Journal - intflatfigures.orgintflatfigures.org/BFFS/Themes/Bffs-mods/Journals/BFFS J91.pdf · Journal No 91 Winter 2008 ... Tel: 02 33106690 E-mail: ... fax, which also boasted a

JournalNo 91 Winter 2008

The British Flat Figure Society

2

BFFS Journal No 91 - WINTER 2008

of The British Flat Figure

SocietyJournal No 91 Winter 2008

Journal Hon. Secretary:Simon Hoggett, 23 Parkhurst Road,Hertford SG14 3AZTel: 01992 586568E-mail:[email protected]

Membership Secretary:Charles King, 224 Homefield Park, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 2EATel: 0208 643 5168E-mail: [email protected]

Treasurer:Dr Bob Williams, Withersdale Hall Cottage, Metfield Road, Mendham, IP20 0JJ.

Editor:Jeremy Mortimore, 17 Redwood Drive, Wing, Leighton Buzzard, Beds LU7 0TATel: 01296 688455E-mail: [email protected]

Additional Committee Members:Ian Parkinson, Ashton House, Main Street, Heming-brough, Selby, North Yorks YO8 6QE

Distribution & Printing:Mike Taylor, Stonechat House,8 Ferndell Close, Cannock, StaffsWS11 1HR

Joe Melvin, 21 Ridgeway, Aldridge,Walsall, WS9 0HL

Malcolm MacDonald, 279 Blackberry Lane, Four Oaks, Sutton Coldfield,West Midlands B74 4JS

Archivist:Richard Hyne, 23 Letchworth Road,Baldock, Herts. SG7 6AA

Society Sales:Michael Creese, ‘Nutwood’,Great Glemham Road, Stratford St Andrew,Saxmundham, Suffolk IP17 1LLTel: 01728 602746

Webmaster:Simon Hoggett, 23 Parkhurst Road,Hertford SG14 3AZTel: 01992 586568E-mail:[email protected]

Area RepresentativesLONDON: Phil Redman, Georgian House,50 Games Road, Cockfosters,Herts. EN4 9HW. Tel: 02084 408475HAMPSHIRE: Chris Parkin,17 Constable Close, Black Dam,Basingstoke, Hants, RG21 3QY

SOUTH‑WEST: Tony Du-Vall,4 Pixie Dell, Braunton,North Devon EX33 1DP

SOUTH‑EAST: Situation vacant.

BRISTOL & AVON: Situation vacant.

MIDLANDS: Jon Redley, 64 York Avenue, Finch-field, Wolverhampton, West Midlands WV3 9BU. Tel: 01902 423732

NORTH‑EAST: M.G.Wardle, 96 WestEnd Drive, Horsforth, Leeds LS18 5JXTel: 0113 258 1508

NORTH‑WEST: Malcolm Collins,16 Tithe Barn Street, Currock, Carlisle,Cumbria CA2 4EL. Tel: 01228 46444

WALES: S.G.Rutherford, 5 Coleridge Road, Beech-wood, Newport, Gwent. NP9 8HYTel: 01633 273014

EAST ANGLIA: Michael Creese, ‘Nutwood’, Great Glemham Road,Stratford St Andrew, Saxmundham, Suffolk IP17 1LL Tel: 01728 602746

SCOTLAND: John Russell,2 Marcus Crescent, Aberdeen AB21 0SZTel: 01224 790680

EUROPE & OVERSEAS: Situation vacant.

NORTHERN IRELAND:C.W.Robinson, 25 Princetown Road,Bangor, Co. Down,Northern Ireland BT20 3TA

CANADA & USA:Kevin W.Dunne, 416 S. Bayview Ave, Freeport, NY 11520, USA.E-mail: [email protected]

AUSTRALIA & NEW ZEALAND:John Brewer, 18 Selby Avenue,Dee Why 2099, Australia

ITALY:Gianpaolo Bistulfi, Via Alberti 10,20149 Milano, ItalyTel: 02 33106690E-mail: [email protected]

Society ContactsPlease send all information to be published in the Journal to Jerry Mortimore. All other correspondence with the Society should be addressed to Simon Hoggett. Society Sales are handled by Michael Creese. Mem-bership applications and renewals go to Charles King. All addresses can be found on this page.

The next JournalThe copy deadline for the next Journal is 15 January 2008 for the Spring edition.Contributions to the Journal can be typed, handwritten or digital. If supplying scanned images, these should be 300dpi. For digital pictures the higher the number of pixels the better.

Annual SubscriptionsU.K. members: £15.00, European mem-bers: £18.00 Overseas members: £20.00 (by air mail). Subscriptions are due for renewal in January every year.

Payment of subscriptions can be made by cheque, postal order, or Paypal.We cannot accept foreign currency cheques.We can accept paper currency notes, e.g. Sterling, US Dollars or Euros. Please add the equivalent of £1 to cover conversion costs if sending foreign currency.Paypal payments should be made in Sterling to [email protected]. Add £1 to cover Paypal fees.Cheques must be made payable to The British Flat Figure Society, not to the Membership Secretary or any individual person.

Contact The committee and Area Representatives of the Society

3


Front Cover: Louisburg Fortress.See Mike Taylor's article on page 4.4. The Fortress of Louisburg, Cape Breton Island.A bit of history from Michael (Cannock) Taylor.8. What's New.Flats from the pages of Die Zinnfigur.10. A Few Notes.Roy Boardman on Shogun and wargaming with flats.12. 1914, The Retreat from Mons.Jon Redley reviews the new figures from Western Miniatures.16. Committee Meeting.Report by Simon Hoggett.17 What's New Too.News from Fredericus Rex.18.Forum Feedback.Info from the BFFS website forum.20 At the Time of the Mary Rose.Tudor maritime history.23. Aviation NewsLatest from our Aviation Correspondant.24. The BFFS Painting Project 2008.The new painting project.

The opinions expressed within this Journal are not necessarily those of the

Editor, the Committee, other officials, or the British Flat Figure Society.

Last week was the annual committee meeting held, as usual, at Mike Taylor's house at Cannock. Simon Hoggett has written a report for the Journal.

Mike Taylor has provided us with an article about the Fortress of Louisberg in Canada. Definitely sounds like a place I would like to visit.

Jon Redley reviews Dick Jenkins' new Retreat from Mons set and has included some of his sketches for further figures in the series. I will be placing my order for them. Somehow, the Great War has a fascination for me. Perhaps because of the horrors of trench warfare and mustard gas, the emergence of the new flying machines and mechanisation in the form of the early tanks, and the fact that it has been within living memory.

I am writing this at 11.00 on Sunday 9th November. The Remembrance Day service from the Cenotaph is on TV and the two minutes silence has just begun. A time to think and remember and hope that such a thing never happens again. Yet the news from Afghanistan and the Congo shows what a vain hope this is.

My great uncle Charlie Jones died on the 4th November 1918 in the last ac-tion of the 7th Royal West Kents. We have the letter from his officer dated the 10th November so the family did not know of his death until after the armistice. (I wonder how many such letters that officer had to write?) My grandfather was a bugler in the 10th Canadian Mounted Rifles. We have photographs of him in 1915 as a cheerful youth and in 1919 as a war-weary man, the strain of those war years etched in his face.

My great uncle Tommy Nash of the KRRC was killed by a sniper in 1916, the only regimental fatality on a day when it was, in fact, all quiet on the Western Front. My great uncle Bill Wren was a gunner. He survived the war until 1920 in continuous pain from his lungs, corroded by mustard gas.

I would like to see a diorama of William Coltman, a Lance Corporal in the 1/6th North Staffordshire Regiment. He

Kulmbach 2009. Yes, another Kulmbach year is upon us. Dates are 7th-9th of August.Knowle 2009. Provisional date is 14th June for the BFFS meeting at Knowle. This years theme is 'Gottstein'.

enlisted in January 1915, but his Quaker principles prevented him from taking life so he became a stretcher-bearer. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery, carrying the wounded to safety whilst under attack. For other similar acts he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal (twice), the Military Medal (twice) and was mentioned in Despatches. To this day he remains the most highly-decorated 'other ranks' soldier in the British Army. I think there is a measure of hope in that he achieved this for saving life.

I wish Dick every success with his latest venture.

People keep telling me they like the Journal, but it is only as good as the articles it contains. Without the contribu-tions from you, the members, there would be no Journal. This Journal is a bit late as five days ago I only had enough for half a Journal. Thankfully, Mike and Jon came to the rescue. I do have some articles for the next Journal, but always need more. So, as always, my thanks to the people who have sent in articles and a plea for more.

4


I have recently returned from a long and very special holiday. Apart from a week spent in New York visiting a friend in 1997 I have never crossed the Atlantic. And yet I did have the desire to cast my eyes on some of the sights across "the Pond". Disenchanted with airports and long distance flights I decided to do a trip by sea on a cruise ship. There was a very interesting itinerary including Quebec, which I had always fancied seeing, plus twelve other places. The Atlantic is not the friendliest of oceans. On the whole we were very fortunate but there were some pretty stormy days when the Saga Ruby was tossed about quite a bit, especially when sailing through the tail-end of hurricane Kyle! Fortunately it seems I am a good sailor and did not suffer from mal de mer.

Quebec was our third point of call and this was easily my favourite place. With time at a premium I hot footed it up the steep hill passing the amazing turreted Chateau Frontenac. (This colossal hotel was built by the Canadian railways and completely dominates the old town area.) Eventually I reached the Citadel. This extensive Vauban style fortress was built to defend Quebec between 1820 and 1830 from possible attack by the Americans! A very interesting guided tour took us through two excellent military museums with dioramas of the Battle of Quebec and a great deal more all within the extensive walls and ramparts of the fortress. I just had to step onto the Plains of Abraham, now a park though I suspect the actual site where the Battle was fought in 1759 has now been built over.

Another city we visited was Hali-fax, which also boasted a Citadel that was constructed between 1828 and 1856, the last of four fortresses to be built on the site. Again its purpose was to defend the important port and Canada from incursions by the Americans (which never material-

ised). Now converted to a tourist attraction this place was an absolute must. There were several mini museums and a powder magazine. One could climb up on top of the ramparts for views over the city and port. The "attendants" splendidly dressed as 78th Highlanders complete with feather bonnets or as Royal Artillery gunners, changed the guard and gave demonstrations in an extremely smart and military fashion, then acted as the friendliest of guides. They

represented the British troops stationed at the Citadel in the late eighteen hundreds. This visit was a real delight.

But best of all was an excursion I took to the Fortress of Louisburg. Our ship docked at a place called Sydney on Cape Breton Island. I have to admit my knowledge of the geography of this part of North America was very sketchy (the

only Sydney I knew of was in Australia!) Apparently the safe harbour of Sydney was much used by Naval and merchant ships in World War II. From Sydney we took a half hour coach ride through what I considered rather inhospitable wilderness with few signs of agriculture - just miles of stunted forest. The trees dwindled away and we had arrived at the safe, sheltered anchorage of Louisburg. The landscape was rather bleak and bare, but there was

the Fortress on a low hill adjacent to the little town.

During the seventeen hun-dreds the antagonism between France and Britain made itself evident in various conflicts centred in Europe. The tentacles of this an-tagonism spread across the globe and French and British colonists in North America did not get on well together! In 1713 the Wars of the Spanish Succession ended when the French lost out in Newfoundland and were reduced to a few settlements on Cape Breton Island and Prince Edward Island. Louisburg was a good safe port, for fishing and trading as well as a safe haven for naval warships. It was decided to establish a town there and of course a Fortress to defend the port in the almost certain event that an attack by the British would almost certainly take place.

For thirty years the settle-ment flourished. The population of civilians and soldiers varied between two and four thousand. In the Spring fishing fleets of Basques, Bretons and Normans came to join in the thriving fishing industry and share the spacious harbour with trading

merchant ships from Acadia, New England and Quebec. And of course ships of the French Navy There was virtually no agriculture so everything depended on the abundant stocks of cod and other fish. This was dried and salted for export and traded for the everyday needs of the French settlers.

Now briefly I will mention what

5


happened to Louisburg following the out-break of war between Britain and France in March 1744. In 1745 Louisburg is besieged for 47 days by British and New England troops and capitulates, and is occupied by them for the next four years. But to the amazement of the British settlers at the end of the War of the Austrian Succession in the Treaty of Aix-la-Chappelle Louisburg is returned to the French in exchange for Madras in India!

The French fairly quickly returned but the peace was very fragile. In 1757 a British attempt to take Louisburg was repulsed and failed. Then in 1758 a fleet under Admiral Boscawen and troops under General Amherst and his Brigadier James Wolfe attacked and besieged the town and fortress which finally surrendered on July 26th following a seven week campaign.

In 1760 the British decided that the fortification should be destroyed completely and sent military engineers to carry out the task. The last British garrison

and remaining civilians left Louisburg in 1768.

Canadians are proud of their history and with the decimation of the fish industry and other factors the Government had the bright idea to rebuild and restore Louisburg as a tourist attraction in 1961, and try to revive the weak economy of the area, just 200 years after the demise of Louisburg.

This was a very big project and fortunately very careful research was car-ried out by archaeologists, reconstruction architects and historians using extensive French archives before work began. The result is really splendid, and the site is staffed by dozens of people: soldiers, sailors, civilians bringing the whole thing to life. We were visiting at the end of the season. I believe at the busiest times all sorts of mini enactments take place e.g. drunken sailors being arrested by soldiers. As it was we saw the guard changing and several demonstrations. The guidebook suggests 62 different things for one to

view ranging from the barracks to houses of various grades, inns, a bakery and a powder magazine. I did my best to see as much as I could but of course time ran out all too quickly. Apparently the operation has been very successful. For example when the first part of the scheme was opened in 1973 140,000 visitors were recorded in the first three months! So Louisburg like the Phoenix has risen from the ashes.

Goodness! I hear you thinking when is this fellow going to start talking about flats? Well I am very easily led astray – when it comes to flat figures and uniforms!! And at Louisburg I really fell for the French uniforms. When I was first looking for direction in the very early days of my flat collecting why on earth didn’t I look at the Seven Years War period? Nice colourful uniforms, many not too fussy (always a consideration for me) and then there were those smart tricorne hats and full skirted top coats.

When I set out to write this article

6


I little knew what I was letting myself in for. It has been a very steep learning curve, fortunately several friends have rallied to the cause. Jon Redley is a mine of infor-mation and has an amazing collection of flats. When I visited him he produced a lovely set of Herbu figures mostly civilians. The Editor, Herbert Bunzel specialised in this period and the flats look really nicely engraved. Jon has had them a long time, and Ed Humphreys thinks his grandson Richard now has the business. Maybe someone can let us know more about Herbu figures? Louisburg has turned up in our Journals before namelyNo.9 and

No.27. At one time a Canadian company Louisburg Craft Workshops, Friends of the Citadel Society, PO Box 3116, South Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada B3J 3GG engaged a German engraver to produce moulds for two 30mm sets; French infantry, six figures 1758 and British infantry, four figures 1758. Also there was a 60mm set of three French marines and three 60mm singles: a French soldier, a British Grena-dier and a Micmac warrior. Apparently some of these figures appear in the Herbu lists. Be warned this information is 20 years old. Graham Dixey stated the figures were excellent quality but I have not been able to follow this up yet.

Nevertheless, anyone whose inter-est has been aroused sufficiently to turn it into lead reality will find there are a number of makers who produce plent of nice flats from the period. If you have Michael Taylors Art of the Flat Tin Figure turn to page 74 where there are some beautifully painted up British Infantry circa 1760, part of a range of figures from Loy/Maier.

Then there is the Blue King range by Neckel. In spite of various rumours these flats are still obtainable from Neckel.

Golberg have some very good figures from the time and unbelievably I

purchased a few when last at Kulmbach but for another purpose. I used up the cavalry in a diorama but had eight infantry left over. Hooray!!. I shall paint these up as garrison troops of Louisburg.

Other makers who cover this period include Krog/Gottstein and Scholtz. The basic cut of military uniforms of the 1750s seems to be fairly universal, so for example Austrian, Russian, Hanoverian infantry might easily be adapted for use.

For large scale figures the beau-tifully engraved Fredericus Rex range include pieces that might be useful. (n.b. you won’t need any cavalry! Possibly a

mounted officer.)During the last week in October I

have made quite a Journey into areas of knowledge where I have to admit I was completely ignorant. It is for this reason I have not attempted to do more than give the barest outline of the fascinating story of what happened at Louisburg. (Perhaps some of our members from Canada or U.S.A. might like to follow this up. Our Editor is always glad to have contributions for the Journal.) Fortunately when I am in a dilemma concerning the world of flats I know who to turn to for assistance.

I’ve picked the brains of several friends for this piece. Many thanks to them, especially John Redley, Ed Humphreys and Mac Chorley, who have given me much help at very short notice.Books I have used include:Fortress of Louisburg Guide Book (purchased on site for 8 Canadien dollars) containing some exquisite but simple line drawings of the buildings and a very good outline of the story of the fortress and its buildings and people.Louisburg 1758, Rene Chartrand, Osprey Campaign Series No.79. This book is bursting with information covering all

7


aspects of the campaign and the Louisburg fortress and settlement. There are some excellent maps and line drawings. (This is possibly temporarily out of print).

The Struggle for Canada, Barry Williams. Then and There Series, Longmans. This is a splendid little book for an overall view of the topic. I’ve had my copy for a very long

time. It’s probably unobtainable now.Uniforms of the Seven Years War 1756-63, John Mollo, Blandford series.

8


Figures from the pages of Die Zinnfigur. All figures 30mm unless otherwise stated.

We start with a small group of Prussians from the 1813-15 period. Designed by Gagelmann, engraved by Rolf Grünewald. Available from:Jörg Scheibe, Ottenberstrasse 16, 39106 Magdeburg. Tel. 0391 -561 87 80 email: [email protected], www.joerg.scheibe.de.vu.Below, two more in the 75mm Blumenmädchen series from Bakat. Designed and engraved by Regina Sonntag. Available from:Bernhard Bakat, Hubertusstrasse 8, 40882 Ratingen. www.inZinn.de.Below, Crown-prince Wilhelm and Adjutant at Longwy 1914. Designed by Klement and engraved by Jahn. Available from:Wolfgang Hafer, Schlangenweg 14, 34117 Kassel. Tel. 0561/773113.Below right are some nice figures from 1701-14. Designed by Krunert and engraved by Kovar. Available from:Siegbert Wagner, Limmerstrasse 65, 30451 Hannover. Tel. 0511/4581465.

9


On the right is a set of Landsknechts from the old Kieler Zinnfiguren range. Designed and engraved by Ludwig Frank. Available from:Kieler Zinnfiguren, Erika Ochel, Holtenauer Strasse 178, 24105 Kiel. Tel. 0431/801891. email: [email protected] are two sets from Luscher. Charles Darwin and Captain Fitzroy on the Galapagos Islands in 1835 is a 50mm set and the figures from Mozart's opera "Der Entführung aus dem Serail" are 30mm. Both sets designed and engraved by Gottstein. Available from:Christian Luscher, Am Markt 16, 32278 Kirchenlengern. [email protected].

10


11


In the summer issue of the Journal I expressed my desire to produce a diorama based on my family’s involvement in the Great War. I explained then that I had discovered both my maternal and paternal grandfathers had served, according to family remembrances, from the outbreak of hostilities in August 1914 and this event had inspired me to research a suitable incident for my diorama. Members were good enough to pass on information about the availability of figures from this period but looking at what is available to be honest I have been rather disappointed. Perhaps it is the drabness of the uniforms that does not appeal to either the collector or editor, yet these first few months of the Great War were one of movement and colour. True not on the same scale as the medieval or Napoleonic periods but think about the French Army in its blue coats and red trousers and even the German army in the variety of field grey uniforms depending upon whether it was an infantry or Jaeger regiment, they also retained uniform piping and coloured insignia. The British perhaps were the most drab, due to some extent to their experiences in the various campaigns of the late nineteenth century. Then again there is always the debate as to the true colour of khaki, was it brown or greenish hue and was the equipment a lighter or darker tone than the basic uniform colour?

Since that first article I have taken my researched a little further, even tracking down my paternal grandfather’s medals and as with all family histories the facts are less romantic than the stories. True he did receive a 1914 medal but not the Mons Star that would have indicated his involvement in the actions of the British Army up until

the 30th November 1914. The Mons Star was only awarded to: “Those who served in France and Belgium on the strength of a unit” or had “service in either of those two countries” between 5th August and 30th November 1914”. A further disappointment was to follow in that I also discovered that he had served in the Hampshire Regiment not, as I had believed, in the Northamptonshire Regiment. It was in fact his brother who served in the Northamptonshire Regiment and received the 1914-15 Star. He unfortu-nately did not survive the War being taken prisoner in 1916 and dying later that year. As for my maternal grandfather, he was certainly in the Grenadier Guards before the outbreak of war but did not see service in Europe until after 30th November 1914. So putting these disappointments behind me I am still determined to continue with my “quest” to produce a diorama.

A conversation with Dick Jenkins has led to the forthcoming release of a range of figures from this early war period. By the time you read this Dick should have completed the first set in the range. In the past he has shown an interest in the Great War with his London Scottish and Captain Billy figures and he is now turn-ing his attention to this early period of the conflict. In fact, some members will have already seen the first set of figures painted on Dick’s display.

This early period of the Great War was one of movement, of marching and counter marching with both cavalry and infantry action which a general from the nineteenth century would have recognised and have been able to take command of. It was a time in which the German armies tried to implement the Schlieffen Plan and encircle Paris, while the French tried to implement their Plan XVII; an offensive thrust through Alsace and Lorraine. This plan viewed the British Expeditionary Force not as a means of defending the Franco-Belgian border, but as an extension to the extreme left wing of the French attack, to firstly reclaim territory lost in the Franco-Prussian War and then to invade and defeat Germany. At Mons the British line covered no more than twenty-one miles and during the retreat from Mons the front was rarely wider than thirty miles.

There are numerous books and articles that deal with the background to the Great War and the reasons for the British Army to be involved. In the same vein there is a great deal of information about the various actions covering the Battle of Mons and the subsequent retreat. It is from reading these sources, looking at contemporary photographs and artists impressions of the actions that the figures have been created.

12


As 1914 came to an end both sides began to dig in and the war of movement became a war of attrition. Future releases will allow the diorama builder in particular to concentrate on these offensive actions or to add further poses to the Captain Dyer set.

These figures are in the way of more recent flats being slightly larger than the Nurnburg scale, which may offend the traditional flat collector but hopefully with a lack of figures from this period they will inspire or enable collectors and painters alike to recreate the opening months of the Great War.

'The Last Stand of Captain Dyer' is available from Western Miniatures price £10 + £1.50 p&p. Western Miniatures, 123 Henacre Road, Lawrence Weston , Bristol B11 OHB.

The first set in Western Miniatures series depicts the last stand of Captain Dyer and ‘A’ Company of the 1st Cheshires on the first day of the retreat. This action forms part of what the official history of the war calls “the flank guard action at Elouges”. It was in effect a full scale battle and the two British infantry battalions with part of two cavalry brigades and four batteries of artillery fought the entire IV Corps of the German Army (7th and 8th Divisions – twenty-four battalions and nine batter-ies of artillery). The action effectively stopped Kluck’s attempts at envelopment and caused the loss of another vital day in the completion of the Sclieffen Plan. The 1st Norfolks and 1st Cheshires were the infantry involved; Tom Lawrence of the Norfolks describes the scene: “We were on a little ridge, Cheshires on our left, 119th on our right (119th Battery) and a clear field of fire across corn fields to the North-West. Might have been back home in Norfolk! We hadn’t time to dig in so we were sitting ducks for their gunners, but they weren’t much good.” The action took place from around mid-day well into the afternoon with the British cavalry charg-ing the Germany Infantry and the German infantry trying to dislodge the British from their positions but sustaining heavy losses from the British artillery.

This action was part of the Army’s tactical withdrawal from Mons and as other divisions retreated southwards so this small force gradually became isolated, to the extent that shortly after 3.00pm German superiority was in the order of six to one. But as with previous engagements it was the professionalism of the British Army that was to help them. A veteran of the German 36th Regiment, which formed part of the 8th Division, remembers:”They fired like devils. Simply to move was to invite de-struction. In our first attack we lost nearly a whole battalion.”

By 4.00pm the situation had become almost impossible and over the next hour the troops began to retire. The Cheshires at the left of the line were sent three orders to retire but none reached them and they remained to fight off the advancing Ger-mans. By midnight of that day when the BEF had safely reached its new position only 200 of the 1000 men of the Cheshires were present at roll call.

The retreat from Mons was punctu-ated by similar actions by the BEF, fighting rear-guard actions to enable the bulk of the army to retreat. There are other examples of groups of men not receiving orders to withdraw and like Captain Dyer and his men sacrificing their lives for others. The retreat also has a number of actions in which sections of the BEF took the of-fensive. These actions range from fairly small engagements like the Coldstreams at Landrecies to Le Cateau and beyond as the troops chased the retreating Germans after the Battle of the Marne. As the BEF retraced its footsteps towards Ypres the 2nd Oxford and Bucks Light Infantry were to defeat the Prussian Guard at Nonne Boss-chen on November 11th.

13


14


SHOGUN ‑ Series No.20 Siebold ‑ A German Doctor in Japan: In October 2007 I visited the Scale Model Show at Letchworth, Hertfordshire and

meet Rod Johnson who is a member of the BFFS and the Germany flat figure group Shogun. Although this period of history is not something I know that much about I was taken with a set he was selling which relate

to a German Doctor called Philipp-Franz von Siebold who in 1823 while working for the Dutch East India Company went to Japan.

The set depicts Siebold as a guest in a Buddhist temple. In the scene he is being welcomed by the Abbott while in the background several monks are tending the garden and propagating Chrysanthemums. The other persons in the scene include a lady with a parasol and a child these are Siebold's Japanese wife and their daughter.

Also in the scene is a temple bell housed in a characteristic temple, plus bonsai tree and stone lantern.

The set makes a super little vignette and the flats were painted by Fernando Enterprises using the box art provided with the flats.

15


best terrain to replicated for a tabletop game but the CWS like a challenge and although we didn't win any prizes on the day the game when it was set up certainly had the wow factor.

The battle itself was never meant to happen but the Bavarian II corp. advancing through the thickly forested valley slops came up against the French left wing which was facing east and a furious fusillade broke out. The altered the German forces who made their way to the sound of the guns and so the Battle of Wörth began.

The game ended in a stalemate, the reason being the French commander unlike the one in 1870 moved his mitrail-leuse forward so it stopped the Bavarians in their tracks.

They were not very happy to leave the forest behind on behalf of the Crown Prince of Prussia!! However their artillery did send some French heading for home or at least the nearest café. The wargame was not so much a game based on casual-ties but more a strategic game but as the fight went on the French refused to come out of their trenches and this was proving a source of agitation for the Prussian and Württemberger lads who were eager to take them, however they were kept at bay by the combined fire power of the Chassepot rifle and mitrailleuse.

During the real battle the German allies were able to bring up a large amount

Wargaming with Flats! The Battle of Wörth 6 August 1870: Like most members of the BFFS I am also a member of other Societies and last year was approached by the Secretary of the Continental War Society and asked if I would be happy for my Franco-Prussian War 180/71 flats to be used for our annual display war game at SALUTE which is held at EXCEL in London.

The battle that was going to be recreated for the tabletop was The Battle of Wörth, also known as the Battle of Re-ichshoffen or as the Battle of Frœschwiller which took place on 6 August 1870.

This battle was one of the opening stages of the Franco-Prussian War with the troops of the German Allies (Prus-sia, Bavaria and Württemberg) under the commanded of the Prussian Crown Prince Frederick and the French under Marshal MacMahon.

The French were concentrated in a selected position running nearly north and south along the western banks of the river Sauer Bach on the left front of the German force, which was moving south in an attempt to find them. The French position was marked from right to left by Morsbronn, the Niederwald, the heights west of Wörth and the woods northeast of Frœschwiller.

The area of the battle is thickly forested with steep side valleys - do the

of artillery, which in the end proved the turn-ing point for the battle, but to prevent the game being one sided and the Krupp can-non blasting the French into the Sauer the umpire handicapped the allies and reduced the number of cannon to a minimum!!! But the Prussian cannon was taking it toll on the French, who vastly out numbered wanted to retreat. So the French commander sent in his heavy cavalry to help break off the engagement and just like in real life they were annihilated!!

However it did have the same effect as in 1870 because it slowed down the Prus-sian advance which meant the French held on to Woerth by the last turn of the game so it was a draw. However if this game had been a casualty based game the German Allies would have repeated their victory and sent the French army in to retreat.

16


Report on the Annual Committee Meeting of the Society held on 1 November 2008

The 2008 committee meeting was held on 1 November in Cannock. Present were Jerry Mortimore, Michael Taylor, Bob Williams, Joe Melvin, and Simon Hoggett. Other members of the committee sent their reports and apologies.

Membership of the society stands at just under 170 in total. This is pretty much the same as last year. Although about 30 members left the society at the end of the year we have gained new members via the web site, and now over a third of the mem-bership is outside the UK. We don’t have a problem with this, although if the trend increases it might mean a corresponding drop in numbers at the Annual Meeting in the UK.

The committee thanked Charles King for his work during his first year as Membership Secretary. Charles has now introduced PayPal as a method for members to pay their subscriptions and this has been much appreciated by overseas members in particular. We would encourage members to use this service.

It has been decided that we can no longer accept subscription payment in any

currency but sterling. This should not cause anyone too much of a problem these days. Just buy some sterling from your local bank and send it in an envelope – or better still, pay by PayPal. If this will cause anyone severe problems please let us know.

The bank balance of the society is somewhat reduced at the moment. This is due to our having to pay for more Journals out of this year’s income and the extra post-age for the replacement of the badly printed issue. We are assured the things will balance out over the next year. We have however succeeded in our attempt to reduce the amount of money the Society holds in the bank by spending it on the membership. We have decided that we will be able to hold subscription rates at the current level for 2009. We hope that members appreciate this, given the current worldwide economic situation and constantly rising costs.

The Journal continues to be a very high standard and the committee thanks Jerry Mortimore for his hard work. As al-ways, more articles are needed to maintain this, and we would appeal to all members to try and write a few words. It is so important that we keep up the quality of the Journal and this is entirely in your hands.

Can we also draw attention to the work of Joe Melvin and Michael Taylor who handle the actual distribution of the publication. This tends to be overlooked because they do the job so efficiently.

It was agreed that the next meeting will be in Knowle next June and, as part of that meeting, the AGM will take place. Elections will take place for half the posi-tions on the committee. Notice will be given of which positions are to be voted on. If you interested in serving on the committee please contact me. We do want to appoint another member during the year, so come forward if you fancy it.

It was also agreed the theme for the next Knowle meeting will be ‘Gottstein’ – more about this nearer the time.

Closer links with the BMSS were discussed and it was agreed that the Hon Sec would explore some ways that this could be done. However any sort of merger was completely rejected.

The meeting closed with the Sec-retary thanking the Committee for their continuing efforts and Mike Taylor for his usual excellent hospitality. Simon Hoggett Hon Sec

2006‑07Income.Membership £2265.60Knowle Profit £35.92Catalogue sales £17.54Interest £37.02Total £2356.02ExpenditurePostage £390.25Journal printing £1460.00Masonic Lodge £100.00Softlink Ltd (website) £35.25Total £1985.50

Balance £1985.50

2007‑08Income.Membership £2492.54Adverts £100.00Catalogue sales £31.50Interest £45.52Total £2669.56ExpenditurePostage £907.77Journal printing £2718.00Computer update £150.00Softlink Ltd (website) £47.00Total £3822.77

Balance £849.53

17


From John Russell:I am happy to announce that Fredericus Rex have secured the moulds from Andreas Trost for the following figures.Death Dealer £7.85 Pawnee Bust £6.65 Lakota medicine man Bust £6.65 Roman Centurion £4.70 Roman legionaire £4.70 Celtic Chieftain £4.70

These are the new figures from Fredericus Rex:In Front Of Jeruselem £11.00 engraved by A TrostThe Homecoming £11.00 engraved by D LepeltierNarva £6.60 engraved by D LepeltierOn Guard £6.60 engraved by D LepeltierSt Nicholas £5.90 engraved by A Trost

I wonder if the Christmas ornaments would be of interest to the members. The prices are:X m a s h o u s e £ 1 . 6 0 A n g e l £ 2 . 8 0 N i c h o l a s £ 2 . 3 5 R o c k i n g H o r s e £ 1 . 6 0 S n o w m a n £ 1 . 6 0 X m a s B e l l s £ 1 . 6 0 X m a s B o o t £ 1 . 6 0

Available from: John Russell 2 Marcus Crescent Aberdeen, AB21 0SZemail [email protected] Postage is additional.

18


The forum is always quieter in the summer months and this year has been no exception. Indeed, at one point, the quietness was the only subject under discussion by the few stalwarts with nothing better to do with their time. On the whole though, most flat figure collectors seem to find something else to do in the warmer weather, although those members in the UK have no such excuse as, yet again, the summer proved to be a bit of a wash out.

I think mainland Europe had the best of the weather. Maybe us Brits should have all headed off in that direction to buy flats. We often get requests on the forum from people about to visit a city and asking if there are any shops selling flats. Recently the question arose about Paris and we were supplied with a number of alternatives. One suggestion was Les Drapeaux de France at 1 Place Colette, 1er arrondissement, just at the entrance of Le Palais Royal. They stock painted and blank figures but the prices are definitely for wealthy tourists.

Another suggestion was Le Képi Rouge, Village Suisse (stand 79-80), 78 Avenue de Suffren, 15e arrondissement. The owner is Christian Blondieau, an expert in militaria items and flat figures (painted by manufacturer or by famous artists) Please note that the shop is not open every day of the week. Village Suisse is an area dedicated to antique shops.

Lastly, for those with some extra time, a visit to Christian Térana is sug-gested, at 31 Boulevard Kellermann, 13e arrondissement (30-45 minutes journey

from Paris centre by the Parisian subway - Le Metro). He does not speak English but deserves a visit as he nearly always has some blank famous figures to sell.

But what figures to buy? Why, the greatest flat figure in the world, of course. But what is that figure? A recent, not entirely serious, debate couldn’t decide between Calvin or Hobbes. If you don’t know who Calvin and Hobbes are, then I shouldn’t worry about it. These are not famous flats at all, but ‘loveable’ comic book characters. You may or may not be interested that Hobbes got the vote by a narrow margin.

It appears we have a few members who wargame with their flats. This used to be very popular but is not so common these days. A new member asked about rules. The brothers Johnson have been happily wargaming for years using the De Bellis Antiquitatis (Wargames Research Group) but felt that any set of rules for 25mm scale figures will do for 30mm flats.

Forum members reported hav-ing a great time at Euromilitaire but the judging once again seems to have upset a few people. Someone mentioned meet-ing a guy who builds beautiful WW1 and WW2 battleships but was unable to enter competition as they were not of a "Military theme"! Does anyone know, he asked, when the navy stopped being military? It was also reported that, in the fantasy figures category, a rubber duck purchased from Woolworth's got a gold medal. Is this really true? One seasoned Euromilitaire

campaigner lamented that what was once a vibrant show is now but a pale shadow of its former self.

So, back to the flats. One of our more active forum contributors will never enter a competition at Euromilitaire because he has most of his flats painted for him by others. This idea becomes more appealing by the day as I look at the mountains of unpainted flats that I have in my cupboard. He recently showed us some figures painted by Roswitha Prochnow. I don’t know how much she charges but it has to be good value for this sort of quality.

Forum member ‘Blind Pew’ not only paints his own figures but makes them as well from scratch. In September he shows us his 70mm scratch built figure

19


of a “Piper Boy“, based on a painting by Eduard Manet. This figure was made from Magic Sculpt with the additional use of jew-ellery wire (used as lines to demark where everything was positioned - for example, to mark out where one thing started and another finished). It was then primed in Games Workshop skull white primer and then finished in oil paints. We have also been shown some in-progress pictures of his latest project - Captain Manhes, ADC to Murat, on horseback.

I’m not sure what colour he intends to paint the horse but if he was thinking of depicting a black horse then there have been some good suggestions on how to do it effectively. One member suggested that the best bet is to go and look at a black horse. If that horse has not been brushed and washed then there almost a flat black. He also suggested adding some dark blue when painting black horses in oils. This, he said, makes the horse stand out.

In reply another member told us that he had been a horse rider for about thirty years and in that time had never seen a real black horse; there are always some reflections of brown, blue, ochre and so on. He continued to say that, when painting a black horse in flats a problem is that the lighter parts are sometimes the shadowed ones. Under the belly or the head, the hair is often brown or yellow ochre.

Kjeld Buchholtz showed us a beauti-ful figure of a Carabinier on a black horse. He told us that he had painted it some years ago with burnt umber, ivory black and white. “Seeing it now” he says, “I would have added some blue to it in some places”. It looks pretty well perfect to me.

The debate continues. I will leave you with a suggestion made by Graham Dixey in an old copy of the Journal. He said that he has produced a satisfactory black/grey colour by mixing Sap green

with the usual black and white instead of the usual blues. Also he highlights with yellow ochres and umbers. Perhaps it is time someone wrote a definitive article on this subject.

A discussion about the engraver of Mignot flats brought some exciting news. The original post enquired who the engraver of the Conquest of Algeria set was. Replies claimed that the designer was Rousselot and the engraver was prob-ably Velasquez, who engraved most of the Mignot figures. At this point Jacques from Glorious Empires joined the conversation. He feels that the designer of the Algeria set is still a mystery. Many of the Napoleonic French figures are clearly Rousselot (ie. the general staff figures), but most have a very different style and action and are not Rousselot. Jacques went on to report that he (along with Krannich Editors) is cur-rently working on a book about the Mignot flats and actively researching this issue. The moulds for the Algeria set are mainly bronze and engraved by Velasquez from

Madrid. In the Mignot flats collection as a whole about 65% of the moulds are done by him and in bronze; the rest is slate and done by various German engravers. For more information, Jacques teased, “read the book!”. We certainly will.

A couple of new flats from Frederi-cus Rex were featured during the summer. I particularly liked the group “Narva 1700” with a pikeman standing guard over a fallen drummer. And as I write another beautiful figure has been announced. This one shows three crusader knights in a group entitled “In Front of Jerusalem”. This is a 54mm figure designed by Sascha Lunyakow and engraved by Andreas Trost.

20


4. RECRUITMENT AND PAY.The expression ‘Press Gang’ em-

braces the popular image of how men were obtained for the Royal Navy in the days of the sailing ship. In truth it was only one of the methods and does not appear to have been in vogue until the year 1702. Its heyday was the wars with France in the 18th and early 19th centuries when the forms of recruitment included the Impress Service and Quota Act in addition to the Press Gang.

The origins of these methods of ob-taining men occur much earlier - the word ‘Aprest’ appearing in 1347 and becoming common as ‘Prest’ in Henry VIII’s reign.

‘Prest’ means payment of wages in advance; money paid on account to a person to enable him to proceed with an undertaking - a loan in advance; as earnest-money. The word did not necessarily apply to seamen, or even men; it could be applied to a ship i.e. 1545 (State Papers of Henry VIII) “Such shippez as were prested in Chestre (Chester not then silted up) and Bewmarres (Beaumaris)”.

Impress is similar in meaning but refers specifically to men - be they sailors or public officials.

It is important to note that in nei-ther case is the method of obtaining these services defined - be it by command, force, persuasion or voluntary!Press and press money.

‘Press’ on the other hand refers specifically to compulsory service and appears to have originated in Henry VIII’s reign - the word probably belongs to Prest in the sense of ‘Prested’ as in cast, thrust, etc. Therefore this was a form of requisition. From the 1543 Becon Policy of War “The men, which wer prest to go unto warres, it is almost incredible what alacryte and quickness of spirite was in them”.

Just over 100 years later a different attitude is apparent -1652 (PRO - NRS) “Complaints by the Prest Masters’ concern-ing the wilfulness and refusal of watermen to obey the press”. (Note - The rules of

Press and the interpretation of them was an exceedingly complex matter).

‘Prest-money’ or ‘Press-money’ ap-pears first in 1539, i.e. 1545 (State Papers of Henry VIII) “Master Hugh Stuychlye laid out in certain summes of monye for the conduyt and prest monye of such maryners as he towke up to go to Portesmouthe”. The King’s (or Queen’s) Shilling accepted by a recruit in an inn in later times was a form of Imprest or Prest-money. That men other than mariners or seamen were prest into service is illustrated by the building of the Henry Grace à Dieu in 1514 – “cccli of money for prestyng of shipwrightes….”

The obtaining of men for the fleet is well illustrated by the following account letters of William Gonson in 1544.

Paid 8 Aug - To the common crier of London, to make proclamation:

“for certain mariners that had received the King's prest to depart out of London to serve the King upon the Nar-rows Seas under Sir Wm. Woodhowse, knight,” 8d.

“Conduct money at about ½d a mile to 20 discharged mariners going from Depfordestrande homewards to Brystow, Lyeme and Trewrewe and to 30

going to Dover to serve under Admiral Woodhowse”

Paid 1 Sept – “To Robt. Legge of harwiche, for himself and two horses, rid-ing from Harwiche to Brylelsaye, Alders-forde, Estmarsaye, Colchester, Fingeringo, Vyvence, Shotleye, Holbroeke, Harstede, Alborowe, Thorpe and Dunwiche, for presting mariners to Deptfordestrande for the purpose aforementioned, 40s.”

It is difficult to access with any accuracy how many men were required to be prest into service to supplement the King's Ships for the mobilisation of spring 1545 to counter the threatened French at-tack. Certainly the press was spread far and wide and last-ditch efforts were also being made after the commencement of the Spring Campaigns. As example:State Papers (The Navy 543)

"19th April 1545 - So there is ship-ping (referring to space?) to spare in these ships aforesaid it need be f or 750 men over and above the army of 10,000: of which 10,000 at least 5,000 must be mariners and gunners and mariners will be difficult to find and warning must be given to fetch them and one month at least requisite to bring them together."

21


Privy Council, Greenwich, 14th June 1545 - Letters to Mayors of Bristol, Sheriffs and officers of Admiralty in Devon, Cornwall, Somerset “to make proclamation recalling all adventurers from sea and to prest all the mariners thereabouts to be at Portsmouth by the last of June”. (An Ad-venturer was a seagoing soldier).

Conduct money of a ½d a mile (0.2p) was standard, likewise a man prest into service was expected to progress at 12 miles per day to his appointed place.

A major factor in manning the fleet was the account which needed to be taken of losses incurred, particularly by disease - as witness the figures which were reported following Lord Lisle’s successful avenging of the loss of Mary Rose. He landed 6,000 men from the fleet at Treport on the 2nd

September 1545, burning the town, the ab-bey and destroying thirty ships in harbour for the loss of 14 men.

The number of men who returned from Treport was 12,000. This was about the 4th or 5th of September. Some were subsequently discharged, but it is clear from the tone of the letter written on Sep-tember 11th by Lisle, Seymour, and Lord St. John (who reported that thirteen out of thirty-four ships were then infected) that the disease was very virulent (probably dysentry) and musters taken on the 12th showed that only 8,488 men remained fit for duty. This number was on that day further reduced by discharges to 6,445, a number far too small for the exigencies of the service, even on the brink of winter, for as Lisle and St John lamented, “the men fall daylie sick”.

Pay and Rewards.“That it can never be well in the

Navy till the poor seamen can be paid once in a year at furthest and tickets answered like bills of exchange. Whereas at this very day, September the 5th, 1680, ships are kept out (at sea) two or three years, and four of them just now ordered forth again only for want of money, after being brought in to be paid off”. (Samuel Pepys, 1680).

The preceding statement is typical for the seventeenth century but the early Tudor period had a unique distinction in that men serving in King’s Ships were paid reasonably promptly - this wasn’t to happen again for over 200 years!

In the reign of Henry VII seamen received 1 shilling a week in harbour and 1s 3d when at sea. The pay of the highly skilled,

22


the mariners, was a little superior - a Master received 3s 4d; Pursers and Boatswains 1s 8d; Quartermasters 1s 6d; and Stewards and Cooks 1s 3d when in harbour and a comparable increase when at sea.

The pay structure was altered in the reign of Henry VIII by an agreement made in 1512 between the King and Sir Edward Howard the Captain General of the force at sea (or Lord High Admiral). Under this agreement the Admiral received 10 shillings daily in respect of pay, diet, and rewards. The daily rate for Captains was 1 shilling and sixpence, although this does appear to have varied somewhat dependant on his standing and rank as a gentleman! A master now received 30 shillings per month, the Pilot or Lodesman 20 shillings, a Boatswain 12 shillings and 6 pence, and a Masters Mate 10 shillings. The mariners, soldiers, and gunners received per month 5 shillings for wages and 5 shillings for victuals, plus certain ‘dead shares’. This basic rate of 5 shillings was to rise to 6 shillings and 8 pence prior to the loss of Mary Rose and the victualling allowance increased to 5 pence per day at sea (at this time a tradesman in a shipyard earned be-tween 2d and 6d per day. The next increase was in 1585 when it rose to 10 shillings, although this sum was worth less than the 6 shilling and 6 pence in purchasing power because of inflation.

Sea wages (estimated) at time of Mary RoseMonthly rate Mariner 6s 8d Master's Mate 13s 4d Boatswain 16s 8d Pilot or Lodesman 26s 8d Master 40sDaily rate Captain 2s Admiral 13s 4d

It was also laid down that of any “gains or winnings of war” one half of the total value plus ships taken that were in excess of 200 tons belonged to the King; likewise important prisoners. The other half value was divided by rank among those serving in the fleet engaged in action.

‘Dead Shares’ was a subtle form of reward based on the official entry in the ship's books or muster list of fictitious names and in respect of whom sea pay and victuals were allowed. Mary Rose was

permitted 30½ dead shares later increased to 34½, and the Peter Pomegranate being smaller had 23½ shares. This value was divided in the main amongst what might be termed the ‘officers’. Masters, Boatswains, and Master Gunners received one whole dead share each, Quartermasters and Cooks a half share, and Gunners a one third or one quarter share. An Admiral had fifty shares! (The 34½ dead shares for Mary Rose amounted to £8 12 shillings and 6 pence).

Dead shares gave way in the 18th century to a similar entry of fictitious names known as ‘Widows Men’ which was for the support of widows of the same ‘officer’ bracket - this practice finally ceased in 1829. Other rewards had been in existence since earlier times but all appear to have been phased out by the early part of Henry VIII’s reign except possibly the reward for Master Gunners and Gunners to improve their aim, or at least as an incentive to do so.

When an enemy ship was taken obviously looting took place but it was controlled and there were special regulated perks referred to in the Book of Orders for the Warre both by Sea and Land. “Everie capten that taketh but a gentleman ought to have him as his owne prisoner and ransome with his cabon and all is his, if he have any treasure of the pryze enimie that is the Kinges and not the captens, all other things, called pillage in the shipps, but the captens, to be disbursed, and distributed among the meane mariners and soldiers,,

The Mr (Master) of the shippe shall have the Mr of the same shippe which his capten taketh as his owne prisoner, his chest and all that is the Mrs and the scond anker and cable, the boteswayne shall have the enemie boteswayne with all, he hath, and the fore toppe saile, the Mr goonner the best of yron, and the enimie Mr goonner with all he hath,,

If any capten take any merchant he may not break any bolte till the Admyrall se what is in the shippe, but nayle up the hatches, that nothing be imbesold, and alth-ings under the lower loope is the Kinges and all that is under upper loope is the mariners and the soldiers to be indifferentlie divided by the admyrall except treasure”.Pensions.

Pensions did not exist until a crude form of pension (presumably for total

disablement) was introduced in the reign of Elizabeth I by Acts in 1593, 1597 and 1601. These Acts required each parish to pay a weekly sum ranging from 2d to 10d to provide a maximum annual pension of £10 for a sailor and £20 for an officer although most pensions appear to have been much less than that.

A form of benevolent fund was established in 1590 by Sir Francis Drake, Sir John Hawkins and Lord Howard of Effingham for the relief of disabled Mas-ters, Mariners, and Shipwrights. Money for this fund was produced by compulsory forfeiture of a small proportion of mariners wages - established at 6d in 1626. The money was kept in the ‘Chatham Chest’ which had 5 separate locks with separate key holders. The security precautions failed in their purpose and at times in its history the chest was found to be practically empty - even the crown was not above pillaging it to pay the seamen’s wages. The Treasurer of the Chatham Chest, 1627 to 1629, Sir Sackville Crowe appropriated £3,000 and the money was still owing in 1644. The Chatham Chest continued under various regulations until 1803, although seamen continued their levy until 1929. In 1824 the fund was absorbed into Greenwich Hospital. The Chest is still in existence at the National Maritime Museum.REFERENCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHYState Papers of Henry VIIIBenjamin Gonson's Account 1544Samuel Pepys Naval Minutes - Published by Navy Records Society in 1925Oxford English DictioneryOxford Companion Ships and the Sea edited by Peter Kemp - OUP 1976The Mariners Mirror - various articles 1910 to present - Journal of Society for Nautical ResearchDrake and The Tudor Navy by Corbett Vol 1 second edition 1899Naval Tracts by Sir William Monson 1682 - edited by M. Oppenheim and published by Naval Records Society 1902The Royal Navy - Its History from Earliest Times by Sir William Laird Clowes - Vol 1 of seven volumes published between 1897 and 1903.The British Sailor by Peter Kemp - published by J M Dent 1970

23


The long nose wheel was required due to the high level of attack when land-ing. This could collapse causing a serious crash.

The aicraft entered service in 1951, about 255 of the final version were built. It was withdrawn very quickly when the F8U Crusader became available.

The side view of the aircraft does not really give a true impression of the unusal design of this aircraft.

Fairchild‑Republic A‑10 Thunderbolt.Known as the Warthog, this heavily armed and armoured ground attack aircraft has been in service for many years. Every aspect of its design is tailored to its role. The straight wings with downturned tips give excellent manouvrability at low levels. The engines are mounted high towards the rear so that there is little risk of engine damage

The Jenkins Aircraft Works has rolled out a few more aircraft, this time from the so-called Jet Age.Chance‑Vought F7U Cutlass.This was a carrier-borne aircraft. It originated in a request for a U.S. Navy aircraft in June 1945.

The unusual semi-tailless design was rumoured to be based on aerodynamic concepts captured from the Arado company

at the end of World War II. The cockpit placed well forward gave an excellent pilot view for carrier landing.

The type, however, was bedevilled with handling problems, due in part to its unconventional concept. Crashes were frequent, over a quarter were destroyed in accidents, killing 4 test pilots and 21 U.S.Navy pilots.

from foreign objects whern operating from forward landing grounds. Heat from the engines passes over the elevators at the rear spreading the heat and making it a more difficult target for heat-seeking missiles.

The pilot is protected by a thick titanium tub and all flying systems have double or triple redundancy - the aircraft is designed to fly on one engine, one tail, one elevator and with half a wing shot off. The wheels project slightly from the nacelles, so belly landings can be made. The undercarriage opens backwards so if the hydraulics are damaged the pilot can drop them and wind pressure will open and lock them.

It can carry a large payload on ex-ternal pylons as well as the integral Gatling gun. A fearsome aircraft indeed.McDonnell F3H Demon.Another carrier aircraft and McDonnells first swept wing. Not a great success, underpowered and a bit unreliable.

One of the first U.S. aircraft to have a missile armament - Sparrow and

Sidewinder. Equipped with four Colt cannons, two were often omitted to save weight.

Replaced by the McDonnell Doug-las Phantom.Available from Western Miniatures, 123 Henacre Road, Lawrence Weston , Bristol B11 OHB.Price £3 each plus £1.50 p&p per order.

24


I think everyone who saw the figures on the back of the last Journal would agree that the last painting project was a great success. It was really interesting to see the different painting styles side by side. If you regretted not having signed up for that project, or missed the call for volunteers, then we now offer you another opportunity. The next painting project starts here.

The figures chosen this time are from the ‘Costume Through the Ages’ series by Scholtz. This series consists of a large number of male and female couples in typical costumes of their day. The early ones represent ancient times and I think the latest ones represent the 1980s.

Charles King, who has kindly agreed to organise the project, has purchased 30 pairs of the figures; a selection from the much-larger set. At the time of writing, 12 pairs have been allocated to members, so there are another 18 up for grabs. You can contact Charles at the address at the front of the Journal.

Charles will then send you a ran-domly selected pair of figures, free of charge, and your obligation is to paint one side and return them to Charles as soon as possible. The collected figures will then be shown in the Journal, on the web site, and at the BFFS stand at various shows.

We are expecting a keen interest from members, so you’ll need to get a request to Charles ASAP if you want to take part.

Documents

Journal - intflatfigures.orgintflatfigures.org/BFFS/Themes/Bffs-mods/Journals/BFFS J91.pdf · Journal No 91 Winter 2008 ... Tel: 02 33106690 E-mail: ... fax, which also boasted a