halberdiers

First Turn and other assorted goodness.

2007-02-13T23:18:47Z

Gentlemen, I've posted this here so that those of you that haven't been watching the Gamers Forum will know that we're now up and running.

There's a whole mess of stuff behind the cut belong, it's laid out rather more elegantly on the Gamers Forum, which you'll find here.

http://societies.csc.tcd.ie/~gamers/forum/index.php

First Turn

The game will be conducted in turns, each lasting a month (for upkeep, social standing, etc). I hope that each turn will last about two weeks of game time. Obviously when in close contact with the enemy, we’ll be handling things in a bit more detail, but for the most part, it’s assumed that unless you indicate otherwise, your officer goes about his business in an ordinary way.

Each month, I’ll be putting a variety of activities forward that you may partake in, if you wish. This month is a little different as it’s the start of the campaign and I’ll be putting up the activities for this month up over a couple of days so that things don’t get too overwhelming.

Beginning

24th August, 1808, Morning. Portugal, a beach near Lisbon.

Your stomach lurches as another breaker hits the side of the landing craft. You feel your breakfast shift menacingly and try to maintain your composure. You can see all the impedimenta of the regiment spread out on the shore as the commissaries try to count it all. Sailors in shirtsleeves, burned nut brown by the sun, wade out to met the craft and catch the thrown rope.

The men shift nervously in the craft, clutching their firelocks and trying to peek over the high sides of the troop transport. Another Halberdier, losing the battle with the waves, doubles over and adds yet another splash of slick yellow vomit to the slops rolling in the bilges.

A sudden jerk tells you that the sailors have caught the thrown rope and are heaving in teams to get the boat ashore. Hopping the side, you wade through the breakers and advance up the beach. The Captain-Commandants groom chases his charger, mad with panic at being on dry land again up and down the sands, while soldiers pause to examine the wreackage of an overloaded landing craft that splintered on hitting the beach, before being chivied into ranks by their sergeants.

All seems chaos, but in a few hours, the 46th regiment of Foot has shaken itself out into some form of order, the last reinforcements from England coming with Sir John Moore, the new commander in chief, to reinforce the British Army in Portugal. The 46th have been the last to disembark and it will be several days before you reach the main camp outside Lisbon. But the regiment is humming like a plucked bowstring all the talk is of how long it shall be before we are at the French!

Long before nightfall, the company lines have been laid down, tents pitched, pickets posted and all that is necessary seen to. Tomorrow, you will march for the main camp and join the rest of the army. The 46th has had a bad run of luck these last few years, in South America and particularly in missing out on the recent victories at Rojica and Vimeiro. Sir John Moore, the new general in charge of the British army in Portugal, is already in Lisbon planning the advance. Sir Julian has made it clear that he expects the 46th to do its utmost to shine in the upcoming campaign.

Activities

A test of soldiering with Captain Lennox.

Sir. Julian is greatly concerned by the great many new ensigns assigned to the regiment and has asked Captain Lennox, in the adjutant’s absence, to form an Ensign’s company once the regiment is ashore. There the ensigns will be drilled as common soldiers to test their knowledge of their calling. Not until Captain Lennox is satisfied that an Ensign is capable of drilling a company as he should will he be passed fit for service and assigned a company.

Rules:

Each player must make six Soldier rolls, needing a four to pass. Success requires three successes in a row. Bennies may be used. If you can’t make three rolls in a row, let me know how many successes you did have. If you do pass three in a row, let me know with how many raises.

The vacant majority.
With Major Gates dead, there is a vacant majority in the regiment. Captain Napier has seniority, though he hasn’t expressed his interest to anyone. He’s playing his cards very close to his chest. It is possible that Sir. Julian may give him a free step, though Captain Lennox, the next in line, may take the step by purchase. Neither man has come out and said that he wishes the position, biding their time.

Both have been testing the waters in the mess. Lt. Napier obviously supports his father’s case, while Captain Casey has been said to favour Napier as well though not in so many words. Cheery Johnny has been vocal in his support of Captain Lennox, though Lennox has told him to shut his mouth about it.

Lt. Gibbons has loudly declared that he will purchase Lennox’s captaincy when he gets the position, though this is drunken talk. Gibbons has not served the required two years as a subaltern to make the step to Captain.

With the regiment going into battle soon, a decision will have to be made.

Are any of you expressing an opinion in the mess? Or privately? And to whom?

The adjutancy.
Sir. Julian has been curiously reticent on the subject of a new adjutant, probably because he wishes to settle the matter of the majority first. Captain Lennox has been acting as the adjutant for the last few days.

The adjutant is an officer on half pay (though traditionally in the Halberdiers, the difference is made up by the Captain-Commandant out of his own pocket), who handles the regiments administrative affairs. While unlikely to smell much in the way of the powder, the adjutant works with the Captain-Commandant on a daily basis and is the public face of the regiment in certain respects. He is also responsible for the drilling and continuing education of the ensigns. His power is limited, but his influence is great and handled well, adjutancy can be a very productive period in an ambitious officers career.

The current mood in the mess is that the adjutancy will be offered to either Lennox or Napier, depending on who gets the majority, though it is thought that Napier is unlikely to take it, if offered.

Are any of you expressing an opinion in the mess? Or privately? And to whom?

Assignment of Companies.
While, strictly speaking, none of you have been assigned companies until you’ve been passed out by Captain Lennox, Major Barker has approached you privately to ask which company you’d prefer. While the assignment is entirely with the power of Sir. Julian, he would rather have men serve where they are happy, if it can be done.

Let me know which company you would wish to be assigned to, but be aware of the following.

Your preference is only one of a variety of factors in Sir. Julian’s decision, it is very unusual that he has sought out your opinions on the matter, even unofficially.

Sir. Julian has made Lt.’s commanding companies acting Captains for the duration of the campaign. This has no bearing on pay, though it does mean the officer will be doing the duties of a Captain and will have regimental seniority from the date of his acting Captaincy. It is possible, though not assured, that the senior ensign’s in those companies will be made acting Lt’s.

Army Seniority vrs. Regimental Seniority.
Army seniority is seniority in the army as a whole and is counted from the date the officer received his current rank, though brevets received for gallantry count. Regimental seniority applies only within the regiment and is counted from the date the officer received an acting commission in his current rank.

Arranging purchase of a commission.
To purchase a Lieutenancy, there must first be a vacancy and there are plenty of these in the regiment at the moment. Then the aspiring Ensign must firstly make his desire known to the Captain-Commandant, who unless there is some pressing reason that the Ensign should not be allowed to purchase will forward his name to Mr.Soames. This reference along with a draft for a hundred and fifty guineas should seal the deal.

If the Captain-Commandant has particular reason to think well of the Ensign in question, he may award him acting rank immediately, though it is more usual to wait for Mr. Soames approval.

Keeping a Journal.
Keeping a journal or common place book is a habit to be encouraged in a young officer. It is in such journals that the lessons of hard experience of campaigning are stored and mulled over. It indicates a serious of mind and a willingness to apply himself to his profession that is only to be encouraged.

Characters who keep (and post to) an in-character journal may claim one SP per month.

Writing home.
Characters who are entitled to an allowance must write home once a month to keep their parents happy. Characters who do not write home upset Ma and Pa mightily and are likely to lose their allowance. Particularly funny or well observed letters home may result (at the GM’s discretion) in a reward of either cash or SP.

Getting a loan
Characters may borrow money from each other, but may not charge interest. Any time after three months after the loan, the lender may demand payment. Failure to pay leads to the loss of one SL per month that the debt remains unpaid. Roll d6 per month, on a six the character is cashiered, 5,6 on the second month and so on.

Borrowing money from the regimental agent or a money lender is a dicey proposition. He must pay the principal plus 10% in six months. If unable to pay and the lender can get at him (6 on the first month, 5,6 on the second month, etc) and the offender is cashiered and sent to a debtors prison.

A money lender will lend the characters social level x 100.

Support
The game’s official coinage is the Guinea. A character spending the month not on active service must pay money equal to twice his SL each month for support (food, clothes, etc.). Failure to do so (either through negligence or from lack of funds) will lose the character 1 SL per month. A Character on half pay must still support himself in the same fashion. On the other hand, a character may earn 1 additional SP by spending three times his SL, this is called ”conspicuous consumption”.

Characters on campaign need only pay their SL in guineas for support, but must pay their club dues, house maintenance and support their mistress.

Status Points and Social Levels
A character’s aim is to accumulate as many status points (SP) as he can in a month, in order to raise his social level (SL). Accumulating status points (SP) is – with one exception, Titles – the only way to increase a character’s social level. To raise his SL by one level, a character must accumulate SP equal to three times the new social level in a single month. Except for receiving a title, a character can’t go up more than one SL per
month.

To maintain his SL, a character must accumulate SP equal to his social level at the beginning of a month, i.e. a SL 7 character would need 7 SP. He does have to
maintain his SL while he’s on half pay. A character who fails to accumulate status points equal to his SL drops one level.

Officers of the Halberdiers

2007-02-01T22:25:24Z

Sorry about the rejigging, but I found a better battalion organisation table and realised that the table I'd been working off only listed the battalion bayonet strength (fighting men) rather than its actual strength.

So as well as the officers listed below, the following additions are being made to the battalion.

Senior Major (the late Major Gates)
Major
Adjutant
Surgeon
2 assistant surgeons (one of whom died on the voyage to Spain, Ensign Hanson is filling in for him)
Quartermaster
Sergeant Major
Staff sergents paymaster
Sergeant armourer
Drum major
Corporal pioneer
10 pioneers

Also does anybody have an email address for Mr. Furious?

Lt. Willard – 25, Tory

One of the few officers to remain with the regiment after the defeat at Beunos Aires, Williard or Cheery Johnny as he is known to the men is the son of a Major in 60th. Known for his good humour, kindliness and immense capacity for drink, he can usually be relied upon. It is said that his father Major Willard drank so much, that he drank between drinks. Cheery Johnny claims that so far as he is concerned there is no such time as “between drinks.”

Captain Napier – 45, Tory

Captain Napier was born into the regiment, both his father and grandfather are former Halberdiers. A hard eyed, driven man, Napier is a supremely competent company commander and has distinguished himself on numerous occasions. A steady soldier rather than a brilliant one, he is known for working his ensigns almost to death, but producing good officers. Either he or Captain Lennox is likely to be the new major.

Captain Newland – 33, Whig.

The son of a Lancashire wool magnate, Captain Newland is known for his wild drinking bouts and profligate attitude with cash. He purchased into the Halbardiers when his old corps were not earmarked for Spain, though for all that he seems to be a competent soldier. Despite his occasionally boorish manner, he is popular enough and is fond of organizing football or boxing matches for the men. He claims that it is too keep them away from drink.

Lt. Napier – 20, Tory.

The son of Captain Napier, Lt. Napier is not the man his father is. His pleasant nature and breezy disposition contrast starkly with his father’s dour outlook on life. A competent soldier, his health was damaged by captivity in South America and he is prone to ague. He is also known for his small acts of kindness to struggling ensigns and for his interest in nature.

Lt. Gibbons – 18, Tory.

Something of an anomaly in the ancient but resolutely gentrified Halberdiers, Lt. Gibbons is a genuine nobleman. Heir to an Earldom, it is rumoured that his purchase into the regiment was arranged by his father as a punishment for previous misdeeds. Gibbons makes no secret of the fact that he would sooner be with the Guards, which had not made him popular. Peremptory and arrogant, he has twice been reprimanded by the Captain-Commandant for ordering floggings without due cause.

Captain Mulgrave - 55, Whig.

Captain Mulgrave is strange character, a Mill owner turned soldier. A strict Presbyterian, he claims that the Lord told him in a vision that Bonaparte was the Antichrist and that he must be stopped. Originally from the north, he bought a commission in the Newport Fencibles last year and transferred to the Halberdiers bringing most of his militia company with him. A quiet man, but much given to thunderous rages, he has applied himself to soldiering with the same drive and energy that made him his fortune. A bit of a wet blanket in the mess though.

Captain Chatham – 23, Radical.

The nephew (rumour has it the bastard son) of the Earl of Richmond, the mess is divided in it’s opinions of Captain Chatham. It is universally agreed that he is a very odd fish, but the jury is still out of whether he’s good fun or actually barking. Chatham is an enthusiastic soldier, though lately purchased into the profession. A gifted classicist, he is much taken with amateur dramatics and put on a production of Romeo & Juliet during the voyage to Spain. He espouses a wide variety of odd and simply crazy causes, including democracy, female suffrage, vegetarianism and Gnosticism. He claims to have joined the army because of a hatred of Bonaparte, who “betrayed the ideals of the revolution”. Arguments between Chatham and Mulgrave in the mess never end well.

Muster Roll of the Battalion

2007-01-31T16:42:23Z

Gentlemen, here is the muster roll of the battalion so far. Could everybody who has rolled up characters please email them to me? Those of you who have made up Savage Worlds characters, could you email me those stats as well?

1) Fatz –

1st son of a poor clergyman. Whig. Aged 20. Comissioned 18th Feb. 1804.

2) Hugh -
3) Siskey –
4) Gorman -
5) Crapple –

1st son. Ranker. Aged 24. Comissioned 23 July. 1803.

6) Eoin –

2nd son of a very rich planter. Whig. Aged 15. Comissioned 11 Dec. 1804.

7) Colin - Ensign Thomas Hanson, Acting Assistant Surgeon.
Son of a ships carpenter. Ranker, Whig. 23 Comissioned 13 April 1804

8) Colm - Ensign Sean Nugent
Ranker. Aged 24. Whig. Comissioned 9 March 1805. I have SW stats for Colm.

9) Oisin – Ensign William George MacIntyre

Ranker. 1st son of Mill Worker. Aged 26. Comissioned 29. Feb. 1803. I have savage worlds stats for Oisin.

10) Nessan – Ensign Henry Simmerson

3rd son of a very rich East India Company magnate. Whig. Aged 17.

11) Fiachra – Ensign James Batsby - I have Fiachra's background, but no numbers.

My library: The Napoleonic bits.

2007-01-31T14:02:57Z

http://www.librarything.com/catalog.php?tag=napoleonic

Officers wishing to further their education as soldiers and as gentlemen may wish to peruse the contents or arrange to borrow some of the volumes within.

It would be appreciated if officers who have libraries of their own would extend similar hospitality to their mess mates.

I remain, your obedient servant,

Sir. Julian West, KB.

Death to the French!

2007-01-31T12:26:22Z

Gentlemen,

Since the Gamers Forum is down, I don't know for how long, I thought I'd get things rolling here.

Unfortunately, because most of the characters, etc were stored in my inbox on gamers, those of you who have emailed me characters are out of luck, could you mail them again?

Could you also please let anybody who mightn't be on my friends list know about this page.

I'd like to get the full roster up and running over the next week so that we can begin play by next thursday or friday.

I remain, as always, your obedient servant,

Sir Julian West, KB.

Death to the French!
A game of social climbing and derring-do during the Pensinular War by
Eamon Honan

With apologies to far, far too many people, see the reading list for details.
.

Character Generation

Roll for background.

Table 1. Generate background.
1-2. Ranker.
3-5. Gentry
6. Nobleman.

Rankers receive no allowance and must live on their pay. They receive
5 experience points at the start of the game and two months pay in
hand.

Table 2. Generate birth order.
1. First son.
2-3. Second son.
4-5. Third son.
6. Bastard.

First sons get +10% money. 3rd sons get -20% to money. Bastards get
nothing and lose one social level. Rankers gain no benefits or
penalties from birth order.

Table 3. Income for Gentry. Figures in guineas given per month.
Gentry Initial Allowance Inheritance
1-2. Impoverished 12 - -
3. Poor Clergyman 24 - -
4. Well to Do. 48 24 480
5. Wealthy. 96 48 960
6. Very wealthy. 192 96 1920

Table 4. Income for Noblemen. Figures in guineas given per month.
Nobleman Initial Allowance Inheritance
1-2. Impoverished. 24 - -
3. Poor 48 24 480
4. Well-to-do. 96 48 960
5. Wealthy 192 96 1920
6. Very Wealthy 384 144 3840

Table 5. Determine Father's Rank.
1. Baronet.
2. Knight.
3. Baron.
4. Vicount
5. Earl.
6. Marquis.

Table 6. Determine starting social level.
Ranker 2 (character gain an immediate +1 for commission though)
Gentleman 5
Wealthy Gentleman 6
Knight 6
Very wealthy Gentleman 8
Baronet 7
Baron 8
Vicount 9
Earl 10
Marquis 11
Duke 12

Character accumulate Status Points and may use them to raise his
Social Level. He much get SP equal to three times his SL in a month.
He must receive at least as many SP as his SL per month or drop a SL.

Table 7. Determine age and date of commission.

All the characters begin as Ensigns, a rank roughly equivalent to that
of 2nd Lieutenant today. Where there are several officers of equal
rank present, the officer with the most time in grade has seniority.

Your characters birthday is the same as your own.

Starting age.

Ranker 20+d6
Gentleman 14+d6
Nobleman 12+d6

With the exception of Rankers characters are commissioned six months
before their sixteenth birthday. If the character's starting age is
under 16, he was commissioned six months before his last birthday.

(Yes, I am aware of the 1802 age limit)

The starting date of the campaign is 7th of August 1808.

E.g. Ensign Honan, who is a Gentleman and whose birthday is the 31st
of March is 20 years of age in 1808. His sixteenth birthday was in
March 1802, so he was commissioned on the 31st October 1801.

Ranker receive their commissions six months before their birthday, d4
years ago.

E.g. Ensign Honan (no relation) who was raised from the ranks and who
shares a birthday with his gently born namesake rolls a three, so that
his commission was granted six months before his birthday in 1805,
October 31st 1804.

Table 8. Political parties

Choosing a party
Characters are "born " into their party. Rankers are Whigs or Radicals
and sons of gentlemen are Tories or Radicals. Changing party can be
done at any time, but costs the character one social level. The only
way to change party without penalty is through being titled; in this
case a character may change his membership from Whigs or Radicals to
Tory at any time without penalty.

Parties
There are three parties – the Tories fight the Whigs, the Whigs fight
the Tories, and the Radicals (in the spirit of
socialist/green/reformist/liberal traditions everywhere) fight amongst
themselves over obscure ideological points.

Tory Manifesto:
The Tories stand for Traditional Values – "Each man has a place and
each man in his place". They support the Corn Laws and the Statutes on
Apprentices and Labourers which keeps peasants down and land rents up.
In the Army, they value the traditions that have made the British Army
great, the lash, crisp drill and dogged tenacity. They are against
raising men from the ranks, rifles and light infantry tactics and
other such continental nonsense. It is naturally the party of
landowning gentlemen and the nobility. They hate those jumped up
whippersnapper Whigs with no respect for the past. They consider
Radicals to be barking mad so they ignore them, as it is bad form to
mock the mentally afflicted.

Whig Manifesto:
The Whigs stand for Trade and Progress – "Grab what you can and the
Devil take the hindmost". They support Free Trade (including opium,
guns to the French and cheap agricultural produce which undercuts
local markets), and advocate Gunboat Diplomacy and trading in dodgy
joint stock companies and imaginary canal projects. In terms of
Foreign policy, they support seizing the shipping of rival trading
nations on the flimsiest of pretexts (The Wars of "He Looked at me
Funny" and "He Looked at my Girlfriend Funny" come to mind.) and of
plundering savages who can't defend themselves in order to bring them
the benefits of civilisation. It is naturally the party of merchants
and the aspiring peasant who has escaped from the farm. They hate
those snobby Tories who can only look backwards. They consider
Radicals to be idealists whose policies would be unworkable in
practice, however well intentioned they might be.

Radical Manifesto:
The Radicals stand for Reform and Revolution - "Smash and destroy the
old to create a new era of peace and harmony". Though they are all in
complete accord about the need for change, there is a certain amount
of debate within the party about how to achieve the New Eden, and this
not uncommonly leads to violence. Broadly, they are interested in
extending democracy to the gin-soaked rabble and in promoting peace
between nations – since they believe that wars are generally a matter
of cultural misunderstanding and not simply a naked grab for power. In
the Army, they are always promoting improving schemes – such as
rifles, light infantry training for all, raising men from the ranks
and the use of rockets instead of conventional artillery. They are
pitied as madmen by the Tories and patronised as idealists by the
Whigs, and they in turn consider the two main parties to be
irrelevancies that will be swept away when the Radicals come to power.
This will of course happen just as soon as they have hammered out the
exact details of policy amongst themselves through a process of
healthy and vigorous debate. It is naturally the party of eccentrics
and crackpots from all walks of life.

9. Generate rest of character.

Once all the stuff above has been laboured through, fill in the rest
of the characters background. This should include at the very least.

Name, place of birth and their fathers occupation (if any).

I think we'll generate the savage worlds stats during a face to face
meeting, if possible, so that I can weed out any of the crazier
suggestions and make sure that we're all on the same page.

The 46nd Regiment of Foot (The Royal Corps Of Halberdiers, West Essex Regiment)

Founded: 1590

Battle Honours: Edinburgh Castle 1746, Louisbourg 1750, Quebec 1750
(in black), Sainte-Foy 1760, Lexington 1775, Concord 1775, Bunker Hill
1775, Montevideo 1807.

Motto Honi Soit Qui Mal Y Pense (Evil to He Whom Evil Thinks)

Facings – Yellow.
Officer Lace – Silver with a black line.

The 46nd Regiment of Foot (The Royal Corps Of Halberdiers) is, as you
well know, the finest regiment on God's green earth. The regiment
comprises of three battalions: The 1st (Service), 2nd (Depot) and 3rd
(Fencibles).

The Halberdiers are commanded by an officer called a
'Captain-Commandant' - a rank derived from the Corp's origins as the
Earl Of Essex's Honourable Company Of Free Halberdiers during the
reign of Elizabeth I. The current Captain-Commandant is Sir Julian
West, an old Tory with a mania for music.

The company first saw action in the Irish wars, but the regiment as it
exists now first saw war service during the 1745 Jacobite Rising
against rebels who had risen in support of Bonnie Prince Charlie who
claimed the thrones of the Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The
regiment under Sir John Cope marched north into the Scottish Highlands
but, as he thought the rebel force to be stronger than it really was,
avoided engaging the
Jacobites then sailed from Aberdeen down to Dunbar to meet the
Jacobite forces to the east of Edinburgh at the Battle of Prestonpans
which saw the Government forces routed by the Jacobites. The regiment
subsequently took part in the defence of Edinburgh Castle which never
capitulated to the Jacobite rebels during Bonnie Prince Charlie's
control of the city of Edinburgh. The Jacobite Rebellion was
eventually crushed by Government forces in 1746 and Charles was forced
to escape to France.

In 1750 the regiment deployed to Nova Scotia, Canada and the following
year it was numbered the 46nd Regiment of Foot. The regiment took part
in the Seven Years' War while in Canada, seeing action against the
French-held Fortress Louisbourg during the 48-day Siege of Louisburg,
a siege that culminated in a French surrender. The following year the
Halbardiers took part in the legendary Battle of Quebec which saw
British
forces, under the command of General James Wolfe, prevail again French
forces in a battle that concluded a 3-month siege of Quebec. Wolfe was
well-respected by his men, to such an extent that to commemorate the
death of Wolfe in the battle the Halbardiers began wearing a black
line in their lace.

In 1760 the Halbardiers took part in the Battle of Sainte-Foy, a
British defeat against
the French during the British defence of Quebec though despite the
defeat the British held onto it. In 1763 the regiment returned home
from its long deployment in North America with the conclusion of
Britain's war with France. It arrived in North America in 1773 in New
Jersey, a colony of the Great Britain and which would be one of the
"Thirteen Colonies" that would soon revolt against British rule. In
late 1774 the regiment was
deployed to Boston and the following year the regiment saw action
against rebels at Lexington and Concord and in the Battle of Bunker
Hill which saw a British victory but at heavy cost.

In 1776 the regiment returned to Quebec to assist in the defence of it
from American rebels. In 1777 the regiment was part of the disastrous
expedition to Saratoga where it took part in a number of major
engagements. The Halbardiers became internees after the surrender of
British forces on the 17 October. It did not return home from its
enforced
stay until 1783 and the conclusion of the American War of Independence.

In 1782 the regiment was given a county distinction when it was given
the title the 46th (The Royal Corps Of Halberdiers, West Essex
Regiment) Regiment of Foot. In 1790 the regiment returned to the
Western Hemisphere once again where it garrisoned a number of islands
in the West Indies during the French Revolutionary War. In 1794, a
third battalion was raised in Essex as part of the invasion scare that
was sweeping the country, but was disbanded soon after.

In 1803 the 3rd Battalion was raised again and the following year
deployed to Ireland.

In 1806 the 1st Battalion arrived in the Cape of Good Hope to
undertake garrison duties in the territory captured from the Dutch.
That year an unsuccessful, and unauthorised, expedition to the French
allies Spain against its South American possessions, led by Sir Home
Riggs Popham, took place.

The following year the 1st Battalion was part of the second-invasion
force, led by Brigadier-General Sir Samuel Auchmuty, who was unaware
of the failure of the first-invasion. The 1st Battalion took part in
the siege and subsequent storming of Montevideo (now capital of
Uruguay), which culminated in the capture of the city on the 3
February.

The Halbardiers also saw action in July during the mis-managed attempt
to capture Buenos Aires (now capital of Argentina) from the Spanish.
The attempt to capture the city failed and the British force was soon
surrounded and forced to surrender.

The 1st Battalion eventually arrived in Spain in 1808 as part of Sir.
John Moore's army sent to support the Spaniards uprising against the
French.

Regimental Traditions

Halberds
As befits the regiments origins, Halberds are a recurring theme. The
regimental colour shows a lion over crossed Halberds. All company
sergeants are required to carry them. The Ensign assigned the company
colour, traditionally attaches it to a Halberd though this is not
required by regulations. It is laid down in the standing orders of the
regiment, that any colour party must have at least two men armed with
Halberds and trained in their use. Such training also forms a part of
the breaking in of any new ensigns assigned to the regiment.

Black Line
Officers wearing lace at their cuffs are asked to put a line of black
through it in remembrance of the death of Wolfe.

Wren Day
A relatively recent development and a hangover from the Regiments time
in Ireland. On St. Stephen's Day, six men chosen from each company
are dressed as Wren Boys and carrying the youngest of the company's
Ensigns on the shoulders walk from company mess to company mess, where
they entertain the troops with songs, amateur theatricals and comic
turns and are fed and entertained in turn. The first man who can
bring a live wren to the Commandant on Wren Day is given a guinea. The
guinea lodged on account with the Regimental commissary is to purchase
food and drink (mostly drink) for the lucky man's mess.

Port Fines
Newcomers to the Halbardiers often find the rules of the Mess strange
and arcane. Thus far you've only learned that the youngest officer in
the Mess must be referred to as "Boots." Breaches of Mess etiquette
are punished by the fine of a bottle of port to the common fund, a
fact that causes no end of anxiety for officers forced to live on
their pay.

Regimental Organisation and Characters

The Regiment is made up of three battalions, the first battalion
(service), the second battalion (depot) and the third battalion
(fencibles).

You are all with the first battalion, the service battalion which does
the actual fighting.

The second battalion is a depot or holding battalion based in
Ledgewidge, West Essex. The depot battalion gathers recruits, trains
them and sends them in drafts to replace the losses in the first
battalion.

The third battalion is a battalion of fencibles. A short of home guard
outfit raised from the local area to defend Britain in case of
invasion from France.

Captain-Commandant Sir. Julian West. KB. 43, Tory.

A quiet man in his early forties with rich estates in Essex and
considerable interests in India, Sir Julian has been the commander of
the Halbardiers for two years. Transferred from the 95th after
Copenhagen, he has proved himself a hard task master, but one whose
determination to succeed is tempered with humanity. A disciple of Sir.
John Moore's, he is known for his dislike of the lash, rifles and his
abhorrence of cruelty to animals.

Intensely musical, he is very fond of opera and speaks fluent Italian,
though his French is poor. His wife, Lady Laetitia, is very fond of
cats and when on home duty is prone to foisting moggies on the
officers mess. They have no children, though Sir Julian is know for
the beauty of his nieces.

Captain Lennox – 40, Whig.

The dashing and handsome senior Captain in the regiment and commander
of the Grenadier Company (aka The Bacon Bolters), Captain Lennox was
also one of the few officers to emerge with his record unstained. His
actions prevented the Regimental colours from falling into the hands
of the Spanish. A hard, drinking, smoking, whoring American, Captain
Lennox was disinherited by the revolt in America, though he still has
large estates in Canada. Despite his whiggish preferences, he sees eye
to eye with the commandant on the supremacy of the bayonet and both
men have always worked well together. Rumour has it that he has a
Duchess as a mistress in Lisbon.

Captain Casey – 30, Tory.

Commander of the light company or "light bobs", Captain Casey is a
soldier of proven experience and worth. He has fought well in Holland
and Denmark before buying into the Halbardiers and has proven himself
a very competent and supremely business like soldier. He is
unconvinced by advocates of the rifle, though he is a convinced
proponent of light infantry tactics and has, with the Commandant's
permission, trained several of the line company's in their use.

He enjoys fox-hunting and cuts a good figure in the saddle, though he
drinks rather too much afterwards. Those who stay late in the Mess are
often treated to his anti-Irish tirades. Casey was stationed in
Wexford during the 1798 rebellion and lost an eye in an ambush.

Captain Hamilton – 22, Tory.

Commander of the second company, Captain Hamilton is the newest
officer in the battalion, one of those who bought in once it became
clear that that the Regiment was marked for Spain. Heir to an Earl,
Captain Hamilton is a superb horseman and judge of horseflesh. Noted
for his taciturnity with the fair sex, he becomes positively animated
on the subject of racing. Time will tell whether he will make a
soldier or not.

Regimental Sergeant Major MacDuff – Ageless, Presbyterian.

A tall, lean man, RSM MacDuff also known as "The Rock of Ages" (but
not to his face), is a quiet, abstemious man who abjures strong drink
and profane language. A famous doomsayer, he has survived unscratched
every fight the Regiment has been in for the last thirty years.
Though he follows the Commandant's commands as if they were the word
of God, it is known that he feels Sir. Julian, is too gentle with the
men sometimes. In particularly hard cases, RSM MacDuff has been known
to dish out punishment of his own out of sight. Never seen without his
halberd, he rules the Sergeants mess with an iron fist, though he does
occasionally indulge in a cake of an afternoon and is rather fond of
wearing the kilt given him by Sir Julian last Christmas.

Surgeon-Major Wyndam-Smith 32, Whig.

The second son of a Glasgow coal-merchant, the Surgeon-Major is known
both for his ruthlessness and skill. His sharp tongue is feared by
all and his wit is as sharp as his scalpel. Not liked by the mess as a
whole, Wyndam-Smith is kept by Sir Julian out of respect for his
surgical skills (which are excellent) rather than his company. The
Commandant has however forbidden Wyndam-Smith from indulging his
penchant for experiment, either on men or animals, while he is a
member of the Halbardiers.

Composition of the First Battalion (Service), 46nd Regiment of Foot
(The Royal Corps Of Halberdiers, West Essex Regiment)

Captain-Commandant Sir. Julian West.

There is a vacant majority in the Regiment when Major Gates died of apoplexy.

1 Coy. (Grenadiers) - Cpt. Lennox
2 Coy. – Cpt. Hamilton
3 Coy. – Lt. Willard
4 Coy. – Cpt. Gleig
5 Coy. – Cpt. Newland.
6 Coy. – Lt. Napier
7 Coy. – Lt. Gibbons
8 Coy. - Cpt. Mulgrave
9 Coy. - Cpt. Chatham
10 Coy. (Lights) – Cpt. Casey Cpt.

This company roster will be subject to change as I've recently acquired some better reference material.