OR A TRUE RELATION OF STRANGE PROCEEDINGS IN A SOMERSETSHIRE LOFT AND THE FIELDS ABOUNDING

Friday 19 February 2016

BATTLE OF LANSDOWN 54MM

A flying post here. We set up the battle of Lansdown for Robin's history project and moved the figures around for different stages of the battle. This was done rather on the fly, as the project is due in on Monday and we are having a tour of the battlefield tomorrow, courtesy of Ian Chard..a splendid fellow and member of the Skirmish Wargames Group, who also happens to be the Battlefields Trust 'warden' for Lansdown. Slightly fuzzy pots as the light wasn't brilliant and Robin, who took them was well excited. I aim to make some more bespoke terrain in the future and spend a bit more time on getting the terrain better.

Wallers Army on Lansdown Hill ("Thus stood the Fox gazing at us")

The small hammered guns well entrenched on the brow of the hill.


Parliament dragoons sally forth to goad the Royalists off Tog Hill ("...it was aptly named, for wee had much tougging to gain mastery of it")

It works!

Lord Carnarvon  leads the Royalist cavalry down the hill



A body of Parliament cavalry support their dragoons

The Royalist cavalry come down off Tog and Freezing Hills and the Parliament horse and dragoons pull back


Colonels Burghill and Carr boldy charge the the Royalist army in it's entirety (...it was the boldest thing I ever a saw...to charge an army in it's own ground more than a mile from their own body")
The Royalist cavalry flee...earning themselves the appellation "The Runaway Horse"


Incensed by their cowardly cavalry, the Royalist foot march down the hill to give battle.

The Parliament horse wisely pull back, to lure the enemy infantry into a bloody trap 

The Royalist foot approach the foot of Lansdown and the Parliament guns play upon them. They are also enfiladed by dragoons and musketeers lurking in behind hedges and walls. (Wish I had moved the catfood there!)




Stung beyond rational behaviour The Cornish foot cry "Let us fetch those cannon"

They begin their assault upon the Parliamentarian earthworks...at a terrible cost. Arms and legs fly into the air as they are pounded by the artillery.


The assault underway


Grenville's Cornish Foot and other Cornish Regiments (Slanning's, Mohun's and Godolphin's) reach the earthworks and pile in pell mell.

(getting exciting here) as Grenville throws away his life. The Parliamentarians fight back and Sir Arthur Hazelrigge leads a counter charge with his famous Lobsters. (...so called as they are couvered in a bright iron shell")

Grenville falls, poleaxed by a cuirassier, and Hazelrigge receives a pike wound to his thigh.

Waller withdraws behind a stone wall to his rear that has been pierced with holes to allow horse through. The Royalists balance precariously on the edge of the hill...a spent force ("...one lusty charge would have rolled us to the bottom.")

Night falls as the armies fire half heartedly at each other. Waller withdraws to Bath having protected it from Royalist capture. Parliament casualties no more than 80....Royalist casualties between 200 and 500, including Grenville. A definite Parliament victory, yet all the history books say otherwise. I can't get my head around it.

Quotes in italics are along the lines of  real ones, but I am remembering them off the top of my head, so forgive me if they are a bit wrong. I am enthused to do more scenery and baggage train in 54mm, but goodness, they take a lot of room up when laid out. Next time we may borrow the village hall. I hope to do Waterloo one day with a bout 4 times as many figures.

I have also just sold a heap of 10mm Warmaster figures, and within hours Prince August had a sale on their Roman wars moulds so I bought some of those with proceeds, and this very evening Black Tree discounted their Roman range by 50% so I hoovered up some auxillaries and artillery..... I still have cash left from the Warmaster stuff, as well as a few other sales and it is very satisfying recycling hobby stuff to by more, rather than spending more 'real' money...I aim to do this in the future.




19 comments:

  1. Hope you enjoy the battlefield tour together today.
    Great figures ,lovely to see en masse.
    Interesting news re Romans,what rules do you favour for them?
    Do let us know how the school project goes down,I am certain it will be a hit.
    Alan

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    1. Battlefield tour was brilliant...but bloomin' wet and windy. No idea for Roman rules , but I want them to look like the old Airfix figures when I paint them up. I have bought loads of artillery for them!

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  2. A VERY impressive set up ! , hope the weather is good for your battlefield trip , Tony

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    1. Thanks Tony...the trip was good but very wet and windy.

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  3. Lovely to see your ECW collection in action. Nice re-fight of the battle.

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    1. Thanks Allan...the collection started after seeing your ECW stuff!

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  4. The entrenchments for the artillery are great, did you scratchbuild them?

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    1. No Brian, they are from Amera Mouldings http://www.amera.co.uk/

      who make some excellent 1/32 scenery including bespoke bases to go with old Airfix dioramas. Masses of smaller scale stuff too and very reasonable.

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  5. Hello

    I'm very impressed (and not a little jealous!) with your 54mm ECW range of figures. I'm currently trying to convert some ACTA ECW soldiers into Scottish Covenanters using the Replicants 'spare' heads from their ECW Scottish range, and wondered whether you might have any which you would be prepared to sell? I have lots of the Replicants Scottish figures already and don't want to purchase more figures in order to obtain the spare heads, unless I have to.

    Please don't worry if you can't help - best wishes and thanks again for your inspiring and impressive toy soldiers

    Andrew

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    1. Thanks Andrew. I am pretty sure I have a few Scots heads somewhere, from I rregular Miniatures which may be a bit small. They were on some secondhand chaps I was given. If I find them you are welcome to have them for free. I'll let you know either way, but give me a day or so. If I haven't replied, do remind me as I have a mind like a sieve!!

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    2. Ok Andrew
      I've found a few heads for you. They are Irregular miniatures 54mm, so may be too small, but if you would like them send me your address. I don't have any Replicants Scottish heads I'm afraid.

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  6. Mike- Certainly you have achieved the culmination of a Great Project - Lansdown in 54mm - an added bonus to present it all for your Son's School Project too- well done indeed. Regards. KEV. ( Have joined your Site - upon your agreement that Glastonbury is a Special Place- you are in a very nice part of this World).

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    1. Hi Kev. Things have been a bit lax on this blog recently, but they will perk up again soon. Some activity over on my fantasy blog. Thanks for the comments....I did try joining your blog, but there was a glitch at the time, I'll have another go later.
      all the best from rainy Somerset.

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    2. Thanks Mike - I will have a look at your Fantasy Blog as well- will be glad to have you follow my Blog...and follow my Medieval DBA 15mm. Regards. KEV.

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  7. Hi Mike,
    Well - I've been so impressed by your efforts with your splendid ECW Armies that I've finally decided to do a Plastic 54mm Project myself- at long last-I though it was about time to begin with Toy Soldiers. I've chosen to do WW1 using Armies In Plastic figures- British, Americans and Germans. Thankyou for the Inspiration Mike! Regards. KEV.

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    1. Hi Kev
      glad to hear you have been seduced into 54mm. It's a scale I really enjoy painting (although at the moment I'm doing old school 25mm fantasy), but I have the figures ready in 54mm for Waterloo (1:200) and Little Round Top at Gettysburg (1:1) as well as a 54mm Marlburian project underway). Be warned though, they take up an awful lot of space!! Your new abode might fill up quickly.

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    2. Thanks Mike- you have certainly some great projects coming up: Napoleonic, ACW and Marlburian...all in 54mm- Wow! I have a Shed-Workshop with enough cupboard space to store 54mm Figures and accessories...my Games Table is 5'6" x 13' for Skirmish Games, plus my Garden lawn is about 40' x 40'...so plenty of space to accommodate what I want to do with my WW1 Project in 54mm. Cheers. KEV.

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    3. A 13' long table!!!!!!!!!!!!!!That sounds big enough, as well as the lawn. You'll have to dig a trench system.

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    4. Mike,
      My friend Greg (Mc) suggested the digging of Trenches for the 54mm WW1- I've protested as there will be nothing of the sort- it'll all be open country...having a lot of fun with this - were going to enjoy the battle on the backyard lawn late this Summer. All the Best. KEV.

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