Wargaming the American Revolutionary War

Finally got round to playing an AWI wargame. It was a simple scenario, a British brigade was instructed to occupy/liberate a small town in New Jersey. A Royal Navy battery was in attendance, with instructions to open up a barrage on any 'key position' before the general advance. A dice determined four shots per gun, they would then cease firing. Although Rebel numbers, formed into two Continental, one partisan, and one militia brigade, gave them a numerical strength, their morale levels were considerably lower. The Naval battery inflicted some casualties on a prominent farmhouse but still failed to clear this location, This continued to be an irritation during this action. The British now advanced, opposition fire was initially light, but it did get heavier. The British kept their first volley in reserve, and relied on several bayonet charges. They were successful, the first line, largely broke. The second line, mainly Continentals, exchanged volleys with the Redcoats, with fairly equal losses. Wisely, the British Centre did not persist in its advance, seeking to rely on their Left wing to steadily advance. The Right Wing was largely inactive, the exchange of light field guns being ineffectual. But it was the charge of some Loyalist cavalry that shocked the game, the Continental light troops broke, and were severely chopped up by the slashing sabres. This gap in the Rebel lines allowed the cavalry to enter the town's main street, and this game concluded.
MGB

NEW PROJECTS IN 54MM

Apologies for the lack of posts on this page during the last few months. Just before Christmas I started on a new project to raise, restore, and upgrade some 54mm Medieval armies, using the 1970s Herald Range of figures, produced by W. Britains. I have nearly completed some 300 Guelph and Ghibelline figures now, and have started to upload photos on my other blog, Scimitar and Crescent Wargames (see link on this page). I must express how much of a pleasure it has been to move to this larger scale, and to view and repair some figures I had in my childhood. Perhaps its also the less formal historical criteria in collecting these figures which has made it such a joy.  Here's a few photos from my new/old collection. Hope they are still of some interest to the followers of this Late 18th Century Blog.
MGB

 

MY RUSSIAN ORTHODOX CHURCH (Christmas Project)

On Christmas Day I was inspired to start a suitably appropriate project, to build a Russian Orthodox Church. It was a year ago that I picked up a wooden container in a charity shop for £1, and it was obvious the lid would be quite suitable for something eastern, and perfect for something Russian. The following photos are pretty well self-explanatory. The completed model is not really dateable as it has features from several periods in Russian history, but as it was my intention to not only capture my interest in the State of Muscovy, but also my love of Christmas, I don't think it matters. The green roof is inspired by a 17th century Russian palace, the dome is very 16th century, the yellow walls are 18th century, while the woodwork ornamentation is medieval. Together, they make a very colourful ornament on the war-games table. Additional costs were £3 for the yellow paint, and £2 for the glass taken from a broken lantern in a charity shop. With additional paint and glue it came to £7 total. Being pleased with the results, I took time to cast up some Orthodox Christian crosses. For the record, working on and off, I completed this project at 11.45am today, New Years Day. Hope you all had a great Christmas, and have a Happy New Year!

Michael