Castland Hill in Fife is an odd place for my Cheshire Parliamentarians to start fighting but my club mate Andy has been industrially painting Scots, so this battle seemed like a good way to combine our forces for a game.
The Situation
It is July 1651 and Major General Lambert, with a small English Commonwealth army, has crossed the Firth of Forth to outflank the King Charles II's main army at Stirling. A force of Scottish Royalist troops, under Major General Holborn, have deployed across Lambert's path, in a strong blocking position on the lower slopes of Castland Hill near Inverkeithing. With Scots reinforcements hastily marching to the join his enemy, Lambert decides to attack before it is too late.
The game is played on a 3’ square surface [I actually changed this to 4' when we played as I was having trouble making the 3' board and it seemed very cramped, but that was probably a mistake. The historical battlefield was tight and the lengthened distance reduced time for manoeuvre]. The Scots deploy first and must start within 12” of the northern table edge. The English may deploy up to 12” in from the southern table edge.
Game Length and Turn Order
The scenario lasts 15 game turns. The English go first on each turn.
Victory Conditions
The English must eliminate seven Scottish units and have at least eight units remaining themselves to win. Any unit leaving the field counts as eliminated [If the English can exit one or more cavalry from the north table edge and still win they can brag they have achieved a major victory]. Any other result is a Scottish victory.
The Scots Order of Battle
Leaders
Major General James Holborn of Menstrie
[Holborn's name is spelt many different ways]
Sir John Browne of Fordell
Major General James Holborn's Brigade of Foot
- Sir George Buchannan's (Highland) Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)
- Major General James Holborn’s Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)
- The Master of Gray’s Regiment of Foot (Raw Foot)
Other Foot
- The Marquis of Argyll’s Highland Regiment of Foot (Average Foot)
[It is debatable if Argyll's foot were a significant force at the battle or even present at all. They were an old regiment but reduced to a very small size. They may have been recruited up with levies. We opted to make them average, as a new levy unit stiffened with a good cadre of old veterans]
- The Maclean Highlanders (Raw Highlanders)
[The Macleans have been heavily romanticised since the battle and their numbers are very debatable]
- Colonel Harie Barclay's Regiment of Foot (Raw Foot)
[Barclay's had served as the garrison of Aberdeen, and later Burntisland, but were defeated by the English and may have joined with Holborn.]
Sir John Browne of Fordell's Brigade of Horse
- Lord Brechin’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)
- Sir John Browne of Fordell’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)
- Sir Charles Arnott’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)
- Colonel Walter Scott’s Regiment of Horse (Average Lancers)
Other Horse
- Colonel Augustine Hoffman’s Moss Troopers (Average Lancers)
- The Earl of Balcarres’ Regiment of Horse (Raw Lancers)
Artillery
- a light gun battery (Average Light Gun)
[The Scots artillery is conjectural]
Powder store
D6 Barrels
[These were used to replace out of ammunition results]
The English Order of Battle
Leaders
Major General John Lambert
Colonel John Okey
Colonel Leonard Lytcott
Colonel Robert Overton
English Foot
- Major General John Lambert's Foot - Right wing (Veteran Foot)
- Major General John Lambert's Foot - Left wing (Veteran Foot)
- Colonel George Fenwick's Foot (4 coys) (Veteran Foot)
- Colonel William Daniel's Foot - Right wing (Average Foot)
- Colonel William Daniel's Foot - Left wing (Average Foot)
- Colonel Francis West's Foot (Average Foot)
[West's regiment seems unknown outside of this battle, so may have been an ad-hoc battalion]
- Colonel Edmund Syler's (Lincolnshire) Foot (Raw Foot)
English Horse
- Major General John Lambert's Horse - 1st Squadron (Veteran Ironsides)
- Major General John Lambert's Horse - 2nd Squadron (Veteran Ironsides)
- Colonel John Okey's Horse - 1st Squadron (Average Ironsides)
[Okey's Dragoons fought at Naseby but had only recently converted to being a full horse regiment]
- Colonel John Okey's Horse - 2nd Squadron (Average Ironsides)
- Colonel Leonard Lytcott's Horse - 1st Squadron (Raw Ironsides)
- Colonel Leonard Lytcott's Horse - 1st Squadron (Raw Ironsides)
[Lycott's regiment at Inverkeithing is possibly Hasselrigge's. Lycott had served as a Foot officer in Ireland but was transferred to Scotland in 1650.]
Artillery
- a light gun battery (Average Light Gun)
- a heavy battery (Average Heavy Gun)
[The English captured a number of guns in their landing at North Queensferry and seemed to have used some in the battle.]
Power store
D6 +1 Barrels
[These were used to replace out of ammunition results]
Results
The battle played out quite historically but we made mistakes in the rules and the hill was probably too small, so I won't do a full action report. Here are the Scots looking splendid as they make their last stand though.
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