Wargaming the Exploration and Colonisation of Tropical Africa by European powers from 1850 until 1918.


Monday, 24 January 2011

Zambezi Campaign 6: Rev MacSporran




Apart from the larger units, the Gary Chalk scenarios require a number of characters as well.  Although I am proceeding well on the Naval Brigade I have to go to Turkey this week so won't get them finished until (hopefully) this weekend.  They are nearly done but the collars of the sailors require, in total, 90 very fine white lines and this is taking almost as long as the rest of the painting!




So, in the meantime, I painted the Scottish reverend I need for one of the scenarios.  Chalk calls him Rev McKenzie but I have named mine Angus MacSporran after someone I met once. You wouldn't have thought that such a name could possibly be real but it certainly is!




I think I might give him a wife, as there is a perfect Foundry figure in one of my boxes.  He is a non-combatant so it doesn't matter, from a scenario point of view, if there are two figures rather than one.




The next figures I have based and undercoated are the Sikhs.  You only need six but I got eight in my Foundry pack so will paint them all anyway.

I have also started work on the British standard bearer and I found an extra unpainted British askari who will be the leader of the unit of 14 local levy askaris.

Sunday, 16 January 2011

Zambezi Campaign 5: Starting the Naval Brigade

The Naval Brigade under way as of this morning.  I have shaded their uniforms and blocked in the coloured collars, gaiters and rifles today.


I managed to do a few hours on my next unit, the Royal Baval Brigade, today.  Amazingly I have managed to stay focussed on this project for several weeks now!  I think the good thing is that the units are quite small and there is enough variety in troop types that if I get bored with one I can do a bit on another.


A Royal Navy silor in tropical uniform.  White tops were more common in Southern Africa


Naval troops were fairly active in Africa (outside of the main areas of action such as Egypt and the Sudan) towards the end of the nineteenth century particularly against the Somalis and Swahili towns in the eighteen nineties.  Troops involved were a mixture of armed ratings and Royal Marines but for this force I will be just using the sailors. 


A turn of the century Naval sennet hat.  The black trim seems not to have been worn in the earlier period.


As I start to paint the sailors I realise that these figures come from Copplestone Castings "big" period when some of his figures got really huge (something to do with the prescription for his glasses, apparently).  I'm usually bothered about this sort of thing but as they are in the same style, naturally, as the Foundry figures it doesn't look so bad and, after all, the Arabs and natives probably weren't so well fed!


Royal Navy sailors in Egypt in 1882


Uniforms of sailors at this time were blue but those in tropical climes also wore white with blue collars and black neckerchiefs.  I have already painted a Naval Brigade unit with the blue uniforms and round hats for the Sudan so wanted a different look for these. I am contemplating painting some of the officers with blue coats just for a bit of variety.



My Sudan Naval Brigade figures


Leather equipment was black, with khaki gaiters.  Sailors did wear the round hat in Africa but the broad brimmed sennet hat, known as a benjy, was far more common and was, looking at contemporary illustrations, worn with the brim turned up, exactly as Mr Copplestone has sculpted them.


Royal Navy sailors having a spot of bother in Africa in 1894


He has included the distinctive sword bayonets in their scabbards but I would probably have preferred the figures to have fixed bayonets.  Also, for some strange reason, he does not include water bottles; something of a neccessity in Africa, I would have thought.


Both types of uniforms as demonstrated on some Britains figures


I have quite a busy week this week but hope to get them finished next weekend.  Then its on to the Sikhs, who arrived from Foundry this week and who I have just filed and based.

Thursday, 6 January 2011

Zambezi Campaign 4: Regular Askaris


1st Unit of regular Askaris


I have now finished the first two British units for what I am now calling my Zambezi Campaign.  These are the two units of 8 Regular Askaris.  I have given each one a Sikh NCO. 


2nd unit of askaris


I actually painted 26 askaris so have twelve in reserve if I ever decide to increase the forces.  To start with, though, I am going to stick to Gary Chalk's initial forces.


The complete batch


To complete the British expeditionary force I need a unit of irregular askaris, a standard bearer and the officer (actually, I am going to use two officers).

Next up and ready for undercoating, is the Naval Brigade.  I hope to get going on them this weekend.