally followed the green and red theme of the Chasseurs à Pied, though again there is a great deal of disagreement in various sources.
As mentioned above, after sorting out the mirliton-wearing figures (and two bearskin-wearing figures) for my Chasseurs de Fischer, I was left with a pile of spare bearskin-wearing figures. As it happened, my collection was badly in need of a couple of massed grenadier battalions.
The uniforms shown here represent most of the regiments I’ve painted thus far. I could also use a battalion each of massed Swiss grenadiers in red coats and Germans/Walloons in blue coats. I also threw in a mounted officer to replace the two grenadiers I’d stolen for the grenadier company of the Chasseurs de Fischer. Massed grenadiers would not carry flags.
There were no specific uniform details for chasseurs, though green sword-knots or epaulettes seem to have been adopted by some units. Otherwise they just wore the standard uniform of their parent regiment. I’ve therefore painted these skirmisher stands in the same uniforms as regiments already in my collection. These are 
Historical Background
Scenario Outline
The Allied Army
Allied Reinforcements
Optional Allied Forces
La Grande Armée
French Reinforcements
Umpire’s Eyes Only!
Optional Shorter Scenario
Initiative Phase
Cavalry Breakthrough & Recall
Large Units
NEW Page 5!
5th Royal Tank Regiment at La Lande, Normandy
Historical Background – Operation BLUECOAT
A few miles to the west, the 11th Armoured Division was breaking out. The town of St Martin-des-Besaces was liberated following a stiff battle on 31st July and the armoured cars of 2nd Household Cavalry Regiment (2 HCR) were soon pushing on southward, through undefended wooded hills and into the deep valley of the River Soulevre. Incredibly, an intact and undefended bridge was discovered by 2 HCR and this fact was soon transmitted back to General ‘Pip’ Roberts, commanding 11th Armoured Division. Electrified by this news, Roberts soon had armour racing to the scene and the bridge was firmly in his hands. As the Guards Armoured Division moved up to cover his open left flank, the ‘Black Bull’ of 11th Armoured Division was soon in full charge across the Soulevre.
XXX Corps Pushes East
II. SS-Panzer-Korps Reacts
On 2nd August, the 7th Armoured Division had another go at Breuil, this time with more success. The shattered defenders had simply had enough and scores of prisoners were taken. The infantry of 131 (Queen’s) Brigade took possession of the high ground at Breuil and pushed on further to Hill 188 and reconnoitered the village of St Georges-d’Aunay. 7th Armoured Division was now within sight of Aunay-sur-Odon, only a few miles to the east. The road to Aunay finally seemed to be opening and 5 RTR, with ‘I’ Company, 1st Battalion, The Rifle Brigade (1 RB) under command, was ordered to be prepared to move at first light on 3rd August for a probe toward the town.
5 RTR Probe Toward Aunay-sur-Odon
British Briefing
Situation, 1100hrs, Sunday 3rd August 1944, near St Georges-d’Aunay
• All elements of 5 RTR, 1 RB, 5 RHA and 65 AT Regt RA are rated as ‘Experienced’.
Enemy Forces
German Briefing
Situation, 1100hrs, Sunday 3rd August 1944, west of Aunay-sur-Odon
• If desired, a company can be swapped between Reinhold’s panzer battalion and Wolter’s panzer-grenadier battalion before the start of the scenario, to create two combined-arms battalion-sized kampfgruppen.
Enemy Forces
Terrain Notes
1. There is an appropriate crossing (level crossing, over-bridge or underpass) wherever roads cross the railway line. Any units using a road to cross the railway may therefore cross at normal road speed.
‘Vignette’ Scenario Options
• The British player has only ‘A’ & ‘B’ Squadrons 5 RTR, plus the platoon of 1 RB deployed with ‘A’ Squadron (designate one Infantry unit as the platoon commander). There is no artillery support.
• The British player has his entire force, minus ‘A’ & ‘B’ Squadrons 5 RTR and a single platoon from ‘I’ Company, 1 RB.
The Historical Outcome