Napoleonic gaming is among the top three categories in wargaming. In this area, a person can game with most of the major nations Europe and a host of minor countries. The armies are vastly different from each other. I would like to try to explain some of the reasons that gamers should look at this area The armies of the Austro-Hungarian empire were involved in more campaigns, battles and lost more men than any other nation during the Napoleonic wars, with the exception of France Austria was involved in a war against France at one time or the other from 1795 to 1815. During the 1812 campaign, Austria was forced to be an ally of France during the invasion of Russia. Austria was the first nation to hand Napoleon and the French army their first major defeat at Aspern-Essling. The Austrian army was defeated repeatedly when they went up against the French army. The Austrian army consisted of about 80 regiments of all types of infantry. This includes the fusiliers, grenz, jageis and grenadiers. 'The cavalry arm consisted of 21 regiments of Hussars, Uhlans and Chevau-leger acting as light cavalry. The heavy cavalry consisted of 12 regiments of Cuirassier and air average of 6 Dragoon regiments. The Dragoons and the Chevau-Leger's change back and forth during the entire time of the Napoleonics wars, There is some debate as to the fact that the Austrian cavalry was thought to have some of the finest cavalry during the Napoleonic wars. The artillery arm of the Austrian army was armed with 3#, 6# and 12# guns. This arm was average in all respects. Prussia had the best army after the Seven Years War The Prussian infantry was highly trained and motivated. They believed that they were part of the best army on the face of the continent. At the beginning of the 1806 campaign, the army consisted of 57 line regiments with each regiment having one Grenadier and two Musketeer battalions, 24 battalions of Fusilier light infantry. The cavalry consisted of twelve Cuirassier regiments plus the Garde du Corps, fourteen Dragoons regiments comprised the heavy cavalry. The light cavalry consisted of ten Hussar regiments and one Lancer regiment. Each infantry battalion in theory had one 6# attached to it. Each foot artillery regiment was composed of nine companies, each with six 12# guns and two 10# howitzers. The horse artillery had twenty troops (companies) of six 6# and two 7# howitzers. The Prussians also mobilized the Landwehr after 1813. In this vast force, the Prussians created an immense force, which included 150 infantry battalions and 120 cavalry squadrons. These troops at the beginning of the 1813 campaign was poorly equipped and trained. Due to there sheer size, they were a force that could not be ignored. Russia had an unlimited supply of manpower. Tsar Alexander ruled over 50 million people. Over half of this figure was males that was tied to estates where they were born on. Conscription into the army was for 25 years. The Russian solders lead a miserable life in the army. The army spent just the minimum amount on the solders. The officers and NCO's physically beat them. Yet, despite this the Russian solders were unique in Europe. They retained devotion like no other solder to their religion, Mother Russia and the Tsar. The Russian officer corps was the worst in Europe. The foreigners that were employed were disliked and mistrusted. The Russian army was reorganized various times during the war In 1805, the Russian army was composed of 13 Grenadier regiments, 85 Musketeer regiments, 26 Chasseurs regiments. At this time, the Guard had 3 regiments of infantry and 2 battalions of Jagers. The depot battalions of the regiments are not included in this total. In 1805, the cavalry consisted of 6 Cuirassier regiments, 30 Dragoons, 8 Hussars, 3 Uhlan and I Tarter regiment. The Cossacks amounted to another 125 plus regiments. The Guard cavalry varied from 6 to 12 regiments at this time. The Russian artillery arm was a very powerful force. In 1806 this force was composed of 24 artillery Brigades. Each was composed of 2 position, 2 light and 1 horse battery. Each battery had 12 guns assigned to it. Great Britain had two types of infantry, LifeGuards and Line. The LifeGuards was the elite of the army. For the purpose of this article, I will deal with the 1815 British army. By this time, the number of British regiments had risen to 104. This total includes the Guard and line infantry. The cavalry was composed of 6 regiments of the Dragoon Guards, 6 regiments of dragoons, 23 regiments of Light Dragoons, 4 regiments of Hussars. The light Dragoons and the Hussars was part of the light cavalry forces. The British cavalry was a good unit. However, the officers were bad. They would ignore orders and would leave the field of battle at times. The British artillery was used to protect the British infantry. The British commanders had little faith in long counter battery duels. Back to MWAN #106 Table of Contents Back to MWAN List of Issues Back to MagWeb Magazine List © Copyright 2000 Hal Thinglum This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com