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Gentlemen,
For those that have seen the latest Wargames, Soldiers and Strategy magazine, #81, you may have noticed an article about the Abyssinian Crisis of 1935-36 - 'A Beating for Benito'. The article postulated the circumstances and possible gaming opportunities that can occur if the The Abyssinian Crisis ‘goes hot’ by the inclusion of Britain and France into the fray.
In my co-authored article (with your esteemed administrator here - Arlequin) I made mention of a support blog to provide information to expand on the information available and ideas for those interested in some ‘interwar action’. The article has some ideas of how a conflict between Ethiopia and Britain on one side and Italy and France on the other could occur. The final WSS article was only brief so the story shall be expanded upon in the support blog. I’d encourage your to get it for the OB info and scenario details included.
Details on the interwar armies of Italy, Britain, Ethiopia and France are not that easy to come by and the Abyssinian Crisis story is ‘our own’ based on what we think could’ve happened in reality as opposed to just making up stuff..well, that’s how we see it anyway. The army details and discussion will approach the topic with a detailed look at this reality.
The blog will include hard to find info on the main armies concerned and thus will be of interest to interwar gamers regardless of wether they are interested in the proposed Abyssinian conflict or not. This info has been hard to find and will prove useful for sure.
The intention of the blog is to stir interest in the subject matter and provide a platform for other people to contribute to further add to its utility to the community. It’s kind of a resource blog for the Abyssinian War and armies around that time that are relevant. I hope people contribute as this will enhance the blog no end. All sorts of info is welcome from figure reviews, ‘hard history', gamers AARs, and so on.
There will be a steady release of info over next couple of months, including full platoon level army lists for each of the armies concerned for use with Chain of Command in the run up to xmas which can be easily adaptable to Bolt Action or similar game systems such as Disposable heroes, etc. Take whatever you want, discard the rest.
So with that, here is the ‘official’ launch of The Abyssinian Crisis.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/06/19/it-is-us-today-it-will-be-you-tomorrow/
Happy Wanderer
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lSCg6tLkewM/VaOLYE8MMlI/AAAAAAAAF_8/zTszSwOAvHA/s354-Ic42/LOGO%252520-%252520blank-001.jpg)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-PyV9Rr-EKho/VjX-Ro2K9NI/AAAAAAAAGAE/sDQkyYejVZM/s512-Ic42/Screen%252520Shot%2525202015-11-01%252520at%2525202.15.57%252520pm.png)
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Thank you for sharing.
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Like it, a good sourse of information for our 1938 "Horn of Africa" campaign.
:)
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Excellent, nice to see the HoA getting some love. ;)
Just to echo HW's comments, this is not a 'closed shop' and neither are we experts in any sense of the term. So if you want to contribute, comment, point out our mistakes, whatever, please get in touch.
On that note I'd like to offer our thanks to Lou Passejaire, who with his contributions on the Interwar French Army thread here on LAF and his e-mails, really helped us get our head around the French.
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I wished you told me I'd have made more than just 'HS' you've used one of my older Rolls Royces ,I wold have given you better access to the whole range! It wouldn't have done me any harm ,either way it's still very interesting .
Mark.
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Well done. Looking forward to seeing many ideas and getting a great deal of inspiration.
Seem to recall reading in the distant past article that said something along the lines of. Musso had believed in the inevitability of a world war and had thought it would begin in the mid 1930's. His military under his direction had kind of prepared accordingly. Perhaps in this scenario he's merely giving his dream a helpful push?
Also Britain was in extreme war avoidance mode at this period. Non of the later 30's re-armament programmes were yet being prosecuted in real earnest . Most Italian kit will not be obsolete in this imagined fracas.
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Hi kramsenoj,
You make a good point and one that is quite correct. The Italian military 'peaks' in the mid 30s and its equipment reflects its own doctrine. The little CV is still not a great bit of kit which ever way you slice it but it serves well as a machine gun carrier of sorts in Abyssinia, particularly against an enemy (Ethiopians) with no anti tank weapons.
The British at this time do not have a dedicated anti tank weapon and thus must rely on field artillery for the A/T work for the most part. We allow the Brits to have a limited number of 25mm French guns to give them some A/T ability, albeit not much...this being acquired before things turn sour between Britain and France - which it did in reality as a stop gap before the 2pdr arrived. Similarly, The Italians had only just started to acquire the 47/32 A/T gun so this is considered rare, like the Brit 25mm gun, so their is a limited A/T ability for both sides. This way field guns are often the best at doing double duty ..it's all very WW1-ish.
So in Abyssinia the humble 47/32 is 'king' when it comes to A/T guns, better than anything the British or French have. Italian artillery is well served and their air forces is excellent. The British will find the Italians a different force to the one they took on in 1940 when all factors are taken into consideration.
Cheers
Happy
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-B0xAUsNgq5I/Vjfd94GSiDI/AAAAAAAAGAk/LJ7vAYUGuFc/s912-Ic42/P1080411-001.JPG)
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FYI chaps,
A follow up post describing some of the figure choice options to use for The Abyssinian Crisis.
Regards
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/04/what-miniatures-do-i-need/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/p1080605a.jpg)
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Was the 47/32 mod35 and the 2 pounder contemporaries? Both were accepted into service in 1935. Incidentally the French 25mm was accepted in 1934. As far as I am aware the French 25mm in British service was a political attempt at commonality in 1939-40. If you are looking for an alternative to the 2pdr then why not the Bofors 37mm which the British did buy (for the Sudan). It was used by the 2nd Battalion the Black Watch against the Italians when they invaded British Somaliland.
Very nice to see the Italians getting some coverage. I have quite a few figures and equipment for the slightly later actions of 1940-41 in Somaliland, Eritrea and Abyssinia in 20mm (1/76 mainly with some 1/72). So I'll be watching this thread for ideas (I like the French involvement).
Have you seen http://vintagewargaming.blogspot.co.uk/ (http://vintagewargaming.blogspot.co.uk/) for interwar British equipment?
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Hi dadlamassu,
The 47/32 was an Italian licences built Austrian Böhler gun. The Italians took it into service in 1935. At the time they weren't sent to Abyssinia as it was deemed unnecessary because the Ethiopians had little to no armour. However, in our scenario with Britain deploying armoured forces and the Abyssinian Armoured Field Force being active the Italians are allowed this as an option....as they most likely would've done if such enemy armour was encountered.
http://www.comandosupremo.com/cannone4732.html
The British 2pdr was not available in 1936 at the time of The Abyssinian Crisis. Whilst it had been accepted it underwent a number of teething problems such that the 25mm Hotchkiss and 37mm Bofors were needed to fill the gap of underproduced 2pdrs leading up to WW2.
http://www.desertrats.org.uk/equipartillery.htm
At the time of the Abyssinian Crisis the British army had no specialist anti tank guns. Steven Moorwood in his excellent book The British Defence of Egypt 1935–1940 states that "The War Office acquired 33 French Hotchkiss anti- tank machine guns to defend Mersa Matruh" such was dearth of A/T guns in Britain or Egypt. These weapons are the ones we allow for in the British army list as they did infact get them.
Given the haste of the operation the acquisition of further guns from different countries seems unlikely. However, it is not beyond possibility that some could've been acquired. What this means is the British are some what underdone in the A/T department which provides them with a bit of a tactical problem which makes for some interesting games as they have to use field artillery or perhaps an armoured vehicle to take on the weeny Italian CVs....so it makes for a more interesting clash IMHO.
Your 1940 stuff should be useable for this period if your not too picky. The British 1937 pattern kit is the main difference so WW1 British infantry really do fit the bill for troops of 1935-36.
"Have you seen http://vintagewargaming.blogspot.co.uk/ for interwar British equipment? "
...yep, it is a good one very much on topic ;)
Cheers
Happy W
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Strange but true, the Abyssinian Crisis did prompt the purchase of Hotchkiss AT Guns in '35 and Munich the purchase of Bofors AT Guns in '38. Units in the UK also had access to a limited number of 3pdr AT guns, which were former tank guns. A picture of one appeared in this thread (http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=79755.0).
If memory serves me, the Bofors guns saw action in WWII, but I imagine the Hotchkiss guns went to the UK via Palestine after the '35 Crisis abated and a new emergency appeared.
Like yourselves, interest in the British, French and Italians in this era drew me to this. Even without AT weapons, tanks are not a huge problem to deal with, nor are they as individually over-powering as is the case with some WWII types.
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I posted a question re using Egyptians (from the Perry Sudan range) as British allies on your blog, and I have a few more ideas, but I don't want to clutter up the blog, so I'll post them here:
- If you're willing to use early BEF painted in appropriate skintones as Ethiopian Imperial Guard as you suggest for the MG in the article, it opens up a plethora of possibilities using similar figures from the Great War range. (If only the Ethiopians wore shoes! I don't fancy trying to do foot conversions.) I'm specifically thinking of the 1914 Cavalry figures. There are even Lancers that could be used as Imperial Guard cavalry as in the Osprey photo!
- I am also thinking that the Copplestone and Foundry Somalis could be used, especially the cavalry, for which there seems to be a shortage. They are generic enough to be used as a irregular scouts by both sides. Also the Foundry Arabian Baluchi might have some use?
- I am wondering about the Castaway Arts stuff. You mentioned them in the article, but I don't recall having seen any photos of them in any of the pictures from the Abyssinian War aficionados' games. I'm very surprised in particular never to have seen some painted versions of the Italian Eritrean cavalry, and I assumed it was because the stuff is too small to match with the other manufacturers or simply not that good. Has anyone actually seen the Castaway stuff next to say the Empress Abyssinian War stuff, which I would consider the benchmark? I am particularly concerned about the size of the horses. I suppose they are cheap enough that I could just buy a few samples…
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Hi axabrax,
Good question - exactly the type that should be on the blog...so please do cross post it if you like and I shall put in my response. Q's like this are exactly what it's for ;)
" If you're willing to use early BEF painted in appropriate skintones as Ethiopian Imperial Guard as you suggest for the MG in the article, it opens up a plethora of possibilities using similar figures from the Great War range. (If only the Ethiopians wore shoes! I don't fancy trying to do foot conversions.) I'm specifically thinking of the 1914 Cavalry figures. There are even Lancers that could be used as Imperial Guard cavalry as in the Osprey photo! "
You are spot on the money. The WW1 British cav would do nicely for Imperial Guard cavalry. They are included in their army list and useable...an Ethiopian Imperial Guard cavalry charge against the Italians!!! It is a bugger they didn't wear shoes I agree however I have found that with some judicious use of flock and base coverage around their feet you can get away with disguising the boots on Brit WW1 figures. Another option is to file down the boot and use a sharp blade pressed into the 'toes' of the boot. Paint a small white dot for toe nails and the impression is one of bare feet. As they are dark skin toned this makes it easier to do as well.
Off course Askari Miniatures do a range of Imperial Guard and they are rather nice sculpts. I decided to use these and flesh out the support equipment with Brit WW1 stuff as need....it all binds together quite well.
" I am also thinking that the Copplestone and Foundry Somalis could be used, especially the cavalry, for which there seems to be a shortage. They are generic enough to be used as a irregular scouts by both sides. Also the Foundry Arabian Baluchi might have some use?"
Absolutely. These totally fit the bill.
Regards the Castaway stuff, James Morris has some of these figures in his collection . I don't know if he has the Italian Eritrean cav though. He does have the mounted Ethiopians which look rather nice. I can't say how the italian Eritrean cav size up. I was thinking on a conversion of sorts though I haven't decided which way to go...still plenty of other stuff to paint! A LAF search on the Italo-Ethiopina War brings up most of his stuff and it's all good inspiration.
Here is a nice link
http://wabforum.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=7251
Cheers
HappyW
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Like the blog very much, the more interwar stuff we can get out there the better.
Thank you and Alan too for the positive mention of Vintage Wargaming. I don't know if you are also aware of the Interwar Tank Development blog, which has photos from Vickers Armstrong Ltd interwar works photo albums - lots of one off vehicles and what if ideas. http://tankdevelopment.blogspot.co.uk/ (http://tankdevelopment.blogspot.co.uk/)
The British did of course experiment with the tracked 20mm Oerlikon in the 1930s as an a/t weapon and there is plenty of photographic evidence, often together with its carden Loyd tow and trailer.This will have been while the RA was till responsible for a/t defence, before the responsibility was passed to the infantry.
I recently found that the 1st Durham Light Infantry (my local regiment) were briefly an experimental MG battalion between about 1934-6 with lots of interesting kit, which I have tried to portray in 20mm. I have even found some Pathe footage of them on manoeuvres
For interwar French armour I would strongly recommend the histoire & collections Encyclopedia of French Tanks and Armoured Vehicles 1914-1940. There is also an excellent h&c volume on the French Army (Officers and Soldiers) 1940. i don't know how relevant this would be to the previous five or six years, though.
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Your figure listing is quite nice, but you've neglected one small (but significant) miniature: The Emperor himself. Thanks to Tin Shed Gamer, Haile Selassie is available from 1st Corps, though he is not listed on the website (because other figures in what will eventually be a pack have not yet been created), but you can get one by contacting 1st Corps directly.
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Hi FramFranson,
You are quite correct!! He slipped my mind ::)
Here's the thread...(post corrected!)
http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=75092.0
and here's my 'version' of him.
:D
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-AjY8OKk95E0/VZqNSk_lj_I/AAAAAAAAFrY/wMGgocqGtmo/w876-h657-no/IMG_0372.JPG)
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Yes! He's quite a short fellow for an Emperor, isn't he?
I think one of the hold-ups on the rest of the figures in this "pack" are questions about what else belongs in it. Maybe we could drum up another interesting 3 figures or so? It seem like there were quite a lot of colorful personalities with potential. In my opinion they should be choices that can conceivably be used on the gaming table and where there is a photo reference available or a concept can be logically deduced. A short list off the top of my head mostly inspired by the Osprey:
- Ethiopian Pilot (actual Ethiopian as there are plenty of European pilots already available.)
- Mehet Wehib Pasha (Turkish military advisor)
- Eritrean Battalion Corporal w/reverse curved sword (see the Osprey)
- Ras with rifle and shield
- Alpini commander in Alpini hat
- Badoglio? Or in better taste given Baddy's taste for mustard perhaps just an Italian Generalissimo type ;)
Your figure listing is quite nice, but you've neglected one small (but significant) miniature: The Emperor himself. Thanks to Tin Shed Gamer, Haile Selassie is available from 1st Corps, though he is not listed on the website (because other figures in what will eventually be a pack have not yet been created), but you can get one by contacting 1st Corps directly.
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I suggested a kind of 'Abyssinian War' theme pack in the Haile Selassie thread. I think your idea that it should be 'usable' is a good one.
I was thinking
- a Ras, maybe like Ras Kassa that Fram did (http://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=82491.0)
- foreign advisor perhaps...some sort of European adventurer...Konovalov or Wahib Pasha, the Harlem Black Eagle pilot, etc.
- Possibly a Red Cross nurse or doctor
For the Italians
- Generals Graziani or Badoglio or more generic Italian senior officer
- Alpini I think would be a nice different officer
Happy W
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FYI Gents,
I've added military-political timeline supported by maps too describe the machinations of the Italo-Ethiopian War on The Abyssinian Crisis blog.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/06/historical-timeline-of-the-abyssinian-war/
Cheers
Happy W
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-aqcRLWM2KKQ/VjvPohU-XZI/AAAAAAAAGBU/QCKgvmOnvec/s912-Ic42/Screen%252520Shot%2525202015-06-16%252520at%2525204.46.49%252520pm.png)
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This is a topic I'm becoming interested in more and more,so I don't wish to risk highjacking (I won't reply in this thread)As much as I value the ideas everyone has thrown my way.This is a subject I know nothing about so without images you may as well be talking dolphin!So feel free to PM any images that will help me understand you ideas as I've no spare time to research this any further.
Mark.
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The Black Eagle would certainly be an interesting character, and existing pilot figures would be easy to paint as him, so he doesn't really need a custom/new sculpt either.
Other Ethiopian senior commanders other than Kassa are another option, such as Imru Haile Selassie, Desta Damtew, Mulugeta Yeggazu, Nasibu Zeamanuel, etc. I picked Kassa because for my games the Emperor is more likely to be the objective in a silly adventure, so I wanted a similar figure as a secondary objective and visual compliment and Ras Kassa was almost something of a Senior Minister or Vizier instead of a general and thus fills that role very nicely.
But most of the field commanders remained behind to fight in Ethiopia (Damtew and Yeggazu in particular had tragic ends) while Selassie and Kassa fled to Europe and as they would have commanded smaller field armies, they would therefore be more likely to see play as actual field commanders at the scale of tabletop games. Of course you wouldn't have to do one of them specifically, you could do a generic sort of senior commander figure or two, but there aren't many photos and what there is seems to indicate that there was no real formal style of uniform or field clothes for the high-ranking nobles who acted as field commanders (for instance photos of Damtew in the field after capture show him in a plain trench coat but photos of Zeamanuel show him in both a much more traditional and flashy Ethiopian outfit, as well as a European-style uniform, but still flashy and somewhat archaic, with large fringed epaulets similar to the Imperial royal guard, etc.), so the Empress Marhel Safari Regulars command pack or the Ras and Retinue pack might do in a pinch, the only thing being different that high-ranking senior commanders would not be going barefoot.
It's both highly convenient and somewhat difficult that the Ethiopians had a lot of variation in dress. It makes it a bit of a mess to try and figure out who would have worn what, when trying to represent specific real people or units, but at the same time there's the leeway to repurpose or convert figures from elsewhere so long as they're kind of close or at least fit ok.
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There are some pretty good ideas from Fram there. The British and French characters really can be covered by other ranges, particularly as these are hypothetical forces anyway.
Askari miniatures also do some nice Italian command figures as do Empress so unless sculpting a particular character from the Italo-Ethiopian war they are sort of covered. It would be once to have a specific Graziani or Badoglio figure however to be used in a battle game or a specific scenario based game involving those characters. A character like Amedeo Guillet would be cool as he would be perfect for skirmishy type games....
(http://laststandonzombieisland.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/amedeo-guillet1_1670596c.jpg)
For my money adding one or two more Ethiopians like Fram said would probably be the go. Empress don't do a huge lot of command variety if you field reasonably large forces of Ethiopians so having a couple of unique figures would make for a useful command pack IMO. The other excellent idea would be an Ethiopian Amharic Christian priest.
(https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/236x/9a/87/91/9a879164b12842f0dd80a9d1b8f473b7.jpg)
(http://www.nfaragallah.com/files/cache/f71549ce85dc7b6ff51bdf602da650c6.jpg)
Someone like Balcho Safo would make a striking figure as a leader.
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/9/91/Balcha_Safo.png/220px-Balcha_Safo.png)
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Tin's offer is just about too good to be true ;) We need to jump on this rather than churn on options, don't you think? Badoglio sounds like a good choice and is really the logical counterpoint to Halie. Happy: do you have any good photos of how he'd look in Ethiopia? How about then we either send Tin a bunch of ideas and let him pick what he wants to do or add one more choice from the Ethiopian side and one from the Italian side for an even pack of four, which seems to be the first corps pack structure? I like the idea of the Ethiopian Priest and there seem to be a good deal of photos for them and then maybe an Alpini officer for the Italians? We can discuss more offline perhaps so as not to derail the thread, but I say strike before Tin Shed changes his mind!
Moving back on topic. Happy: I just got a platoon of the Empress CV tanks and I am wondering about paint schemes. Are you going to be doing an article on book references for the period? I would also be interested in references for a good book of photographs. I have actually been tooling Italian eBay, and it seems like there's a lot of interesting stuff. I'd love to find a Schiffer style book full of photos and info...
~ Steve
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An Amharic Christian priest is a good idea too! He would actually have quite a few applications beyond just this conflict.
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Hi Guys,
I'd certainly be willing to do a bit of digging for Tin Shed if he is interested...Mark, do you want to do this? if so you can PM me and we can discuss or I'm happy to just start up a thread on the blog for a discussion to take place with some pics put there etc. It'd kind of be like a 'working post' so people could see it develop...that'd be cool...a post on inception to final figure...let me know if your interested. Sounds like the priest would be a good choice and then two others.
@ axabrax
"Are you going to be doing an article on book references for the period?"
,
I've got a few book reviews I want to do. A list of books would be a useful idea, though I don't have all the books that could be useful off course. The subject is often covered in books 'in part' and less as a complete history. If you read Italian there are some very good books and off course the official history.
Regards CV paint schemes, they were more or less sand colour, some with green patches. The book (Wydawnictwo Militaria No.194) Afryka Wschodnia 1935-1941 is good one for pics and some colour plates - it's written in Polish and English. It has a smallish section on the Ethiopian war. The Osprey off course is probably your first useful title for an overview. A solid google search will throw up many images so this may in fact be the best source for imagery. I haven't found a Schiffer title thus far.
The CV is your classic Italian sand colour and is useful for WW2 as well...not as useful as in 1935 however! Armoured cars appear to be in an European Green so there is a possibility that both schemes could be used.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-IXFBFUYZf4s/Vj0n27U_3XI/AAAAAAAAGBk/7pxYZuBRI3I/s581-Ic42/CV-331III9_zps3d47e82c.jpg)
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-1FtBmhTQ7Bc/Vj0n4HjfXgI/AAAAAAAAGBs/JHeLLAVdw7Y/s832-Ic42/Screen%252520Shot%2525202015-11-07%252520at%2525209.14.49%252520am.png)
Happy W
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Thanks for the references Happy. At least the tanks will be easy to paint. :)
As for photos, I am finding eBay to be a real treasure trove, especially Italian eBay. Putting in "Etiopia Guerra" as a search term is enough to fetch some interesting results.
I think I am also ready to read an in depth history. My local library has Haile Sellassie's War, but I see that there is a much more recent book called "Prevail: The Inspiring Story of Ethiopia's Victory Over Mussolini's Invasion:1935-41" that's highly rated on Amazon. Anyone read that one?
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Hi axabrax,
Cv's...easy to paint indeed! Good tip on the Italian ebay search. If you google from goole.it you also get some interesting hits.
I have both books, read both. Prevail is a very pro-ethiopian 21st century view IMHO...possibly a bit to 'PC'. It has a lot of info in there so its not one to discount but its not big on the military detail. Not bad but a hefty tome that gives lots of anecdotal details, sometime to distraction, but not the 'juice' as we might term it. I don't regret getting it but I don't think its the best place to start.
Mockler's Haile Selassie is the one you want. That is a first reader. There are others but for now grab the Osprey and dive into Haile Selllasie's War...an excellent book, well balanced with good military detail...I'm popping up my brief review today..but you want this one!
Happy W
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Hi all,
Sorry I have been silent on this topic, been very busy with other periods and real life. Congrats to Rolf and Jim on the article; I really hope to have a go at gaming this once some CoC lists have appeared.
A big vote from me for Haile Selassie's War as the best book to start with. There's so much out there, but many books are strongly biased one way or the other.
Regarding tank colour schemes, I should confess that I painted my sand and green patches Cv33s/35s (as seen in the WSS article) before I had done any serious research on the subject. Various sources I turned up later suggested that they were a plain green colour, and that the markings I had used were not introduced until WW2 - there was a different marking scheme in the 1930s. I don't feel too bad about this, as the models have since been used for many WW2 games, but thought I should make you aware! I will try to get some pics and references up when I have time.
Cheers
James
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Thanks for the info on the books Happy. I'm definitely more interested in a military history so will stick to Mockler. I've devoured the Osprey several times already and, while it's a good uniform reference, I actually found your timeline on the blog to be more informative on the history of the campaign ;)
James! Great to see you here! I was wondering when you'd chime in. It's in large part the posts and photos from your prior games that got me interested in this period, and the clincher was incarnating it in my favorite rule set, Chain of Command. Would love to see those tank references when you have a chance. I'm assuming it's a green color similar to that in the second photo of the armored car attached by Happy above?
~ S
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Glad the timeline was useful. as I mentioned in the TFL Chain of Command forum, the timeline is for setting the scene for players to engage in their own Abyssinian Crisis. The pieces are in place and you go from there -generally taken to be the Ethiopian xmas offensive. Over the coming weeks info will go up on the site to help interested parties organise their forces and expand their own background on the topic. In many respects The Abyssinian Crisis 'what if' is a synthesis of the real Italo-Ethiopian war and the 1941 campaign to liberate East Africa. Both sources of information are critical to an understanding of the factors in play...though those of 1935-36 are unique in many respects.
James, great to have you pop in. For those that don't know, James pretty much put the Italo-Ethiopian War on the wargaming map and his games are sights to behold....do a search and see.
Glad you liked the article and the idea. In the run up to xmas the Chain of Command lists will be released so hopefully people can really start to organise their forces or see what they have already to hand. Any info you can supply is most welcome as you know and I shall be interested to see how your forces take to the field in CoC- Abyssinia.
Cheers
Happy W (R)
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Thanks chaps, nice to be here. I couldn't find many other folk interested in Abyssinia six years ago but glad you're around now! I love gaming this period and will hopefully be able to chip in at certain points, though I am deep in WW1 mode at the moment.
I don't have a single colour picture of the green colour I mentioned, as all the photos are b/w, but when you look at tones it appears fairly dark. I think grey-green is the most likely, with a serious coating of dust. The most interesting thing is the original tank markings. I will try to get time to dig my references and pictures out.
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Good stuff James,
Hopefully your group has some WW1 Brits because you'll then also have TAC British troops ready to go...off course you have Italains and Abyssinians already. The game adaptation rules for CoC- Abyssinia builds off the CoC Espana and CoC-WW1 variant so this is going to be a very easy fit for you blokes!!
Glad to have you around on this one.
Cheers
Happy W
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Gents,
I've popped up another post on the Abyssinian Crisis blog. It's a second book review, brief, but hopefully useful. Del Boca's book is a good 'war gamer's book' in my view. It nicely summates the Ethiopian War and is somewhat shorter and more accessible than the last book I reviewed, Haile Sellasie's War.
In the coming days we'll be kicking off the army descriptions that set the scene for the The Abyssinian Crisis.
Regards
R
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/08/the-ethiopian-war-1935-41/
(https://i2.wp.com/ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51CmyiKJSyL._SX329_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)
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Ok chaps,
As part of the ongoing blog we start with the Armies.
First up Italy, with a brief description of the forces involved and some of their motivations. We'll follow on with organisational detail and then onto the Ethiopian, British and French forces using the same format.
For now, here are the Italians.
Cheers
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/12/italian-army/
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-yRoxvqAJq2U/VkP0O5CH0uI/AAAAAAAAGB4/dPfDsOEtyAA/s808-Ic42/Screen%252520Shot%2525202015-08-05%252520at%2525206.56.38%252520pm.png)
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Just a small note,
There has also been a discussion taking place on the TFL Chain of Command forum. Some interesting points have been brought up and good chit-chat on the topic.
So, FYI here is the thread.
Cheers
Happy W
http://toofatlardies.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=3130
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lSCg6tLkewM/VaOLYE8MMlI/AAAAAAAAF_8/zTszSwOAvHA/s354-Ic42/LOGO%252520-%252520blank-001.jpg)
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Gents,
The second part of the Italian army is the Army order of battle for The Abyssinian Crisis. This was compiled from a number of sources to identify the troops around the time of the Ethiopian Christmas Offensive (Dec ’35) and sets up the Italian strategic dispositions in the relative theatres of operation.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-56
Next up will be the Ethiopian Army.
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-lSCg6tLkewM/VaOLYE8MMlI/AAAAAAAAF_8/zTszSwOAvHA/s354-Ic42/LOGO%252520-%252520blank-001.jpg)
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Thanks for posting this up.
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My pleasure Commissar,
I do realise that LAF is for showing off sexy pics of minis and TAC at the moment is less on the lead pics and more on the info but it's important to get the info easily accessible and set the scene before moving on the more pleasurable aspects of why you're painting and using your figures or would consider buying some more, when and where, etc, etc... given the whole 'what if' nature of it all.
The truth is the info is not that easy to find and quite scattered and Arlequin and I are trying to get some background in place so people get a sense of what aspects appeal to them possibly before using some of those old figures sitting in the corner to get pressed into action if your fancy is some interwar shenanigans...
..so I hope I'm not boring the readership to much...
Here's a nice pic of some Abyssinians I painted using a 'soft wash' technique I'll be describing in a later post..they paint up quick!!
Happy W
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Qc6gp16DEjU/Vkf_yDf6WEI/AAAAAAAAGCI/GABhOfPkAaE/s800-Ic42/IMG_0399.JPG)
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Next instalment are the details on the Ethiopian Army. Finding information was/is quite hard on the Ethiopian force of this time, it being a combination of tribal, para military and militarised components….with a fair dose of warrior culture thrown in. It’d be great if any one has hard to find details on the Ethiopian, or access to them, to pass on a link or any other info, which would be much appreciated.
Anyway, for now, here are the Ethiopians.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/17/ethiopian-army/ (https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/17/ethiopian-army/)
Cheers
Happy W
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/rases.jpg?w=676)
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Please keep the information coming folks. Fires the imagination.
Its a fascinating idea for a game project. I'm going through my mounds of stuff to find suitable bits and pieces to try to game it at the Lardies Chain of Command level of conflict. A platoon or two for starters.
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Hi kramsenoj,
Info shall keep flowing..as you wish :D :D
I've mentioned it once or twice before but full army lists for Chain of Command will be released in December to provide players with all that they'll need to get going on building any number of forces for The Abyssinian Crisis...
...stay tuned!
(here's the link to the TFL thread - http://toofatlardies.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=3130 (http://toofatlardies.co.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=35&t=3130))
Thanks for your interest!
Cheers
Happy W
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Gents,
The organiation details for the Ethiopian forces in The Abyssinian Crisis are now uploaded to the TAC blog. This post details the location and size of the Ethiopian forces at the time of the The Abyssinian Crisis providing players with the positional details and force types to help set up scenario and potential campaign information.
To round out the the Ethiopian Army post we shall upload the details of the Abyssinian Armoured Field Force…but for now, here are the operational dispositions of Haile Selassie’s warriors.
Cheers
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/18/ethiopian-army-the-abyssinian-crisis/
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Gents,
In the ongoing description of the armies of The Abyssinian Crisis we take a look at the third power, Great Britain, and her forces in the mid-thirties. An army in evolution it was more WW1 than WW2, possibly even more colonial than WW1, even-though the Second World War was but 3 years away. It's an interesting force, not like you might imagine and with info that has proven surprisingly hard to find.
Hopefully this post will give a snapshot of His Majesties Forces that will be useful.
Cheers
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/22/british-army/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/0010_gun-carrier-and-trailer1.jpg?w=676&h=319)
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Thank you very much for collecting all this information. For some years now I fancy to start gaming in the interwar period, and your effort makes it more and more likely that this becomes reality.
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Another useful entry :)
It's also worth noting that British uniforms didn't change until 1939, so if fielding interwar British, you can use late WWI figures.
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Thanks guys,
..and with that...
..here are the British dispositions for The Abyssinian Crisis. Quite difficult to patch this info together to give a good look at what forces the British had available for use in TAC...not quite as much as first thought.
...to the British
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-dT
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/11/med2_1.jpg?w=1352)
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Awesome and detailed! Wonder what depths you plumbed to get that info...
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Thanks, the right school tie still opens a lot of doors... ;)
No seriously, it's all mostly out there on the web, but as you say, you have to be prepared to dig deep and collate from a variety of sources. There were a couple of leaps of faith regarding one or two units, but as we weren't doing the 'real crisis' this was not a major obstacle. Thankfully as the 'Palestinian Crisis' began later in 1936 and the units that were deployed for that are mostly the same ones that would have reinforced ME Command if that all 'went off'.
It was incredibly fascinating stuff though. :)
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Fab - really interesting reading! What I'm really waiting for are the CoC forces - then I will get a game in.
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I have an interest in 1st Durham Light Infantry in their role as an experimental motorised MG Battalion from 1934-36. They were equipped with a range of interesting kit including Vickers Utility Tractor MG carriers. There is some British Pathe newsreel of them on exercises. Some still photos appeared in an Airfix Magazine series on the Interwar British Army. You'll find all this on Vintage Wargaming.
The relevance of this is that the experiment ended when they were stripped of their equipment which was given to troops earmarked for the Palestine crisis. I don't know what unit(s) this was and I haven't seen any photographic evidence, but this does raise the possibility of some pretty interesting vehicles being plausibly available to the British.
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@Vintage
The Brits do have some interesting and cool kit in the interwar years. One of the drivers behind TAC was the ability to press into service some interesting equipment that is most decidedly not WW2 nor WW1...and never really 'had its chance'.
I must say that Arlequin did the heavy digging on this post and personally I think it's the most detailed assessment of the British forces of this period available...a really useful resource (kudos to your moderator!!). It also shows the shear variety of forces that are available to a British player in TAC...some cracking good forces to choose from. For me I'm using the Empress NWF Highlanders to represent the Cameroons.
The Abyssinian Armoured Field Force really let's you play with some funky kit which is certainly part of the fun...and yes, you can use this little fella if you want in your British army (follow the link)...
http://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=176894
@James
Patience Padawan ;D
Next up will be the French, who I must say could be the most interesting force mix available of all the armies...possibly excluding the truly variable forces the Italians can field....James, you will need to brush of the dust on those Ethiopians and Italains...and we all shall look forward to seeing them back in action..get Scrivs onto it!
I've spoke to TFL Rich and we shall be putting an article in the upcoming Xmas edition and to kick off the festive season in December there will be the release of a month full of lists...yep...a new list every 48hrs for a month!!!!...all for the cost of a dribble of bandwidth :D
...stay tuned...La Francais next...
Happy W
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Most of the pics on that thread are of the Utility B, the export version built for Belgium. The "bren" on the second photo is a Vickers Berthier.
This is the original 1928 Tractor
(http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll263/clivies/38_zpsdxgcx5h3.jpg) (http://s290.photobucket.com/user/clivies/media/38_zpsdxgcx5h3.jpg.html)
The 1932 Utility Standard
(http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll263/clivies/77%201%20Vickers%20Carden%20Loyd%20Utility%20tractors_zpsygmjsp6b.jpg) (http://s290.photobucket.com/user/clivies/media/77%201%20Vickers%20Carden%20Loyd%20Utility%20tractors_zpsygmjsp6b.jpg.html)
And this is the 1932 Personnel Carrier,
(http://i290.photobucket.com/albums/ll263/clivies/39_zps6rbycfg2.jpg) (http://s290.photobucket.com/user/clivies/media/39_zps6rbycfg2.jpg.html)
used by the DLI as their MG carrier, as seen in this Pathe Newsreel from 1936
https://youtu.be/9Z53MT5TGYs (https://youtu.be/9Z53MT5TGYs)
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..get Scrivs onto it!
Oi, Scrivs is on 'no new projects until the move is completed', stop trying to catch my eye with your lovely shiny baubles :D
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"Oi, Scrivs is on 'no new projects until the move is completed', stop trying to catch my eye with your lovely shiny baubles"
;D
...you are the master of the interwar game though...
Happy W
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Still digging this.
Tractor - plough field, drag MG to war. One tractor does it all!
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I was a bit pushed for time yesterday and missed an important 'Thank You'... which goes to 'Vintage Wargaming' for his two excellent blogs; Vintage Wargaming (http://vintagewargaming.blogspot.com.es/) and Interwar Tank Development (http://tankdevelopment.blogspot.co.uk/).... it's no exaggeration that these were both invaluable sources, so credit where it's due!
:)
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Gents,
The French! Before going into the more detailed description of the French army in a subsequent post we describe a little bit of background to set up the French army discussion.
As you can tell, La Francais had a lot of colonial resources to draw upon, her own laws restricting the use of Metropolitan troops in overseas 'adventures'.
So we commence the description of the last army in The Abyssinian Crisis...the French.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/26/france-la-question-de-labyssinie/
Happy W
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I'm very happy to have been able to put the Vickers Armstrong pictures onto the net thanks to the Beamish Museum. I do still hope to do some work on captions but this is a big job and might take a while to get round to.
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Adding further to the French army description we take a closer look at the units that formed the French expeditionary force to Abyssinia. There's plenty to choose from and it is impressive to see the shear variety of force types the armée d'outre-mer (overseas army) could muster.
In total she had 210,000 effective in North Africa, Syria and the colonies, whilst 320,000 men were under arms at home, with 100,000 formed into specialist regiments of infantry and cavalry - certainly a force to be reckoned with.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/28/french-army/
Cheers
Happy W
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/french.jpg?w=562&h=464)
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In this last post on the armies of The Abyssinian Crisis we look at the Dispositions of the French army in 1935/36. Without labouring the point it can be seen just how vast the French army was spread across the globe...truly impressive. They bring more troop variety to TAC than any other army.
The unit locations should prove useful for organising 'your expeditionary force' as well as being a very useful resource for potential scenarios developing in Syria or North Africa.
I hope this series of posts has given potential players the background info to get a feel for each of the armies and maybe even got some ideas or gaming plans going...
...any comments welcome...we'll move onto the Army list for Chain of Command in the coming days so players can sink their teeth into the nuts and bolts of these armies.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-f7
Happy W
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A small update for anyone following this post and not the Chain of Command:Abyssinia army list thread.
All the Chain of Command Italian lists are uploaded on the The Abyssinian Crisis blog ready for download.
In the next series of lister releases we will start to look at the Ethiopian Chitet, Mehal Sefari and Kebur Zabanga lists..stay tuned :P
Once the month of army list releases is complete we'll start to look at some of the hobby aspects of the project along with some more background info...
8)
Cheers
Happy W
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Thanks for the continued supply of information on units and armies involved in the conflict.
Especially on how to put them in an CoC game environment.
The only slight drawback for myself is the need to build at least a detachment of most of the forces so far covered.
Further lists will I'm sure will just add to this. Oh well, one should accept this as normal wargames perennial problem. Mission creep.
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Thanks for the continued supply of information on units and armies involved in the conflict.
Especially on how to put them in an CoC game environment.
You're welcome ;)
The only slight drawback for myself is the need to build at least a detachment of most of the forces so far covered.
Well that could be a problem with 17 lists!!! Great if you own Empress miniature though! The good news is that most platoon forces you build are usable other periods so really only the Ethiopians are unique to the period....and even they can be used in other conflicts in the Horn of Africa between 1896-1937...so there is a good deal of double duty on anything you'd put together.
Further lists will I'm sure will just add to this. Oh well, one should accept this as normal wargames perennial problem. Mission creep.
...a natural state of affairs...one thing leads to another! :D
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Thanks for the continued supply of information on units and armies involved in the conflict.
Especially on how to put them in an CoC game environment.
I'll second this 8)
Happy, I think that you have set the hook here deep enough to start up my own Abyssinian project - you almost had me with the Sumerians some time ago (and might yet, in the future... ;D )
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We don't expect a mass-exodus from WWII to the far more stimulating and gratifying Interwar Era, but it is nice when someone takes the bait all the same.
;)
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Hey El Grego,
Glad to see you here checking out The Abyssinian Crisis stuff...there's lots to choose from and plenty of interesting combinations in play for the interwar. We're over the hump lists wise and into the Brits and French now on the home run.
You might want to wait and see what else these armies have to offer as there are some interesting options in the British and French lists...particularly when looking at TAC. Take as a whole there is stacks of stuff in the TAC lists and they have been 6 month plus+ in the making...
I hope to get back to the Sumerian stuff in due course and I have infact been redoing the webblog and will relaunch when I get clear air again...for now, I'm concentrating on on one or two things at a time...no more!! ;D
...so, by way of ideas, what are you thinking would be a good TAC scenario for you to pursue...I'm curious as to what's caught your eye.
Cheers
Happy W ;)
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Obviously if Abyssinia isn't your thing, the scenario sets up the almost definite invasion of Egypt by the Italians and probably action in the Levant between Britain and France. Barring the Ethiopian lists themselves, most of the lists are usable for the forces involved on these other fronts.
Arabs, Senussi and whatever else can make use of the various 'irregular' lists and the British, French and Italian lists for Abyssinia use forces drawn from these areas in any case.
In reality the British established a heavily fortified defensive position at the choke point of Mersa Matruh and defended it with an infantry brigade. Despite the entire Italian Army (some 15 divisions) having to pass that way, they were confident that they could hold it. The 'armoured forces' (8th Hussars, 7th Hussars, 1 (Light) RTC and 6 RTC) were to execute raids very much like Operation Compass of 1940 (which is where I guess the idea for 'Compass' came from), before re-grouping behind Mersa and supporting the garrison.
All that was needed to make this happen would be for the Italians to cross the Egyptian Border... true story. :)
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...so, by way of ideas, what are you thinking would be a good TAC scenario for you to pursue...I'm curious as to what's caught your eye.
Errr, I have yet to come up with an actual scenario :o but I had better do so, as it will make the eventual shopping much easier. I might try to set up a more historical setting first, then throw in the British and French forces later.
So far, TAC has the feel of a colonial campaign from the 19th century with some of my favorite tankettes thrown in. Reading your background material is also an inspiration, as I was not aware of the potential rift between Britain and France back in 1935. Of course, I could just go with historical actions in the Levant (1941) for that, but throwing in the irregular troops will make it more interesting. Once it is done and dusted, the Levant actions will be quite easy to set up and my slide into the world of WW2 gaming will be complete ;D
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Gents,
I've added some details on The Abyssinian Crisis blog about the miniatures I've used for the Ethiopian forces and the details on how I paint them, using a combination of colours and shade effects.
FYI.
Regards
Happy W
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-xr
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2016/01/img_0521.jpeg?w=676&h=636)
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Gents,
A little more history.
There is an article (WWII Quarterly) giving an abridged account of the Italo-Ethiopian War by Colonel Feodor Konovalov, a military advisor of Ras Seyoum Mengesha, commander of the Ethiopian Western Tigrey forces. His is an eyewitness account and has many interesting military details from the Ethiopian perspective.
Definitely worth a read.
Enjoy!
Happy W
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-jG
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/ethiopian-leaders1.jpg?w=676)
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Thanks for the link. Going to take a bit to read all of that.
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This is so lovely.
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Thanks guys 😉
Just bye the bye...I use 28mm as my preferred scale but Early War Miniatures are doing some very cool stuff and making specific troops for The Abysinnian War and, as detailed on their Facebook page, organising pre-packaged platoons for sale. Sounds like a great idea.
20mm is not my scale but their range is certainly one to consider if not already committed or perhaps looking to do it on a smaller scale.
I've added a couple of links on the blog.
Check them out 😉
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2016/01/15/20mm-italians-c-1935/
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Amazing link with the book excerpt(s) - thanks!
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Many of you might not be aware of this book, "The Rape of Ethiopia, 1936" by Ballantine Books published in 1971. There are used copies available from Amazon Books that won't break the bank.
http://www.amazon.com/Ethiopia-Ballantines-illustrated-century-Politics/dp/0345024621
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Hey Cyrus,
I am aware of the Ballantine book...I don't have it but believe it's not too bad. I'll pick it up at some point but with Mockler's book, the Osprey and several other titles on the subject as detail on The Abyssinian Crisis blog I didn't feel like I 'needed' to have that one...if you follow.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/tag/books/
I shall pick it up when I run across it however I'm sure.
;)
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Gents,
We conclude Konovalov’s description of the Ethiopian army by picking up the story with the Italian response and preparations leading up to and from the Ethiopian Christmas Offensive and subsequent battle of First Tembien until the conclusion of the war.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-yp
https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/08/italian-troops-ethiopia1.jpg?w=593&h=392
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Gents,
For those interested I have posted a book review of Roman Eagles over Ethiopia. A very nice read on the military aspects of the Italo-Ethiopian War and chock full of info and scenario ideas for The Abyssinian Crisis.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-aF
Not a very sexy post I'm afraid but nevertheless useful if you're considering this purchase...
(https://i1.wp.com/ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51neTWwRb1L._SX335_BO1,204,203,200_.jpg)
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Gents,
I've added a couple posts on the Italian artillery in the Italo-Ethiopian War.
All background stuff but useful info on the Italian artillery arm that proved so effective in Abyssinia.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-hk
FYI
Cheers
Happy W
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-Pyfp4J8CScM/VvD1fSK-ttI/AAAAAAAAGOA/E8rE1gAqm8EJ9yqXC0Z4tifQyf5U-jBmACCo/s1152-Ic42/P1080393.JPG)
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Gents,
I got Fritz’s Shapeways vehicles and got to painting one up. I’m well pleased with these models…highly recommend.
Check them out here.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-Fe
Cheers
Happy W
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2016/03/img_24431.jpg?w=676)
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That looks very nice!
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Thanks Carlos,
Update -
...I've added a small post on making acacia trees for Abyssinia (Africa). Worth a look if you need cheap and easy acacias ;)
(https://agrabbagofgames.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/tarangire-natpark800600.jpg?w=809&h=607)
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I love the effort you're putting into this project. Thanks for the inspiration.
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Gents,
Back to a bit of ‘hard history’.
This post takes a very good look at the Theatre of Operations covering the Physical and Human geography of Abyssinia and the critical Ports, Harbours, Rail and Road Net along with Possible Objectives and Routes of Invasion.
This is all important information for an understanding of the military factors at play and possible gaming scenarios that these discussion points throw up. It’s based on A US Army officers assessment of the theatre of war - very useful and interesting reading.
Hope you find it useful.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-59
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-mvMb-zH1GP4/Vwl8JAPtMoI/AAAAAAAAGPk/z5kwq8_n1_gFM6hyu1VNA354UmqwsHsNwCCo/s633-Ic42/religions-map.jpg)
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Gents,
The TFL WW1 Chain of Command supplement quite naturally provided some of the inspiration for aspects of Chain of Command:Abyssinia.
In this post we provide the six scenarios from that supplement that form the basis for some of the attack/defence scenarios in The Abyssinian Crisis theme that can arise both historically and a-historically.
Whilst not well known the Ethiopians did build substantial fortifications which the Italians attacked with varying degrees of success. The French also built historical fortifications in French Somaliland that fit this style of game very well.
At the very least they provide you with six additional Chain of Command scenarios that frankly can be used for a number of other situations from WW1 to WW2.
Hope you find them useful.
Cheers
Happy W
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-cu
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2016/04/screen-shot-2016-04-19-at-11-18-32-pm-png.jpg?w=676)
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Gents,
In the ongoing description of the armies of The Abyssinian Crisis we take a look at the third power, Great Britain, and her forces in the mid-thirties. An army in evolution it was more WW1 than WW2, possibly even more colonial than WW1, even-though the Second World War was but 3 years away. It's an interesting force, not like you might imagine and with info that has proven surprisingly hard to find.
Hopefully this post will give a snapshot of His Majesties Forces that will be useful.
Cheers
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/22/british-army/
Thanks for this,
I am wanting to do British troops for Interwar Pulp so that is really useful.
Any 28mm figure ranges you would recommend, especially for Egyptian force?
Thanks
James
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Hey James,
Glad you like the posts - try this backpost on figures to use for some descriptions of usable miniatures for the period...though there probably are more out there.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/04/what-miniatures-do-i-need/
Arlequin might have a better idea on the Egyptians in 28mm...I can't say off the top off my head. You'd probably be looking at the Sudan Defense Force for Egyptians so the post on them is worth a read.
The pic below is on the British Askari CoC lists and is of the SDF. Worth a read.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/12/18/chain-of-commandabyssinia-british-askaris/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/12/sudan-defence-force.jpg?w=676&h=327)
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I can give some vague details only. The Egyptian Army was reformed and re-equipped twice between 1930 and 1940, so working out what they had and when is hard work.
The fez seems to have been the ubiquitous headwear when helmets were not being worn. Equipment seems to have been either the British pre WWI leather equipment, or more usually 1908 webbing. Khaki drill jackets with a closed standing neck, worn with shorts and high puttees is one option, while the same with a collarless cotton shirt (probably white or off-white, as on the Ensign below... who is Abd Al Nasser BTW, as is the 'rifleman' below that) might have been worn in hot weather.
(http://laits.utexas.edu/modern_me/egypt_content/pic/6-officers3.jpg)
(https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/28/Nasser_with_comrades,_1940.jpg)
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Hey James,
Glad you like the posts - try this backpost on figures to use for some descriptions of usable miniatures for the period...though there probably are more out there.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/04/what-miniatures-do-i-need/
Arlequin might have a better idea on the Egyptians in 28mm...I can't say off the top off my head. You'd probably be looking at the Sudan Defense Force for Egyptians so the post on them is worth a read.
The pic below is on the British Askari CoC lists and is of the SDF. Worth a read.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/12/18/chain-of-commandabyssinia-british-askaris/
Thanls for the link to your earlier post - I have bookmarked for reference.
Was mainly interested in the links for WW1 Brits. I presume any figures for WW1 Middle East Brits would also be fine for representing troops in India? I will be using Pulp Alley so probably need at most a dozen figures. The idea was to have 4-5 adventurer heroes with the option of having some British troops as support for either Egypt ot India. Opponents would be cultists, tribesmen, gangsters etc depending on location.
For Brits the Cooplestone Castings figures in Tropical Dress look perfect - having a Pulpy feel works great.
I had been looking at Empress Miniatures for their Afghans (to serve as Temple of Doom style Thugees), plus their armoured cars. And I had been looking at Artizan Designs for their French Foriegn Legion to have as either adversaries or allies.
Thanks again
James
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Anything without the big WWII-style ammo pouches would work, although if you aren't too fussy about that Pulp Figures have a great range of figures too (available from North Star).
https://pulpfigures.com/
I've no idea how they compare with Copplestone though.
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Was mainly interested in the links for WW1 Brits. I presume any figures for WW1 Middle East Brits would also be fine for representing troops in India? I will be using Pulp Alley so probably need at most a dozen figures. The idea was to have 4-5 adventurer heroes with the option of having some British troops as support for either Egypt ot India. Opponents would be cultists, tribesmen, gangsters etc depending on location.
Sounds like fun! I'm looking forward to seeing more of this.
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Say Happy, how much work d'you think it would be to convert the Copplestone Somalis into Ethiopian tribal levies? Ignoring the rifle being wrong (if it even is). Here's an image for reference:
(http://www.copplestonecastings.co.uk/images/img109.jpg)
Seems you'd have to add shirts and maybe trousers to most of them, but that this would do the trick?
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Hi Fram,
I have some of those myself and will be using them for southern Ethiopian, Ogaden and Somali tribal types for sure. Photos of this period show little change in the ensuing 30 years that the Copplestone sculpts depict and add a nice tribal squad or two to your force.
...so use them with no jeopardy! They paint up very quickly and look great 👍
Happy W
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Righto, thanks!
The Empress stuff is lovely and accurate, but the Copplestones fit my slightly larger scale more closely. Plus there's a deal on some used Somalis...
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Have to admit I use them as well. My Abyssinian tribals are a mix of Empress, Copplestone and Askiri miniatures.
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Gents,
I've popped up a post..a bit of 'hard history' this time.
It's a very interesting article on the French Culture and Military Doctrine of the interwar era. Very interesting reading and solid background for Francophiles of the period...
...hope it is of some use/interest
Regards
Happy W
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-mz
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Great essay, thanks for posting it.
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Many of you might not be aware of this book, "The Rape of Ethiopia, 1936" by Ballantine Books published in 1971. There are used copies available from Amazon Books that won't break the bank.
http://www.amazon.com/Ethiopia-Ballantines-illustrated-century-Politics/dp/0345024621
This book is interesting as large parts of the text appear to be plagiarised from Del Boca's 1960s book. But it is a good read and is worth getting for the photos alone.
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Hi Fram,
I have some of those myself and will be using them for southern Ethiopian, Ogaden and Somali tribal types for sure. Photos of this period show little change in the ensuing 30 years that the Copplestone sculpts depict and add a nice tribal squad or two to your force.
...so use them with no jeopardy! They paint up very quickly and look great 👍
Happy W
Seconded! The Copplestone Somalis are nice to give some differentiation between regional Ethiopians. And the cavalry are fab.
Still impressed to see how much work is going into this project. I have completely detached myself for the moment while working on WW1, but will be back!
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Hi James,
Thanks for your thoughts and kind words.
I don't have AJ Barker's book but do have Del Boca's book which is rather good...I did a review of it here.
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2015/11/08/the-ethiopian-war-1935-41/
...whilst things have 'slowed down' a bit I couldn't keep up the frenetic pace of the initial few months, which actually was always the intention. I wanted to get up a solid basis for the hypothesis and provide all the background and hopefully inspiration that any would be player would want to find on the TAC blog. I go back and read it myself for inspiration!!!
The intent/hope was that other people would be contribute any of their own articles or posts related to the topic and it would mutate into a kind of resource for all mid thirties interwar gamers...still my hope....which reminds me to get a bunch of pictures of your pictures up on the blog as they are very much inspiration for many and would be lovely to see...myself included.
So, the the blog will chug along, building as it goes, creating a wealth of all sorts of info on the topic as and when time allows. I've only recently finished up a platoon of King's African Rifles that are meant to be showcased on the blog but I've been a bit distracted by other things, closely related, but not the same as Abyssinia.
Cheers
Happy W
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-svMGgEymXUA/Vz15foCPK6I/AAAAAAAAGRo/r5HswUufjY8q0m1EMV2hh3xRRiE3KhEIQCCo/s406/image3.JPG)
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For fans of 20mm, Early War Miniatures has released a number of new figures in their Abyssinian war range to support The Abyssinian Crisis blog and theme in general. This round of releases has quite a few Abyssinian tribal warriors and the Ethiopian Imperial Guard… all very good stuff. You can check out some pictures on the blog which has links to other locations for the miniatures as well.
Cheers
Happy Wanderer
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-G0
(https://scontent-syd2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/13248405_1091622597551374_4674093930498012250_o.jpg?oh=f4a7bde79e1975aba05a36a4c19f6625&oe=593378A8)
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Gents,
I've added a post including links to three important manuals used for research into the interwar British Army. Follow the link if you're interested in getting your hands on the respective field service regulations used for the British c.1935.
http://wp.me/p6mUyQ-wq
Cheers
Happy Wanderer
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Gents,
I've posted an update to The Abyssinian Crisis webblog. It adds usable rules for the game system Flames of War.
See the post for details.
Cheers
wp.me/p6mUyQ-bO
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2015/07/soldiers-of-italian-colonies-liby-and-somalia-advance-on-ethiopia-1427558486g8k4n.jpg)
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Those tenders'/trucks look an interesting build.In fact I quite like the idea of the whole picture.
Mark.
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...those askaris do cut a rather 'martial' look don't they...very hardy fellows... ;)
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The trucks look like Fiat 15 Ter. Minifigs if you want them in 15mm, the Matchbox Crossley is a decent proxy in 28mm.
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Gents,
The Eritrean Askaris the Italians mobilised and fought with in East Africa during the Italo-Ethiopian War and WW2 were amongst some of their best fighters.
In this update I am showcasing some of the latest off the paint table to spotlight these charismatic troops so as to get them to the tabletop. More to follow soon.
The figures are lovely Paul Hicks sculpts sold by Empress - some of his best work IMHO.
Find the update along with more pics at the The Abyssinian Crisis blog.
Cheers
Happy Wanderer
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2017/06/15/eritrean-askaris-east-africa/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/img_4988.jpg)
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/img_4993.jpg?w=676&h=507)
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Gents,
I have added the command group elements to the Eritrean Askari platoon - for your viewing pleasure.
;-)
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2017/06/17/eritrean-askaris-command-group/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/img_4999.jpeg)
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Gents,
The platoon is finished. Here are a few more shots showing off these lovely figures.
Hope you like 'em! ;)
Cheers
Happy W
https://abyssiniancrisis.wordpress.com/2017/06/21/eritrean-askaris-the-platoon/
(https://abyssiniancrisis.files.wordpress.com/2017/06/img_50081.jpeg?w=676&h=507)
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Lovely painting, the shade balance has worked out really well.
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Lovely work
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Fine painting.
Love them.
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Thanks chaps,
Much apprecIated 👌
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Really liking this thread.
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I am really enjoying this!
LB