Battle at Wahlsbeck

A battle that should never been fought occurs as Davout's retreating French runs into a Prussian Corps that had just trashed the Frenchies forward supply depot. Rather than retreat the Prussians decide to stand against a superior French Army.

Report from Dave M


Battle at Wahlsbeck (120), day 16

After a few days of inactivity while the French reorganised their attrited forces, disbanding one of their corps and parcelling out the divisions to strengthen the remaining, the campaign burst back in to life.

The reorganised French 1st Corps, for once without its attendant Cavalry Corps bumped into a Prussian blocking force to the north west of Magdeburg at Wahlsbeck. Neither side was prepared for battle, so an encounter action ensued, with both forces writing down their deployments prior to the game.

Both sides attempted to take the town of Wahlsbeck and fierce fighting in around the town quickly ensued, the French taking advantage of the Prussians exposed flanks unleashed their Bavarian division, with its cavalry brigade. in a payback for the mauling they'd received earlier in the campaign, the Bavarians destroyed two Prussian brigades and forced a third to surrender.

Prussian cavalry managed to halt the southern wing of the French attack for a while, but with the imminent arrival of further French forces, the remaining Prussians broke and fled the field, having taken a severe beating.

Prussian losses, killed, captured 13,000

French losses 2200


Both side used hidden deployment at the start. With no infantry placed to defend the quick escape route to the south, the Prussians were in a difficult position as an entire French Division was sent in on that flank, the woods offering them protection from the Prussian Cavalry set up there. The French were intending to pin the Prussians in place till their Cavalry Corps could turn up as reinforcements, but the early routing of the Prussians put paid to that plan.

¶