Clydeside Battalion

The next unit for my Very British Civil War project is the Clydeside Battalion.

These are better trained troops financed and organised by the Communist Party to stiffen the ranks of the workers militias. Not quite regulars, but very committed to the cause and more likely to stand up to any fascist or regular army units they may come up against. Red Clydeside rises again!

Honour and the Sword

My latest historical fiction reading has been Honour and the Sword by A.L. Berridge.

This is the author's first novel and takes place in a French village during the Thirty Years War. Not the usual setting for historical fiction and that is probably what attracted me.

The essence of the story is the Spanish invasion and occupation of the village. The young son of the local noblemen becomes the focus of resistance to Spanish rule. There are a number of acts of resistance leading to the liberation of the village with some belated assistance from the French army.

The characters are developed well on both the French and Spanish side. Operating a resistance force within the social structures of French society of the period is very well presented.Not exactly a full bloodied action adventure but there is plenty to keep the reader interested and the author has done her research on the tactics and equipment of the period.

The story is told as a series of interviews after the event. I am not sure about this format. For me it breaks up the narrative and can be repetitious. As a consequence I had to force myself through what is a long tale anyway. Not sure it quite lives up to the 'fast paced' hype on the cover, but something a bit different.

Blood on the Snow

Just finished reading Blood on the Snow: The Carpathian Winter War of 1915 by Graydon Tunstall.

I thought I knew a bit about most WW1 campaigns in SE Europe, but I was not aware of this one. It was fought mostly between Austro-Hungarian and Russian troops in the Carpathian Mountains during winter. I have walked part of these mountains in the summer, the idea of fighting through them in winter is just mind boggling.

But that is exactly what two, million man armies did during the winter of 1915. The campaign was predicated on the need to relieve the Austro-Hungarian garrison of Przemysl consisting of some 135,000 men. The A-H CinC, Conrad, inexplicably decided to launch three offensives through the mountains with troops that were not equipped or trained to fight in such terrain. Supplies of everything were totally inadequate. The Russian's, commanded by Ivanov, were only slightly better prepared. The casualties far exceeded the size of garrison they were attempting to relieve and the A-H army was fatally weakened for the rest of the war.

Words just do not do justice to the horrors of this campaign. Troops lasted on average 5-6 weeks before being killed, wounded, captured or committing suicide. Battles in snow two metres high along the Carpathian ridges and into the valleys.  

The author has extensively researched the campaign, mostly from the A-H perspective. Eye witness accounts add much to the archive material.

This is probably not a book for the general reader. The author assumes a degree of knowledge of the area and each offensive is dealt with in great detail. The maps could also have been better. One for the specialist, but a campaign that fully deserves to be told.

 

Scotland's Festival of History

Popped down to Lanark today for Scotland's Festival of History. This is a two day living history event with a wide range of re-enactors and a supporting cast of stalls.

This is an excellent family day out with lots going on. Big thanks to the different societies who clearly put a huge effort into getting their uniforms and equipment just right.

Workers Militia

Just completed the first unit for my Very British Civil War project. For those not familiar with the concept it is an alternative historical take on the events of 1936-38. Civil war grips Britain with a range of armies seeking control.

My units will mainly be Clydeside Workers Militias, formed to defend Glasgow and the West of Scotland against the Fascists.

A range of figures including Musketeer and Anglian.

Claymore

It was the Claymore show in Edinburgh today. As well organised as ever by the Edinburgh club in a fine venue. Even the weather was cooler, a boon if your game is in the atrium.

We took a Peninsular War skirmish game, Carry on Bohlsup, using the Sharpe Practice rules. This is a fun set that you shouldn't take too seriously. Generally they play well although I think movement and action is a little too random. It plays better when you remove the Tiffin card. This means that the cards determine the order of action but still ensure that every 'Big Man' moves each turn.

There was a good range of traders and display games. Numbers seemed reasonable and the Bring & Buy looked particularly busy.

This was an interesting Polish renaissance game in I presume 40mm.

And this Scots ECW game also caught my eye.



  

The Vikings

A bit of film nostalgia. The Vikings is a film starring Kirk Douglas, Tony Curtis and Ernest Borgnine and based on the novel The Viking by Edison Marshall. It claimed to be based on legendary material from the sagas of Ragnar Lodbrok and his sons. The film used great locations in Norway although Aella's castle was the real Fort de la Latte in north-east Brittany.

This was one of those films that make the partners of military history buffs groan. You know the scenario. A night out at the cinema, your turn to choose, so of course it's an historical film. What do you do? Yes, you moan that the medieval armour isn't right, the tanks weren't even built in WW2 etc. I once loudly complained during Braveheart,  when my partner swooned at the seduction of the English Princess by Wallace, that given their historical ages he would have been arrested today as a paedophile. Not the most popular comment at at the first showing of the film in Scotland!

Well this film had all the faults you can imagine. Medieval castles, 12thC armour, horned Viking helmets and much more nonsense. Still a good tale and what do I know, because it was a great box office success.

This film came to mind when I was in France visiting the castle they used in the film. Fort de la Latte is on the Brittany coast west of St Malo. Incidentally another very well preserved set of fortifications. Whatever the historical failings of the film this is a well preserved 13th Century castle in a great setting. Well worth a visit, although hopefully not on a day as wet as the one we had. I can also recommend the fishing village of Erquy, a little further along the coast, if you like fish for dinner. The scallops were excellent.

1877 Russians

Next unit off the bench for the 1877 Russo-Turkish War are the Russians. More figures from the 28mm range by Outpost Miniatures.

It's almost a year since i got teased into this project at last year's Claymore. This year's show is on Saturday so I suspect some more metal will be purchased. We will be displaying a 28mm Sharpe Practice skirmish game called Carry on Bohlsup. Some fine figures and scenery to go with a fun game.

The Fort

Second half of my holiday reading was Bernard Cornwell's The Fort. Cornwell is of course the benchmark for historical fiction and he doesn't disappoint with this book.

Set during the American Revolution it is based on the little known Penobscot Expedition of July 1779. A modest British force supported by three sloops lands on the Massachusetts coast and establish a fort. The idea was to provide a haven for loyalists and a naval base. The rebels launched a counter expedition largely made up of militia troops supported by a large naval force. The British position was strong and the American naval advantage was not able to be fully deployed. The land campaign was also badly executed. The British relief naval force ended the siege and the consequent naval action was the worst naval disaster in US history before Pearl Harbour.   

The campaign is interesting because of some famous participants. John Moore was a Lieutenant in 1779 and this was his first action. The founder of the famed Light Division certainly learned lessons in this campaign that must have influenced his later reforms. On the US side, Paul Revere of the Lexington ride fame was a Colonel of militia artillery. He was much later lionised by Longfellow, but in this campaign he was court martialled and his actions probably deserved greater retribution.

This is a one off book, not part of a series. Unusually for Cornwell there is not one heroic figure that the story is built around. Instead he takes in all the characters to tell the story, with of course the license that the writer of historical fiction has with facts and narrative. Great read.

Brittany - Fougeres

I spent my summer holiday in Brittany. Not an area I know well, but one with a rich history.

Brittany gets its name from the settlement of Britons from Wales and the west country who established themselves in the area during two migrations during the 9th Century. They fought off the Franks and established an independent state. Brittany during the Middle Ages is the story of fending off attempts to incorporate the Duchy into France. The French eventually triumphed in 1488.

We stayed in the Breton Marches, the borderland with France. It has several well preserved castles. The best is Fougeres. Established in the 11th Century it was developed over the next four centuries into an impressive fortification that is largely intact today. Well worth a visit.

The Lion Awakes

First on my holiday reading list has been Robert Low's new book 'The Lion Awakes'. He is the author of the Oathsworn series of Viking novels. His new 'Kingdom' series covers Scotland at the end of the 13th Century, both the internal conflicts and external wars with England.

In the best tradition of the historical novel the main character is a fictitious minor noble who is close to the main events. This volume starts in 1297 with Edward ruling Scotland and Wallace leading the rebellion, together with the internal Bruce - Balliol civil war. The Battle of Stirling Bridge is central to the book that ends with the Battle of Falkirk in July 1298. 

Anyone covering this period is bound to be compared with Nigel Tranter and his treatment of both Wallace and Bruce. Tranter had a more romantic style that generally portrayed his heroes in a positive light. Low goes for a more gritty, warts and all presentation that has ruffled a few feathers. The reality is that our sources for the period are limited and therefore the historical novelist has plenty of interpretative scope. 

I declare an interest in that the author is a member of our wargames society and I am a big fan of his style. He is a journalist by profession and that shines through. He loves to tell the story and one of his Viking novels lacked pace by getting distracted with too much saga story telling. But that isn't a problem here. You get a real feel for the period and what it was like to live and fight in those difficult times. The internal politics of Scotland in this period is fully brought out, so for those who view the period as a nationalist England v Scotland issue will be sorely disappointed. Braveheart this isn't. Highly recommended.

  

Outpost Turks in 28mm

In December I posted pictures of the Bulgarian Legion in 28mm from a new range by Outpost Miniatures. These are for the Russo-Turkish War of 1877.

As I said then I first saw them at the Claymore show last summer, when their stall was next to our display game. There is a mouthwatering vignette with their display. I resisted them most of the day because I have this army in 15mm. However, one my my pals, in the finest tradition of the drug dealer, sucked me in by buying me a couple of packs.

I also said I wasn't going to buy full size armies. So far so good as the project is limited to the Shipka Pass battle between the Advanced Guard and the Turks. The next stage is therefore some opponents for the Bulgars in the shape of these very nice Turkish figures. Russians next.....

Armies of the Balkan Wars

The latest Osprey (MAA 466) covers the Armies of the Balkan Wars 1912-13.

This book does what it says on the cover. Just a short potted history of the campaign and then a description of the armies and their equipment. As usual with this series the strength is in the colour plates and the photos. Both are excellent.


This is a big subject to cover in one book. There are a number of countries involved and the armies were large and diverse. But for those simply looking for a short introduction and a painting guide, this is the publication for you.

If you want a history of the campaigns, I would recommend Richard Hall The Balkan Wars and for the Ottomans, Defeat in Detail by Edward Erickson. For more detail on the armies consult Alexander Vachkov, The Balkan War 1912-13  that has more colour plates and detail on the equipment deployed.

On His Majesty's Service

I picked up a copy of Alan Mallinson's latest book On His Majesty's Service, primarily because it appeared to cover the 1829 Russo-Turkish War in the Balkans.

After struggling through the first 100 pages, I remembered why I hadn't bought his books recently. This is an author who has a very detailed understanding of cavalry regiments and the society they operated in during the period. The problem is that he feels the need to share that detail with the reader. So the first hundred pages takes us through a fairly tedious round of social engagements typical of a upper class officer of the time. This is supposed to be historical fiction and as such should have action and a fast paced narrative. Sadly this book has neither.

The book improves when we eventually get to the Balkans, although the research is a little less detailed here. In fairness, this is not a well covered conflict in any language. In the best traditions of historical fiction our hero manages to be everywhere that matters and it does give a reasonable flavour of the conflict and in particular the problems faced by an Ottoman army in transition.

Overall, not my favourite author and not recommended.

Warriors

This is the second in Jack Ludlow's trilogy covering the great story of the Normans in the South.

The scene is 11th Century Italy, with Norman mercenaries arriving to be hired by Lombard and Byzantine lords. Too many young knights in Normandy to be supported on too little land, so the younger sons seek their fortune in a divided Italy. 

The story is built around the de Hautevilles. Tancred in Normandy trying to do his best for his many sons. William goes south and becomes first a Captain in an established band before striking out on his own. Eventually he rises to his own fiefdom in Apulia, supporting a rebellion against the weakening power of the Byzantine Empire. This book ends with the Battle of Civitate where the Normans defeat the Pope who is trying to curb their growing power. Yet cleverly they ally themselves with the Pope and set the scene for the next stage of the Norman expansion in the South. The leader then will be Robert de Hauteville, known as Guiscard.

For a factual history you can do no better than J.J.Norwich's 'Normans in the South'. The actual history reads like a novel because it is the most amazing story. But Jack Ludlow is a great writer of historical fiction. This book has it all, intrigue, treachery, action and passion. Historical fiction at its very best. Highly recommended.

 

Three Elegies for Kosovo

The 28 June was the anniversary of the first Battle of Kosovo in 1389. On the Field of Blackbirds the Christian army of Serbs, Albanians, Bosnian and Walachian troops were defeated by the Ottoman army of Sultan Murad.

There are few reliable contemporary records of the battle and this has been compounded by the religious and nationalistic significance the battle has been given by the Serbs. The Ottoman forces were split into the usual three sections. The centre commanded by Murad himself with the foot; the right by his son Bayezit with the European Sipahi cavalry; the left by his other son Yakub with the Anatolian cavalry. The core of the Ottoman army consisted of Turkish troops although there would have been contributions from Greek, Bulgarian and Serbian vassals.


Prince Lazar's army included a core of Serbian troops including his son-in-law Vuk Brankovich together with the Bosnian leader Ban Tvrtko and other contingents including Croats, Wallachians and Albanians. The Serbs occupied the right wing and the allies on the left with Vukovic commanding the reserves.
 The conduct of the battle is clouded by contrary claims. Ottoman historians claim the Serbian charge on the centre was disrupted by baggage camels while Bayezit's right wing broke the flank and rolled up the Serbian forces. Serbian historians claim Vuk Brankovich abandoned the field at a critical moment exposing Lazar's flank, leading to the Prince's capture. Sultan Murad died in or after the battle in any one of several claims including by another Serbian hero Milos Obilic who stabbed him whilst kneeling in submission. Lazar was beheaded along with other Serbian leaders.

What is certain that although the battle was an Ottoman victory the Sultan's elder son Yakub also died in the battle and therefore Bayezit had to establish the succession by returning to Anatolia. Serbia lost more ground, most leaders becoming Ottoman vassals (including Lazar's son and Brankovich), but did not finally lose its independence until 1459.

My reading for the anniversary was Ismail Kadare's Three Elegies for Kosovo. Three short stories about the battle and events that surrounded it. Kadare is a great writer and he offers a different take on this symbolic battle.

The Serbian army is my current FoG army in our club competition. I fear I am no more successful in using it than Prince Lazar. However, at least I get to keep my head!



Gusar light cavalry



Balkans in the journals

Lots of Balkan interest in the wargame and military society journals this month.



The latest edition of the New Mosquito has several excellent articles on the WW1 Salonika campaign including a description of the actions involving the Derbyshire Yeomanry on the Struma front. Another on the actions of a RHA battery plus the work of the Kossovo Day Committee in the UK during WW1. The anniversary of this battle is later this month.


The lead article in this month's Slingshot covers the reign and Balkan campaigns of the Roman Emperor Decius AD249-251. He fought the Goths, fairly incompetently, including the defeat at Abrittus in AD251. He squandered the first real elite Roman cavalry army.


Arquebusier has a piece on the Olaschin campaign of 1696. Friedrich Augustus, Elector of Saxony commanding the Imperial army was defeated by the Ottomans. Another of his less than successful encounters. 


Finally The Foreign Correspondent has a translation by Richard Brooks of a visit to the battlefield of Grivitza 1877. The author accompanied the Russian army on this campaign.

Bumper editions for the Balkan historian and many thanks to those authors who contributed articles to these non-commercial publications.

Dobro Pole 1918

My latest reading has been Balkan Breakthrough: The Battle of Dobro Pole 1918 by Richard Hall.

Dobro Pole is not likely to be on many WW1 battle lists. However, it should be as it was arguably one of the most decisive Entente victories of the war.

Dobro Pole was a key Bulgarian defensive position in Macedonia. By September 1918 the Macedonian front was largely held by Bulgarian forces following the withdrawal of German units to the Western Front. The Bulgarian army was poorly supplied and morale was low. The Entente forces saw an opportunity to achieve a breakthrough and launched an attack with Mainly French and Serbian troops. The attack was successful and the Bulgarian retreat turned into a rout with large numbers of troops heading for home. There were insufficient competent troops to mount a counter attack and reinforcing Austrian and German troops arrived too late. The defeat quickly led to the collapse of the entire front and Bulgaria's withdrawal from the war.

This book covers the background to the war in the Balkans and the campaign in the run up to the battle. The actual battle is covered in just a couple of chapters. The real value of this study is that it views the conflict from a Bulgarian perspective. This is a well written study of the battle that that led to the collapse of the Central Powers in the Balkans and hastened the end of the war.   

  

Spies of the Balkans

Long drive down to Devon and back was an opportunity to listen to the unabridged version (9.5hrs) of Alan Furst's book Spies of the Balkans.

This is an historical spy novel based in Salonika in 1940. The lead character is a special police officer who handles sensitive cases. As war grows nearer he becomes involved in the events that will lead to the Italian invasion and then the German occupation of Greece. In between he helps run an escape route for Jews fleeing Germany and his travels take him all over the Balkans.

The author weaves the history of the period into the story like an historical novel and puts elements of the detective thriller in as well. It was a great listen and really made the miles fly past. Recommended. 

Wargame Magazines

Caught up with my growing pile of wargame magazines this weekend. I hope the great choice we now have reflects a healthy and viable hobby rather than the economics of publishing. Perhaps it is both.

Wargames Illustrated has long been my favourite. Good use of photies and a good balance between historical and gaming articles. It has come in for a fair degree of criticism since being taken over by Flames of War. However, in fairness there is plenty of non FoW material in every issue.

I gave up on Miniature Wargames some years ago. It started to look very dated and tired and I found little of interest. Under new direction it has certainly improved. Not sure if they are not trying to reach too wide an audience with the computer and fantasy sections. A risk that they appeal to no one enough.

Very pleased to see Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy back with an English language version. I like the themed issue format and they have a strong historical focus that appeals to me. Strong presentation has always been a feature of this magazine.

At the risk of contradicting myself I still enjoy the Battlegames format. It may not have the presentational strength of the others but it is strong on content. Maybe I am just nostalgic about my early wargame experiences.

Not sure about Recon but I have persevered. I want to see plenty of reviews in my wargame magazines but I am not convinced that it justifies this as the main content. Some of the reviews are also a bit eclectic for my taste.

Let's also not forget the wide range of society publications. I take Slingshot, Arquebusier, Hobilar and the Foreign Correspondent to name just a few. These don't tend to be up to the presentational standard of the commercial offerings, but often have great content.

Overall, I think we are well served as historical gamers by our magazines. I hope they all flourish.

FoG R - new army lists

I have just taken delivery of two new army lists for FoG Renaissance.

The first is Colonies and Conquest. This covers the spread of gunpowder weapons in Asia, both in the states and the European colonists. Not my normal territory, but I bought it for the Mughals and their opponents. An opportunity to dust down my army again as the list ties in well with those I developed for WAB.

The second is Duty and Glory. This covers the period from the end of the Thirty Years War to the end of the 17th Century. A period dominated by the Sun King, Louis XIV. My interests are more in Eastern Europe during this period. Venetian, Austrian, Polish and Hungarian lists attract me.

No one can doubt that FoG is properly supported with these quality offerings.

  

Silver Eagle

Just finished the latest in the Forgotten Legion series - The Silver Eagle by Ben Kane.

The story covers Roman troops captured at Carrhae who are enlisted by the Parthians as border troops. There is a parallel story covering the sister of one of the leading characters back in Rome. The backdrop is Caesar and the Roman civil war.

This is well researched historical fiction with lots of detail about Roman life and the legions. A storyline that is both interesting and credible - just. Recommended.

Carronade

At the Carronade show in Falkirk last Saturday. As usual, it was well organised by the Falkirk lads with a good range of games and traders. The venue is excellent, just a pity it wasn't as well supported by the public. I suspect a sign of the straightened times we live in.  

At GDWS we brough a 28mm display game Somerled's Last Stand 1164. Somerled, King of Argyll and Lord of the Isles died at the Battle of Bargarran (sometimes called Knock or Inchinnan) in 1164. The battle was fought somewhere close to the site of the current Glasgow Airport. His Islesmen, Manx and Irish allies were defeated by a Norman/Scots army led by the High Steward, Walter Fitz-Alan. We actually know very little about the battle or the forces involved, so this wargame is somewhat conjectural.

None the less a good excuse to put large numbers of our Norman and Viking collections on the tabletop, supplemented by some Scots spearmen and various hairy types to make up the numbers. I see that pictures of the figures are making there way around the web and it was good to talk about them with fellow gamers and visitors.

There were a range of other excellent games including a fine Viking raid participation game from the Kirriemuir club. Plenty of Very British Civil War including the dockside game I first saw at Dumfries. Inspired me to buy a few trucks from Simon at Solway Miniatures for my own VBCW project and some evil fascists from Reiver Miniatures. Good day out all round.

Scots Spearmen

Despite best laid plans it was still the night before the Carronade show when I finished off the last units.

Last two Scots spearmen units are published below. They did rather well in the game, holding off hordes of Irish and Viking troops on the left flank.

Engines of War

Unlike my last review of The Berlin-Baghdad Express my latest read Engines of War by Christian Wolmar is a proper blend of railways and military history. The author is a prolific writer and broadcaster on railways and that is his real focus with this study.

He shows how railways transformed the nature of war in the 19th Century with chapters covering the main conflicts of the period. The railways enabled large armies to be transported considerable distances and equally importantly, suppliedthem to the level modern weaponry required.

For a period of about 100 years from the Crimean War to the Korean War, trains and railways were inseparable from war. Whilst railways have generally been a force for good, we also have to remember that without them industrial scale carnage would equally have been impossible.

I had previously read John Westwood's Railways at War and this author pays tribute to that book. However, this is a better organised and more readable study of an aspect of military history that has received little attention. Recommended. 

Scots skirmishers

A few skirmishers for the early feudal Scots. I know the early tartan is unproven, but the odd figure makes it look like a Scots army.

These lads are from the Gripping Beast range.

Berlin to Baghdad Express

Just finished Sean McMeekin's book The Berlin-Baghdad Express - The Ottoman Empire and Germany's Bid for World Power, 1898-1918.

If a railway enthusiast picked this up he or she would be sorely disappointed. There is actually very little about how this amazing line was constructed. It is still the backbone of the railway system across large swathes of the Middle East.

Instead this is a book about Imperial Germany's attempts to harness the power of Islam against the British Empire. It catalogues the many schemes dreamt up in Berlin, at huge cost, with very little success. Spies, guns and gold tried to stir up Jihad across the Middle East, Persia and Afghanistan.

It's a great story, told fairly well, with more than a few topical references that also shed more than a little light on the current challenges in the region.

The Scots are coming

Very busy at work and starting to panic as Carronade beckons and our Lord of the Isles display still needs plenty of Scots. Can't let the Norman's steal the limelight.

Finished some really nice Characters today. Love the guy with his hands in the air - no idea why, but who cares!

Plus some solid looking Thanes.

The skirmishers are nearly done. Then the spearmen. Oh and those nice, but fiddly banners.

Fields of Death

Just finished reading 'Fields of Death' the last installment of Simon Scarrow's Napoleonic quartet. This series takes the lives of Napoleon and Wellington and run through the Napoleonic wars as viewed by them.

Perhaps a strange choice of personalities to pick as they never met in battle until Waterloo. Although in this fictional series they meet twice. None the less two very different personalities are explored fully.

This final installment covers a long period. From the Danube campaign of 1809 to Waterloo. I was expecting two volumes to cover this period. Scarrow is of course an excellent writer of historical fiction. I just felt that he attempted too much with this volume.

Russo-Japanese War

A new member at the club expressed an interest in playing 19th Century Principles of War today. This was a good opportunity to dust down my armies for the Russo-Japanese War 1904/05.

For those not familiar with this conflict it was the first major war of the 20th century. The main cause was the rival ambitions of Russia and Japan over Manchuria and Korea. The major theatres of operations were Southern Manchuria, together with naval action in the seas around Korea and Japan. The Russians sought a warm water port on the Pacific as Vladivostok was only operational during the summer and Port Arthur would be operational all year. The surprise Japanese victory transformed the balance of power in East Asia, resulting in a reassessment of Japan's recent entry onto the world stage. The embarrassing string of Russian defeats undermined the Tsarist government, and proved a major cause of the Russian Revolution of 1905.

I first 'discovered' this conflict over 30 years ago when I was given a copy of The Tide at Sunrise by Denis and Peggy Warner. This is an excellent study of the war although a more recent study and probably easier to source is Rising Sun and Tumbling Bear by Richard Connaughton. There is also a useful Osprey essential histories. Of course the real inspiration is the marvellous TV series, Reilly Ace of Spies and the episodes that concentrate the siege of Port Arthur.

The starter for the Japanese army was the old Lancashire Games range that I first collected for the Boxer Rebellion. By modern standards these are not good figures. For the Russian's I had a good selection of Minifigs. I picked up the figures below at Salute  a few years ago. They came in 50 figure bags but I can't recall the company who made them. I haven't seen them since but I hope the molds are still around as the animation is superb for 15mm.

PoW is a good ruleset for this conflict. It correctly puts the Russian player in the difficult command position of controlling a sluggish force with poor fire discipline. I got away with it today, through a combination of a crowded table in terms of terrain and my opponents poor initiative dice. This led him into a piecemeal attack on my best units, without the opportunity to manoeuvre around me. An enjoyable game done and dusted in just over three hours.

British forces in Greece

Slow progress on the painting and gaming front recently; work does get in the way of the hobby!. More done than I think but limited to short bursts.

Anyway, the British allies for the Greeks are now finished and the sun is even shining so, temperature apart, you might even think we are up the Pindos Mountains.

Greece WW2

Just finished FoW rebasing the Greeks of WW2. The Italian Greek campaign of 1940 is one of the more interesting and underplayed conflicts of WW2. A totally inadequate Italian army blundered into the mountains of north-west Greece, where it was defeated, thrown back into Albania, only to be rescued by the German invasion of Greece the following year. The common perception of this campaign is of a massive Italian army being held off by valiant, outnumbered Greek forces. Valiant they certainly were, however, the opposing forces were actually fairly evenly balanced.

I wrote a short history of the campaign for the Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers Journal a number of years ago and an updated version is on the Balkan History history site. I have also visited the main battlefields in Greece and Albania, some high up in the mountains. It gives a very different perspective of the campaign.

Next stage is to rebase the Brits as allies.

Carthaginian Warrior

I have enjoyed my latest Osprey, Carthaginian Warrior 264-146BC. As I have mentioned before this was my first wargame army and I have a soft spot for them. Made my first visit to the site of the city a few years ago.

This is in the Warrior series so the focus is on the men who fought for Carthage through a series of wars, most famously of course, the Punic wars against Rome. The unusual feature of Carthaginian armies was that they were almost all mercenaries or at least levies from subject tribes. This makes the achievements of Hannibal particular very special in my view. His leadership skills must have been amazing.

This study by Nic Fields takes the reader through the recruitment, equipment and experience on campaign and in battle. Good narrative supplemented by glorious artwork from Steve Noon. Recommended.

Italian WW2

Finished rebasing my WW2 Italians for Flames of War. I can use some of the units to supplement the Nationalists for the Spanish Civil War project. But the main reason I collected them was for the campaign against Greece in 1940. So I am now rebasing the Greeks and the Brits as well. Not my favourite task as it takes me away from real painting - but they were all originally based for Rapid Fire (individual bases), so needs must.

Plus, I have finished this month's update of Balkan Military History. The feature article is on Pyrrhus of Epirus and his army, inspired by Jeff Champions book. A good general history of one of the ancient world's greatest battlefield commanders.

Empire of the Moghul

Brothers at War is the second book in the Empire of the Moghul series by Alex Rutherford. This follows on from the story of the dynasty's founder, Babur, in the first book. His eldest son Humayun takes over but has to face the rivalry of his three half brothers who want the empire to be split up between them.

As a consequence they fail to unite when the Empire is threatened by a rebellion and Humayun is driven from India to seek support from the Shah of Persia. With military support from the Shah he recaptures Babur's original base in Afganistan from his brothers. When the warring factions in India break apart he grasps the opportunity to recapture the Moghul lands and reestablish their rule. The irony is that after this epic struggle he falls down the steps of his observatory and dies. Such is fate!

I raved at the first of this series and I cannot fail to do the same for the second. The history itself is of course truly epic and Alex Rutherford brings it to life with great story telling skills. I cannot recommend this series too strongly. Time to get my 28mm Moghuls out of the box ......

Albanich

I popped down to Dumfries yesterday for Albanich the first Scottish wargames show of the year.

This is a small local show that none the less attracts a good range of traders. I picked up a number of smaller items I needed. I had bought a very nice Spanish/Italian 15mm building at a show last year, very suitable for my SCW project. Some more would be good but I forgot who did them. And there they were, sold by Rif Raf Miniatures, so a village of them is taking shape. I also got some nice entrenchments for FoW along with grass tufts and some more bases from the excellent Warbases. Warlord Games had their latest and Aventine Miniatures had some very nice Republican Romans and Indians with some fabulous elephants.

The theme of the show was A Very British Civil War (AVBCW). This is produced by Simon Douglas at Solway Crafts who organises the show. For those not familiar with the concept it is an alternative historical outline of events of 1936-38 that begins with a decision by Edward not to abdicate. They have produced some excellent source materials, flags etc and you use whatever rules you like.

I have been attracted to the concept but have resisted. However, yesterday I gave in and bought the books. You can use Great War Warhammer rules for this and a number of my WW1 figures will be suitable for starters. I suspect a worker militias will be my starting point.

There were a number of well presented games on this theme to tempt anyone in, certainly someone as weak willed as me! Below is a snap of the South East Scotland game. The terrain surface is teddy bear fur. Cheap and robust according to the Edinburgh lads.

Again this was a good show, well worth the journey.

Open Days

Glasgow and District Wargames Society held its annual double header and open days this weekend. This is the opportunity to play big games that take longer than the normal afternoon. We also open the doors to any member of the public who wants to find out a bit more about wargaming and what the society has to offer.

I was primarily involved in testing the scenario Somerled's Last Stand that will be our main demo game this year. A big 5000pt WAB game based on Somerled's last battle at Bargarran in 1164. We learnt quite a bit about WAB 2 rules and how it impacts on fighting a battle in difficult terrain. We concluded that we probably made the terrain too difficult as it made the light infantry Islemen very difficult to beat and the outcome was a resounding victory for them. If that had been the historical outcome we would probably be speaking Gaelic not English today!

The above are my Iselsmen with the big man on the hill representing Somerled's right hand man Saor McNeil. They sent several units of Norman knights packing.

There was also a FoG competition using smaller 650pt armies on a 5' x 3' table. This provided quick games. There was also a big WW1 game using PoW, Blitzkrieg action in France from the WW2 boys and a couple of Fire & Fury games. George Dick's 15mm Arthurian army (see below) is one of my favourites.

Pyrrhus of Epirus

Just finished Jeff Champion's book on Pyrrhus of Epirus. His claim to fame is that he defeated the Romans in two major battles and was rated by Hannibal as the second greatest general after Alexander. His name lives on with the phrase 'Pyrrhic victory'.

The author starts with an overview of the Eastern Mediterranean in the 3rd Century BC and of Epirus itself. At this time the state was a loose combination of tribes with the King's role primarily that of war leader. Epirus covered large parts of modern North Western Greece and Southern Albania.

Pyrrhus spent much of his youth in exile. This was the period of the Successors and war between them was the norm, dragging in other states. He developed into an brave and capable commander before returning to Epirus as King. He probably inherited a modern Macedonian style of army based on the pike armed phalanx supported by cavalry and elephants.

The rest of the book takes us through his main campaigns. Firstly his conflicts with neighbouring Macedonia and then, at the invitation of the Southern Italian states, with Rome. His famous 'Pyrrhic victories' at Heraclea and Asculum are covered in detail. He then campaigned in Sicily against Carthage before returning to Italy, this time to lose against the Romans at Beneventum. His final campaigns were in Greece, culminating in his death in battle against Argos and the Spartans. 

A fitting end for a King who was almost continually at war. Whilst he was undoubtedly a great battlefield commander his strategic outcomes were poor. Too many campaigns were not seen through to the end and his diplomatic skills in maintaining allies were weak, even allowing for the shifting alliances of the period.

This is a book I would highly recommend. The author has a good writing style and effectively deals with the limited sources in way that retains readability for the general reader. I have spent some time in the Epirus region and it is well worth a visit with plenty of sites of interest for the historian.

Russia's Balkan Entanglements

Another gift from Santa was Barbara Jelavich's tome on Russia's Balkan Entanglements 1806-1914.

This is a primarily a diplomatic history of Russia's 19th Century engagements in the Balkans. Starting with the Napoleonic wars and ending with WW1 and the subsequent collapse of both the Austro-Hungarian and Russian Imperial Empires. The period included no less than five wars with the Ottoman Empire from which Russia gained minimal territorial advantage at considerable expense. The author concludes that emotional commitments played a significant part in driving Russian policy. The irony is that an autocratic regime supported, what we would today call liberation struggles, at an economic cost that contributed to its own downfall.

I was about to say that the military operations are given cursory attention. However, that would be overstating the case. They are barely mentioned. Whilst this is not a military history, a reader not familiar with these conflicts would struggle to follow events.

This is not an easy read, not least because the author quotes primary documents at length. It does give a detailed understanding of both the internal Russian considerations and the diplomatic exchanges between the Great Powers. The author also threads the theme of the motives for Russian engagement throughout the book. The analysis is excellent, if the presentation is a little turgid.

One for the real Balkan enthusiast now it is available at a reasonable price in paperback. Not for the general reader.

Cross and Crescent in the Balkans

Santa was very good to me in the books department. The first to be read was David Nicolle's Cross and Crescent in the Balkans.

This is the story of the Ottoman conquest of the Balkans. He covers the early history of the Ottomans and the chaotic world at the time. The decline of Byzantium, divided Islam and distracted European states all contributed to the extraordinary rise of this dynasty from a small tribe to superpower status.

This is not a simple narrative military history. The author gives a fair amount of social history that puts the Ottomans in context and explains their resilience. Not least the loyalty of Christian vassals in the Balkans. He also gives some detail of the Ottoman military and administrative system as well as their remarkable comeback after the defeat by Timur at Ankara in 1402.

The military history is outlined and expanded with a somewhat selective treatment of the major campaigns. The Crusade of Nikopol and the Siege of Constantinople get several chapters each. However, the battle of Maritsa plus the first and second battles of Kossova are virtually ignored. This is a bit disappointing as this prolific author has written detailed accounts of Nikopolis and Constantinople in the Osprey campaign series.

With that exception this is still a good overview of the period, written in the David Nicolle's very readable style.

Punic Wars

Happy New Year! May your dice always roll 6. Well for most rules anyway.

It is traditional at this time of year to review projects and plans for the coming year. My main project will be Lord of the Isles as this will be our main display game for this year. Mostly Scots spearmen outstanding. I will no doubt add the odd unit to the WW1 Salonika campaign armies as particular figures catch my eye. I am also enjoying my first few games of Flames of War, so I anticipate some expansion of my Spanish Civil War armies and rebasing the Greeks and Italians. As for actual gaming there will be the club FoG, FoGR and WAB competitions. Plus I want to play more Black Powder, Warhammer Great War and FoW. That should be more than enough to keep me busy!

Just completed the monthly update for Balkan Military History. The main new piece is in the outside the Balkans section with my 28mm Punic Wars armies. The Carthaginians were my first proper wargames army, although I was somewhat shocked to calculate that this was some 40 years ago.

Those Garrison figures have long been sold off and replaced with a bit of a mixture of figures and units gradually picked up or painted when the mood took me over the last ten years or so.

These Spanish foot are some of the best. 

and these Libiyan spearmen are not bad. Later additions from the 1st Corps range I think.

I suppose we have to show some miserable Romans as well........