Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 10 - Box #14; "Go Light on the Cavalry!"

Aside from the Stradiots and Genitors displayed previously, the bulk of Light cavalry during this era were mounted Crossbowmen and Mounted Arquebusiers. 

It seems likely they probably dismounted to shoot and/or load. 

24 Mounted Crossbows, 24 Mounted Arquebusiers, and yet another 7 mounted commanders.

Figures are a mix of Hincliffe, Essex, and  Old Glory.

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 9 - Box #13 Elmeti, Lancers, and Gendarmes

 

More Italian Wars cavalry... Heavy, Extra Heavy, and Really, Really Heavy!  :-)

"He's not heavy... he's mein Brüder!"

Mix of Essex, Redoubt, Hinchliffe, Old Glory, and Foundry.

All told, there are 24 HC lancers, 12 EHC lancers, and 30 Gendarmes... and another stray commander. 

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 7 - Box #11; Putting the Italians in the Italian Wars!

In this box are Pikes and Arquebusiers from Florence/Milan/Venice, Papal Guards EHI Halberdiers, a unit of anachronistically Red, white, and green EHC, and a gaggle of peasants!

Some repairs needed!

There is also a nattily attired Italian Noble/Condottieri to lead them. 

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 5 - Box #9: Reiters and Elmeti, at the ready!

During the Great Italian Wars, Elmeti generally referred to heavily armored  cavalry, but not quite of the quality of Gendarmes, Knights, Household troops, Famiglia, etc. In my case I view them as Extra Heavy cavalry, but generally on horses without barding, especially metal barding. 

Reiters, on the other hand, arose late in the Italian Wars era  and extended well past that into the Wars of Religion. Initially, they were relatively lightly protected (mail shirts - as seen in the top 2 rows), and some carried short spears. Later they tended to 3/4 armor, but never barding (next 2 rows). They were specialist pistoliers, carrying 2-3 or more pistols, and, at least initially, using the Caracole. This could be effective against infantry with few or no missile weapons, but was generally hazardous when employed against aggressive enemy cavalry!

I make that 24 HC Reiters, 24 EHC Reiters, and 36 Elmeti. Quite a heavy box!

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 4 - Box #8 "Big Bang, Cheery!"

The Renaissance era saw the artillery become an essential part of the army for battles in the field, as well as vital for the conduct of sieges, which were numerous throughout the era.  To quote (totally out of context), my friend, Gavin Shanks, 

"Nothing says 'I don't love you" quite as well as a big explosion. Says it all, really!"

This box has about 70% of my Renaissance Artillery park. Guns at this time were anything but standardized in caliber, carriages, or anything else!

The ordonnance itself is an eclectic mix of Hinchliffe, Old Glory, Redoubt, and others! During the Great Italian Wars, the Marquis of Ferarra was especially well known for his fascination with cannon, and his substantial artillery arm contributed to the defeat of the Spanish at the Battle of Ravenna in 1512.

I count 16 guns and 51 crew; as you can see, I could use  more crew figures. Many manufacturers make few or no crew for this era. The crew figures are also Old Glory, Redoubt, and Hinchliffe... for the most part!

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 3 - Box #6, #7 "Lotta Landsknechts!"

"Hut dich, hier komm ich!" -  Traditional chant of the Landsknechts. 

 

   Holy Roman Emperor Maximillian began the process of raising Landsknecht infantry in 1486. Primarily armed with the Pike, these were  supplemented by Doppelsoldner armed with Halberds and/or two-handed swords, plus crossbowmen (and later, arquebusiers). The Swiss first met the Landsknechts in battle at Dornach, July 22, 1499.Landsknechts were easily distinguishable by their flamboyant, typically outlandish clothing. In an era when commoners were prohibited by law from wearing colorful, gaudy or expensive attire, landsknechts were granted an imperial exemption. They wore oversized flat hats festooned with feathers and sported colorful clothing with “puff and slash” decoration. In particular, landsknechte favored huge sleeves of billowing fabric (puff) with long cuts (slashes) revealing underlying mismatched bright colors. These flashy costumes clearly set them apart from the era’s common soldier, which was exactly as the landsknechts intended.

 

For us wargamers, Landsknechts pose both a unique challenge and an opportunity Certainly there are no soldiers more evocative of the wars of the 16tgh century than the Landsknecht. As mercenaries, they could be found serving in most armies of the period, although their mortal enemies were the Swiss (and vice versa!). Units of flamboyant Landsknechts firmly set the time and place of a game, but most of us are somewhat intimidated by the parti-colored clothing and elaborate slashing

The figures are an eclectic mix of Hinchliffe and Old Glory. Still, I find that when approached one unit at a time, psinting them is manageable... and the end result well worth the effort!

32 pikes, 16 skirmish crossbowmen, 9 Skirmish Arquebusiers, 60 formed Arquebusiers.

The next box has the bulk of the Landsknecht foot, once again a mix of chiefly Hinchliffe and Old Glory figures. 

There are 148 pikes/halberdiers in the 7th box. 

Support troops are 12 MI Arquebusiers, 4 LI Arquebusiers, and 18 Doppelsöldner armed with Zweihänder (two handed swords), allegedly used to break into enemy pike formations. The veracity of this usage is suspect.

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 2 - Box #5 "I'm fondue the Swiss"

    The story of the Swiss Cantons at war during the Renaissance era  begins in the late Medieval era, with the establishment of the Eternal League between the three Waldstätte or ‘Forest Cantons’ around Lake Lucerne – Unterwalden, Uri and Schwyz, in 1291. They provoked a confrontation with the Happsburgs, which lead to the destruction of an Austrian force of 2,000 or more invading the cantons at the decisive battle of  Morgarten, November 15th 1315. More victories for the Swiss followed, against fellow Swiss, supported by Burgubndian men at arms at  Laupen (where they faced some Swiss enemies as well) June 21st , 1339 (which lead to the addition of the pike to their primary weapon, the halberd). During a prolonged armistice with the Hapsburgs, there occurred a succession of alliances between the Swiss cantons: Lucerne (1332), Zürich (1351), Zug and Glarus (1352), and Berne (1353).

War with the Austrians resumed, once again provoked by the Swiss, resulting in another decisive defeat at Sempach (July 9, 1386), and further actions at Näfels (April 9, 1388), Voegelinsegg (May 15, 1403), and Stoss (June 17, 1405). The battle of Arbedo, against Milan (June 30, 1422 ), where the Itial Condotierre commander had his heavily armored cavalry dismount and fight on foot, very nearly lead to a severe defeat of the Swiss, and prompted the completion of their move to the pike as their primary weapon. 

   The Swiss - Burgundian Wars grew out of a complex series of alliances and arrangements involving the Hapsburgs, French and Swiss on one side, and the  Burgundians on the other. The seemingly well organized forces of Charles the Bold of Burgundy suffered a series of defeats, at  Héricourt (November 13, 1474), Grandson (March 2, 1476), Murten/Morat (June 22, 1476), and finally nancy (January 5, 1477), where Charles was killed,

There's a very good, concise history of these actions, and analysis on the development of Swiss tactics on the Battlefield Anomalies site.

Box #5 contains my Swiss, and a formidable lot they are! The "cantonal colors" of their dress, and the  dramatic but simple cantonal banners add to their appeal. There are 164 pikes (including a few stands of  Halberdiers mixed in).

The figures are mix of Minifigs, Hinchliffe, and Old Glory.  There are 16 skirmishing Arquebusiers included; they were used mainly to screen the massive pike phalanxes, and counter enemy skirmishers. 

The Swiss had a very decentralized command structure, but 4 leader/hero figures on foot are included in the group. 

Renaissance Reconnaissance, Part 1 - The Spanish; Boxes #1 - #4

    I have the numbers and identification of all my painted troops, etc., recorded and tallied in detail on the "pages" of this blog. Some are in need of another periodic updating now, usually done every 3 to 6 months. This is of course a clear indication of an obsessive personality trait. :-) 

    All that is, except one era... my Renaissance troops. The explanation for this is pretty simple. Most troops of this era are fairly generic. That's a plus with regard to collecting and painting them, but a detriment when it comes to counting and documenting them. The recent "Off the Shelf" reorganization of my collection created an opportunity to assign the figures to semi permanent boxes  for the long haul, and in so doing to finally complete their census (now if only they could be taxed to pay for their upkeep and support!). 

    I decided to lead (in both the pronunciations of the word!)  the process off with the one part of the Renaissance roster that is instead pretty distinctive, namely the Spanish. The bulk of these figures are the wonderful Hinchliffe Spanish, really dressed more for the later, Armada era, but so wonderfully iconic. Many of the sculpts convey such a wonderful, subtle attitude of arrogance suited to the nation of the Conquistadors and the wealth of the "Siglo de Oro". Most of these figures were painted when I was a Resident in Family Medicine, circa 1982 - 1984. The remaining figures are Essex with a very few by Redoubt as well. If nothing else, they will illustrate the process, as well as verifying and updating the current tally. 

The Spanish are housed in four 8.1 L Really Useful Boxes; really closer to three, the 4th box simply housing a Camp element. Box #4 might eventually be used strictly for a number of Camp elements of various factions. 

Box #1 contains all of the Spanish cavalry, some commanders, and a few LI Crossbowmen. 

16 LC/MC Genitors, 12 EHC Spanish Knights on metal barded horses, 18 EHC Lancers ("Elmeti"),

12 HC Mounted Arquebusiers, 4 LI Crossbowmen, and 5 mounted commanders.

Box 2 has about half of the infantry; Tercios/Collunellas and supporting troops. 

64 MI/HI Pikemen, 48 Arquebusiers,

12 HI Halberdiers, 24 HI Swordsmen, 12 LI Crossbowmen.

Box 3 contains the rest of the infantry, and all of the Musketeers. 

32 MI/HI Pikemen, 12 MI Arquebusiers, 8 LI Arquebusiers, 8 LI Crossbowmen,

 8 LI Swordsmen, 24 LI Musketeers, and 24 vMI Musketeers.

Box #4 at present simply contains the Spanish Camp vignette. Perhaps some more camps will be added in the future? 

Assyrian Thunder

The third of four new Assyrian Heavy Chariots rumbles forth to battle!

Like the others before it, this is Hinchliffe 25mm model.

this time the color scheme is a medium blue tending towards Turquoise, and off white. 

Dental floss reins painted off white adorn the model once again. 

A rear view shows the four man crew figures better. 

An interesting short video on the Assyrian military. 

Chariots and Trillium

Here's the 2nd of 4 new Assyrian Heavy Chariots.

I used the brown Micron ink pen for the detailing (pattern)  on the yellow portions of the Cab, and the green pen for the green quivers affixed to the cab.

The reins are made from the tape like form of Dental floss, painted a suitable color. 

Some more ink pen detailing on the fringes and the shield border. 

A coat of dark magic wash brought out the sculpting details on the wheels, ropes, and horse furniture nicely. 

About 10 days ago, my wife, our dog, and I were walking in neighboring Roxbury,  on the former rail bed of the rail line that used to run to the Granite and Garnet quarry at Mine Hill a century and a half ago. As we walked the amazingly durable bed laid down so long ago, I was excited to find some red Trillium wildflowers.  I hadn't seen one in in the wild for over 30 years, and there were a couple of spots where they were growing. This reclusive and ephemeral flower, nicknamed Red Wakerobin for it's early season blooms, and Stinking Benjamin (it is pollinated by flies and, like many similarly pollinated flowers [Jack in the Pulpit] it uses a rotting carrion fragrance to attract them). The blossoms were already becoming spent in mid May, so I didn't photograph them, but made note of their locations for next may. When we got back, I suspected that the cultivated Trillium that I had planted in the very shady front side of our home nearly 30 years ago might have gotten enough light and water this year to bloom, and that it would probably be a week or so behind its Forrest brethren. And so it was! I find the multiple threes of the flower and leaves (bracts) very satisfying aesthetically, with the red petals and green sepals making a sort of Star of David pattern. As the plants grow fairly low to the ground (12 to 18"), I have never had reason to sample their fragrance. It is best never to pick Trillium, as the flowers wilt almost immediately, and if you damage the three leaves, it may take years to recover, if ever. 

A different angle on a different day, taken to show the arrangement of the bracts (Leaves). Other varieties of Trillium found in North America can have white, pink, yellow, green or purple petals, but this red variety is the one that is native to New England... when you can find it!

Chariot charging...

There is the first of 4 newly painted Assyrian Four-Horse Heavy Chariots.

Like my earlier Assyrian Heavy Chariots, these are Hincliffe figures. The Hinchliffe line was especially prized for its equipment models.  

Obviously, I went for a light green and light orange motif for this chariot. 

My second time painting these models (25+ years later!) , I finally figured out exactly where the crew were supposed to fit (there are pegs on their feet and holes in the floor of the cab). 

These Hincliffe models are still available from Hinds Figures in the UK.

Hayl, Hayl, the Bale's all Here

Along with some other recent purchases from Scenic Express, I got these rather nicely done hay bales.

As you can see, there are about 5 large round bales

ad about 20 oblong bales.

Round bales with some 25mm peasants for size comparison - I believe the figures are Hinchliffe. 

They were painted at lest 30 years ago.

Square bakes with a different batch of peasants. 

Speaking of Hail and Bale, I was scheduled to run my Egypt vs. Assyria game with To the Strongest! this afternoon at HAVOC in Shewsbury, MA. New England got hit with a late Spring snowstorm. he weather wasn't bad for our area, but snow up to 10" or more was forecast for Eastern Massachusetts at one point. So it was with much hemming and hawing (and multiple weather forecast and radar map consultations that I decided to go ahead with the game rather than bailing out. Fortunately, although the 2nd half of the trip was marked by snow and sleet all the way, it was too warm to stick and the roads stayed clear, so I made the trip safely and in good time. Thus the game went on as planned  (a report on that anon, of course).  

ADD: While I had these figures out, I gave them a coat of dark Magic wash. These are the "after" shots...

Maybe the medium would have been better, as it made the tunics look rather dirty. 

On the other hand, they ARE Peasants. so maybe dirty is right!

The second unit has predominantly shades pf ghrey for their tunics.

The dark wash worked better here, I think.

The usual view one gets of Peasants forced onto the field of battle!