The Great Swedish Invasion II: The Battle Of Swanland

Nearly four years may have passed, but to our historical participants in The Great Swedish Invasion of England it has been but a few days.  And as the autumn of 1643 winds its way into winter the Swedes must take stock of their failures.  Their unexpected defeat and rough handling by the forces of the English at the Battle of Little Pontefract has knocked their myth of invincibility, and shaken their tree of certainty.  The dose of a combination of Charles, Rupert, Cromwell and Fairfax was too hard a pill to swallow and they have choked.  Even worse they have discovered that their 100 year lease on that sheep farm in Cumbria is a forgery.  The situation is dire.

Breaking into several large columns and falling back upon their supply lines they begin the relatively short march towards the coast and the great university city of Hull.  There they expect to meet their fleet laden with enough household goods to enable to regroup and really settle down and make their home in Yorkshire while they plot their next diabolical move.  However, Hull, apart from its great university, is also known for its high city walls and its armoury, and the governor of the city proves a hard man to bargain with despite the bulk of the Swedish army being now camped outside.  Indeed, while the Swedish envoys are still negotiating the price of the cities surrender news comes of the English army.  Charles has given way to Rupert and Cromwell’s demands to press their advantage, and they are on the move and closing in.

There is no time for further negotiation.  The Swedes require the port, the rum, and the docks at Hull, and the ammunition in the armoury wouldn’t go amiss either.  There isn’t time to make a run further up the coast, and the English now outnumber them.  The ordinance opens up on the walls of Hull, and the storming parties ready their ladders, but the English are closer than they imagined, and on the edges of their main camp at the fabulously named village of Swanland the muskets are already sounding as they find themselves fighting on two fronts….

For those needing a background to such events, it can be found here:

https://rgmb-stonebridge.blogspot.com/2015/07/the-great-swedish-invasion.html

The Scenario

The Dastardly Swedish:

General Ian ‘Sven’ Nilsson

Lord Of Horse Chris ‘I’ve Brought A Horse’ Johansson

General Paul ‘The Bringer of Many Men’ Karlsson

Stormer of Castles Earl Michael ‘Gustavus Adolphus’ Olsson

The defeat at Little Pontefract used up much of the Swedes ammunition and supplies.  They need to capture a port for their ships to bring much needed supplies from the continent and to provide shelter from the harsh English winter.  They also need to secure the surrounding villages and fortify them to give their troops a base while they rebuild their strength ready to retake the offensive in the Spring of 1644.  Gaining the ammunition stores of the arsenal of Hull would also go some way to making good their consumption so far!  Life would be so much easier if all the columns of troops had managed to make it to Hull, but they must fend off the stronger English with what they have….

Both battlefields, from the West looking across Windmill Hill towards Wesselton in the centre, then to Swanland by the river at the far end.  The city of Hull is on the next table hidden to the left at the back of the room.

Wesselton and the Swedes of General Paul.

Swanland and the Swedes of Lord Nilsson.

The Brave, Heroic, Salt of the Earth English:

Lord Aidan ‘Wheres The Tea?’ Stanley-Matthews

Earl Neville Chamberlain – known as Ben to his friends

Laid Mcflurry – also known as Ben

City Governor Rick ‘Save me!’

General of Dragoons Red ‘The Ghost’

The cowardly foreign invaders are fleeing to the sea!  Now is the time to press the advantage and destroy the Swedish field army before they can regroup.  They must not be allowed to rest and fortify the surrounding countryside, or claim the city of Hull, with which they could prolong this dreadful war, distracting from the more important questions such as the colour scheme of the new pray book.  The English are stronger, and the main aim must be the destruction of the Swedish army, but to do so they will need to deny them the city of Hull, and any opportunity to regroup.

The Swedish centre.

First glimpse of the walls of Hull.

The Battle

And so the story begins, although it will be a shorter story than many I have publicised previously because when all is said and done my free time is not what it was.  So to open the ball 8 men and a boy unwittingly named after a British Prime Minister took to the battlefields around the city of Hull to do, um, battle.  The main conflict took place upon a field measuring 6ft by 16ft, with the Swedish garrisoning the two villages of Swanland (by the river) and Wesselton further inland.  Further Swedish forces laid siege to that great university city of Hull on a 6ft by 4ft board, hoping to capture its walls, and the arsenal within, a matter of some urgency because unlike their English counterparts the Swedes had limited powder.  Troops could be moved between the boards, but on this occasion didn’t.

Swanland by the river.

All the Swedish commmanders on their left were caught short in the tavern in  Swanland when the battle begins.

The Opening Moves

On the English left the ghost division began what would be a long march towards Windmill Hill, with elements also trading long ranged fire with the numerous Swedes in Wesselton.  No such manoeuvring niceties from Lord Stanley-Matthews, as his battalia advanced directly upon Wesselton, pike and musketeers clashing in the outskirts.  General Paul of the Many Men held the Swedish right flank, and his troops gave fire and fought bravely.  

Swedes.

In the centre horse battalia’s from both the Ben’s went piling towards Lord Of The Horse Chris and his many Swedish horse regiments.  A massed brawl erupted immediately, with many charges, counter charges, and casualties on both sides.  On the English, or should I say Scottish, right all was quiet however.  General Nilsson’s Swedish troops in Swanland remained untroubled because the Scottish had, quite clearly, forgotten to turn up.  Nearer the city of Hull the Swedes under Michael began their trudge forwards, ladders tucked under their arms, while ordinance blasted the towers ahead of them.

Lord Chamberlain and Earl Mcflurrys horse on the offensive for the English.

Lord Stanley-Matthews battalia attacking into the Swedish held village of Wesselton.

Wesselton.

The view from Windmill hill.

English garrison on the walls of hull.

Whatever comes through that gate.... 

The first ladders about to be raised at Hull.

Petards!

The Middle Bit

The Ghost Battalia swept over Windmill Hill, and charged into the enemy horse, who were clearly so surprised they fell back – dragoon on dragoon mounted action a rare thing indeed.  Unfortunately, the rest of Red’s English infantry were slower to move up, being distracted by the sight of some cows in a field, obviously inner city regiments who’d never seen such beasts close up before.  They remained close enough to the Swedes on the West side of Wesselton to continue to exchange musketry and ordinance fire across the wagonway.  Lord Stanley-Matthews men continued their implacable advance into Wesselton, pushing back the Swedish pike, and capturing several houses in the Western half of the village.  General Paul could only watch with concern as his men gave ground gradually in the village, and the horse of Lord Chris disintegrated on his left.  

Swanland and Swedes.

That swirling horse melee in the centre continued with the horse regiments of both Bens finally being sent packing by Lord Chris’ significantly bigger Swedish hard nuts.  However, this only opened up the space for Lord Stanley-Matthews horse to charge, and with the damage already done the Swedish horse could take no more and retired from the field.  

The initial English horse charge is exhausted, but Stanley-Matthews horse are about to take over.

Wesselton and the Swedes under pressure.

The ghost battalia of the English army sweeping around Windmill Hill.

On the English…ahem….Scottish right the Scots, under Laid McFlurry (complete with music) finally arrived, brought onto the field the only way it was ever going to happen; by a blunder.  They shook themselves off, accepted an order for the first and last time that day, and charged into the edge of the village of Swanland, assisted by Earl Chamberlains foote regiment and storming party who had been hanging around waiting for such backup to arrive.  General Nilsson, never one to quibble when the fight came to him, left his men to defend their cheval de fries while he dealt with a more pressing issue – with near 35 pieces of ordinance on the battlefield, some double shotted, the Swedes were running out of powder!

No such concerns troubled Earl Michael as his guns continued to pound the Hull city walls to not very much effect.  To one side, furthest from the gate, several units of musketeers already had their ladders up and were exchanging blows with the English musketeers defending the walls, while the English pikemen waited below, watching on anxiously.  Towards the river more musketeer ladder parties had stalled under a galling fire from the towers.  The Swedes trump card was being revealed close to the gate however, as three storming parties had broken cover, petards in hand, and were racing for the gatehouse, the English musketry seemingly powerless to stop them.

Now, who brought the matches? 

Hull from the riverside - note the large building at the end of the wall; the arsenal which the Swedes are striving to capture.

Dragoon on dragoon action around the base of Windmill Hill.

Stanley-Matthews horse sweep away the remains of Lord Chris' men.

The End Of All Things

And so we come to it.  The finally countdown.  The big reveal.  Except the battle had somewhat slowed in places.  Lord Stanley-Matthews had got the better of General Paul in Wesselton, holding 4 houses to the Swedes 3, sufficient to claim he had captured the village, and his horse had driven away the remains of Lord Chris’ men to the East of the village, but was faced with several pike blocks, and had no infantry support to deal with them.  The ghost battalia had a nasty shock, as a new Swedish column arrived on their flank, but fortunately for the English most of the enemy horse failed to arrive in time to make a difference.  A counter charge by some of General Paul’s horse however saw them move up onto Windmill Hill, denying the English control of it.   

The two Ben’s; Laird Mcflurry and Lord Chamberlain, provided a pyrotechnically exclamation mark for the fighting around the village of Swanland when Lord Chamberlains storming party used a petard to blow several cheval de frise, most of a house, a hedgerow, and a number of quite unhappy Swedes, several dozen feet in the air.  Despite this, and the loss of a further number of musketeers, General Nilssons men held firm, assisted, as always, by the Scottish failure to pass any form of command check.  Swanland remained in Swedish hands.

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With broken battalia few in number the outcome, it seemed, would be decided at the walls of Hull, where the Swedes were struggling to get men to the walls, struggling to get their ladders up against the walls, and struggling to bring down any of the towers.  The initial fight on the walls furthest from the gate was still in the balance as the English defenders gallantly held on, while towards the river the attackers couldn’t sort their feet out and continuous disorder results held them back.  Two large explosions were inbound however – firstly Earl Michaels storming parties went O.T.T and dumped two petards by the gate, which lasted as long as a snowflake in a pizza oven.  Then the corner tower, defending musketeers long since dead or fled, finally collapsed under sustained mortar fire.  First into the ruins of the gate however were the English pikemen, and try as they might the Swedish musketeers couldn’t shift them. 

Night was falling, and teatime wasn’t as far away as it had been, and the Swedish attempt to capture Hull and build a stronghold by the Humber had failed by a whisker.

The gate blows - destroyed by 2 petards, which was a slight overkill but when the Swedes commit to doing a job they really commit.

The ladders never quite made it up under concentrated musket fire from the defenders.

Debating who will be first through the gateway, but the English pike get there first and hold on - just.

On the Northern ramparts the English musketeers are under great pressure, and night comes just in time.

Postscript

The armies drew apart as night fell, and in the morning all that was left of the Swedish forces were some mdf and cold camp fires; they had withdrawn to the North in the night hoping to meet up with their ships and find refuge and possibly aid further afield.  The English, equally battered, and in need of sustenance marched to York to regroup, believing their enemy vanquished.  What will happen when a Scottish-backed and replenished Swedish army emerges from Northumberland, nobody knows.  We may have to wait four more years to find out.