The Battle of Friedchikun - The Conclusion

Honorable Son #2's girlfriend asks: "Okay, explain to me again how a high school freshman beat a retired infantry officer and an Army cadet?"

Okay it's time to 'fess up. I can't find my notes for the battle report. Here's a quick summary and lots of pictures

As mentioned earlier the game would last 8 turns. The initial attacks by the French Infantry divisions were met with disaster. The division advancing on the extreme right through the woods became hopelessly disordered and would stay so for the majority of the game. The other division advanced through the open ground into the Imperial artillery's engagement error which took all of 2 1/2 turns for the division to become exhausted and unable to conduct any more offensive actions.


I've never seen artillery through so many 6's in my life. The only thing the saved the right and center from complete collapse was the reserve and the conduct of the French cavalry.
The French cavalry, led by Honorable Son #2, performed superbly as they repulsed the initial Imperial cavalry charge on the French left flank. Then, in a series of attacks, the French cavalry in wave after wave pushed backed and punished their Imperial counter parts and almost broke the Austrian center.



Only the quick repositioning of several Imperial infantry regiments by Honorable Son #4 prevented the collapse of the Austrian position. If the French infantry had not performed so disastrously early on in the battle (yeah, it was my fault) and had been able to support the French cavalry, the outcome of the game might have been different.


By the end of turn 7, both armies had taken high casualties; however, the French had no divisions except for one cavalry division capable of offensive action. Realizing that there was no way for the French to win, the French commander graciously conceded the field of battle to the Imperial commander.

In the end, the steadiness of the Imperial commander keeping to his plan gave him victory. The French employed their cavalry well, but the uncoordinated attacks of the infantry with the lack of artillery support led to missed opportunities. A fun game that reminded us all that maybe the Great Captains of that time knew how to deploy their armies the right way!