Glasgow & District Wargaming Society
|
Glasgow & District Wargaming Society |
|
|
Peterwardein 1716 Introduction This is third in a series of GDWS display games at this year’s Scottish wargame shows on the theme of Prince Eugene in the Balkans. Better known in the UK as Marlborough’s partner in the War of the Spanish Succession; in Eastern Europe it is his campaigns against the Ottomans that mark him out as the foremost commander of the age. At Glasgow Wappinshaw we presented his first great victory at Zenta in 1697. We followed this up at Falkirk Cannonade with Belgrade 1717 and we finish here at Claymore with Peterwardein 1716 on the 290th anniversary of the battle.
Background At the conclusion of the War of Spanish Succession (WSS) the Austrian Emperor Joseph 1 planned a campaign in the Balkans to follow up on the successes (Zenta 1697) before French expansion in the west dominated Imperial attention. However, it was the Ottoman’s who made the first move following a successful campaign against Russia in 1711. They declared war against Venice and had recovered the Morea by September 1715. The Austrian’s were still recovering from the WSS and sought to mediate without success. In April 1716 the Emperor signed an alliance with Venice and massed some 51,000 troops in Hungary. The Ottoman’s took the initiative crossing the Sava River near Belgrade they advanced on the fortress town of Peterwardein.
Battle of Peterwardein – 5 August 1716 Eugene arrived at Peterwardein on 9 July with a force of around 60,000 men, including 20,000 cavalry, to face the advancing Ottoman army of over 100,000 commanded by the Grand Vizier, Damad Ali Pasha. Damad had successfully ejected the Venetians from the Morea and had a reputation as a competent commander. By early August the Ottomans had reached Peterwardein following a cavalry clash with Count Palffy and constructed a hasty defensive position. Rather than allow the Ottomans to wear themselves out on Peterwardein’s modern defences he decided to take the offensive on 5 August. He feared the demoralising effect on his troops of a long period of inactivity and the cavalry skirmish confirmed his view of the technical superiority of his army. Eugene deployed his army with one flank on the Danube and the other on the fortifications utilising old entrenchments thrown up in 1695. His infantry centre was commanded by Starhemberg supported by a second line under Bevern and a reserve under Loffelholz. On the more open left flank were six infantry battalions commanded by Prince Alexander of Wurtemberg and the cavalry led by Palffy. The smaller right flank consisted of four regiments commanded by Ebergenyi in boggy ground unsuitable for cavalry. A fierce storm damaged the Danube bridges and this delayed the Imperial deployment allowing the Ottomans time to react. The Ottoman cavalry deployed opposite the Austrian cavalry with the janissaries in the centre. The remaining troops skirmished through the morass on the Ottoman left. Wurtemburg began the battle by advancing the left wing infantry and capturing the Ottoman gun positions. Palffy’s cavalry then charged the Ottoman horse driving them from the field. However, the centre made slower progress held up by small defensive positions. The Janissaries then counter attacked and pushed Starhemberg back to his start line that, even supported by Bevern’s second line, was barely holding. Eugene then ordered Wurtemburg to wheel right and take the exposed Ottoman centre in the flank while he sent the reserve under Loffelholz to secure the centre. The Ottoman cavalry pushed back by Palffy were unable to support this flank. The Janissaries lost hope and even a desperate charge by Damad Ali Pasha, in which he was killed, failed to rally his troops. The Austrians lost over 3000 men and the Ottomans more than double that including the Grand Vizier. The Ottoman camp with its rich booty and 172 cannon was captured. Eugene pressed on quickly to besiege Temesvar an essential stage towards the ultimate goal of capturing Belgrade. The Armies Whilst Eugene’s command achievements were considerable the superiority of the army he led owed more to the work of Raymond Montecuccoli. He improved mobility with smaller battalions and increased firepower by reducing the proportion of pikes. This work was continued after his death with the introduction of flintlocks with plug, ring and socket bayonet before most other western armies including the French. The Imperial forces in the Balkans also relied more heavily on light field artillery and up to a third of the army was cavalry. Dragoons (including Eugene’s early command) providing firepower (often on foot) with cuirassiers for shock action. The hussars who were mainly Croats as Hungary was in revolt for most of this period were used for raiding and scouting. A vital counter to the Ottoman Tartar horsemen. The Ottoman armies of this period were not radically different tactically from the highpoint of Ottoman expansion. Light troops sought to goad the Imperial troops from their defensive position onto the Janissaries and the heavy artillery. However, the quality of the army had declined. The Janissaries were no longer the disciplined force of the previous century and economic pressures had undermined the Timar system and with it the Sipahis. The provincial Seratculi infantry were excellent skirmishers well suited for the endemic border warfare, but of limited value on the battlefield. The main problem was simply that the army had not adopted the advances in fire discipline which gave the Imperial army its vital cutting edge. The Wargame This refight of Peterwardein utilises 28mm figures from a variety of manufacturers including Old Glory, Dixon, Wargames Foundry and Redoubt. The scenic items include The Last Valley, Village Green and KimKayes. The rules are an adaptation of Warhammer ECW that we call Warhammer Malburian. These rules are featured in this month’s (August 2006) edition of Wargames Illustrated and army lists will follow. Further Reading M. Hochedlinger Austria’s Wars of Emergence 1683-1797 Longman D. McKay Prince Eugene of Savoy Thames & Hudson N. Henderson Prince Eugen of Savoy Wiedenfeld G.B.Malleson Prince Eugene of Savoy Pallas Armata David Chandler Art of War in the Age of Marlborough Spellmount Charles Grant From Pike to Shot 1685 to 1720 WRG For a web tour of the Peterwardein Fortress http://www.peterwardein.com and finally thanks to the 2006 display team......
Andy, Liam, Bill, Ian and Dave. |
|
Send mail to
balkandave@googlemail.com with questions or comments about this web site.
|
