Seven Years War, Die Kreigskunst, 28mm

You won’t find Kirriesdorf in any atlas. This was a fictional battle, fought out in Kirriemuir in Scotland, laid on by the local wargames club. They’d invited the “Tricorne” team (myself and Dougie Trail) up to umpire, so it presented an opportunity to put the rules through their paces. The battle involved a Prussian attack against a French defended position, with one end of the French line anchored on the town of Kirriesdorf, and the other on a river.Both sides had around 20-24 battalions, 16 squadrons and around 6-8 guns, which meant we had something like 1,600 figures on the table. This was going to be a big battle, by anyone’s standards! The French were supplied by Dale Smith and myself, while the Prussians were from the collections of Roger Donaldson, Dougie Trail and Charles Grant. Finally, Bob Lauder supplied a strong force of British, who fought alongside their Prussian allies.The game began as the Prussians and British marched onto the table – the British from the north of the town (behind the river), and the Prussians from the east. The French simply stood their ground and waited – a real test of nerve for the French commanders as more and more Prussians and British arrived. Unfortunately the Prussians didn’t wait to dress their ranks before continuing the advance, but launched their brigades at the French line as they appeared. First came a rather lacklustre charge by the Prussian cavalry against the centre of the French line, which was shredded by the waiting French guns. The same guns then began to play on the Prussian infantry as they deployed for the attack. However, the real casualties came when the Prussians launched their first assault on the French left, but it still wasn’t enough to halt the dogged advance.The Prussians reached the left of the French line, and after some initial exchanges of musketry they went in with the bayonet. The result was a meat-grinder of a mini battle, which went on for the rest of the day. The first French line – the Rgt. Touraine) broke, but their reserves – the Rgt. del la Mark – held their ground, supported by the Grenadiers de France. By this time the British had managed to get their cavalry over the river and deployed in support of the Prussian infantry. Meanwhile a British flanking column had worked its way over the river just off the table, and appeared on the French left flank. Amazingly the French managed to pull back and form a new line, refusing their left flank, so most of the battle in that sector was spent with the French retiring, and the British advancing, with neither side making contact with the other.Then, over on the Prussian left, several assaults were launched against Kirriesdorf, which was held by French troops. After several attempt the Prussians managed to gain a lodgement in the town, and the street-fighting continued until the close of the battle, by which time almost half of the burning, shattered houses were in Prussian hands. In theory that would have deprived the French of their right flank anchor. However, by that time the main Prussian assault had been repulsed – it was a formidable assault spearheaded by Roger’s Prussian brigade, supported by horse and artillery. Still, Roger seemed fatally attracted by the French guns on a low hill, and consequently his troops were pulverised by canister at point-blank range.We had to pack up at 4pm, but by that stage it was clear who the winner was. With the exception of the fight for the town, all the other Prussian assaults had failed. The British still had to make their presence felt, thanks to some deft French rearguard action on the northern half of the table. The Prussian objective wasn’t territorial – it was to inflict a sound defeat on the French. Despite a few worrying moments the French players managed to hold their ground, and the safety of their army never really looked in jeopardy.It was a real pleasure to take part in the game, and to give the new rules such a good airing. We uncovered a few minor problems of rules definitions, and players had a few queries about how mechanisms worked, which was all really useful stuff for us. However, everyone thought that Die Kreigskunst worked a treat, and was both faster and more fun to play than they’d expected. Hurrah! Above all, everyone enjoyed the game, enjoyed the rules, and enjoyed the sheer spectacle! I tip my tricorne to Dale Smith, who organised the event, and who was such a good host. 

Tags: Die Kriegskunst