Tewkesbury 2018 - Let them eat cake

Here we go again, hopefully with a bigger retinue this year – including Uncle Napoleon and some more actual relatives, and looking forward to seeing Stuart M too.

As we are feeding a few more this time, we have made some medieval treats – medieval recipe for bread with ale and honey, and gingerbread – more akin to a treacle tart with a breadcrumb and honey base. Now please could someone set up a period foodstall at the event.

Scottish mercanaries - WIP

 Here is my first venture into proper conversions and using Green Stuff - some Highland heavy infantry and mixed missile troops, with the latter in skirmishing/advancing poses.

I wanted to make some Scottish mercenaries to represent the men Margaret was allowed by King James III to raise in 1460 and who marched south to and the north again after St Albans. One secondary source claims that they were present at Towton.

I had been planning to make lowland Scots but my reading suggested that they wouldn't look that different to English forces, give or take some slightly more dated fashion and equipment and possibly bonnets, which were definitely worn by lowlanders by the early C16th. But I took a slight leap and decided to make something more distinct - Highland Gallowglasses and archers. I also may use them for a potential side project - Flodden - if I ever find the time to get beyond the research.

In terms of sources, I drew on  plate  and the images of highland gravestones in Osprey's MAA Scottish Renaissance Armies, and cribbed ideas from Stoke Field's excellent Irish troop conversions and Antediluvian's Scottish and Irish range. I wish the excellent references and debate started by Simon Chick on LAF had been available at the time too. I may draw on these when I come to paint my figures.

They are a mix of Perry's French and English HYW, Ansar-e and WoR MAAs, plus some Essex, and the piper is half Perry/half Warlord Scottish Coventor. And I enjoyed playing with the GS; although found the mail a difficult process. It also felt odd to sculpt the overly long aketons.I started the conversions as Claymore/Antidiluvian's range  disappeared whilst they moved company. But once I had bought all of the extra spruces, Perrys launched their own Irish WoRs range, though I think Antidiluvians have the edge on these, and I'm content with my take.

This was as far as I got before a hand injury. I've been out of action for 8 weeks but now the plaster is off and I hope to start painting these soon and starting some core Lancastarian forces.

Margaret of Anjou

Not been very active even by my lethargic record due to a hand injury, but enjoyed listening to this week's In Our Time on Margaret of Anjou on Radio 4.

A balanced discussion which showed her as a protector of her family interests. And the first contemporary WoRs joke I've heard - on Edward IV's reign.

Lord Audley's Unit

Another Yorkist unit, in this case that of John Tuchet, 6th Baron Audley. His force served under Edward IV and I've aimed to match the charging pose of a the previous Edward IV unit I've produced. A mix of Perry and Essex.

The flag is on of Stuart Mulligan's designs for Pete's Flags. Its nice to have such a high quality standard, compared to my own hand-painted ones. And I like the smaller size, compared to the Perry ones I've so far been using as a template for my own efforts. Pete's Flags is from one of his English Tudor set. It appears that the Tuchets used the same banner for over 50 years.

Howard’s End

At last I've finally finished and based the complete Norfolk and Howard’s units, with the modest archer conversions, as flagged in an earlier post. They are a mix of Perry and Essexs with some head swaps and scratch-built wrapped bows and arrow bags.  I’m happy with the result, I think the figures gel and look like a coherent unit.

And here is the complete ward, a mix of Howard and Norfolk. All marching, to represent the sense that Howard//Norfolk, arrived late on the day. And as noted before, with Howard as commander, given the records are unsure as to whether the elderly Norfolk made it to the battle.

Next up an Audley unit to augment York, and some WIP on some Scottish mercenaries which Queen Margaret raised and brought south. Planning to kitbash these, and have already bought all the bits but now see the Perry's have added C15th Irish  to their WoR's range, including Gallowglasses, which would be suitable. But I fancy the challenge and can't justify more purchases.

Battle Report – Blood and Rose board game

I managed to fight two and half battles in one evening with Uncle Napoleon a few weeks ago. Two rounds of the First Battle of St Albans and Tewkesbury, from the Blood and Roses WoRs set. 

We both won a St Albans a piece, in each case victory came to the defending Lancastrians, though narrowly in my case having just staved off a flanking move by Uncle Napoleon’s Yorkist forces via Cock Lane, before I launched a headlong charge into the Middle Ward of Richard, Earl of Warwick.

St Alban's - commencing battle

 When I fielded the Yorkists, I tried a more headlong, brutal onslaught on the town, which backfired with Richard of York’s death.

Tewkesbury - Fighting through the thicket

Our battle of Tewkesbury was halted near midnight with my Lancastrians in ascendancy .Unlike the historical events, Somerset’s assault on Gloucester’s ward was successful, ultimately killing Gloucester. Elsewhere across the battlefield, the two sides were more evenly balanced, and seriously hindered by the wooded lanes much noted in the chronicles of the actual battle, and misfiring artillery.

The games were fast paced, well for board games at least, and had a realistic feel. The heraldry is evident, the wards act as independent fighting units, the landscape really matters – whether St Albans’ narrow streets and orchards or Tewkesbury’s thick hedges, and the battles turn quickly on effective archery barrages and the loss or betrayal of a commander. Highly recommended.