In June 1646 Parliament marched with an army on Lincolnshire and were confronted by a Royalist army at Dunninghurst (
link to campaign moves and battle setup). The Royalist commander had taken up a strong defensive position around some central buildings and behind a line of hedges.
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| ECW game in progress |
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| Map of deployment - Royalists are red and Parliament are blue. |
The battle began with Parliamentarian forces pushing forward. On their left flank commanded shot moved into the town and were soon faced by Royalist commanded shot who had taken up position in nearby woods. Musket fire was exchanged between the two units.
In the centre the Parliamentarian infantry engaged Royalist infantry position around the centre buildings.
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| Tabletop setup and ready for the game. |
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| Parliament advances in the centre |
With the centre engaged Parliamentarian cavalry pushed forward on the right flank, but were unable to make headway against Royalist infantry defending along the hedges. The attack soon fell into a series of small actions.
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| On their right flank Parliamentarian cavalry push forward |
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| Parliament cavalry are halted at the hedges |
In the centre the pressure was beginning to tell and Royalist reserves moved up to replace losses. In an attempt to reduce the pressure Royalist cavalry charged forward and were met by Parliamentarian cavalry.
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| Royalist cavalry launch an attack in an attempt to disrupt the Parliamentarian centre attack. |
As the battle progressed Parliament was unable to gain any advantage and their attacks began to falter and casualties mounted. Royalist forces held their defensive positions and the Parliamentarian commander decided enough was enough and retired from the battlefield.
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| Parliament's attack begins to falter. |
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| Battle movements |
A marginal victory to Royalists who were able to outlast Parliamentarian forces who failed to gain control of Lincolnshire. The campaign situation in 1646 does not look good for Parliament as they have been unable to increase the regions they control.
Another nice looking battle Peter. I fear the forces of Absolutism are looking very strong again!
ReplyDeleteThank you, the campaign has slipped away from Parliament with one, or possibly two, games to play before it ends.
DeleteLovely looking game and the maps are great too.
ReplyDeleteThank you. The maps are enjoyable to draw up after the game, but do take a bit of time.
DeleteParliament stymied! A good little action with a tough defense by the King’s Army. Love the maps.
ReplyDeleteYes, totally stymied, and their frustration grows as the campaign year progresses.
DeleteWhat was the parliamentarian commander playing at? A screening force to keep the papist sheep penned in their enclosures and a hammer blow delivered against their left was what was called for! Getting out of defensive positions can sometime be as difficult as getting in so garrisons are often best left to stew!
ReplyDeleteI'm starting to get a really bad feeling that those degenerate types are going to win this campaign... :o(
The Parliamentarian commander acted with too much haste allowing the fighting to breakdown into a series of small actions. The hammer blow was left wanting. As for the campaign Parliament will do well to hold their regions and seek negotiations.
DeleteHmm, the Parliamentarian cavalry certainly should've known better than to go up against infantry in such a position. Let's hope they pull things around in this war before it's too late.
ReplyDeleteYes, hmm indeed, the commander will be replaced. This was a critical battle for Parliament to win as the campaign nears the end.
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