Peninsular War: Albuera Project

I wanted to build some Peninsula Armies for Shako based on a historical Order of Battle.  The Battle of Albuera (16 May 1811) seems a reasonable starting point or perhaps finale since it requires three armies: Spanish, Anglo-Portuguese, and French.  The two overall commanders (Beresford and Soult) were competent and several significant others were also present including Joaquín Blake y Joyes who commanded the Spanish, José de San Martin who was one of the famous Liberators in the South American Wars of Liberation , and José de Zayas who was arguably the best of the Spanish divisional commanders during the entire war.  The French and Anglo-Portuguese are roughly the same numbers (ignoring the Spanish).  The orders of battle are close to those in pick up lists for Shako.   

Historical Orders of Battle 

The orders of battle based on Smith (1998) - which I read first - and modified after reading Oliver and Partridge (2007).  

French 

V Corps (Soult) 

1st Division (Girard)

RIdLi: 34e, 40e, 88e (2 bns each), 64e (3 bns) 

2nd Division (Gazan)

RILe: 21e (2 bns), 28e (3 bns)
RIdLi: 100 (2 bns), 103e (3 bns)

Werle's Brigade (Werle)

RILe: 12e (3 bns)
RIdLi: 55e, 58e (3 bns rsvh)

Godinot's Brigade (Godinot)

RILe: 16e (3 bns)
RIdLi: 51e (3 bns)
11 coys Combined Grenadiers of:

45e, 63e, 95e RIdLi (of I Corps) and
4th Polish IR (of IV Corps)

Latour-Maubourg's Cavalry (Latour-Maubourg)

Briche's Brigade (Briche)

2e, 10e HusR (2 sqns each)
21e ChaCh (2 sqns)

Bon's Brigade (Bon)

4e, 20e, 26e DragRs (3 sqns each)

Unattached cavalry

27e ChaCh (4 sqns)
4th Spanish ChaCh (2 sqns)
1st Lancers, Vistula Legion (4 sqns)

Artillery

1,200 men and 40 guns

Total V Corps ca 19,000 infantry, 4,000 cavalry, 40 guns

Anglo-Portuguese 

Anglo-Portuguese Forces (Marshal Beresford) 

British Troops

2nd Division (Stewart) 

Colborne's Brigade (Colborne) 

1/3rd, 2/31st, 2/48th, 2/66th Foot (1 bn each; 4 bn total)

Hoghton's Brigade (Hoghton) 

1/29th, 1/48th, 1/57th Foot (1 bn each; 3 bn total) 

Abercrombie's Brigade 

2/28th, 2/34th,2/39th Foot (1 bn each; 3 bn total) 

Divisional Light Troops 

5/60th (3 coys; about 1/3 of a battalion or 1 skirmisher stand) 

Total 2nd Division 288 officers, 5,172 men

4th Division (Cole)

Myers's Brigade (Myers) 

1/7th, 2/7th, 1/23rd Fusiliers (1 bn each; 3 bn total) 

Light Troops detached from Kemmis's Brigade (Kemmis) 

2/27th, 1/40th, 1/97th Foot (1 coy each; 3 coy total; about 1/3 of a battalion or 1 skirmisher stand) )

Harvey's Portuguese Brigade was also in 4th Division - covered in the Portuguese section 

Total 4th Division 104 officers, 2,076 men 

Alten's Independent King's German Legion (KGL) Brigade (Alten) 

1st & 2nd Lt Bns KGL (1 bn each; 2 bn total) 

Total 42 officers, 1056 men 

Cavalry (Lumley) 

de Grey's Heady Brigade (de Grey) 

3DG
4 DragR

Brigade total 761 officers and men 

Unbrigaded Light Cavalry 

13th LDR (403 officers and men) 

Also included Otway's Portuguese Brigade 

Artillery 

1 x KGL FAB (5 x 6 pdrs, 1 howitzer) 
1 x KGL FAB (5 x 6 pdrs, 1 howitzer) 

Grand Total British Troops 529 officers, 9,920 men 

Portuguese Troops 

Harvey's Brigade (Harvey) attached to 4th Division 

11th & 23rd LIRs (2 bns each; 4 bn total)
1st Loyal Lusitanian Legion (1 bn) 

Hamilton's Division (Hamilton) 

1st Brigade (Campbell) 

4th & 10th LIRs (2 bns each; 4 bn total) 

2nd Brigade (Fonseca) 

2nd, 14th LIRs  (2 bns each; ; 4 bn total) 

Collins's Independent Portuguese Brigade (Collins)

5th LIR (2 bns)
5th Caçadores (1 bn) 

Otway's Cavalry Brigade (Otway) under Lumley  

1st CavR  (3 sqns)
7th CavR (2 sqns)
5th & 8th CavR (1 sqn each) 

Total brigade strength as 849 officers and men. 

Artillery 

1 x FAB (6 x 9 pdrs)
1 x FAB (6 x 6 pdrs)

Total Portuguese 10,201 officers and men

Spanish 

4th Army (Lt. Gen Blake) 

Vanguard Division (Mariscal de Campo Lardizabal) 

Cansinos Brigade (Cansinos)

Murcia LIR (1st and 2nd bn; perhaps only 1 bn total) 
Fijo Milicia Provincial de Canarias (1 bn)

Gouvea-Cansinas Brigade (Gouvea-Cansinas) 

2nd of Leon LIR (1 bn)
Campo Mayor LtIR (1 bn) 
Cazadores Reunidos del Rgto de Murcia - detached cazadores

3rd Division (Lt. Gen. Ballasteros) 

Gouvea-Asensio Brigade (Gouvea-Asensio)

1st Bn Provisional Companies of Catalonia (1 bn)
2nd Cazadores de Barbastro LtIR (1 bn)
Pravia LtIRs (1 bn)

Carvajal Brigade (Carvajal)

, Lena, Castropol, Cangas de Tineo, Infiesto (1 bn each; 6 bn total)

4th Division (Zayas) 

Mourgeon Brigade (Mourgeon)

2nd & 4th Spanish Guards (2 bn total)
2nd and 3rd Irlanda (2 bn total)
Voluntarios de la Patria (1 bn) *
Sappers (1 coy)

Polo Brigade (Polo)

Imperiales de Toledo, Legion Estranjeros, Ciudad Real IRs (1 bn each; 3 bn)
1st  Walloon Guards (1 bn)

Elements of 5th Army (Castaños) seconded to 4th Army 

de Espana Brigade (de Espana) - seconded from 1st Division of 5th Army 

Inmemorial del Rey, Zamora, Voluntarios de Navarra IRs (1 bn each; 3 bn total) 
Sappers & guides (1 coy) 

Spanish Cavalry - under Lumley 

Loy's Cavalry Brigade (Loy)  

Granaderos del IV Ejercito (2 sqn)
Provisional de Santiago
Escuadron de Instruction (1 sqn) 
Husares de Castilla

Brigade Total Cavalry 1,165 officers and men 

Penne-Villemur's Cavalry Brigade (Penne-Villemur) - seconded from 5th Army (Castaños)

Carabineros de la Guardia (probably 1 sqn ??) 
Reyna, Borbon, Lusitania, Algarbe (1 sqn each; 4 sqn total)
Husares de Extremadura (1 sqn) 
Cazadores de Sevilla (1 sqn)

Brigade Total 749 officers and men

Artillery 

1 x FAB (6 x 4 pdrs) 

* Oliver and Partridge (2007) give "Rgto Veteranos de la Patria" in the Orbat of Zayas's division at Albuera.  The trouble is according the handbook of the same authors the (Oliver & Partridge, 1999) the "Rto Veteranos de la Patria" was raised 10 Aug 1813 and was absorbed by Rto de Ceuta on 2 Mar 1815.  This is problematic because Albuera was in 1811. I think this is a typo because the the handbook  lists the "Vol. de la Patria" as fighting at Albuera. 

Shako and Fields of Glory 

Shako offers a default orders of battle for the Peninsular and Fields of Glory (FOG) has some Peninsular scenarios, including Albuera.  

French 

* the 11 companies of combined Grenadiers 

Spanish Units 

4th Division (Zayas) 

Mike Oliver (2008 private communication) with my emphasis: 

Zayas’ division was composed of the units he commanded on the Isla de León (Cádiz) when Barrosa (Chiclana) was fought - Zayas & Lardizabal fought a separate action as part of this campaign. It was during this period that Zayas wrote “Instrucciones sobre el buen orden militar” (Instructions concerning good military order) in which he effectively writes a new drill manual. His own troops and those of Lardizabal would almost certainly have been trained according to these instructions and their presence on the island would have given them access to the best uniforms available to the army. There is evidence that many would have been dressed in light blue uniforms supplied by the British and some would almost certainly have had access to stores of the old white uniforms. The guard would have likely been given dark blue because of their standing but I believe they would have worn French style shakos rather than bicornes. New regiments raised in Cádiz are widely depicted as wearing top hats - many with one side turned up - so it is likely that a substantial number of line units in Zayas’ and Lardizabal’s divisions would have been issued with these.

There is also evidence to indicate that their units would have been re-organised to the 6-company structure with grenadier and light companies on the French model. In the reports from several Spanish officers (including Burriel’s official one), the Spanish Guards and Rto de Irlanda are said to have deployed their flank companies to counter the French tirailleurs in Girard’s main attack and to have done so very effectively. Under the old structure, each battalion would have had only 32 men to perform this function and could not have mounted a successful counter.

Figures G1, G2, and G3 in Chartrand (1999a) are indicative of the type of uniform 1811 Mike is referring to being blue with a top hat.  They disagree on the uniform colour.  Figure G1 is in light blue but Chartrand says light blue was only supplied to eastern Spain in 1811, whereas in 1812 all the light blue went to Cadiz.  In 1811 the uniforms sent to southern Spain were dark blue (G2 and G3).  

1st Walloon Guards (1 bn)

Figure D1 in Chartrand (1999b) is the Walloon Guards in 1813.  There uniform is similar to the 1805 regulation but substituting a bell top shako for the bicorne and black gaiters for white. 

2nd & 4th Spanish Guards (2 bn total)

2nd and 3rd Irlanda (2 bn total)

Veteranos de la Patria (1 bn)

Conard
Left to Right: Volunarios de la Patria, Leales de Fernando VII, 
Santa Fe, La muerte, Voluntarios de la Victoria 

Sappers (1 coy)

Imperiales de Toledo

Mike Oliver says "It is generally accepted the Rto de Toledo, for example, wore a brown uniform with yellow facings with a mixture of top hats and French shakos".  Figure H1 in Chartrand (1999a) is a Fusilier of the Toledo Regiment c. 1811-13.   He matches Mike's description with brown coat, bell top shako, white trousers, yellow collar, cuffs and lapels, and white epaulettes. 

Legion Estranjeros

Ciudad Real IRs (1 bn each; 3 bn)

Vanguard Division (Lardizabal) 

Murcia LIR (1st and 2nd bn; perhaps only 1 bn total) 

Fijo Milicia Provincial de Canarias (1 bn)

2nd of Leon LIR (1 bn)

Campo Mayor LtIR (1 bn) 

Cazadores Reunidos del Rgto de Murcia - detached cazadores

3rd Division (Lt. Gen. Ballasteros) 

Castropol

Figure B3 in Chartrand (1999a) is a Fusilier from the Castropol regiment in 1809.  He wears the 1805 white uniform with red facings, but substitutes a forage cap for the bicorne.  Figure B2 is a Fusilier from the Almeria Regiment in 1808-11.  He wears a brown uniformwith red collar, cuffs and lapels, with a black top hat.  This is probably more typical of uniforms in 1811.   

1st Bn Provisional Companies of Catalonia (1 bn)

2nd Cazadores de Barbastro LtIR (1 bn)

Pravia LtIRs (1 bn)

Lena

Cangas de Tineo

Infiesto 

Elements of 5th Army (Castaños) seconded to 4th Army 

Inmemorial del Rey

Zamora

Voluntarios de Navarra IRs 

Sappers & guides (1 coy) 

Spanish Cavalry - under Lumley 

Granaderos del IV Ejercito (2 sqn)

Provisional de Santiago

Escuadron de Instruction (1 sqn) 

Husares de Castilla

Carabineros de la Guardia (probably 1 sqn ??) 

Reyna

Borbon

Lusitania

Algarbe 

Husares de Extremadura (1 sqn) 

Cazadores de Sevilla (1 sqn)

Sources

Chartrand, R. (1999a).  Spanish Army of the Napoleonic Wars (2) 1808 - 1812.  Osprey [MAA332]

Chartrand, R. (1999b).  Spanish Army of the Napoleonic Wars (3) 1812 - 1815.  Osprey [MAA334]

Conliffe, A. (1995).  Shako: Rules and Army Lists for Napoleonic Wargaming.  Quantum Printing. 

Leach, C. (1997).  Fields of Glory: Napoleonic Scenarios for Shako Rules. Quantum Printing. 

Oliver, M. (2008).  Private communication.  

Oliver, M. and Partridge, R. (2007).  the Battle of Albuera - 1811: Glorious Field of Grief.  Pen & Sword Military. 

Smith, D. (1998).  The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book.  London: Greenhill Books.

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