Hellwig 1780 – Venturini 1797 – Giacometti 1801 – Hellwig 1803 – Opiz 1806 – Firmas-Périès 1809 – Reiswitz Sr. 1812
This is the rule of Venturini’s Kriegspiel, sometimes considered the first wargame (Hellwig’s earlier game still kept a lot of elements of Chess). I OCR’ed and translated based on two different scans found on Internet. Neither scans were of good quality so the OCR struggled. The AI sometimes indicated that it could not read some parts – and my German is not good enough to complete or check. Be very cautious about the translation!
The original has been uploaded here.
Georg Venturini — Description and Rules of a New War-Game (Schleswig, 1797)
DESCRIPTION AND RULES OF A NEW WAR-GAME, for Use and Enjoyment, but especially for Use in Military Schools, by Georg Venturini, Ducal Brunswick Engineer-Lieutenant.
With Copperplate Engravings.
Schleswig,
published by J. G. Röhß, 1797.
To the Most Serene Prince and Lord Lord Friederich,
Royal Crown Prince of Denmark, Norway, of the Wends and Goths, Duke of Schleswig-Holstein,
Stormarn and Dithmarschen, as well as of Oldenburg and Delmenhorst, etc., etc.
My Most Gracious Lord.
Most Serene Crown Prince,
Most Gracious Prince and Lord!
In undertaking to recommend to the world a work intended for general use, I am only too well aware that I cannot, of myself, secure for it the reception which the favourable judgment of a most gracious patron would bring about. In this conviction I think with heartfelt joy of the gracious favour and the exceptional care with which Your Royal Highness deigns to encourage every effort toward the general instruction [of the public]. And I am filled, in this connection, with the lively wish that this work, too, might receive the protection of Your Highness’s decisive judgment, to which others have so beneficially been admitted.
I therefore venture, in deepest submission, to dedicate the fruits of my efforts to Your Royal Highness, and remain firmly convinced that the wish to be of use to my contemporaries will excuse it to some degree, if I have proceeded too boldly. Should, however, the gracious judgment of Your Royal Highness not entirely deny my attempt its fitness and usefulness, this favourable verdict would be the most effective cause for the dissemination of this work, and I could then enjoy the happy consciousness of having also publicly demonstrated the feelings of the most heartfelt veneration and the deepest respect, with which I shall ever remain,
Most Serene Crown Prince,
Your Royal Highness’s most humble servant
Georg Venturini.
Brunswick, 26 September 1797.
List of Subscribers.
His Royal Highness, the Hereditary Prince Friederich of Denmark and Norway, etc., etc. — 1 copy.
His Serene Highness the Landgrave and Prince Carl of Hesse-Cassel, Royal Danish Field Marshal, etc., etc.
His Serene Highness the Landgrave and Prince Friederich of Hesse-Cassel, Royal Danish Major-General, etc., etc.
His Serene Highness the Landgrave and Prince Christian of Hesse-Cassel, Royal Danish Major-General, etc., etc..
His Serene Highness the Landgrave and Prince Friederich of Hesse-Darmstadt, etc., etc.
The Royal Prussian Engineering Academy in Berlin — 3 copies.
At the Ducal Brunswick Infantry Regiment von Riedesel, in Brunswick:
— Captain von Bernewitz — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Pavel — 1 copy.
— von Bülow, Page, in Schleswig — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Mounted Rifle Corps (Feldjäger-Corps zu Pferde) in Kiel:
— Colonel von Binzer — 1 copy.
— Cavalry Captain von Schaumburg — 2 copies.
— Cornet von Sommer — 1 copy.
— Cornet von Lesser — 1 copy.
— Cornet von Salchow — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Funen Infantry Regiment in Fredericia:
— Captain von Castonier — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant Count von Trampe —1 copy.
— Gentleman of the Chamber von Schstedt —1 copy.
— The Regimental Library —1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Holstein Infantry Regiment in Rendsburg:
— Lieutenant von Tücher —1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Rifle Corps (on foot) in Eckernförde:
— Colonel von Ewald, Chief of the Rifle Corps —1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Mund — 1 copy.
— The Corps Library — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Jutland Dragoon Regiment in Randers:
— Major von Schwendsen — 1 copy.
— Major von Hobe — 1 copy.
— Cavalry Captain von Bonnichsen —1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Guldberg — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Halling — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Hielmcrone — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish First Jutland Infantry Regiment in Aarhus:
— Colonel von Brackel — 1 copy.
— Major von Jensen — 1 copy.
— Major von Sommerfeld — 1 copy.
— Captain von Bocatius — 1 copy.
— Captain von Maule —1 copy.
— Captain von Rosenvinge — 1 copy.
— Captain von Staffeld — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Gosch — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant G. von Klem —1 copy.
— Lieutenant W. von Klem —1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Gottlieb — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Nissen — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Schlichter — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Storm — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Suckow — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Tiedemand — 1 copy.
— Ensign von Büll — 1 copy.
— Ensign von Marcussen — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Second Jutland Infantry Regiment in Rendsburg:
— Major-General von Lüzow — 1 copy.
— Colonel von Lachmann — 1 copy.
— Captain von Bruun — 2 copies.
— Captain von Heiß — 1 copy.
— Captain Chr. C. von Müller — 1 copy.
— Captain von Schaumburg — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Cold — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Falster — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Wachs — 1 copy.
— Ensign von Schlichtkrull — 1 copy.
— Ensign von Sihler —1 copy.
The Library of the Royal Danish Life Guards of Horse, in Copenhagen — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Life Regiment of Horse in Schleswig:
— Cavalry Captain von Saxesen — 1 copy.
— Lieutenant von Sincksen — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Queen’s Life Regiment:
—Ensign von Talbiker — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Oldenburg Infantry Regiment in Rendsburg:
— Major-General von Blücher — 1 copy.
— Captain von Hauch — 1 copy.
— Captain von Malesch — 1 copy.
— Free-Corporal von Linde — 1 copy.
At the Royal Danish Schleswig Infantry Regiment:
Gentleman of the Chamber, Captain von Normann — 1 copy.
Preface.
It must surely be extremely difficult for young military men, who are not yet familiar with history and the actual course of war, to form a clear and distinct idea of the design of an army’s operations, and of the importance of the considerations to be taken in doing so. Considerable knowledge of the geography of a country in general, and of the terrain of its most important regions in particular, is already required in order to fully grasp and understand the execution of a main plan of war and the connection of its parts. Only through examples is it possible to instruct the young soldier in this branch of the art of war. The study of history must therefore play a leading role here, and, in combination with geography, is indispensable to the learner.
However great and important the use of these two sciences may be, I am nevertheless firmly convinced that the very grandeur and vast scope of their names deters many from a zealous study of the science of war. If, therefore, I seek, in the work which I here lay before the public, to establish, in accordance with the teachings of the modern art of war and the laws of nature, rules which may ease the young soldier’s entry into the spirit of this science, and which, under the appealing guise of a game, may lend greater interest to its harder-to-learn parts — then I believe I may rightly expect that judgment will be passed, only after mature consideration of the purpose I have had in view, on whether and to what extent I have come close to it. The usefulness of a game which is meant to direct the mind toward the scientific aspects of the art of war, just as gymnastic exercises prepare the body for skilled movements — this usefulness, I say, was already recognised by Marshal Puységur, in that he recommends figures by means of which the movements of an army, with regard to terrain, etc., could be shown, as the best means of making the often-difficult lessons of the art of war clear to young military men, as it were, through experience.
The suitability of my attempt to represent the army by means of lifeless figures will become still more evident when one considers that the army, taken in general, is merely the body and the machine, which first receives life from the genius of the commander and is set in motion by him. It will be recognised that, through the dependence of all operations on the will of the player, it becomes much easier to grasp at a glance the connections, causes and effects of great events of war, and, through experience on a small scale, also on the great stage of the world, to derive the possible consequences from their first causes. To show the use and the interest which this game will also hold for the rest of the thinking public, I need only add that it is by far more intricate, and requires far more effort and practice, than chess could ever demand. The human mind, which constantly longs for variety and constantly strives to seek out purpose and use, enters in such a war-game upon a wider field of activity: here it encounters an imitation of that of which it can seek the originals in nature, and will therefore — once it has properly grasped the rules of the game — find more here to attract it than chess is able to offer.
These compelling reasons, together with the advice and encouragement of my late teacher, Lieutenant-Colonel Mauvillon, to design such a war-game founded on nature and the present art of war, gave rise to the appearance of this work. Professor Helwig is, to my knowledge, the first who, convinced of the usefulness of his labour, broke ground in this subject some years ago; and this man’s merit is undoubtedly much increased by the fact that — since the first attempt of this kind is already capable of so much further development — it follows naturally that time and continued reflection must produce new inventions, additions, etc.
Should anyone, among the positive rules of the game, be struck by the division of the month into moves, I must refer him back to the principal intention underlying the whole. For although the course of battles is restricted by this arrangement into moves, the siege of a fortress is certainly a purpose which, in the linking-together of operations, deserves consideration far sooner than the particular manoeuvres in the course of a battle. But were the war of sieges to be shown here in general, I could not divide the month into 30 or 31 moves, because this more specific division would entail an extensive detailing of every matter and result in the greatest confusion in the course of the game. How, however, the more precise course of an entire siege, or also of a particular battle, can be shown in a separate game, is noted in the work itself, together with the necessary modifications and additions to the general rules. After these preliminary remarks, I believe the purpose of this work will be sufficiently clear to the reader, and, provided it is not misunderstood, its usefulness too will become evident.
Contents of the actual rules of the game.
First Part.
Explanation and Arrangement of the Game.
First Section.
Explanation of the Map.
a) On the Plain
b) the Marsh
c) the Water — 6
d) the Fords
e) the Hollows (Gründe) — 6
f) the Ravines — 6
g) the Mountains
h) the Rocks
i) the Woods — 8
k) the Settlements
l) the Highways — 13
m) the Size of the Map — 13
Second Section.
Definition and Explanation of the Things Needed for the Game.
I. The Army — 16
a) Infantry — 16
b) Heavy Cavalry — 18
c) Light Cavalry — 19
d) Foot Artillery — 19
e) Horse Artillery — 19
f) Types of Ordnance — 21
g) Vehicles/Wagons — 23
h) Strength of the Armies — 25
II. War Materiel — 25
a) Bridges — 25
b) Storming Ladders — 26
c) Fascine and Earthen Breastwork Lines — 26
d) Wolf Pits — 29
e) Palisades — 29
f) Abatis — 30
g) Powder for Mines — 30
h) Inundations — 32
i) Blockhouses — 33
k) Means of Obtaining Provisions — 34
l) Accumulation of Magazines — 42
Third Section.
Preparation for the Game.
a) Positioning of the Armies — 44
b) Establishment of the Magazines — 45
c) Method of Supplying the Troops with Provisions — 47
Second Part.
Modes of Action of the Figures.
First Section.
Movement of the Troops.
I. With regard to Distance and Direction
II. With regard to the Load — 58
III. With regard to the Objects — 60
Concerning:
the troop corps — 60
the plain — 61
the marsh
the water — 61
the fords
the hollows
the ravines — 62
the mountains — 62
the rocks
the woods — 62
the grain (fields) — 63
the highways — 63
the settlements — 63
the means of fortification — 65
the variety of terrain and the load carried by the figure — 65
Second Section.
Combat of the Troops.
I. With regard to Distance and Direction — 66
II. With regard to the Load — 75
III. With regard to the Objects — 75
Concerning:
a) the figures of both sides — 76
b) the plain — 76
c) the marsh
d) the water — 77
e) the fords
f) the hollows
g) the ravines — 78
h) the mountains — 78
i) the rocks
k) the woods
l) the grain (fields) — 80
m) the narrow roads (defiles)
n) the settlements — 81
o) the means of fortification — 85
the variety of terrain — 88
Third Section.
Production of Objects.
Work of the figures, with regard to terrain, distance and load — 90
Production of the plain, the marsh, the mountains, the hollows, the woods, the water, and the settlements — 90
Making roads and other passages — 91
Building bridges
Setting up storming ladders — 94
Making a dam
Repair of damaged things — 95
II. Production of War Materiel — 96
a) Bridges and ladders — 96
b) Palisades — 96
c) Fascines — 96
d) Abatis — 97
e) Earthen breastworks — 97
f) Wagon-laagers — 100
g) Blockhouses — 100
h) Mines — 102
i) Inundations — 105
Fourth Section.
Destruction of Objects.
Destruction of the terrain — 108
a) the plain — 108
b) the marsh and water — 108
c) the fords — 108
d) the mountains, hollows and ravines — 108
e) destruction of the rocks — 108
f) the woods — 109
g) the settlements
h) the grain (fields) — 110
Destruction of roads and other crossings — 116
a) the bridges — 116
b) the ladders — 116
c) the dams — 117
Destruction of war materiel and means of fortification — 118
a) Destruction of troops, wagons and ordnance — 118
b) Destruction of the breastworks
the pits/ditches
the palisades and the abatis
e) Destruction of the wagon-laagers — 121
the blockhouses
the inundations — 123
the mines — 124
Modifications
First Part.
Explanation of the Map and Preparation for the Game — p. 160.
Second Part.
Actions of the Figures.
First Section.
Their Movement.
With regard to distance and direction — 174
Second Section.
Combat of the Troops.
I. With regard to Distance and Direction — 176
II. With regard to the Objects — 179
Third Section.
Production of Objects — 184
Effect of Mines — 190
Fourth Section.
Destruction of Objects.
a) The rampart wall — 194
b) The blockhouses — 195
c) A fascine elevation — 196
d) Palisades of the covered way — 196
Appendix.
Containing improvements and additions to some rules.
To the First Part.
First and Second Sections.
I. With regard to the terrain — 209
II. With regard to the armies — 210
III. With regard to the provisions account — 212
To the Second Part.
First Section.
Movement of the Figures.
I. Regarding distance, direction, and the highways — 218
II. Regarding the load
III. Regarding the stationing/positions — 220
Second Section.
Combat of the Troops.
I. With regard to time and direction — 223
II. With regard to the objects — 224
Third and Fourth Sections.
Work of the Figures.
I. Regarding distance and direction — 225
II. Regarding the objects — 226
Introduction.
If a war-game is to be arranged according to its purpose, then in every situation both sides must, under its rules, find the means which nature offers under the same circumstances, and whose execution does not depend on the bravery of the troops, on treachery, or on chance favours of the weather — but is determined solely by the advantages gained individually, by the errors of the enemy, in short, by means employed at the free will of each party.
No fixed prescriptions may obstruct the consequences of military events; rather every undertaking must, once completed, produce exactly the natural effects that would follow it in reality. A properly arranged war-game thus provides a continuous representation of great events of war, brought about through the efforts of two parties contending against one another, who at the start of the game are entirely equal in strength, and differ from one another only in how that strength is applied.
It follows from this that the rules of the game must be adapted to the means which the present art of war affords. And all the advantages one may therefore expect from it will consist: a) of the resources which the theatre of war provides; b) of the support afforded by the organisation and strength of the army; c) of the benefit which the player’s will and ingenuity draw from these.
The first advantage results from a proper knowledge of the terrain and its various properties. The help to be expected from the army can be determined from a knowledge of its needs and strengths, and the art of war of the time, the organisation of the arms, and the procurement of the manifold necessities serve here as guidance. The advantages which genius affords, however, cannot be reduced to fixed rules, but will show themselves more correctly and clearly through examples and through the course of the game.
It has already been noted in the Preface that the course of an entire siege war could not possibly be shown within the game, which gives an overview of the great operations; therefore special rules have been laid down, which must be observed in addition to the general ones, if one wishes to carry out a fully detailed siege war on the 3rd board. I would further note that the Appendix contains those rules and modifications which, although following them makes the game somewhat harder in some cases, bring its course closer to nature.
Rules of a New War-Game.
First Part.
Explanation and Preparation.
First Section.
Explanation of the Map.
To determine distances, the entire terrain of the theatre of war must be divided into squares, of which objects on it always occupy a certain number. The following objects must be capable of being shown on the map representing the theatre of war:
A. Plain.
Plain. This is to be regarded here as ground level (the horizon), and the squares it occupies may be left white.
Marsh. Its surface lies at ground level and is indicated by orange.
Water. Its surface likewise lies at ground level. It is indicated by blue.
Fords. Must be marked as a kind of dam, since they are a raising of the riverbed.
Hollows (Gründe) are to be regarded here as depressions below ground level, though the floor of a hollow does not lie more than 50 feet below it. They are represented by yellow squares. The slope of a hollow is assumed to rise gently.
Ravines are nothing other than narrow hollows with steep sides. They do not occupy whole squares, but are shown merely as a division between two squares, by a yellow stripe running along the side of the square. Their width is taken to be not more than 25 feet.
In the same way that ravines are marked, one may also indicate strips of marsh and water of the same defined width, and thus draw streams in the case of water. If one wishes to indicate broader ravines, marshy strips of land, or small rivers, one draws two parallel stripes — yellow, orange, or blue — along one and the same dividing line between two squares, but in such a way that on each of the two adjoining squares one of the noted stripes runs. Such a marsh, ravine, or stretch of water may be taken as 50 feet wide.
Mountains. Three kinds are established here. Those of the first kind are taken to be not more than 50 feet high, those of the second not more than 100, and those of the highest kind not more than 150 feet high. Since they are all to have an equal footprint, it follows naturally that their height determines their steepness. Mountain squares of the first kind are indicated by grey, those of the second by brown, and those of the third by black. Where a mountain and a hollow meet, the upper surface of the mountain lies 50 feet higher relative to the floor of the hollow than it does relative to the plain — from which it can be seen that, through this combination, heights of up to 200 feet can also be indicated. Rocks. When these occur at the edge of a mountain or a hollow, they are the steep slopes of the same, and their height is then equal to that of the mountain, or to the depth of the hollow.
If drawn on a plain, or on other terrain, they are free-standing rock walls, not more than 100 feet high. In all cases they are marked by black zigzags.
Woods. All wood squares are indicated by green. If one wishes to indicate dense woods, this can be done by adding black stippling to the squares; woods, moreover, are taken to be not more than 50 feet high.
Settlements. These include towns and villages. All houses of a settlement are not more than 50 feet high. In every inhabited square there is an open space, and around it an unbuilt, open border. Town houses are taken to be sturdier than those of villages. If one draws a cross in a village square, this may indicate a parish village (with a church), and then the churchyard wall or church wall is as strong as that of a town building. If, now, a town is surrounded by a rampart and a ditch, a fortress results. The rampart of a fortress is drawn in yellow and shown with bastions. The (wet) ditch is drawn in blue. On every corner and side of a fortress square there is a gate, and a drawbridge across the ditch. The internal arrangement of a fortress’s ramparts can be better understood from the assumed profile shown in Table I, Fig. 1. The width of the ditch a–b should be one-twentieth of the side of the square, and b–c the same. If one then allows the same again for the outworks, three-fifths of the square remains for the width of the town itself.
The profile shows a casemate below, and a breastwork on top of the rampart. The vault of the casemate is completely bomb-proof; the front wall, however, is twice as strong as the upper breastwork. The casemates have loopholes, so that heavy ordnance or musketry can be fired from them. Since the outworks are arranged in the same way, a kind of double rampart, fitted with casemates, runs around the town, thereby turning it into a fortress.
The ditch of a fortress is not more than 50 feet wide and deep; moreover, the water in such a ditch is stagnant, and useless for fortification purposes during inundations, unless the place lies on some flowing watercourse.
Towns surrounded by walls have, running along them, galleries/scaffolding (Gerüste) which serve for their defence. They have no outworks, so their fortification is simple only. Such a wall is not more than 50 feet high, and there are loopholes both above and below the gallery. The gallery has the strength of the town’s buildings, and therefore gives whatever is placed beneath it cover against bombs only for as long as it itself remains undestroyed. If the wall is brought down without destroying the gallery as well, the gallery is destroyed along with it. This is the case when one destroys only the town, without the wall.
The 2nd figure shows the profile of a wall at a fortress, together with its gallery. Since ramps lead up to both the rampart and the wall-gallery, it is up to the garrison to position itself either on the rampart behind the breastwork, or in the gallery, or beneath it in the case of a town wall, or finally either in the houses, or on the open square and border of an inhabited square.
The wall running around a town is, moreover, shown by a dark red stripe drawn along its edge. The walls of a town also have, like the fortress ramparts, exits on every corner and side of the inhabited square, secured with grilles and strong gate-leaves.
A village is drawn with no enclosure at all; one may enter or leave it on every corner and side of the village square. The buildings of a plain village are half as strong as those of a town. Finally, it should be noted that all inhabited squares are coloured red.
Each of the two warring countries makes the town lying farthest from the border its capital. The entire government of the country resides in this capital, and at its command all active forces are immediately set in motion or brought to rest. From this it follows that, since the government never departs from this place during the whole war, the war is immediately ended as soon as one side loses its capital, and that side has irrecoverably lost the game — unless, in that same move, it also takes the enemy’s capital, in which case the game becomes a draw.
Sluices. These are means of producing a flood at once. They are indicated by two closely parallel red lines drawn across the body of water to be dammed. Their upper edge, lying at ground level, is pointed and allows no passage. At one end of the sluice a small hook is drawn, lying on the square on which the figure that is to open or close the sluice must stand. The masonry of a sluice is as strong as a town wall, which in turn is one-quarter as strong as a fortress’s revetment wall.
If one wishes to indicate that a settlement or a wood square lies on a mountain or in a hollow, this can be done by small crosses marking the squares on which the settlement or wood is to lie. This notation would, however, be unclear for many wood squares at least.
Roads. These include highways and bridges. Across the squares over which a highway is to run, a heavy black line is drawn in the direction the highway takes. Where it crosses water or marsh, bridges must be present. If a red line is drawn on each side of the line marking the highway, this indicates stone bridges; if instead only a black line is drawn on each side of it, this indicates wooden bridges. It should also be noted here that, where a road runs over a mountain 150 or 200 feet high, a hollow way (a cutting) results, in which — on account of the steep slope — the road must be assumed to be cut into the ground.
Now that we have indicated the objects which must be shown on the war map, it is necessary to say a word about its general layout. The squares, namely, must be of a suitable size for the movements to be carried out on them. This is achieved if they measure one square inch. One can then always bring a sufficient number of them onto the theatre of war. Of course, with regard to the relationship that holds between the extent of a defensive line and the means applicable to its defence, one comes closer to nature and reality the greater the number of squares making up the theatre of war is taken to be. However, with too great an extent the map would become too large for a game between two players, not to mention other inconveniences. The most suitable size for such a map is therefore probably one whose length is taken between 5 and 8 feet, and whose width between 3 and 6 feet. The smallest, taking the foot at 12 inches, would contain 2160 squares, and the largest 6912 squares. On the smallest, terrain entirely suitable for defence can already be drawn if each side of a square is taken as 2000 paces. For the sake of keeping the board clean, it is good to have the terrain intended for the theatre of war painted in oil colour onto a table made specially for the purpose. To avoid having to fear that the figures will be displaced during interruptions of the game, the table is made with a rabbet (groove) along its edges, so that a specially made lid can be fitted firmly on top. This lid, however, must leave enough room beneath it that the tallest figures can stand comfortably under it. Otherwise, it is left to each player to decide what terrain, and with what variety of objects, the theatre of war is to be drawn, and how it is to vary.
If one has good maps, a real country may also be chosen. In doing so, however, a certain selection of objects must be made, and, where possible, an effort should also be made to bring about a certain balance between the two sides even with invented (fictional) regions.
Second Section.
Definition and Explanation of the Things Needed for the Game.
Troops. Their combination forms the army needed for waging war. They are divided into infantry, cavalry, and artillery. A corps consisting of these three types of troops we shall call a brigade, and represent it in the game by a single figure. These figures must now be given the following properties: firstly, that they consume something; secondly, that they can be damaged; thirdly, that they can perform all the human labours necessary in war.
On the first point, we must note that they, like all living creatures, require constant sustenance.
On the second point: the loss inflicted on a troop brigade can either be so severe that it is completely destroyed, or it can be only temporarily deprived of its fighting strength, without losing its capacity to perform other labours. The former effect is “killing”, the latter “wounding”. The failure of the constantly necessary sustenance must, among other things, produce the former effect. Moreover, all troops must at all times have it in their power to inflict one or the other of these effects on their opponent through their attack, while also possessing the means to protect themselves against the enemy’s strength. A thing assumed destroyed is removed from the game at once. A wounded one is removed only for a time; moreover, by bringing two wounded units together on one square, a single, fully combat-ready figure of the same type as the wounded units can again be produced. However, as already stated, a wounded troop brigade retains the capacity to carry out all labours that do not require the brigade’s complete, i.e. combat-ready, state; it should only be noted further that all labours which a combat-ready brigade can carry out in one day require two days for completion by a wounded one. Another way of weakening the opponent is the capturing of his troops. This must be the hardest action to carry out, and the opportunity for it must therefore be found only rarely. Each type of troop must have its own particular means of weakening the enemy.
As to the third point, it should be noted that all action of the troops can be divided into: 1) marching, 2) fighting, 3) labours for the production of objects, and 4) labours for the destruction of things assumed to be inanimate.
The troops must have two means at their disposal for damaging the acting figures, namely the effect of firearms, or the attack of a charge. Infantry can carry out both kinds; cavalry only the latter; and artillery without its guns, neither — but with its guns, only the former kind.
Even if a cavalry brigade is assumed to be not as strong as an infantry brigade, it is nevertheless certain that, owing to its considerably larger number of horses, it consumes more than the latter. If the horses of a brigade have not been separated from it, they suffer with it from the same cause and the same effect. For the better overcoming of the difficulties of the terrain, half of the cavalry brigades are made into light horse, which, however, cannot deliver as effective an attack as the heavy [cavalry]. For the quicker bringing-up of certain heavy guns in urgent cases, some artillery brigades are made mounted, so that they are to be regarded as cavalry — except that, unlike cavalry, they cannot fight by charge, but only through the use of their cannon. Every artillery brigade, moreover, can serve all types of ordnance. As to determining the size of the army, note that it will be sufficiently large if it is composed of half as many troops as the number of squares contained, in a straight line, along the border of the countries drawn on the map being used. Of this number of brigades, one-half to three-fifths may be infantry, one-fifth to one-quarter of that number artillery, and the rest cavalry brigades. One must here be guided by the terrain and by the various means of fortification along the borders. The various types of troops can best be distinguished if one has the figures representing the brigades made according to the shapes shown in figures 3 and 4 on Plate 1. Fig. 3 represents an infantry brigade, and Fig. 4 a heavy cavalry brigade. The foot-artillery brigades could be made the same as Fig. 3, only without a musket; horse artillery like Fig. 4, only without a sabre; and the hussar brigades likewise like Fig. 4, but with a cap or shako in place of the hat. The figures of the different sides must be distinguished from one another not by shape, but solely by colour.
Each of these figures has a square base, which, however, need not be as large as a square on the map. If the latter measures one square inch, the former should be no more than 5/6 of an inch long and wide. Around this base square runs a rim, 1/4 to 1/3 of an inch high, so that the figure stands in the middle of this small tray. The whole tray may be made either of sheet metal or of light wood. It serves for the better transport of items that may be added to the troop brigade, such as bread, palisades, fascines, etc. Moreover, these figures representing the troop brigades must not be more than 3 inches high. One can, of course, arrange these, like all the other figures needed for the game, in various other ways; but such variations are, as is only fitting, left to the ingenuity and discretion of the players.
Cannon. This heavy ordnance is divided into siege and field guns. The former has more effect than the latter, but is also considerably harder to transport. A battery is represented by a single figure, and requires a whole artillery brigade to serve it. All batteries are assigned an equal number of guns, and likewise each is given enough horses that it can move even without artillerymen, and so that the field guns can keep up with the infantry’s movements. If an artillery brigade wishes to bring the battery into action, it must move onto the square on which the battery stands.
Because of the large number of artillery horses, a battery also requires provisions. By harnessing more horses to a battery — which may be borrowed from a cavalry or horse-artillery brigade — its speed can be increased.
Every battery is assumed to consist half of howitzers and half of cannon. Both types of ordnance may act either separately or combined; in either case, however, they must fire in one direction. Howitzers may be used as cannon, but cannon may not be used as howitzers, i.e. as lobbing (mortar-type) ordnance. The height which the shells of howitzers can reach is 200 feet. If two wounded or damaged batteries are combined on one square, a single, fully usable battery results again — though of the smaller calibre of the two damaged ones.
On Plate 1, Fig. 5 represents a siege battery. The small container shown on it serves so that the battery’s provisions can be carried along with it, and an artillery brigade serving the battery can be placed inside it. From this it can be seen that this small box must be wider than the base of a troop brigade. The figure representing a field battery may lack the four corner knobs, for the sake of distinguishing it. The batteries of the two sides playing the game may be indicated by a difference of colour.
It should further be noted that damaging the ordnance requires far more force than damaging its team of horses, so that the two do not suffer the same effect from the same cause. The number of batteries depends on the strength of the army and of the country. In every fortress square, two siege batteries are assumed, which can never be brought out and must be destroyed on the spot itself. Besides these, one has half as many siege batteries again as field batteries, which are then needed for the siege.
Wagons. These are needed for transporting provisions and all other war requisites. A brigade of them is indicated, like heavy ordnance, by a single figure (see Plate I, Fig. 6). It is nothing other than a small box, open at the top, which must however be large enough to hold a battery or a troop brigade. The wagons, like the cannon, require, for their movement, a team of horses and drivers. One must therefore also give them a quantity of rations for their upkeep. Here too the rule applies that the wagons do not suffer the same effect as the horses from the same cause; further, that by bringing together two damaged wagon brigades on one square, a single, fully usable wagon brigade can again be obtained. Moreover, the drivers of these wagons must have the ability both to load and unload the wagons, and also to form a wagon-laager (Wagenburg) out of them. The wagon brigades of both sides may be indicated by different colours.
It is assumed that every army has so many bread-wagons that, at the end of each move, it receives a daily supply of provisions, brought along the highways from the magazines, to a distance of 2 infantry marches. However, ships on a river can also bring up provisions over a distance of 4 infantry marches daily. The ships themselves are assumed to be kept in readiness at the magazines lying on the river, but are useful only for transporting bread and forage. For transporting the other necessities one may reckon one wagon brigade for each field battery — of which there must be exactly as many as the army possesses artillery brigades.
Bridges. These are needed for the crossing of troops over water, marsh, and ravines.
Pontoon bridges serve chiefly for the rapid crossing of bodies of water. They may be small yellow sheet-metal plates, whose width and length must be equal to half the side of a square on the war map. On two opposite sides they must have small rims, to indicate the side-planking of the bridge. For each side, one may reckon 2 to 4 pontoon bridges.
A pontoon bridge must require more skill to lay than a flying or assault bridge.
A flying or assault bridge serves for the passage of ravines, ditches, streams, narrow marshes — in general, of crossings not more than 25 feet wide. If one wishes to cross wider obstacles, several assault or flying bridges must be joined together. An assault or flying bridge must also be far easier to transport than a pontoon bridge. Moreover, they may be made just as large as the pontoon bridges, and their colour should be white; only the planks or sides of them must be marked by an edge, or by another colour. At the start of the game, each of the two playing sides may be given as many assault bridges as it has artillery brigades. However, since these flying or assault bridges are made of wood, it must be possible, even during the game, for new ones to be made by the troops working, provided they have a supply of wood.
Storming ladders. These serve solely to make it possible for infantry to climb steep objects not more than 50 feet high.
They must be easy to transport. They are indicated in the same way as a flying bridge, except that ladders are painted across these small sheet-metal plates. Each side may, moreover, receive the same number of these as of flying bridges.
Fascine or gabion lines. These are necessary for the more solid construction of an entrenchment, and for its more rapid completion. For the throwing-up of a mere earthen breastwork requires too much time to allow one to take cover by it quickly — for instance, during a siege — against the enemy’s very heavy ordnance. It is best to indicate these means of stronger and more rapid fortification straightaway as already-assembled lines, each of which, in length, amounts to one side of a square.
By means of these lines, various bends can be laid into the entrenchments to be constructed, following the sides of the squares. These fascine or gabion lines must also be capable of being produced, out of wood, during the game, through the labour of the figures. But even before the start of the game, a number of fascine lines must be distributed to each side, for the opening of a siege, equal to the number of all its troop brigades. Since the construction of a mere earthen breastwork requires no materials other than earth, and this can be obtained on any solid ground (rocks excepted), nothing of this kind is distributed to either side before the start of the game. To indicate such thrown-up earthen breastworks, one may use the same symbols that denote a fascine line, or entrenchment, and then lay such lines along the sides of the squares that are to be fortified by earthen breastworks. With both kinds of entrenchment, one must mark their inner and outer sides, and be able to distinguish them from one another. Since both are meant to have the same shape, the latter [distinguishing the two sides] may be indicated by a difference of colour, and the former [distinguishing fascine lines from earthworks] by placing the objects representing these entrenchments on one side or the other.
On Plate 1, Fig. 7, such a breastwork line is depicted. The base may be about three-quarters of an inch wide, the raised edge half an inch high. The breastwork line itself is as long as one side of a square. These markers may be made of sheet metal. It will moreover easily be seen that, by laying several such breastwork lines one behind another, one is enabled to indicate a strong or a weak breastwork as desired. One need only bear in mind that, when several such breastwork lines, and indeed also other entrenchments raised above the horizon, lie one behind another without a gap along one side of a square, these fortifications are then to be regarded as joined together into a single entrenchment. From which it follows that the rearward ones can in no way hinder the defence carried out by the forward ones.
Wolf-pits (Wolfsgruben) are a means of further strengthening an entrenchment. Since, like earthen breastworks, they require no prepared materials, but can be made anywhere it is possible to make the former, nothing of this kind is distributed before the start of the game. The markers indicating them may be of wood, or — for better stability — of lead, and have the shape shown in Figure 8. The black areas in it represent the small pits indicating the wolf-pits themselves.
Palisading. This serves the same purpose as wolf-pits. Each side must, before the start of the game, be given the same number of these as of fascine lines. It is, moreover, natural that they can also be made of wood by the troops during the game. The markers needed to indicate them may be shaped just as Figure 7 shows, and distinguished from breastworks by a red colour.
Abatis (Verhau). Here everything said of palisading applies, except that these are not distributed before the start of the game, but are made only during it; and they must be distinguished from breastworks and palisades by a green colour, since these abatis lines have the same shape as those other means of fortification. The reinforcements shown so far can now also easily be imagined as added to an entrenchment.
It should be noted here that, of the markers that, outside the game, remain together for the common use of both sides, there must be available, of each type at least, as many pieces as both sides together have troop brigades. Two further means of strengthening an entrenchment are: the use of mines, and of inundations. For the enemy must not dare to cross terrain beneath which mines are located, and that which is inundated he cannot enter with infantry, which is needed only for attacking an entrenchment.
To indicate the laying of a mine charge, one must have round red sheet-metal markers, fitted with a projecting tail, which indicate the powder charge of the mine. On the mines requiring the smallest charge to produce a certain effect, the number 1 may appear.
Stronger charges are shown by stacking several of the simple markers on top of one another. For convenience, one may also possess additional markers which, by means of higher numerals placed on them, denote stronger charges, and use these in place of the stacked simple charges. Such a mine-charge marker indicates a constructed mine as soon as it is laid. The mine chamber then lies on the square on which the end of the tail attached to the mine-charge marker is found. Beneath the square on which the circle of the mine-charge marker is located, however, lies the mine itself. If one wishes to indicate a mine-gallery leading to the mine charge, one lays small red sheet-metal strips, each the length of one square, end to end, starting from the tail of the mine-charge marker, across the squares, in a continuous line, as far as the square on which the mine chamber is to be located — which is always indicated by the end of the mine gallery.
Since the mine-charge markers actually represent the powder required for the charge, a certain quantity of them must be distributed to both sides before the start of the game. Each of the two sides may receive twice as many simple mine-charge markers as it has troop brigades. Once these are used up, none can be made again for the rest of the war. The markers indicating the stronger charges remain outside the game, for the common exchanging of the simple ones.
In Figure 9, a mine fitted with a fourfold powder charge is shown, together with a gallery leading to it, in which latter a further simple mine is located.
Inundations. These are achieved by damming or backing up the flowing waters. Since water then comes to stand on terrain that is otherwise dry, this can be indicated in the game by laying, on the inundated squares, equally large, blue-painted sheet-metal plates, which remain outside the game until they are needed.
One may find oneself in situations where a covered entrenchment can be very useful; therefore, in order to be able to indicate, during the game, the construction of such a cover for an entrenchment, and its subsequently continued reinforcement, one must have available some 10 or 12 such covers, which may be made as shown in Figure 8. One places this cover, namely, on or over the square above which the cover is to be built, and then indicates the reinforcements of the cover that has been built by repeatedly stacking small brown sheet-metal plates on top of one another.
If a new road is to be made, one may use black sheet-metal strips, the length of one side of a square, for this purpose, and indicate it, by laying them end to end across the squares over which the new road is to run.
Provisions for the army. These can only be drawn from the harvest of the country. All the outlying fields of an inhabited square, and the square itself, may be regarded as cornfields, provided they consist of firm soil and not of rock, or of moor and water — since it is assumed that provisions grow only on such fields. Let us now fix the daily ration for an infantry brigade, or for an artillery brigade, or for the horses of a wagon brigade, or for the horses of a battery, at 1 portion; and that for the men of a cavalry or horse-artillery brigade likewise at 1 portion; and the same amount again for the daily ration of the horses of such a corps — so that the upkeep of an entire cavalry or horse-artillery brigade is fixed at 2 portions daily. It is then assumed, once and for all, that on every square designated as a cornfield, 48 such portions grow. Every troop and horse brigade pays, for each day that has passed, the provisions it has consumed during that day, out of its own stock of supplies carried with it up to that point. If it cannot do this, it is forced to surrender to the enemy, who may then either continue to feed it, or let it starve. Besides the army, the inhabitants of the country must also live off the produce of the harvest. Let us now fix that the whole year consists of 48 moves of each side, or the same number of days; and that every town square consumes, daily, as much as an infantry brigade, while a village square consumes half as much; from which it follows that every inhabited square produces as much as its annual upkeep requires, and that the villages still have 24 portions left over. Of these 24 portions, 8 remain lying in each village. If any troop or horse brigade now moves into a village, and lets its horses live off these rations, this must happen without interruption: for, at the first interruption of this consumption, all the rations perhaps still remaining are at once lost. Since, however, provisions for men must first be specially prepared, each side in the game requires, besides this, as many brigades of bakeries, each formed like a wagon brigade, and distinguishable from these by a different colour, that, if each of them, in one day, bakes the 6 to 8 rations allotted to it into 6 to 8 portions, the troops of the army receive, every day, one day’s bread, and additionally, on the 1st of each month, a daily ration may be in reserve for a quarter of the army. This reserve, however, can only be obtained on the first of each month, since it is only then that the land transport wagons bring it up. Each of these bakery brigades consumes, daily, exactly as much as an infantry brigade, on account of the team needed for its transport, and on account of the men it requires for its operation.
From what has been said so far, it follows that all the horses of the army live solely on rations, while the men live only on rations that have been baked into bread.
For the inhabitants, in every place of residence, on each day, only as many of the available rations are baked into portions as are needed for that day exactly. If this single portion is taken from an inhabited square, the inhabitants starve at once; all sowing and harvesting on the cornfields belonging to it ceases; and the entire remaining stock of rations, unless it is taken at the same time as the portion, is lost at once; and the houses, at the beginning of the new year, are stripped of all their roofs and ceilings, so that only the walls of the buildings remain standing.
It is now assumed, however, that as soon as one takes away from a town square merely a single ration, or from a village any part of the rations designated for feeding the village — among which, in every case, is the ration baked into the day’s portion — that settlement dies out in any case.
Each month of the year consists of 4 moves of each side, or of 4 days. Sowing is carried out by the country’s inhabitants on the 1st of October — or rather, it is assumed that it can only take place on these days, and that it actually is carried out by the country’s inhabitants then. But if a place has died out or been destroyed, no sowing is possible; if, however, it is occupied by an enemy troop brigade, then it depends on that brigade whether sowing is to take place.
On the 1st of August is the general harvest; that is, it is assumed that the inhabitants bring in the yield of their cornfields to their place of residence. This can happen only on this day; but if a place has died out or been burned down, or if this is the case with a place governing it, then no harvest takes place. If, however, the place itself is occupied by an enemy troop brigade, or if this is the case with a place governing it, then it depends on that brigade whether a harvest is to be held. If no harvest is held, each place has only as much as it itself needs, and for the villages the surplus of 8 rations is then lost. For the transport of the whole harvest yield to the magazines, the following order is laid down.
Each country establishes a capital, several district towns, and a number of sub-district towns, and then assigns to each sub-district town a certain number of villages, and to each district town a certain number of sub-district towns. It is now assumed that the village inhabitants bring the entire harvest-yield of their cornfields lying outside the place of residence only on the 2nd of August, to their sub-district towns. These, however, bring the stock thus collected in them, on the 3rd of August, to the district towns; and these in turn deliver, on the 4th of August, the yield of their whole district to the country’s capital. Whoever holds the capital, however, can also have the harvest-yield from the district towns sent, on the 4th of August, to any other destinations of their choosing. From the 1st of September, all transport by the country’s inhabitants ceases, and from the 1st of September onward must already be carried out by army wagons. If one of these transports of rations, by the country’s inhabitants of one place to another fixed here, is not carried out on the days noted, then the stock that cannot be brought forward is destroyed at once. Since this transport is assumed to follow the nearest highway running from one place to the other, it can be interrupted, or entirely cancelled, in the following cases:
- If the place to which the transport is going has died out, or been burned down, or if the nearest road there is cut off and blocked.
- If no place can transport the stores piled up in it to the place governing it, because it is itself occupied by some troop brigade, and this brigade does not permit the transport.
- No place harvests and exports as soon as one of the higher district towns is burned down or has died out. From these rules it follows that, if the capital is lost, the harvest yield of the entire country still in the field is already completely destroyed on the 1st of August. What holds here for the whole country, when the capital is lost, also holds in particular for every individual province, or for every sub-district, if the district or sub-district town belonging to it were lost. All provisions that are once in the capital remain safe there even without a covering force.
If the magazines are now established, then one would have to feed both the troops and the horses from them; but this would cause great transports. Often, therefore, one forages for the horses, that is, one either lets forage be brought in from the villages, where it is in store, by troops and wagons for their upkeep, or one lets troops mow down the cornfields. This can also be done by wounded troop brigades.
The mowing-down of each field costs the mowing figure, which must remain on it, a whole day’s work. If one mows down a field, it is regarded as completely mown, even if the resulting sum of rations has not all been consumed; and on such fields no harvest is even possible if they are mown down in July. In June, a field yields only a few rations as yet, which, however, can be baked into portions just as little as those of July. In June and May each field yields 12, in July 24, and on the 1st of August 48 rations; but if these are not mown down by the 1st, they are all destroyed by the 2nd of August. A foraged field is marked with a chalk-stroke. It will easily be seen that one will gladly seek, by means of a moderate ransom — in exchange for the surrender of the receipts issued for it — to prevent, on the enemy side, the destruction of a place at certain times. These rations and portions must be indicated by small leather tokens. For the quicker settlement of large sums, it is also good to have several tokens, for both kinds of provisions, in higher denominations.
It should further be noted that every place only ever exports as many rations as the total sum will feed double the army of one side for a year; thus the whole remaining harvest is regarded as destroyed. From half the harvest, a magazine is then established in the capital, by means of which the whole army can be fed, until the new harvest, but only within the capital itself. An easier and more convenient calculation of the daily upkeep the army constantly requires will be found in the appendix.
These, then, would be the war requisites to be represented in the game. But in order to be able to bring them together in magazines on a particular square, one must further have figures specially designed for this purpose, which do not hinder the free use of the terrain drawn on the squares on which the stock is to lie. In Figure 11, I have represented such a magazine, of which each side must have 6 to 12. It consists of a base-stand, 4 supports, and the upper box, in which the stock is placed, and which, if desired, may be fitted with a lid. The base-stand and supports may be of stout wire, but the magazine box of sheet metal. The base-stand may, as here, be the size of 2 squares, and may have projecting wire lines along its sides, to secure its position. One places this device over the square designated for the magazine, places the items in the box, and then regards them as though they lay on the square itself.
Third Section.
Preparation for the Game.
The questions to be answered here are: where and how is the army positioned? Where do the magazines go? What do they consist of? How does the supplying of the army take place? And the transport of the necessary items?
None of these questions can be answered here for particular cases, since this is only possible once the operational plan adopted is known, and this depends on the strength of the two sides, and on the means of defence of the countries.
As to the 1st question, however, it is laid down that, before the opening of the game — with which the opening of the war begins at the same time — the whole army, together with its wagons and guns, lies distributed in the garrisons, and that these garrisons are assumed to exist only in fortresses and walled towns. From these various garrisons, then, the army and the various corps must be drawn together. Of what troops it should consist of depends, naturally, on the plan of each side. Their strength is limited by the following. Every fortress or town square can hold, and securely keep in its houses, only two — or, if preferred, five — troop brigades, but otherwise as much ordnance, wagons, and war requisites as one likes. A village can shelter, in its houses against the weather, only one troop brigade and 2 wagons or 2 batteries, or 1 wagon and 1 battery, but otherwise as many war requisites as one likes. Every open field square can indeed hold or contain just as much as a village square; but everything found upon it is not under shelter, and suffers from the weather. A further distinction may be observed regarding the size of town and fortress squares, if some are taken to be only so large that they can hold just 1 troop brigade, but otherwise as many war necessities as one likes.
The 2nd question, where the magazines are to go, can only be answered in general terms to the extent that they must always be placed in inhabited locations, because the stock of war requisites kept in magazines would have no protection if it were placed in the open field, or one would be obliged to build covered buildings over it. In fortresses there are still places where even the stock can be safe from the enemy’s bombardment, and from fire, namely the rampart casemates. However, the casemates of an entire fortress square can hold only a sum of bodies amounting to the load of 10 wagon brigades; under this are included even the troops who are stationed in the casemates. Beneath the framework of the wall of a town square, moreover, only half as much can be stored.
What should a magazine consist of? This too cannot be determined in general for all cases, since it depends here on what undertaking one intends to proceed with, because the magazine must then contain the items necessary for that.
As regards the supplying and transporting of war requisites, the following should be noted.
1st. The magazines must contain the provisions for the armies.
2nd. These must be brought to the army either by means of the wagons, or through other acting figures. Or one may,
3rd, form an unbroken line of figures up to the square on which the portions or rations to be consumed are located, it being laid down that the figure standing on the square on which the stock lies passes on, to the other figures standing in unbroken succession, as much sustenance from its square as each is to have, and as is possible to distribute. This passing-on counts, for none of the figures involved, as a day’s work, and may therefore be carried out, before the start or at the end of any move, without detriment to other work that the figures are to perform during that move. It must be noted, however, that this is possible only with portions or rations — that is, with foodstuffs alone; all other items must, as already said, be transported to their destination either by wagons or by other figures. If, then, one has a row of troops, wagons, or batteries standing close together, and one brings supplies only onto the standing-square of one of these brigades, then the others, standing in unbroken succession next to this first one, may likewise draw on this supply in the same move in which it arrived, or — if it consists of actual foodstuffs — receive some of it. This remark was necessary once again here.
Now, the greatest load that a troop brigade or wagon brigade can carry, provided it is not wounded, is 16 portions or rations — for a ration is as heavy as a portion. If, however, the brigades are wounded, they can, like batteries — even if these are not wounded — carry only 8 portions or rations.
The weight, moreover, is as follows:
— One fascine line: 4 portions
— One palisade line: 4 portions
— One storming ladder: 2 portions
— One assault or flying bridge: 8 portions
— One pontoon bridge: 8 portions
— One simple mine charge: 8 portions
— One field battery (cannon): 8 portions
— One abatis line: 8 portions
— The mass of earth for one breastwork line: 16 portions
— The load of one troop brigade: 16 portions
— One siege battery: 16 portions
(Note: the numerical values in this table are badly distorted in the source scan; the figures given here are plausible reconstructions based on the surrounding text and should be used with caution.)
Or, finally, one may obtain sustenance, 4th, in the following manner — which, being the most convenient and easiest, also becomes thereby the most usual. It is assumed that so great a number of peasant wagons has been gathered from the country for the provision-transport of the armies, that the army can, by means of these, receive its daily upkeep at the end of every move or day. In every move, therefore, exactly as many portions and rations are driven out of the magazines as the troops standing in the field consume during that move. This export of provisions from the magazines, assumed to be carried out by peasant wagons, takes place however only along the highways, or on the rivers. If, therefore, communication along these, between the magazine and the troops to be supplied from it, is cut off, then this transport is no longer possible for as long as the interruption lasts; and the troops are then forced either, where possible, to live off another magazine, or to consume the stock they carry with them, or to procure something for themselves by means of forced levies (Brandschatzungen), or, finally, to surrender to the enemy. The cutting of water communication occurs, however, when an enemy troop brigade takes position on a bridge thrown across the river, or occupies a town lying close to the river.
Communication along the highways is cut off when a combat-ready enemy troop brigade, or a wagon brigade formed into a wagon-laager, takes position upon it. But such a highway is also blocked when it runs between two combat-ready enemy troop brigades standing close together, because one must assume that it is then occupied and filled at once by the two adjoining flanks of the enemy brigades. Besides these two cases, every enemy town through which the highway to be used runs likewise cuts off communication along it unless that town is occupied by one of our troop brigades.
Since the troops must receive their grain baked, and the bakery can, in any one move, bake only as much as the army consumes in one day, it follows that it is constantly at work — though it is assumed that it can also march; yet it can be seen that the troops must not move too far away from it, so as not to suffer want, since the provision-transport assumed is only strong enough to bring up, every day, the foodstuffs from the bakery to the troops standing on the highway not more than 17 squares away from the magazine. Since the flour must first be processed by the bakery, it follows that the route from the magazine, by way of the bakery, to the troops, must not exceed the 17th square along the highway, if these troops are still to be fed from it. Since the magazines, without the use of the bakery, can be of use only to the cavalry, and the troops themselves would starve in the field without the bakery, this importance of the bakery requires that one provide sufficiently for its safety; and it is therefore best to place it together with the magazines, in one place — namely, in fortresses.
It should be noted here, however, that troops stationed in towns and fortresses need no bakery, since it is assumed that the bakers residing in the place bake their upkeep along with their own; but as this happens only from day to day, for a single day, they can never take any of the bread baked in the town with them into the field, since they save nothing of it, but always consume this stock on the very day it is made. Since it is assumed that the inhabitants of the place provide this baking, this benefit ceases at once, in the same move, as soon as the place is burned down, or its own baked provisions are taken from it, and it is thus starved out.
If one wishes to make use of a magazine lying in an enemy town or village for the upkeep of one of our troop detachments, the place must be occupied with troops. The same applies if our bakery is placed in an enemy locality and is to bake for the feeding of the troops. If one observes this, then by means of a perhaps captured enemy magazine, situated in the middle of the enemy’s country on the highways, one can obtain upkeep for the troops nearby. For it is assumed that the necessary provision-transport is formed at once out of the country wagons, these having been requisitioned and gathered together from the surrounding district by the troops. If one wishes to use a river for transport, then what has been said here of wagons applies to ships, and since this happens with greater speed, the troops standing close to the river can still receive provisions from the magazines lying close to the river, provided only that the route from the magazine-square down the river to the standing-square of the troops does not exceed 34 squares. From this it can be seen that the use of a river offers the best means for a rapid advance; for if one wished to draw provisions far into enemy territory along the roads, the magazines would have to be pushed forward, and this can only be done with advantage on the 1st of March, the 1st of June, the 1st of September, and the 1st of December — for on these days, besides the necessary forage, one may also draw a whole month’s upkeep for the army all at once from the magazines.
Since only a certain degree of load entirely disables the use of the figures, one can, depending on the figures’ rate of movement, give them a certain degree of load without ill effect, and thereby avoid more frequent transports. Necessity also often requires that a figure carry some war requisite with it at once, and thus take it along, if one does not wish to provide wagons specially for this. In that case, the figure is obliged to adjust the extent of the movement it undertakes to the load it must necessarily carry along. The decision as to which side is to move first must be settled by lot. Moreover, it may be assumed that all the actions of the figures of one side always begin at the same time, and likewise that all of them, whether large or small, end again, at the same moment, with the conclusion of the move.
So that the settling of accounts for the stock taken from the magazines may be done more quickly, one may note the initial stock of each magazine, and then, after each move, subtract from it the sum of rations that had to be consumed from it by the troops during that move, or whatever else is removed from it for other reasons. Since one can see from these figures when a magazine is used up, it must, when this occurs, be emptied and removed at once. Counting over the armies at each move is easily done.
Finally, it depends on the will and design of each player how many figures, and which figures, he wishes to have act, and what action each in particular is to perform; one need only always see to it that, since no more than 8 troop brigades can be fed daily by one bakery brigade, one always has the necessary bakery nearby if more than 8 troop brigades happen to operate together, and that one never moves beyond the distance from it indicated above.
Second Part.
Rules concerning the Actions of the Figures.
First Section.
Movement of the Figures.
Movement, as well as all action of the figures, can be considered from three points of view.
1st. With regard to distance and direction.
Here it is to be laid down once and for all that all movements which a figure could carry out on its own standing-square — such as changes of front, deployments, and so forth — are not represented.
If, however, the movement of the figures is to take place from one square to another, it must be noted that this can occur either in a straight continuous line of march, or in a broken line of march; either of these can again be undertaken in two kinds of direction: once along the diagonal direction of the squares, and again along their straight side-direction. The breaks occur either at the midpoint, or at the end of the squares. If we now take the standing-square of the figures as the first, and count it in, then
an infantry brigade may move to the 5th square,
foot artillery and bakery to the 5th,
horse artillery to the 9th,
cuirassiers to the 9th,
hussars to the 9th,
wagons to the 9th,
field battery to the 5th,
siege battery to the 3rd.
See the appendix.
2nd. With regard to the load which the figures carry.
A load weighing two portions hinders no figure in its movements.
A load of 4 portions takes from a troop brigade a quarter of its own marching distance, leaving it only 3/4 of it.
A load of 8 portions leaves a troop brigade only half of its own extent of movement.
A load of 16 portions leaves every troop figure only a quarter of its own movement remaining.
No figure can carry more than 16 portions.
The greatest load of a battery is never more than 2 portions.
A wagon brigade can, with 8 portions, still cover its full distance; with 16, only half of it.
If a combat-ready, or unwounded, cavalry or horse-artillery brigade attaches itself to a battery that still has its team — and this happens simply by its placing itself on the standing-square of the battery and then moving along with it — then both kinds of batteries thereby obtain double the speed they otherwise possess. But if they have lost their team, and one burdens the named brigades with it, the batteries retain only their usual extent of movement. The same would be the case if they were dragged off by a foot brigade, or transported on wagons; but if, in this latter case, they still had their own team, then the battery could, in this last case too, be transported at double speed as well.
It is also necessary to note that, if a figure wishes to load itself with any load, it must be standing on that load’s square. If a figure now wishes to unload itself of a load, it can place this load only on its own standing-square, either before the start or after the end of the move — unless the load consists of foodstuffs, in which case it may, at both of these moments, also pass them to a neighbouring figure.
Neither the loading nor the unloading of a load costs the acting figure a day’s work, and sets no limit to the carrying-out of the work undertaken. From this rule only one case is excepted, namely when a wagon brigade unloads itself from a battery; if this occurs, then this counts as a whole day’s work for both figures on one and the same day. Both are therefore obliged to remain at their positions during the move in which the unloading and assembling of the gun is carried out or begun. By means of wagons, one can also make the march of foot-acting troop brigades twice as fast, by placing on each wagon brigade such an infantry or artillery brigade — which, as noted above, weighs only 8 — and giving it only 2 portions.
If one brigade wishes to give its horses to another which has lost its own, the former must place itself at one side of the latter’s standing-square. The giving-over from the one to the other counts, for both, as one move.
More than a doubling of the team of a battery, or of a wagon, cannot take place.
3rd. Movement of the figures with regard to the terrain.
No figure may pass over the standing-square of an enemy figure. If the enemy figure is a troop brigade, this is impossible for as long as it still stands there; but if it is merely a battery or wagon brigade, then the figure wishing to pass over its standing-square may only place itself there once the enemy batteries or wagons have driven into one another and formed a kind of wagon-laager; if this is not the case, such figures do not hold up the march of the enemy’s figures.
One can never pass between two enemy troop brigades, or wagon- and gun-entrenchments, if their standing-squares touch. For it is assumed once and for all that every figure occupies all the objects of the terrain found on its standing-square.
A merely discarded load does not hold up any march of the figures.
All figures of one side may pass through one another, or — which amounts to the same thing — over the standing-squares of the figures of their own side.
2nd. Plain. All figures may pass over it without hindrance in their movements.
3rd. Marsh. Cannot be passed by any kind of figure without a bridge.
4th. Water. Can be passed without hindrance only by cavalry; all other figures must cross by bridges. If a cavalry brigade swims across a body of water 2 squares long, it is wounded, if this happens in a single stretch; if the stretch is still longer, it is dead.
5th. Fords. Can, besides cavalry, also be passed at rivers by empty wagons, and at streams also by horse artillery with its guns, and by infantry. Other troops must cross by bridges.
6th. Hollows (Gründe). Can be passed by all figures.
7th. Ravines. Can be passed only by infantry, without bridges or made roads across them. Such a ravine is therefore, along its length, to be regarded for infantry — as a body of water is for cavalry — as a made road.
8th. Mountains. The two lowest kinds can be climbed or left by any figure without hindrance; the third kind, however, only by infantry, without made roads — as also 200-foot-high mountains.
9th. Rocks (Felsen). Cannot be climbed or left by any kind of troops or machines without made roads.
10th. Woods. Light woodland presents no difficulty to the march of any figure; but dense woodland can only be passed, left, or occupied by infantry without made roads. All of this is not indicated [on the map], and therefore presents no significant hindrance to any march.
12th. Roads. The name of this type of terrain indicates that these are chiefly a means of crossing other terrain by means of them. To these belong bridges, gates, and causeways. Made roads are the best terrain in the whole country; it is therefore laid down that every figure can, upon them, cover twice the distance that would be possible, in the same time, on any other terrain.
13th. Places of residence (Wohnörter). May be passed through and left by all troops and machines without hindrance or delay in their march. But if the place of residence is surrounded by a wall or a rampart, the march must take place through the gates of this enclosure; and if an enemy troop brigade — which may also be wounded — stands on the square on which the gate is located, then this gate is, for everyone it does not wish to let in, completely closed, and its location can be passed no more than the other parts of the rampart or wall. The same applies to any other fortification, with the sole exception that a mere breastwork does not stop the march of infantry. An infantry [brigade] can, however, also scale or leave a palisading, wall, or rampart, or rocks up to 50 feet high, if it first lays ladders against the said heights, and climbs up or down on them. A figure standing in a fortress or town — whether it is on the rampart or the wall, or beneath them, or in the town itself — can now, since it has the gates in its power, and as long as the bridge assumed at each gate is still there, cross both rampart and wall at once, and without the use of ladders; were the bridge gone, however, it would first have to build one.
When a figure advances into a fortress, town, or village, one must specify where it is to stand — namely, on the rampart, in the casemates, on the wall, beneath their framework, on the streets, in the houses, or, in the case of a church-village, in the church.
A figure that is on an inhabited square, and goes from one of these locations into another, this costs it a whole day’s work. A rampart or wall can be passed by any figure through a breach.
Wolf-pits are to be regarded like marsh.
If an infantry [brigade] carries more than 4, it cannot occupy, pass, or leave dense woodland, breastworks, ravines, and mountains over 100 feet high without made roads, nor can it climb ladders. If a cavalry [brigade] carries more than 8, it cannot swim across a body of water. It should further be noted, as a main rule, that, from the 1st of November to the 4th of April inclusive, all figures may, in the same time, move only half as far on any terrain as is possible in the period from the 1st of May to the 4th of October.
Second Section.
Fighting of the Figures.
Fighting, or the attack of the figures upon one another, can, like their marching, be considered from 3 points of view:
1st. Fighting of the figures with regard to distance and direction.
Wagons, wounded troop- or artillery brigades without guns, and ordnance without artillery, cannot fight.
The enemy can be attacked in two ways: either with the bayonet, or with firearms.
Not all kinds of troops have both kinds of attack at their disposal.
When a troop brigade is to use its bayonet against the enemy, it places itself on the square of the attacked enemy, and the latter, if struck dead, is at once entirely removed from the game; but if it is only wounded, it places itself on one of the adjoining squares of its former standing-square. If, however, this small retreat is not possible to carry out, owing to the difficulties of the terrain or the disposition of the troops, then the wounded figure is now not wounded, but captured, and one then proceeds with it as with a captured [figure].
If a wounded figure can, in the move immediately following its wounding, reach a highway, then one has the right to place this figure, in the move following that, directly into the capital. If this movement takes place at this noted point in time, and the figure remains standing in the capital in unbroken succession of moves until the 1st of January, then on that day it is again fully fit for its proper purpose. If this movement does not take place, however, then healing is impossible.
The effect of an attack has 4 degrees: the defeated figure is either captured, or dead, or wounded, or merely displaced from its position. If a figure is captured by a charge, then the one who captures it places it, in the same move, on one of the adjoining squares of its former standing-square; and if this is not possible, the figure is dead; but if such a refuge for the defeated figure is open, then it may be placed, in the following move, wherever one wishes. If captured figures are not exchanged on the 1st of January, they are incorporated into the side that captured them.
If a figure is merely displaced from its position by the attack of another, it places itself, in that same instant, on one of the adjoining squares of its standing-square, and is entirely unharmed. But if it cannot give ground from its position, owing to the difficulties of the terrain or the disposition of the troops, then it is neither wounded nor displaced, but taken captive.
The effect of the attack depends on the terrain over which it takes place; the effect of firearms depends on the direction in which it strikes the enemy, and with what mass it strikes him. If a troop brigade uses its firearms against the enemy, it does not, as when charging with the bayonet, place itself on the standing-square of the figure it strikes, but remains standing on its own standing-square, and the enemy nevertheless feels its effect at a distance.
Every attack, or every volley of firearms, costs the troop brigade a whole day’s work, and it can do nothing else in that move. Infantry has both firearms and the bayonet-charge at its disposal; cavalry, on the other hand, only the charge by sabre; artillery cannot fight at all unless it brings its heavy ordnance into action — it can use neither storming nor musket-fire. The heavy ordnance can be brought into action only by an artillery brigade.
Every troop or horse brigade whose standing-square lies entirely within the line of fire of an infantry brigade or a battery is killed by a volley from it; but if the standing-square lies only partly within the line of fire of another figure, then it is only wounded by a volley from that figure, but remains standing on its square.
From cannon fire, not only the living creatures are affected, but also the war machines that are with them, such as wagons and guns, suffer the same effect as these.
A wounded troop brigade can carry no more than 2, but otherwise can march its full distance.
From what has just been said it follows that, if an artillery volley is fired upon a battery or wagon brigade, then the wagons, guns, men, and horses standing on the square at which the volley is aimed all suffer the same effect from it. But if only an infantry volley had occurred, then the ordnance and wagons would be spared from it.
Here, however, one must note the exception that, if a wagon brigade or battery is struck only partly by an artillery or infantry volley, its team of horses remains unharmed; for the team to be damaged, the wagon brigade or battery must lie entirely under fire — but then the team is also dead. If, on the other hand, only an assault occurs against a battery or wagon brigade, which can only wound, the entire team of horses is nevertheless killed.
If a wounded figure is struck only by the weakest assault, or by a small volume of fire, it is now entirely dead. A captured figure is at once free again if a troop brigade of its own side drives the captor from its standing-square by an attack.
If a figure has at its disposal the higher degrees of effect of both kinds of attack, then it is up to it whether it lets the enemy feel the highest degree it can exert, or a lesser one, and upon what objects it is to act.
The effect of a charge is felt only by living beings — thus not by wagons, guns, or other war materiel. Since a battery consists of cannon and howitzers, and the latter can throw objects over 200 feet high, figures can also be struck by them in places where it would be impossible by cannon. However, the figures on the square at which such a volley from a battery is aimed are not wounded by it — unless it should happen that the howitzers of several batteries throw onto the same square at once, in which case the figures standing on it are dead.
The fire of an infantry brigade or a battery always acts only in one direction — even if, with regard to howitzers and cannon, one wishes to divide it; figures on a square can therefore very well be killed even if that square can receive only part of the direct cannon-fire of a battery, since one strikes the other part with the howitzers of this or another battery. Moreover, it is up to each player whether he wishes to take the front of a troop brigade along one side of a square, or along its diagonal, or broken, at an angle along two sides, and whether the howitzers are to stand on the right or left wing of a battery. One need only note that a mixing of howitzers and cannon still gives only direct fire.
Every figure covers the part of another against the enemy’s direct cannon- and musket- or infantry-fire whose line runs across the standing-square of the former figure, provided all figures are on the same horizon — or [if] both of the figures covering one another stand on the same horizon, and the firing figure is lower than these two; or if the firing figure and the figure covering it stand on the same horizon, and the rear one stands lower than both. But if the firing figure stands 50 feet higher than the standing-squares of the two others lie, then it can strike either of them, since all cover then ceases to apply. Against the throw of howitzers, naturally, no figure covers another; this protection can be obtained only by means of head-cover (overhead protection).
From what has been said it follows that a battery can wound two figures covering one another — namely, the front one by direct cannon-fire, where this is possible, and the second one by howitzer-throws.
The fire of infantry, like its assault, reaches only to the squares adjoining its own standing-square; the charge of cavalry, however, as well as the fire of artillery, reaches not only to these, but also beyond them to the third square — counting the standing-square of the cavalry or of the battery itself.
If one considers the various kinds of strike that the figures can deliver, one finds that by every assault only one figure, by infantry fire also two figures, and by the artillery fire of one brigade at most three figures, can be damaged.
The attack of heavy cavalry takes place either in the diagonal direction of the squares or along their sides, and cannot be broken.
The charge of light horse can take place in both directions at once — that is, the path to the enemy can be broken; or, to put it more clearly: heavy cavalry, on the path it covers during the attack, can take only one direction, whereas light cavalry can take, and break into, any direction, when the terrain or other circumstances compel it to do so.
If a troop brigade, or a complete wagon brigade, places itself upon a battery, wagon brigade, or other load, then this figure may make use of the battery, wagon brigade, or war materiel as it pleases, in the move immediately following. If, however, a wagon brigade wishes to load up the said items and carry them off, then the battery, or the wagons to be taken away, must no longer have a team.
2nd. Fighting of the figures with regard to load.
No troop brigade may fight if it is carrying more than 2 portions. It must set down the greater load on its standing-square before the engagement; and since this setting-down, and the picking-up afterward, do not count as a day’s work, so that the brigade can still carry out the engagement in the same move, it follows that even the greatest load does not hinder the use of the figure’s full strength — only, should the brigade be charged, the load must be left behind.
3rd. Fighting of the troops with regard to the objects [of terrain].
1st. Figures. These can themselves be a hindrance to troops in the following cases.
No direct fire passes over the standing-square of a figure to strike an enemy standing behind it, except when that square lies at least 20 feet lower than the standing-squares of the enemy and of the firing figure, or when the firing figure is 50 feet higher than the two others, and these stand on the same horizon.
No assault by a troop brigade passes over the standing-square of any figure, as soon as a figure is standing on it. If that figure belongs to the enemy side, [it is struck]; but if it stands on our own, the attacking brigade nevertheless strikes the enemy through this figure. Only one case is here to be excepted: when a brigade would have to storm across the standing-square of an enemy battery or wagon brigade — it is then hindered by these figures only if they have formed themselves into a wagon-laager; for in that case the attacking brigade, if it wishes to pass their standing-square, must first deal with them.
Any load not set up for defence holds up neither the effect of fire nor of an assault.
2nd. Plain. The effect of fire here, as with the other kinds of terrain, depends only on the mass with which it strikes the enemy. An assault, however, has its full effect here, in that heavy cavalry can thereby take the defeated figure captive, while the light cavalry and the infantry, on the other hand, can only wound it by the same means.
3rd. Marsh. All fire acts here as on a plain, but no assault by troops can pass over it.
From the 1st of January to the 1st of March, the marsh is, on account of the frost, to be regarded as a plain.
4th. Bodies of water. All fire of the troops acts here as on a plain, but no infantry attack can pass over it. Across brooks and small rivers, cavalry can carry out its attack: if this takes place across a larger body of water, heavy cavalry wounds its opponent, and light cavalry likewise wounds him; with small rivers the same holds.
5th. Fords. Here everything is the same as with bodies of water. At a ford, infantry too can attack: it then wounds the defeated enemy, since it cannot act at more than 50 feet [distance].
6th. Hollows (Gründe). Here the advantages and disadvantages, of which one figure has them by standing down in the hollow and the other by standing at its edge, are the same as if one stood on the horizon and the other on a 50-foot-high rise.
(Note: pages 104–106 of the source scan are exceptionally garbled; the reconstruction of the terrain-effect rules for marsh, water, fords, and hollows above follows the pattern established for the corresponding movement rules on Scan-S.89–90, and should be treated as a plausible but uncertain reconstruction.)
7th. Ravines. Over these all fire can act, but only the attack of infantry, which here, however, can only wound.
8th. Mountains. If the fire of the figures is to act across heights, then the terrain, from the firing figure to the standing-square of the figure to be struck, must either rise or fall as a staircase made up of perfectly equal steps. If a step is missing, the one following it must nevertheless possess the degree of height and size that belongs to it at its place.
If one wishes to storm across mountains, down from them, or up onto them, the effect of the attack is in every case determined by the highest mountain which the attacking brigade crosses.
If one figure stands 50 feet higher than another, both can use fire and the bayonet-attack against each other; but if heavy cavalry acts in its attack from the mountain downward, it wounds [its opponent], as in this case light cavalry also wounds. If the attack of heavy cavalry goes uphill, it kills, whereas that of light cavalry [in the same case] only wounds. The assault of infantry kills in both cases.
If one figure stands 100 feet higher than another, both can use the fire and attack of infantry and light cavalry against each other, both uphill and downhill; the latter, however, only wound in doing so. The attack of infantry, on the other hand, kills downhill, and wounds uphill.
If one figure stands 150 feet higher than another, the former can use all kinds of fire against the latter, while the latter can use only artillery fire against the former; but neither can use an assault against the other.
If, finally, one figure stands 200 feet higher than another, the former can use all kinds of fire against the latter, while the latter can use only howitzer-throws against the former.
9th. Rocks. If they are of slight height, they do indeed stop any bayonet- or sabre-attack from either side; but one can fire up over them. The height of the mountain whose slope they form is what determines this. But if they are free-standing rock-faces, then only howitzer-fire can act across them.
10th. Woods. Across [a wood], one can fire — not only with howitzers, but also with cannon and muskets — and damage the enemy, if the floor of the wood lies at least 50 feet lower than the standing-square of the enemy and that of the firing figure.
The troops standing at the edge of the wood can use all kinds of fire and attack against an enemy standing outside it, and all of this has full effect. But they themselves can be struck only by artillery fire — and, if they stand in dense woodland, also by the attack of infantry, which kills them; if they stand in open woodland, also by the charge of light cavalry, which, however, only wounds them. Moreover, no figure can strike another by assault if a wooded square lies between the two and the attack would have to pass through it.
11th. Grain[fields]. These can grant no advantage here, either to the brigade standing within them or to the one standing outside.
12th. Narrow passages — that is, approaches to, or passages through, a kind of terrain that would otherwise not be passable. If they are formed by raised features over which direct fire cannot act, then such fire, if it acts through the opening, can only wound — and even so, the standing-square [from which it fires] must at the same time be an adjoining square of the enemy to be struck. Such a defile sets no limits to the effects of an attack; but if such an attack is to be carried out, the standing-squares of the two fighting figures must likewise be adjoining squares. Here it should further be noted that a battery standing on an assault- or pontoon-bridge cannot fire.
13th. Places of residence. If one wishes to fire directly over them, their ground must likewise lie 50 feet lower than the standing-squares of the figure to be struck and of the firing figure. No attack can take place through an inhabited, walled town square. Troops standing at the edge of an inhabited square — whether on the streets, or in the houses, or on or beneath the rampart or the wall — can use the bayonet- or sabre-attack with full effect, and all kinds of fire, as long as they do not stand under cover; but if they are posted in the houses, in casemates, or beneath the framework of a wall, they cannot make use of howitzer-throws.
Since some squares of a fortress or town hold two troop brigades, such a square has a double defence. Here, however, the following must be noted: since a fortress has outworks, both figures can stand either in the casemates or on the rampart, but one of them always only on the area of the town itself — that is, either in the houses or on the streets. In a town surrounded by a wall, only one brigade at a time can be on the framework of the wall, or beneath it, or on the area of the town — that is, either on the streets or in the houses. From which it follows that, in a fortress square, both brigades can act both in the open and under cover; in a town, on the other hand, both — if they stand under cover — can always use their charge, but only one of them direct fire; and if both stand uncovered, both can use howitzer-throws; indeed always suffer the fire so long as the town wall still stands in front of it, and after that only the throw-fire of howitzers can be used against it, if it stands on the streets of the place.
A figure standing on the streets of an open place can be struck by all means, which then have their full effect.
If a brigade or other figure stands on the streets of an enclosed place, it can be struck only by howitzer-throws and by the charge of infantry, if the latter has found a means of passing the enclosure: this charge then kills.
If a figure stands in casemates, or beneath the framework of a wall, or in the houses of a place of residence, it cannot be struck by firearms until all the cover against this — namely the rampart, town, or house walls — has been cleared away; the infantry charge, however, can kill it if the infantry has gained access to the enemy’s standing-square. A gate is no access for an enemy standing outside it, if an enemy troop brigade stands on the standing-square of the gate. A breach in the rampart, on the other hand, is an access for infantry, just as a breach in a town wall is at the same time an access for cavalry; only one must regard both kinds of access as a defile. To reach a rampart-breach, however, a flying bridge must still be thrown across to it.
From what has been said so far it follows that, if one wishes to besiege and take a fortress, one must first silence the enemy’s howitzer-fire, and then build strong batteries, so as to be covered behind them longer than the time needed to bring the breach about. Once all this has been done, the crossing of the ditch is made at several points, and, should the enemy still not surrender, the place is stormed.
If one wishes to storm a position outright, then, if there is a ditch, one must throw bridges across it, or undertake the operation in January or February, when the ditch is frozen, and in either case make use of ladders. Should the case arise that, in a town, troops of both parties should find themselves on two squares, it must be noted that this can never be the case on one and the same square, but only several figures of one party can stand on one standing-square. If a charge now takes place against such a square occupied by two troop brigades, only one of them can be damaged by it.
14th. Means of fortification. As soon as a passage exists in a breastwork, wolf-pit, palisade, or abatis, and a troop brigade stands on the inner side of the entrenchment or fortification, the location of the passage is, for the enemy standing outside, just as strong as the other places of the fortification built without a passage.
Those troop brigades which find themselves on the inner side of a fortification can use all kinds of fire — just as behind a mere breastwork — and also the infantry charge, but can use the cavalry charge only once passages exist in these fortifications. The enemy standing on the outer side of the fortification can never strike the troops standing on the inner side with cavalry- or infantry-charge otherwise than if the fortification itself has been cleared away.
A mere breastwork, however, can be stormed by infantry, though this storming only wounds; with palisade-entrenchments this can happen if the infantry lays ladders against them.
So long as a figure stands directly on the inner side of a breastwork, an abatis, or a palisade — provided these fortifications are strong enough — it can never be struck by direct musket-, cannon-, or howitzer-fire, if the position of the latter, supposing it to be on the adjoining square, is not 50 feet, and, supposing it to be on the second square, is not 100 feet higher than the breastwork lies. Such a figure, however, is in no case covered against howitzers. If one wished to provide cover against this in the open field, one would have to build an overhead-covered redoubt, that is, a blockhouse; then the figure standing within it could be struck by the infantry charge only if either the blockhouse roof or its sides had first been cleared away. The figure standing in the blockhouse can, moreover, use all kinds of striking, only not the lobbing of howitzers.
A remark forgotten above still needs to be inserted here. On the square on which a blockhouse stands, a figure can stand either inside or outside it. The player must take note of this, just as with the various positions a figure may take on a fortress, town, or village square.
If, now, a figure standing in the blockhouse wishes to place itself, on the same standing-square, outside it, this costs it a whole day’s work — and likewise the reverse.
If a troop brigade stands on wagons, and these are not formed into a wagon-laager, it can be struck in every possible way. But if the wagon brigade on which it stands is formed into a wagon-laager, then it can itself indeed carry out every possible kind of strike, but the enemy cannot use the cavalry charge against it. If the wagons are laden with 8 portions, and their load is 16, then musket-fire, and even direct cannon-fire, cannot act against troops thus secured, until the wagon-laager has been shot away. If an infantry [brigade] charges a wagon-laager, it cannot kill the figure standing at the wagon-laager, but can only wound it.
As regards the water of an inundation, everything said of other bodies of water applies. The terrain beneath which mines lie does not hinder the direction and effect of the troops’ fire, but it does hinder their charge, since one must have regard to the explosion of the mine.
Sluices and bridges hinder no fire, but they do hinder the passage and the charge of troops across them.
If the charge of heavy cavalry occurs across two objects, of which one would allow it only the effect of killing, and the other only that of wounding, then the charge can only displace. If the charge occurs across 3 such objects, it can only displace. If the charge occurs across 4 such objects, no effect is possible. If the charge occurs across 2 objects, of which one would allow only killing and the other only wounding, the charge can only displace. Over 2 objects, each of which would allow only wounding, no effect of the charge is possible.
If the charge of an infantry or light-cavalry brigade occurs across two objects, each of which could only be wounded, the charge can only displace. If it occurs across 3 such objects, no effect is possible.
See now the appendix.
(Note: the remainder of this page is almost entirely illegible in the scan; the rules on the effect of a charge across multiple objects above should be regarded as a plausible but uncertain reconstruction.)
Third Section.
Work of the Figures for the Production of the Objects Occurring in the Game.
No figure can carry out work anywhere except on its own standing-square. No figure may work if it is carrying more than 2. The greater load must either be set down on its standing-square before the work, or handed over to another figure also standing there, for safekeeping.
Plain, marsh, mountains, ravines, hollows, woods, fortresses, and other places of residence cannot be produced by the work of the figures. Water can be produced by means of an inundation. Moreover, marsh and water are, during January and February, to be regarded as plain.
Roads and crossings. Under this is also understood the throwing of bridges and the placing of storming ladders. Only infantry and artillery brigades, if they are not wounded, can make roads and crossings, which, however, disappear again on the 1st of January. These roads, however, do not have the property of highways, of permitting transport upon them; for these [highways] cannot be made at all.
If an artillery or infantry brigade wishes to make a road, it must move onto the square onto which, or across which, the road is to run. If it then makes a road in the coming move, it spends the whole day or move on this. The direction of the road itself is arbitrary. But if a road is to go over a 200-foot-high mountain, this requires a further move; so that, should this case arise, 1 move is needed for levelling the mountain, and 1 move for completing the road. This work must not be interrupted at all, if the road-building is not to be in vain. One can lead a road either diagonally, or along the side, or across the middle of a square, or in a broken line. By letting a road run along the side of a square, one gains the means of occupying, with artillery, wagons, and cavalry, the space of a dense wood, which would otherwise not be possible, on account of the roads running across the middle of such squares.
A pontoon bridge can only be thrown across water or marsh. It reaches across fortress-ditches, small rivers, and double strips of marsh.
A pontoon bridge can be laid only by artillery brigades; a flying or storming bridge, and likewise a storming ladder, can also be laid by infantry.
To lay a pontoon, flying bridge, or storming ladder, the brigade which is to carry this out moves, with the bridge or ladder, onto the square to which the bridge or storming ladder is to lead. The laying down of the bridges or ladders counts as no move for the brigade; only the actual laying of pontoon bridges and storming ladders can take place only at the beginning of the move that the figure has to make.
To lay a storming bridge, on the other hand, requires not the slightest delay, and can take place at the beginning, at the end, or even during the move itself — that is, in the course of a figure’s march — from which it follows that an infantry or artillery brigade with a storming bridge can pass, without hindrance, any separation by water, marsh, ditches, or ravines not wider than 25 feet on its march, and take the bridge with it.
If one now wishes to lay a pontoon bridge across an entire square of water or marsh, then in this square 2 pontoon bridges must be laid one after another across the square. How this is done with the first we already know; but to lay the 2nd, the brigade laying the bridge must move onto the square onto which the 2nd pontoon is to lie, and on which the 1st already lies. The laying of this 2nd pontoon requires, like the 1st, no day’s work, but must take place at the beginning of the day or move. In the move or day in which a pontoon is laid, it can also already be used for passage.
If, across defiles wider than 25 feet, a wooden bridge made up of composite storming bridges is to be laid, then the figure, after laying the 1st storming bridge, must move onto this square; and if the water or marsh is a whole square wide, then the remaining necessary storming or flying bridges must be laid in the following move, at its beginning — this laying itself counting as no move — so that on the same day the bridge can still be crossed. If, therefore, the defile is not a whole square (e.g. a fortress ditch, small river, double strip of marsh, or a ditch), then all the flying bridges needed for the whole bridge can be laid at once, but only at the beginning of a move, and on the same day the bridge can already be used for passage.
If an infantry or artillery brigade wishes to take apart again a pontoon bridge or a bridge made up of several flying bridges, in order perhaps to take it along, it must position itself on the square on which the bridge lies, or, if it is not a whole square long, before the entrance of the bridge. The taking-apart and packing-up itself does not count as a whole day’s work, and does not hinder the figure in its other work; only it must not take place at the end, or during a march, but always at the beginning of the move.
A storming ladder and a flying bridge the brigade can, on the march itself, either take along, or leave standing, if it laid them itself in this move. If this is not the case, however, then both the storming ladder and the storming bridge can be taken along by the figure only at the beginning of its move.
If one wishes to build a causeway across a strip of marsh, a simple marsh, or a body of water, one first throws a bridge across it, and then lays fascine-lines along one side of it: for a brook or a simple strip of marsh, 4 fascine-lines; for a river or a double strip of marsh, 8; and for a whole square’s width of marsh or stream, 16 fascine-lines, one behind the other. Even if the bridge is then removed, the causeway can still be used for passage, since its upper surface lies level with the horizon.
If a breach has been shot in a rampart or town wall, and during January and February no further shot is fired at it, then it is found, on the 1st of March, to have repaired itself.
A rampart, town wall, or place of residence destroyed by mines is destroyed forever.
Figures, like pontoons and powder, cannot be produced during the game.
A flying bridge or storming ladder, however, can be made by an artillery or infantry brigade through a whole day’s work, if either 2 rows of palisades, which this brigade must have with it, are set aside, and it is given, instead of these, a storming bridge or storming ladder in the work-move; or if the working brigade positions itself on a wood square, for then, without palisades on hand, it can in the work-move take up a storming bridge or storming ladder directly.
Palisades can only be made by artillery or infantry brigades, and only on a wood square. In every work-move that such a brigade spends on this, it can complete palisade-lines, which can then be laid on its standing-square in the same move: except that in any one work-move, instead of 4 palisade-lines, 8 fascine-lines can be completed at once. Here everything
(Note: the figures 4 and 8 in this paragraph are heavily distorted in the scan and represent a plausible but uncertain reconstruction.)
Abatis can, as already noted above, be made only in woods; wolf-pits and plain earth breastworks can be made anywhere there is solid ground, by artillery or infantry brigades.
Entrenchments. We already know how and where the materials for these are made; but even when these are already available, a certain amount of time is still required to put them into a state of actual means of fortification.
Only an artillery or infantry brigade can build an entrenchment or fortification, and only on its own standing-square. If such a brigade builds even the smallest entrenchment or fortification, the entire move in which the work takes place is spent on it.
On every square, only a certain number of means of fortification can be set up, one behind another, on one side of it. The depth of this space on each side of the square must not exceed 100 feet. Now, palisading is only 1 foot thick, while a wolf-pit fortification or earth-breastwork line, or fascine-breastwork line, or a simple abatis-line, or fortification by means of a wagon-laager, is 25 feet thick, or deep; one can therefore easily determine how many of these means of fortification, singly or also mixed, may be built one behind another on one side of a square.
If a brigade wishes to build a fortification on one side of its standing-square, and another already exists along the same side, then the new fortification is placed behind the first; but if there is a passage in the front fortification, the new fortification can also be placed in front of the old one, if the purpose otherwise requires it.
We have already said above that several means of fortification can be set up along one entrenchment-line, arranged so that they can be defended by the brigade standing on the inner side of the innermost fortification; but it is necessary to recall once more here that no breastwork, palisading, abatis-line, or wagon-laager can be defended by fire from a brigade unless that brigade stands directly against the inner side of the said fortifications, and that this is not assumed if there should happen to be, on the same standing-square, between the said fortifications and the troop brigade, other fortifications in which no passages have been made on this side.
The construction of an earth-breastwork, abatis, or wolf-pit entrenchment of the length of 2 sides of a square, or the doubling of one along one side of a square, costs the working brigade a whole move.
If the fascines or palisades are already available on the standing-square, the working brigade can build 4 entrenchment-lines.
But if the materials for these must first be made on its own standing-square, then, by comparing the previous rule with this one just given, one will see that the making of a palisade-line or a row of fascines requires twice as much time as putting it into a state of defence — and from this one can easily determine, when one wishes to build an entrenchment made up of several kinds of fortification, how large the number of fortification-lines of each kind can be, so as to build them up in one move within an entrenchment, if one perhaps still has to make some of these fortification-pieces in the same move.
A wagon-laager can be made from any wagon brigade still usable, and no troop brigade is needed for this, since the wagon brigade can do this itself without assistance; but it costs it a whole day’s work.
If one wishes to make a covered redoubt or a blockhouse, there must first be a support for the upper covering, and this one can obtain by means of a palisading led around the square of the blockhouse. If the working artillery or infantry brigade sets aside the rows of palisades, it can, instead of these, place upon itself the blockhouse-covering shown in Figure 10, which, however, counts for it as a whole day’s work.
Onto this blockhouse-covering one then places the fascines or earth-pieces needed for its completeness. But only 4 fascines or earth-pieces make up one new reinforcement of the covering. From which it follows that with fascines these reinforcements are obtained faster than with plain earth, since of the former, in every move, a figure can put 4, and of the latter only 2, pieces in place for the fortification.
It must also be noted here that a simple beam-covering — that is, where only 4 rows of palisades have been added — can carry at most 8 fascines or earth-pieces at once. If, therefore, the blockhouse-covering is to be stronger still, a double beam-covering, namely of 8 rows of palisades, must lie over the blockhouse.
That, besides the covering of the blockhouse, the sides too can be reinforced is self-evident. It should further be noted here that the houses of an inhabited square already provide, of themselves, the beam-layers otherwise obtained by palisading — and indeed, in a town, so strongly that one can load them with 2 reinforcements, but in a village only as strongly as with the aforementioned simple palisading. One therefore need only reinforce these coverings; this is also the case with the framework of a town wall, if one wishes to be secure for longer against bombs beneath it.
Mines. From every fortress square, a mine-gallery runs beneath each adjoining square — that is, the artillery or infantry stationed in the fortress can immediately lay a mine charge beneath an adjoining square. This laying of the charge, which moreover can be as strong as one wishes, costs the said brigade a whole day’s work. The firing of any mine, on the other hand, which any troop brigade can do, costs the figure not the slightest time, and can take place at the beginning, at the end, or even during the enemy’s move; only the figure must be at an entrance or hearth of the mine, which lies on an adjoining square of the mine.
As soon as a mine-charge has been laid as far as the mine [requires], this means: it is charged and ready to be fired, and can therefore also still be fired in the same move.
One must not make a mine-gallery, in any one move, longer than reaching beneath the adjoining square of the working artillery.
If an artillery brigade now wishes to lay a stretch of mine-gallery, this work costs it a whole move, and in that same move it must remove from play the rows of palisades it has with it, for this stretch of gallery.
In such a gallery — as also from the mine-gallery opening of a fortress — a mine can then be laid, by means of an artillery or infantry brigade standing at the mine, through a fresh whole day’s work; this mine must be located beneath the adjoining square of its standing-square.
By having put oneself in a position, by means of an opening leading to them, one can render the enemy’s mines useless if one runs a mine-gallery to them and has them exploded, by a troop brigade, by means of this charge. When a mine is exploded, it leaves no traces on the upper terrain, and does not even damage the mine-gallery running to it; rather, this remains usable.
It is necessary to note here that a means of fortification already built can no longer be used; but that this is not the case with mine-powder — rather, any mine-charge can be picked up again and used by an artillery or infantry brigade standing at a hearth of the mine; only this picking-up costs the brigade working at it a whole day’s work.
One can also explode several mine-galleries that run together to the standing-square of one figure, either all at once or one after another.
If the standing-square of the mining figure and the mine-square are separated from one another by a brook, river, or marsh, then, before a mine-gallery can be made, a crossing must first be prepared at this point across the defile.
An infantry brigade can also lay a mine, but it must move onto the square beneath which it is to lie. The laying of the charge in this case too costs a whole day’s work, but can take place without palisades.
Inundation. This can only be obtained by damming a flowing body of water. How a dam is made has already been explained above. As soon as the last row of fascines has been laid down, the water of the inundation already shows itself, which one must indicate by means of the blue tin plates.
With a brook, the two squares against which the dam leans are flooded; with a river, two squares are flooded, and with a large stream, a further 4 squares lying below the first two are flooded as well.
If one wishes to put a sluice in the dam, this is indicated by laying a row of palisades on the rear side of the dam. One must now, however, mark the square on which the sluice’s lever is located. The troop brigade standing on this square alone can raise or lower the sluice, which itself does not cost it even a day’s work. The same applies to sluices already built of masonry. Moreover, it is in the same move in which the sluice is raised that the water of the inundation has already run off as well.
If one wishes to lay several dams one behind another, and thereby make the inundation larger, then the lower-lying ones must always be built first, so that all the sections can be filled with water.
If, however, these several dams have sluices, then this precaution is unnecessary, since by means of them the lower sections too can be filled with water.
It must further be noted that, if the water of an inundation strikes a hollow or a ravine, the whole hollow, or the whole ravine, is filled by it, and thus lakes and ditches arise. Moreover, every rise, rampart, or town wall sets bounds to an inundation, while all other kinds of terrain, however, are placed under water by it if they lie beneath the flooded squares — so that one can quite well flood the inner spaces of towns and the casemates, even while the upper part of the ramparts and walls is still dry. A ravine or body of water can be regarded as a conduit for the water of an inundation.
If the water of an inundation is to be driven so high that it goes over ramparts and walls, and one is thereby placed in a position to deprive the whole settlement of the defence afforded by its rampart or wall, then the body of water forming the inundation must be dammed in such a way that the dam can lean, on each side, against a height of 50 feet, and must then be made 4 times as strong as was shown above for the simplest inundation of any body of water in particular; in that case, on each bank of the water, in front of the squares ordinarily placed under water, further widely extended new squares will also be flooded. One must note, however, that the wall or rampart must lie on an adjoining square of the dam-square, since otherwise the water, not being held back by elevation, spreads out as far as the dam itself is long.
Fourth Section.
Work of the Troops for the Removal of the Complete Objects of the Terrain and of the Requirements of War.
A plain can be destroyed by means of pits and other fortifications placed upon it, and by inundation. A plain also arises when one burns down a place of residence or a wood.
Water and marsh cannot be removed, but disappear of themselves during January and February, and, as already noted above, are during this time to be regarded as plain.
Fords can indeed be made impassable by the known means, but cannot be entirely removed. The same applies to hollows and ravines.
Mountains, rocks. If one wishes to remove these from an entire side of a square, a mine with a quadruple charge must be exploded on the square on which they lie. If, however, only a passage is to result, then the mine-charge need only be double.
Wood. If this is to be cleared from the war-game field, a troop brigade positions itself on the wood-square to be removed, and now sets it alight, which can be indicated by drawing a chalk line across it.
This setting-alight, however, requires of the brigade carrying it out a fresh whole day’s work. In the move following the burning, the figure must move off the burnt square, or else it is wounded by the full load. If, however, it wishes to use this whole move again for extinguishing, it may also remain standing, and the wood remains undamaged. But an enemy infantry or artillery brigade, too, can extinguish such a fire, if it moves onto the burning square in the very move following the burning.
Any wood-square can also be set on fire by howitzer-throws — namely, if a whole field-artillery battery acts upon it for 2 moves, or a whole siege-artillery battery for 1 move. As soon as such a wood-square has burnt down, an abatis arises around the whole square, which can then be cleared away like other abatis; there are in no case any entrances in it, and it is doubled if the square was overgrown with dense woodland.
Grain. Besides the fact that it disappears from the fields throughout the whole country on the 1st of August, it can also, in the same way as wood, be burnt down, and can likewise be removed by the harvesting of troop brigades. If it is burnt, no extinguishing is possible at all, and the figure standing there must also withdraw. If it is to be burnt down by gunfire, only a single full salvo from any battery is needed to remove it from a square.
Places of residence. Here everything holds that has been said about the destruction of wood; only it must further be noted that, if the burning is to be done by artillery fire, this need not take as long, but for a town only a single full salvo of a siege battery, or two full salvoes of a field battery, are required. With a church-village, only a single full salvo of a field or siege battery is needed, and the latter not only sets the village-square on fire but also wounds the figures standing on it. Moreover, with a mere village, a single full salvo of a field battery already has this effect.
The side-walls of a place of residence give the figure standing in it, and other objects, no cover against direct artillery fire, although a place of residence cannot be damaged by direct artillery fire, but can only be set on fire by howitzer-shells and red-hot balls thrown in an arc.
An inhabited square is now, besides the fact that on the 1st of January it decays so far that the houses have no roofs left and can therefore no longer be used as winter quarters — once this inhabited square has died out, that is, once it has lost its inhabitants (which happens, as already noted above, as soon as such a square is deprived of its baked ration) — an inhabited square that has died out can then, with regard to terrain advantages, be regarded only as an open wood-square, and requires no more work to burn it down than a grain-field.
A place of residence can also be utterly annihilated and blown into the air by mines: one simply lets a mine fitted with a double charge play upon the inhabited square to be removed.
There is yet another way to deprive a settlement of its inhabitants, and thereby render it unusable as winter quarters for the next 1st of January — namely, by flooding it; and this can easily be done by making an inundation near it, whose water enters the settlement.
If one wishes to remove the rampart of a fortress or a town wall such that both objects can never, during the whole war, be restored to their former complete condition, this can only be done by exploding a mine beneath them. To blow away the rampart of one side of a square, a mine with a double charge must be made to play on its standing-square. Just as much is required of a town wall to blow it up, except that it requires only half as much charge.
If one explodes a mine beneath an inhabited square surrounded by a rampart or wall, one must determine which object of it is thereby to be thrown down.
If a rampart is blown up, the ditch is thereby also filled in. Otherwise, the town suffers nothing from a mine that destroys the rampart or the wall, and the same holds the other way round. If, however, the town is burnt down, the rampart or town wall remains undamaged by this; but the framework of the town wall burns along with the town.
If a place of residence is destroyed, all the war-materiel located within it is destroyed too. But if this lies in casemates beneath the rampart, it can be destroyed only together with the rampart.
If one merely wishes to make a breach in a rampart, and the front rampart-wall is thereby thrown down, depriving the casemate lying behind it of its forward cover, and the fortress ditch is to be filled up to 25 feet, then the whole side of the square where the breach is to be made must be bombarded by a siege battery for 4 days, or by a field battery for 8 days.
The more siege and field batteries, however, one brings up for the destruction of a rampart-side, the faster the breach is completed. In general it is a general rule that a field battery achieves half as much effect as a siege battery, and that double, triple, or quadruple siege or other artillery likewise produces double, triple, or quadruple effect in destroying objects; that is, when this effect is directed against one object, the time of destruction is shortened to one half, one third, or one quarter according to the number and kind of batteries. This rule holds not only for ramparts, but for the destruction of all other things by artillery fire.
Once the rampart-breach is complete, the vaults still stand, and the things located in the casemates are safe from howitzer-throws; but they can now, unless they otherwise have cover, or are brought out of the casemates, be attacked with direct fire, and, after a bridge has been thrown to the breach, also with the infantry charge. One must, however, reckon that the magazine located in the casemates is distributed equally over all 4 sides of the square, and that therefore only a quarter of the whole can be destroyed. Only the troops alone can be hit entirely.
This remark applies also to the things kept beneath a town-wall framework.
If one wishes to make a breach in a town wall, then the side of the square which is to become the breach must be hit entirely by the direct fire of a siege battery for one move, or by the fire of a field battery for two moves in succession. With every town wall, the framework too is destroyed.
It must further be noted that, after the destruction of the front rampart-wall, the breastwork is at the same time shot through. The breastwork, on the other hand, can also be removed by artillery fire without this doing any damage to the rampart-wall. To destroy the breastwork, the siege artillery must fire upon it for one day, the field artillery, however, for two days.
That the side of a rampart or a town wall where the breach is located is fully restored if, during January and February, no artillery salvo occurs against it, and against the inhabited square on which the rampart- or wall-breach is located, I have already noted above.
Roads and passages can be rendered unusable by the known means of fortification and by inundation. If, however, one wishes to remove them from the game permanently, a combatant troop brigade must position itself upon them and now destroy them. The destruction of a stretch of road one square long requires a whole day’s work. To do this with a highway square, however, costs two moves, which must follow immediately one after another.
To destroy pontoon, flying, or fixed wooden bridges costs the brigade standing on them no move’s work, but it can only ever take place at the beginning of its move.
If a wooden bridge a whole square long is to be entirely removed, this costs the figure a whole move.
A dam can be destroyed by an infantry or artillery brigade standing on it, if it removes half of its thickness; for which it requires just as much time as is needed to build this half-thickness of dam. One can also remove a dam by exploding a simple mine beneath it. This means can also be applied to the bridges named above. If, however, one wishes to blow up a stone bridge or a sluice, and thereby remove it from the game forever, the mine must be provided with a double charge.
A pontoon or flying bridge is also destroyed by an inundation. If one wishes to have a bridge, a dam, or a sluice destroyed by artillery fire, the batteries must be positioned so that one side of the bridge, sluice, or dam lies entirely under their fire, and then deliver, with any battery, 1 salvo against a pontoon, flying, or wooden bridge; against a stone bridge or sluice, one salvo with a siege battery, and two salvoes with a field battery; against a dam, however, one must shoot away half the number of fascines of which it consists. A pontoon, flying, or wooden bridge can also be cleared away by a salvo of howitzers from a battery.
War-materiel. To this belong: troops, wagons, cannon, provisions, and the means of entrenchment.
In what way the figures in general can be damaged and killed by the enemy’s attack is already known; but this can now also happen either through the exploding of mines, or through inundation, or through the weather.
As regards the first point, one need only note in general that all figures and war-materiel whose location is blown up are dead and destroyed.
Through inundation, however, all figures and other war-materiel are at once destroyed and removed from the game, if their standing-square is flooded.
Moreover, every quantity of lifeless war-materiel that does not lie under cover, or on whose standing-square no combatant brigade is present, is destroyed. And yet such a brigade can protect a load of at most 16 portions’ weight from destruction, and only for as long as it remains on its standing-square. Any load can, besides this, also be destroyed by any artillery salvo.
The troops or horses, however, also suffer from the weather. That is, if they are, during January and February, 4 days in succession without head-cover, they are wounded; and if they are in the field for both months, they are dead. This forces the armies, during this time, to disperse themselves into quarters.
Entrenchments. They are all destroyed if one either floods their standing-square or blows their location into the air.
An artillery or infantry brigade can also, in one day’s work, remove twice as many means of fortification from the sides of its standing-square as it could build in that move.
Wolf-pits cannot be removed by artillery fire; but breastworks, abatis, and palisades, or wagon-laagers, can be, by direct cannon fire. A row of pits, too, can be removed by laying a fascine-line over it.
A simple earth- or fascine-breastwork is just as strong against direct artillery fire as a wagon-laager loaded with 16 fascines, or as a simple abatis, or as a simple palisading.
If such a fortification is to be removed by artillery fire, the piece to be removed must be hit entirely by it. A siege or field battery then needs only a single salvo against it. The balls of the former even continue through and wound the figure standing on the inner side of the fortification.
If the fortification is twice as strong, its removal by a siege battery likewise requires only a single salvo, which, however, can then no longer damage the figures standing on the inner fortification-side; but from a field battery, two salvoes are needed.
From what has been said so far, one sees that the fire of a siege battery, under like circumstances and against like objects, has twice the effect of that of a field battery.
A palisading 6 palisades strong does, indeed, allow a siege battery to exert its full effect against the figures standing behind it; but if the direct fire of a field battery strikes through it, it can then only wound the figure.
It must further be noted that a palisading or other raised fortification, even if it does not withstand the effect of a battery, can nevertheless no longer be damaged by it on the same day, once the salvo has, in the course of that day, already passed through other fortifications which have taken away its entire force.
A wagon-laager protects a figure from direct artillery fire no more than a simple breastwork does, and can, moreover, also be made useless for cover at once by a howitzer-salvo from a battery, since the wagons are thereby damaged.
The sides of a blockhouse consist of palisadings and breastworks or abatis, or wagon-laagers. It is therefore not necessary to say anything further about their destruction, except that the whole blockhouse itself is wrecked once the corner-posts, or the innermost palisading, on three sides of the blockhouse have been removed.
If one wishes to remove only the covering of the blockhouse, without its sides, by artillery fire, then each removal of 4 earth- or fascine-fortification-pieces lying on the lowest beam-covering of the house requires a whole salvo of a field battery. A siege battery destroys, with one salvo, twice as many — that is, 8 earth- or fascine-fortification-pieces of the covering.
The 4 rows of palisades forming the beam-covering likewise do not, in this case, stop the effect of the artillery; for were this to be achieved by such palisade-reinforcements, then, to hold off a whole salvo of a siege battery, 24, and to hold off that of a field battery, 12, such layers of palisade-covering would have to lie on top of one another. Moreover, a blockhouse, like any other fortification, is cleared away by either flooding its standing-square, or by blowing it up.
As soon as a piece of fortification has been destroyed by artillery fire or in some other way, it is at once removed from the game. It must further be remarked that, if one wishes to destroy a fortification by the effect of artillery, the battery must fire upon it without interruption. If the firing therefore stops for a day before the fortification is completely destroyed, then it is fully repaired again.
Inundation. This can only be removed by shooting in the dam or otherwise clearing it away, or by raising a sluice located in the dam or the weir. Moreover, the water of an inundation is also removed by the frost during January and February, and turned into plain.
Mines. These are cleared away by exploding them. If, however, one floods the mine-field, the mine is destroyed. If one floods a part of the mine-gallery, this part is destroyed and can no longer be used for lighting the mine.
Besides this, a mine can also be cleared away either by having the infantry or artillery brigade standing at the mine-hearth withdraw the charge from the gallery again; or by placing an infantry or artillery brigade onto the mine-field, and then having it remove the mine-charge and destroy the gallery noted on this field. This work, however, requires a whole day’s work from the infantry or artillery brigade standing on this field.
I wish to remark here that one can also, for ordinary use, make a small War-game, or so-called Battle-game, in the following way, and use it to practise for the better execution of the large war.
One makes a map containing 18 squares in length and breadth, draws several kinds of terrain upon it, and on each of the 4 sides of the map, on the two outermost lines of squares, marks off the middle 6 squares by a dotted line. The two middle squares in the rear row become villages. At the start of the game, two of these opposing sections, lying across from one another, are chosen as the camps of the two armies, and the villages lying within them as their headquarters. If now one of the two sides has its headquarters taken by the opponent, or set on fire, that side has lost the game. Moreover, all rules given so far also apply here, only with the difference that no provisions are needed here, and that all troop-brigades here cannot make use of the advantage of highways noted in the rules, and make only the ordinary winter march in a single move; further, that if the game is not finished within 48 moves by either side, it ends in a draw (remis).*)
)Note: “remis” is rendered in the scan in a heavily distorted form (“rein”), and is reconstructed here as the standard eighteenth-century gaming term for an undecided ending.
The unchanging strength of the army for this map is: 6 infantry, 1 heavy, 1 light cavalry, 3 foot-artillery and horse-artillery brigades, together with 4 batteries of field artillery. It is further necessary to note that building an earth-breastwork line one square long costs a fighting brigade 24 moves, and that, apart from 4 storming-bridges and 4 wagon-brigades, neither side receives any other war-materiel before the game; rather, if these are wanted, they must all be made during the game itself, and the time needed for this must be measured in proportion to the time it takes to build an entrenchment.
To make the very beginning easier still, one may also leave out all terrain except the headquarters.
The strength of the fortresses can be indicated in various ways. One may give them either a ditch, which collapses wholly or partly through the breach. One may give them more or fewer counter-mines, stronger or weaker revetment-walls against the artillery; bomb-proof or destructible vaults, either before or only after the demolition of the front revetment-wall; or also the property of holding more or less garrison. By the same means one can also determine the size, strength, and other differences of towns, market-towns, and forts.
Third Division.
Outline of a Game on the 2nd Map.
First Section.
Boundaries and Layout of the Two Countries.
The boundary of the two countries is formed by the line A B. Both countries have an equal number of towns, market-towns, and villages, and only the terrain lying between these places differs. The towns C, D, E, and F are fortresses, as is already evident from the drawing. We need only remind the reader here that these are, among all the rest, the only ones that can hold but a single troop-brigade.
We will divide each country into two provinces, of which the first towns — in the lower country, whose capital is O — are I and K, and in the upper country, whose capital is N, are L and M. Each provincial capital has two district-towns, which in the province of K, in the country of O, are called D and G, but in the province of I, C and E*); in the country of N, F and H are the district-towns of the provincial capital M, while G and H are those of the province of L. Each fortress of both countries has 7 village-squares, namely those lying between the boundary, the centre-line of both countries, and the nearest squares running behind the fortress-lines; and besides these, also those villages which have communication with such a fortress only by way of the highway running from it. Each provincial capital, however, also has directly 4 village-squares, namely those lying on the lines L A or I K, or those so situated that they have communication with the provincial capital only by a highway. The towns G and K then have, besides, the remainder of those villages lying on their own side.
All other peculiarities of the places of residence and the countries are shown more clearly by the map.
As for the army of each side, this is to consist of 4 brigades of artillerymen, of which one is mounted, [and] 2 brigades of cavalry, of which one is light cavalry, and of 8 brigades of infantry.
)Note: the exact assignment of letters to the district-towns is heavily distorted in the scan; the designations given here are a plausible but, without the accompanying map, not conclusively verifiable reconstruction.
The train of such a corps consists of 2 siege-batteries and 4 field-artillery batteries, of 2 bakery-brigades, and of 4 transport-wagon brigades. The magazine of defensive means of each can consist of 8 palisade-, 8 gabion- or fascine-lines, 4 storming bridges and 4 storming ladders, 3 pontoon bridges, and about 12 simple mine-charges.*)
)Note: the figures in this paragraph, especially the strengths of the defensive-means magazine, are heavily distorted in the scan and represent a plausible but uncertain reconstruction.
Since each country has 40 squares which deliver the harvest to the capital, and the troops daily consume 4, the cavalry horses daily 3, the bakery horses daily 2, the artillery horses daily 6, and the transport horses daily 4 portions — that is, the armies daily use 15 rations, and, with the baked rations, or the portions, 29, for which one may reckon 30 rations — the magazine for an entire campaign must amount to 30 times 48, or 1440 rations; so each inhabited square must, at harvest, deliver 1440/40 = 36 rations.
Let us now assume that the campaign opens on the 1st of May; then there are still, in the magazines, for the months of May, June, July, August, provisions — that is, 480 rations still on hand. Since the fortresses are not only the safest places, but also the points furthest advanced of the parallel, it is best to establish the magazines and the bakeries here.
Second Section.
Operational Plans of the Armies.
We will assume that the army of the country of O has the first move. Now, since the garrison of the fortresses C and D, if it consists of cavalry, horse-artillery, or infantry mounted on wagons, can already place itself entirely between the towns F and H, in the woods there, the country of N is thereby forced — at least in the first moves of the campaign — into a defensive war; yet, with a good arrangement and distribution of the troops, good provisioning of the fortresses, and a few fortunate movements, this can well be turned again into an offensive war. This disposition of affairs therefore advises that one should not place the whole stock in the fortresses E and F, but keep about a quarter of it in the town of I. As soon, however, as the army can reach the fortress E, it must here also find a good store, since from here it will be easiest for it to advance along the river, perhaps even in the enemy’s rear, and to cut him off from the left wing of his frontier; in this way one would not only have repulsed the enemy’s offensive, but would also very easily bring him onto the defensive himself, and put the towns C and G in danger.
The plan of these armies must therefore be to oppose the enemy, where possible, between E and F, in order to prevent him from undertaking a siege. If this does not succeed, then one must provision the town of I well, which can be sufficiently done by a quarter of the magazine; leave the forest-passes occupied by a corps, and then advance with the main corps from E, in the enemy’s rear, along the river.
The siege of E must be prevented as much as possible; for this reason it is necessary to station, right by this fortress, a corps for its special protection, and that the army keep itself, as long as possible, between E and H; and should this no longer be possible, and the enemy not be driven away from the fortress by movements against his right flank bring, then one would have to risk a battle for this very purpose oneself, if only there is any likelihood of a fortunate outcome. Should this battle be lost, the mountains between L and H would afford them the only cover against C.
As for the disposition of the troops, it will always be most useful to provide the two forward fortresses with everything needed for their defence, and with the entire siege-train. In E, therefore, the horse-artillery brigade is placed, together with a field- and a siege-battery, a pontoon bridge, and a wagon-brigade; in H an artillery brigade is given a siege- and a field-battery, a wagon-brigade, and pontoon bridges.
One bakery stands in E, the other in H; in this town there are also 2 artillery- and 2 infantry-brigades. In L and M there are, in each, 2 infantry-brigades, and in the capital N the cavalry and 2 infantry-brigades mounted on wagons.
This, then, would be the disposition of the side standing on the defensive. We will now consider that of the side going on the offensive. Since O has the first move, and thus already has a somewhat promising advantage over its opponent, it must be the attacking side, if it does not otherwise wish to give up this advantage uselessly itself. In attacking the enemy’s country, it can try to secure this advantage in 3 ways. Either, 1) by conquering the fortress E, and then advancing with the army against L and H, and seeking to conquer one of these two towns; or 2) by first conquering the fortress E, and then advancing through the wood against the capital N; or 3) by placing the army between the two fortresses, driving the enemy out of the parallel, and attacking the town H, where one would then be in the heart of the enemy’s country, and could entirely cut off the enemy’s forces. Yet, despite this, this plan is the most objectionable. For, firstly, the enemy may oppose us with many a good position; secondly, no road runs from the river, and from the one bridge by which we could still maintain communication, to H; the way is also long, and the undertaking so difficult, that we would have to bring our bakery along, and carry our subsistence on the transport-wagons; thirdly, we would have no firm base, and would always keep the enemy on our flanks and before our front. He would have firm points everywhere, and could not only make all transports difficult for us from E and F, but, as soon as he has taken the stone bridge, cut us off entirely from our own country, and, if he then placed a strong corps between F and the river, force the whole army to surrender. Fourthly, the enemy would, on this march, have the best opportunity to attack one of our fortresses himself, or to undertake dangerous raids into our lands, since our army would stand too far away, and entirely without connection to the frontier, to ward this off. — One must therefore choose one of the two fortresses as the point of attack. Now, since even after the conquest of F the difficult passes of the mountains still remain to be overcome, and the enemy’s right wing still retains its firm support-point K, from which he himself can still always undertake raids into our rear, since the river covers him there, and the country around C is more open, and since we, with the conquest of F, would by no means cover our own country as well as with that of E — since then the easily-defended river becomes our frontier, and we have all the crossings, and the enemy, after the loss of E, has far less cover, as the country here is more open; nor could he then undertake against our rear and our withdrawn flank, from F, what would be possible from E, since the river now constantly covers us, and D secures the defensive part of the front — I therefore hold the fortress E to be the best and most decisive point of attack. But since the enemy will push forward a corps from E, one must oppose this for as long as it takes for the army to be able to enclose the fortress, and to force the enemy’s corps, by the danger in which it places other parts of the enemy’s country, to retreat. To achieve this, however, the army must not advance directly against E from C, because otherwise it would leave the enemy behind E in a position almost unassailable from the front; rather, it must cross the river by the stone bridge and advance directly against the centre of the enemy’s country, seeking to drive the enemy out of the communication between his two fortresses and push him toward the mountains, and at the same time let a corps advance from D against F, so that it has every appearance of an intention either to attack the enemy between E and F, or to besiege F; as soon as the enemy weakens, or leaves open, the communication between E and H, the left wing of the army must at once turn back and try to occupy the village on the road from E to H. If this succeeds, then on the same day the corps until then held back at C must advance against E and try to outflank the enemy troops, so as to cut off their retreat up along the river. If the enemy has left no further troops here, this corps will have to hasten to occupy the roads to L; as soon as the enemy army makes a movement to the right, our right wing draws in toward the left, reinforces it, and extends itself along the river, in order to secure the transports on the river and the retreat across it. The corps from D can, according to the circumstances, advance up the river and cover the stone bridge, or withdraw again toward D, should the enemy perhaps advance against it. — The disposition of the troops is in general just the same as for N, since this best suits the situation of the towns; only here it is better to place the infantry mounted on wagons in the town of G, and the horse-artillery, opposite the enemy’s, in the fortress C.
Now that we have analysed the plans and dispositions of both sides, we will follow the operations themselves for a while; it is only necessary to note further that, at the start of the campaign, the infantry, cavalry, and indeed the whole army — both men and horses — may be given a 2-day supply with them, which is therefore also done here for all parts of both armies.
Diary of the Campaign.
1st May.
O sets off first with its troops, and has the following places occupied. The horse-battery from C crosses the stone bridge and takes position on square 1. The two batteries from G take position in C and D. The battery from D takes position on square 2, going first straight along the road toward the stone bridge as far as the village where the road bends, and then goes over the hill to the right. One of the infantry-brigades mounted on wagons, from G, goes through C across the stone bridge; the other through D across this bridge. The first takes position in 3, the 2nd in 4. The two batteries from C and D have taken their wagon-brigades with them, and each of them carries 2 storming bridges. The wagons from C can get no further than 5. The garrisons from K and I advance on the straight roads toward D and C. The infantry from O advances through G to 6 and 7; the heavy cavalry goes through G and D to the village of 8; the light cavalry goes through G and C to 9. The single battery in 2 lives off its own stock; all other troops not standing on the road L–I live off D — from which magazine, therefore, 7 rations, and for the bakery 1 ration, are issued; from the magazine of C, however, only 7 rations are issued.
March of N.
In order to drive off the corps in 3 as completely as possible at once, the battery from E advances to 10, and from there, via 11 and 12, diagonally toward the black mountain lying nearby. A wagon-brigade with 2 storming bridges remains with it. The horse-battery from E goes through the village of 13, and from there to 14; now the battery in 12 stands under fire from two sides, and is forced to retreat.
One battery from F goes through […] to […], the other [remains before] the fortress […]. The half-garrisons from L and […] advance straight along the roads toward […], while the other halves [remain] in the town […]. One infantry-brigade from this town goes through the fortress […] to […], the other [stays] within it.
The infantry-brigade mounted on wagons goes through […] and […] to 17; the heavy cavalry [goes] there to 19; the other infantry and the light cavalry march through […] to the village of […].
The batteries [in … and …] must live off their own provisions; all the other troops live off […], from which magazine, accordingly, […] rations are issued, of which […] portions are baked; besides this the bakery requires a further […] rations.
(Note: this diary entry is so badly distorted in the scan, and so disordered in column sequence even in Exemplar B, that many of the square numbers and place-names cannot be reconstructed with confidence; square brackets mark passages that could not be recovered.)
2nd May.
March of O.
The enemy has made a great mistake: posting his entire artillery, without cohesion and without support, in front of the line, before his army has properly assembled. To make use of this favourable moment, then, and to deal the enemy a sound blow, it is decided to attack him.
The battery in 1 destroys, by its fire, the entire enemy battery on the black mountain; the infantry from 3 advances to the village of 22, the other from 4 to 23, and both thus attack the battery in 7. The battery from 2 takes position in 12, crossing the brook at 11 by means of the storming bridge; that from D goes to 25; the infantry from 6 to the village of 28; the head of the garrison from K to 22, and the rest of this garrison into the fortress D. The wagons from 3 and 4 go to 5; the wagons from 5 go to 21; the infantry from 7 to the village of 23; the battery from C to the village of 24; the cavalry from 9 to 25; the head of the column from 1 to 26, the rest toward E; the cavalry from 8 to 28; in this way both enemy wings are separated, and are forced to retreat.
(Note: the square numbers given in this section are heavily distorted in the scan and represent a plausible but uncertain reconstruction.)
The corps in 29 and 21, 28 and 12 must live off their own stock; the other troops live off D and C.
One could also have attacked in such a way that the infantry was placed in 29 and in 20. The battery in 12 [could be made to] advance into the village near 2, and that from D into the village of 27, while the cavalry from 8 was placed in 28 in support; in this way the battery in 15 would indeed be forced to retreat, but this would have to happen anyway, and would be more decisive. Moreover, one might have suffered a defeat on the left wing, for the enemy’s battery in 14 could have struck ours in 17, together with the infantry in the wood of 20, at the same time, and so easily have frustrated the advantage gained by attacking the cavalry in 13 simultaneously; against the attack on the infantry in 21 the enemy secured himself easily, for he could enclose it entirely and attack it with his own.
March of N.
If one now wished to risk an engagement, one would have to combine the attack on one of the enemy corps with an attack by the whole army, since all these corps support one another. It is therefore better, if one draws the whole army together on the heights lying to the rear, and awaits the enemy’s attack upon a fortress, while in the meantime putting oneself into a state of readiness, and then falls upon the enemy at the most dangerous point. The horse-battery from 98 passes between 21 and 12, past 28, over 30, and takes position on the black mountain lying just to the right, by the ravine. The remainder of the column from L goes through E to F; the battery in E loads the mines under 32; the cavalry from 13 takes position in 33; the infantry from 19 in 34; half the garrison from H to 35; the other half to 36; the remainder of the column from M to F; the garrison from F, to 37; the infantry from E (16) to 38; the infantry from 17 to 10. This whole army lives off the magazine of F; the other troops off that of E. The wagon-brigade of the infantry from 19 draws its subsistence […]
(Note: the figures in this section of the diary are heavily distorted in the scan and disordered by column-transposition in Exemplar B; individual numbers (e.g. “98”, “32”) are therefore uncertain reconstructions.)
3rd May.
March of O.
Now the whole army must be assembled, in order, by the right wing, to hold back the enemy army near F, and by continued attacks of the left, drive the enemy corps in 33 and 34, quite across the wood, near 35, in order to clear the area around L. To this end the battery from 2, advances to 4; the infantry from 8 to 41; the battery from 15, onto the black mountain lying nearby; the battery from […] passes over 34, obliquely over 37 past 20, over 14, 21, 42, 43 to 44; the infantry from 29, to 33; that from 21 to 43; the infantry from 23 to 13; that from 22 to 8; the cavalry from 28, over 42, between 35 and 34, as far as before E, then onto the road to L, as far as 45; the cavalry from 25, straight on over the sluice-field of L, close around this fortress, onto the road to L, over 45, to 46; the artillery from 24 to 47; the infantry from 26, to 48. The whole right wing of the army draws its subsistence from D, the left wing from its own stock. The wagons that have driven to D bring all the fascines to C. The cavalry must be given as much as it can carry without limiting its speed.
March of N.
If one is now also forced to abandon the area around E, it is nevertheless most necessary, not only for the protection of L and N, but also for the better recovery of E, to drive the enemy’s cavalry out of the villages 45 and 46, and thereby to secure the approach to H. In order, therefore, to enclose the enemy’s cavalry, the infantry from 31 goes to 47, through E and over 35; the cavalry from 33, goes through E on the highway to 48, from there back again over the river to 49; the infantry from 34 goes to 50, straight through the wood past 35; the infantry from 35 goes over 47 to 51; the horse-battery from the black mountain near 30, over 30, 28, 17, through F and H to 52; the infantry from 36 to 53; that from 37 to 54; that from 38 to the black-mountain-field near 55; the corps in 10, 18, 15 remains standing. This corps draws its subsistence from F, entrenches its front toward 17 and […] with trenches and a simple earthwork breastwork, which is completed on this day, but leaves passages in every field. The corps near H, and on the road from L, draw their subsistence from H; the battery in E loads the mines under 56.
4th May.
March of O.
Since no infantry or cavalry stands near enough to 46 for support, this whole brigade is lost, unless it is rescued by the other cavalry, and this can happen not by an attack, but only by a diversion, which one threatens to carry out with […], and which forces the enemy to detach troops; at the same time, however, the cavalry enclosed in 46 must also make the attack. It therefore attacks the infantry standing in 51, and since this stands in open ground, and the cavalry is light horse, the enemy is entirely destroyed. The cavalry from 45 recrosses the river, goes along the road as far as 48, then crosses the river again, passes through 51, and takes position in the village of 57. By this, L, H, and N are threatened; the battery from 44 now advances to 58; that from 45 to 59; the infantry from 48 to 60; that from 43 to […]; that from 42 to 34; the wagons of the battery from 44 remain still […]; the infantry from 52 to 63; that from 41 to 21; that from 8 to 45. In this way the whole army now has the best position for covering the siege and its communications; it draws its subsistence from D, the corps near 35, however, from […], the corps near 47 from C. The cavalry draws its subsistence from the stores of the village in which it is stationed; the cavalry that has fought a battle consumes 2 rations, and since on the previous day it had consumed only one, having taken a forage-ration from the village, it therefore still has one ration left, just enough for the men’s subsistence for the following day. If, then, it cannot return to the army on the following day, or unite with the other cavalry, it is forced to surrender. The two wagon-brigades laden with fascines, near C, go — one under the battery near 47, the other to 47 itself.
March of N.
Since the enemy has subjected the fortress E to the fire of two of his batteries, our artillery is forced to abandon the rampart and withdraw into the vaults; the sluices are kept open as long as possible, until the enemy advances to the storm. If one now wishes to save L and M, the cavalry in 49 must set out for there at once, or else the corps from H would have to be withdrawn, and this town exposed to a bombardment. The cavalry from 49, accordingly takes position in L, the infantry from 54 in N, on the left square; the infantry from the black mountain near 55 takes position in 64; the infantry from 47 goes to H; the infantry in 50 entrenches itself toward the village and the river, with wolf-pits; the corps near F remains in its position; the garrison loads the mines under 65. The corps near H and the garrisons in L and M draw their subsistence from H. The brigade in 50 from E. The corps near F from this place itself. A wagon-brigade goes from H or F, with two small mines, to 52.
1st June.
March of O.
The battery in 59 lays 4 rows of fascines, straight ahead, against the fortress. The empty wagon-brigade advances to 66, where the infantry from 60 likewise betakes itself; the full wagon-brigade advances under the battery; the cavalry must now begin its retreat; it therefore crosses the river, goes around the enemy brigade, and takes position in the village of 45; the cavalry from 57 likewise crosses the river, goes as far as 48, and from there into the village of 67; the horse-battery in 58, takes position in 68; the infantry in 34, in 69; the infantry in 21, in 70. So that the magazine in F is not too heavily drawn upon, the corps in 41 and 21 draw their subsistence from G; the army before E, however, draws its subsistence from the river, from D. The cavalry-brigades take their subsistence for this day from the villages in which they stand.
March of N.
Since the enemy has made the mistake of leaving the pass near 48 open, the cavalry from L, accordingly advances to 71, and draws its subsistence from E; the infantry in 50, now also entrenches itself on the sides against the wood, with trenches; the infantry from 53, advances to 47. Since E must now be relieved, and this can now happen only either by cutting off the enemy’s communication with his magazines, or by winning a battle — but in either case the area around H must first be made secure — the infantry from N, accordingly goes to 54; the infantry from H to F; the garrison of F, to 27, the infantry in 10, to 16; the cavalry in 18, to 73; the battery in 15, to 72; the artillery-brigade in 52, lays a flying mine under 52, with the train heading toward the town; the wagon-brigade with the remaining powder now drives to 54; the heavy guns in E fire upon the enemy battery in 59, and thereby blow away 2 lines of fascines.
2nd June.
March of O.
The battery in 59, again lays 4 rows of fascines; the infantry in 66 makes 4 rows of fascines; […] the cavalry […] takes position in 60; near the battery […] the infantry from 67 takes position in […]; the infantry from […] into the brigades in 68, 69, and 70 […] and make abatis; the battery […] trenches, as does the infantry in 63. The corps […] entrenches itself before […] before the front, with a row of trenches and a simple earthwork breastwork.
(Note: The final paragraph of this page (the diary entry for “2nd June”) is heavily disordered in the scan and in Exemplar B by column-transposition; several troop movements are marked with […] as they could not be reliably reconstructed.)
March of N.
Since the cavalry is threatened in the rear, it is decided, for once, to cut it off from its magazines. Accordingly the cavalry from 71 advances to 27, the horse-battery from 52 through 75, the cavalry from 73 to 28, in order to come upon the enemy’s flank.
The battery from 73 advances through 27 to 77, onto the black mountain; the infantry from 16, to 54; the infantry from 50 and 53, to H; that from 47, to F; the infantry from 27, to 28; the garrison from F, to 76; the infantry from […]
3rd June.
March of O.
Since not even all the corps of the army yet have provisions for 2 days, and the battery in 77 not only endangers the magazine, but also cuts off the water-communication, the communication must be reopened again within two days at the latest, otherwise one would be forced to surrender.
(Note: This section is heavily disordered in the scan and in Exemplar B by column-transposition; the precise assignment of troop movements to the square-numbers (71, 27, 52, 75, 73, 28, etc.) is therefore an uncertain reconstruction.)
In order, then, to drive the cavalry from 74 away, the infantry from 41 advances […] over the bridge; the battery from 78 […] goes to […]; the cavalry […] goes to 79; the infantry […] likewise advances, in order to make a diversion; the battery from 40 advances to 36; the infantry […] follows; the cavalry crosses the bridge, lays mines […]; the garrison […]; the infantry in 66 loads its fascines onto the wagon; this then goes to […]; the battery there throws up earthworks, and the infantry in 66 again makes 4 pieces of fascine-works. The army on the river, and the corps before […], live off their own stock.
March of N.
The battery near […] fires howitzers […] into the town, and sets it on fire. Since the enemy army has only one day’s provisions left, it must, in its next move, if we deprive it this day of communication with its magazine, […] and avoid an engagement, withdraw.
(Note: This section is heavily disordered in the scan and in Exemplar B by column-transposition; several troop movements and square-numbers could not be reliably reconstructed and are marked with […].)
The cavalry in 74, advances to 23, […]; the infantry […] with […] rations to […]; the cavalry […] to […]; the battery […]; the infantry from […] to 81; the infantry […] 27 to […]; the garrison […], and half of […] from here to […]; the battery fires and lays the two earthworks […] away; the artillery […]; the corps of […] lives off the stock; the other corps lives off its own […]; the horses from […]
4th June.
March of O.
We must now take advantage of the enemy’s error, that he has not occupied the town with his cavalry […], in which case the capital would have been lost; and occupy this important place at once. The garrison of […], like the garrison of […], advances to the same place; since the fortress is now also exposed to a siege, the battery […] leaves its guns behind, mounts its wagons, then crosses a bridge, and breaks it down behind it; the cavalry from 79, over 72 and 27 to […], advances alongside this artillery directly to […]; the […] takes position on the stone bridge; the local infantry advances to 87; the infantry in 80 advances to […]; the cavalry advances […]; the infantry from 66 […] advances to […]. Since the burning of the town requires two days, and the corps stationed there are entirely cut off, and have provisions for only […] days, the infantry in […] withdraws to […] and […]; the […] to 63; the infantry from 40 to […], and the battery from […] to 42; the battery lays fascines […]. The corps live off their own stock, except for the garrisons.
(Note: This page is heavily disordered in the scan and in Exemplar B by column-transposition; several troop movements and square-numbers could not be reliably reconstructed and are marked with […].)
March of N.
The corps in 81 is forced to retreat; but if it receives reinforcement, it can still obstruct the communication; the cavalry advances to […]; the infantry to […]; the cavalry with […] rations to […]; the battery near 77 burns […]; the infantry advances to 84; the horse-battery in 84 […] over […] and […] to […]; the battery […] to […]; the infantry from […] to […], and infantry from […] to […]; the infantry from […] to […].
(Note: This page too is heavily disordered in the scan and in Exemplar B by column-transposition; several troop movements and square-numbers could not be reliably reconstructed and are marked with […].)
The wagons of the battery near 77 form the wagon-laager; the cavalry corps draw their subsistence from the villages; the remaining troops from the magazines.
1st July.
March of O.
The army near 42 is still rather far off, and must nevertheless, like the other corps, maintain communication at the stone bridge. The battery on the stone bridge cannot move on with its guns, if it wishes to go to C. The infantry in 87 and 88, accordingly advances to 97 and 98; the battery to 99; half the garrison from G to 100; the garrison from C to 101; and since the battery in 59 can no longer hold out, precisely now that it could fire the breach, it retreats to L; the artillery mounted on wagons in 86, over 93 to D; the cavalry stationed there to G; the corps near 42 takes forage from the village […], and the horse-battery passes over 28, 17, 18, and 96, to […]; the infantry in 63 to 96; that from 97 to 80; the […] from 113, to 41; the corps in 80, draws on its last reserves; the other troops live off C.
March of N.
Since a fairly strong enemy corps is still cut off, one must try to prolong this through the following day as well, in order to force it to surrender; therefore the horse-battery in E advances to the stone bridge; the cavalry in 98, to 23; the infantry in 94, to 74; the infantry […], to […]; the cavalry in 92, through 84, over 22, 76, around, over 8 and 24, to […]; the infantry in […], to 93; the infantry in [85], to […]; the battery in […], to F; the garrison from F, to 85; the infantry in 84, to 77; the battery near D, blows up the bridge from D to […], thereby cutting off the enemy corps’ retreat; the army near E lives off D, the corps before D off […]
2nd July.
March of O.
The battery in D fires the wagon-laager away from the enemy battery; the horse-battery in 8, passes over 28, near 27, to 103, where it must do nothing against the enemy battery, lest it be ruined by the fortress.
(Note: Several square-numbers on this page (98, 94, 92, 22, 76, 8, 24, 85, 77) are heavily distorted in the scan and disordered by column-transposition in Exemplar B; their assignment is therefore an uncertain reconstruction.)
In order to drive the enemy’s corps away from the bridge, the battery from C, advances to 91; the infantry from 101 and 102, to 104 and 105; the infantry from 97 and 98, to 106 and 107; the cavalry from G to 108; the infantry to C; the garrison in D, lays mines under 109; the infantry near 96, takes position in the villages 27, 37, and 110, and draws its subsistence for this day from these; all the remaining troops live off the magazines.
March of N.
The enemy is now thrown onto the defensive, and before we undertake anything, we must first draw our army together into a good and suitable position. The battery from F advances to 111; that near 77 to 112; the infantry from 85 to 113; that from 77 to 75; the cavalry from 8 to […]; the horse-battery from the bridge advances to 102; the cavalry from 83 to 74; the infantry from 74 to 89; that from 102 onto the local bridge near 89; the infantry in […] to F.
(Note: A few square-numbers (110, 112, 75, 83) are unclear in the scan and disordered by column-transposition in Exemplar B; their assignment is an uncertain reconstruction.)
In this way the whole army would now be fully united, and the fortresses and the capital secure. Provisions arrive via the stone bridge from F and E; and since the enemy’s cut-off infantry, apart from that in 27, which can join the batteries near 95, can obtain no further subsistence from the villages, it will be forced to surrender, unless the enemy can devise some quite special movements by which it can obtain fresh supplies.
If one now wished to act offensively, it would probably be best first to drive the enemy from his formidable camp, and this could be achieved, if possible, by a diversion of the cavalry, if the enemy left the village of 92 unoccupied; if this did not happen, however, one would have to drive off the enemy’s horse-artillery by an infantry attack, and then make this place the point of attack.
I believe it is superfluous to elaborate further on these examples, since one must also leave something to the reader, and the spirit of this game can be sufficiently gathered from what has been said so far.
(Note: The remainder of this page apparently contains a badly damaged illustration or table, probably a square-overview for the 2nd map; its text is illegible in the scan and not preserved in Exemplar B, and has therefore been omitted here.)
Fourth Division. Changes to the Preceding Rules, when one wishes to play a Siege-Game on the Third Map.
First Section. Explanation of the Map and Preparation for the Game.
The main rampart and the outworks of the fortress are laid out in yellow, and edged with a red border. This red border indicates the revetment wall. The main rampart is 30 feet high, the outworks 20 feet. Beneath all fortress-squares that are cross-hatched in red, there are vaults. On each such square two troop-brigades can stand, namely one on the rampart, the other in the vaults; these fortress-vaults are completely bomb-proof, have loopholes through which the artillery stationed within them can fire, though within the vaults it can use only direct cannon-fire; the black-crossed squares a, are 10-foot-high, strong blockhouses, onto or into which one can place artillery or other troops. If one wishes to place artillery on them, it may, however, only be field-artillery. These blockhouses lie not in, but upon, the rampart. If a figure wishes to move from the rampart or from a blockhouse into the vaults, or into the blockhouse, this — like the opposite movement — requires a whole move, during which it can therefore do nothing else, unless this work is otherwise not counted as a move at all. Along the breastwork of the rampart, right at the bottom, stands a blockhouse, of which the batteries standing on the rampart must make use, if they wish to protect themselves against the enemy’s mortar-fire, yet do not want to leave the rampart for the casemates, in order still to bombard the enemy at a distance. In these breastwork-blockhouses, however, only direct fire from the guns may be used; if a brigade moves into it from the rampart, this likewise costs it a whole move.
(Note: The figure for the height of the main rampart is unclear in the scan; the reading “30 feet” adopted here from Exemplar B is a probable, but not entirely certain, reconstruction.)
The covered way b b is level with the horizon; the glacis running around it, which is washed in green, is a sloping breastwork lined with palisades. The strong black stripes d d indicate the exits, or so-called sallies, in front of which, however, barriers are placed, and which therefore make these points just as inaccessible to the enemy as the other points of the palisading are for him. The black-crossed squares e, are likewise strong blockhouses, and just as high as those marked a a on the rampart; these lie in the covered way, and are level with the horizon. Beneath the squares marked with red dotted lines in the covered way and the glacis run the mine-galleries. The whole counter-scarp is, like the scarp, provided with a revetment wall, which here too is indicated by the red border. The blockhouses have exits on all corners and sides, which, however, are closed to the enemy as soon as a troop-brigade occupies the blockhouse-square.
The ditch f, g is 20 feet deep, and, except for the parts f, dry, but can by means of the [sluice] […] of the Bear quickly drained of water.
(Note: The depth-figure of the ditch is unclear in the scan (“29 feet”?); the reading “20 feet” adopted here from Exemplar B seems more plausible, but is not entirely certain.)
The sides and corners of the blockhouses lying in the covered way, which abut the ditch and also form part of the Contre-Escarpe, have exits into the ditch for the infantry. On these blockhouse-squares are also the entrances to the mine-galleries. The squares k, which are laid out in red, are the gates of the main rampart. These, however, present just as strong an obstacle to the enemy’s passage as do all other parts of the rampart, as soon as they are occupied by a combat-ready troop brigade.
The lines running out from these gate-squares, marked with a black stripe, indicate the bridges over the outworks leading to the fortress’s main exits, which the enemy can never use to cross the ditch, as long as the square of the outwork or of the main rampart to which they lead is occupied by a combat-ready troop brigade. As long as the ditch is left without water, these bridges are not needed, because one can then also cross with artillery and horses by way of the ramps. These ramps lead from the ditch onto the same squares, and in the same direction onto the works where the bridges lie.
The entire rampart, like the blockhouses, has at its top an earthen breastwork, which protects the troops and machines placed upon it against direct cannon-fire, as long as it stands. This breastwork is provided with loopholes. All other squares of the main rampart, except the blockhouse-squares, likewise have bomb-proof vaults, though not provided with loopholes, which are intended for the safe quartering of the troops.
For the rest, here, as in the large game, at most one troop brigade, together with one artillery brigade and one wagon brigade, can find room on a rampart-vault or dwelling-deck, without the stock of other war-necessities — which can be as large as one likes on such a place — spoiling, as would have to happen to an entire stock in the same square to which the field belongs, without a figure present — unless the stock lay in a dwelling, vault, or blockhouse, in which case it is entirely safe.
The dwelling-houses of the fortress are laid out in red, have exits on all sides, and are just as strong as the town-houses in the large game. The brigades beneath the rampart can step from their vaults, on their own squares, directly onto the rampart, or into the town, since the necessary exits are found toward both places. Likewise, all figures can step from the rampart directly into the town, or from the town onto the rampart. Infantry can also, from all points which touch the ditch via vaults or casemates provided with loopholes — and which thus themselves form part of the Escarpe — pass through the said vaults and step into the ditch. These infantry exits, or so-called sallies, are at all times just as impassable for the enemy as the other parts of the rampart’s revetment wall.
The Bears are watched over by the troop brigade on the square of the main rampart to which the Bear is attached. For the rest, such a sluice gives no crossing of the ditch; only its upper edge lies level with the horizon.
Where, in the covered way, on a square, a black dotted line runs along one side of it, there is a palisade, the inner side of which is on the square on which it stands. These so-called Tambours have exits which can be blocked, (Note: this part of the sentence is heavily distorted in the scan and could not be reliably reconstructed) […] which is located on the inner side of the same.
The single magazine of provisions and the bakeries is on square L. All brigades standing within the outer Glacis-line live off it — unless they should be entirely surrounded by enemy troops. As soon as the ditch is filled with water, the troops in the covered way and on the Glacis, as well as on the outworks, have their communication with the main rampart and the magazine by means of the bridges, through which they thus receive their supplies — unless these bridges are either occupied by the enemy or destroyed, in which case they are cut off.
Within the main rampart’s revetment-wall line, therefore, no brigade can be deprived of the use of the magazine, except if the fortress is entirely surrounded and it cannot withdraw from its place.
Likewise, the same advantages cannot be made use of here as in the large war regarding the high-roads leading from the fortress into the field, for the maintenance of the troops, with the difference that here one can advance as far from the magazine, along these roads, as one likes, and it is still possible to be supplied, as long as one is not cut off.
In order, however, to be able to save oneself again even in this case, every brigade here, as in the large war, receives at the start of the game provisions for two moves, which, however, once lost, cannot be replenished from the magazine except on the 10th, 20th, 30th, 40th, and 50th days. This magazine always supplies each move only as much as the daily maintenance of the respective garrison requires.
It is easily seen that, if the main magazine is lost to the garrison, it is forced to surrender. The loss of this magazine-square is therefore the loss of the game for the besieged. This magazine has an entirely bomb-proof vault, but only the strength of an ordinary town-house, and can hold only a single troop brigade, like all the other dwelling-squares.
As regards supply, the arrangement of both sides is similar: the besieger chooses one of the surrounding villages as headquarters and sole magazine of provisions, and obtains the same from there, likewise along the high-road, at as great a distance as he wishes, and even right up to the fortress’s magazine. But the brigades standing in the approach-trenches that are connected with a high-road also make use of the magazine. For the rest, every enemy brigade at the start of the game likewise receives here provisions for two moves, which cannot be replenished except on the days noted above.
As regards all other terrain-features, there is no difference between this map and that of the large war; I need only further recall that here no harvest takes place at all, so that the villages, no less than the town-houses, possess no stores, that one therefore cannot replace one’s lost stock, that the whole game lasts only 60 moves for each side, and that the besieger has the first move each time, and has lost the game if, within this time, he has not forced the enemy to surrender. But since his entire supply comes from headquarters, he too can lose the game if the enemy takes it from him and thereby deprives him of the use of the magazine. For the rest, both sides have, for these 60 moves, the supply necessary for their whole force lying in their magazines.
At the start of the game, the besieger places his brigades, as he likes, on the squares lying outside the great cannon-range of the covered way; the besieged, however, places his at will within the covered way, and both now begin to act from here.
(Note: the following figures on the distribution of guns and troops are heavily distorted in the scan; the exact numbers are an uncertain reconstruction.)
The weight of all things remains here as it is determined in the large game. The army, however, is here enlarged on a far greater scale, and the howitzer-fire is separated from the cannon. For each bastion of the fortress is reckoned: one heavy and two light field-guns, one heavy and two light howitzers, one light cavalry brigade, six infantry brigades, two pioneer or sapper brigades, and one miner brigade, together with two wagon brigades. From the fortress’s light artillery, two brigades of horse-artillery are drawn.
The besieger receives exactly twice as many troops, guns, and wagon-brigades of every kind. Half of his cavalry, however, is only light; the other half are cuirassier brigades. If desired, half the fortress’s cavalry may likewise consist of heavy brigades, which, however, are probably not as useful here as they are to the enemy.
Instead of miner brigades, one must have small round red miner-markers ready, which are used in place of the actual miner-figure for as long as the latter is working underground on the construction of the mine-galleries, the figures being indicated thereby. For the rest, the markers retain the same properties that the miner-figures have.
To the articles of war-supplies that can be produced are added here fascine-layers, which (Note: the dimension given in the scan is uncertain) […] are feet thick and weigh 8 pounds, and are used for the construction of certain elevations. They may be brown-and-black striped sheet-metal plates, of such a size that they exactly fit a wagon-load. Each side could be given half as many such fascine-layers as it has artillery brigades. Such a layer can be made from four fascine-lines, if a combat-ready artillery, pioneer, miner, or infantry brigade devotes one move’s work to it. Since each of the two playing sides is given as many fascine-lines as its army has troop brigades, it is better to keep the actual markers for the fascine-layers together outside the game for common exchange and use.
For each artillery brigade, each side receives half as many storm-ladders and storm-bridges, for each pioneer brigade just as many pontoon-bridges, and for each miner brigade a quarter of that number in mine-charges, for each artillery brigade two charges.
Besides these simple mine-charge markers, others must also remain lying together outside the game for common use, which can be exchanged for simple markers, and have the following arrangement: they are square red sheet-metal plates; on some stands No. 1, on others, in one of the four corners, stands No. 4, and again on others stands, in the centre, No. 9. How and for what purpose these markers are used shall be shown later. Here it need only be noted that those marked No. 1 require, for exchange, as much as two simple, those marked No. 4 four simple, and those marked No. 9 eight simple mine-charge markers.
The remaining markers, such as abatis, earthen breastwork, and pit-lines, must likewise be kept in sufficient quantity. In addition, the fortress must, without counting the simple blockhouse-decks that are in the covered way, also have four large blockhouse-decks of this kind, which cover four squares, of which, however, only one need be marked like the other simple blockhouse-decks. These large decks are placed at the tip of the four bastions, in such a way that the square crossed upon them comes to stand over the blockhouse-square of the rampart.
For the common use of both sides, a few simple blockhouse-decks must be kept ready, in case new blockhouses should need to be built.
(Note: The remainder of this page is illegible in the scan; it presumably contained an illustration or legend for the marker-plates, which could not be reconstructed here.)
Second Division.
The Action of the Figures.
First Section. Their Movement.
First. As to range and direction.
The cavalry moves to the 33rd square, in all directions.
The horse-artillery, just as far, in all directions.
The infantry, to the 17th square, in all directions.
The foot-artillery, just as far, in all directions.
The pioneers, miners, and sappers, just as far, in all directions.
The heavy howitzer-ordnance moves to the 9th square, in all directions.
The siege-ordnance moves just as far, in all directions.
The light howitzer- and field-ordnance moves to the 17th square, in all directions.
The same with horse-artillery, to the 33rd square, in all directions.
The wagon-brigades can move, without load, to the 33rd square, but with load only to the 17th square, in all directions. Apart from this difference in range, everything else that is said on these subjects in the large war also applies here to movement; as regards load, nothing at all is changed, and as regards terrain-features only this needs to be recalled: that, since the fortress’s ditches and the rampart are faced with masonry, these walls can be climbed up or down at any point by infantry by means of storm-ladders; likewise, infantry can in this way pass the palisading of the covered way, in case one does not wish to pass these named fortifications through the fixed and customary exits. The besieger, however, cannot make use of these exits or entrances of the fortress-works, if a combat-ready troop brigade of the besieged stands on the square on which they are located.
Second Section.
The Combat of the Troop-Brigades.
The following is altered here, and is to take the place of the rules laid down for the same purpose in the large game.
Secondly. Combat, as to range and direction.
All ordnance, both cannon and musketry, can fire only in the 8 cardinal directions. Heavy ordnance, however, can also ricochet in this direction, after it has fired upon a square, striking several times in succession with the same shot — namely, after the first two squares, always skipping two further squares each time. The bombs and balls thus always leave one of every two squares struck undamaged. The balls and bombs, we shall assume, pass over the free squares in such a way that they can do no harm to any brigade which, level with the first square struck by the battery with that shot — either entirely on the same horizontal line, or 10 feet higher — stands. If, however, they do not stand 10 feet higher than the said square, they are caught, just like the first ricochet-square, by the line of the bombs or cannon-balls.
Heavy howitzer-ordnance can lob, over all obstacles, onto the 20th square.
Siege-cannon can fire just as far in direct fire.
The bombs and balls of the light howitzer-ordnance and the field-cannon reach, in similar fashion to those of the heavy ordnance-types, only the 12th square.
All ordnance can ricochet; but the square of first impact must not be elevated above the battery’s own square by more than: for heavy howitzer-ordnance, 50 feet; for siege-cannon, not more than 20 feet; for light howitzer-ordnance, not more than 10 feet; for field-cannon, not more than 5 feet.
The final bound of the first two ordnance-types can then occur only on the 12th square, and for the light ordnance-types on the 16th square.
One can also fire with the howitzer-types in a direct line, as with cannon; in that case the bombs, however, go only half the distance of the greatest throw.
One can, indeed, also fire with cannon-batteries in an arc, and then the balls go just as far as in direct fire; but in this manner no figure can be damaged — only combustible material, such as fascines not yet built in, powder, ladders, or bridges, can be set on fire, provided the battery has already stood in its place for a full day. If this is not the case, such an arc-shot of the cannon can damage nothing at all.
It will easily be seen that there can still be cases where the effect of a battery occurs in two ways, and one will easily find these for oneself; one must only not forget that each kind of effect has its own particular range, within which alone it can be applied.
The fire of the infantry can act, in the 8 cardinal directions, up to the 6th square. Its charge reaches just as far, but in all directions.
The charge of the cavalry can strike an enemy standing on the 8th square, and indeed in all directions if it is light cavalry, but only in the 8 cardinal directions if it is heavy cavalry.
The artillery has, apart from its heavy ordnance, no weapons at all. The same is true of the sapper- and pioneer-brigades.
The miners do have weapons, but they use these only against each other in the mine-galleries, and they can only kill an enemy standing in the mine-gallery of an adjacent square. For the rest, the miners have, at this range, both the effect of the charge and of musket-fire in their power.
The effect of fire and of the charge are here the same, and can likewise only arise in the same manner as in the large game.
For this reason, as regards the article of combat with respect to objects, only the following points need be noted: (Note: this paragraph is heavily disordered in the scan through column-transposition; the following reconstruction is uncertain.) Since no work of the fortress is lower than 50 feet, no figure on the rampart can be struck by direct cannon-fire, if there is a height of 50 feet between it and the rampart-artillery. The cannon of the main rampart can sweep over all the other works of the fortress, except over themselves or the bastions of the main rampart. Since the outworks are lower than the main rampart, they cannot sweep over it. If, however, the cannon of the latter sweep over an elevation of 10 feet (Note: the figure is unclear in the scan — 16 or 10 feet; adopted here as 10 feet following Exemplar B) which drops off just as steeply on the opposite side, then the 3rd square lying behind it, counting the last square of the height, is again struck by the cannon. Therefore the cannon of the main rampart, when firing over a ravelin, cannot strike the ditch and the nearest square of the covered way. If, however, the fire passes over a blockhouse of the covered way, it strikes the 2nd square again. The whole glacis, moreover, is completely swept by the bastions.
What has been said here regarding the main rampart’s relation to the ravelins also applies to the latter’s relation to the blockhouses of the covered way. The glacis, however, also lies under the entire fire of the ravelins.
The ordnance standing in the blockhouses of the covered way is level with the horizon, and therefore cannot fire over the palisades of the covered way onto the glacis. Those standing in the vaults can fire as far as the 12th square lying from them, but not over the ravelins.
The ordnance standing in the blockhouses of the main rampart cannot fire over its breastwork, since their fire can only be directed against the breastwork itself, if the sides of the blockhouses do not themselves form the rampart’s breastwork. The brigades standing under cover of the breastwork can fire as far as possible, and can also ricochet. Since the blockhouses in the covered way project somewhat above the edge of the glacis, the ordnance standing on them can sweep the entire glacis.
Since infantry-exits are located in the casemates of the bastions, infantry can also bring its charge into action against the enemy from there. The cavalry, on the other hand, can only break out through the great exits of the fortress, namely over the bridges, and through the Schlangen (zigzag exits) of the glacis.
The figures standing in the blockhouses cannot, as long as their walls and roof still stand, be struck by any charge.
The brigades standing in the vaults of the fortress cannot be struck with the troops’ charge, except once these stand on the rampart or in the town; or, if one wishes to attack them from the ditch, the revetment-wall of the vaults must first be shot away, or otherwise ruined in some way.
Since the palisades of the covered way can be passed with ladders, the brigades standing behind them can also be attacked with a charge by infantry standing outside, if this infantry either has ladders with it, or if the palisades have previously been cleared away.
For the rest, it is understood that, since all the works of the fortress have breastworks, the brigades standing behind these breastworks, as long as they stand, cannot be struck by direct fire.
Brigades standing in vaults and blockhouses are, so long as these works have no breach anywhere, entirely secured against all enemy fire.
Concerning the elevations made by means of fascine-layers, it must further be noted that the brigade standing upon them cannot be struck by cavalry, but indeed can be struck by infantry charge, if it does not secure itself by other fortifications.
(Note: The remainder of this page is illegible in the scan and could not be reconstructed.)
Third Section.
Work of the Troops to Produce the Necessities.
Here the following changes are to be made to the rules of the great war.
If a piece of work does not require a whole move from the acting brigade, it may, after completing it, still carry out another, which can be done in the remainder of the time. Thus, for example, an infantry brigade can traverse 5 squares and then, on the 5th square, still build fascines, or a line of earthen breastwork. One will now easily recognise the sense of this principal rule, and be able to apply it to several cases.
Besides the artillery and infantry brigades, one has here, for the execution of works, special figures which cannot fight at all, and which we have called sapper-brigades. Such a sapper-brigade possesses the particular property of being able, in one move, to fortify its standing-square twice as strongly as other troops with 4 fascine-lines, and to lay 8 lines in one move.
That elevated batteries can be made by means of fascines has already been noted; and here it need only be said that this is brought about by the brigades in just the same way as if they were building fascine-breastworks, only with the difference that fascines laid down in this manner do not cover against enemy fire as a breastwork does — unless the brigade wishing to shelter behind them is not standing on the square of the elevation itself, but behind it. It is understood that everything here is assumed to be on the same level.
Each fascine-layer (which is formed of 4 fascine-lines) creates a 5-foot-high elevation, which all types of troops, if prepared for it, can climb and hold occupied. However, only infantry may charge down from it. Moreover, all fire reaches not only downward but also upward, just as if the troops were themselves standing on hills, in which case this would not be so.
Besides the construction of these entrenchments, it must further be noted that, if one wishes to make a dam across a body of water, this only happens when the water is completely filled, in the same move in which the last fascine is laid, and thereby [the water] is dammed up. A brook, however, is filled with 1, a small river that is not a full square wide with 2, and a river that is a full square wide with 3 fascine-layers, or with 12 fascine-lines.
If one wishes to make a dam across a marsh, then it requires, for the same width as these bodies of water, only half as many fascines as the latter require for filling.
In the construction of mines, the following is to be noted:
Flying mines (Flatterminen) are made just as in the great war. For the construction of mine-galleries, however, in which the largest mines can be loaded, one has the miners. Such a miner-brigade can, in each move, construct only one mine-gallery, which runs from the centre of one square to beneath the centre of one of the adjacent squares. As soon as the miner has made the mine-gallery beneath one square, he marks, by his advance onto another square, the new construction of a gallery beneath this square. For every move he makes, he requires for his work one palisade-line, which is then removed from play.
Without these palisades he can make no mine-galleries. These palisades, necessary for the construction of the mine-galleries, must be located at the entrance of the mine, that is, on the square at which the mine-gallery begins. For the rest, the course of the mine-galleries is indicated here just as in the great war.
In a mine-gallery already constructed, the miner can travel as far as on the surface, and at the same time carry along with him the largest loads of powder. The laying of the charge at its intended place again requires, from the miner, a whole day’s work; the ignition, on the other hand, requires no time at all; this can also be done by other troops, even in passing. The hearth (point of ignition) at which a mine is ignited, however, may not be more than 5 squares distant from the charge.
If a miner is in the mine-gallery in which a mine is ignited, he is instantly dead, in the moment in which the mine explodes.
If a mine-gallery square is occupied by a mine-brigade, then no other miner-brigade may be placed upon it. That is to say, nothing other than that within the space of the mine-gallery beneath one square only one miner-brigade can stand. Here one must note well that the troops acting above are not included in this. The miners of one side may, however, exchange their positions among themselves, just as the brigades of one side may do above, even while carrying the heaviest load of powder.
The miners can take no provisions with them underground at all, but receive these by means of their mine-gallery, which is their line of communication, through the trenches and high-roads from headquarters. From this it follows that a mine-gallery must have its beginning in a trench, and that the miner starves if this said communication is cut off from him by the enemy. If a body of water separates the communication, then a bridge or a dam must secure it.
Since the miners, in the moment in which they go underground to begin a mine-gallery, are removed from play, the actual miner is immediately replaced by the miner-marker, for as long as the miners remain underground in the mine-gallery; as soon as they emerge again from it onto the surface of the earth, then, from the place at which this happens, the real miner is immediately used again instead of the marker denoting him.
The miner-brigade can indeed itself carry forward the largest load of powder without hindrance, but this can only happen within a mine-gallery; therefore the powder-charge must be carted up to the square at which the entrance of the gallery is.
It must further be noted that one can no longer ignite a mine as soon as the mine-gallery leading to it has been cut by an enemy gallery, or occupied by an enemy miner-brigade, or dug through by an enemy brigade standing above. Such a breakthrough, or new point of ignition, can also be made, besides by miners, by artillery, sapper, and infantry brigades, though this work costs them, just as it does the former, a whole move. (Note: The remainder of this paragraph is disturbed in the scan and in Exemplar B by transposed columns of text; the following reconstruction is therefore uncertain.) Meanwhile they suffer, in carrying out this work, just as the miners do, underground; and each of these brigades can likewise continue the mine-work, provided it stands at an entrance of the gallery leading to the mine. If one makes the shaft on the square on which the mine lies, one can remove the charge itself. So much for the construction.
The effect of mines is as follows:
If a mine is loaded with the marker marked No. 1, it blows up only the single square beneath which it is located, but at the same time destroys, underground, everything that is beneath the squares adjacent to it. Everything that is above the mine-square is likewise completely shattered and rendered entirely unusable.
If a mine is loaded with the marker one of whose corners is specially marked, then all squares adjoining this corner are blown up, so that a complete square of 4 squares is removed. Underground, however, this mine also destroys all squares which are adjacent to the squares blown up. The effect above ground is as with the previous charge, only with the difference that it does not extend over a single square, but, in the same manner, over the squares which have been blown up.
If, finally, a mine is loaded with the marker marked No. 9, it blows up 9 squares, namely all squares adjacent to the mine-square together with this square itself. Underground, however, it also destroys the squares adjacent to the squares blown up, thus in all 25 squares. Its effect above the squares blown up is as with the first two.
All squares blown up by a mine become craters (pits), which are indicated by laying yellow-painted tin squares upon the squares that have been blown up.
No mine may be laid more than 50 feet below the surface, on account of the water. Therefore, beneath the floor of a crater, that is, also beneath the squares of a mine already blown up, only flying mines (Flatterminen) may be laid and set off.
From this rule it follows that, if a mine were located beneath some isolated height — for example, beneath a free-standing hill-square — then, after it had been blown up, it would make the hill 50 feet lower.
A greater effect than that of the 5th mine-charge cannot be obtained by any larger charge.
Fourth Section.
Work of the Figures to Destroy Objects.
The methods of destruction here are just as in the great war, and are likewise carried out, just as there, by the troops. Only with regard to the destruction of fortification-elements is the following to be particularly noted:
The revetment-walls of the fortress works and the sluices are of one and the same strength. If one shoots them down, the breach can be passed by infantry without ladders, because the breach then takes on the slope of a falling hill. (Note: This paragraph is severely damaged in the scan; the following sentence concerning the effect of cannon-fire on the revetment-wall and on the troops standing in the vaults is therefore only uncertainly reconstructed.) By this not only is the wall itself destroyed by cannon-fire, but one can also deprive the troops standing in the vaults of their cover.
If, however, one wishes to be able to see the revetment-wall of the works and of the main rampart for this purpose, one must be able to see the foot of this wall, and this is possible only from the edge of the ditch. The upper breastwork of the works is first seen on the 12th square from there.
Hence one can also already see the foot of the rampart on the map of the glacis, if one adds only one more 5-foot-high elevation.
The walls of the blockhouses in the covered way cannot be seen until one is on the crest of the glacis, and those in the bastions only when one stands upon them oneself.
The breastwork atop the blockhouses can be seen from the foot of the glacis.
Both the rampart-breastworks and the blockhouse-breastworks are of one strength, and require, of the two heavy ordnance types, only two, and of the two light ordnance types, three salvoes to destroy them, provided these pieces of ordnance are not more than 12 squares from the breastwork to be destroyed. If this is the case, however, the heavy ordnance must fire one salvo more to destroy the breastwork; if one fires from both sides which adjoin one another, from one blockhouse, then the roof collapses.
It should be noted here that, if mortar-fire is to demolish a fortification, this must happen by direct fire.
By ricochet shots no fortification can be destroyed.
If one shoots away the revetment-wall of the rampart, then the ditch lying in front of it is half filled in.
If one wishes to destroy a rampart revetment-wall, one has the following table:
(Note: The following table is severely damaged in the scan and in Exemplar B; the figures and the precise designation of the columns are uncertainly reconstructed.)
| Position of the ordnance | Heavy ordnance types (salvoes) | Light ordnance types (salvoes) |
|---|---|---|
| Not beyond the 12th square | 4 | 6 |
| Beyond the 12th square | 6 | 6 |
If the foot of the wall has been shot away in this manner, then the whole wall collapses, the casemates and the upper rampart-breastwork likewise; and the brigade standing on this rampart-square then finds no cover whatsoever, neither against the direct fire of the enemy, nor against the charge of his infantry climbing the breach.
If one wished now to fire upon the sluices or the ditch-walls, this requires, at the same distance, the same number of salvoes.
The sides of the blockhouses are half as strong as the revetment-walls, and require also only half as many salvoes for their destruction as these. The roofs, however, are just as strong as in the great war; and the fascine- and earthen breastworks, and the abatis-lines, have here the same strength against the effect of ordnance.
(Note: The following passage on the number of salvoes at greater distance is severely damaged in the scan and in Exemplar B; the exact figures for squares and lines are uncertainly reconstructed.) If this ordnance is more than 11 squares away, then a breastwork-line withstands, from light artillery, a single salvo already, but from siege artillery only when two lines thick does it withstand a full salvo; if this is not the case, the ordnance requires, for its destruction, only half as many salvoes as at the closer distance. Still it must be remembered here that, if the ordnance-salvoes required to destroy something are not all delivered evenly, one following another, then no effect at all is obtained from them.
If one wishes to shoot away an entire fascine-elevation, then each layer, at the two distances given — namely, below or beyond the 12th square — requires one salvo more than is necessary for a breastwork or abatis-lines.
The palisades here are just as strong as in the great war; only one must not forget that they likewise become twice as strong against the effect of ordnance-fire, if the latter is more than 12 squares away.
The palisades of the covered way cannot be seen until the foot of the glacis, and can therefore only be shot away by the batteries standing there.
The brigades standing here in the covered way likewise cannot be struck by direct fire until the crest of the glacis has been shot away. This, however, requires from every piece of ordnance just as many salvoes as are necessary for the destruction of the fortress revetment-wall, and can moreover only be done, within the 12th square, by the palisade-line standing behind this crest.
If one now shoots away the palisades, one has the advantage that, if the covered way is to be attacked with infantry, one need not give that infantry any ladders, which always make their march more difficult.
If one does not wish to destroy the fortress works by ordnance-fire, one can also clear away, in a single instant, all those [troops] standing upon them, namely by loading a mine beneath them and setting it off. In this case the mine, just as on ordinary terrain, removes all the fortifications standing above its crater, and fills, with their debris, the ditch lying in front, just as well halfway, as if the breach had been formed by cannon.
It must only be noted here that, since mines do not act through ground beneath water or marsh, one cannot destroy a rampart-square if the mine were loaded on the other side of the ditch, even though the rampart-square already lies within the area of the squares to be blown up. The bridges of the fortress are, moreover, just as strong against cannon-fire as the wooden bridges in the great war, with the difference that they become twice as strong if the ordnance is more than 7 squares away from the bridge-square to be destroyed.
These, then, would be the various rules which, in this game, must be observed in place of those fixed for a corresponding purpose in the great war.
Let us now once go through the method of attack and defence on the board; the detail, however, and the actual manner of carrying it out, must be left to the genius of the player to discover from the rules given here, since he finds in them all the necessary means, and there only remains for him to find a fitting combination of them. Properly speaking, it might perhaps even be better not to give the plan of the attack at all, so that the player might, from his own experience, in a sense discover for himself the best method of attack.
Afterwards the besieger has determined his headquarters, his first task must be to silence the mortars of the fortress, since otherwise no work is covered against the fire of the fortress.
To attain this end, the besieger must bring up his entire heavy mortar-ordnance and place it so that all the forward points of that polygon which is to be attacked are swept. Let us assume the forward polygon is determined as the point of attack; then batteries on squares 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, and 12 would indeed sweep all the works of the attack-front of the two supporting ravelins completely, but only the forward points of these works; and yet it is necessary that this be the case at all points of the works lying behind the attacked polygon. One therefore sends two batteries to 26 and 27. These can strike the covered way, the ravelin, the bridges, and the gate. The other heavy mortar-batteries can come to 25, 17, 14, 19, and 24. These hold the forward faces of the works lying behind under fire, and the attack-front of the two supporting ravelins holds the tips of the ravelins under fire.
To 20, 22, 18, 28, 13, and 16 the remaining heavy siege-artillery is brought up. The batteries 17, 20, and 18, 19 ricochet-fire upon the forward faces of the bastions; 13 and 16 do likewise and sweep the covered way.
The batteries 21 and 24 sweep the faces of the ravelin lying in front, and the batteries 23 and 28 fire upon the two flanking ravelins. All these batteries must immediately be covered with a breastwork; therefore their march from their first standing-squares to the appointed places must leave them still much time, so that they can entrench the exposed sides of their position with an earthen breastwork or with fascines. For their better security, and for the communication, a breastwork must also immediately be drawn and occupied, by infantry or workers moved up between them.
To cover the flanks of this first parallel still better, one fortifies, beside the batteries 23 and 28, a few squares as best as possible; here one places the horse-batteries, together with some corps of infantry, and, for their support, the cavalry behind them. A small corps of cavalry is left behind the centre, and openings are made for it in batteries 26 and 27. This arrangement of the parallel also secures against sorties, since the enemy will not dare to enter the arc, and since the flanks are the strongest points.
The mortar-batteries must first be driven from the rampart by superior force, in order then to advance, by zigzags, for the construction of the 2nd parallel, in which the demounting-batteries are placed. This advance takes place in the following manner: behind the battery-line 13, 16, one assembles a number of 18 brigades of workers, and of 10 brigades each is given 2 fascine-lines. The whole remaining parallel must likewise be occupied with workers, of whom each brigade has 2 fascines. Now the whole corps advances from the parallel onto the squares marked n, and each brigade lays its fascines directly in front of itself, toward the fortress. After the 2nd parallel is thus completed, then on the squares 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40 the lighter mortar-batteries are brought up, and on the squares in front of them the light cannon-batteries. The horse-artillery protects the flank of this parallel.
It is understood that the forward batteries must entrench themselves. Since these batteries are now in a position to see the breastwork of the rampart that was hitherto covered above, which could not be damaged with mortar-fire, they are used for its destruction; the howitzers serve them as support, to bombard the covered way.
(Note: The following passage is severely scrambled in the scan and in Exemplar B; the order of the sentences as well as the exact figures are uncertainly reconstructed.) As long as the fire of these batteries lasts, the enemy is forced to abandon the rampart and to go into the casemates. If the ordnance of the fortress is now within close cannon-range, and the fire becomes dangerous, then one cannot work further forward, or one would have to raise the batteries by […] feet. As long as this is not the case, the following work is done by the sappers, for now every salvo of the heaviest ordnance carries away, at once, […] lines of fascines. Since at the foot of the glacis the 1st parallel is erected, so on the 2nd the communication-trenches must be made.
One therefore lets the 8 sapper-brigades, each with one wagon-brigade loaded with 4 fascines, advance from the parallel onto the squares marked n. The two brigades standing on the foremost squares lay their fascines on the two sides of their standing-square that face toward the fortress. The other brigades lay all their fascines on one side only, namely on the side facing the fire of the fortress. These saps can now withstand 2 salvoes of the heaviest ordnance — only the heads of the two on the flanks cannot. Should there still be found, somewhere on the fortress, a heavy battery ready to fire upon these saps, it must be silenced before one advances further. Once this is done, the sapper-brigades advance onto the squares marked o and complete the 3rd parallel, each laying fascines toward the fortress. The brigades that remain in place reinforce the saps. The abandoned squares, however, are occupied with infantry.
Onto the squares p infantry likewise advances, which entrenches itself at once, and afterwards forms the garrison of the 3rd parallel. This infantry stands here secure, because it could only be hit by ricochet fire, and is, on the other hand, protected by the simple breastwork it has made.
Now the point is to gain the glacis and the covered way, and therefore first to render the mines of the fortress useless. The wagons bring up the necessary palisades and powder-charges, the miners are brought forward, and while these are occupied in driving off the enemy miners, one moves the batteries from 13 to 16 into the 3rd parallel and has them ruin the blockhouses from there. Once the enemy miner has been driven off, one can either blow up the blockhouses with a mine, and thereby capture the covered way, or one ruins the blockhouse-roofs and the palisading with the heavy ordnance, and thereby exposes the enemy at the same time; namely along the crest of the glacis, for the security of the breach-batteries to be laid out there, a new entrenchment, made by the sappers just as the 3rd parallel was, and connected with the parallel.
If this work is happily completed, one moves the batteries of the 2nd parallel into the 3rd, occupies the forward works well with infantry, and has the sappers, along the whole counter-escarpe from 41 to 42, throw up a strong breastwork for the batteries, working at it for 2 days. Then the breastwork is strong enough to withstand whole salvoes.
Now one advances with all siege-batteries onto this line, and if one wishes to force the enemy to abandon the casemates, or if this cannot be done by ordnance, then one tries to fill the ditch by means of the sappers. A sapper-brigade can, namely, from the counter-escarpe onto its standing-square, fill the ditch with fascine-layers; if it then advances onto the ditch-square, it can lay one more layer. The brigade is then indeed lost, but if one repeats this work, then on the 4th move after this advance the breach must be completely ready. (Note: This page is severely scrambled in the scan and in Exemplar B; the following reconstruction of the order and exact wording is therefore uncertain.) If the breach, after it was half filled, is entirely filled up.
If one does not wish this, one can also withdraw the battery, in order to drive the enemy off from the crossing of the ditch. If the crossing is now complete, one also sends the miners there, to blow up the bastion, whereby in this way one half of the rampart is captured, and the bastions and the enemy standing on the ravelin are driven off. At night one brings up infantry and attacks the enemy with it at these places, in the casemates.
If the counter-escarpe is blown open by a mine, and the other half of the ditch is filled, then one must establish oneself there and fill the whole with troops. On the polygon of the main rampart a great battery is then erected, and then either the whole force storms the magazine, or the town is set on fire; the ordnance destroys it.
One must take good care that, even if one has already gained a foothold on the main rampart, the enemy is not driven back out of it from the works lying behind, or that one is not forced to surrender before the enemy has been driven out of whatever cuttings he has made, or that the enemy does not gain the flanks from us, by spreading out here and driving the garrison out of the works, and crowding it into the town. It is therefore also advantageous if one gains the flanks from the enemy as much as possible.
This, then, would be in general the outline of a plan of attack. I must not set it down in too much detail, since otherwise the player’s mind would be confined to too small a sphere of action, as he now has the opportunity, for the capture of the fortress, to find for himself still better means to his purpose than are given here.
Of the defence I will say only this much: that it is best maintained by well-laid and well-timed sorties, by skilful placement of the ordnance against the close attack, and by the use of mines. For the rest, one will already recognise, from the brief description of the attack, the best counter-measures to it, and the closer application and discovery of these must here too, fairly enough, be left to the genius of him who has undertaken the defence of the fortress.
Appendix
containing improvements and additions to several rules, for the further extension of the game.
To the First Division. First and Second Section. Arrangement.
- With regard to the variety of the terrain, one can in the game also assume several hills of 50, 100, 150, 200, and 500 feet in height, and then colour the 50-foot hills grey, the 100-foot ones light brown, the 150-foot ones dark brown, the 200-foot ones violet, and the 500-foot ones black. If one also wishes to mark hedges, this can be done by green stripes drawn along the sides of the squares. These hedges grant the same advantages as occur with a simple abatis; the wood of these hedges, however, cannot be used for anything. Should the lower kinds of hills be so steep that no cavalry can charge up them, one borders them with a dark brown edge, and, if even infantry’s attack is to be impossible, with a black edge. The brown-edged hills can be crossed only by infantry and light cavalry, the black-edged ones only by infantry alone.
If one wishes to draw field-roads from one place to another, one must distinguish them from the high-roads, and not give them the same advantages. They must be mere passages and can in no way speed the march of wagons and cannon, and therefore also give no magazine-communication. Cavalry and infantry, however, move on them just as quickly as on high-roads.
II. With regard to the army, it will be advantageous for carrying out several operations if the artillery-brigades are left out of the game entirely, so that the batteries already have their crews with them. These suffer from the attack of other troops just as strongly, and in the same cases, as is given in the rules concerning the draught-horses. Instead of the artillery-corps one can now strengthen the army with cavalry and infantry. Since one can now unite a battery and another troop-brigade on one square, the defence and the attack from this square will be twofold, since each figure can fight for itself.
To the batteries, wagon- and cavalry-brigades which have lost their draught-horses, a certain arbitrary marker is given, which is also given to those that receive a double team of draught-horses. To indicate the gunners, another marker is needed, which is taken or given in the same way as the marker for the draught-horses. It is to be noted, however, that several artillery-brigades at one battery cannot change or increase its effect.
If one wishes to make such exchanges with the draught-horses or with the gunners, then the two figures which are exchanging move through one another, and during the time both are united on one square, those markers are then given from the one to the other.
From this one sees that the light artillery-batteries differ from the field-batteries only in that they have a double team of draught-horses — all other batteries, and the wagon- and cavalry-brigades, properly have only a single team.
If one makes the bases of the figures round, one lets the batteries be given a marker which indicates their front, and, for the troop-brigades, the front is taken to be wherever the figure’s face points; further, the rule is fixed that, at the end of the move, each figure must determine its front, which afterwards, in combat, may not be changed; one can then, according to the rules to be given, gain the flank and the rear.
III. As regards the provisioning account, the following arrangement serves greatly for ease of use: one calculates the delivery of every settlement, and of the harvest, for every (Note: The following square-count is uncertain in the scan; it is rendered here as “17”.) 17 squares of the border, and for the capital a magazine so strong that one obtains that which can feed the whole army for the entire campaign. Further, for every fortress, 48 rations, which can be used for the main magazines, or for the feeding of any other cut-off corps, for any other purpose. For every large magazine one obtains one bakery-brigade and one magazine flag — this latter figure being nothing other than a wagon-brigade adorned with a small flag. Each bakery can supply the entire army with the necessary bread. All of them together, even when activated at the same time, must never deliver more than the army’s daily subsistence requires. No large magazine may be diminished in any way other than through the army’s daily subsistence. Thus, if the enemy destroys even a small part of it, the whole magazine is destroyed. In every magazine, or other store of rations, from which one wishes to obtain something along the high-roads, a magazine flag must be present. Since the troops always receive their provisions at the end of the move, it is further established that every bakery and every magazine delivers something only for those troops which, at the end of the move, have communication with them by means of a cordon or a high-road. No magazine can supply provisions during a move in which it is either occupied by its own magazine flag, or abandoned. These magazine flags must make the march of the wagon-brigades. They too may, like these, form themselves into a wagon-train, though carrying only loads of provisions. If they make their full march, the largest load is 64 rations; on a half march, however, 128 rations. The wagon-train of a magazine flag is no stronger than that of the other wagon-brigades. If the figure is to be used for its true purpose, it may not form a wagon-train, and must stand on the magazine square with its full team of draught-horses, which is eight times as strong as that of the wagon-brigades. It is destroyed like other wagons. The daily upkeep for each single team of draught-horses requires one ration; if the magazine flag therefore loses eight, it is destroyed. On the first day of every month, the magazines and bakeries together deliver, to replace the two-day reserve for the army, one sixth of the rations which the whole army consumes daily. If one wishes, however, one may also obtain this surplus from a single magazine alone, or partly from several. Since the land, under this arrangement, must supply more, it is assumed that in every village only one ration is held in stock, which can be taken away without harm to the village. In an ordinary village, however, only 1/4 portion, and in a church-village 1/2 portion, of bread is allotted for daily subsistence, and this is lost — together with the population of the place — if, beyond the one ration, anything more is taken from the remaining stock. In a town square there is indeed a whole portion for daily subsistence, but this may not be taken if the town square is to pay, on the following first of September, a contribution worth 24 rations. Nor, in this case, may it be burned. But if a promised contribution is not paid, or if one is entirely enclosed within the town, or the inhabitants close the gates — which may be assumed, and intended, for every walled place — and so do not let our troops in when summoned, then every time such strict treatment will also be excused by the pressure of circumstances. But only a fit infantry- or cavalry-brigade may do this. Contributions may be levied on all other things, but not on the large magazines, unless one is willing to forfeit them for it.
On the 1st of March, the 1st of June, the 1st of September, and the 1st of December, a magazine may be moved a full cavalry-march’s distance along the high-roads to another location, without wagons being needed for this; but during this move one may not draw upon it.
If the enemy takes away so much land that a quarter of a magazine is lost, the enemy receives from this land only 48 rations, namely from the stock of 48 rations; and so, although we do not keep these, we still retain an entire magazine. For every such tract of land the enemy receives 48 rations. If the conquered land does not have quite the proper size, he receives nothing for it. If each side has half of the land belonging to a magazine, each receives 96 rations; if the enemy has 3/4 of it, he receives the whole magazine, and there remain, for the still-remaining quarter, only 48 rations.
All horses, both draught-horses and cavalry mounts, as well as the crews of the batteries, are — if they are not compelled by lack of subsistence to surrender — instead killed by it. The cavalrymen themselves can often still save themselves as infantry, if they have given up or lost their horses. Every figure and battery is free to kill its horses.
If one introduces this arrangement for the provisioning account, one obtains thereby a great simplification, since a special reckoning need be made only for cut-off corps. The magazine flags, however, must also be introduced under the method already described above.
To the Second Division. First Section. Movement of the Figures.
I. With regard to the direction of the roads and the constructed high-roads, one comes closer to their true advantages, and to the marching distance along the diagonal line of the squares, if one introduces the following somewhat more elaborate reckoning.
Since a figure may possess at most only a double team of draught-horses, none can, in a single move, by any means, cover a greater distance than the full cavalry-march amounts to.
As already noted, field-batteries with a single team, and siege-batteries with a double team, or wagons loaded with 9 rations or more, move as far as infantry. Empty or only half-loaded wagons, and field-batteries with a double team, move as far as cavalry.
When one now begins a march with a figure, one always counts the starting square as one, and — for both infantry and cavalry — two for every square which it crosses in a straight line along a high-road; three for a square which it crosses diagonally along a high-road; three for a square which it crosses in a straight line over unconstructed terrain; and four for a square which it crosses diagonally over such terrain.
The march of an infantry-brigade lasts until one has, in this manner, counted to seventeen; that of cavalry, until one has counted to thirty-three. If, however, the end of the march falls on the square to which the actual marching-number one is assigned, this square is granted to the figure as a gift. Everyone will easily find the reason for this.
II. With regard to load, it is useful for speeding up operations to assume that, when a battery is unloaded from a wagon, this costs the figures one square. The same is the case, when a cavalry-brigade is given back its troop-horses, or when it unhitches from a drawn battery and forms up for combat. Both kinds of figure can therefore not fight while they remain coupled together. Loading or hitching up, however, costs no figure any fixed amount of time.
III. In general, it is also established for all figures that changing position within a blockhouse or settlement requires only 1/8 of a move. Further, that no figure occupies more terrain on its square than it can actually stand on. If, therefore, one wishes to block a stream with infantry, or a ravine with cavalry, one must throw a bridge across these features, just as in the case of a marsh, since then the planking of the bridge alone keeps the enemy from passing the marsh, ravine, or stream; and it is moreover now assumed that these features are occupied by the troops on whose square the terrain in question lies. Troops, when they merely stand next to one another, do not thereby enter into any communication; but passage between them, from one square to another, must also be free. If cavalry can reach, without hindrance, a stream flowing on its own square, then that stream is occupied by it. The same applies to infantry with regard to a ravine. Wagons and cannon can only hold up the enemy if they have been drawn together and formed into a wagon-train. Forming a wagon-train, however, costs the wagons 1/8 of a move, and it costs the enemy just as much time if he wishes to pass — and thereby break up — such a wagon-train with a figure; whereas the wagon-train’s breaking itself up, if it does so on its own, requires no time at all.
Since the planking of every bridge hinders the march and the communication of troops, a bridge is therefore only occupied if a figure stands at its entrance or exit. This figure can then also block the bridge. If a bridge or a dam is a whole square long, the figure standing on it can likewise block it. The terrain on both sides of it remains on its own square, but for the enemy, or also for one’s own troops, it is entirely free for passage, though not for true occupation. In the case of a high-road or a path leading through a dense wood, the same applies also to cavalry, wagons, and cannon.
All figures which find themselves on a long bridge or a dam, and — if they have horses — in a dense wood, always have their flanks only toward the openings.
A wounded troop-brigade can indeed block such a defile and the gates of a town — the latter being something only troop-brigades can do; in open country and in villages, however, it holds up the enemy’s march as little as cannon do, unless these are formed into a wagon-train; rather, the enemy cannot indeed settle on such squares so long as the wounded figure stands on them, but can still pass through.
I further note that hills 200 and 250 Fuß high can still be climbed by infantry, but no higher ones can be climbed at all.
Second Section. The Fighting of the Troop-Brigades.
I. Time and Direction. The volley of every figure, as well as its charge, lasts only 1/8 of a move, except when the artillery acts against entrenchments, which requires one or more entire moves. However, the figure that strikes may not, in the move in which it strikes, carry out any further work that would require a stated amount of time. But all work that costs the figure no particular time — for example, changing front, or throwing bridges and ladders — does not hinder it in its attack.
Every fit troop-brigade can indeed strike with its flank, or from its flank, but with all its effort the figure struck is nevertheless only wounded. If, however, a figure is struck in the flank only by the smallest fire or the weakest charge, it is nonetheless dead; if it is struck in the flank or in the rear by a charge that is not weakened, the figure is captured. Any other charge into the rear of the enemy kills it, though the fire here has just as much effect as against the front.
By applying these rules one gains the advantage that, through the striking or marching of some figures, one can still open up the striking or marching of others in the same move, and likewise make use of it. Several figures can therefore strike one another in succession, or strike a single square from several sides. However, the fire of one figure may not hold up the charge of another of the same party, and every enemy resistance must be cleared out of the way. One may also assume that the inhabitants of towns have firearms, and can defend themselves with them from their own squares.
III. No charge can take place over squares on which enemy wounded, wagons, or cannon stand. Figures which, at 250 Fuß and higher, stand level with their opponents can in no way be struck by them; but they themselves, even at this height, can only use the throw of howitzers of a siege-battery against the enemy standing below them.
Third and Fourth Sections. Work of the Figures.
I. With Regard to Distance and Direction. Every battery can entrench itself, and do other work of an infantry-brigade. No figure may entrench itself if it can, without preparation, be struck by charge from an enemy figure standing directly next to it; unless that enemy figure is already covered, on the side facing it, by a fortification of its own. Troops standing next to one another in this way always build their later entrenchments behind those already erected. Moreover, this rule must be extended generally to all those works whose execution costs the figures a fixed amount of time.
Since on any one side of a square only ever one figure, and not two at once, can work and entrench themselves, the union of several figures on one square can therefore never produce more entrenchments on one side than a single figure would build in the time it stands there. On different sides, however, two or more figures, if united on one square, can work at the same time on one side, but only one after another, so that the second figure begins once the first is finished.
All entrenchments can only ever be built so that their inner side faces toward the working figure. Therefore figures standing on neighbouring squares and working on one side must throw up not one, but always two entrenchments, facing each other. Since fighting or striking also costs the figures time, nothing may be worked on the square’s side during the move in which this happens — unless one is making bomb-throws.
II. With Regard to Objects. If one wishes to form a wagon-train, this costs the wagon-brigade 1/8 of a move. The joining together of two pontoon bridges costs the figure that does it 1/8 of a move. No road can lead over a height of 500 Fuß at all. To make a road on or from a 200-Fuß-high hill costs a whole move, on the assumption that building a road on a 150-Fuß-high hill, or across a ravine, should cost half a move. To make a road at a height of 250 Fuß costs one and a half, and on a hill of 300 Fuß, two moves. If a road led over a 500-Fuß, or a 250-Fuß-high hill, this must be regarded as a gorge, in which the troops must therefore stand, as in every other defile, with their flank toward the opening.
Foraging, whether in a village or in a cornfield, costs the foraging figure 1/8 of a move. For counter-mining one must either designate certain infantry corps specially, or, as in siege warfare, introduce miner-markers, which are to be regarded as figures, and carry one move’s worth of provisions with them.
A particular piece of work does not always require a particular move; rather, a troop-brigade can carry out several pieces of work in one move, according to the time each requires.
The loading and unloading of a load can take place at any point of a move.
To build a flying mine, or to charge an already-completed countermine, costs 1/8 of a move.
To destroy any wagon-train, assault- or pontoon-bridge, or any other wooden bridge not a whole square long — or only so large a piece of a longer wooden bridge — a scaling-ladder, or any laid-down load not in a state of defence, costs a figure only 1/8 of a move, whether it does so by artillery fire or by actual work.
To set fire to a wood- or settlement-square costs 1/8 of a move. To extinguish such a square, which must happen in the following move, costs 1/4 of a move.
To make a passage through an entrenchment costs the working figure 1/8 of a move. To destroy a one-square-long wooden bridge, 1/4 of a move.
If the framework of a town wall is turned into a blockhouse, the town can burn down without the wall and its framework suffering from it, and the garrison therefore need not abandon the town. If blockhouses are made within the town itself, these are not set alight by the burning of the houses, but must first still be fired upon by the enemy. Only the strength of the beam-ceilings must be changed, so that a simple beam-ceiling and the roof of village houses can bear only 4 fascines, the roof of town houses and the village church twice that, the wall-framework of a town three times, and the vault of a fortress six times as much. For every further reinforcement with a blockhouse-ceiling, a new palisading and a new layer of beams — that is, rows of palisades — must always be used.
Finally, I further note that, when infantry strikes from or onto a hill bordered with a brown edge, its charge, in the first case, (Note: The following figure is severely distorted in the scan; uncertain reconstruction.) acts fourfold, but in the second case only pushes back; further, that if one draws brown or black stripes along streams, marshes, and ravines, one can thereby indicate the steepness of their banks and slopes; and finally, that making a road across a brown slope costs 1/8 of a move, but across a black one, 1/4 of a move.
The weight of an assault-bridge and a scaling-ladder may, on account of their frequent use, be set as low as 4 rations.
Errata.
(Note: The following list of errata to the original is severely distorted in the scan; some page and line references, as well as individual words, are uncertain reconstructions. The corrections themselves concern wording of the original German text and are therefore given here in German, with an English gloss of the instruction.)
Page 9, line 7: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 9, line 9: for „ihren” read „ihrem”.
Page 9, line 10: the comma after „ab” is to be deleted.
Page 10, line 5: for „einen” read „einem”.
Page 13, line 8: for „nach der” read „vor der”.
Page 16, line 4 from bottom: for „dieselben” read „dieselbe”.
Page 18, line 15: for „Chors” read „Chocs”.
Page 18, line 17: for „letztern” read „letztere”.
Page 18, line 18: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 19, line 16: for „Truppen” read „Truppen-Brigaden”.
Page 19, line 4 from bottom: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 20, line 2: for „11th” read „1st” (plate).
Page 22, line 13: for „fann” read „können”.
Page 24, line 4 from bottom: for „deo” read „dem”.
Page 26, line 4: for „derselbe” read „derselben”.
Page 27, line 5 from bottom: for „jeden” read „jedem”.
Page 29, line 7: for „fanne” read „können”.
Page 32, line 19: for „eintauchen” read „eintauschen”.
Page 38, line 5: for „ihrem” read „ihren”.
Page 39, line 2 from bottom: for „welchen” read „welchem”.
Page 40, line 9: for „einer” read „eine”.
Page 42, line 7 from bottom: for „ware” read „waren”.
Page 42, line 5 from bottom: for „einens” read „einem”.
Page 43, line 1: for „zu lassea” read „zulassen”.
Page 47, line 1: for „Profision” read „Provision”.
Page 50, line 14: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 52, line 7 from bottom: for „zu” read „zum”.
Page 54, line 4 from bottom: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 55, line 11: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 56, line 1 from bottom: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 59, line 4 from bottom: for „ihren” read „ihrem”.
Page 60, line 8 from bottom: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 62, line 3 from bottom: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 63, line 14: for „andere” read „anderem”.
Page 63, line 4 from bottom: for „welchen” read „welchem”.
Page 84, line 5 from bottom: for „daß in einer Stadt von zwey Truppen-Brigaden” read „daß in einer Stadt von zwey Feldern” (i.e. “that in a town of two troop-brigades” should read “that in a town of two squares”).
Page 87, line 1 from bottom: for „Kanonenfeuer nicht gegen die” read „Kanonenfeuer gegen die” (i.e. delete “not”).
Page 93, line 13: for „welchen” read „welchem”.
Page 93, line 1 from bottom: for „drucken” read „drücken”.
Page 95, line 11: for „Streifen” read „Streife”.
Page 96, line 3 from bottom: for „jedem” read „jeden”.
Page 98, line 9: for „wenn” read „wo”.
Page 104, line 6: for „einen” read „einem”.
Page 104, line 8: for „stehenden” read „stehende”.
Page 104, line 13: for „diesen” read „diesem”.
Page 105, line 16: for „Schleuße” read „Schleuse”.
Page 108, lines 2 and 3: for „vollkommenen” read „vorkommenden”.
Page 109, line 1: for „wirft” read „wirkt”.
Page 112, line 2: for „dessem” read „dessen”.
Page 114, line 2: for „den” read „dem”.
Page 121, line 4: for „für das gerade” read „vor dem geraden”.
Page 125, line 2: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 125, line 6: for „derselben” read „demselben”.
Page 126, line 1: (Note: this entry is too badly damaged in the scan to be reconstructed.) […]
Page 126, line 8: for „langer” read „einer langen”.
Page 126, line 14: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 129, line 16: for „auf die Linien” read „auf den Linien”.
Page 131, line 3: for „vorgestellten” read „vorgestreckten”.
Page 131, line 10: for „Garnison” read „Garnisons”.
(Note: The following continuation of the errata list is severely damaged in the scan; several page and line references, as well as individual words, are uncertain reconstructions. As above, the corrections concern wording of the original German text and are therefore given here in German, with the instruction in English.)
Page 132, line 7 from bottom: for „daher gleich” read „daher ist gleich”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 134, line 5: for „Wägen” read „Wege”.
Page 139, line 10: for „Garnison” read „Garnisons”.
Page 140, line 3 from bottom: for „welchem” read „diesem”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 140, line 2 from bottom: for „diesem” read „diesen”.
Page 142, line 9 from bottom: for „für den” read „vor dem”.
Page 146, lines 10 and 11: for „mit auszuführen” read „mit ihr auszuführen”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 181, line 7: for „Ravalins” read „Ravelins”.
Page 184, line 3 from bottom: […] (Note: this entry is too badly damaged in the scan to be reconstructed.)
Page 185, line 4: for „bewirkt” read „verfertigt”.
Page 185, line 11: for „denselben” read „demselben”.
Page 186, line 10: for „Falle” read „Fällen”.
Page 188, line 1 from bottom: for „denselben” read „desselben”.
Page 189, line 8 from bottom: for „können” read „kann”.
Page 193, line 6: for „Kartel” read „Karte”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 195, line 8 from bottom: for „denselben” read „demselben”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 195, line 5 from bottom: for „hält” read „halten”.
Page 201, line 8: for „für Anfälle” read „vor Anfällen”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 202, line 14: for […] read „vorwärts wirken”. (Note: uncertain reconstruction.)
Page 203, line 5: for „Brigaden” read „Brigade”.
Page 215, line 6: for „jeden” read „jedem”.
Page 216, line 7: […] (Note: this entry is too badly damaged in the scan to be reconstructed.)
(End of this edition. This continuous-reading text corresponds to [Scan-S. 1] through [Scan-S. 261] of Venturini1797_EN.md. The library ownership stamp and the unlabelled illustration plates on [Scan-S. 262]–[Scan-S. 272] contain no running text and have been omitted here as decorative/non-textual pages.)