Mississippi theatre, part 2
Mississippi theatre, part 2
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The original US plan was to come down by boat, and disembark on the east bank just north of Baton Rouge, and attack that town. That would force whatever British were around to come out and be defeated. However, the savaging they received on the river and the forced landing far upstream of where they wanted to be changed everything. Most of the men landed on the west bank, because it was farming country and easier to move through (and to get supplies from). But the boats were forced ashore along miles of riverbank, and many in places that they didn't want to be. Some of the men landed on the east bank (either to avoid getting smashed – or because they didn't get the change of plan), and some landed north of the Red River/Rio Rojo. So the original invasion plan which planned on 35k troops disembarking in an organized fashion, well supplied and well fed, is out the window. What they have is 20k troops together on the west bank of the Mississippi, with ~10k having been lost/out of action on the way down (some dead/wounded, some deserted, some just stranded upriver), and ~5k in the wrong place (on the wrong bank of either the Rojo or the Mississippi). [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Admittedly some of the men did make it across the Rojo and joined the main body, but steamboats patrolled the Rojo as well as the Mississippi, and crossing those rivers was thus slow and hazardous. Very few made it across the wider, better patrolled Mississippi to the 'correct' side, and not many made it across the Rojo in time. Those that made across later found the west bank stripped of food, and most didn't even attempt to catch up to the main body – they decided they'd stay and help protect the wounded, especially since they wouldn't have caught up to the main body in time. (That's their claim and they're sticking to it.) [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Some of the 10k 'lost' were actually wounded who made it ashore with the rest of the group, but weren't going to be able to march to Baton Rouge, let alone to New Orleans.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Not only were the troops diminished, and disorganized by the forced landings, but the hurried evacuation of men and supplies inland (to avoid the guns of the riverboats which lashed anyone foolish enough to stay on the banks), meant that the supply situation was bad. Instead of having tons of supplies carried in boats, the US force was now almost limited to what its men could carry on their backs. True, a few farm carts were 'requisitioned' during the course of the march, but nothing like what they needed to transport all the supplies needed – especially since they only found 1 cart the first day. Given the situation, General Ripley[1] decided to abandon most of the food and live off the land (as Napoleon's troops had done in Spain, 'requisitioning' food from the locals). The fact that this was really only possible on the west bank was the main reason for changing the bank to land on.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The abandoned food was left with the wounded, with some of the walking wounded left to guard them against hostiles. (These were later joined by some stragglers from the other side of the Rojo.) The rest of the supplies were divvied up and added to the men's backpacks and other loads. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Among the problems discovered when they sorted out supplies was that in the wild haste of fleeing the river's edge under fire, that it had been impossible to properly sort boxes of supplies. Instead, men grabbed what they could grab, and hauled it up the bank and out of range of the riverboat guns. So, when the mountain of salvaged supplies were investigated, there were problems. Some of the ammunition (and food) had gotten wet, most of the supplies had been dragged through mud, and some of the wrong boxes had been grabbed. Only a single artillery piece made it ashore – but, while several cases of ammunition were brought in, it turned out that the ammunition was for the boat guns, not the field artillery piece. They did decide to bring along the cannon, as the boat's grapeshot would be usable, and cannister might be if they sowed new containers. (The ammunition they lack for it is round shot. Which is significant.) The ammunition for the cannon took up most of the load of the one farm cart they found that first day. About 2000 Maceroni rockets were also salvaged, and were added to the loads the soldiers had to carry. (Some men tied them onto their backpacks somehow, and others put them in stretchers and carried 3-4 between a pair of men.)[2][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On the far side of the Mississippi, the 3k men there had similar problems – but had to make different decisions. Because they weren't going to be able to forage nearly as much on that side of the river, the men did pack personal ammunition, but the majority of their load was food. They didn't even attempt to deal with any sort of artillery, neither cannon nor rockets.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The smaller group on the east bank of the river moved faster than the group on the west bank. Although they had rougher terrain to travel, they were a smaller group, they didn't have to deal with artillery or farm carts (which would occasionally get stuck on the muddy paths), and they wanted to reach a source of food before their supplies ran out. They could also cut across in an almost straight line across country rather than following the meandering Mississippi.[3] Thus the small group on the east bank arrived in the Baton Rouge area on the 6th day after landing (January 1), while the group on the west bank arrived 2 days later (January 3).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Meanwhile, British forces arrive, sent up from New Orleans by steamboat, about 5k British regulars along with 7k militia (first and second tier) and some artillery. They joined 3k locals (mostly 3rd tier militia) in the defence of the town. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Because the US attack is two pronged, so must the defence be. The primary threat is coming down the west bank, so more preparation is done there. They choose a place just up river from Baton Rouge, where the cleared land is narrowest and most defensible.[4] Everyone, military and civilian spends the next days digging and building. Although this neck of land is 'narrow', that's a relative term. It's still some 2 miles (3km) wide, and the Brits don't have enough men to cover a 2 mile line of breastworks – nor do they have the time to build that much.[5] Even if they did, the US force could go through the rough country beyond and come at them from behind. So, what they do is build a set of 5 fort-lets (as much a barricade of logs covered with dirt as anything), with a ditch around (where they got the dirt to cover the logs) and men and cannon inside. They only had about a week, so it wasn't terribly elaborate, but it was far better than nothing[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While that work is happening, horsemen are sent out as scouts to track the progress of the two prongs of the US attack. (These are usually locals mounted on their own horses – there are no cavalry units in this defence force.)[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When the (smaller) east bank force is about a day out, General Quincy[6] sends 2 regiments of British regulars and 4 regiments of militia (a total of some 4k men) back to the Baton Rouge side to stop the first lot of Americans. Quincy places the men under the command of Colonel Arthbutnot, and brevets him to the rank of Brigadier-general. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Now. The east bank is rather different to the west bank. This is not nice flat farmable land, although there are scattered farms and even villages. Nor is there any convenient bottleneck there. Colonel Archambault, one of the militia colonels, suggests that they prepare a trap for the on-coming US forces, baiting a small town just north of Baton Rouge with liquor and food, and when the Americans arrive, they will stop and many get drunk. But more to the point, they'll be tied down in one spot and the British force can surround them. With possible panic and probable drunkenness on the US side, the British should be able to defeat them fairly easily. Arthbutnot refuses. He is in command, and the 'proper' way to do battle is to line up in opposing and ranks, and advance, overwhelming the opponent with massed volleys of superior British musketry. 'It is how Wellington won, by God, and it is how I will', he says.[7] He places his men in a line on the projected path of the American force and waits. And waits.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]When the Americans arrive, they see the British force spread out in front of them, in the open. Quickly their commander orders a portion of his men (armed with the Hall rifles) to approach within rifle range, taking advantage of what cover they can find, and splits the rest of his men off to the left and right, to by-pass the British line and possibly keep on going. What this group wants and needs is supplies, and if they can march AROUND the Brits and take Baton Rouge, then they have supplies AND a good defensive position. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arthbutnot is in a quandary now. While the unit in front of him is now within rifle range, they are hard to hit (hiding behind stumps, in shallow hollows, whatever), and they, with their breech-loading Hall rifles can reload while lying down. Whereas his men are standing up, big bright red targets. And about a third of his force is armed with muskets, so they couldn't reach the snipers even if they showed themselves. Moreover, the forces going around his side threaten to turn his wings. He has to pull his men in from the left and the right, bending his lines until they are eventually more of a circle than a line. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]He tries marching forward to attack the skirmishers in front, but they just scoot back to the next piece of cover. He tries marching left to attack the group in that direction, but they just keep out of range – and the group to his right is able to march straighter. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Even worse, as the US forces do turn his wings, he is now subjected to skirmishing fire from snipers in cover from 3 sides, and then 4. Because the US forces stay very spread out, there is no worthwhile target for the cannon he dragged along. Finally, the group in front splits, and heads around, too, but by now the bulk of the US force is between him and Baton Rouge, and while he marches after them, he is slowed both by his cannon and by the continuing, galling sniper fire from the sides. By the time he gets to Baton Rouge, the Americans are holed up in buildings and he doesn't have enough men to do door-to-door street fighting. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Arthbutnot sends across the river for reinforcements, but Quincy doesn't dare give him any, as the main US body is approaching on the other side. Getting units back and forth is also going to be harder with the US holding much of Baton Rouge. By now, it's the 2nd of January and the main US force is only a days march away. Quincy needs all his forces concentrated on the west bank. Once they defeat the main US body (if they do), THEN they can go back and retake Baton Rouge. As is, he orders Arthbutnot back with all his surviving troops. As they come back, they are to bring all the boats they can find in Baton Rouge, so that the east bank Americans can't rejoin their compatriots.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On the morning of the 3rd, the main US body comes around the bend of the river and into sight of the British line of fort-lets. This group could choose to avoid the British force, as the smaller group did, especially by going west into the rough land beyond the farms. But, whereas the east bank, smaller group was primarily concerned with staying alive and resupplying (and has the excuse that taking a significant town is a strategic advantage), the main group really has to attack. The whole point of them being there is to take Louisiana, and they can't do that without defeating the British forces there. Ducking around them would just avoid the issue, and postpone the day to when they have even less ammunition and are more tired. Better to take them on now. They outnumber the British forces 20k to 14k[8], and many of the British force are n****r militia, and the US has the more technically advanced weapons. While the odds aren't nearly as good as they were supposed to have been, the only other options would be to try to return to the States (marching upstream over land they've already picked clean of food), or to surrender.[9][/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Similarly, the British could have avoided action and retreated across the river (clearing out the smaller US force in Baton Rouge in the process). However, if THEY did that, the main US body would be free to keep on marching and plundering. Here, they have as good a defensive position as they could reasonably hope for, they might as well use it.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Now, lets have a look at the US troops who are approaching the British lines. They have spent the last week marching across farm field, carrying and dragging[10] heavy burdens. (They tried to save as much of their supplies as they could.) Walking on plowed fields, even without a load is very tiring, and with occasional rain, the fields were often muddy as well. Occasionally there were paths, but no good roads, and what semi-decent paths there were went the wrong direction. (Why build a road along the Mississippi, when you can use the river?) And, again, some of the paths that did exist in the right direction were right along the river bank (connecting neighbouring houses/farms/villages) and thus were within range of the guns on the patrolling riverboats. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]While they US force managed to requisition enough food from the locals as they travelled, and always managed to find some vaguely dry place to camp each night, the men were exhausted at the end of each day. Marching across plowed fields (even when they're dry) is hard work, and when they're wet, it's horrible. The worst conditions were at the back of the column, where the men had to slog through ground churned up by 20,000 men ahead of them. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On rainy days, the men slipped and fell on the mud, dropping their loads and getting them and themselves covered in a layer of mud. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]On a march like this, latrine/sanitation discipline would have been tough to enforce at the best of times, and these weren't. There wasn't the time or energy to stop and dig latrine trenches every couple of hundred yards along the line of march, so when 'nature called', soldiers would just move off to the side of the line of march and do their business. As the column widened as it went along (men at the back trying to find firmer ground to walk on), which meant the the men at the back were wading through worse than mud. Between that and the erratic water supply (finding clean water for 20k men was impossible), dysentery was soon rampant in the US force. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As usual in hostile territory, guerilla attacks are a significant annoyance. Because this body is 20k strong, here it is only an annoyance, the odd lost sentry, the odd wooding party that wandered too far from the main body. Again, as was necessary elsewhere, sentries were doubled up and wooding parties had to have armed guards. Because ammunition was scarce (only what the men could carry) Ripley ordered that the sentries (only) and wooding parties (mostly) use regular muskets. This was partly to conserve ammunition for the more valuable Hall rifles, and partly because these groups rarely saw an enemy at a distance where the rifle would be useful.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The loss of sentries was not militarily significant, not that many men are lost, but the whole morale problem is huge. Starting with the overoptimistic promises given them ('river boat cruise') through the destruction of the flotilla (even if not than many men died), to the loss of most of their supplies, to the hard slog across farm fields, to the excess of supplies that Ripley insisted be brought along, to the sickness, to the uninspired leadership, to the constant slow loss of stragglers and outliers and sentries. All this meant that when they finally appeared in front of Baton Rouge, this was not the highly trained and motivated group that had set out a couple of weeks ago.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]So, when they sight the British, the US forces organize themselves, and advance. They can see that they outnumber the British forces, and that the British have divided themselves into 5 groups behind round breastworks. This covers the width of the land nicely, and provides defensive protection, but it also separates the individual forces, and invites defeat in detail – or so General Ripley believes.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]To take advantage of the British division of forces, General Ripley orders his men to attack the last fort – the one furthest inland. Ripley designates the forts alphabetically from the shore, so this is position Edward. This is well out of range of the riverboats, and the muskets of all the other fort-lets. It's even at extreme rifle range for the nearest fort. Moreover, Ripley knows how very hard it was to get rifles for his forces, and doesn't believe that the British can have totally equipped their forces with rifles. He is encouraged in this opinion by the fact that all the bushwhackers so far captured (the guerilla war didn't go completely in the British favour) had plain muskets.[11] So he believes he only really has to deal with the one fort, and the odd round shot from the cannon in the farther forts.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]As the US forces start to get within range, they first try launching their Maceroni rockets to soften up the forts. These have, of course, been hauled with great effort from their landing sites, but the conditions of the march were not what the rockets needed. Some had gotten wet (dropped in the water in the scramble to land on the first day), and almost all of them had been dropped in the mud at some point, as the men carrying them slipped and fell. Damp seeped into the rocket fuel, and mud and dirt and other debris got into the engine nozzles. While the worst of it had been cleaned out, sometimes the cleaning effort did more damage than the mud would have.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]In addition to the damp, and foreign bodies in the nozzles, some delicate parts were bent (especially if the rocket had been dropped on rocks instead of mud) or corroded. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The end result was that, when fired, some rockets never budged. Many did fly – but not reliably nor as far, nor necessarily where they were supposed to go. Others hung fire and blew up on the launching rack. This was the first horrible surprise for the US forces. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Then they tried firing their Hall rifles. The wonderful breech-loading guns work very well – in a nice dry training ground environment[12]. Here, they were wet, just like the rockets – or more so, and trying to keep mud and dirt out of the precision mechanism was, at best difficult. Again, with proper daily care, cleaning and oiling, the rifles did OK, and many men found their guns worked fine. But many more men had been too dispirited, too tired at the end of the day, and hadn't taken taken proper care of their guns. So when the US force starts firing at the defenders behind the breastworks, some of the guns won't work. Some almost close – and when the gun fires, blast flashes out of the lock and wounds the soldier in the face – even blinding him. Some guns work fine for a couple of shots and then blind their user on the 5th or 20th shot, or blow up, possibly taking hands as well as face.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Moreover, the ammunition, too, had seen the same abuse, so some of the paper cartridges were (or had been) wet, and fell apart when the soldiers tried to load the guns. Or the gunpowder was wet and didn't go off, meaning the bullet had to be extracted from the gun. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The betrayal of their 'super' weapons coupled with everything else, was a horrible blow to the US forces. The US rate of fire dropped. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Meanwhile, not only is the US force being hit by the occasional round shot from position Alice and Bob (as expected), but Bob, Charles and Debby were firing shrapnel and shells. The defensive artillery fire was far greater than Ripley expected (unconsciously having expected the fire experienced in the last war).[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]The US forces marched toward position Edward, and long before the muskets that most of their men had could fire, the British opened up with massed rifle fire. The Americans were tired, sick and dispirited, and crossing a plowed field. No amount of urging could get them to attack at a run. They advanced slowly and deliberately into fire. From the time the first roundshot hits to the time the men finally hit the round breastworks of position Edward, is about an hour. For the last 15 minutes of that time, they've been hit by withering rifle fire and cannon fire from at least 4 of the 5 forts. There are 2k rifles in the position and each fires some 20-25 rounds in that time[13]. Shell fire and shrapnel also shreds the American advance, but they keep moving – because what else can they do. Finally, the US advance breaks. They've suffered over 50% casualties, just counting the dead and those severely enough wounded they can't continue, their morale has been dropping ever since they landed, and they just can't take it any more. Men start throwing down their guns or turning and fleeing. When the shattered remnants of the British position move forward to take their surrender, they find they have 4k surrendered, 6k dead, 6k badly wounded, and some 4k who fled back the way they came. Of the British forces inside the position, only 500 of the original 2800 are still effectives.[14] [/FONT]
–
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]One reason that the US expected resistance at Baton Rouge to be relatively light was that they had prepared a 5th column revolt. This had two prongs – the first was to get disaffected blacks to rise up against the British, and the second was American and ex-American mostly ex-slave owners who would lead a revolt to return Louisiana to US control. With concerted attacks from the north, the west and from within, the British would not be able to deal with all at once and either be defeated in detail, or if they should happen to be able to concentrate on a single threat, the other two would attack from the rear. 'A cunning plan that cannot fail', as it were.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]We've already discussed the invasion through Tejas, and how that was delayed. The British forces available (for the various fronts in Louisiana) were stronger than the US supposed (mostly because some of the black militia was well trained, and ALL of the black militia was VERY motivated). Also, the revolts fizzled out. The black revolt was supposedly to create a place for blacks to be free of any whites, but most of the blacks weren't stupid enough to believe American promises. Especially since they had intelligence (e.g. black servants of the planters) of the OTHER plot the US had going. As for the pro-US (mostly ex-American planters) plot, it was to be in conjunction with the 2 invasions, and it didn't happen for a couple of reasons. Firstly, reports of the US disaster on the river and the delays of the Tejas campaign scared off some, and secondly, the movement was betrayed from within. (The Governor had a couple of spies in the group; and in addition, some people got cold feet and turned coat when the wheels started to come off the US invasions.) Several of the leaders were rounded up and held in 'protective custody', and the few units that did assemble (leaderless) were arrested with only minimal fighting. (Most of the people in 'protective custody' were released with warnings after the invasion threat was over. Only the ringleaders and those who actually took up arms were treated harshly.)[/FONT]
–
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]1 Ripley is General Eleazar W. Ripley from the previous war. Better as a colonel than as a general, and rather out of his depth in the fiasco this invasion is turning out to be.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]2 I'm assuming these Maceroni rockets are a bit heavier than 32 pound Congreves, but not much more.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]3 once they get inland they follow OTL state highway 66 to US route 61 and down to Baton Rouge (approximately). There is some scattered settlement along this route, but nothing like the solid farmland of the west bank. And some of that settlement may well be much more recent than the time-frame we're talking about. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]4 If you want to see where I'm talking about, enter 30.506377,-91.305124 into Google maps. This is the narrowest bottleneck for several * miles up and down the river.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]5 IF all the soldiers here had been British regulars, they could, perhaps, have formed a line of 2 ranks over that distance, and possibly held (with some to spare for redoubts). On the other hand, if some US soldiers swung around the end of the line there wouldn't have been enough to hold in both directions at once, so there really isn't enough men to hold that line.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]6 Quincy, Arthbutnot and Archambault are all ATL. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]7 Wellington often did line up his men like that and count on the superior speed and training of his musketry. However, a) he took advantage of any fortifications or tricks possible, and b) the speed of fire is now on the US side with the Hall rifles. Arthbutnot's commission is newly bought, as you can imagine, and he's never been at war anywhere before. He has also not considered that most of his force is militia – and while half of it is well trained and can shoot at least 3 volleys a minute, the other half isn't. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]8 the British force is down to 14k, as 1k (mostly from Arthbutnot's 4k) are out of action, either wounded or sick.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]9 Louisiana has 10k British regulars, of which only 5k are here. These are the main group that the US army is worried about, because a) they have undivided loyalty, b) the militia is likely to be kept busy with revolts, and c) much of the Louisiana militia is black, and no American in his right mind expects black troops to be competent. (Especially the troops on this attack, who are mostly from slave states – if black soldiers are as good as white ones, then how can you justify making slaves of them. Since slavery is obviously 'right', they must be poor soldiers.) Thus, instead of seeing the forces as 20k vs 14k, the Americans really view the situation as 20k soldiers vs 5k soldiers and 3k decent militia, with a bunch of warm bodies in the way. If the US had managed to concentrate its full force of 35k here they would have surely beaten the British (although the outcome would have been closer than they counted on). Even if they had been held to a stand-still at Baton Rouge, the US-Mexican force was supposed to blast through any minor opposition and be marching on New Orleans. 75K real soldiers against 10k real soldiers and another 10k decent militia SHOULD have been a walk-over for the US side, especially if many of them were occupied with dealing with an insurrection.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Note that with 5k regulars here and 2k on the Sabine, that leaves 3k for New Orleans and the rest of the province (actually about 3.5k as the first Indian (EIC) regiment has already arrived). Similarly, 10k militia here and 10k at the Sabine leaves about 15k militia in the entire rest of the province, a sizeable chunk of which is 3rd tier and scattered everywhere there's settlement. The British really are scattered desperately thin.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]10 The generals had expected to be able to requisition some carts or wagons. While they did find a few, there weren't as many as expected (the locals had fled with them, mostly), and they weren't as much use as expected without roads. Men are dragging loads on makeshift sleds (often toboggan-like) or on sheets of leather/cowhides. Others have loads on travois, which lessens the drag, depending on the state of the ground. Obviously stuff dragged on the ground is guaranteed to eventually get wet and muddy if the ground is.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]11 not many bushwhackers were captured, and they were all blacks who had been given weapons (muskets) at the last minute as 3rd (or almost 4th) tier militia. The Indians, (very few) whites and better trained blacks who had rifles weren't captured.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]12 compare the Canadian Ross rifles in WWI. They were very good rifles, better than the UK issue ones – IF you were able to keep them properly maintained, which was essentially impossible in the trenches. (Well, or any place that an army might actually be using them in the field. <g>) The smaller group on the east bank had not been hauling so much load, nor been as sick. They managed to keep their rifles clean enough that they didn't have as much of a problem as Ripley's group on the west bank.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]13 the rifles can be fired at 3-4 rounds a minute. This would give 45 shots in the 15 minutes. However, the rifles need to be cleaned, some rifles are picked up by semi-trained musketeers after the original owner died, and by the end, there aren't as many people left alive in the position as there are guns. So, the total volume of fire is only about half of what it could have been.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]14 given that there are 4k Americans who fled, and could conceivably reform; that there are 3k across the river holed up in Baton Rouge, that the British have to deal with literally thousands of wounded soldiers (mostly American, but certainly not all), and that they have to deal with the wounded/laggards camp up by the Rio Rojo as well as another indeterminate number (possibly as many as 1k) stuck on the far side of the Rojo, the British force which is now down to just over 11k effectives (a few hundred were killed/wounded by the Maceroni rockets fired at some of the other positions, mostly 'Debby'), the British are not going to be able to spare much, if any, of this force any time soon now. In particular, they're not going to be available to reinforce the Tejas border.[/FONT]
Yes, both sides can yell “[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Take back what's ours!!”[/FONT]
