Here in the backwash of the Fens, wargaming is still alive. Our latest exploits have been re-fights of Peninsular battles. At the Battle of Busaco, the French managed to turn the British right flank with a regiment of Hussars. These same Hussars caught a line regiment in the rear almost annihilating it. A raw, conscripted Portugese regiment watching the massacre decided war was much too dangerous for them and fled off the field. This left a gap at the end of the British flank which the French took advantage of. The Husears soon rolled up the rest of the right flank, which rapidly disintegrated. The whole manoeuvre should never have happened but dud to the British commander's negligence, the French flank cavalry achieved overwhelming results. So far in our re-enactments, Corunna was won by the Frenchq but the British still dispute it, saying the idea of this battle was to stop the French getting a unit off the table by the Corunna road before the eleventh move. This the British managed but at overwhelming losses. Talavera was won by the British, due to the French taking too much notice of odd Spanish regiments and not bothering with getting on with the battle proper against the British. Albuera was also won by the British who had the luck to blow up two French artillery batteries during one move. A very rare feat!! As recorded, the French managed to win Busaco. "Advanced Wargames" gave us some ideas for novel battles. An encounter battle was tried with couriers riding from the vanguards to the main bodies. The commander of the French main body, when he heard contact had been made with the Allied army, just did not believe it. He Bent another courier back to the vanguard for confirmation. When this second courier returned with confirmation, this general decided that the enemy could wait and he must have his breakfast before sending troops to the hardpressed vanguard. The Allies eventually won the battle. With our present rules, battles take rather a long while, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., with stops for meals and beer on Saturdays. So we are now thinking of going in for Naval Wargames. Napoleonic of course. Rumour has it these battles can be shorter. I have tried the board game "Diplomacy". Everyone has one of the great European powers in 1900, Great Britain, France, Turkey, Russia, Italy, Germany or AustroHungary. If you draw Germany you have had it unless you can make a treaty with Russia. By making and breaking treaties and supporting Allies in their offensives enemy armies can be defeated. If you capture enemy magazines or supply-depots you can raise extra armies yourself. The winner is the country with an overall majority of armies and navies, or the person with the most armies and navies after 4 hours play. The game is complicsted the first three or four times you play it and tends to be a bit listless if less than five people play it. This game is not for straight-forward Army generals but is for the Talleyrands and Metternichs of the wargaming world. This is a game of skill -- there are no dice used. Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 104 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1970 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com