Bohemian Revolt-Army Lists

Background

On the 8 November, the rebel army was defeated just outside of Prague at the Battle of White Mountain by Imperial and Catholic League forces. The conquest of Bohemia and suppression of the rebellion followed. Rebel leaders were executed, their land confiscated and Catholicism was forcibly restored. Frederick of the Palatinate was overthrown and the crown of Bohemia was restored to the new emperor, Ferdinand II of Styria.

In 1618 the province of Bohemia rebelled against Austrian rule. The Emperor Matthias, head of the Austrian Habsburgs had tried to remove the Protestant faith from Bohemia. He sought to advance imperial control by pressuring the Bohemian estates to elect Ferdinand of Styria, a prominent Catholic, as king of Bohemia. The rebels countered this move and brought in their own government, offering the crown of Bohemia to the Calvinist Elector Frederick of the Palatinate instead. Responding to urgent calls for outside assistance the Duke of Savoy rallied to the rebel cause and sent mercenary forces under Ernst von Mansfeld and Bethlen Gabor to come to the aide of the rebellion.

Army Lists

This supplement contains a number of army lists that players can use with the Father Tilly rules. Also included are details of generals that fought in the campaign as well as a number of new War Tokens that can be added to the players deck.

The next two years saw things turn very much in favour of the Empire. Spain came to the aide of the Emperor sending an army to invade the Palatinate in 1620 which captured much of Frederick’s German lands and threatened the rebellion in Bohemia. Later that year, several of the Empires key Lutheran states won guarantees for their own security in the Treaty of Ulm when they declared their loyalty to the Emperor. From that point on, the rebellion was doomed to failure.

There is also a scenario based around one part of the Battle of White Mountain. Not a particularly balanced game, but it will give players a good start with the rules, and it will also give highlight the strength of Tercio’s and the relative weakness of the rebel forces.



Army:

Commander:

The Catholic League Tilly

Unit Type

Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Bavarian Infantry

Tercio

Regular

2

24 - 40

P/s

German Infantry

Tercio

Regular

2

24 - 32

P/s

Austrian Infantry

Tercio

Regular

1

40

P/s

German Cuirassier

Caracole

Regular

2

8

S

German Horse

Caracole

Regular

3

8

S

Cossack Horse

Skirmish

Regular

1

8

S

Demi-Culverin

Artillery

Regular

2

-

S

Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Walloon Infantry

Tercio

Veteran

3

24 - 60

p/S

German Infantry

Tercio

Regular

1

36

p/S

Neopolitan Infantry

Tercio

Regular

1

48

p/S

Walloon Cuirassier

Caracole

Regular

2

8

S

Walloon Arquebusier

Caracole

Regular

2

8

S

German Arquebusier

Caracole

Regular

4

8

S

Cossack Horse

Skirmish

Regular

1

8

S

Demi-Culverin

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

Army:

Commander:

Imperial Bucquoy

Unit Type

Both of the Catholic armies relied on deep and sturdy Tercio formations, the Catholic League infantry tending to have more pike than shot, the Imperial infantry having more shot than pike. Much of the infantry were veterans of the Spanish army that served in Flanders but there were also many newly raised units - but these often included a decent cadre of experienced men.

Army List Terminology

The descriptions of unit formation types such as Tercio and Caracole can all be found in the Father Tilly rules along with the descriptions and factors relevant to the unit grade. The “number” column heading shows the number of units of that type that is permitted in the army. The “strength” column heading details the number of figures that the unit is allowed to contain. If this column contains a range of numbers, for instance eight to ten, the unit can vary in size from eight to ten figures. The final column describes the weapons that the unit can deploy. In the case of infantry, the column shows the pike to shot ration of the unit. Shot detachments will be labelled “S” meaning that they are all shot units, “p/S” are units with more shot than pike, “P/S” are units with equal number of pike and shot figures and “P/s” have more pike than shot. All cavalry are designated “S”.



Army:

Commander: Generals:

Bohemian Rebel

Anhalt Thurn, Hohenloe, Schlick Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Dutch Infantry

Unit Type

Regiment

Veteran

1

8

S

Bohemian Infantry

Regiment

Regular

2

16 -28

p/S

Bohemian Infantry

Regiment

Conscript

2

16 - 20

p/S

Bohemian Infantry

Regiment

Militia

3

16 - 20

p/S

German Infantry

Regiment

Regular

2

12 - 20

p/S

Royal Cuirassier

Trotter

Veteran

1

10

S

German Cuirassier

Trotter

Regular

1

8

S

Moravian Horse

Trotter

Conscript

1

8

S

Dutch Arquebusier

Trotter

Regular

1

10

S

Moravian Arquebusier

Trotter

Regular

2

10

S

Hussar

Skirmish

Militia

12

8

S

Demi-Cannon

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

Demi-Culverin

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

Falcon

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

As the rebellion spread to new provinces, the rebel armys ranks were swelled by units from Silesia, Moravia and Austria. Much needed strength was also supplied by experienced Dutch and German troops, as well as Mansfelds mercenaries and a host of Transylvanian Hussars. Along with these foreign troops came the fighting techniques employed by most Dutch and German troops - smaller units with an emphasis on manoeuvrability and firepower.

Army:

Commander:

Mansfeld Mansfeld

Unit Type

Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Swiss Infantry

Regiment

Veteran

1

40

p/S

English Infantry

Regiment

Regular

1

40

p/S

Scottish Infantry

Regiment

Regular

1

32

p/S

German Infantry

Regiment

Regular

2

12 - 40

p/S

Lifeguard Horse

Trotter

Veteran

1

20

S

German Horse

Trotter

Regular

2

8 - 10

S

Demi-Culverin

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

Falcon

Artillery

Regular

1

-

S

At the start of the war Mansfeld was only a junior officer when the Duke of Savoy placed him in command of 3000 Swiss infantry and ordered him into Bohemia. With the country in chaos and rival groups of Protestants and Catholics dividing up the area, Mansfeld had an early success capturing the town of Pilsen. This helped to secure his reputation and drew in additional Dutch and German troops to his army. However, following later defeats whilst aiding the rebels, Mansfeld bgan to distance himself from his superiors, preferring to operate independently - his army funded by looting and pillaging.



Army:

Commander:

Hussar

Bethlen Gabor

Unit Type

Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Hussar (armoured)

Skirmish

Regular

4

8

S

Hussar

Skirmish

Regular

8

8

S

Well used to disrupting Habsburg territories in Hungary, Bethlen Gabor provided large numbers of his cavalry to the Bohemian army at White Mountain where they served with little enthusiasm in this formal battle. Away from the main battlefield, the Hussars perform much better in their more familar role as raiders and skirmishers.

Generic Units Unit Type

Formation

Grade

Number

Strength

Weapon

Militia Infantry

Regiment

Militia

Any

8 - 12

P/s

Peasant Levy

Irregular

Militia

Any

8 - 12

Impro

Unemployed Mercenaries

Irregular

Regular

Any

8 - 16

p/S

The table above provides a list of generic units, such as mobs of vengeful peasants or rampaging unemployed mercenaries, that can be used to add a bit of extra “colour” to a scenario. The factors shown above are just guidelines and players can modify to suit the situation. For example, the mercanaries could be classed as better or worse than the grade shown above depending on how long they have been out of work. Players can also stray from the recommended weapons list. Militia infantry could be interspersed with figures weilding farm implements (improvised weapons) and peasant levy units could have the occasional musket armed figure.

Generals Name

Army

Personality

Tactics

Strategy

Command

Catholic League

-

Good

Good

Average

Imperial

-

Average

Poor

Average

Christian I of Anhalt-Bernstein

Bohemian

-

Poor

Average

Poor

Count Henrich Mathias Thurn

Bohemian

Rash

Average

Average

Poor

Count George Frederick of Hohenlohe

Bohemian

Cautious

Poor

Poor

Poor

Count Heinrich von Schlick

Bohemian

-

Poor

Average

Average

Bethlen Gabor Prince of Transylvania

Bohemian

-

Average

Poor

Average

Ernst von Mansfeld

Mansfeld

-

Good

Poor

Average

Count Jean T’Serclaus Baron of Tilly Count of Bucquoy

The table above describes the skills and attributes of the leading generals that took part in this campaign. The rules that apply to these factors can be found in the main Father Tilly rule-set.



New Tokens

Dead Shot, Ferocity, Stalwart, Counter-Attack,Pay Day, Ambush, Find a Path, Scouting or Reinforce token. Once played - the card is discarded in the usual way.

Included in this supplement are a number of new War Tokens. These differ from the usual in that they only feature a generals name or the name of an army. These new tokens can be added to the players existing deck if they are present at the battle. For example, if Mansfelds army is to face Bucquoy’s, both of their tokens will be added to the deck along with Mansfelds army token and the Imperial army token.

Detrimental Effect

When a player plays one of the opposing sides tokens, i.e. the Imperial player plays Mansfelds army token, the token can be used as if it were one of the following - Looters, Powder Explosion (etc), Difficult Ground, Question Orders, Mutiny, Unrest, Generals Quarrel, Generals Drunk, Target General, Leader Killed, Low Ammo, Spy, Traitor or Curse.

These new tokens will have different effects depending on who uses them. If for example, the Imperial player picks up either the Bucquoy token or the Imperial army token, these can be used in a variety of beneficial ways. However, if the opposing player uses one of these tokens, they will have a detrimental effect on the Imperial army.

These tokens can be played on units or generals that have already received a token that turn. Unlike most War Tokens, these do not have the usual subheadings of Deploy, Leader, Initiative etc. They can be used in this way but only count as factor one i.e. one extra point of Initiative or one Deployment Point.

Beneficial Effect

When a player uses one of their own tokens (i.e. their own general or army token) they can play it as if it were a Resolve token or Bravery, Indomitable, Rally, Sharpshooter,



The Imperial Army

Mountain. The unit name, formation type, grade, strength (number of figures in the unit) and weapons are shown.

The order of battle shown below is just the first wave of the Imperial attack on the southern slopes of White Mountain. The unit name, formation type, grade, strength (number of figures in the unit) and weapons are shown.

General: Thurn Thurn 1st Bn, Infantry Regiment, Conscript, 26, p/S. Thurn 2nd Bn, Infantry Regiment, Conscript, 16, p/S. Kaplir 1st Bn, Infanty Regiment, Conscript, 16, p/S. Kaplir 2nd Bn, Infantry Regiment, Conscript, 16, p/S. Kaplir 3rd Bn, Infantry Regiment, Conscript, 16, p/S. Detached Shot, Regular, 12, S. Bubna, Trotter (Arquebus), Regular, 10, S. Royal Cuirassier, Trotter, Veteran, 10, S. Hohenlohe, Trotter (Arquebus), Regular, 10, S. Kien, Trotter, Regular, 6, S. Borseda, Trotter, Regular, 6, S. Artillery: One Demi-Culverin.

General: Bucquoy Verdugo, Tercio, Veteran, 60, p/S. Breuner-Tiefenbach, Tercio, Regular, 34, p/S. Spinelli, Tercio, Regular, 50, p/S. Cossacks, Skirmish, Regular, 8, S. Gauchier, Caracole (Arquebus), Regular, 10, S. La Croix, Caracole (Arquebus), Regular, 6, S. Areyzaga, Caracole (Arquebus), Regualar, 4, S. Artillery: One Demi-Culverin.

The Terrain

The Rebel Army

The map below represents a six by four foot table with the rebels occupying the higher ground. At the centre of their

The following order of battle represents the left flank of the rebel forces commanding the southern slopes of White



position are two small earthworks with a larger fortification to the left. These provide cover for any artillery or detached shot that occupy them (but not hard cover as the defences were not completed). Other than this, the terrain is relatively open and free from obstacles.

off their muskets with great enthusiasm, but little effect. With the prospect of failure looming for the Imperials, Bucquoy personally led his cavalry in a counter-attack which drove back the rebels to the ridge line. Elsewhere the Catholic infantry pressed forward, over running the earthworks and pushing the rebels out of their defences. As more and more of the defenders began to fall back, those units in the second line began to waver and many crumbled without firing a shot.

Deployment

The Imperial force represents only the first wave of Bucquoy’s attack. The three Tercio’s were central, two in the front and one to the rear, with supporting cavalry between the infantry and on either flank (and the skirmishers on the extreme right).

A little over an hour after the battle had began, the rebel army was crushed. In places pockets of resistance stubbornly held out, but these were inevitably overwhelmed. The Protestant army had been destroyed and along with it the hopes of the rebellion. Popular support began to ebb away, the Transylvanians returned to Hungary, some rebel units even went over to the other side, many laid down their arms.

The rebel forces were deployed in two lines with the cavalry placed in between each infantry battalion. Ahead of the main force were the detached shot companies and the artillery in the earthworks.

The Battle

The battle began with a short bombardment of the rebel positions at midday before the general advance was ordered. Thurn was not content to simply sit and wait for the Catholic forces and ordered his cavalry forward to engage the enemy. This encounter stalled the attack, drove back some of the Imperial cavalry and caused disorder in one of the approaching tercio’s. Encouraged by this early success, the rebel infantry began to advance before firing

This battle, like many others in the early stages of the Thirty Years War, are very difficult for the Protestant armies to win, faced as they were with the quality of the opposition and the weaknesses in their own forces. However, this is a good introduction to the Father Tilly rules and will make the later victories of the Swedes taste all the more sweet.



Father Tilly

Count of Bucquoy

Imperial Army

Catholic League Army

Christian I of Anhalt-Bernstein

Count Henrich Mathias Thurn

Count George Frederick of Hohenlohe

Count Heinrich von Schlick

Bethlen Gabor Prince of Transylvania

Ernst von Mansfeld

Bohemian Rebel Army

Hussar Army

Mansfelds Army