The Affair at Alt Kirchendorf - Part 1

While his Brittanic Majesty's Army in Germania was engaging the French at Minden (link, link, link, link, link) and Prince Ferdinand's Hesse-Seewald allies were threatening the French and Imperials outside Frankfurt (link), a little further to the east a much smaller host was getting prepared to defend its lands from an advancing Imperial foe (link).

The Margraviate of Carpania, assisted by a Brittanian and allied contingent of six battalions and three squadrons, deployed along its southern border in the vicinity of the small town of Alt Kirchendorf. There they awaited the advancing Imperial army.

Composed of contingents from a number of states, the Imperial Reichsarmeeabteilung Obere Sachsen was commanded by the Imperial general Feldzeugmeister Bernard von Alderheim (link). Under his command were forces from the Duchies of Courland and Sachsen-Wachsenstein, the Imperium, and the Reichskreisen of Obere Sachsen and Franconia. The Empress had expressly charged von Alderheim to punish the Carpanians for their connivance in the underhanded attack (link) on the august personage of Reich Duke Wilhelm von Beerstein (link) the previous spring.

The two forces met on the Champs de Mars on 19 September 1759/2009. This is the first part of a multi-part report on the battle. The first batch of photos was taken by Jim Pitts. As usual, please click on the picture for a larger image.

The layout of the battlefield with the Carpanian and Brittanian forces on the left and the Imperial forces on the right. All my grenadier and line battalions are 24 figures strong while the light troops are of different strengths (32 Carpanian jagers in two companies and 36 Courland Pandurs in three companies). The heavy cavalry on both sides consisted of two 12-figure squadrons while the light cavalry varied in strength from 8-figure to 16-figure squadrons. All line brigades and the light troops on each side had a battalion gun. The Carpanian artillery had two guns and the Imperial artillery had three guns. In the distance is my denkmal (or battle monument). This is the second battle at which it has been; the first was last November (Steinkreisdorf at MilleniumCon in Texas).

Following are pictures of all the formations prior to the battle beginning.

The Imperial Reichsarmeeabteilung Obere Sachsen battleline. The following pictures are of the various elements of that army.

The reserve brigade on the Imperial left flank consisted of two Courland grenadier battalions in the first line and the composite Sachsen-Wachsenstein and Reichsarmee grenadier battalion in the second line, with two squadrons of Courland cavalry on the flank.

Next in line was the heavy artillery with (from the left) the Courland 12-lbr gun and 20-lbr howitzer and the Sachsen-Wachsenstein 8-lbr gun. On the far left are the Dukes of Courland and Sachsen-Wachsenstein and the army commanders aide-de-camp.

The center of the battleline was held by a brigade of four battalions of troops from the Kreis Obere Sachsen in two lines, each of two battalions.

The right of the battleline was the combined Courland/Sachsen-Wachsenstein brigade with two Courland musketeer battalions in the first line and the Sachsen-Wachsenstein musketeer and fusilier battalions in the second line.

The far right was held by the army's light troops consisting of a combined squadron of Reichsarmee light dragoons (behind the trees) and two companies of Courland Pandours (only one shown) in the first line . . .

And the Courland Timofievich Cossack pulk and the third company of Pandurs in the second line.

The Imperial army's second battleline was composed of a combined brigade of one Austrian battlion and three Kreis Franconian Reichsarmee battalions (provided by my wargaming buddy, Mark Stevens).

And now for a look at the Electorische Armee Thuringen:

The right flank garrisoned Alt Kirchendorf with the army's reserve brigade - two squadrons of Carpanian dragoons on the far right flank facing the Courland heavy cavalry and, in the town, the Carpanian converged grenadier battalion, Braun Standing Grenadiers, Carpanian pioneers, and Campbell'sHighlanders.

Immediately to the left of Alt Kirchendorf was a brigade of two Brittanian foot battalions (also provided by Mark Stevens) in the first line and the Regiment Eisenmuhlen in the second line.

The Carpanian heavy guns (one 12-lbr gun and one 10-lbr howitzer) were placed in the center of the battleline. On the left are the army commander, Carpanian General der Infanterie Baron von Stuppe and his aide-de-camp.

The left of the battleline was held by the Carpanian brigade with two musketeer battalions in the first line and two fusilier battalions in the second line. Some of the light dragoons are beyond the infantry.

The left flank was held by the army's light troops, with three squadrons of allied light cavalry, a Carpanian freikorps company (on back table), and . . .

and two companies of Carpanian jagers (one not shown).

The second line of the Electoral army was a brigade of two Brittanian foot battalions on either side of the road flanked by two battalions of hired Germanic troops (one not shown).

The subsequent parts of the report will be published over the next several days. Please stop back by to peruse them. We used Bill Protz's (Msr. Chevert) Batailles de l'Ancien Regime rules.