Battle of Minsk, Spring 1707

Right out of the box the main Swedish force, under Charles XII’s direct command marched against Minsk. Peter I with the main Russian army immediately sallied out of Minsk to confront the Swedes. In the march up the Swedes detached two brigades of cavalry to move around Minsk and cut the road from Moscow to Minsk.

During their portion of the Spring 1707 1st impulse the Russians attacked the Swedes. For tactical battles we’re using the Carnage and Glory Great Northern War tactical system. Due to the size of the game the infantry units were scaled back to 400 men and cavalry regiments to 600. As the defensive player the Swedes were able to select the tabletop map and deployment area. Since the Swedes also had a pioneer unit they were able to construct defensive works. Total Russian forces included 19,200 infantry, 13,200 cavalry and 8 cannon. Swedish forces totaled 10,000 infantry, 9,000 cavalry and 14 cannon.

The Swedish forces were all rated A or B class infantry and cavalry. Russian forces were much more diverse. Of their eight infantry brigades, two were composed of A rated troops, one C rated, three with a mix of C and D rated and two brigades with D and E rated infantry. Of their 11 cavalry brigades, two included A and B rated units, three with C rated and the remainder a combination of D and E rated units.

Despite being outnumbered on the battlefield the Swedish commander detached three of his six brigades of cavalry on a flank march intended to arrive on the Russian left flank.

With numerical superiority but decidedly lacking in overall quality Peter decided on a risky strategy. He deployed his poorly trained brigades in his first line, supported by the higher quality troops. His strategy was to use the poorer quality troops to absorb the initial contact with the Swedes, and allow the better troops to punch through the weakened Swedish lines. The Russian strategy would only work if they can close quickly enough to avoid a general loss of army morale before they break the Swedish line.

The Swedes were confident that their superior quality would more than make up for their limited numbers and allow them to break the Russian attack, even if their flanking cavalry failed to appear.

The battle began at 11:00 am with a general advance by the Russians. Russian strength, including their cavalry was focused on both flanks with a thinner infantry screen in the center. The two Russian batteries also were deployed in the center. At the beginning of turn 3 the Russian cavalry on either flank moved quickly to the attack, launching several charges, which were met with Swedish cavalry counter charges. The superior Swedish cavalry overwhelmed the Russians, shattering the four dragoon/cossack regiments, capturing one Russian brigade commander and two standards.

The Russian cavalry on the right flank pushed towards the Swedes, constrained by lack of room to maneuver. The Swedes responded by extending their infantry lines and sending a strong cavalry force out to challenge the Russian advance.

The Russian cavalry on the left, having had its forward elements routed during their initial advance continued to skirmish with the Swedes. The Swedish lifeguard cavalry, having thrown back the Russian front line was assailed by fresh Russian cavalry and driven back.

At 12:30 (turn 6) the Russians launched a major infantry assault on the Swedish right/center. This wing was anchored in the center at the redoubt, followed  a section of light woods towards the right flank, which was guarded by Swedish cavalry.

6 battalions of Russian infantry threw themselves against the Swedish line, composed of infantry supported by a couple of battalion guns. A firestorm of musket and cannon fire greeted the Russians, stopping their advance at 50 paces.  The Russian infantry was rallied and at 12:45 pm (turn 7) advanced to the charge yet again, only to have their charges stopped, with devestating casualties. Among the dead and wounded were several regimental commanders, further erroding the Russian morale and impacting their command structure.  At the end of the turn the Russian infantry assualt faltered and several Russian infantry battalions either routed or retired exposing a gap in the Russian center/left.

On the far left of the Russian infantry assault their cavalry enjoyed a minor success against tired Swedish cavalry. On the Russian right their frontline cavalry was defeated by the Swedes and driven back through supporting units. At the same time Swedish commanders were informed that their flanking cavalry was moving towards the Russian left flank and would appear at 1pm (turn 8).

The Russian CiC was told Cossack scouts had deteched Swedish cavalry marching against their left. With the arrival of the Swedish cavalry and the defeat of their infantry attack set the stage for a general Russian withdrawal. The Russian challenge changed quickly from attack to covering their withdrawal.

Six regiments of Swedish cavalry entered the table on the Russian left flank and immediately engaged Russian cavalry.  At the same time the Carnage and Glory system determined that Russian army morale was failing and applied a general morale loss to all Russian units. In the center and on the Russian right the commanders ordered an immediate retirement. At the same time the Swedes attempted to transition from defense to offense. The Swedish CiC issued attack orders to his infantry brigades with mixed success. Several of the orders failed to either reach their destination or to be enacted, including one to a brigadier that was entertaining of lady of dubious reputation. The Russian center and right slowly disengaged while the Russian left successfully countered Swedish cavalry attacks by sacrificing several grenadier regiment.

On turn 11, 1:45, the Russians had successfully withdrawn, leaving the field to the Swedes. The battle was declared a major Swedish victory. Total Russian losses after missing and wounded were returned were 4,320, which included 1,622 men taken prisoner. They also lost 4 guns, 11 standards and 4 generals. Swedish losses were 716 men and 1 standard.