Friday, 20 June 2025

Kobba Darsa (new photos added 20/06/2025)

 Kobba Darsa

Rif War, Morocco, 24  June - 6 July 1924 by Richard Baber

An early version of this article appeared in the magazine of the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers - The Journal

In the spring of 1924 Abd el Krim decided it was time to spread his influence more into the western part of the protectorate. He sent one of his commanders Mohamed Ben Othman with some of his "Regulares" across the zone to stir up trouble and hopefully insight the local tribes into joining the general rebellion against Spanish rule. Their first target was the position at M`Ter, followed by a series of swift darting attacks on outposts and  ambushes of convoys along the River Lau, a natural barrier where the Spanish had formed a frontline.

Period postcard
View across the Lau Valley from Korba Darsa 

Kobba Darsa

The position was part of the defensive line set up by the Spanish along the River Lau, it was about 9 km from the coast.

Square-shaped, surrounded by a stone wall and barbed wire, it had a garrison of thirty-seven soldiers belonging to Regiment de Infanteria Serrallo No 69 and three communications specialists: a corporal and two soldiers of Engineers, responsible for a heliograph.

Heliograph team - converted from Revell Zulu War era figures

The position also had two look-outs, the whole thing set in a rough triangle on a hillock some 200m high over- looking the gorge of the Lau some 200m away.

Due to its elevated position the post did not have its own water supply and had to be re-supplied by regular convoys.

 June 24th: Water convoy fired on and a sergeant wounded

 June 28th: A new watch commander: Lieutenant Agustin Gil de Vergera arrives to take over (the posts had a rotation system on a month on, a month off). Due to the sudden increase in Riffi activity the standing officer Lieutenant Francisco Pueyo Ayneto (who had been in command since May 31st) elected to remain at his post; as de Vergera had seniority; Lt. Pueyo assumed the role as second-in-command. Sniper fire and general harassment had increased to a point where it was no considered unsafe for men to leave the relative safety of the position; so messengers could no longer be sent out; the siege of Kobba Darsa begins.

The most common tactic of the Berbers was to isolate an outpost, then dig-in (Paquear in Spanish) and let your enemy weaken because of the lack of food and water, casualties would also add to the pressure and effect morale of the defenders. Of course this would not prevent a direct assault being made if the opportunity presented itself with minimal losses to themselves.    

Over the next few days the position comes under regular and increasing levels of fire, casualties mount and Lt. Gil de Vergera himself is badly wounded in the leg. The Riffi dig their own trenches to surround the position, but are unable to launch a direct assault due to the terrain. Also the Spanish because of their heliograph were able to keep in contact with their own side and using this call on artillery support from their nearest base at Tisgarin, whilst not accurate this shelling helped disrupt Riffi preparations.

 The Spanish airforce also helped out by flying some quite daring low-level missions in support of Kobba Darsa. The aircraft forced by the river gorge and high peaks were well within normal rifle range and the planes ran a gauntlet of bullets whilst trying to drop blocks of ice; packets of medicines and bandages; foodstuffs or ammunition (including grenades) onto the position. They of course also assisted the defense with strafing and bombing attacks against the Riffi. 

June 30th: The Breguet XIV (No 112), piloted by Warrant Officer Infantry Mr. Julio Pina Garcia and manned by Lieutenant of Engineers Manuel Bonet Ulled is shot down; the plane crashed just outside the perimeter of Cobba Darsa. Lieutenant Pueyo called for volunteers to try and rescue their comrades - as to fall into Riffi hands usually meant an awful fate for any Spaniard and especially airmen for whom the natives saved their "special" tortures! So under heavy fire, only accompanied by one of the Engineers; the brave Lieutenant charged out to the downed aircraft; unfortunately both were already dead, killed in the crash! The lieutenant and engineer ran back to the position closely followed by the Riffi, emboldened by downing the plane, they took the opportunity to launch an assault! The Moors reaching the remains of the wrecked plane, set it on fire and then moved on the Spanish perimeter throwing hand grenades as they attacked. Lt. Pueyo led the defense and the Riffi were driven off though only after some violent hand-to-hand combat. Warrant Officer Garcia`s plane was one of four shot down during the siege!

General Juilian Serrano Orive about to leave on a reconnaisance flight aboard a hydroplane over rebel (Riffi) positions in the Lau River basin 1924

Meanwhile The Spanish command was gathering its forces in order to break the siege.

July 1st: Col. Garcia Fuentes was in command of a substantial column out of the base at Uad Lau. The column consisted of two tabors (battalions) of Regulares; three battalions of peninsula infantry, a squadron of regular cavalry, two batteries of artillery plus service troops. The column found itself faced by a determined enemy, well entrenched and well supplied with ammunition; Col Fuentes was forced to break off his advance and withdraw to Tisgarin.

July 4th: The Spanish try again, this time a much larger effort -

Right bank of the Lau (moving out of Tisgarin): Col. Garcia Fuentes` column as before

Left bank (coming from Uad Lau): Colonel Nieto with: Three tabors of Regulares; A bandera (battalion) of la Legion; seven battalions of peninsula infantry; two squadrons of indigenous cavalry (under Spanish officers); three artillery batteries and various service troops.

Finally in a wide encircling move to the south in an attempt to distract or draw off Riffi reserves and prevent others moving towards the Lau valley from the direction of Ibujaren and Tirinnes a third column under Colonel Uria with: Three tabors of Regulares, a bandera plus two companies of Legionnaires; a mountain battery, a company of sappers and service troops. 

Spanish columns on the move
But again it was unsuccessful, even with such a large force, well supported by artillery and aircraft, the Spanish columns made little headway and were unable to break through. The Riffi (estimated to be around 2,000), inflicted significant casualties: sixty-two dead and three hundred seventy-one injured. So some of the units dug-in and built blocaos (block houses) to maintain contact whilst rest of the force withdrew to Tisgarin.

July 5th: Eduardo Gonzalez-Gallarza carrying out a risky low level supply mission was subjected to intense ground fire and was seriously wounded, despite this he managed to get himself, his plane and rear gunner back to base safely. His heroism was rewarded with La Cruz Laureada de San Fernando.    

July 6th: Commanding General of Ceuta, General Bermudez de Castro arrives at Tisgarin to take personal overall command of the relief. Supported by several batteries and up to thirty aircraft started to pound and soften up suspected Riffi positions. Unlike previous attempts, a column under the command of General Serrano Orive was to make a direct frontal assault straight at Darsa Kobba. The attack led by 1st and 5th Banderas of La Legion commanded personally by Lt. Col Franco; supported by 3rd Groupe de Regulares with 2 tabors (Ceuta and Larache) and two peninsula battalions (Vizcaya and Otumba).

The attack was successful and the Riffi defender melted away into their hills to fight another day. The siege had lasted 11 days and cost the Spanish nearly 500 casualties (over 100 killed!). Finally Lieutenant Gil de Vergara and Lieutenant Pueyo and their exhausted men could be relieved. In recognition of the bravery shown by the small garrison in holding their position against a superior force, they were awarded the Military Medal Collective.

News report of the garrisons award of the Medalla Militar Colectiva

Wargaming this action

I`ve run a few blocao games since I first got interested in the Rif War. Set your table with the position at one end, the Spanish relief column start from the other end and must try and force their way across the table. The Riffi start concealed in dug-outs or entrenchments, these defensive lines will follow the lay of the terrain using gullies and ridges plus scrub and woods to catch the advancing Spanish with flanking and crossfire. The Spanish have to try and use their superior numbers and fire-power to bust through the lines; but they must also be aware of their casualties! Limit the number of moves, set point penalties for casualties taken, see how it runs; these games can be played again and again, slightly changing the terrain (crossing streams under fire is a bitch) or the forces involved.

The attempt by Lt. Pueyo to rescue the downed pilots would make an interesting one-to-one skirmish game. Place the downed plane a couple of moves outside the perimeter of your blocao and then have Lt. Puevo and a few men race out and try and rescue his air comrades. To make things interesting, one or both crewman could still be alive and will need help back to safety. The Riffi of course will be trying to stop the rescue, you may have desperate hand-to-hand combat or self sacrifice in order to see the pilot safe.

 Figures

I game this period in 20mm (my favoured scale), my Legionnaires are mostly BUM plastics, mixed with Bandera, Barcino and Irregular Miniatures, with some conversions and head-swaps to add variety.

Regulares again are a mix of Bandera, Barcino and Irregular Miniatures; but I also use Tumbling Dice WW1 Turkish troops in fez as they have a very military look.

Peninsula infantry - Bandera and Irregular SCW militia in floppy sun hat

Peninsular cavalry - Warrior Miniatures SCW mounted infantry with head-swaps

Indigenous cavalry - Warrior Miniatures mounted infantry with Raventhorpe Spahis (turban) head.

For Riffi tribesmen I use various plastics with turbans and cloaks added from plasterscene, Turban wearing Regulares from Irregular and Bandera and WW2 Goumiers (only rifle armed figures) from Friend or Foe and Blitz.

The actual siege and battle for the position would suit a one to one skirmish game in 28mm too.

This is the only conflict I do in this larger scale as I have a bit of an obsession. I have Riffi and Spanish from Askari Miniatures and Rif Raf both of which do a quite nice ranges. I recently bought some miniatures from a new Spanish company called Baraka which are very nice and the owner Borja Perez de Lema is expanding the range. The company has also released a set of skirmish rules for the period which are available in English and Spanish.

 Irregular - http://www.irregularminiatures.co.uk

Bandera - http://www.rhmodels.com

Tumbling Dice - http://www.tumblingdiceuk.com

Warrior - http://www.warrioronline.demon.co.uk

Friend or Foe - http://shellholescenics.co.uk

Blitz - http://www.battlefieldminiatures.co.uk

Askari Miniatures - http://www.askari-minis.com

Rif Raf - http://www.rifrafminiatures.co.uk 

Baraka - http://barakagm.com/

Sources

The Betrothed of Death by Jose E. Alvarez

El Tercio by Jose Montes Ramos

El Ejercito Espanol en Ultramar y Africa (1850 - 1925) by Jose Manuel Guerrero Acosta

Francisco Franco's Moroccan War Diary 1920-22 translated and annotated by Paul Southern

Tropas Regulares Indigenas by Delfin Salas

The Spanish Foreign Legion (Osprey man-at-arms 161) by John Surr

Atlas Ilustrado de las Guerras de Marruecos 1859 - 1926 by Emilio Marin Ferrer

Article from page 7 of periodico ABC (Madrid) 08/07/1924

Article from page 7 of periodico ABC (Madrid) 09/07/1924  

Photos from Historia Militar Guerra Civil y Gueraa de Marruecos (1920-26) FB group, thanks to José Manuel

Wednesday, 18 June 2025

German counter-attack at Rocchetta a Volturno

Co-Belligerent Italians make a stand

German counter-attack at Rocchetta a Volturno

Italy, 1st March,1944

This is a tabletop wargame based on a scenario I found by Angus Konstam in Battles for the Mediterranean 1940-1944. I have modified the forces to make use of what I had available.

Following the costly attacks against Monte Cassino, the Allies tried a different approach with small scale attacks to capture mountains east of the monastery in an effort to cut German supply lines. Several of these actions took place in the Maindarde region which comprised of several mountain positions which overlooked the upper reaches of the Volturno River. During February these attacks were spearheaded by the French Expeditionary Force, but even though gains were made, swift German counter-attacks followed and the advance soon ground to a halt once again.

The French were eventually pulled back to reorganise and their place taken in the line by elements of 185th “Nembo” Force of the Italian Co-Belligerant Forces. The Italians were fresh and keen to prove themselves to their new allies, but woefully under equipped and trained. The Germans (as always) seem to have had good intelligence and launched a powerful counter-attack against what they considered a weak point in the Allied lines.

185th “Nembo” Force

The 185th Infantry Regiment "Nembo" (Cloud) was formed in August 1942 as the Royal Italian Army`s fourth paratrooper regiment. The regiment was assigned to the 184th Infantry Division “Nembo” and deployed with it to Sardinia. After the announcement of the Armistice on 8 September 1943 the regiment split in two halves – half joining the Germans in supporting Mussolini`s Fascist state, whilst the rest joined the Italian Co-Belligerent Army and eventually fought against the Germans in Italy.

In September 1944 the remnants of the regiment and of its sister regiment, the 183rd Regiment, were merged to form the Paratroopers Regiment “Nembo”, which was assigned to the Combat Group Folgore and equipped with British material. The Combat Group then fought against the German forces in Italy until the end of the war

Even though Nembo are said to be parachute unit, I personally highly doubt that many troopers other than a core cadre would be fully qualified. For this game I have classed Nembo as trained infantry.

The game

1st Battalion 184th “Nembo” Regiment have moved into the line along the Volturno River and Route 652. The Germans overlook your positions from the vantage points on Monte Maronne. You have outpost garrisons at the village of Castelnuovo and Convent of San Vincenzo; battalion HQ is in Rocchetta a Volturno itself. Your orders are to hold this sector until relieved.

Kampgruppe Hympendahl (115th Panzergrenadier Regiment)

You command a battle-group tasked with driving the newly arrived Italians into the Volturno

Italian forces

1st Battalion Nembo Regiment with:

HQ

2 rifle companies each with:

HQ + 3 platoons


Support weapons Company

2 x Breda MMG, 2 x 80mm mortar, 20mm Breda AA

Attached mixed anti-tank group

1 x 6pdr AT gun (lent by the British), 2 x 47mm AT gun

German forces

Battle-group HQ

3 rifle companies (one company can be motorised in trucks)

Support weapons Coy.

2 x 81mm mortars + truck, 75 IG + tow

Recce

Sdkfz 222, 2 x sdkfz 250 (6 grenadiers each), truck (10 grenadiers)


Armour

Stug III, Panzer IV

French reinforcements (turn 15) from the north

M8 armoured car

2 Sherman

2 trucks of infantry


My table

Rocchetta a Volturno
Castelnuovo
Rocchetta

The church and Convent  of San Vincenzo

 The game

Dispositions – the Germans decided on a bold frontal attack through Castelnuovo into Rocchetta using all their armour and two companies of leg infantry, this attack would be supported by mortars and the infantry gun. The third company will wait in their trucks ready for a quick breakthrough. The recce company was to cut across country to the convent/church.

The Italians garrisoned Castelnuovo with a couple of platoons supported by a MMG and a 47mm, The convent/church was garrisoned by a single platoon, but another was dug-in among the fields close by. The rest of the command garrisoned the Rocchetta, the mortars right back near the river, the 6pdr in the town square covering the road from Castelnuovo.



Turn 1 German mortars and infantry gun fire descends onto Castelnuovo, the German tanks and infantry appear above the town.


Turns 2 & 3 saw a general German advance, their mortars and IG fire demolished a couple of cottages and killed a few Italians. Italian mortars replied targeting the German infantry, the Breda at the edge of the village took a few more! The 47mm hits but failed to penetrate Panzer IV!

Turn 4 saw further mortar fire from both sides, the 47mm again fails to penetrate the Panzer and is wiped out by return fire

Turns 5 & 6 saw the Germans move into Castelnuovo,the panzer and Stug blasting some cottages, infantry close assaulting others. The Italian defenders are either killed, captured or just run away. The 6pdr misses the Panzer! Italian mortars continue to cause casualties among the German infantry


Turns 7 & 8 The Germans re-direct their mortars and IG fire onto Rocchetta causing casualties and damaging buildings. The 6pdr tries two more attempts at the panzer – another miss and a hit which fails to penetrate - we can only assume the gun crew are very inexperienced!!


Italian mortars continue to inflict casualties on the Germans

Turns 9 & 10 the Germans continue to pound Rocchetta, the 6pdr crew are wiped out by shrapnel


Italian mortars continue to reply

The Germans decide to commit their truck born company

On Turn 10 the Germans capture the Church of San Vincenzo

Turns 11 & 12 Lots of mortaring from both sides, the German tanks adding their shells to the mix



At the end of turn 12 the German motorised company arrives in Castelnuovo and debus

Turn 13 German mortars target the Italian mortars

The Germans close assault and overrun the convent

The Stug blows up the Italian command bus

The Italian morale fails all along the line……….

Turn 14 – 15 sees German infantry enter Rocchetta, they have successfully captured Castelnuovo and the convent. As a final nail German mortars wipe out the Italian ones – game over…

For those of you wondering what happened to the French, well I rolled 6 on 1D6 which meant they wouldn`t arrive until turn 21 – it was all long over by then. Mortars inflicted the most casualties (on both sides), but the German armour made the main difference, of course if the 6pdr crew had been luckier with its dice, the game may well have been quite different.