Air Campaign - Yom Kippur War

 This is a new title in the Osprey Air Campaign series covering the Yom Kippur War by Shlomo Aloni. The Arab-Israeli conflict was my first dabble into modern wargaming; this war has all the critical elements of that conflict. However, I haven't read much about the air campaign, so this title looks interesting.

The Yom Kippur War, also known as the October War, was fought between a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria against Israel from October 6 to October 25, 1973. The war began on Yom Kippur, the holiest day in Judaism when Egypt and Syria launched a surprise attack on Israeli forces in the Sinai Peninsula and the Golan Heights, territories Israel had captured in the 1967 Six-Day War. Egypt aimed to reclaim the Sinai, while Syria aimed to retake the Golan Heights.

Initially, the Arab forces made significant gains, catching Israel off guard. However, after several days of fighting, Israel regrouped and launched counteroffensives. By the end of the war, Israel had pushed deep into Egyptian and Syrian territories, but a ceasefire brokered by the United States and the Soviet Union brought the fighting to an end. Despite Israel's eventual military success, the war was seen as a psychological and strategic blow, leading to significant changes in its defence policies.

I had assumed that Israeli airpower was all-pervading. However, the author points out that after the war, Israel’s Deputy Chief of Staff stated that the ILAF had destroyed less than 100 tanks. Years later, a claim emerged that out of the 1,500 tanks examined postwar to ascertain the cause of damage/destruction, not one was hit from the air. Likewise, the Israeli prewar plans to completely destroy the enemy’s air forces and air defence forces had failed.

While the Israeli Air Force was outnumbered on paper, they had a qualitative advantage, particularly with the F4 Phantom called Kurnasse in Israeli service. However, air warfare had moved on considerably since the 1967 War, and the Arabs had hardened bunkers and surface-to-air missile systems. This required a different approach and a significant change in plans. 

The author concludes, "The ILAF may not have produced images of victory as it did in the June 1967 War. The ILAF may not have performed as well as may have been expected from prewar investments and promises. Nevertheless, the ILAF shaped the October 1973 War. The ILAF drove Egypt and Syria to develop their air defenses into formidable forces, therefore diverting funding from offensive ground forces."

The book provides all you would expect from this series: a breakdown of each side's capabilities, objectives, and campaign—well illustrated with quality maps and artwork. However, it was the analysis that I found most interesting and new—to me, at least.

I have a few 1/200-scale aircraft to complement the ground forces. I'm not quite ready to invest in the air war, but if you are, this book has everything you need.

Balefire

The latest in my Nigel Traitor re-reading project is Balefire. This was an early (1958) stand-alone novel rather than the usual historical series. It focuses on one character without any link to the major players of the period.

The story begins with our hero, Simon Armstrong, a modest Border laird, wounded on the battlefield of Flodden in 1513. He was fighting dismounted with a pike, neither a favoured fighting method for a borderer. He is picked up for ransom by a Hexham steward, Able Ridley, and taken back to his home near the priory town in England. The Prior of Hexham turned a blind eye to this, given that the order was to take no prisoners because Simon offered an additional ransom to pay to the Prior. 

Simon is well looked after by Ridley's daughters and something of a romance follows. When Ridley and his men go off with another English invasion, Simon flees to warn his family and friends. Hence, the title, which refers to the beacons in place to warn of invasion.

The main hook for the story is the action at Hornshole. A group from Hexham Priory camped overnight at Hornshole, near Hawick, where they were challenged and defeated by a group of Hawick Callants (young lads under 16) who were not at Flodden. They stole their pennon and returned to the town victorious. Since then, a replica of this flag has been carried by a young unmarried male (the Cornet) during the annual Common Riding celebrations in the town.

The story has an interesting twist following this event, but I won't spoil it. It is perhaps not one of Tranter's best for me, as I prefer big-picture history, but it is well told.

For the wargamer, this is classic Border Wars territory.

War and Peace in the Age of Napoleon

I have spent the last three days indulging in all matters Napoleonic in York. The War and Peace in the Age of Napoleon conference was organised jointly on behalf of the Napoleonic and Revolutionary War Graves Charity and the War Studies programme at York St John University. It is hard to think of a better city, outwith the Balkans of course (😂), for a history conference, and the university is also an excellent venue.

There were dozens of presentations covering all aspects of the Napoleonic wars, something for everyone. The delegates were a mix of academics and enthusiasts, all with a wealth of knowledge. An excellent example was on the first day with a panel session covering re-enacting and wargaming. The wargaming session covered the history of the hobby pre-kriegspiel and discussed the balance between simulation and playability.

Rosslyn Macphail talked about discovering a trunk in the attic belonging to her relative, Captain John Orr, a foot soldier who later helped shape military education in Scotland. She found his diary inside, which gave an interesting insight into his service in the Peninsular War. What an amazing find!

If, like me, you like the obscure aspects of the conflict, sessions on Japan during the Napoleonic Wars, Russia's attempts to open a closed frontier, and Napoleon’s ambitions in the East would leave you well satisfied. 

It was not all warfare; the panel session on Radicals, Violence, and Loyalism across the British sphere of influence covered a range of subversive activities in Britain. This was followed by a fascinating keynote speech from Professor Alan Forrest, Memorialising War, Commemorating Empire? The Napoleonic Wars in French Cultural Memory. He actually covered memory more widely than France.

My presentation covered command decisions in the Adriatic. I attempted to show how junior officers would make military and even diplomatic decisions in a complex and fast-moving political environment. They negotiated with semi-autonomous local warlords, allies and enemies whose loyalties were not always transparent. These were borderlands far from the seat of power and created challenges for the states trying to control them.

The conference also included the AGM of the Napoleonic and Revolutionary War Graves Charity, which, in a short period, has done some amazing work restoring the graves of Napoleonic veterans. I would urge you to check out their website and consider joining.

I have only mentioned a few of the presentations I attended. It's an annual event, and it is worth looking out for next year's conference.

No prizes for guessing which conference I was at, although there was an army chaplain on my panel!

DBA Revisited

 A visiting friend is big into the ancient and medieval rules De Bellis Antiquitatis (DBA). I have a copy of the latest version (V.3) but have rarely played with them since they came out. I used to play DBM, but like others, it didn't feel much like any ancient battle I have read about, and we all moved on. However, a post-dinner game beckoned, so I decided to dust them down.

They are an elegantly simple set of rules, played with just 12 elements, which means a game can be set up quickly and played in about 90 minutes. However, I had forgotten just how badly they are written and presented. Phil Barker is a brilliantly innovative rules writer, but the presentation is far short of modern standards. So, I struggled with several sections of the rules but got there with the help of another pal who plays on the DBA circuit and a couple of YouTube videos. I recommend downloading the excellent Society of Ancients quick reference sheet. I see on the Facebook page that a new edition is planned to not change the rules but to improve the presentation.

The other attraction of playing DBA was an excuse to dust down the many 15mm ancient and medieval armies I have, which are, needless to say, mostly from the Balkans.

I started chronologically with my Assyrians and Greeks. I painted up the Assyrians after seeing the British Museum special exhibition, but they have yet to see much action.

This was followed by an unlikely and successful Assyrian invasion of Rome.

The Romans haven't had much luck on my tabletop, as in the next game, the Ancient Britons crashed through them. Blades are powerful but brittle against warbands.

The terrain rules are important in DBA, mainly if you are the defender. The Slavs only appear on a few wargame tables because you need a lot of rough terrain to give them a chance. I lost my general, which didn't help, but the rules gave the poor old Slavs a fighting chance.

The Bulgars got some decent terrain for their fight against the Byzantines next. However, it was not enough to avoid a trip to Specsavers!

The Ostrogoths had more success against the sneaky Byzantines.

After my trip down south, we returned to DBA for the midweek game. This year is the centennial anniversary of the end of the Serbian-Bulgarian War of 924 - OK, pretty obscure even for me! The Bulgars won this time as they did historically.

Having enjoyed our games of DBA, I thought we might try out DBA Renaissance. There are a couple of versions knocking around, but I went with Stephen O'Leary's adaptation, published some time ago in Wargames Illustrated. My bedtime reading was Tranter’s Rough Wooing, which involved Henry VIII sending his minions to burn the Scottish Borders. Not this time, he was sent back to think again!

Having mastered the rules, I have enjoyed the games we have played. They work really well for a quick evening game. The system is simple but with plenty of subtlety in the gameplay.