Waterloo 1815-2015

I have been Wargaming for 45 years,so by definition I must have fought Waterloo(or sections of it) 45 times! so when we were invited to take part in a re-fight of the battle,by Charlie Wesencraft's club,I had a feeling of "here we go again"-but wargames are not only about the battles,but about the players involved,and Charlie's club is full of characters that make any game worth playing.A mention must be made at this time of Glen,and his young son,Wills,whose hospitality was great,we were made to feel welcome a soon as we walked into his factory unit,where the game was taking place-fantastic!!
The battle itself involved 12 players,and is so well known that it really needs no narrative,so I'll let the camera do the talking,with just a few words under each photo-by the way,the French came on in the same old way,and were sent packing in the same old way!!!!

Getting set up!-Mike had typed out all of the units and placed them in their historical positions,this must have taken him a while,but was worth it,to save time etc-well done Mike.

Ah,the dice!!-there just might be enough of them!!

Napoleon,Charlie claims that because of his age,he was at the actual battle,but we don't believe him!He had Mike,Brian,Mel,Phil and Dave under his command.
Whilst the Allies were commanded by Paul Kirby,who had myself,Glen and Wills,plus Bruce,Ron and John(Wesencraft) under his command.

Let battle commence!! As in the real battle,Hougomont and La Haye Sainte sucked in far too many French troops,but what the heck,it's Xmas!!!!

Ron,at the end of the table,looks relaxed,but in the excitement of the opening moves,decided to fire a gun battery on his own troops!!luckily he was talked out of it-these games are all about the players-great fun!!

Myself,Glen and Wills were on the Allied left flank,facing Brian and Mike,who are putting in a determined attack-Brian was detailed to guard the far right of his position,against any possible Prussian advance-and a sterling job he did too!!

Whilst "Napoleon" sips on his coffee,Mel is attacking La Haye,superbly defended by Paul,who gave the attackers a "bloody nose" for their efforts.

Ron is still looking relaxed,as the French are getting too close for comfort-the British second line had been placed too close to the front line,and a "push back" broke through them!!-Will the French win???

The Allied left is under pressure,as Mike explains the firing sequence to young Wills and Brian.

It's half time,and to much beer boozing and mince pie munching,Sue appeared(Paul's wife) looking like a rose among the many thorns!!

Paul has launched the British cavalry!!-this was rather spectacular,and successful!!-in the centre and right of the Allied line,the French are being held,and on our left,a lucky combination of dice throws saw me "killing" the French commander(Mike) and driving them back down the slope.-is this victory??

Judging by the look on Brian's face,it is!!!

As the Guard appear on the board(led by Napoleon himself-ie Charlie) it is all over,and the Allies have won!!
This was a good day out,and Charlie and I agreed that we need to organise,with more clubs in the region,more inter-club games like this-watch this space!!
A big thank you to everyone in Charlie's club.