Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Pikes, Muskets and Flouncy Shirts => Topic started by: Stuart H on January 18, 2021, 10:26:50 PM
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A friend asked me to paint a few WoRs figures for him. Instead I decided to go off piste, again, and came up a vignette of the Siege of St Andrew's castle, 1546-47, given his links to the city. It took most of 2020 to complete but finally done.
The Story of the Siege
The Rough Wooing isn't my historical patch but the siege include all the political elements - religion, court power struggles, dynastic marriage plans, and international relations, with French and English involvement.
The siege began when a number of Protestant lairds took the castle and killed its owner, Cardinal Beaton, in response to his execution of a Protestant preacher, George Wishart. Beaton's body was hung from the castle ramparts.
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-SAGjDOfbpyU/YAYBsC_7V6I/AAAAAAAAApY/nXU9F_YqiB8uxJBC0msOip7ejqp8smjuwCLcBGAsYHQ/s348/300px-Hamilton-23455-2.jpg) Earl of Arran, the Scottish Regent, started a siege of the castle in late 1546 but the initial campaign had little impact and a truce and negotiations followed English threats to come in aid of the besieged protestants. There then followed a period of talks, intermittent English naval forays; and the death of Henry VIII, and the regular back and forth of John Knox, latter founder of Scotland's Presbyterian Church, as the as garrison's chaplain. English naval assistance was unsuccessful but in April 1547, Henry II of France sent aid to the besiegers, under the command of Italian mercenary, Leone Strozzi. After ineffectual bombardments from French ships, the plague-ridden garrison, fell to an effective, well-organised artillery bombardment on 30 July. Many of the defenders were imprisoned in France, and some ended up on war gallies, including Knox. Any Scottish victory overshadowed the next year, with their major defeat at Pinkie.
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So to the figures. There are two stands, One a command with Strozzi and Arran plus standard bearers and a Gallowglass for extra character. The other, two Scottish hand gunners, a Landsknecht and French crossbow man.
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I’m not sure how well executed they are, and I find the paint finishes lacking contrast but I like the fact, unlike the WoRs, there was a chance to mix it up with a variety of styles and costumes. The figures use virtually all of the makes I have - Perry, Steelfist dollies, Warlord and even some Warhammer Imperial Guard arms and a Dixon sword. And a bit of green stuff.
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Interesting! Looking forward to see where you take this.
I've been reading up on the period for a while and took a visit to St Andrews Castle whilst in Fife last year. Not much to see on the ground and whilst COVID restrictions were in place I couldn't get to the mine. But I did have a good chat with one of the guides.
How about doing some miners and you'll need a gun atop a church tower!
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Thanks Stuart
I did think of a gun being winched into place; next time.
Stuart
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Lovely vignettes and a great mixture of troops 👍
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What an interesting & horrific story prompted me to read further which is always dangerous if your trying not to start a new collection.
Love the work you have done there well done.
Willie
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Interesting and unusual subject! :o
...And one I had never heard of, being a foreigner ...but in all countries there happened a lot of terrible things in the 16th century and many quite forgotten.
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Lovely treatment of an interesting subject. St Andrews is about 15 miles from where I'm sitting, and one of my ancestors excommunicated a later archbishop of St Andrews.
The bottle dungeon and the walls are well worth a visit besides the castle etc. Just don't visit in golf season...