Saturday 31 July 2010
Jean Adolphe Beaucé
I think this French artist may have been in Mexico - here's one of the French expeditionary force. Wiki on the artist
La guerre du Mexique de 1862 à 1866 - journal de marche du 3e Chasseurs d'Afrique
If you are interested in cavalry in Mexico then this famous memoir is up in full on Google books. If you need an English translation then go to the plain text option and then load into your translator.
CAVALERIE FRANÇAISE AU MEXIQUE: Les turcos à cheval (1864-1867)
Thanks to Charles for sending this image of mounted Turcos by Lelieprve which accompanied the original Carnet de la Sabretache article back in 74.
Jennerwein (2003)
This is the true story of Girgl Jennerwein, a rebel in the German alps from 1848 - 1877. Supplied with a deeper sense of justice, he confront's the harsh suppression of the mountain farmer being used as slave laborers for the gentry. Poor people are sometimes left close to starvation, Girgl's poached meat helps them to cope. This does not get un-noticed by the Authorities, who set an experienced wild-ranger on his trail. A Ranger that has killed Girgl's father for the reason of poaching. Girgl, a former soldier of the imperial German army will prove more than a challenge. It is a beautiful Woman however that will drive a wedge between Girgl and his supporters. The acting is superb, the photography just beautiful, the story has some of the grittiness of Clint Eastwood's "UNFORGIVEN". Not made after any Hollywood formula, the viewer is left with a taste of historical realism.
Mitrailleuse
The Guns at Springfield (1971)
Friday 30 July 2010
Battle of the Crater 1864
Image; Alfred Rudolph Waud (1828–91)
The advance to the "crater" after the explosion of the mine. In the middle distance are the mounds of earth thrown up by the explosion: beyond upon the high ground cemetery hill the Confederates inner line of works, which if they had carried, would have given the Union Army Petersburg and Richmond. In the foreground troops are seen advancing to and beyond Burnsides outer intrenched line and moving upon the Confederate defences. These were—on the left Bartletts Massachusetts brigade, and on the right, the Negro troops—this sketch was made about 8 AM July 30th 1864. / A point in the Rebel works known as Elliots Salient over this part was held by the 18th and 23rd S. Carolina infantry and a battery of artillery blown up in the explosion.
Today is the anniversary of this event that took place during the siege of St Petersburg involving Pennsylvanian miners making a huge crater in the CSA fortfications. This is the opening scene of the movie Cold Mountain. There is an interesting original painting at the American Museum Bath that shows a kind of log tunnel that sat above ground reaching up to the Confederate siege lines.
Kalafat 1853
Wednesday 28 July 2010
Giovanni Fattori
Fattori was an Italian painter of initially historical and military subjects. Specialising in camp scenes or scenes of marching and so forth rather than heroic action. Wiki here
See more of his work here
Interesting 1866 photo
From here.
Where all is explained in Italian
Fredericksburg 'Gods and Generals'
Clockwork WW1 tank
Checking it out further there's quite a few of these from different manufacturers but obviously they're very collectable. I suppose what we should wish for is that someone does a modern repro.
The Lighthorsemen (1987) attack on Gaza
WW1 toy cannon project
Tuesday 27 July 2010
More Pontifical Zouaves
Zouaves Pontificaux
Here is my Zouave pontifical uniform for you to enjoy.
The regiment of Zouaves Pontificaux was raised from 1860 amongst catholic foreign volunteers from Europe and America to strengthen the Pope’s army against attacks by the Piedmontese army as well as Garibaldi’s partisans, bent on unifying Italy and absorbing the papal states into it. They served until 1870, when the Franco-Prussian war caused France to withdraw the troops it had committed to prevent that (Napoleon III liked to show himself as the champion of the French catholics).The regiment was created by the French General de Lamoricière, who had also been instrumental in creating the French zouave regiments, and most of the early volunteers were French and Belgian ( the original name was bataillon des tirailleurs franco-belges), and the first uniform was also based on that of the French chasseurs à pied. Then Lamoricière designed this uniform, which, although based on the French zouave uniform, (originally) banned the chechia as there was some contradiction to have Christ’s soldiers dressed as muslims. So they wore a French-style kepi instead. The rest of the equipment is exactly the same as that of the chasseurs à pied, including the model 1853 T chasseur carabine and its yataghan, although the straps connecting the pack to the waist belt should actually not be there. The front of the kepi’s band is also missing a small brass horn.
André
Monday 26 July 2010
Hat Industrie 1/32 Napoleonics
I really like the look of these new figures Hat are putting out and so I have been looking at what potential conversions are possible. What I like about them is they are differentiating between marching and action poses. At last! The bane of 1/32 has been the flying crazy action poses and this enables one to do a decent unit. So what can be done for this era? Well I think the French elites in greatcoats might with a headswop make a decentish French infantryman of the 1840s. A kepid head could have it made into a casquette d'Afrique and then it's off to fight in Algeria.
Paco Fait Le Zouave
Talking of fighting in Algeria a blog I discovered today is Paco Fait le Zouave it's all about making an 1830s Algerian wargame. Great stuff.
The Making of the Charge of the Light Brigade
How the West Was Won (1962)
Wiki on the movie.
Bomarsund at Anne S K Brown
Morgan's Raid
Photos from a 55 mile reenactment ride of part of Confederate General J.H. Morgan's original route through southeastern Ohio. Several hundred mounted Civil War reenactors took part in the week long ride, where along the way they were ambushed by Ohio home guards, and pursuing Union Cavalry. With the horse drawn artillery and the supply wagons in tow, the column of horsemen made an impressive sight, and thousands of Ohio residents lined the roads to witness the column's passing. It was the largest contingent of horsemen to ride through the area since John Morgan's cavalry passed through in 1863.
If this whets your appetite for more there's an 1867 History of Morgans cavalry on Google books.
Sunday 25 July 2010
William Simpson online
Two summer cruises with the Baltic fleet in 1854-5: being the log of the 'Pet' ... By Robert Edgar Hughes
The camp was singularly pretty and picturesque. The sappers had built themselves the neatest little huts of small fir branches with the stump upwards, so that they formed a snug roof almost as waterproof as thatch, and very pretty to look at. Jack, more ambitious, had hewn off large branches with his cutlass, and placed them as they grow. This arrangement produced fine roomy huts, but a large supply of accidental doors and unintentional windows made a pleasing variety, and afforded the inmates an opportunity of contemplating the motions of the heavenly bodies. The officers of the " Acre" had a splendid bell tent, as big as a bullock-shed; but the most striking thing in the tent way was the Colonel's;—this consisted of a single blanket stretched over a pole and strained tightly down to the ground; into this the gallant officer crawled all fours whenever sleep assailed his weary eyes. A number of military accoutrements, and, if I remember right, a little strip of a flag, gave splendour and dignity to the domicile; and I think on the whole the Colonel used to turn out in the morning about the smartest and best shaved man in the camp. I must confess that the French camp gave the impression that they were professional performers, and ours that we were amateurs ; and yet here were our fellows with their handful of men in the advanced position, well within gunshot, and perfectly in the humour to receive anything in the way of shot and shell, bayonet or cutlass, that the enemy might feel inclined to offer. After a time, we amateurs began to stroll about and endeavour to understand the topography of the place; the sentries, however, had orders to allow no one to pass to the front, and our walk was rather circumscribed. Presently, however, a sentry seeing that one of us had a glass, beckoned to us to approach, and swore that he had seen half a dozen fellows in long dark cloaks crouching among the bushes before him. We watched for some time, but the sentry's eyes were sharper than ours, and we could make nothing of it.