Death in Tequesta

1800. The war of the second coalition. In the April of that year Edwin Adamson (MP for the pocket borough of Sowerbridge) had been appointed Governor  of the recently established British fort in Spanish Florida; Tequesta. Earlier that year the 37th foot, a battalion of French emigres and the sailors and Marines of two 4th rates had captured the coastal town of Tequesta from the Spanish Garrison. However on the 20th of June three Spanish 1st rates had assaulted the harbour, destroying one of the British 4th rates and sending the other into flight. Then the 52nd Spanish foot and 4th lancers had arrived and assaulted from the landward side forcing Adamson to flee to his summer house in the hills over looking the bay. He and Major Howard of the 37th foot fled to his summer house with a group of redcoats, emigres and a small cannon.
Today, 26th of September 1800, Jimmy boy (a powder monkey from one of the 4th rates) spotted, moving through the woods, a large force of Spanish Militiamen, privateers and other irregular troops armed with an assortment of pistols and muskets. He had been running back through the grave yard to alert Major Howard to the presence of a large rowing boat, washed up on the shore.
Soon Major Howard and Govenor Adamson had turned out their force and wer making for the small boat...

Govenor's men
Govenor Edwin Adamson
Major Howard
Govenor's Mrs (Nurse)
Blind man (a Ben Gun kind of character)
Jimmy Boy
9 Redcoats of the 37th foot
10 Emigres (all count as officers)
Carronade with 2 crew

Spaniards
several dozen pirates
around a dozen officers


This is one of our monthly battles fought at my local modelling club. There are normally only three of us, but one of our members couldn't make it till much later (no doubht "Eril Flyn" had another force up his sleeves that would be arriving later...). Luckily there was a new comer so the two of them took the pirates and I took the Govenor's mob!

I started in the compound around the govenor's "mansion" and lined the 37th foot up for the breackout...

I had three routes open to me: A. West, charge the pirates head on and hope my superior combat would tiumph over their numbers, B. East, hug the strategically good hill and wall and make my way slowly to the small boat or C. North, advance as the crow flies across open ground straight for the boat!...

I went for C. Adopting a square with the 37th around the Major, Govenor, Nurse, Blindman and Jimmy boy with the Emigres taking B route and the cannon covering the square's advance.

This set of rules (I can't remember what they were called i'm afraid) uses random selction turns. After each phase we roll a D6 to see what comes next. 1.One side takes a morale check (1-3 sideA, 4-6 sideB), 2. Both sides stand and shoot at the same time, 3. Side A moves, 4. Side B moves, 5. Side A shoots and 6. side B shoots. We rolled several threes to start with so my Square made good progress... but then Disatster!

We rolled several 4s after this and not a single 3.... soon they were in range of our guns and of their gund...

I just managed to roll another 3 before we rolled about four 2s on the dice...

The Pirates moved up a musket line while leaving a group of skirmishers in the graveyard... after 3 turns this was what was left of my square, though i had much damaged his firing line.
In the next round of Shooting I managed to destroy his firng line, but the last of the 37th foot and Major Howard were shot down. I also forced his pistoliers in the graveyard to take two morale checks sending them bolting over the back of the graveyard.

Soon the Emigres were in position to hold off the pirates till they could make a break for the small boat, with the cannon covering their rear. Unluckily the Govenor, Blindman and Nurse were captured by 3 pirates while Jimmy boy watched on, but the Emigres were on hand with three charging in to the rescue!

Soon our forces were looked in a bad way with two pirates heading for the emigres behind the wall and four more pirates charging towards the cannon. In the fighting the Emigres captured back the govenor and prepared to rescue his Mrs.

Last turn before I handed over to Eryl this is what the field looked like. I had graped the pirates. The govenor and his mrs were safe but the blindman was still to be recaptured by the last Emigre, duelling two pirates! The Emigres behind the wall had stood strong and hended off the pirates near them, but the small boat was in the pirates hands. In the end it was a draw. The Govenor was in a stong position and i could pull it together and get to the boat, but the blindman and boat were still in spanish hands, however the Govenor and his mrs were safe.

I really enjoyed this game and my experience of the Black powder battlefield put me in Major Howards shoes pefectly, underestimating the requirements of this particular situation and doing what all redcoat officers do... When in doubht form a square! This plan would have worked well against grenadiers or dragoons but not pirates...

Next time at the club 1200pts medievel WAB