His Majesty's Independent Company of Rangers (Rogers' Rangers)

 

Rogers' Rangers was initially a provincial company from the colony of New Hampshire, attached to the British Army during the Seven Years' War (French and Indian War). The unit was quickly adopted into the British army as an independent ranger company. Major Robert Rogers trained the rapidly deployed light infantry force tasked mainly with reconnaissance as well as conducting special operations against distant targets.

Their tactics were built on earlier colonial precedents and were codified for the first time by Rogers. The tactics proved remarkably effective, so much so that the initial company was expanded into a ranging corps of 14 companies containing as many as 1,200–1,400 men at its peak. This included three all-Indian units, two of Stockbridge Mahicans and one of Indians from Connecticut (mainly Mohegan (Mohican) and Pequot). 

Rogers was then promoted to major and served as commandant of the Ranger Corps. The ranger corps became the chief scouting arm of British Crown forces by the late 1750s. The British forces in America valued Rogers' Rangers for their ability to gather intelligence about the enemy. They were disbanded in 1761.

My Ranger Company for Rebels and Patriots (Paid Link) comes from the excellent range of FIW figures at NorthStar. They are from the packs MT 00001 British Ranger Officer and MT 00002 British Rangers 1.

For Rebels and Patriots (Paid Link) they will be a Small unit of Aggressive, Veteran Light Infantry. The unit will be only 6 figures; at 8 points out of a 24 point force they are expensive and small - but well worth it on the battlefield.

Ranger Officer

I have not purchased Musket and Tomahawks (yet) mainly because it grates me that I need to buy the rule book, buy,the supplement to play the FIW, and then purchase the cards separately for the FIW to play the game. I'm not a fan of that kind of marketing; but, hey, I hear it's a good game and I may give it a go in the future. The nice thing that NorthStar does do for the game is that the figure packs are the correct sizes for the units involved in the game.
 

Robert Rogers' 28 Rules of Ranging:

1. All Rangers are to be subject to the rules and articles of war; to appear at roll-call every evening, on their own parade, equipped, each with a Firelock, sixty rounds of powder and ball, and a hatchet, at which time an officer from each company is to inspect the same, to see they are in order, so as to be ready on any emergency to march at a minute's warning; and before they are dismissed, the necessary guards are to be draughted, and scouts for the next day appointed.
2. Whenever you are ordered out to the enemies forts or frontiers for discoveries, if your number be small, march in a single file, keeping at such a distance from each other as to prevent one shot from killing two men, sending one man, or more, forward, and the like on each side, at the distance of twenty yards from the main body, if the ground you march over will admit of it, to give the signal to the officer of the approach of an enemy, and of their number,
3. If you march over marshes or soft ground, change your position, and march abreast of each other to prevent the enemy from tracking you (as they would do if you marched in a single file) till you get over such ground, and then resume your former order, and march till it is quite dark before you encamp, which do, if possible, on a piece of ground which that may afford your sentries the advantage of seeing or hearing the enemy some considerable distance, keeping one half of your whole party awake alternately through the night.
4. Some time before you come to the place you would reconnoitre, make a stand, and send one or two men in whom you can confide, to look out the best ground for making your observations.
5. If you have the good fortune to take any prisoners, keep them separate, till they are examined, and in your return take a different route from that in which you went out, that you may the better discover any party in your rear, and have an opportunity, if their strength be superior to yours, to alter your course, or disperse, as circumstances may require.
6. If you march in a large body of three or four hundred, with a design to attack the enemy, divide your party into three columns, each headed by a proper officer, and let those columns march in single files, the columns to the right and left keeping at twenty yards distance or more from that of the center, if the ground will admit, and let proper guards be kept in the front and rear, and suitable flanking parties at a due distance as before directed, with orders to halt on all eminences, to take a view of the surrounding ground, to prevent your being ambuscaded, and to notify the approach or retreat of the enemy, that proper dispositions may be made for attacking, defending, And if the enemy approach in your front on level ground, form a front of your three columns or main body with the advanced guard, keeping out your flanking parties, as if you were marching under the command of trusty officers, to prevent the enemy from pressing hard on either of your wings, or surrounding you, which is the usual method of the savages, if their number will admit of it, and be careful likewise to support and strengthen your rear-guard.
7. If you are obliged to receive the enemy's fire, fall, or squat down, till it is over; then rise and discharge at them. If their main body is equal to yours, extend yourselves occasionally; but if superior, be careful to support and strengthen your flanking parties, to make them equal to theirs, that if possible you may repulse them to their main body, in which case push upon them with the greatest resolution with equal force in each flank and in the center, observing to keep at a due distance from each other, and advance from tree to tree, with one half of the party before the other ten or twelve yards. If the enemy push upon you, let your front fire and fall down, and then let your rear advance thro' them and do the like, by which time those who before were in front will be ready to discharge again, and repeat the same alternately, as occasion shall require; by this means you will keep up such a constant fire, that the enemy will not be able easily to break your order, or gain your ground.
8. If you oblige the enemy to retreat, be careful, in your pursuit of them, to keep out your flanking parties, and prevent them from gaining eminences, or rising grounds, in which case they would perhaps be able to rally and repulse you in their turn.
9. If you are obliged to retreat, let the front of your whole party fire and fall back, till the rear hath done the same, making for the best ground you can; by this means you will oblige the enemy to pursue you, if they do it at all, in the face of a constant fire.
10. If the enemy is so superior that you are in danger of being surrounded by them, let the whole body disperse, and every one take a different road to the place of rendezvous appointed for that evening, which must every morning be altered and fixed for the evening ensuing, in order to bring the whole party, or as many of them as possible, together, after any separation that may happen in the day; but if you should happen to be actually surrounded, form yourselves into a square, or if in the woods, a circle is best, and, if possible, make a stand till the darkness of the night favours your escape.
11. If your rear is attacked, the main body and flankers must face about to the right or left, as occasion shall require, and form themselves to oppose the enemy, as before directed; and the same method must be observed, if attacked in either of your flanks, by which means you will always make a rear of one of your flank-guards.
12. If you determine to rally after a retreat, in order to make a fresh stand against the enemy, by all means endeavour to do it on the most rising ground you come at, which will give you greatly the advantage in point of situation, and enable you to repulse superior numbers.
13. In general, when pushed upon by the enemy, reserve your fire till they approach very near, which will then put them into the greatest surprise and consternation, and give you an opportunity of rushing upon them with your hatchets and cutlasses to the better advantage.
    
    
    
    
    
14. When you encamp at night, fix your sentries in such a manner as not to be relieved from the main body till morning, profound secrecy and silence being often of the last importance in these cases. Each sentry therefore should consist of six men, two of whom must be constantly alert, and when relieved by their fellows, it should be done without noise; and in case those on duty see or hear any thing, which alarms them, they are not to speak, but one of them is silently to retreat, and acquaint the commanding officer thereof, that proper dispositions may be made; and all occasional sentries should be fixed in like manner.
15. At the first dawn of day, awake your whole detachment; that being the time when the savages choose to fall upon their enemies, you should by all means be in readiness to receive them.
16. If the enemy should be discovered by your detachments in the morning, and their numbers are superior to yours, and a victory doubtful, you should not attack them till the evening, as then they will not know your numbers, and if you are repulsed, your retreat will be favoured by the darkness of the night.
17. Before you leave your encampment, send out small parties to scout round it, to see if there be any appearance or track of an enemy that might have been near you during the night.
18. When you stop for refreshment, choose some spring or rivulet if you can, and dispose your party so as not to be surprised, posting proper guards and sentries at a due distance, and let a small party waylay the path you came in, lest the enemy should be pursuing.
19. If, in your return, you have to cross rivers, avoid the usual fords as much as possible, lest the enemy should have discovered, and be there expecting you.
20. If you have to pass by lakes, keep at some distance from the edge of the water, lest, in case of an ambuscade or an attack from the enemy, when in that situation, your retreat should be cut off.
21. If the enemy pursue your rear, take a circle till you come to your own tracks, and there form an ambush to receive them, and give them the first fire.
22. When you return from a scout, and come near our forts, avoid the usual roads, and avenues thereto, lest the enemy should have headed you, and lay in ambush to receive you, when almost exhausted with fatigues.
23. When you pursue any party that has been near our forts or encampments, follow not directly in their tracks, lest they should be discovered by their rear guards, who, at such a time, would be most alert; but endeavour, by a different route, to head and meet them in some narrow pass, or lay in ambush to receive them when and where they least expect it.
24. If you are to embark in canoes, battoes, or otherwise, by water, choose the evening for the time of your embarkation, as you will then have the whole night before you, to pass undiscovered by any parties of the enemy, on hills, or other places, which command a prospect of the lake or river you are upon.
25. In paddling or rowing, give orders that the boat or canoe next the sternmost, wait for her, and the third for the second, and the fourth for the third, and so on, to prevent separation, and that you may be ready to assist each other on any emergency.
26. Appoint one man in each boat to look out for fires, on the adjacent shores, from the numbers and size of which you may form some judgment of the number that kindled them, and whether you are able to attack them or not.
27. If you find the enemy encamped near the banks of a river or lake, which you imagine they will attempt to cross for their security upon being attacked, leave a detachment of your party on the opposite shore to receive them, while, with the remainder, you surprise them, having them between you and the lake or river.
    
    
    
    
    
28. If you cannot satisfy yourself as to the enemy's number and strength, from their fire, conceal your boats at some distance, and ascertain their number by a reconnoitering party, when they embark, or march, in the morning, marking the course they steer, when you may pursue, ambush, and attack them, or let them pass, as prudence shall direct you. In general, however, that you may not be discovered by the enemy upon the lakes and rivers at a great distance, it is safest to lay by, with your boats and party concealed all day, without noise or shew; and to pursue your intended route by night; and whether you go by land or water, give out parole and countersigns, in order to know one another in the dark, and likewise appoint a station every man to repair to, in case of any accident that may separate you.

 

Lieutenant Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot, Compagnies Franches de la Marine

  Lieutenant Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot, Compagnies Franches de la Marine.

 Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot was born in Quebec on February 7th, 1727 and entered upon a military career early in life. He became a gentlemen cadet in the Campagnies Franches de la Marine in 1739, with the comment “a promising young man, very steady.” In 1742 he joined the Quebec garrison as assistant adjutant. During the years 1744 and 1745 he participated in several expeditions along the New York frontier.

 After the first Siege of Louisbourg in May–June 1745, a British force composed largely of New England irregulars proceeded to seize Île Saint-Jean (present day Prince Edward Island) and its capital Port-la-Joye, which had a French garrison consisting of about 15 soldiers and 100 Mi'kmaq. The British force consisted of two Royal Navy ships and 200 New England soldiers stationed at Port-La-Joie. Boishébert was sent to Île Saint-Jean on a reconnaissance to assess the size of the British force. After Boishébert returned, the French Army with over 500 men, 200 of whom were Mi'kmaq, went to Port-la-Joye. The battle took place in July 1746 near Port-la-Joye on the bank of the Northeast River and the French killed forty New Englanders and captured the rest.  Boishébert was commended for having distinguished himself during the battle exposing himself to danger and personally leading attacks against the enemy force.

 On 28 Feb. 1748 Boishébert was promoted lieutenant, and he soon was engaged in operations in yet another part of New France. The previous year had seen the threat of a general Indian uprising in the west, and in the spring of 1748 Boishébert was among the reinforcements sent under Pierre-Joseph Céloron de Blainville to Detroit, which was particularly endangered. He took part in an expedition that took revenge on the Indians for attacks that had been made on the French in the vicinity.

At the beginning of the French and Indian War, he was sent to take command of Fort La Tour, at the mouth of the Saint John River, and there he worked to counter persistent British efforts to establish themselves. He also made a study of the harbours between Acadia and Boston. The capture of Fort Beauséjour (near Sackville, N.B.) on 16 June 1755 by British Lieutenant Colonel Robert Monckton’s forces marked a turning-point in Boishébert’s career. Immediately after the fort fell, the British commander dispatched a large detachment against the handful of militiamen at Fort La Tour. As there was no hope of a successful outcome, Boishébert burned his fort before the enemy arrived and sought refuge among the local populace, continuing meanwhile to fight the enemy. The rest of his career in Acadia was spent working to secure the Acadians’ loyalty to France, bringing to French territory as many of those in British-occupied regions as possible, and with the Indians’ help constantly skirmishing against the enemy.  

 

Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot was a real officer of the Compagnies Franches de la Marine and he is going to be the Officer for the French Forces in Rebels and Patriots (Paid Link). When I rolled for the Officer Traits for the French Officer, I knew I had to find a man worthy of the roll. From my research, he was an outstanding leader, tactician, and compassionate man. I rolled a "3" and then a "4" giving him the trait "Strategist". This allows him to redeploy 6 points of troops (which is exactly the point count of a normal unit of Compagnies Franches de la Marine) up to 12 inches away from their original deployment point but no closer than 12 inches to an enemy unit. Yikes! The British are going to have their hands full with this guy.

 

The figure of the Officer of Compagnies Franches de la Marine is from North Star miniatures. As you have probably noticed, I forgot to paint his eyes.

Victoire sur les intrus britanniques!

My Second Company of Compagnies Franches de la Marine

 

Lieutenant Charles Deschamps de Boishébert et de Raffetot, Compagnies Franches de la Marine points out to his men where he wants the ambush set-up to defeat the their enemies from Great Britain.

My initial French Force for the French and Indian War, using the rules Rebel and Patriots, is complete. As a longtime gamer, of course there will be units added to the army! Here is my second unit of the Compagnies Franches de la Marine. I'm not going to go into the background and history as it was covered in a previous post when I did my first unit of Compagnies Franches de la Marine.

I wanted this unit to look different than my other Compagnies Franches de la Marine unit, and fortunately, the men wore a variety of dress as campaigning in the North American colonies of Great Britain and New France took a toll on regular uniforms. As a unit of light infantry and experienced with the terrain, their uniforms are practical as well as distinctive from my other unit dressed with only the blue jacket.

The complete unit of 12. Figures from North Star Miniatures Musket and Tomahawk Range  available from North Star and Brigade Games.

Scouting with Native allies. Indian Warriors from Warlord Games.

Compagnies de la Marine from NorthStar Figures

 

In New France, the Compagnies de la Marine were the only regular soldiers stationed by the French Crown from 1685 to 1755. They were independent companies under the authority of the French Minister of Marine, who was also responsible for the French Navy, French colonies and overseas trade. This is why they were referred to as Marines thought they did not serve as traditional marines in New France. A fine addition to my French force for the French and Indian War using the rules Rebels and Patriots (Paid Link).

My Compagnies de la Marine will be used as Light Infantry and I plan on doing another company to go along with them. The figures are from North Star and their packs come with 6 figures so two packs make a unit for Rebels and Patriots (Paid Link). The coats ended a little lighter and brighter than I wanted, but I figured 18th century clothing dye created the effect. I may also go back and add some more detail to the faces. All in all great figures that represent mostly experienced, native Canadians in practical uniforms that are used to fighting on the frontier.

In Rebels and Patriots , Light Infantry are Regulars and can form Close Order and conduct Volley Fire. Very versatile troops.

 

Happy Tanksgiving!

 

 Happy Thanksgiving to everyone - and belated Thanksgiving to our neighbors to the North. If were you live does not celebrate, just give Thanksgiving to the Lord where all good things come!