Bladensburg 1814 | Battle Cry

Pete Belli

(pete belli)

United States

Florida

The disaster at Bladensburg was one of the most humiliating defeats in the history of the United States armed forces. The invading British force smashed the untrained militia and advanced on Washington DC to burn the Executive Mansion, the U.S. Capitol, and other public buildings. Only a stubborn defensive fight by Marines and naval gunners near the end of the battle preserved a morsel of respect for the American military.

An observant Geek might notice that I have used the basic rules from Battle Cry to recreate this battle from the Napoleonic era. There are two reasons for this decision. First, I don’t own the C&C Napoleon game because I wouldn’t play it enough to justify the purchase. Second, I always enjoy messing around with my collection of army men. Since the scenario uses a few rule changes I developed everything worked out OK.

The map depicts the entire battlefield but most of the action starts at the bridge. The river is fordable near the crossing hex so the British assault is not channeled into a funnel. The aggressive British player has a tremendous leadership advantage. The inept American commander had been appointed based on his political connections in Maryland. His already questionable tactical dispositions were interfered with by politicians… including a meddling Secretary of State named James Monroe!

Most of the American units are raw militia but the more effective formations (Marines, Regular Army, and the gunners from the U.S Navy) are marked with flags. Militia formations can melt away when they retreat because these units always suffer an additional casualty when forced to withdraw.

The heavy naval guns have much more firepower than the relatively small-caliber cannon in the other artillery units. This battery was supported by a detachment of Marines and sailors; these men fought heroically while the green militia exited the field. In a bizarre incident typical of the chaos surrounding this battle a commodore from the U.S. Navy was captured by a British admiral.

The crucial Potomac River crossing was defended by an entrenched artillery unit. Unfortunately, the fortification had been designed for larger guns so the American cannon had a limited field of fire through improvised embrasures. To reflect this situation the artillery can only fire directly ahead. The gray infantry formations represent militia riflemen. These marksmen took a heavy toll on the initial enemy assault when the overconfident British commander launched a hasty attack.

The blue horseman represents President Madison. The diminutive Mr. Madison rushed onto the battlefield wearing a pair of enormous dueling pistols and nearly rode into the British lines. The beleaguered American player suffers a big victory point penalty if the president is killed or captured.

The veteran British troops had just endured a debilitating sea voyage and had been marching around the countryside in blazing summer heat. A number of redcoats died from heat prostration during the campaign. The British were short of transport and planned a quick strike at the American capital before withdrawing to their fleet. This means the U.S. player can win a victory by fighting a successful delaying action, even if the militia cracks under the brutal pressure of combat.

Although the British force contained three brigades only two of these formations took part in the battle. The third formation (marked with flags) can only appear if a certain event card is drawn from the deck. British foot units include light infantry, infantry, and Royal Marines. There is no British cavalry; the imaginative enemy commander had been forced to improvise a small group of scouts mounted on captured horses.

The tiny British artillery unit never reached the battlefield but the redcoats deployed a substantial number of Congreve rockets. These weapons inflicted few casualties but terrorized the American militia. In the scenario a rocket attack is likely to send a militia formation heading for the rear… which also leads to casualties caused by panic. The rocket “corps” is represented by the red Risk arrows.

The awkward American set up shown in this example is based on the historical situation… I’m thinking about another option which places the Yankees in the slightly more advantageous tactical positions the formations were in before Monroe and the other politicians started playing soldier.