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barbarossa2 -> RE: PBEM 1A (5/29/2009 1:17:10 PM)
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Interestingly in a ton of reading I am doing about siege warfare in the 18th century, most garrisons (seems 90% or so) did, in fact, surrender when the walls were first compromised or breached or assaulted. A drummer would announce this to the besieger. This was known as "beating the chamade". Generally, because it spared the attacker heavier losses, if the defender surrendered early enough the surrender was an "honorable" one and the garrison was allowed to leave for another fortress controlled by its nation. More rarely the surrendering unit would agree not to participate in warfare for up to six months. The officers generally stuck to their agreement as honor was the lifeblood of being an officer (however, once in captivity a healthy small percentage of Britsh officers did try to escape from the "officer's prison" at Verdun in spite of having given their word not to). Odds reducing a surrender like this were: a sizeable garrison, hope of relief, a determined general, or a siege between christians and muslims.
Siege rules may have changed during the "Napoleonic" era though, and I don't know if these rules still held.
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