28mm Dark Age skirmishers

Completed two units of archers, one for late Roman -Alan  archers and a generic Archer dark age base.
Figures are Footsore miniatures. They will fit into any of my late Roman and dark age armies nicely.

Cheers

Matt

28mm Alan warlord

This Footsore command miniature has been sitting around for some time awaiting completion as I wanted a hunting or war dog on the base, after a desk clean up today in preparation for clearing for the Autumn painting projects,  I headed up to the third floor and seeked out my 28mm spares box and found a suitable Warlord Miniatures war dog.  I then finished the dog off and added it to the completed the command base.

This commander will lead my Alan warband. The Alan's were based in Aurelianum (modern Orleans) capital from 406ad and controlled lands along the Loire, Sarthe and Mayenne rivers. The Romans and later the Franks used them to put down rebellions in the west including Armorican massif (Brittany) and famously defended their capital Aurelianum against Atilla the Hun. Later at the battle of Challons in 451 the Alan and Goth cavalry break the Hunnic centre.

Cheers
Matt

28mm Dark Age Breton Warlord Cavalry

Breton Warlord Cavalry I

Off the desk this week another unit of Breton warlord cavalry, again from the footsore miniatures range. Should be quite flexible to be Alans, Goths, Franks and late Romans. A real pleasure to paint with LBM transfers.

"walk the battlefield in the morning, wargame in the afternoon"™

Cheers
Matt

28mm Dark Age Goth-Alani cavalry I

Gothic Alani Cavalry I

Next unit to join my Breton army are some Alani-Goth cavalry from the Footsore range. These. Will be for my later 5th century Armorican army, but I will possibly also use them for Goths, Visigoths or Burgundians.

The Vandals, Alani (including Sarmation confederation tribes) and other confederate Germans crossed the Rhine in 406AD pushing far into western Roman territory. Alan tribes settled along the Loire and up the Sarthe river beyond Le Mans and west to the Mayenne river. Many place names in the Pays de la Loire region still relate to this period of 40 odd years of occupation. This I believe also lead to the unique horse breeds in western Pays de la Loire

The Alani leader Goar agreed with the romans to ally with them and in 440 the Alan's were gifted Orleans and the lower And Upper Loire to act as a buffer in the west with the Bucaudae of Armorica, and to the south the Visigoths and Burgundians. The Alani also played in the internal politics of the western empire supporting Jovinus as emperor 411-13. The Alani had contingents in the Roman army at Chalons against the Huns and again at at Orleans against the Visigoths. Contingents were still with the Roman army at Soissons, and retreated to Armorica after the defeat, coming to terms with Clovis and the Franks, becoming part of the Merovingian and Carolingian empires.

Ammianus Marcellinus writes their military customs resemble the Huns "they enter battle drawn up in a wedge shaped masses, while their medley of voices make a savage noise". The Alans like the Huns disliked fighting on foot, and unlike the Huns they seemed to have utilised armour for themselves and their horses.

References
Alans in Gaul Bernard S Bachrach.
The History of the Alans in the West Bernard S Bachrach 
Long Haired Kings JM Wallac-Hadrill
Rerum Gestartum libri qui supersunt XXXI 2,21. Ammianus Marcellinus. 

Cheers

Matt

Halani Sagittarii

Some Alan Or Goth horse archers off the table this week who will no doubt get use in my Roman and Sassanid armies. I am very pleased with the result of their stripey pajamas, The A  and A range captures the movement of the horses well, again I have based them in a circulus cantabricus.

Only five more bases to go of horse archers, which I ordered from A and A last week and my Sassanid army will be nearly ready for action!

cheers

Matt