It was exciting to see that the Mexican-American War is this year's
theme in THE COURIER. I have had many enjoyable hours of wargaming
this period since the 1960s, visited many of the battlefields in Mexico and
wrote my M.A. thesis on the topic. I hope to help the efforts of theme
editor Bob Marshall with this follow-up article.
Mexican Lancers advancing. General is a Hinchliffe figure. Others are Frontier.
Special modifications of your wargame rules are necessary to play a Mexican-American wargame. Henry Lubbock had some interesting ideas in his Chapultepec rules, but doesn't allow enough differences between the U.S. troops and the Mexicans. The U.S. troops should have a tremendous fire power advantage. Using Empire 1/1 as an example the U.S. Regular Infantry should be rated as "crack" and fire as British (10% hits at moderate range) while the Mexican Line fire as "conscript line" (4% hits). Well trained Mexican troops such as the Light Infantry, 11th Line, Sappers and guards can be rated as non-British "veteran" (5%) or "crack" (6%) troops, while the American Volunteers are "veteran" or some even "conscript" but fire as British "veterans" (7%). The Mexican infantry seems to have been like the Russian Napoleonic troops, poor marksmen, but stolid under fire. Therefore, Mexican infantry standing in defense receive a morale bonus when required to make a morale test due to fire hits.
The respective cavalry units should have similar morale class ratings, with the Mexican Cavalry being light lancers (except for the Cuirassiers) and all the American cavalry (Regular, Volunteer and Texas Mounted) with their large horses are "mediums" or "dragoons". Probably none should be rated as "battle cavalry".
U.S. field batteries are considered to be the same as British Horse Artillery and should be allowed to fire at least twice per turn. At Palo Alto the U.S. artillery fired 3,000 rounds while the Mexicans expended only 750. In regards to accuracy the Mexican gunners handled their guns well. Since the Battle of Palo Alto was mainly an artillery duel, we can get a rough idea of effectiveness by comparing the casualties versus the artillery rounds fired. The Mexican guns fired about 16 shots for each American hit, while the U.S. fired 13 shots for each Mexican casualty. Considering that the Americans fired at enemy masses (Mexican fire was mainly counter battery), used shrapnel, had heavier guns and sometimes had targets in canister range, the Mexican gunners compare quite well!
As Bob Marshall points out, the battle of Palo Alto is an ideal starting point for wargaming the Mexican-American War, due to the relatively small size of the forces involved. I started my armies with Scruby 20mm figures, with a scale of 1 figure equals 40 men, which gives 57 U.S. soldiers and 90 Mexicans. You don't need huge masses of soldiers to have fun games! While 1 to 40 scale is a good start, I suspect most will want to do it in the popular 1 to 20 men ratio 0 to 10 for gunners) as listed below.
My order of battle is a little different than most sources, as I include the Texas Rangers and the Mexican irregulars which were in the brush off the American right. Also, one Mexican source gives the Mexicans 7 guns in their center battery for a total of 12 cannon. In addition, different numbers of gunners exist. Every source seems to have a different setup for which Mexican regiments were in which brigades. I do not consider my list to be the best, maybe Marshall's Spanish is better!
ORGANIZATION FOR PALO ALTO AND RESACA DE LA PALMA: May 8-9 1846
DIV. GEN. ARISTA (3,596)
- BDE. GEN. TORREJON (1,100)
- Lt. Cav. de Mexico 2 Sdn. [4C]
7th Cav. 3 Sdn. [18C]
8th Cav. 2 Sdn. [12C]
Presidials [12C]
BDE. GEN. CANALES (425)
- Irregular Cav. [21C]
BDE GEN. GARCIA
- 2nd Lt. Infy. [14L/2R/]
Tampico Coast Gd. [12I/2R/2G]
Tampico Vet. Co. [2G?]
BDE. GEN. LA VEGA
- 1st Infy. [12I/2R/2G]
6th Infy. [12I/2R/2G]
BDE. GEN. AMPUDIA
- 4th Infy. [121/2R/2G]
10th Infy. [121/2R/2G]
Zapadore (Sapper) Btn. (304) [15I]
ARTILLERY
- 8 4# [4 guns, 8A]
2 8# [1 gun, 2A]
2 3# or 4# Horse Arty. [1 gun, 2A]
MAJ. GEN. TAYLOR (2,288)
- 2nd Dragoons (250)
May's Sdn. [6C]
Kerr's Sdn. [6C]
Walker's Tex. Rangers [1 MR]
RT. WING: BRIG. GEN. TWIGGS
- 2ND BDE.: COL. MCINTOSH
- Ringold's Bty. C, 3rd A 4 6# [2 guns, 8A]
5th Infy. [181/2L]
3RD BDE.: LT. COL. GARLAND
- 3rd Infy. [181/2L]
4th Infy. [181/2L]
Churchill's Bty. 2 18# [1 gun, 4A]
LEFT WING: LT. COL. BELKNAP
- 1ST BDE.:
- 8th Infy. [181/2L]
Ft. Arty. Btn. [181/2L]
Duncan's Bty. A, 2nd A. 4 6# [2 guns, 8A]
KEY:H = no. figures, C = Cav.,MR = Mtd. Rifles, I = Infy., L = Lt. Infy., R = Rifles, G = Grenadiers, A = Arty. Gunners
MORALE RATINGS:
Crack: U.S. Regulars, Zapadores
Veteran: Texas Rangers, 2nd Lt. Infy., Mex. Gren. & Arty.
Conscript: Mex. Infy., Cav., & Militia Cren., U.S. Vol. Infy.
Landwehr: Mex. Active Militia & Presidials
Trained Militia: Irregulars and Nat'l Gds.
Note: Light Infantry and Rifles have a fire bonus.
MINI CAMPAIGN
The Palo Alto campaign is an excellent situation for gaming. General Taylor can start at his base, Point Isabel with the objective of relieving Fort Texas/Brown, and ultimately capture Matamoros. General Arista must protect his base at Matamoros, besiege or assault the fort, and hold off Taylor's Army. You need not build all of the forces listed, as it is unlikely that all would be present for a battle. Later in May many American Volunteers began landing at Point Isabel and Burrita. I have no documentation on dates and numbers; you might have a dice roll for their arrival. You could even have a dice roll for possible Mexican reinforcements, as a number of units were sent north, but they turned around and overthrew the government instead!
FORT TEXAS
- MAJ. BROWN (550)
7th Infy. [18I/2L]
I Co. 2nd Arty. (4 18#) [2 guns,8A]
Bragg's Bty. E 3rd Arty. (2 6#, 2 12# How) [2 guns, 8A]
BESIEGING FORT TEXAS
- Puebla Activo Btn. (177+?) [121/2R/2G]
2 8# & 1 Mortar (13) [1 gun, 1 A]
MATAMOROS GARRISON
- BDE. GEN. MEJIA (1,850)
Mexico Act. Btn. [12I/2R/2G]
Morelia Act. Btn. [12I/2R/2G]
Matamoros Natl. Gds. (500) [32I]
12 guns (Heaviest 12#, at least 1 Mtr. & 1 How.) 16 guns, 12A]
POINT ISAREL
- MAJ. MUNROE (1,000)
Hay's Tex. Ranger Co. [?MR]
2 Co. Infy. [4?I]
1st Infy. (4 Co.) [10I] arrived May 7
2 Co. La. Vol. Infy. [6-8I] arrived May 7
Marines & Sailors (500) arrived May 8 [5Mar/20Tars]
2 La. Vol. Regt.: Gen. Smith arrived May 22 [60I]
(5,000 Vol. total arrived)
Regts. from La., Ky., Ga., Ill., St. Louis & Tex.
Campaign Map
SOURCES
Alcaraz, Ramon and others, eds. The Other Side: Notes for the History of the War between
Mexico and the United States, trans. Albert C. Ramsey. (1850; reprint. New York: Burt Franklin, 1970).
Bancroft, Hubert Howe. The History of Mexico, V (San Francisco: A.L. Bancroft, 1885).
Bauer, Jack. The Mexican War, 1846-1848 (New York: Macmillan, 1974).
Dufour, Charles L. The Mexican War (New York: Hawthorne Books, 1968).
Nieto, Angelina, John Brown, and Joseph Hefter, eds. El Soldado Mexicano, 1837-1847
(Mexico: Nieto, Brown and Hefter, 1958).
Roa Barcena, Jose Maria, Rueuerdos de la Invasion Norte-Americana, 1846-1848, 1 (Mexico: La Libreria Madrilena dejaun Buxo y Ca., 1883).
Smith, Justin. The War With Mexico, I (New York: Macmillan, 1919).
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