Campaign in the Shenandoah Day 3

The second battle of the campaign occured late on day 3 at the bridge over North Fork near Front Royal.
Ewel's CSA Corps was advancing on the Luray to Vinchester Road behinfd an advance guard of cavalry.  At Front Royal the CSA cavalry ran into a smaller force of US cavalry,  The US cavalry retreated accross the bridges over the South Fork & North Fork.  The retreat halted mid afternoon when the US cavalry joined up with infantry across the North Fork bridge.
Ewell atacked across the bridge as soon as his infantry caught up with his cavalry at the bridge.

The rivers are un-fordable, so the rebs can only attack across the bridge.

The rebs spend some time crossing the South Fork bridge & deploying between the rivers while their artillery took out a Union battery.

The rebs charge across the bridge into a ring of Union fire.

The lead regiment is blown away, but not before some lucky shooting took out the 2nd Union battery.

Just before dark another Union Corps appeared on the north bank of North Fork (off to left of pic).
At nightfall the Rebs have gained a foothold across the river, but have 4 regimernts broken, 2 shaken & 3 with casualties..  The Union have 1 battery broken, 4 regiments & 1 battery shaken.& 3 regimants with casualties.
This day;s battle was a draw.
Overnight, both sides have the option of reorganising within their front lines, or withdrawal.

  

   

Campaign in the Shenandoah 1862

We have started a small campaign in the Shenandoah valley.  It is not an historical scxenario but the Shenadoah geography makes it a great place for campaign scenarios with smallish forces.  The plot is that the Union have been building up supplies at the rail heads in preparation for an offensive.  Jackson has been ordered to destroy enough of the supplies, the railways & blue bellies as necessary to prevent the offensive.
Mike & SteveJ are the Confederates.  Mark & Chris are the Union.

The first major contact  occured late on day 2 when Jackson's Corps arrived on the south side of the bridge over South Fork near Mt Jackson.  Mt Jackson is one of the railheads & supply depots that are Confederate objectives.  General Fremont has orders to defend the town.   TheSouth Fork banks are heavily wooded & the ground is flat so neither side has much intel. Fremont's intel is that the Rebs have superior but not overwhealming numbers.  General Jackson's intel is that Fremont's forcxe is smaller than his. 

The campaign map is from the Australian Army Jourrnal No. 56, Jan 1954.  For battles additional detail is gleaned for Google Maps.

At dawn on day 3, the Confederates attack.

The rivers are only crossable at fords.  The umpire diced to determine the status of each 100mm section, 6 = ford.  The Union map showed the fords, the Reb's didn't - they have to search for them.
At the start only units visible to the enemy are on the table.  The Union has improvised defenses where it has deployed in & around woods & farms where materials are available.

The Rebs have sent 10 units thru the woods on their left.  They find 4 Union regiments there.
In the centre the Rebs find 2 defended between the bridge & the confluence, none to the left of the bridge.  They engage the defenders with musker fire.  Gyns exchange fire accross the bridge.  
On the far side, the Rebs had found fords of table & infantry have appeared there.  Artillery cannot cross the fords until the engineers have cleared a path thru the scrub.

The armies are now deployed on the table. The union have 20 inf, 2 cav & 3 batteries.  The Rebs have 30m inf, 4 cav & 2 batteries visible near the bridge.
The Union are still holding the line on their left & centre.
The Rev cavalry has broken the outnumbered Union cavalry on the far flank. 

The Union line is starting to crack on their left & centre.

4 Reb batteries have appeared behind their left flank.  The Rebs have gained footholds accrss the river ninthe centre & weight of numbers has finally firced the Union to retreat in the woods.
Fremont decided he'd done enough to keep his job & has ordered a general retreat & had the supply dump set alight.

The union make a retreat up the turnpike leaving Mt Jackson in flames as the Rebd try to put the fires out & salvage as many boots a possible.

The Union  has lost 9 unkits broken & has 2 units with heavy casualties, but can claim to have made an honourable fighting retreat against superior numbers of slightly tougher troops.
The Rebs have lost 4 units broken & 9 with heavy casualties & gained acampaign VP for taking Mt Jackson.

ACW: Battle of Bristoe Station 1863

CSA: Mike & Steve.
Union: Jim & Chris.
The Rebs are retreating from Gettysburg & the Union are making  ahash of pursuing them.  Warren was retreating his Corps but was bumped into by A.P.Hill's CSA Corps at Bristoe Station. Hill lauched an impetuouis attack agaisnt the Union force deployed behind a railway embankemnt & was repulsed.  But the Rebs had more troops coming up & Warren retreated.

The Union has 2 divisions deployed on the railweay line with more coming up on their left.  The Rebs have 2 divisions deployed & more coming up from the far RH corner of the table.

The Union reinforcementt s have deployed along the railway line on the left of their advanbce guard.
The Rebs have shifted their advance guad's advance to the left in the woods.  Their reinforement are attacking the far end of the Union line.  

The Union left has been outflanked & the remants have fallen back.
In the centre, the Rebs have stopped their advance to engage ina fire fight.

The Union line is being rolled up from the left.  They have sent a division from their right to support their left.

The transfer of troops from right to left happened too late.  The Union left is broken without serious loss to the Rebs.  The Union concede & order a general retreat.

The scenario was probably unbalanced against the Union because it followed the listed OOBs & standard ACW troop types with considering that the CSA troops were retreating from Gettysburg & were almost certainly way under strength & lacked their usual advantages over Union troops.