Battle of Hampdon Street

Battle of Hampdon Street
Part of War of the Vionnan Coalition
Date 9th-11th March 1852 Location Hampdon Street Hopefield, Kingdom of Oxbridge Result Decisive Imperial Victory
Belligerents
Vionna-Frankenlisch	Vionnan Coalition Kingdom of Oxbridge Kingdom of Ballaeter Duchy of Saxondale
Commanders and leaders
Lord Lynwood Lord Richmond	Richard II Alexander III George II
Strength
167,000 men, 328 guns	148,000 men, 108 guns 68,000 men 60,000 men 20,000 men
Casualties and losses
10,241	Heavy, assumed around 18,000

The Battle of Hampdon Street was a major battle of the War of the Vionnan Coalition, taking place in the Oxbridge Campaign of 1852. It began on the 9th of March, 1852 and lasted until the 11th. It was the first major battle in 1852. Hampdon Street, an old Ceasian road which ran through much of the Kingdom of Oxbridge, is the main namesake of the battle but some historians have dubbed it the Battle of Hopefield or the Battle of the Three Kings.

The combined Imperial Army and Army of Vionna, under the joint command of Lord Horatio Lynwood and Lord Howard Richmond, fought and defeated the Vionnan Coalition army of the King of Oxbridge, the King of Ballaeter and the Duke of Saxondale. 167,000 Imperial soldiers with overwhelming artillery support took nine thousand casualties and defeated the combined Vionnan armies of 148,000 men and under a third of the Imperial guns. The battle involved very famous events in Imperial history, such as the Charge of the King's Division.

Background

Terrain

When looking at the Battle of Hampdon Street it is imperative to look at the terrain that the battle was fought on. It can be described most simply as 'sloped' or 'hilly' but these descriptions do not do the field justice. The main battlefield was in the middle of a valley with both sides deployed on either slope. There was, however, another valley which Hampdon Street travelled through which crossed through the main one at two different points. The main valley will be known as the central valley and the Hampdon Street valley will be known as the south valley at the point where it intersected the Imperial line and the north valley at the point where it intersected the Coalition line. This is in spite of the fact that such directional labels are geographically incorrect; the north valley is, in fact, to the west and the south valley is to the east of the central valley.

A crude sketch made by General Kilrain and sent to Lord Lynwood to inform him on the battlefield before his forces arrived.

Opposing Forces

Further information: Order of Battle

Imperial

The Army of Vionna, commanded by Lord Howard Richmond numbered 43,000 men and 72 guns. It was made up of experienced militiamen organised into two Corps.

• First Reserve Corps, commanded by Lt.Gen Jasper Tannenbray, with divisions commanded by the Earl of Clare, Maj.Gen Lord Francois de Omond, Maj.Gen Sir William Turrell and Maj.Gen Cornelius Weston.
• Second Reserve Corps, commanded by Lt.Gen Sir George Cosmo Pennington, with divisions commanded by Maj.Gen Archie Ashton, Maj.Gen Bartholomew Kaylock, Maj.Gen Sir Alden Watson and Maj.Gen Sir Ian Brice.

The Imperial Vionna-Frankenlischian Army, commanded here by Lord Horatio Lynwood numbered 124,000 men and 256 guns. It was made up of regular troops organised into three corps.

• I Corps, commanded by the Viscount Eldham, Edward Fawkes.
• II Corps, commanded by the Earl of Lopenfort, Hector Gallagher.
• III Corps, commanded by Lt.Gen Thomas Kilrain.
• X Division, commanded by Col. Wentworth Weston. Weston took command of the First Brigade of the division following the death of its commander at the Battle of Clausbrücken, he took command of the division following Major General La-Minnings' death at the Battle of Glaenarm.

First Day of Battle

Imperial Arrival

Following the Siege of Hardyng, the Imperial Army's two main forces, the Army of Vionna and the Royal Army were ordered, by Parliament, to rejoin in the Kingdom of Oxbridge and strike a decisive blow to end the war. Lord Lynwood and Lord Richmond commanded their combined forces, numbering in total almost 170,000 men, to come by separate roads and combine at Doveberg, where the old Ceasian highway known as Hampdon Street ended. The area is very hilly and marked with valleys. At the head of the Imperial Army, just over a dozen miles ahead of the preceding forces, were elements of the III Corps and the newly reinforced 10th Division. This meant that, by eleven o'clock on the 9th of March, two full divisions of infantry and two full divisions of cavalry were on the field, as were four batteries of guns numbering 32 in total. Along with this force were two surplus brigades from the II Corps.

The Imperial force arrived at the site where the battle would be fought at almost exactly eleven and Lieutenant General Kilrain, who commanded III Corps, was at that point in overall command. He noted, with extreme worry, the superiority in guns and men that the Coalition forces possessed at that point. Kilrain's forces were outnumbered by just over a hundred thousand men and outgunned by just over three times. When Kilrain arrived, he found that the Coalition forces were already deploying opposite his advancing column, with no other way to get to Doveberg, Kilrain ordered his men to deploy for battle, hoping that the other forces of the Imperial Army would arrive soon to reinforce him.

Kilrain's map, crudely edited to show troop positions. Imperial units are in purple. The vague positions of the Oxbridgens are in red, Saxoners in brown and Ballaetans in Blue

Coalition Arrival

Coalition scouts from the Oxbridgen and Ballaetan armies had been tracking the Imperial Army for days, ever since the Siege of Hardyng ended. With reports of Imperial movements coming in almost daily, the commanders of the combined Coalition forces quickly came to the conclusion that the target of the Imperial advance was Doveberg and, from there, Oxbridge itself. The King of Ballaeter and the King of Oxbridge rallied their forces at Merrick's Bridge and, there, they were joined by the Duke of Saxondale and his twenty thousand men on the last day of February.

With their forces combined, the Coalition marched quickly past Doveberg and down Hampdon Street. On the 9th of March, in the early morning, King Alexander of Ballaeter's scouts reported an advancing Imperial column ahead of the Coalition force. The Coalition army quickly marched against them and formed up for battle on the western slope of a large valley, through which flowed Hampdon Street. By 11am, 72,000 Coalition men were on the field, with the rest of the army mere hours away. Twelve-thousand Ballaetan troops formed the weaker left flank of the Coalition army. King Richard's Oxbridgen troops, 40,000 strong, formed the centre, in and around the North Valley. Duke George's Saxoners were 20,000 strong and made up the right flank of the Coalition force.

First Shots

The first shots of the battle were fired at exactly 11:01, according to the testimony of Captain Matthew Robertson, who claimed to have fired them. Robertson, an artillery officer in the 8th Battery, Imperial Artillery, testified that General Kilrain recognised that the Oxbridgen troops in the centre represented the greatest threat and ordered the thirty-two guns that had been deployed to concentrate their fire on the centre of the Coalition line. Kilrain's intention was to keep the Oxbridgens pinned and prevent them from advancing as they would expose themselves even more to the Imperial gunfire. Robertson checked his watch and, noting the time as one minute past eleven, fired the first gun personally.

The Coalition artillery, numbering 51 guns deployed, returned fire immediately. General of Division, Archibald MacElford, was a Ballaetan general and commanded the combined Coalition artillery at Hampdon Street. MacElford himself claimed that the time was 11:07 when he ordered his guns to fire. The howitzers and cannon of the Coalition army concentrated their fire on the Imperial right flank, where only two brigades were positioned. Unaware of the position of the King's Own Division in the South Valley, the Coalition commanders planned to end the battle quickly by advancing against Kilrain's weak right and rolling up the line, outflanking the Imperial army. The Imperial Sixth Division took a heavy pounding in the resulting barrage but were prevented from retiring by Kilrain who could not weaken his right by moving the infantry. He could not reinforce the Sixth Division either, as he had only two other divisions and each one was already overstretched.

At 11:30, following a swift ride, Lord Lynwood arrived on the field of battle. He brought with him a force of only three brigades of infantry as the rest of the army was trailing behind under Lord Richmond's oversight. Lynwood placed a brigade of the 2nd Division on the left flank and another in the centre. He placed the third brigade of the Sixth Division with the rest of the Sixth on the right. Lynwood, too, recognised the issue presented by his weak left flank which could be easily outflanked by the Ballaetans or the Oxbridgens. He decided to deploy the King's Own Division forward and placed a battalion of the 36th (Royal Glynmoran) Foot behind the King's Own Division.

Charge of the King's Division

Main Article: Charge of the King's Division

Lynwood sent an order to Edward Forrest, the Duke of Larkinge, who commanded the King's Own Division. The order was carried by Lieutenant Arthur Golding of the Duke of Glynmoran's Own Lancers and read: "Lord Lynwood requests that the King's Own Division of Cavalry should advance forward into the valley. Keep the Oxbridgen and Ballaetan enemy in position and, if considered practicable, carry away his guns. Infantry is in position to support, as is divisional horse artillery." Golding returned to Lord Lynwood before recieving a reply from Lord Larkinge. Forrest did not understand the order, from his position in the south valley, Forrest could not even see the Oxbridgen army and had no idea what he was facing, the vagueness of the order confused him and the infantry was not yet in position, leaving Forrest in wonder whether or not he should wait. A second order was sent with the hotheaded Captain Henry Fielding of the 4th Royal Hussars, this one was even more vague: "Lord Lynwood wishes the King's Own cavalry to advance rapidly against the right flank, frighten and pin the enemy, and if possible carry the outer batteries. Divisional horse artillery may accompany. Infantry is to your rear and to your left. Immediate." Fielding, however, misinterpreted the order and gave Forrest the further oral instruction that the division was to attack. When asked which position he was to attack by Forrest, Fielding simply pointed at the opening of the North Valley, down which half of the Oxbridgen army was deployed.

Lord Larkinge led the charge himself, leading with the Light Brigade in front and the Heavy Brigade behind. The Light Brigade led by General Percival Spencer and the Heavy commanded by the Earl of Barclay. The urgency with which Fielding delivered the orders convinced Lord Larkinge that Lynwood's flank was already in danger and he advanced without his horse artillery and without waiting for the infantry. As the Division neared the opening of the South Valley, Fielding seemed to realise his mistake and rode forward, passing in front of Lord Larkinge and seeming to be trying to raise General Spencer's attention. The Oxbridgen guns then began firing ranging shot and the first shell burst in air and killed Captain Fielding with shrapnel. Cornet Morris of the 3rd Lancers testified that none but those in the front line of his regiment could have seen what happened to Fielding.

The division passed through the central valley, recieving only light fire from the outer batteries, and wheeled right to enter the North Valley. The rest of the Oxbridgen guns then began to fire on the advancing division. As the fire intensified, General Spencer ordered his trumpeter to sound the charge but he had already been killed, a trumpeter of the 4th Hussars sounded the charge instead. Both the Light and Heavy Brigades were torn to rags by cannon on the flanks and to the front. The division reached the Oxbridgen guns in the centre of the valley and killed many gunners, engineers and infantry, however, as the charge was made with such urgency, nobody had brought along equipment to spike the guns. A counterattack by the Oxbridgen First Cavalry Division, commanded by the Earl of Cathcart, saw the King's Own division away. The retreating division took further casualties on the retreat as the Oxbridgen guns continued firing. 524 men were killed and 650 wounded, totalling 1174 casualties from a division of 2,500.

Following the charge, Lord Lynwood and the Imperial staff were too shocked to continue on the offensive. Lynwood ordered pickets and skirmishers forward and called back the divisions to sheltered positions. An artillery duel continued for the rest of the day but the Coalition commanders did not order any advance, preferring to wait for the rest of their forces to arrive.

Second Day

The Second day opened with loud celebration and cheering from the Imperial positions as two divisions of infantry arrived ahead of Lord Richmond's main force. The Third and Fourth Divisions took up positions between the Ninth and Sixth Divisions. The cheering garnered the attention of the Coalition long-range guns which began firing on the advancing divisions but most shots went short, minimal casualties were taken by the Imperials as they positioned themselves. At 8:30am, the Coalition commanders met in a war council and planned the day's battle. Thoroughly convinced by the disastrous charge by the Imperial cavalry the previous day that they could remain safely on the defensive, the Coalition leadership decided to set their forces to work entrenching themselves on the higher ground. With just over seventy-thousand men on the field and more arriving swiftly, they expected to retain numerical superiority throughout the battle. The Ballaetan forces of Horatio MacTavish and the Marquis of Tevetdale numbering a total of 48,000 men had yet to arrive, as had 20,000 Oxbridgen troops. The remnants of the Saxoner field army were also expected but had become bogged down in heavy skirmishing with the newly-formed Imperial 4th Corps, denying the Coalition the reinforcement of 24,000 experienced soldiers and forty heavy guns.