The History of Fusilier Regiment 41

Recently, I bought this small booklet, published 1767, about Fusilier Regiment 41 von Lossow, during the Seven Years War known as „von Wied“.

Hans Bleckwenn notes in his introduction to this edition, a reprint from 1979:

„The fusilier regiment "Wied" belonged till 1755 to the little respected „Wesel Garrison “; which ranked not only in the lists of the army, but also in their opinion below the field regiments, in dangerous proximity to the disesteemed garrison troops. […]

The amazing thing emerged during the war: in its achievements, regiment No. 41 turned out to be one of the strongest of the fusiliers regiments, maybe the strongest one overall. It fights at Prag, Kolin, Kunersdorf, Liegnitz and Torgau, - pushes itself forward unimpressed from both defeats into the group of regiments which also during the last years of the war were regarded as reliable.“

A good regiment to have in your army!

„Auszug mit klingendem Spiel !“
(Departure with drums beating and flags flying)

Charge! + Stuart Asquith modifications + One Hour Wargames = Fun

Time, space and the number of miniatures – three things I struggled with recently.

One solution: Use the classic Charge! rules, add some neat rules modifications Stuart Asquith used in his games with Keith Flint (Old School Napoleonics, The Action At Annie's Farm) on a 6' x 3' foot dining table and combine them with one of the scenarios from Neil Thomas' book „One Hour Wargames“ which uses a 3' x 3' board and six units per side.

The resulting layout for Scenario 4: Take the High Ground, One Hour Wargames, p. 72, (click pictures to enlarge):

Austrians have set up two units on the hill.
Prussians entered along the southern board edge.

Austrians (Defender)

CiC (1 Figure)

4 x Infantry (10 Figures each)

1 x Light Infantry (8 Figures)

1x Artillery (4 Figures)

Prussians (Attacker)

CiC (1 Figure)

3 x Infantry (10 Figures each)

1 x Light Infantry (8 Figures)

1 x Cavalry (5 Figures)

1x Artillery (4 Figures)

Total number of miniatures: 101

The mission for both sides is two be in possession of the hill at games end (after 15 turns).

Austrian reinforcements arrive

First blood – Frei-Infanterie engages from a distance

Close range artillery fire - More casualties for the Austrians

The Prussian cavalry charges ...

… and is repulsed !

The Prussian infantry storms the hill – The Light Infantry
of both sides fight it out in the woods

The big melee on the hill – Prussian Frei-Infanterie has been
dispersed and the croats assault the Prussian gun

The Austrians concede and retreat
(in fact, I used the kitchen table and dinner had to be served)

Conclusion: An entertaining little solo game. I was pleased with „the look of the thing“. The Charge! rules with Stuart Asquith' modifications worked well. I still have to take a deeper look at them and create my own play-sheet.

Gaming with small-sized units, i.e. 10 figures for infantry, 5 for cavalry allows for quicker progress along my work-up schedule to larger battles/units. I´m thinking about playing Honours of War scenarios with 10-figure infantry battalions and 4-trooper cavalry now that I´m comfortable with the look.