Another Version of Morat 1476
Posted: Thu Nov 28, 2013 5:45 pm
While appreciating fogman's effort, I thought I would try an alternative approach to representing this most intriguing battle, the decisive battle of the SWars between the Swiss Confederacy and the Burgundians of Charles the Bold.
Designer's notes -
After the defeat at Grandson, the Burgundians returned and laid siege to the lakeside town of Morat (represented by the fields in the upper left), to draw the Swiss out.
Charles expected the Swiss to advance down the clear terrain between the lake and the large wooded hill (the Bois de Domigne). He had set up a palisade with ditches (the Grunhag) on high ground flanking that approach, which he manned with longbows. The Swiss, however, did not wish to simply drive him off again, they intended to encircle him and destroy his army, so they advanced through the circuitous and difficult route over the Bois. In addition, half way through the hill, they halted to say some prayers, hand out some awards and stand around in the rain for three hours.
Assuming there would be no attack that day, Charles went back to his camp and stood down his army. As the Swiss surprise attack struck Charles sent in his army piecemeal and almost his entire force was destroyed. The longbows were reported to be largely ineffective due to the rain.
The Burgundian player has some challenging decisions to make here- whether to attempt to pin up some of the emerging Swiss, or to try and set up a defensive line using the central hill and the palisade, made more complex by the disarray of his forces.
Sources-
Kirk, History of Chares the Bold , Duke of Burgundy (source of the map)
Oman The Art of War in the Middle Ages
McMillen, article in The Courier 1982
Designer's notes -
After the defeat at Grandson, the Burgundians returned and laid siege to the lakeside town of Morat (represented by the fields in the upper left), to draw the Swiss out.
Charles expected the Swiss to advance down the clear terrain between the lake and the large wooded hill (the Bois de Domigne). He had set up a palisade with ditches (the Grunhag) on high ground flanking that approach, which he manned with longbows. The Swiss, however, did not wish to simply drive him off again, they intended to encircle him and destroy his army, so they advanced through the circuitous and difficult route over the Bois. In addition, half way through the hill, they halted to say some prayers, hand out some awards and stand around in the rain for three hours.
Assuming there would be no attack that day, Charles went back to his camp and stood down his army. As the Swiss surprise attack struck Charles sent in his army piecemeal and almost his entire force was destroyed. The longbows were reported to be largely ineffective due to the rain.
The Burgundian player has some challenging decisions to make here- whether to attempt to pin up some of the emerging Swiss, or to try and set up a defensive line using the central hill and the palisade, made more complex by the disarray of his forces.
Sources-
Kirk, History of Chares the Bold , Duke of Burgundy (source of the map)
Oman The Art of War in the Middle Ages
McMillen, article in The Courier 1982