Friday 27 March 2009

1740 - Forces in Motion (3rd Belgravian Wars) ...

further extracts from the History of Wittenberg by Brother James of Alt-Wittendorf ...

A brief reprise - the Monrovian army and their allies had been holding the Ottenheim valley for some time; the fieldworks at the Vortvod gap to the north held the Wittenberg army at bay.
However a major effort by Wittenberg engineers had cleared the landslip blocking the only other passage through the hills at Hausdorf and the army had started moving through to outflank the Vortvod gap position; heir attempt to take Verlendt had failed, losing the town to the Monrovians.
---oXo---

The Monvrovians ...

After his success in capturing Verlendt, Count Stricknein considered his options. His position at the VortVod gap had been outflanked by the enemy movement through the Hausdorf pass; making his position untenable. Besides which he was short of cavalry despite his requests for more re-inforcements. It was time to withdraw.

He sent orders to Count Pottsendorf to withdraw his troops and march south to Vanderhof to secure the river crossing back into the northern part of Saxe-Jarlsberg from where he could return to Monrovia. The main body of his army was ordered to concentrate north of Oberstein to block any move by the Wittenberg army to reach the river crossing at Vanderhof.

Count Pottensdorf commanding the Saxe-Jarslberg and allied contingent withdrew from the Vortvod gap fieldworks overnight, having first sent some troops ahead to plunder Ottenheim, from there they moved south to Vanderhof. The Munkasse Fusiliers and Monrovian Hussars escort the 'plunder' back to Vanderhof, some brigands watch its progress warily from the edge of a wood.
---oXo---

The Wittenbergers ....

The Wittenland army corps was slow to respond to the abandonment of the Vortvod gap fieldworks, as soon as they realised what had happened they moved forward, however heavy rain had left the area very muddy and it was hard going - gaps in the fieldworks had to made. The Leib Dragoons had moved on into Vortvod only to be pushed out again by a rearguard of Saxe-Jarlsberg dragoons and jagers.

General Waldebeck heard from a scout that the Monrovians had left Verlendt, he immediately notified the Field Marshal who had been moving the Boldavian army corps up towards Schnotwitz on the road to Verlendt. The news forced a rethink of the whereabouts of the Monrovian army. The Field Marshal ordered the Uhlans to the southwest to scout the route to Vanderhof.

Uhlans force back the Monrovian dragoon vedettes, pursuing them they are fired on by the Monrovian jager battalion guarding the bridge.

The Uhlans fall back to shadow the Monrovians and send riders to report.


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