The Battle of Dungeness, 30th November 1652 - General at Sea.

In the previous post, link below, Capt. Steve picked up the situation that developed after the Battle of Kentish Knock, the subject of his previous refight, and laid out his orders of battle and battle set up for the battle of Dungeness as Blake and Tromp renewed their struggle for control of the English Channel.

 

JJ's Wargames - The Battle of Dungeness, Planning & Preparation

As in the previous games Steve is using General at Sea by Iain Stanford and incorporating as yet unpublished rule updates.

As mentioned in the Planning and Preparation post, Blake's fleet was much reduced since Kentish knock following the relocating of several of his squadrons to the Baltic and Mediterranean under the assumption that the Dutch would be in no immediate position to pose a challenge so soon after their recent defeat.

This decision was to be proved wrong as the resourceful Tromp, who took command of the Dutch fleet, made rapid progress to restore morale and ships to create a force ready and able to challenge the English and escort a Dutch convoy past the Downs, in the December of 1652.

The setup for the game picks up the situation as Tromp tracked Blake's movement along the Kent coast with shoals keeping the two fleets beyond cannon range but now seeing Blake forced to turn south as the the Dungeness headland loomed into view.

With a strong wind from the north-west, Blake had the weather gauge, but with the shorter winter day leaving just eight turns of daylight for the two fleets to conclude matters before darkness would bring any fighting to and end.

Blake's smaller fleet can be seen to the left (note each model stand can represent three to four actual ships as laid out in the orders of battle above) as Dungeness headland looms into view and a fight with the Dutch fleet under Tromp is inevitable, when Blake makes his turn. 

Steve picks up the narrative:

At the end of Turn One and Blake begins to to turn to avoid the shallows off Dungeness headland, whilst Tromp prepares to tack and attack.

Turn One - Blake begins to to turn to avoid the shallows off Dungeness

End of Turn Two and Tromp, Evertsen and de Ruyter tack seeing three Dutch stands fail their tack test, become disrupted, but manage to recover, as Blake speeds up making best use of a beam wind.

 

Turn Two - The Dutch have tacked as the English make best speed with a beam wind.

End of Turn Three and the Dutch close in, beating against the north-west wind, as Blake slows his progress to allow his squadron to close up as he opens fire at long range to no effect.

Turn Three - The English open ineffectual fire at long range.

End of Turn Four and Tromp and his second exchange long range fire with Blake and his leading stand, leaving no damage to the English, but Tromp receives level 1 damage.

Turn Four - Tromp comes of worse in the first exchange of fire between the leading elements of the English and Dutch fleets.

One of de Ruyter's squadron clips the shoals and goes aground.

Turn Four - One of de Ruyter's squadron clips the shoals and goes aground.

End of Turn Five and the fighting intensifies as Blake passes Tromp and turns back in support of his squadron whilst Tromp and his second receive damage in the close range exchanges with Blake's squadron that sees Tromp scattered but able to recover and survive his 'risk to the C-in-C' test.

Turn Five - The fighting intensifies and Tromp and his second receive damage in the close range exchanges with Blake's squadron.

Further along the English line, Lane opens fire at long range but to no effect.

Turn Five - Lane opens fire at long range but to no effect.

End of Turn Six and Tromp is raked by Blake's second and is now at level 2 damage and disrupted, whilst more of Tromp's squadron receive damage as do Everten's as they close the range with Lane.

Turn Six - Tromp is raked by Blake's second and is left at level 2 damage and disrupted, whilst more of Tromp's squadron receive damage as do Everten's as they close the range with Lane.

End of Turn Seven and the rearmost stand of Lane's squadron is raked and broken through by de Ruyter, but other Dutch stands fail to break through, having now been raked as they came into contact.

Turn Seven - The fighting around Lane's squadron leaves his rearmost stand raked and broken through by de Ruyter.

Blake breaks through a Dutch stand as he returns to aid his squadron.

Turn Seven - Blake keeps up the pressure as he breaks through a Dutch stand and returns to the fight around his squadron.

End of Turn Eight and the stand at the rear of Lane's squadron is raked again and left at level 2 damage and disrupted is only just holding on. However Tromp is taking a battering from Blake as Floriszoon's squadron finally comes to his rescue.

Turn Eight - Lane's rearmost stand is raked again and left at level 2 damage and disrupted, whilst Tromp is taking a battering from Blake.

Both fleets were firing away for all they were worth as darkness fell and night brought the game to an end.

Steve's assessment of the fight:

Tromp managed to bring his numbers to bear but the Dutch were finding it hard to damage the more powerful English ships, even at close range, with their best prospect being to overwhelm the smaller English hired merchantmen at the rear.

Thank you to Steve for a very entertaining exploration of some of the key battles of the First Anglo-Dutch War with his lovely collection of models, and I know he is contemplating how to produce some games for the Second and Third Wars as well as an idea around using his respective fleets as stand-ins for some Baltic Wars action between the Swedes and Danes.

So hopefully we will see some more 17th century naval action with General at Sea here on JJ's. In the meantime, I've been off on my travels and will be picking back up on the career of one of England's and Britain's greatest admirals, Robert Blake, when I visit the scene of one of his greatest victories, recorded by his opponents as a defeat.

As always, more anon.

JJ

The Battle of Dungeness, 30th November 1652, Game Plan and Preparation - General at Sea.

In the previous posts Capt. Steve presented the Battle of Kentish Knock fought in the September of 1652, links below, and in this post he picks up the narrative of the naval struggle between the English and Dutch for dominance in the English Channel and security for their respective merchant fleets with the next round, namely the battle fought off Dungeness the following November and the next round of the duel between Blake and Tromp.

JJ's Wargames - The Battle of Kentish Knock, Planning & Prep.
JJ's Wargames The Battle of Kentish Knock, AAR

Steve picks up the narrative of the background to the battle and his plans to refight it.

'After Kentish Knock, the Council of State thought that the Dutch would take time to recover and made the mistake of dividing Blake’s fleet to provide squadrons for the Baltic and the Mediterranean. Blake was left with a much-reduced fleet to guard the Downs.

Meanwhile, Tromp had taken charge of the defeated Dutch fleet and restored its size, morale and cohesion so that by December it was ready to escort an enormous merchant convoy down the Channel. 

Greatly outnumbered, Blake left the Downs – possibly remembering how Tromp had destroyed a Spanish fleet there in 1639 – and tried to escape to the southwest, along the Kent coast.

Both fleets raced each other, separated by shoals and thus out of range, until the headland of Dungeness forced Blake to alter course into the path of Tromp, who then turned north to meet him.

It was a short winter day, and as action began in the afternoon, there will be a maximum 8 turns before nightfall. There was a strong wind, and the geography was vital as the headland and the shoals created a funnel into which the English had to enter. 

The game planner shows Steve's original thoughts for the setup for this battle, but after an initial playtest decided to have the respective fleets set further back from the Dungeness point to allow Tromp to have more chance to bring his numbers to bear in the fight, and is illustrated in the picture below of the two fleets arrayed for battle.

Only the leading units of both sides fought each other, and it was noted that the hired merchant ships of both sides, often captained by the owners, were reluctant to engage. Blake was lucky to escape back to Dover, whilst Tromp preceded down the Channel with his convoy.

The revised setup sees the respective fleets deployed off Dungeness in readiness for the next battle report using General at Sea.

Blake dismissed several of his captains, including his own brother, and with Sir Henry Vane set about the series of reforms that would transform the English navy, ready for the return match in the following year when Tromp returned to the Channel with another convoy.'

In the next post covering the AAR of Steve's refight I'll pull together Steve's account of the action and his pictures of the game.

As always more anon.

JJ

All at Sea - Far Distant Ships, Chance Cards

 

As regular followers of the blog will know, the last few years of my wargaming hobby has been centred around age of sail gaming with a theme around producing large naval battles for the tabletop using 1:700 models in the Grand Manner.

These battles have included three games of Trafalgar with seventy-three models on the table and Camperdown with some fifty models, and a set of rules that greatly facilitates fighting battles of this size is Far Distant Ships (FDS) by David Manley.

The rules provide just the right amount of granularity that produces all the narrative to the drama on the table as it unfolds, whilst placing the tabletop commanders firmly in the role of a senior admiral rather than one of the seventy three captains,  and they are a rule set I'm very happy to commend to others looking to do something similar.

That said I am part of a generation of wargamers who are inveterate adopters, adaptors, and improvers, and I have never used a set of rules yet without rewriting bits of them or adding house rule adaptions here and there, part of which saw me rewriting FDS to work with the larger 1:700 models I wanted to use, which the rules facilitate excellently, along with a few other additions that caused me to have my own copy of them for use with my games and as references for the players.

One such addition was the adoption of an idea produced by Alan Butler for his rules Grand Fleet Actions in the Age of Sail, namely a set of chance cards which he put together for his rules that he used in his own Trafalgar game back in 2005.

The Trafalgar refight at NWS Yeovilton 2025

Grand Fleet Actions were supplied by A&A games via Wargames Vault up until very recently and Alan provided a set of these cards in PDF format to go with his rules, and I simply used them with changes for use with FDS and found they worked very well in adding to the historic narrative in both Trafalgar and Camperdown games; with the most recent game of Trafalgar fought at the NWS Yeovilton last year seeing the card play result in the death of Nelson and the wounding of Collingwood, following the actual events unerringly.

Since those games I have reported on here on JJ's, I have had enquiries about getting a copy of the Chace Cards and so if you would like them in PDF format produced for Far Distant Ships you can use the link to my files, under Resources and Downloads, as illustrated, and I will reply back to open access to them for you.

You will get a simple PDF that has some basic instructions for printing each card with a back and front that are easily reproduced on light card and folded back to back to produce the cards of which there are ten and requiring three copies to produce a deck of thirty cards.

I hope they add fun to your own games. 

In the meantime Carolyn and I are off on our travels again and I hope to bring you another interesting 'JJ's on Tour' historically themed post from another part of the world yet again illustrating what a fun hobby historical wargaming is no matter where in the world we may be.

JJ

The Battle of Kentish Knock, 28th September 1652 - General at Sea.

 

In the previous post to this one Capt. Steve laid out his plans to refight the Battle of Kentish Knock, using General at Sea, together with links to the background to this battle, and his orders of battle for the respective fleets, see the link below for that post.

JJ's Wargames - The Battle of Kentish Knock, Planning and Preparation

In the wake of the Battle of Goodwin Sands on the 19th May 1652, which Steve played in November last year, and a summer of failed initiatives and significant fleet losses due to storms in the North Sea, political pressure from his opponents, who criticized his management of the war, forced Lieutenant-Admiral Maarten Tromp’s resignation, and he was replaced as commander of the Dutch fleet by Vice-Admiral Witte Corneliszoon de With.

Vice-Admiral Witte Corneliszoon de With.

The appointment was unpopular because de With was a republican whereas most of the fleet were Orangist in sympathy, and this fact together a fearsome reputation for severity likely caused the officers and crew of Tromp's old flagship the Brederode to refuse to allow de With to move his flag to it, forcing him to use the East Indiaman Prins Willem as his flagship instead.

The Brederode off Hellevoetsluis - Simon de Vlieger
Two Dutch warships are shown off Hellevoetsluis, together with other shipping. On the left is a vice-admiral's flagship, in port and stern view, flying the Dutch flag. The principal ship on the right is probably the 'Brederode', shown in port and stern view. Built in 1645, she was Maarten Tromp's flagship, in which he was killed at the Battle of Scheveningen in 1653.

Having no experience of the superiority of English firepower, de With's strategy was more aggressive than Tromp's, and thus against the advice of his officers, he decided to confront the English fleet and attempt to clear it from the Straits of Dover in order to safeguard the Channel for Dutch commerce. 

Battle sites from the First Anglo-Dutch War in the English Channel and North Sea, showing the position of the battle of Kentish Knock fought in 1652.

After joining forces with de Ruyter's squadron, the Dutch fleet of about sixty-two ships set sail from Schoonveld on 25th September to seek out the English.

A possible depiction of the battle of Kentish Knock by Abraham Willaerts (detail)
with the powerful Sovereign on the left

General-at-Sea Robert Blake's fleet of sixty-eight ships, including the powerful 90-gun Sovereign (formerly named Sovereign of the Seas ) and the 80-gun Resolution (formerly the Prince Royal ) was stationed at the Downs anchorage when de With sailed to confront it. 

General-at-Sea Robert Blake

The most powerful Dutch ships were de With's flagship Prins Willem (56-guns) and Tromp's former flagship the Brederode (54-guns). As soon as it set sail, the Dutch fleet ran into storms which continued for several days, and the Dutch were obliged to ride out the rough weather in the open sea, which scattered their fleet and damaged several ships. 

Steve's summary of the two fleets as represented in the game. Bearing in mind
that General at Sea models three to four actual ships represented by a model
stand, a more detailed order or battle showing the ships represented by each
 model stand can be found in the Prep & Planning post for this game, linked above.

On the 28th September, when the weather moderated, Blake transferred his flag from the powerful but unwieldy Sovereign to the more manoeuvrable Resolution and ordered his ships to put to sea; and the English fleet sailed north out of the Downs to confront the Dutch near the Kentish Knock, a sandbank in the Thames Estuary.

In the pictures below Steve has the English and Dutch fleets arrayed for battle as laid out in the scenario plan above - let battle commence!

The English squadrons of Blake and Penn are seen here heading north at full sail to engage whilst the daylight holds, but their speed means they are unable to take regular soundings and are thus unaware of the shoal ahead. Note Rear Admiral Nehemiah Bourne's squadron is off table to the south.

The Dutch fleet are arrayed in the their traditional formation with squadron leaders being supported on their flanks and rear to facilitate their board and burn tactics, and on a westerly heading, beating into wind.

Turns 1 & 2

Blake has the initiative in Turn 1 and moves first, which sees Penn's stand run aground as expected, but surprisingly the Sovereign does not. In the meantime the Dutch advance at their best speed into wind, but the end of the turn leaves both fleets out of engagement range.

Penn's squadron heaves to and begins to drift downwind (away from camera), as Blake's squadron sails past whilst the Dutch close.

At the end of Turn 2, Penn's squadron heaves to and begins to drift downwind (away from camera), seeing Penn's stand managing to get off the shoal but leaving it disorganised, as Blake's squadron sails past as the Dutch close.

Admiral Sir William Penn - Peter Lely
Sir William Penn (1621–1670) was a prominent English admiral and politician
 who played a key role in the navy during the English Civil War, Commonwealth,
and Restoration, notably capturing Jamaica in 1655.
He was a highly successful commander in the Anglo-Dutch Wars
and father to William Penn, the founder of Pennsylvania.

Turn 3

Battle commences as Penn's squadron remains hove to whilst his command stand recovers from disruption following the grounding, covered by Blake's squadron which has opened fire at long range, to no effect.

Blake's squadron opens long rang fire on the approaching Dutch and covers his comrade, Vice Admiral William Penn, as he recovers his disruption from the grounding on the sandbank, whilst the rest of his squadron is hove to.

Turn 4

As the lead ships of Rear Admiral Nehemiah Bourne's squadron enter the table from the south east, De Ruyter can be seen tacking his squadron south, that left him with two stands disrupted, but seeing him manage to recover his own.

Rear Admiral Nehemiah Bourne's squadron enter the table from the south east, as De Ruyter can be seen tacking his squadron south.

Blake opens fire again at de With, but again with no effect, as Penn gets control of his squadron and alters course to fall in behind Blake.

Turn 5 

De With has tacked but three stands in his squadron are disrupted by the manoeuvre. Ineffective long range fire continues between the two forces, as de Ruyter and Evertsen begin to converge on Bourne's leading stands.

De With has tacked but three stands in his squadron are disrupted by the manoeuvre, this as de Ruyter and Evertsen begin to converge on Bourne's leading stands.

Turn 6

The combat becomes general across the two fleets, as Bourne's leading stand can be seen (top centre right) having turned to starboard with the wind and raked one of de Ruyter's lead stands, causing a 'level 1' damage, but seeing it recover from the disruption.

Meanwhile Penn has turned his squadron to commence a flank attack on de With, as Blake turns in parallel to attack de With's rear.

Bourne's leading stand can be seen having turned to starboard with the wind and raked one of de Ruyter's lead stands, causing a 'level 1' damage.

Turn 7

The battle becomes fierce between de With and the now combined attack by Penn and Blake with the former delivering and receiving disruptions in a close exchange of broadsides, seeing both sides recover, but leaving one stand in de Wildt's squadron badly mauled by Blake.

Turn 7 and the battle has become general as Blake nearer to camera mauls a stand in de Wildt's squadron, as the exchanges intensify between de With and Penn in the centre of the picture and top left between de Ruyter, Evertsen and Bourne.

Ahead of the fight between de With, Penn, the clash between De Ruyter, Evertsen and Bourne intensifies as raking attacks cause further level 1 damage effects and disruptions to both sides.

Turn 8

One of de Wildt's stands is scattered by the fierce attack by Blake, but the squadron manages to pass its reaction test. In support of Blake, Penn presses his attack by stern raking de With leaving the Dutch commander disrupted. 

De Wildt's scattered stand, centre, is battered into submission by the big English ships under Blake as Penn, in the centre of the picture, bores in on the stern galleries of de With raking and disrupting the Dutch C-in-C. Top left, the other fierce close contest is well underway between Bourne, Evertsen and de Ruyter.

Bourne is now closely engaged by de Ruyer and Evertsen that has caused several stands to become damaged and disrupted.

A fierce battle has developed between Bourne, Evertsen and de Ruyter with shot splashes and wreckage markers indicating the damage and disruption to both sides caused by the close exchanges and rakes.

Turn 9

The battering of de Wildt's squadron by Blake reaches a climax as the Dutch squadron is taken apart, seeing his scattered stand forced to surrender, and his command stand disrupted and damaged.

De Wildt's squadron has been battered by Blake forcing his scattered stand to surrender, and leaving his command stand disrupted and damaged.

Meanwhile the struggle between Bourne, Evertsen and de Ruyter continues with the ferocity of the previous turns but revealing the smaller Dutch ships struggling to harm their larger English opponents.

Fierce exchanges continue between  Bourne, Evertsen and de Ruyter, but the smaller Dutch ships are struggling to inflict significant damage to their larger English opponents.

Turn 11

It's the end for de Wildt's squadron as his own command stand is scattered and so is his squadron.

The end for de Wildt's squadron, and the firing has ceased, as his own command stand is scattered and so is his squadron which is now keen to break contact.

However the Dutch fight on, just, as Evertsen manages to cause one of Bourne's stands to scatter and then surrender.

Evertsen manages to cause one of Bourne's stands to scatter and then surrender, seen here amid shot splashes and wrecked rigging, and surrounded by Dutch men-of-war.

Turn 12

With the collapse of de Wildt's squadron, the Dutch are in full retreat east and home, pursued by the jubilant English, who have recovered their surrendered stand.

Nightfall comes to the aid of the Dutch fleet as it breaks contact in the dark and limps home.

Here are Steve's observations on his re-fight of the Kentish Knock:

Overall, a historical result. De With’s change of course to attack Bourne went well at first but the Dutch ships were unable to damage the English. At one point an English stand was surrounded by four Dutchmen but its DF value of 10 outweighed their individual BF values of 8 and less.

Penn was very lucky. His stand grounded but got free the next turn whilst the Sovereign did not go aground at all. However, he could not get the Sovereign into action because she was blocked by other stands.

De With was unable to make use of his fireships because of several factors: 

• the English were upwind and fireships cannot be sent directly into the wind; 
• the English were undamaged and fireships are only really effective against damaged stands;
• and finally not enough command points to initiate a fireship attack.

Now for Dungeness.

Thankyou to Steve for an enthralling game and the pictures he sent me to accompany the report, I hope like me you enjoyed the read.

The Battle of Dungeness is 30 November 1652

In the next Anglo-Dutch War post Steve will look at the planning and preparation for Dungeness, the fleet listings together with another post battle report.

As always, more anon.

JJ