Cossacks

[gloriousbattle]

Cossacks get a very bad rap in a lot of Napoleonic rules, but I seem to remember some Napoleonic big shot (Caulaincourt?) saying that they were the best light cavalry in the world.

Curious how others think about this.  They are probably not great as "charge the guns and break the squares" cavalry, but that was not their job.  OTOH, they probably accounted for more French dead in the Russian Invasion than any other single force except General Winter.

[gloriousbattle]

By the way, here

http://languagelab.bh.indiana.edu/russian_archive_music.html

is some excellent music for warfare in the land of Marshal Winter.  Check out especially, the Red Army Ensemble singing "They Are Valiant".  Also "Song About Schors" and, of course "Katyusha".

Dobridnyev Tovarishchi!

[Greystreak]

You are quite correct, GB; most Napoleonics rules are focussed on 'set-piece' battles involving formed units of 'regular' troops, whereas the Cossacks forté was the pre- or post-battle screening, pursuit, and 'recon' function, at which they excelled.  I've recently finished another reading of Alex & Yurri Zhmodikov's Tactics of the Russian Army in the Napoleonic Wars (Vols. I-II), published by George Nafziger in 2003, and their texts are full of many documented examples where, in various 'encounter', pursuit, and rear-area raiding actions, the Cossacks routinely made 'monkeys' out of formed enemy units, and routinely punched well above their weight in terms of casualties inflicted vs. received.

[gloriousbattle]

You are quite correct, GB; most Napoleonics rules are focussed on 'set-piece' battles involving formed units of 'regular' troops, whereas the Cossacks forté was the pre- or post-battle screening, pursuit, and 'recon' function, at which they excelled.  I've recently finished another reading of Alex & Yurri Zhmodikov's Tactics of the Russian Army in the Napoleonic Wars (Vols. I-II), published by George Nafziger in 2003, and their texts are full of many documented examples where, in various 'encounter', pursuit, and rear-area raiding actions, the Cossacks routinely made 'monkeys' out of formed enemy units, and routinely punched well above their weight in terms of casualties inflicted vs. received.

Thanks for the citation, I'll have a look at that!