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| An evening in Plymouth with 10,000 of your closest sober friends. |
The Prince of Wales is currently based in Plymouth, riding through town to quell the unrest unleashed by Plymouth's tavern running out of booze.
Situation
Things have had a turn for the worst in July as the beer shortage triggered brawls throughout the location. Stern discipline was distributed the following morning as ordered. Unfortunately, local loyalties got in the way and discipline was not exacted uniformly. On the following night, the Prince of Wales ordered the Welsh spearmen to break the brawls in town. Desperate attempts to find lodging out of town were unsuccessful, exceptional attempts to source beers from other shires also were futile. The civilians in Plymouth are asking for protection from the Sheriff, but the castle is already overfull with knights and nobles.
There is no headcount at the moment, but there are more knights, baronets, earls and Dukes in Plymouth than anyone could have anticipated. The expeditionary fleet is small, but ready. There are piles and piles of hurdles and gangways on the docks, but not enough ships to retrofit. The food supply is holding on, but barely and largely because the Prince of Wales is getting the archers to hunt during the day so it is easier to clean up the mess from the previous night.
The next update will be in September 1, at the planned departure time, for a final tally of the mobilization.
Mobilization outlook
- Troops
- Archers (3000) : On target.
- Welsh Spearmen (1000) : Will be there as expected.
- Knights and retinues (6000) : Overwhelming response.
- Victuals
- Food : short, due to larger numbers of knights accumulating in Plymouth.
- Wine/beer : We're now entering the rioting phase.
- Fodder : Plenty harvested and purchased.
- Supply
- Archery (bows, arrows, strings, heads) : Plenty.
- Horses : shortage, not enough for archers.
- Navy
- Acquire shipping : Slow, but steady.
- Staff ships : All arrived ships are ready, not enough ships.
- Retrofit ships (gangways, hurdles.) : All arrived ships are ready, not enough ships.
- Embarkation
- Billet troops : OK for now.
- Discipline : Not good, will get worst without drinks.
- ETA : Sept 1, 1355 may be delayed by shipping.
- Funds
- Level : Plenty!
- Creditors : The investors have contributed.
- King's funds : Arrived.
- War tax : Funds are in.
Consider your situation and prepare a list of things to focus on, in the order of importance. Refer to the post on strategy to help formulate your instructions. Here are a few notes:
- An almost full size force could sail now if you decides to go this way.
- You may expect desertion to become a factor in the following few weeks as morale is about to plummet.
- The sea is good at the moment.
- Welsh spearmen have been acting as MP for you, but this makes them even less liked by the Englishmen in the force.
- The archers are the main source of brawlers.
- Knights and men-at-arms are forming the bulk of the men on the ground, they are not above reproach here. Nobody likes to wait in an overcrowded place while sober.
Fr: Black Prince
ReplyDeleteMove the welsh spearmen onto the ships. Have knights patrol the streets at night and punish wrongdoers immediately. The archers will continue to hunt and remain in hunting location until it is their turn to embark.
Men At Arms shall board the ships with the least in social standing boarding first. Some Knights of the lower social order will also board and will be responsible for discipline while on board.If it is to take to lifts to get all the horses, men, supplies to France then the Black Prince and the highest nobles will be on the first lift over the channel and will wait until the Price determines it is time to move. The force will move along the channel coast on the French side until the 2nd lift joins them or until the Prince determines more important events need him further inland.
So, let me get this straight.
ReplyDelete1 ) The expeditionary force is to sail with as many men and horses as possible, including the C&C in the first ferry. A second wave is likely to be fraught with problems, BTW, so it may be better to make the first one count as much as possible. Problems will be related to the limited term contracts by which civilian ships can be impressed into service.
2 ) There are no safe landing zones other than Bordeaux, and Bordeaux is where you were ordered to go. I can lay out for you other options, but Brittany is a real war zone and part of the Duke of Lancaster's AO, Poitou is French controlled. Brittany would sure be exciting, but would be missing the King's overall objective of integrating Gascony into his sphere of influence.
3 ) Wave 1 would be in Bordeaux near the end of August, and wave two in October. Sept to Early November is the best raiding time due to the harvests. The Gascons allies are set to link up with the English in Bordeaux and provide guidance on targets for the 1355 raid.
You are, of course, free to do what you want. You may want to consult with King Edward III in case of major deviation with your orders. But I thought that I'd give you some background before going ahead.
this will be the last order before sailing.
ReplyDeleteLoad the welsh and the archers on board immediately. Load the command team and as many knights & men at arms as will fit on the ships.
Horses can now be loaded into available space. Second load will be reserves and horses and food. We will purchase fresh horses when we land. We will do some marching and training on foot at first to condition ourselves and train as we will be fighting mainly on foot.
Of course the command team will be horsed and well provided for.
To parapharse a later commander we will get there the first with the most. The 2nd convoy will be able to follow the smoke of plundered towns and villages as we move toward our destination.