BATTLES SIMULATED

The first of the four battles occurred on the 17th and 18th of

February: Mormant took place 3 days after the Battle of

Vauchamps, covered in "La Patrie en Danger." The last two

battles were fought in late-March: Arcis followed 8 days after

Reims, from "Napoleon Retreats." With all three games you

can contemplate a 12-battle Grand Campaign.

Mormant A Fighting Rear Guard, 17 February

The French army under Napoleon began the counteroffensive

with an attack 50 km southeast of Paris, targeting a division

of Russian troops under Count Pahlen. His outnumbered force

was enveloped and nearly destroyed, with a third of his men

escaping. Later in the day, a French column encountered an

Austro-Bavarian rearguard at Valjouan. It was mauled by

French infantry and cavalry, before withdrawing behind the

Seine.

Montereau The Seine and Yonne Bridges, 17-18 February

Napoleon approached a corps of Austrian and Württemberg

troops. The Allied commander ordered a withdrawal, but 17

February saw his rear guards overrun or brushed aside.

Ordered to hold Montereau until nightfall on the 18th, the

Crown Prince of Württemberg posted a strong force on the

north bank of the Seine. All morning the Allies stoutly held

off a series of French attacks. However, the lines buckled in

the afternoon and the troops routed toward the single bridge

behind them. The French cavalry got among the fugitives,

capturing the spans over both the Seine and Yonne Rivers, and

seized Montereau. The Allied force suffered heavy losses and

the defeat confirmed Schwarzenberg's decision to continue the

retreat to Troyes.

Arcis-sur-Aube Time Runs Out, 20-21 March

After his victory at Reims, Napoleon moved south to threaten

Schwarzenberg. The Austrian Generalissimo pulled his army

back to Troyes and Arcis-sur-Aube. Napoleon arrived and

attacked the town, but Schwarzenberg uncharacteristically

advanced to fight it out rather than retreat again. The first day

was inconclusive and Napoleon prepared to pursue a retreating

enemy the next day. The French advance to high ground

revealed up to 100,000 troops in battle array south of Arcis.

Napoleon, massively outnumbered, ordered a retreat. By the

time the Austrians discovered this, most of the French had

already disengaged and the Allied pursuit couldn’t stop them.

La Fère Champenois The Marshals Entrapped, 25 March

After pulling out of Arcis-sur-Aube, the Emperor’s eagles

moved east, hoping to draw the Coalition armies away from

Paris by threatening their supply lines; this desperate ploy

failed in its intent. Meanwhile, Marmont and Mortier were

marching to join Napoleon, with Blücher’s Army of Silesia

hot on their tails. As the two marshals moved east out of

Sezanne they unexpectedly collided with Schwarzenberg.

Realizing they were marching into a trap, they turned back,

and managed an orderly retreat until a violent rainstorm

rendered their muskets unreliable. They were steadily driven

back and completely routed by aggressive Coalition horsemen

and gunners, suffering heavy casualties and the loss of most of

their artillery. A nearby convoy, escorted by two French

divisions of National Guards under Pacthod, were also

attacked and wiped out at Bannes. With the corps of Marmont

and Mortier collapsing, the Allied assault on Paris was a

foregone conclusion. The Battle of Paris followed on 30

March.

Napoleon’s End contains:

• Four 22" x 34" maps

• 560 die-cut units

• 15 player aid cards

• Two rulebooks

• Game Box