Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Assistant Designer & Editor, Fred Schachter – To familiarize the InsideGMT audience of what designer Frank Esparrago created with his fun and exciting Congress of Vienna game, now a GMT P-500 offering; InsideGMT presented articles of “Designer’s Notes”and a “Game as History” series entitled “An Historical Introduction to the Congress of Vienna Period (CoV)”.  Use this link to access copies of these articles and more: https://www.gmtgames.com/p-850-congress-of-vienna.aspx .

Since this game is a proud member of GMT’s “Great Statesmen” series, it seems appropriate to now focus on those Statesmen who made this Napoleonic Wars historical period so fascinating and compelling to our hobby from perspective of the game Frank designed.

Consequently, here’s part one of a four-part series: “Meet the Statesmen of Congress of Vienna – The British Contingent”. The next article increments will address the Austrians, Russians, and finally the French.  It should be noted this piece was originally InsideGMT published during early 2020.  This is the 2024 edition… which is an update including Terry Leeds’ gorgeous graphics of Congress of Vienna’s cards.

I enjoyed learning more of the personages behind the game’s cards and hope you do as well. Now to meet the Great British Statesmen (and military leaders) of Congress of Vienna…

The Game as History as Revealed by CoV’s Cards

Any of the works listed in the proposed CoV bibliography, which will be InsideGMT published, can be a good source of detailed information about the history behind the game’s cards; but if you don’t want or lack time to read books before playing (spending time playing the game can be more fun than reading for most folks in our wonderful gaming hobby), we’ll here provide overview biographies, with emphasis on what happened during CoV’s 1813 and 1814 timeframe.

After each biography, in italics, we include a brief description of the card and the opportunities provided for it in the game.  Incidentally, the Major Power color-coded letters at the bottom of all but Leader cards are for use in Congress of Vienna’s Solitaire Game (with its Bots).

British Statesmen and Men of War

Historically, the British team was well organized and particularly good at running the war through great professionals, taking advantage of the prodigious resources that England possessed from its maritime and commercial empire. The British player does not have a numerous team, but it is a balanced one. In addition, his national characteristic decides most tiebreaker Diplomatic resolutions at CoV’s “Negotiations Table’. His small army compels the British player to be unselfish in how to use his financial resources and “greasing” his Austrian and Russian partners via subsidies, portrayed as British Financial Aid Issue markers in the game, as part of a consistent strategy for victory.

Here are Britain’s Statesmen Cards…

LEADER CARD: Castlereagh, Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquees of Londonderry (1769 –1822), usually known Lord Castlereagh, which is derived from his courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh, was an Irish/British Statesman. As British Foreign Secretary, from 1812 on he was central to the management and cohesion of the Coalition which defeated Napoleon.

He was the principal British diplomat at the Congress of Vienna. Castlereagh was also leader of the British House of Commons in the Lord Liverpool government from 1812 until committing suicide in August 1822. He was critical to organizing British finances to the alliance that destroyed Imperial France.

Castlereagh successfully brought France’s enemies together through the 1814 Treaty of Chaumont. Thereafter, he worked with Europe’s leaders at the Congress of Vienna to provide a peace consistent with the conservative mood of the day. At Vienna he was successful achieving his primary goal of creating a peace settlement that would endure for years. Castlereagh realized a harsh treaty based on vengeance and retaliation against France would fail. Consequently, he blocked the most egregiously harsh terms which arose during the Congress and unenthusiastically supported bringing the conservative Bourbons back to power.

He held the Chaumont allies together, most notably in their determination to finally end Napoleon’s return to power in 1815 (The Hundred Days). Castlereagh’s vision of long-term peace in Europe united the great powers’ efforts. At the same time, he was watchful of Britain’s mercantile and imperial interests. He also worked to abolish the international slave trade. However, he was unsuccessful avoiding the War of 1812 with the United States, which ended in a stalemate with no boundary changes.

We decided to place Great Britain under the leadership of the capable and dynamic foreign minister Castlereagh, who traveled to the European mainland to follow key negotiations with his Allies. When those observations merited intervention, he blocked the Allied States’ contacts with Napoleon better than Liverpool, the British Prime Minister, who was continuously situated in London; or Wellington, an awesome warrior, but entirely dedicated to military affairs in Spain and Southern France at this time.

In Congress of Vienna Castlereagh is a powerful card: we gave it a base value of 5, but due to his +2 modifier, it is a potentially dominating 7 (the maximum value of any CoV card) in debates to influence vital diplomatic Issues for a British player.

Liverpool, Robert Banks Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of (1770 – 1828) was a British statesman and Prime Minister (1812–1827). He assumed office when the prior Prime Minister, Perceval, was assassinated during May 1812. As Prime Minister, Liverpool called for repressive domestic measures to maintain civil order.  

His government contained some of the future great leaders of Britain, such as Castlereagh, Canning, the Duke of Wellington, and Robert Peel. Liverpool was considered a skilled politician. His ministry was a long and eventful one: the War of 1812 with the United States and the final campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars were fought during Liverpool’s premiership.

At the peace negotiations following Napoleon’s defeat, his main concern was obtaining a European settlement which would ensure the independence of the Netherlands and confine France inside its pre-war frontiers without damaging her national integrity. Within this broad framework, Liverpool gave Castlereagh discretion at the Congress of Vienna, the next most important event of his ministry. At the Congress he gave prompt approval for Castlereagh’s bold initiative in forging a defensive alliance with Austria and Russia in January 1815. In that event’s aftermath, many years of general peace followed. However, the latter years of his ministry were clouded by domestic problems of a social and economic nature.

Liverpool is a powerful card: yes, it is of 4-value but, with a British +1 modifier, it is a 5-value card. Liverpool also inflicts negative modifiers for the three other Major Power players (see top-most text rectangle). It can therefore be an excellent card for the British player to receive in trade during CoV’s Diplomacy Phase. It’s +1 Pax Britannica Track drm is also a welcome attribute to a British player’s advantage.

Vansittart, Nicholas, 1st Baron Bexley (1766 – 1851) was an English politician, and one of the longest-serving Chancellors of the Exchequer in British history (1812-1823). He became Chancellor of the Exchequer when the Earl of Liverpool succeeded Perceval in May 1812. The country was burdened with heavy taxation and enormous debt. Nevertheless, the continuance of the Napoleonic Wars compelled him to ruthlessly increase customs duties and other taxes and in 1813 he introduced a complicated scheme for dealing with the realm’s sinking funding.

This is an average value CoV card which presents an added incentive when it is used for some specific Issues. Yes, that incentive does require a bit of luck: the British player can receive an additional Resource marker with a 1-3 die roll. This card also provides a +1 Pax Britannica Track drm.

Gambier, James, Admiral of the Fleet, 1st Baron Gambier (1756 – 1833) was a Royal Navy officer. In May 1807, he commanded the naval forces on the campaign against Copenhagen for which he received Parliament’s official thanks. On 3 November 1807 he received a peerage, becoming Baron Gambier. In 1814 Gambier was part of the team negotiating the Treaty of Ghent which ended the War of 1812 between Britain and the United States.

Gambier is an average 3 value card in CoV, which includes a highly specialized, solely British ability, when it is used for the Peace of Ghent Issue or to obtain a “free” US Military Operation for the War of 1812 which can come in particularly handy when Britain is desiring a battle there.

1st Earl of Eldon, John Scott, (1751 –1838) was a British barrister and politician. He served as Lord Chancellor of Great Britain between 1801 and 1806 and again between 1807 and 1827. He was a loyal and tenacious supporter of the war against Napoleon.

This is a low 2 value card whom CoV play testers jocularly refer to as “The Wig”. However, it presents a +2 British modifier (which converts it into a 4-value card) for some key economic Issues, as well as Recruitment and Military Operation. It also provides an additional Resource marker (a major incentive). As for the other players, it is only a poor 2-value card; so, Britain could receive it offered in trading card actions many times during a game. A British player should take advantage of that!

Huskisson, William (1770 –1830) was a British political leader, financier, and Member of Parliament. In 1807 he was appointed Secretary of the Treasury, holding that office until 1809 when he returned to private financial activity as the ablest financier of his time.

When in 1814 he re-entered public service, his influence became key in the commercial and financial legislation of Great Britain and its empire.

Incidentally, he is commonly known as the first reported railway passenger accident casualty!

Huskisson is a feeble 2-value card. But for Britain there is more than may initially meet the eye since it has an impressive +3 modifier for two especially important Issues: Liberalism or Financial Aid (which can be helpful getting a British Financial Aid marker from another Major Power’s Diplomacy Track, especially when an opportunist French player steals it)!

Even better, when Britain plays Huskisson for these Issues it grants a +1 drm to either the Pax Britannica or Liberalism Track die roll! Decisions decisions for the British player, eh?

Duke of York and Albany, Prince Frederick (1763 –1827) was the second son of George III.  The King decided Prince Frederick would pursue a career in the British army. He was created Duke of York and Albany in 1784. In 1793, during the French Revolutionary Wars, he was sent to Flanders in command of British forces. He won minor engagements but was defeated at the battles of Hondschoote and Tourcoing (a year later).

After his return to Britain in 1795, his father George III appointed him overall Commander-in-Chief of the British Army. In that role, Frederick carried through a massive program of reform; in fact, he was indirectly responsible for the training, organization and planning of British forces serving in the Peninsular War.

In 1801 he actively supported the founding of the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, which promoted professional, merit-based training of future officers. Additionally, during 1803-1805, he oversaw preparations against Napoleon’s possible invasion of the United Kingdom.

Political scandals implicating the Duke of York compelled his resignation as Commander-in-Chief in 1809; but after two years of Parliament debates, he was exonerated and reappointed as Commander-in-Chief in 1811.

This is an average value CoV card, but it does provide Britain two added incentives: first, a +1 modifier for securing British military-related Issues and second, it provides a free military unit (cube) or fleet (cylinder) if it is used for any of the card cited Issues (but without expending a British Recruitment Issue’s Resource marker and losing a VP).

And now, the British Warrior (Military) Cards!

Wellesley, Arthur, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769 – 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of his age. He served twice as Prime Minister. Wellesley was born in Dublin (Ireland). He was a colonel by 1796 and saw action in the Netherlands and in India. A major-general since 1802, he won a decisive victory in India over the Maratha Confederacy at the Battle of Assaye in 1803.

Wellesley rose to prominence as a general during the Peninsular War; he was continuously in campaign from 1808 to 1814 without returning to England. Castlereagh and the cabinet approved his plan for defending Portugal. In 1809, he advanced into Spain to unite with Spanish forces and there confront the French.

Following his 1809 victory at Talavera, Wellesley was elevated to the Peerage of Great Britain as Viscount Wellington of Talavera, with the subsidiary title of Baron Douro of Wellesley. In 1810, a newly enlarged French army under Marshal Massena invaded Portugal. Wellington first checked the French at battle of Bussaco; he then prevented them from taking Lisbon by building the Lines of Torres Vedras: which consisted of mammoth and skillfully constructed earthworks.

In 1812, Wellington´s army entered in Spain, where he routed the French at the battle of Salamanca. As a reward, he was created Marquis of Wellington and given command of all Allied armies in Spain. However, combined French forces outnumbered his army, putting British forces in a precarious position. He therefore withdrew his army back into Portugal.

In 1813, he led a new offensive into Spain, this time against the French lines of communications. He struck through the hills north of Leon and Castile. There he caught up with and decisively smashed the French army of King Joseph Bonaparte at the battle of Vitoria. After taking the fortresses of Pamplona and San Sebastian, Wellington then forced Soult, the new French commander in Spain, into a fighting retreat from Spain into France. This advance was punctuated by battles at the Pyrenees, Bidasoa and Nivelle. Wellington invaded southern France, winning the final 1814 battle against his rival Soult at Toulouse.

These triumphs caused him to be lauded the conquering hero by a grateful British people. However, during February 1815, Napoleon escaped exile on Elba and returned to France. He regained control of the country, recovered leadership of the French army, and by May faced a renewed alliance of his enemies. Wellington departed Vienna for Belgium, where on 18 June he emerged victorious from the celebrated battle of Waterloo. His reputation as the commander who defeated the legendary Napoleon became his greatest claim to fame.

Wellington was an austere and humorless man; he never allowed his successes go to his head and, if at times he made unwise decisions, he persevered through them. It is for his military victories, along with a great store of common sense combined with an ability for hard and sustained work that posterity acclaims him.

This is undoubtedly the best British card in CoV with its 5-value, but if it is held for the War Phase, it is also a superb battle card. There are but a few military leaders in the game which through diverse DRMs, leadership, organizational capacities, mastery of tactics and overall battle acumen can come close to equaling Wellington: Other than Napoleon, only Suchet and Soult as French commanders can oppose him with any realistic opportunity for success. Additionally, should Wellington be used diplomatically for the card’s cited British military-related issues, he generates an extra Spanish military unit (cube).

Graham, General Thomas, 1st Baron Lynedoch (1748 – 1843) was a Scottish aristocrat, politician and British Army officer. He was promoted to the rank of major general in the summer of 1809 to command a division in the ill-fated the Walcheren expedition. After this, he was raised to the rank of lieutenant general and sent to Spain to take command of British and Portuguese troops in Cádiz, which was at that time closely invested by the French. Graham resolved to raise the siege by attacking the rear of the besieging army at Barrosa (1811).

Shortly thereafter, Graham joined the army under Wellington and was appointed its second in command. In January 1812, he took part in the siege of Ciudad Rodrigo. A problem with his eyes made it necessary for Graham to return home. His visit to Scotland had the effect of restoring his eyesight and in May 1813 he rejoined Wellington when he moved upon Vitoria in three divisions.

Wellington had to force positions of great strength among the mountain passes, continually pressing the right wing of the retiring French. Graham took a prominent role in the battle of Vitoria. He was subsequently directed to conduct the siege of the fortress of San Sebastian: his first assault was repulsed and a second attempt to carry the fortress by storm was successfully made at the end of August.

At the crossing of the Bidasoa river (French-Spanish border), Graham commanded the British army’s left wing of and succeeded in establishing his troops on French territory. However, the return of his eye ailment obliged him to resign command and return home. Recuperation allowed Graham to be fit enough to command a British force sent to Holland in 1814.

A mediocre British card as other players can use it as a 4-value card to “steal” issues from your British Diplomacy Track. It is a low value battle card as well since only a +1DRM is provided.  Better to use Graham’s ability to inflict a -2DRM upon the French!

Hill, Sir Rowland, 1st Viscount Hill (1772 –1842) was a British Army officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars, rising in responsibility as a trusted brigade, division and ultimately corps commander under the Duke of Wellington. He became Commander-in-Chief of the British Army in 1828.

Hill led a brigade at the battle of Vimeiro in 1808. He participated in Sir John Moore’s 1808–1809 campaign in Spain and at the battle of Corunna. Hill commanded the 2nd Infantry Division at the Battle of Talavera. During the 1810 French invasion of Portugal, he fought at the battle of Bussaco. In autumn 1811, Wellington placed Hill in independent command of 16,000 men watching Badajoz. In May 1812, after the capture of Badajoz, he led a raid that destroyed a key bridge at Almaraz.

While Wellington won the Battle of Salamanca, he protected Badajoz with an independent 18,000-man corps. Hill commanded the Right Column during the decisive British victory at the battle of Vitoria on 21 June 1813. He fought in the Battle of the Pyrenees and commanded the right flank at the battle of Nivelle on 10 November 1813. Finally, on 13 December 1813, during the battle of the Nive, Hill performed what may have been his finest work in his defense of St-Pierre.

Hill is a great British 4-value card. As for the rest of the Major Powers it is only 3-value. Therefore, the other players usually trade it to the British player! Hill is also a good +2 DRM or -3 French DRM battle card.  Should the British player contemplate amphibiously invading Track E’s Naples, Hill is a good military card to have available.

Sherbrooke, General Sir John Coape (1764 – 1830) was a British soldier and colonial administrator. After serving in the British army in Nova Scotia, the Netherlands, India, the Mediterranean, and Spain, he was appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Nova Scotia in 1811. His active defense of the colony during the War of 1812 led to his 1816 appointment as Governor General of British North America.

Sherbrooke is an excellent British card, although it looks like a medium value one. However, it has a +2 modifier for Issues located on the British Track. Consequently, when used in such circumstance, it could ensure British success with any Issue. Furthermore, it is a superb British battle card when employed in America. Finally, if France is winning VP on the War of 1812 Box’s Track, Sherbrooke can be played by any Major Power, save the French (of course), to deny France the Box’s VP for that turn.

Finally, the British Allied Character & Warrior (Military) Cards!

Fernando VII King of Spain and The Indies (1784 –1833) was regent in 1808 and again from 1813 until his death in 1833. He was known to his supporters as Deseado (the Desired) and to his detractors as Felón (the Felon King).

Following his accession to the Spanish throne, Napoleon overthrew him. He abdicated May 1808 and thereafter Napoleon kept Fernando under guard in French captivity for six years at Valençay.

After Fernando’s forced abdication, Napoleon’s choice was his brother Joseph Bonaparte as king of Spain. In response to this provocation, uprisings broke out throughout Spain which commenced the Peninsular War.

Fernando, now back on the throne upon Spain’s liberation, reestablished an absolutist monarchy, the Spanish Inquisition and rejected the liberal constitution of 1812. His reactionary policies produced an increasing gap between Spain’s conservatives and liberals.

Under his rule, Spain lost all its once vast American Empire, and the nation entered a large-scale intermittent civil war for the next 50 years. Fernando’s political legacy has remained uncontested.  He is remembered as incompetent, despotic, short-sighted, and crude.

For the Congress of Vienna game, we wanted to convey this character’s cunning and repulsive nature. For this reason, he is a 2-value card with only a +1 modifier for the British Recruitment, Future Government of France, or any Issue placed on the French Track for his being the King of Spain. But as the despicable Fernando dedicated himself to cheating the Spanish, British and French at every opportunity… this modifier has been kept when the card is equivalently used by the French player (to annoy the British player). It also has a +2 modifier for the Absolutism Issue when used by the Austrian and Russian “reactionary” players. The duplicity of Fernando’s character and his influence on the affairs of Spain have been represented with a capability to deny France  2 VP when it controls Castile, should Britain use this card for that purpose!

Castaños, General Francisco Xavier, 1st Duke of Baylen (1758 – 1852) was a Spanish general and politician during the Peninsular War. In 1808, he won the resounding Battle of Baylen – his greatest moment. In November, he participated in the Battle of Tudela, which he lost to resurgent French forces in Spain under Napoleon.

In 1810 Castaños was president of the Regency Council of Spain and the Indies. In 1811 he participated in the battle of Albuera and during 1812, he took part in the siege of Burgos under the command of the Duke of Wellington.

In 1813 he commanded the Spanish Army of Galicia, played a useful role at Vitoria, but was relieved of command upon his forces reaching the French border.

Without a doubt this is arguably one of the worst British cards in the deck, a low 2-value. However, it is a card of use to the other players who can employ it to “take out” Issues on the British Track since, for them, it is 4-value card (see the top text box). That +2 bonus could, on rare occasion, come in handy for a British player if his Recruitment Issue is already upon Britain’s Track since play of this card would not only move the Issue closer to the British Diplomacy Track Seat, but add a Spanish unit (cube) into play. As a British battle card Castaños is quite bad; only a mere +1 DRM.

Morillo, Pablo, Count of Cartagena and Marquess of La Puerta (1775 –1837) at an incredibly youthful age he enlisted as a soldier in the Spanish Marine Corps. He participated at the battles of San Vicente and Trafalgar where he was wounded and taken prisoner. He also fought against the French during the Peninsular War. In 1813 Morillo joined the army of Wellington and participated in June 1813’s battle of Vitoria where he was seriously wounded. He subsequently recovered to fight at Orthez and Toulouse.

Once the war ended and the Spanish monarchy was restored, King Ferdinand VII appointed Morillo Expedition Commander and Captain General of the Provinces of Venezuela. He disembarked with the mission to pacify rebellions against the Spanish monarchy in their South American colonies and he repeatedly fought Simon Bolívar’s revolutionary armies.

On 22 August 1815 he surrounded Cartagena in Colombia and captured it December 1815 after a protracted siege. With the monarchy’s re-established control over Cartagena, Morillo returned to Venezuela to continue the fight against Bolívar’s revolutionaries. In 1816 he ordered the execution of the scientist Francisco de Caldas and local people present at the trial appealed for the scientist’s life, to which he responded: “Spain does not need wise people”. This quote became a slogan of Spain’s wars for the re-conquest of its rebel South American colonies. Morillo’s mix of military success and extreme cruelty earned him the ironic nickname of “The Peacemaker”.

Morillo is an average British 3 value card but possessing a -1 disadvantage for the Liberalism Issue if played by Britain or France but he provides a +1 benefit when played by Russia or Austria for Absolutism. As a battle card he is comparable to other good British military leader cards, with a +2 DRM as long as at least one Spanish unit (cube) is involved.

Tecumseh (1768 – 1813) was a Native American warrior and Shawnee chief who became the primary leader of a large multi-tribal confederation. He is among the most celebrated Indian leaders in history and was known as a strong and eloquent orator who promoted tribal unity. He was also ambitious, willing to take risks, and make significant sacrifices to repel American colonizers from Indian lands in the Old Northwest Territory.

Tecumseh and his confederacy’s fight against the United States was aided after forming an alliance with Great Britain in the War of 1812. During the war, they helped in the capture of Fort Detroit. For a time, it appeared his dreams for the Indian peoples’ independence could be secured.

However, after U.S. naval forces took control of Lake Erie in 1813, the British and their Indian allies were compelled to retreat into Upper Canada, where American forces engaged them at the Battle of the Thames on October 5, 1813, where Tecumseh was killed [1]. His death and the Treaty of Ghent’s ending of the war caused the pan-Indian alliance to collapse.

This is an average British card (an apparent 2 value, but with +1 modifier for the British if played for Recruitment or a Military Operation Issue. As a battle card it’s +2 DRM makes it a good for battles in America, but it has 1/3 chance of being removed from the game because of Tecumseh being killed in action from every battle in which he participates.

That brings this article to a close. The Congress of Vienna Design/Development Team apologizes that due to this article format’s constraints, the game’s rules must be left implicit.  We recognize appropriate rule references would better explain how CoV’s Character cards function within context of play and appreciate readers’ understanding.

Therefore, please feel free to pose any question and/or need for more information within the section InsideGMT provides for this purpose. Next up…  “Meet the Austrian Contingent”!

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Footnotes:

[1] Some Military Character cards depicted by the game died during the CoV period. For example, in addition to Tecumseh, the aged Kutuzov died of natural causes and Poniatowski was killed in action at the 1813 Battle of Leipzig. To adequately simulate this with some CoV cards, every time a subject card is played, a die must be rolled to determine if the personage passes away (or is otherwise debilitated to the point of requiring removal from the game) or if he continues participation in that Congress of Vienna game.  Significantly, this does not include Napoleon or Wellington… since their possible removal would be too game unbalancing.  However, other Military Character cards with this vulnerability, however, are subject to being killed.

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