16 September 1813 – Southern Germany – Ratisbon Campaign

 

1813 Campaign Map

This is a fictional campaign loosely based on the 1813 campaign
It started in April 2009 and consists of stand alone campaign phases
Each phase is similar in size to the Waterloo campaign
This is the 93rd phase, each of which is shown on the above map
There have been six major adjustments to the campaign
The following maps are used for the current adjustment, which started in June 2020

Map of Europe

There are five campaign areas in Europe
North Germany – French v Prussian
Central Germany – French v Russians
Southern Germany – French v Austrians
North Spain – French v British
South Spain – French v Spanish

This is the campaign phase 25
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Ratisbon is the white star

Map of Germany

There are three campaign areas in Germany
North Germany – First French and Prussian Armies
Central Germany – Second French and Russian Armies
South Germany – Third French and Austrian Armies

This is the 15th campaign phase to be fought in Germany
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Ratisbon is the white star

Map of South Germany

There are three regions in South Germany
Strasbourg Region – French rear area
Munich Region – campaign area
Vienna Region – Prussian rear area

This is the fifth campaign phase to be fought in South Germany
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Ratisbon is the white star

Map of Munich Region

There are nine districts in Munich Region
There have been 25 battles fought in this region
The French have won11 and the Austrians 14
Each star shows the location of a battle fought
The white star shows Ratisbon

Campaign Map

The Ingolstadt campaign is fought between the cities of Nuremberg and Ingolstadt
The French Army of Southern Germany is deployed to the left of the district border
The Austrian Army is deployed to the right of the district border
The French objective is to take and hold the city of Ratisbon

Typical Bavarian corps

Each corps has 4 infantry brigades, 1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery

The French Army of Southern Germany- Marshal Massena

19th Bavarian corps
20th Bavarian corps
21st Bavarian corps
22nd Bavarian corps
23rd Bavarian corps
24th Baden corps
25th Bavarian corps
26th Bavarian corps
27th Baden corps

144000 infantry, 9000 cavalry, 270 guns

Typical Austrian corps

Each corps has 4 infantry brigades, 1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery


Austrian Army - General Schwartzenberg
1st Austrian corps
2nd Austrian corps
3rd Austrian corps
4th Austrian corps
5th Austrian corps
6th Austrian corps
7th Austrian corps
8th Austrian corps
9th Austrian corps

144000 infantry, 9000 cavalry, 270 guns

Campaign Diary
01 Feb 1813 Austria, Britain, Prussia and Russia declared war on France
01 Feb 1813 Formation of Third French army in Munich region
25 Feb 1813 Third French army declared operational
28 Feb 1813 Austrians moved into the Munich region
30 Mar 1813 Start of Branau campaign phase
11 Apr 1813 Austrians win Branau phase
20 May 1813 Start of Kufstein campaign phase
30 May 1813 French win Kufstein campaign phase
03 Jul 1 813 Start of Landshut phase
10 Jul 1813 Austrians win Landshut phase
12 Aug 1813 Start of Ingolstadt phase
18 Aug 1813 French win Ingolstadt phase
16 Sep 1813 Start of Ratisbon phase

Reference
The campaign diary contains comprehensive details of the whole campaign. The labels on the right are an index to various parts of the campaign.

01 - Introduction to the1813 campaign
02 - Five campaign areas
30 - Introduction to the campaign in Southern Germany
31 – French Army order of battle
32 - Austrian Army order of battle
33 - Daily diary for the campaign in Southern Germany
34 - Battle reports of all battles fought in Southern Germany
35 - Summary of campaign in Southern Germany

9 September 1813 – Southern Spain – Cordoba Campaign

1813 Campaign

This is a fictional campaign loosely based on the 1813 campaign
It started in April 2009 and consists of stand alone campaign phases
Each phase is similar in size to the Waterloo campaign
This is the 98th phase, each of which is shown on the above map
There have been six major adjustments to the campaign
The following maps are used for the current adjustment, which started in June 2020

Map of Europe

There are five campaign areas in Europe
North Germany – French v Prussians
Central Germany – French v Russians
Southern Germany – French v Austrians
North Spain – French v British
South Spain – French v Spanish

This is the campaign phase 25
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Cordoba is the white star

Map of Spain

There are two campaign areas in Spain
North Spain – Fourth French and British Armies
South Spain – Fifth French and Spanish Armies
This is the tenth campaign phase to be fought in Spain
Cordoba is the white star

Map of South Spain

There are three regions in south Spain
Lisbon Region – Spanish rear area
Seville Region – campaign area
Valencia Region – French rear area
This is the fifth campaign phase to be fought in south Spain
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Cordoba is the white star

Map of Seville Region

There are nine towns in Jean district
Each one is the size of the wargames table.
The campaign area is shown in white on this map
It covers the nine towns in Jean district
But also 3 towns in Hellin district
Hellin is the HQ and supply centre for Fourth French Army Group
Jean is the HQ and supply centre for the Spanish Army

Campaign Map

The Cordoba campaign is fought between the cities of Jean and Cordoba
The French Army of South Spain is deployed to the right of the district border
The Spanish Army is deployed to the left of the district border
The French objective is to take and hold the city of Cordoba
Each block represents one corps
The French objective is to take and hold the city of Cordoba

Typical French corps

Each corps has 4 infantry brigades,1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery

Fourth French Army of Southern Spain – Marshal Suchet
37th French corps
38th French corps
39th Vistula corps
40th French corps
41st Baden corps
42nd Polish corps
43rd French corps
44th Westphalian corps
45th Italian corps

144000 infantry, 9000 cavalry, 270 guns

Typical Spanish corps

6 corps have 4 infantry brigades, 1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery
6 corps have 4 infantry brigades, and corps artillery

Spanish Army – General Giron
1st Spanish corps
2nd Spanish corps
3rd Spanish corps
4th Spanish corps
5th Spanish corps
6th Spanish corps
7th Spanish corps
8th Spanish corps
9th Spanish corps
10th Spanish corps
11th Spanish corps
12th Spanish corps

192,000 infantry, 6000 cavalry, 360 guns

Campaign Diary
01 Feb 1813 Austria, Britain, Prussia, Russia and Spain declared war on France
04 Feb 1813 Spanish army operational n Saville region
28 Feb 1813 Fifth French army operational in Madrid Region
09 Mar 1813 Start of Toledo campaign phase
13 Mar 1813 Spanish win Toledo campaign phase
20 Apr 1813 Start of Cuidad Real campaign phase
30 Apr 1813 French win Cuidad Real campaign phase
08 Jun 1813 Start of Merida campaign phase
15 Jun 1813 French win Merida campaign phase
02 Aug 1813 Start of Jean campaign phase
11 Aug 1813 French win Jean campaign phase
09 Sep 1813 Start of Cordoba campaign phase

Reference
The campaign diary contains comprehensive details of the whole campaign. The labels on the right are an index to various parts of the campaign.

01 - Introduction to the1813 campaign
02 - Five campaign areas
50 - Introduction to the campaign in southern Spain
51 - Fifth French Army order of battle
52 - Spanish Army order of battle
53 - Daily diary for the campaign in southern Spain
54 - Battle reports of all battles fought in southern Spain
55 - Summary of campaign in southern Spain

1 September 1813 – Northern Spain – End of Burgos Campaign

Battles fought during campaign phase

Soult won three of the six battles fought
Wellington won the other three

To win the campaign Wellington had to take the city of Burgos
He lost two of the first three battles and had to retreat towards Valladolid
He won two of the next three, and halted the French advance
However he failed to take Burgos and lost the campaign.

The campaign started on 7 August and ended on 28 September 2025

We play tested new rules for artillery counter battery fire during this campaign. Previously artillery required a roll of 6 on 1D6, and often spent most of the game in counter battery fire. A lucky dice could make it impossible for the other side to press home their attack. Historically counter battery fire was pretty ineffective, but dominated most of our games. We changed the rules so that artillery could only fire on enemy guns at short range, which is 4”. This resulted in the complete absence of counter battery fire during this campaign. This much improved the game, and we are keeping the new rule.

Madrid Region

At the end of the campaign the French still held Burgos
The British had to retreat towards Valladolid
The French won the campaign

Wellington ordered his army to hold Valladolid
Soult ordered his army to concentrate on Burgos

 

 

01 September 1813 – North Spain – Day 7

French lose campaign and retreat into Burgos district
10 French army – retreat to Picuerga
11 French army – retreat to Santa Maria
12 French army – retreat to Cuellar

British win campaign and hold Valladolid-Burgos district border
1 British army – occupy Quintana
2 British army – occupy Laguna
3 British army – occupy Coca

31 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 6

French attack Laguna
10 French army – regroup at Quintana
11 French army – attack Laguna
12 French army – retreat to Cuellar

British win battle of Laguna
1 British army – regroup at Palencia
2 British army – defend Laguna 3 British army – occupy Coca
3 British army – occupy Coca

30 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 5

French attack Coca
10 French army – occupy Quintana
11 French army – pursue British to Laguna
12 French army – attack Coca

British win battle of Coca
1 British army – rereat to Palencia
2 British army – retreat to Laguna
3 British army – defend Coca

29 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 4

French attack Quintana
10 French army – attack Quintana
11 French army – regroup and resupply at Burgos
12 French army – rally and regroup at Cuellar

British lose battle of Quintana
1 British army – defend Quintana
2 British army – regroup and resupply at Santa Maria
3 British army – retreat to Coca

28 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 3

 

British attack Cuellar
1 British army – regroup and resupply at Quintana
2 British army – occupy Santa Maria
3 British army – attack Cuellar

French lose battle of Santa Maria
10 French army – regroup and resupply at Picuerga
11 French army – retreat to Burgos
12 French army – hold Cuellar

27 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 2

 

British attack Santa Maria
1 British army – retreat to Quintana
2 British army – attack Santa Maria
3 British army – observe border

French win battle of Pisuerga
10 French army – concentrate on border
11 French army – defend Santa Maria 12 French army – advance to border

26 August 1813 – North Spain – Day 1

British attack Pisuerga
1 British army – attack Pisuerga
2 British army – observe border
3 British army – observe border

French win battle of Pisuerga
10 French army – defend Pisuerga
11 French army – hold Santa Maria 12 French army – hold Cuellar
12 French army – hold Cuellar

26 July 1813 – Northern Spain – End of Santander Campaign

 

Battles fought during campaign phase

Soult won five of the six battles fought
Wellington won the remaining one

Despite winning five of the six battles fought, Soult failed to take the city of Santander. At the end of the first day he had taken two of the three wargame objectives, and thus won the battle. But he had run out of supplies and was forced to retreat and thus failed to take the city. As a result Wellington won the campaign

The campaign started on 4 May and ended on 27 June 2024

We had to change the rules after a run of games where the defender could slowly retreat and avoid battle within the allowed 12 game moves. The new rules would have three game objectives in the three middle squares of the table. The winner would be the one who held at least two at the end of the game. It worked well, but resulted in a strange result in this campaign. The French won five of the six games. But due to guerrilla activity they were very low on supplies when they fought the last battle. They took two of the three objectives, but the British firmly held the third, which controlled the approach to Santander. To take the campaign objective, the French would have to fight a second day of battle. But because the northern army group were out of supply, they would have to retreat to resupply. This left t the other two army groups isolated and they also had to withdraw to the river Ebro.

Madrid Region

At the end of the campaign the British still held Santander
The French had to retreat towards San Sebastian to resupply

Wellington ordered his army to hold Santander
Soult ordered his army to hold the line of the river Ebro

25 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 7

 

French forced to retreat to river Ebro due to lack of supplies
Siege of Soncillo abandoned

10 French army – retreat to Laredo to resupply
11 French army – defend river Ebro
12 French army – retreat to river Ebro

1 British army – rally and hold Santander
2 British army – hold Medina
3 British army – raise siege of Soncillo

Guerillas
All brigades stood down to rally, regroup and resupply

24 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 6

Day 2 siege of Soncillo
Battle of Santander
British occupy Medina

10 French army – attack Santander
11 French army – rally and regroup
12 French army – siege of Soncillo

1 British army – defend Santander
2 British army – occupy Medina
3 British army – hold Soncillo

Guerillas

13 brigade – attack convoy, capture 9 days supplies, escort routed
14 brigade – attack convoy, routed with 10% casualties
16 brigade - attack convoy, fail, retreat no casualties
21 brigade – attack convoy, routed with 10% casualties

23 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 5

French lay siege to Soncillo
Battle of Medina
10 French army – rally and regroup at Laredo
11 French army – attack Medina
12 French army – lay siege to Soncillo

Day 1 siege of Soncillo
1 British army – rally and regroup at Santander
2 British army – defend Medina
3 British army – siege of Soncillo

Guerillas
20 brigade – attack convoy, fail, routed with 10% casualties
15 brigade – attack convoy, fail, retreat no casualties
18 brigade – attack convoy, fail, retreat no casualties

22 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 4

 

10 French army – occupy Laredo
11 French army – rally and regroup at Ramales
12 French army – attack Soncillo

1 British army – retreat to Santander
2 British army – rally and regroup at Medina
3 British army – defend Soncillo

Guerrillas
13 brigade – return to village
14 brigade – return to village
16 brigade – return to village
17 brigade – capture convoy and 6 days supplies
19 brigade – attack convoy but routed with 10% casualties

21 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 3

 

French attack Laredo
French occupy Ramales
10 French army – attack Laredo
11 French army – occupy Ramales
12 French army – rally and regroup at Villacayo

British retreat to Medina
Battle of Laredo
1 British army – defend Laredo
2 British army – retreat to Medina
3 British army – rally and regroup at Soncillo

Guerillas
14 brigade – abandon Ramales
16 brigade – capture convoy outside Sarautz
18 brigade – return to village
20 brigade – return to village
21 brigade – return to village

20 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 2

 

French attack Ramales
French occupy Villacayo
10 French army – hold Sarautz
11 French army – attack Ramales
12 French army – occupy Villacayo

British move up to border
British retreat to Soncillo
1 British army – move up to border
2 British army – defend Ramales
3 British army – retreat to Soncillo

Guerillas
18 brigade – attack convoy outside Beasain
20 brigade – capture convoy outside Tolosa
21 brigade – move closer to border.

19 July 1813 – North Spain – Day 1

French attack Villacayo

10 French army – hold Sarautz
11 French army – hold Bergara
12 French army – attack Villacayo

1 British army – hold Laredo
2 British army – hold Ramales 3 British army – defend Villaca
3 British army – defend Villacayo

19 July 1813 – North Spain – Santander Campaign

Map of Europe

There are five campaign areas in Europe

North Germany – French v Prussians
Central Germany – French v Russians
Southern Germany – French v Austrians
North Spain – French v British
South Spain – French v Spanish

This is the 17th campaign phase
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Santander is the white star

Map of Spain

There are two campaign areas in Spain
North Spain – Fourth French and British Armies
South Spain – Fifth French and Spanish Armies

This is the seventh campaign to be fought in Spain
Santander is the white star

Map of North Spain

There are three regions in North Spain
Oporto Region – British rear area
Madrid Region – campaign area
Barcelona Region – French rear area

This is the fourth campaign phase to be fought in North Spain
Each star shows the location of a campaign phase
Santander is the white star

Map of Madrid Region

There are nine districts in Madrid Region
There have been sixteen battles fought in this region
The French have won 8 and the British 6
Each star shows the location of a battle fought

Campaign Map

The Santander campaign is fought between the cities of Santander and San Sebastian
The French Army of North Spain is deployed to the right of the district border
The British Army is deployed to the left of the district border
The French objective is to take and hold the city of Talavera
Each block represents one corps

The French objective is to take the city of Santander

Typical British corps

Each corps has 4 infantry brigades, 1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery


British Army – Duke of Wellington
1st British corps
2nd British corps
3rd British corps
4th British corps
5th British corps
6th British corps
7th Spanish corps
8th Spanish corps
9th Spanish corps

British - 96000 infantry, 6000 cavalry, 180 guns
Spanish - 48000 infantry. 3000 cavalry, 90 guns
Militia - 24,000 infantry

Typical French corps

Each corps has 4 infantry brigades, 1 cavalry brigade and corps artillery


Fourth French Army of North Spain – Marshal Soult
28th Young Guard corps
29th French corps
30th Polish corps
31st French corps
32nd Westphalian corps
33rd Italian corps
34th French corps
35th French corps
36th Vistula corps

168000 infantry, 9000 cavalry, 270 guns

Campaign Diary

1 February 1813 - Austria, Britain, Prussia, Russia and Spain declared war on France
20 February 1813 - Anglo/Portuguese army operational in Oporto Region
27 February 1813 - Fourth French army operational in Burgos Region
22 March 1813 - Start of Valladolid campaign phase
29 March 1813 - British win Valladolid campaign phase
10 May 1813 - Start of Llanes campaign phase
19 May 1813 - British win Llanes campaign phase
25 June 1813 - Start of Talavera campaign phase

Reference
The campaign diary contains comprehensive details of the whole campaign. The labels on the right are an index to various parts of the campaign.

01 - Introduction to the1813 campaign
02 - Five campaign areas
40 - Introduction to the campaign in northern Spain
41 - Fourth French Army order of battle
42 - British Army order of battle
43 - Daily diary for the campaign in northern Spain
44 - Battle reports of all battles fought in northern Spain
45 - Summary of campaign in northern Spain

2 July 1813 – Northern Spain – End of Talavera Campaign

 

Battles fought during campaign phase

Soult won four of the six battles fought

Wellington won the remaining two

 

Soult took and held the city of Talavera and therefore won the campaign

 

The campaign started on 23 July and ended on 28 September 2023

This was the first campaign using our new wargame rules, which rely on just 1D6 to decide firing, melee and morale.   The rules worked well and needed only minor adjustments.   Wellington had two British and one Spanish corps in each of his three armies.  The Spanish were allocated garrison duties, so most of the fighting was done by the British brigades.   The Spanish infantry performed much better than expected.   

Madrid Region

At the end of the campaign the French had occupied Talavera

Soult ordered his army to hold the city and established his headquarters there

 

Wellington ordered his army to hold just west