2017: The Miniature Year in Reveiw, Part 4

I had decided to go back to my gaming roots.  It was the plastic 20mm (1/72 Scale) Airfix Napoleonic figures that first really got me interested in gaming and collecting soldiers as a kid.
Then I discovered Bruce Quarrie's Airfix gaming guide, that eventually became Napoleon's Campaigns in Miniature that got be hooked on real wargaming with toy soldiers when I was a teenager.

In tribute to my first love of gaming, I had decided it's time to go back and do 1:72 scale; not only to save money and space, but also as I have recently discovered the unbelievable quality and variety of 1/72 scale figures and periods.  I used to have a 15 mm Zulu army and now I have decided to do both the British and Zulus in 1/72 scale soft plastic figures. 

Lieutenant Colonel Redvers Buller, VC, leads the Frontier Light Horse through the gauntlet on Hlobane Mountain. 

Mounted Infantry

 The Edendale Contingent of the Natal Native Horse

The 1/72 plan for the Anglo-Zulu war came to an abrupt halt when my lovely bride of 31 years asked me to teach a Wargaming Class for one of the local Home School Co-ops.  All of our wonderful 5 boys have spent the majority of their school time in home school and I wouldn't trade it for the world.  Honorable Son #1 is a librarian in a major university and is married; Honorable Son #2 is a lieutenant in the US Army and is married; Honorable Son #3 is a chemical and biological engineer and is married; Honorable Son #4 is in Cow College (yeah, I'm an Alabama fine) and is in Construction Science; and Honorable Son #5 is a junior in high school and just finished his calculus in college.

I decided to do my class One-Hour War Games: The American Civil War. I used the One-Hour Wargames book written by Neil Thomas and it worked out perfectly for introducing medical and highschool children to wargaming.  It took me a couple months to paint armies for the Union and Confederate armies as I was also working on other projects.  There were a total of 10 battles for a campaign and the Union forces pulled out a victory with a narrow victory.  The class for so popular I will be doing another class but will be doing the 17th century.  In a future date I will take pictures of the 1/72 scale American Civil war forces from last semester and the new 1/72 scale forces for ImagiNation armies for the next semester.

The Edendale Contingent of the Natal Native Horse

When the Government asked the Elders of Edendale to raise a mounted troop for the the upcoming Anglo-Zulu War, there was no hesitation. "We all know the cruelty and the power of the Zulu King", they told their people, "and if he should subdue the Queen's soldiers and overrun this land he will wipe out all the native people who have dwelt so long in safety under the shadow of the Great White Queen. Shall we not gladly obey her, when she calls for the services of her dark children?"

 Volunteers were quickly forthcoming. Within a few days a fine body of some one hundred young men, mounted, accoutred and uniformed at their Elders' expense, complete with boots and spurs, gathered to receive their Missionary's blessing at a solemn service in the Edendale Church.

I have used HaT Miniatures Natal Native Horse to recreate the Edendale Contingent of the Natal Native Horse (NNH), the most effective and famous mounted unit of native troops raised.

Front and back of box including mounted and dismounted troops.

 

Three sprues come with the boxed set allowing you to make 9 mounted and 9 dismounted troops.  As I am doing my forces for The Men Who Would be Kings these will be mounted Irregular Horse and will consist of 8 mounted figures.  I used one figure from the HaT Frontier Light Horse box to be the officer.

"Apart from having become loyal and reasonably good soldiers, who proved themselves throughout the campaign and remained intact and on service when other native units disintegrated and melted away, they remained devout Christians, who rose every morning before the first bugle-call to hold their service and sing hymns .... And at night, however late they were on duty, or however tired, they met again for their evening worship."

 This colour, donated by Mr Robert Topham, was presented by Major General Sir Evelyn Wood, VC, KCB, Governor of Natal, in the name of the Queen 'to the officers and troopers of the Edendale contingent of the Natal Native Horse' at Edendale on 15 December 1881. 'The flag having been unfurled, was delivered by the General to Sergeant Major Simeon Kambula, and Sergeants Simon and Enoch, who knelt before His Excellency. The choir sang the National Anthem' (The Natal Witness, Saturday 17 December 1881).
(Photograph by courtesy of the Killie Campbell Africana Library, University of Natal, where the Colour now rests)

How's the 2017 Plan going?

Here is an update on my progress of the 2017 year plan:

1. Finish my British Field Force for the 2nd Afghan War for the rules The Men Who Would Be Kings.

Complete!  Huzzah!

 
2.  Start and finish an Afghan Regulars Field Force for the 2nd Afghan War for The Men Who Would Be Kings.

One unit complete and one tribal unit half complete.

 

3. Finally finish the last 2 cavalry units I need to for my King Arthur army for Dux Bellorum as the Saxons are starting to make inroads.

Complete!  Huzzah!

4. Some add on figures and maybe an additional company for "In Her Majesty's Name."

As I used to say in the Army, "There is no kill like an overkill."

5.  Back to my roots: 1/72 scale figures.

"Zulus sir . . . eight of 'em"

Sorry I couldn't resist the joke as I have 8 Zulu warriors from Warlord in 28mm hard plastic that I use as Waziri warriors for In Her Majesty's Name.  I am planning on doing Zulus in 1/72 scale.  The real reason of this post is to show off my new elephant grass terrain that I made using old CD's and plants made for aquariums.

The Frontier Light Horse

Lieutenant Colonel Redvers Buller, VC, leads the Frontier Light Horse through the gauntlet on Hlobane Mountain. 

Continuing with my Anglo-Zulu War 1/72 project is the Frontier Light Horse led by (then) Lieutenant Colonel Redvers Buller, VC. The miniatures I selected are once again from HaT.

Cover art on the box.

The box set comes with 3 sprues of 4 mounted, 4 horses and 1 dismounted figure. The set is very versatile as I can see them also easily being used as Boers.  Since I am mounted for The Men Who Would be Kings I will have some extras left over one of the figures with the pistol will be painted as the leader of a Natal Native Horse contingent.

Back of the box.

In July 1878 the unit of 276 officers and men marched from King William's Town to Pietermaritzburg and then to Sekhukhuneland for service there. They fought under Captain Robert Johnston Barton in Wood's Column during the Anglo-Zulu War. They acted as rearguard at Hlobane on 28 March 1879 where 20% of the 156 members were lost.

 The full unit organized as Irregular Cavalry. 

Captain Barton, the commanding officer was killed during the defeat at Hlobane. At the end of that year the unit was disbanded. Two members of the Frontier Light Horse, Captain Cecil D'Arcy and Sergeant Edmund O'Toole were awarded the Victoria Cross for their acts of valour in endeavouring to save the lives of soldiers during the reconnaissance made before the Battle of Ulundi on 3 July 1879.

 Buller is dressed in a blue patrol jacket.

Mounted Infantry Anglo-Zulu War

As I mentioned earlier I am getting back to my roots with 1/72 scale plastic soldiers.  I have decided to raise field forces for for both the Imperial Forces and the Zulus for The Men Who Would be Kings. 

Scale comparison: 1/72 HaT mounted infantry and Empress Miniatures 28mm.

As I already have Imperial units and have started Afghan units in 28 mm I thought building forces of large tribal infantry in 1/72 would be an inexpensive and visually impressive collection.  First up is a unit of British mounted infantry.

   
The mounted infantry consisted of two squadrons of 150 men each, a total of 300 enlisted, NCOs and officers. The men of the Imperial mounted Infantry were regular soldiers taken from several regiments within the British Army in South Africa. The men included troops from the 3rd, 13th, 24th, and 80th Regiments of Foot. The soldiers retained their foreign-service helmets and regimental tunics, but were issued with Bedford cord breeches, riding boots and a brown leather ammunition bandolier. They retained their haversacks and Oliver pattern water-bottles but discarded the rest of their valise pattern equipment for mounted service. 

The Mounted Infantry proved a versatile force for scouting and skirmishing. They would screen the main column and provide cover for advancing troops. They were more reliable and versatile than many other Anglo-Allied cavalry units because they had experience being regular British foot soldiers as well as cavalrymen.  During the initial advance into Zulu Land, the first squadron of Mounted Infantry was attached to No. 3 Column that made camp at Isandhlwana. The second Squadron was with No. 1 Column.

As the name suggests, the mounted infantry invariably dismounted to fight, telling off one man in four as horse-holders.

Of course I painted them with blue facings and it looks like none of the mounted infantry have blue facings . . . oh well.

In The Men Who Would be Kings a regular mounted infantry unit is composed of 12 figures and can move 8" making it a fast, hard hitting infantry unit.