28mm Napoleonics à la Maison de Aidan

I dropped by Aidan’s to help him give his Napoleonic collection a twirl around a battlefield today, and found the sheer number of models he has made and painted (and in some cases created whole new outfits with green putty for) amazing.  I commanded the French in the guise of General Ney, while Aidan took a rag tag Allied outfit with a British brigade masquerading as the hardened core of an army which included a Portuguese brigade and a Spanish one.  The models lit up the table in their multi coloured uniforms (Aidan’s aim being to paint up units with more blue on the Allied side, and more red on the French side to counter the traditional Red Vs Blue view) and I took a fair few pictures, with the ones below the highlights.

As for the two games we played; in the first the French began on the battlefield, the Allies off table, and, with the bulk of the Allied forces slow to arrive my cavalry managed to manoeuvre onto the flank of the British cavalry and infantry, wiping out the first, and pinning the second.  The Spanish became stuck in an unwinnable and inglorious battle for a house in the village with the French light companies, and I used the opportunity to switch my infantry to the right, defeating the British and Portuguese infantry on the way to victory.

The second battle saw us both arrive from opposite corners, and again it was the French who were quickest off the mark, with my dragoons threatened the Spanish infantry and pinning the enemy into a corner once more.  It didn’t work so well this time however, and my horsemen were swift to quit the field, along with a couple of infantry battalions.  I had enough infantry, however, to cause plenty of casualties on the advancing Allies, and their superior numbers were quickly whittled down.  An honourable draw was declared when we discovered that not only was the French infantry brigade broken, but so was the British and Spanish, leaving just some Portuguese infantry and the unpredictable British hussars.

Eye candy time.

The First Battle:

2nd Line Regiment of the French army; 1st and 2nd battalions.

French to the right sweeping forward.

French infantry advancing on the Portuguese on the edge of the village.

The French cavalry (far left) crushing the Allies into a corner.

Spanish troops trying and failing to subdue the French light infantry in the town.

British infantry.

French battalion - Wutzerburgers I think.

More French - 15th Line Regiment.

The 2nd Line Regiment, 1st battalion, off for a walk......

.......before it is called back to deal with a Portuguese counter attack.

The French hussars caused the British redcoats to form square, and then the French infantry moved in.

The brightly coloured Spaniards.

French light infantry officer.

The Second Battle:

British hussars.

The opening stages; French to the right.

French infantry pouring on.

Both sides manoeuvring for positions.

Mid way point and the battle lines are draw.

More colourful Spaniards.

My contribution!  19 Frenchmen, who looked quite dull and poor compared with Aidan's brightly coloured men.