Battle of Bulls Gap

 Battle of Bulls Gap

Commands & Colors Napoleonic Epic

The Knoxville army of the West has orders to take the battle to the enemy. When the commanders scouts tell him they have spotted yet another Kingsport army coming from the east he heads that direction up route eleven.

    Greene’s army of Kingsport also has scouts out and have seen how large the Army of the West.  The commander knowing he needs an edge begins a cat and mouse retreat up route 11 towards the Kingsport territorial line.  There is a ridge that over looks the north side of route 11 just before Bulls Gap.  The plan is to use the ridge to drive back the Army of the West but if there is a loss Greene’s army can slip across the border and wait for reenforcements.

    Greens’s Army commander’s luck holds and as the weather starts to get bad his army makes it to the ridge and the enemy appears moving along the road.  Because of the weather the army of the West launches an attack from line of march but no one from Greene’s army wants to leave the ridge line so there is space and time to do things right.
    The opening moves were done by cavalry.  Knoxville wanted to make sure route 11 stayed open if the army needed to retreat and Kingsport wanted to close the route to make a retreat harder.  Knoxville cavalry moves out fast and struck the Kingsport cavalry with force but in the end Kingsport came out just a little a head and that seems to be how the whole battle would go.  

    The army of the West surged forward with the center and right flank driving hard to get to grips with the enemy.  Kingsport held their ground and though they took casualties they did just enough to hold the Knoxville line at bay.  Kingsport’s left flank suffered terribly and would be driven back but would do just enough to hold.
    It now became a back and forth.  Knoxville would storm forward and Kingsport because they held the ridge would end up holding but it was costing them a lot.  In the center Knoxville sent their elite grenadiers forward in the face of bitter cannon fire.  Their leaders pushing them to keep moving.  Horses were shot out from under colonels who led from the front.  Colonel Milard from the newly formed Riverhawk Grenadiers was killed in one tragic assault.
    Now came what would prove to be the thing that decided the battle.  Kingsport saw a chance and took it in a cavalry charge the destroyed two units of light cavalry and drove a third off the field.  This now imperiled the Army of the West retreat path and as the weather closed in it was decided to withdrawal then to have the army lost.  Orders were given to disengage and to move back down the road.

    This was a grinding battle and there was not much left of the Kingsport force.  Knoxville was slowly making head way but as extended as the army was it was better to fall back and fight another day.

Greene’s army losses
Newport Rifles - complete loss
Greenville line - 50% losses
1st Jefferson City - line 50% losses
Erwin Dragoons - complete loss

Army of the West losses
Riverhawk Grenadiers - lost their colonel and 50% losses
Knoxville 1st & 2nd line 50% losses and lost their colonel
Ice Bear Grenadiers 33% losses
Tazewell Line 33% losses
Maynardville Dragoons - total loss
Knoxville Hussars - 50% losses