Just a couple of flagsheets this week...

Following in from last week’s ‘technical issues’ preventing us from producing a magic order number, steps have been taken.  Lindy has rounded up all the little critters, including the strays, and held them securely in a pen. Sadly, a couple went feral and started getting a little too aggressive, but a sharp word or two from her soon restored the peace.   We now have been able to grade and sort them, giving us a count for this week of #29770.

All of which brings us on to this weeks’ new releases.   They seem relatively low key – just a couple of flag sheets, but believe me, they are a gateway to rich and colourful period for gamers looking for a new challenge.

The sheets in question cover the army raised in Ireland that fought for James II against the army of William III.  And at this stage, I have to thank Barry Hilton for the kind permission to use the designs in his recently published excellent book, ‘For Ireland and King James’.  For anyone interested in this forgotten and quite formidable army, this book cannot be recommended highly enough.  It is available from: www.leagueofaugsburg.com

So, why are a few battles fought in Ireland of any interest?   Well, these were not small things – William had only recently taken possession of the English throne, having effectively usurped James in what amounted to an armed coup d’etat.  James still had a lot of support, and William had to use all of his battlefield experience plus the combined resources of the United Provinces and England to match him in the field. 

History records William’s victory, but this was not assured and had things gone the other way, the changes to the political and military in Europe over the next decades would have been profound, as James saw Louis XIV as an ally, not an opponent.   England provided men, ships, money and the odd outstanding general to the alliance against the Sun King.   What would have been the implications had these resources been pledged to fight alongside Louis?

All of which brings me to the strong suggestion that the years between the end of the Thirty Years War/ECW and the start of the War of Spanish Succession/Great Northern War, are sadly and mistakenly ignored by far too many wargamers.   These are pivotal years in the development of warfare and the political shape of Europe.  For Wargamers, there is a lot of choice for armies to collect, and a good deal of information on uniforms, flags etc.   The armies are colourful and the uniforms simple and easy to paint.   There is also a wide geographical spread to the various campaigns fought in these years; western, northern, southern and eastern Europe were all affected. 

So, remember this little ramble when you or your club are thinking about a new project.   The Wars of the Sun King have an awful lot to offer!

We’ll be at Partizan on Sunday 14th October, so feel free to pop by and have a chat.