Who Cares?

Dear Sir,

I've just read the first two issues of your magazine, and I must congratulate you on an impressive publication. The Napoleonic era has needed a publication like this for years. Plenty of broad spectrum information, finite detail on campaigns and battles large or small and historical backgrounds. But please don't go the way so many other publications have and that is articles arguing over the size and colour of Oldenburg infantry buttons etc. Who cares? How and where they performed are far more interesting.

Rules and Realism

Dear Mr. Watkins,

I purchased a copy of FIRST EMPIRE at a recent convention and enjoyed your approach to the Hobby. My favourite style of game is the boardgame, but all of your articles had reference to the subject of Napoleonic gaming so were relevant to my interests.

I was particularly pleased to see the beginnings of discussion about how we take what happened in the real battles and seek to simulate it on the board/table. We have a great topic here, so why not do it justice? Your comments on page 13 (issue 4) being especially notable in this respect. I recently had to review a terrible boardgame called BORODINO: DOOMED VICTORY. It was a pretty standard piece of boardgame design (the equivalent of the traditional figure rules - infantry move six inches, hit on sixes - you know the stuff) and I suppose I might have given it the nod were it not for the fact that I collect Christopher Duffy's books and so had his Borodino book. I set up the scenario and tried to do what the French and Russians did according to the Big CD. The movement was out, the combat results were impossible (that is, the combat tables could not achieve the historical results) and time moved differently (both faster in some areas, and slower in others). The game was Napoleonic only in that it's counters had names from the battle, the rest was more fantastic than if dragons had appeared spouting fire. Clearly from your comments not only boardgame designers suffer from this problem.

Even if the designers get the fundamentals right there is still along way to go in getting the atmosphere of the battle (and without tripping off into cardboard simulator land) right. My reading of the Napoleonic period is weak, (mostly Waterloo, Austerlitz and Borodino) but over lunch recently I and another, much better read, gamer tried to reduce Napoleonic Warfare to four or five key concepts that one would need to design into any system. I forget the precise list, but the first ones were universal, (and universally fudged by rule writers), I think they were IGNORANCE, (poor old Napoleon cannot have seen all of Wellington's army at Waterloo, he did not have an Order of Battle for them, how often do we see that on the wargaming circuit?), FRICTION, (the way that a theoretically easy operation delayed and decayed in reality, I think of the Allies marching on the French right at Austerlitz), REALITY, (we all read about the theoretical forms of combat but they do not always seem to go that way. A number of times at Austerlitz units hurled themselves into the attack when no right minded gamer would have done so, for example, Hessen-Homburg capturing Telnitz, or Russian regiments attacking the French on the Pratzeburg despite being outnumbered. Clearly something we do not know is occurring here).

We then come upon a couple of specifically Napoleonic items; GLORY, (yes, let's be honest unless the figures or counters sparkle then it ain't Napoleonic. The death, the guts and the necrotic tissue notwithstanding we must have some splendour), and finally SIZE & LOSSES, (we felt that a Napoleonic battle was a big bugger and needed to feel that way, and that it was bloody and neither side should view combat lightly.)

I realise we would all have different lists but using the above we could see little that met these conditions. Figures clearly have the drop on the GLORY front, but have you seen the LA BATAILLE boardgames from Clash of Arms?

SIZE, in boardgames usually means unplayable, but as with figures, designers are moving towards brigade and division level rules. I still think we have a long way to go and I think FIRST EMPIRE might get us some way further.

American Praise for Bicorne..

Dear Mr. Watkins,

I want to congratulate you on your first five issues of First Empire. I have read them cover to cover and anxiously await each issue. I especially enjoy the battle reports and reviews of figures.

I recently discovered Bicorne miniatures and read your review of Bicorne figures with a little consternation. I believe that Bicorne may be the only manufacturer French troops in full dress in the 1806-1810 uniform. Additionally, the range is very deep and complete when compared to many other manufacturers ranges. I have painted a French division in full dress from bicorne and they are stunning! Many gamers and reviewers state that the figures are too tall or thin. Until you see the painted figure they do appear that way, but one painted, this appearance drops and the result is superb. I know that there are many gamers who want the "campaign - look" and others who prefer the "parade ground" look. Believe me, if it is "parade ground" appearance one is looking for - then this is where to find it. Additionally, the figures are very clean with a minimal amount of flash and mould lines. I think Mr. Holland deserves a pat on the back and full support by we gamers for his excellent range on miniatures.

I also agree with the editorial you wrote regarding the price of figures. I have been wargaming for thirty years now, (I an forty years old) and I have seen the rise in prices, the virtual monopoly that fantasy has acquired and the more recent heightened interest in smaller scales (6mm, 2mm, 1mm) of figures. I have a large fantasy army and several different historical period armies. But, as you eloquently state, we will not survive if our attitude is such that the beleaguered historical manufacturer is strangled by our refusal to acknowledge reality in the cost of doing business.

Thank you for your time and consideration and please continue your fine work on this most excellent publication.

6mm Rules, anybody recommend any good ones?

Dear Sir,

I would like to subscribe to First Empire, starting with issue 6. I brought the first five at various shows and now its the only wargaming mag that I can read from cover to cover without getting bored somewhere in between.

I would like to ask, do you have any preferences for rule systems (non-computer owner, unfortunately) to deal with 6mm (I use Adler after reading your review) and Corps size games? I prefer games with National characteristics of some kind.

Many Thanks

Editor. To be honest I have never understood this need to have one set of rules for one particular size of figure, but then again being your average everyday megalomaniac I do tend to put as many 6mm figures as I can into the area that would be occupied by a 15 or 25mm figure, and then carry on regardless! I would suggest that the Empire rules system for a more sophisticated game would do nicely or Napoleon's Battles for a faster game. (By the way filling a Napoleon's Battles base with 6mm figures looks a darn sight better than using 15s)

If any of the readers would care to offer their opinions on the question raised, then please put quill to parchment, nib to paper or chalk to board and tell us about it!

The Society of Ancients...?!

Dear Mr. Watkins.

In Dispatches Issue No 4, the Society of Ancients and its publication "Slingshot" were mentioned in a letter from David Commerford. I feel that his comments that Slingshot and the Society are connected with WRG Ancient Rules should be corrected. As a member and occasional contributor, I can testify that rule debates and discussions do not resolve solely around WRG. Each issue includes a "Rules Forum" where rule writers (Commercial and otherwise) put a short case and rationale for their mechanism for a particular aspect of the ancient wargame, e.g. Casualty removal, hand to hand combat systems etc. There are usually about four contributors to this section and it makes interesting reading to compare different rule-writers approaches as well as giving and indication whether their rules will be of interest to oneself. Perhaps this concept could be transferred to First Empire. Thanks for a good read anyway.

Editor. Right that's it, end of debate. God knows how I let the Society of Ancients get dragged into First Empire but it happened. They have been `slighted', (albeit unintentionally) and defended. The Rules Forum is a good idea and one which I am trying to push with Tricky Dicky Ayliffe's The Problem with Wargames Rules is.. articles. I will gladly publish any material received along these lines. (Rule mechanisms.. not S. of Ancients!)

Content and costs..

Dear Mr. Watkins,

I have read issue No. 5. and as always, I'm very pleased with this mag. I would like to comment on a few readers letters.

Firstly, as regards Mr. Lawrence's letter, yes, I would be willing to pay more for, say, two to four colour pages with uniform guides and I think everyone should be more than happy to pay a bit more for such a substantial increase in quality. From my own experience, I can confirm Mr. Lawrence's opinion that a coloured guide is far more convenient than the written word. It can be very frustrating to have to start leafing through a text while holding a figure in one hand and a brush in the other, whereas a quick glance at a coloured sheet is no effort and doesn't slow you up.

Secondly, I could not agree more with Mr. Bridgman, who says that First Empire should deal with Napoleonics exclusively, although I admit that articles on periods with direct links to the Napoleonic Wars, e.g. the SYW would be useful.

Lastly, I have read the review of Command Magazine #11 and I'd like to buy it, but unfortunately no address was given in the review. Could you please let me know?

Editor. First Empire will remain Napoleonic and the cover price will increase soon owing to increased production overheads. Glorious colour spreads may still be a while away, as I concentrating on building First Empire up slowly, it is already an established `read' with over 5000 Napoleonic gamers world wide.

Command Magazine in the U.K. is available from Virgin Game stores, (for your info Fabian there is one located at Oxford Street London, if you want to give them a call), and probably a good many other similar type shops.

Bonaparte, My Part in his Downfall..The Tale of the Russian Count

Dear Sir,

I am writing to you in conjunction with submitting an article on Austerlitz which I believe was suggested to you by a mutual acquaintance, Leon Part‚. Being what I think is the only subscription holder you have from Russia I thought you might be interested in MY family's part in Bonaparte's downfall. I was amused to read about yours and Ian Barstow's rather insignificant, although amusing ancestry, but I wondered if you were aware that my family and Leon's have known each other since 1805 and have faced each other on two of the greatest fields of the Napoleonic period. Obviously you knew about Leon's friendship with me as he initially gave me a copy of issue one, but I gather he has been rather reticent about his own past. I will leave it up to him as to whether he vouches any covert information regarding his family, but herein I would like to inform you with regards my own kindred.

My Great-Uncle (several generations back of course, but one only use the one word in Russia) Sergei Yevgeinivich Maslennikov was amongst the group of nobles involved in putting Czar Alexander on the throne in 1801, and he was made a Count in honour of his services. He was then a Captain in the Guards and on promotion to the Imperial staff as an Aide-de-Camp he became an honorary colonel in the Preobrezensky Regiment. He served on Kutusov's staff during the Austerlitz campaign and was involved in quite a famous event during the battle when he had to be physically restrained from duelling with Count Dolgorouki who had been misadvising the Czar with his fire-eating ideas. Sergei Yevgeinivich was sent to the Grand Duke Konstantin somewhat in disgrace and fought on foot with his Regiment during the fighting which decimated the Chevalier Guards.

Wounded in the right shin, he was captured by Colonel Baron Xavier Sainte-Croixe Part‚ who was General Rapp's senior adjutant attached to the squadron of Mamelukes. It was in this unlikely dress that my kinsman first met one of the Partis and it was Leon's Great-Grandfather (distant, of course) who not only took him prisoner but in fact saved his life when one of the Mamelukes attempted to cut off his head thinking that he was the Grand Duke Konstantin. Taken to the rear and treated personally by Baron Larrey, Sergei Yevgeinivich lost his leg but had his life saved. At the end of hostilities he was exchanged back to the Czar who for several years left him in the cold, primarily as a result of the scandalous allegations by the Dolgoroukis that he had deserted to the French. However, in 1809 he was welcomed back into the fold and by the time of the campaign of 1812 he was a Major General still attached to the Czar's staff. I will not relate the events of Moscow, or Borodino as Leon's people insist on calling it, as the circumstances were so nearly completely inverted that I thought that he might like to tell you the story himself. In fact, he may have already informed you all about it.

Finally, I would just like to wish him well and I hope the hereditary gout improves. Ironically the Partis are all prone to gout primarily in the right foot, that being the limb lost by my Great-Uncle! For some reason I always find that comforting.

Editor. I managed to catch up with Leon, who was visiting his Great Aunt Edith at Nantes and he has asked me to pass on his best wishes to Ivan, the gout is much improved! After some severe prodding by myself, (Leon, not his foot!), he promised to dig out the family records of Xavier's Russian adventure. You are our first and hopefully not last Russian subscriber, but not our most distant. Apart from several Australian subscribers, First Empire also has subscribers in Japan, Brazil, Tibet (honest, Captain attached to Ghurkas), Hong Kong, the Falklands and South Africa. In fact anybody like to take a copy to Antarctica, it's the only continent that I haven't got covered yet!

Battles For Empire in Berlin....

Dear David,

I received the first two issues of First Empire with an order from on of your advertisers, Wargames South. I thoroughly enjoyed both and look forward to future issues. Even though I have dabbled in other periods, I am now totally addicted to Napoleonic Wargaming. A magazine which concentrates on this period has been needed for a long time. Your priority to the written text instead of advertising and irrelevant colour photos is like a breath of fresh air. Do not change a thing!

Here in Berlin, we have a small but active Napoleonic Wargaming group. The members are from the U.S. and British forces posted in the city. Unfortunately, we have not been successful in recruiting from the French or German forces. It would be interesting to find a Russian player before they leave the city.

At present, we are using the Battles For Empire rules, by Buck Surdu and Rick Vossman. We have experimented with other rules, including the infamous EMPIRE, by Scotty Bowden. We enjoyed the Battles For Empire rules because they are well written, have loads of photos for clarification, and play very fast. More time is spent moving and shooting than with your nose in the rule book. As with any set of rules, there are some "holes", which we have filled with house rules.

To date, we haven't refought any historical battles, but develop our own scenarios. We are limited by the lack of some of the national armies: Prussia, Russia and Spain. We do have armies from France, Austria, some British and K.G.L., and most of the Confederation of the Rhine. Most of our battles are meeting engagements or attack/defence scenarios between forces which are no larger than Corps. We usually meet one evening a week for four or five hours, and attempt to resolve the battles in two or three sessions. Because most of our members are in the forces, we are away on exercise quite often. We attempted a campaign last year using a modified 1809 scenario (a British/K.G.L. Corps and Prussian army invading Bavaria from the north in conjunction with the Austrian attack.); however, it dragged on for months because of exercises and then, our Prussian player was posted back to the U.S.

One of our players is designated the Gamemaster/Umpire. He has the honour of developing the scenario, force ratios, terrain, and victory conditions. He may also command one of the subordinate units, cavalry brigade, etc., on one of the sides.

This system works well for us and we are happy with it. We would be interested in hearing how other readers organise their battles.

I have especially enjoyed your articles on some of the less well known battles: Ucles, Wartenberg, and Gorodetschna. Enough has been written about Waterloo, Borodino, Leipzig and Wagram. I look forward to future articles about the hundreds of smaller actions which took place during this period.

One of the advantages of being in Berlin these past three years is that, when the "Wall" came down all restrictions on travel in "East Germany" were removed. This has afforded the Napoleonic addict the opportunity to visit many of the battlefields which have been inaccessible to western visitors for forty-five years. Jena/Auerstadt, Leipzig, Bautzen and many others are only a few hours away. Gross Beeren, 1813 campaign, is only a few miles south of Berlin. I have located Wartenberg on the map and will be visiting it soon.

If you think the readers would be interested in an article or two on my battlefield visits, I will be happy to oblige.

Editor. The last point raised there should raise the interest of most First Empire readers. Reports on battlefield visits are most welcome and I invite all readers, as the holiday season approaches, to drag the wife and kids, to some far flung field and start making notes. You will be surprised at how many Napoleonic battle sites have remained intact. A first hand description of these fields can only help our understanding and perception of Napoleonic warfare.

Ducal Saxons and Russians..

Dear Sir,

There have been some queries in the letters page. No doubt you have had many readers writing to answer the points raised but one more won't hurt! In issue 3 you omitted to give all of the organisational details for the 4th (Ducal Saxon) Rheinbund Regiment, viz 1st Battalion - 1 light coy from Saxe Coburg, 1 Grenadier and 4 musketeer coys from Saxe Meiningen, 2nd Battalion - 1 light coy from Saxe Coburg, 1 Grenadier and 2 musketeer from Saxe Gotha and 2 musketeer coys from Saxe Meiningen. 3rd Battalion - 1 coy from Saxe Hilderburghausen, 5 coys from Saxe Weimar. On this subject, Haythornthwaite gives extra details as follows; 1st and 2nd Battalions - Red pompons (plume for Grenadiers), yellow plume for light infantry. Saxe Gotha companies had brass lozenge shako, those from Gotha (and presumably from Meiningen) had crowned oval plates.

He also gives the cockade as black and yellow, this being the colours of Saxony. I certainly prefer it to the strange green and white given, which upon turning the page I find is correct for Saxe Meiningen only and probably only pre 1812. 3rd Battalion - cockade, black, green and yellow, yellow collar patch only, green plume for the light coy, orange-red plume for the Carabinier coy, green pompon otherwise. Finally all had yellow buttons except Saxe Gotha which were white.

As for the 6th Rheinbund Regt., Reuss cockade is red, black and yellow. The Schwarzburg Battalion was four companies not two! Split equally between Sonderhausen and Rudelstadt. For the pedantic the Sonderhausen troops had green cuff flaps and brass octagonal shako plate, those from Rudelstadt unflapped cuffs and brass lozenge plate, cords were white, buttons yellow. Incidentally along with Lippe (2 coys), Reuss and Waldeck, Schwarzburg provided 2 coys to the so called Princes' Battalion which served in Spain.

In the same issue the comments on the spelling of Gorodetschna made me smile, can your word processor write Cyrillic letters? The question of the location raised one or two gripes that I have about Nafziger's book, no general map, a terrible omission, although not in the same class as the appalling editing of dates, some actions supposedly taking place before the French crossed the Nieman. A good map is in the just reprinted Clausewitz book.

Moving onto Michael Jones letter in issue 5 on the Russian Army c.1805 and taking the questions in order.

1. The given organisation is correct, its probably easiest to substitute "elite company" to eliminate confusion. On this point may I pose my own question ,(and I suspect the answer will be no), did Grenadier Battalions of Musketeer Regiments wear the mitre cap prior to 1805?

2. At a guess I would say yes, they were Grenadiers (in the larger sense) after all.

3. Shako, like that of the line infantry i.e. no plume or grenade badge.

6. No, it isn't accurate. I would like to know what the Guard Jaeger Battalions wore before the adoption of the shako. At this time all the Guard Infantry were Grenadiers and wore the mitre cap, yet the Jaeger's shako is not that of a Grenadier, so could they have worn the bicorne before?

Grant Elliot might like to try F.L. Petre's "Napoleon and the Arch Duke Charles", which has a basic but useful map and a brief (but again useful) account of this neglected battle, including initial dispositions. I don't as yet have "Armies on the Danube" myself but there are orbats included in the Anschluss 1809 "Ebb and Flow.." rules.

To finish this letter, I wonder if anyone can answer some of the following points.

1. Can anyone supply details of the Russo German Legion? i.e. Uniform, organisation, how many guns in a battery, how many squadrons in a Regiment, did they carry flags? The only source I have is Men at Arms 185.

2. Can anyone supply composition details for Austrian Grenadier Battalions (i.e. Which Regiments in which Battalions) in 1809 and 1813-14?

3. In Campaign 2: Austerlitz, a Salzburg Infantry Regiment is named in the allied orbat, being 6 Battalions strong. Who are they? I can't find anything on them.

Editor. Anybody answer points 4 & 5, of Michael Jones letter? Or any of Tim's questions?

Napoleon, My Part‚ in his Downfall...

Dear Editor,

Following your recent request, I have searched and found the diaries and letters of my distant relative, Xavier Sainte-Croix Parti. I will not copy out for you the exact contents appertaining to the meeting of Xavier and Count Sergei Yevgeinivich Maslennikov at Borodino, but will paraphrase the story for you.

I have been able to ascertain that Xavier was taken prisoner in the great redoubt by Count Maslennikov. It would appear that having forced his mount into the redoubt Xavier was engaged in some fierce hand to hand combat with a group of Russian Grenadiers and gunners. In danger of being overwhelmed, he gained a temporary respite from his assailants when a shell exploded nearby, laying low the Russians and dismounting Xavier. His horse dead, Xavier was in the process of picking himself up, when as he reached for his sabre he was knocked senseless by a Russian gunner, swinging a rammer. Apparently unconscious for several minutes, he awoke to see German Cuirassiers (presumably Westphalian) fighting fiercely in and around the redoubt. During a lull in the cavalry action, Xavier recounts that he saw a familiar face moving towards him, calling on him to surrender. It was Sergei Maslennikov, smiling and promising to look after his old friend. Apparently, Sergei's expression became one of horror and disbelief as Xavier drew his pistol and pointed it towards the Count. Xavier fired and wounded a white uniformed officer, who was about to deliver a deathly sabre blow, to the back of the Count's head. It appears from later letters that the expression of terror on the Count's face at the report of the pistol was the subject of some amusement for many years. Xavier had fired, believing the officer in white to be a German, in order to save his friend, if he had thought he was a Frenchman presumably the Maslennikov line would have died on that field. As the wounded "German" rode away, he was identified by Sergei as Dolgerouchy (sic), and that the attack was typical of the man. Xavier states that he was somewhat puzzled that the Russians should be fighting each other when there were thousands of Frenchmen to worry about.

Xavier was harboured by Sergei until his wounds were healed and then was assisted to return to the Grande Armee at Danzig. But that is another story.

I trust that this is of interest to your readers and I look forward to other exploits from the wars from other contributors. Thank you for allowing me to see Ivan's letter prior to publication.

Napoleon and Ossian......

I was talking to the editor who made a remark about "the genius of Napoleon". To look at the genius of Napoleon requires a study of the man himself rather than just the armies and tactics of the period. But I got stopped in my tracks trying to understand the man when I came across his interest in Ossian.

I knew as everyone did that every French soldier carried a Marshal's baton in his pack, but I didn't know that Napoleon carried an illustrated edition of his favourite poem "Fingal". Nothing strange about that you say, and I'd have to agree - I carried an EVERYMAN edition of the Leibelungleid in my pocket for years until I managed to lose it. ( Now there's a chance for a sale from an enterprising bookseller).

But my interest in Siegfried and Brunhild didn't cause me to have them painted on the ceiling. Napoleon had Ossian as the first of the heroes on the ceiling of his library at Malmaison. Perhaps more interesting is the painting he commissioned from Girodet, which showed his dead Marshals of France being greeted by Ossian in Valhalla. The scene is replete with Germanic helmets, ravens and semi naked women. The obvious comparison is the Hitler\Wagner relationship.

I admit to knowing little of Napoleon as a person, so I find this interest in Ossian fascinating. Is it a joke, am I taking it far too seriously and was Girodet's painting just tongue-in-cheek? Alternatively, is this a sign of a desire to reach back into the mystic past?

When Napoleon was painted as Emperor by Ingres he had gold insects on his robe - a conscious copy of Childeric's robe, worn by that first king of the Franks in the fifth century. Is the interest in Ossian's poem a clue to a desire for more than just temporal conquest. Or is it all "a load of old toot"?

I don't know, but I'm intrigued and would welcome any comments or opinions from readers.