Republican Roman command II

 

 Republican Roman Command

Earlier last week I was getting a little jack of Medievals, tree renovation and Napoleonics, so I switched and opened up my project drawers and looked at my early republicans and decided to complete some more of my commands as I like to have spares in case of civil war etc for my early republican four urban legions. All figures are First corps figures except the dog who is warlord I think, decals VVV on the Roman shields, Impetus markers are Gallic pieces hand painted.

First up is a mounted Equites with his faithful dog, as a commander of my foreign and mercenary cavalry

A Simple legion commander base 

A foreign legion commander

Impetus disorder markers (as I like to do some every time I paint Ancient figures......)

and a supply train, more medieval than roman, a mix of brands and scratch built pack saddles

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

From Caesar to World War Two

cheers

Matt

Morvan Lez-Breizh The first King of Brittany

  

Morvan Lez-Breizh

Morvan (Murman or Morman) Lez-Breizh (literally "the hip of Bretagne")750-818

Thought to be the first King of a unified Brittany in the Middle Ages, his rule last a short four years after the death of Charlemagne. The Bretons were always in Revolt against the Franks. The Breton lords particularly active along marcher borders raiding but were never really united. Morvan controlled an area in the north called Poher part of the Kingdom of Cornouaille close to the border of Domnonée, Bretagne. He had a fortified Castra/Palace it is thought at modern Carhaix-Plouguer, capital of old Poher.

In 753 Pepin the Short ordered Frankish troops into the Armorican peninsula to subdue the kingdoms and ask for tribute, the Breton kings would remain semi independent but still owe fealty to the Franks. In 776 and 777 Charlemagne ordered armies into the Armorican peninsula again to create the Breton Marches, marching from Le Mans, Roland (Hruotland) (song of Roland Fame) obtaining tribute and land from the three petty kingdoms and moved the border marcher between Neustria and Brittany to to a line from St Malo to Nantes and set up Carolingian Castra in Rennes, port city of Nantes and the port city of Saint Malo (when the border marcher moved from the Mayenne-Maine and Loire river to the west to the la Vilaine river, also the first wood and stone castra/palace was also built at this time in Ville Mayenne by the Bishop of Le Mans in the same location as the current chateau).

After a refusal to pay tributes by some of the great Breton nobles, in 786 the Frank General Audulf, departed Nantes and campaigned between March and August 786, laying waste to the Breton cities and destroying its defendable castras (leaving the coast vulnerable to saxon pirates). The chronicle of Sigebert de Gembloux noting that several castra were captured and nobles and hostages were bought before Charlemagne at Worms in 787. In 799 Guy de Widonides a Frankish noble was appointed as the marquis of the Breton Marchers and Comte de Nantes. Guy then also campaigned in 799 and had the Breton petty kings bend the knee in person at Tours in 800. Guy again campaigned in 811 breaking a alliance of the northern Domnonée nobles who had threatened Rennes.

When Charlemagne died in 814, Morvan lez-Breizh gathered together the nobles from the Kingdoms of Cornouaille, Domnonée and Bro-Gwened and rebelled successfully, while the Frank armies were busy in Spain and Italy.

In 818 Emperor Louis the Pious along with his marquis Lambert de Nantes (Widonides) lead a large army (10000) to clear the country of fortified castras, take hostages and fealty. They met the army of Morvan somewhere between Priziac and Carhaix, it is said the battle was on a fortified ford of the Ellé river near Langonnet. A ridge nearby is called Minez-Morvan and he is said to be buried nearby in the Tumulus de Kermain a bronze age tomb.

“He [Louis] marched in person in Brittany with a considerable army, and held the general assembly of the nation at Vannes. Then entering the province of which we have just spoken, he took all the strongholds of the rebels, and soon made himself master without much fatigue of the whole country. In fact, after Morman, who had arrogated to it the royal authority in defiance of the constant use of the Bretons, had been killed by the emperor's troops, there was no longer a single Breton who resisted, or who refused either. to obey the orders he received, or to provide the hostages that were required of him "

- Annales d ' Éginhard , (Year 818)

The king figure is Morvan lez Breizh from Footsore, unsure of the priest but I did add the cross from a plastic set. 

For those interested jaunty marching tunes, as I do a nice Breton pipes tune Lez Breizh was written some time after, as a Scottish bagpiper the higher pitch can be a little hard on the ears after a while but worth a listen all the same. I will use it to rouse the troops on the table to fight the perfidious foe the Franks! 

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

From Caesar to World War Two

Cheers

Matt

War of the Roses look out for the billhooks 3

 War of the Roses Mounted MAA

Completed some more mounted Perry miniatures, these are such a joy to paint! 

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

From Caesar to World War Two

cheers

Matt

Terrain Tuesday Aircraft Flight Stands

 Terrain Tuesday Flight Stands

This week I decided while building the Dassault Mirage III model that I would make another two flight stands for jets, one for Arid and desert games and one more for more green looking european games.

They are mounted on some MDF octagon shaped 10mm deep pieces that I picked up once in a paint shop clearance about 8 years ago. I left with about ten pieces and then had a Hotz mat made to match them for my WW1 Canvas Eagles 1/72 scale aircraft games and I also use them for ww2 larger aircraft like bombers, and DC3-JU52 para landings. Happy with them, although I may add some more bushes to the arid one I thik.

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

From Caesar to World War Two

cheers

matt

Argentinian Dassault Mirage IIIEA 1/72 finished

  Argentinian Dassault Mirage IIIeA 

Completed, really happy with the build, went together ok, did need some putty, but sadly my squadron putty had dried out and I tried to resurrect it, sort of successfully. I added a wire through the centreline to attach to my flight stands for jet aircraft. If I was building a display piece I may of spent more time on it, but this model is a poor example of the dassault Mirage III, requiring major changes (wheel hub location, rear tail alignment, panel scribe detail and tail deflectors etc. The paint went on well and happy with my camo work, added the extra fins to the missiles to make them look more like the magic 550 missile. I did fek up with the clear varnish and forgot to mask the canopy for the matt finish.....oh well still serviceable. Decals were the biggest problem but saved by and a big thanks to my mate Robin for saving me, as Hannants are not delivering to France at the moment. 

Built as a Mirage from Grupo 8 de caza I-1003 with the yellow tail marking for the falklands war

I will get around to a Harrier soon, but onto some ww2 stuff for the next three weeks!

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

From Caesar to World War Two

cheers

Matt

Aulerci Cénomani V Gaulois tribesmen

 Aulerci Cénomani V Gaulois tribesmen

More tribesmen, again I have tried to make them look a little different from their neighbouring tribe of the Diablintes. With this unit I am just short by two miniatures of the 300 figure mark for Aulerci federation army. Still need to add the remaining 80 odd figures to finish it off. Again all Victrix figures, I also started painting up a Warlord general who will be off the desk this week also. Thinking about getting some chariots for the northern part of the Federation for the Aulerci Éburovices (modern Normandy). I think the Nobles rode chariots into battle as a taxi rather than some wild charging beast that we all think of as wargamers. 

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

From Caesar to World War Two

cheers

Matt

Aulerci Cénomani IIII

 Aulerci Cénomani IIII

More completed Gaulois, another Skirmisher base of four Victrix miniatures. Getting closer to the armies completion, almost clocked the three hundred mark with these figures, hoping to have the army completely painted by April. 

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

From Caesar to World War Two

Cheers

Matt