Hussite War Wagons

War wagons are one of those things I've often wanted but had shied away from for many years. I think I bought the first of these at a show where there wasn't much else I wanted, so I got them just because they were there.

It is possible that the use of this kind of converted wagon first started in Poland and then spread to Bohemia where they were used to great effect in the Hussite Wars. They were then adopted by Hungary and in Germany, with similar types being used in Russia.

Below are some of the wagons I have. The crew is a real mix. There are figures from Donnington, Khurasan, Minifigs, Irregular, QR, Vexillia and Mirliton. The Donnington peasants are particularly useful, with very Bohemian style clothing (15th century - not 1950s Greenwich Village).

Irregular

Some of the wagons have a crew which looks more professional which I use for the later 15th century such as the Hungarians.


These are the two styles of wagon from Irregular Miniatures. The wagon itself is the same in each case - the separately cast side planking is the difference. I think the style of planking is randomly provided.

They also do a wagon of the same style which comes with a small artillery piece.

Irregular

I have more Irregular wagons than any other, with enough to have some shooting to the left and some to the right.

Note the stone thrower - the wagons often had containers filled with stones for bombarding the enemy. Some other wagons have the stone throwing Swiss figures from Khurasan in them.

Alternative Armies

This wagon is from Alternative Armies (until recently sold as 15mm.co.uk and originally by Tabletop Games).

The wagons require more construction than the Irregular pieces. The sides of the actual wagon are separate but come with different options including the open ramp for one side. They come with horses but I decided to do them in a static pose.
It took a while to work out how to get everything together but once it was cleaned up of flash etc. they went together quite smoothly.

Alternative Armies (rear view)

This one has an artillery piece from Minifigs deployed alongside. The gunner is from QR, the shield bearer from Irregular.


 It also comes with a small section to go under the wagon - I haven't put these in as they are difficult to see but perhaps I will get round to it one day.

Minifigs

The Minifigs wagon has a one piece body with separate side hoarding. It is also provided with the under cart protection. It comes with two pairs of horse but I used Irregular horses for all the wagons.
The body of the examples I had from Minifigs needed a bit of tidying up including some filling but nothing too onerous

The comparison picture shows that the three companies go together pretty well. Each of them has its pluses and minuses. The Alternative Armies one, while tricky to put together, is probably the most accurate with its ramp and the suspension poles. It also doesn't have a driver's seat - the driver would probably have ridden one of the horses. However, the modern recreation at the Hussite Museum in Tabor does have a box for the driver to sit on.

I also have some by QR miniatures. These are much smaller though still pretty nice. Each pack has two wagons - one is dug in with its wheels partially buried.

Museum have fairly recently produced a range of war wagons. These look nice, and follow several modern reconstruction. However, I'm not convinced that the modern artists have interpreted the sources well - hinged side panels have become propped up roofs.

There are some very pretty war wagons on various websites, whereas I have gone for the plain wood look. This is based on contemporary pictures such as the Schlact im Walde* and the picture at the head of this blog.

What I will need to do is to add flags to some of the wagons. There are specific designs for different parts of the Hussite army. Since I have rather a lot of wagons, I may add some Hungarian heraldry to a few, as in Győző Somogyi's book on the army of Matthias Corvinus.

There are some clips online from a trilogy of Czech films made in the 1950s covering the Hussite Wars, There is certainly a political dimension to them, but the efforts to get a historical look are laudable. This is a clip of the Battle of Sudomer which has some good shots of war wagons. Note also the teams of unarmed pavise bearer and crossbowman. The music chosen by this editor may not be to everyone's taste :)


Wagner, Drobna and Durdik's book on Medieval Costume, Armour and Weapons has a particular emphasis on the Bohemians and shows several good pictures of wagons. Worth looking at, despite its age.

Much newer are the pair of books on die Heere den Hussiten. The plates aren't as interesting as the same company's book on the Teutonic Knights, so if you are not a German reader then I wouldn't recommend them.




*A wonderful source for the late 15th/early 16th century in Germany. One thing it shows is the wagons moving around the field, but how typical this was and how much is artistic licence is of course debatable. This and two subsequent posts give more details of the battle. A short account by von Berlichingen is here - this confirms that the wagons were attacked while still trying to form a wagenburg.

Maximilian, the Landsknechte and the Swiss

As I said in a previous post, I have wanted to do some Italian Wars figures for a long time. 

One of the spurs was that Venexia were going out of production and the UK supplier was selling off the stock. Since these are some of my favourite looking figures, I decided to buy a good number of the various types of cavalry.

Hopefully, the range will see the light of day again but various issues have delayed their re-release by the new owners of the moulds.

The above photo is mostly of Venexia figures. Knights in sallets are from Mirliton. I gave some of these a green stuff skirt which was fashionable from around the start of the Italian Wars. 

The trumpeter is from Mirliton - he has a new hat and feathers added to give more of the 'Triumphzug' look. 
The 'candy cane' lance look is very popular with wargamers but may have been rather more restricted in reality. They do appear like this when used for banners such as in various of Diebold Schilling the Youngers illustrations.

My main sources for the troops of Maximilian are given in the last post. 

Landsknechte from Old Glory 15s. One feature that marks them as Hapsburg is that they have St Andrew's cross slashing on many of the figures.

Most of the standard bearers have the flags in a single hand as in most period pictures. Command packs are sold separately and are rather large. You may be able to negotiate buying smaller numbers with OG though if you are having a decent sized block then plenty of command adds to the look.
I mixed swordsmen and halberdiers into the front ranks for the visual appeal. They are also on some of the command stands so that the full blocks have mostly pikes to front and sides with halberds and swords around the banners and drums.


An attempt at peacock feathers.  

Talking of banners, the photography makes the shades of white stand out more than they do in real life. They also lose the texture. I've recently started using some water damaged tracing paper which has a nice crumpled texture. It also makes doing the opposite sides easier. They have sturdier than the strong tissue I used for my Byzantines. 

Old Glory crossbowmen. The red flag in the foreground was carried by the forlorn hope. The flag in the rear is carried by some of Maximilian's mercenaries in Schilling the Younger.

Luzern, Korporation Luzern, S 23 fol., p. 386 – Illustrated Chronicle by Diebold Schilling of Lucerne (Luzerner Schillling) (http://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/one/kol/S0023-2)

Old Glory arquebusiers. The flag is another carried by some of Maximilian's men in Schilling and here

Luzern, Korporation Luzern, S 23 fol., p. 521 – Illustrated Chronicle by Diebold Schilling of Lucerne (Luzerner Schillling) (http://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/en/list/one/kol/S0023-2)

Maximilian married Mary of Burgundy after the death of her father, Charles the Bold. Their daughter, Margaret, was regent of the Low Countries and was still using English archers in the early 16th century - 1500 were sent to help against Guelders for instance. (see Stow's Annals) where they joined an army of 10000. The DBMM list assumes that the Burgundian Ordonnance lance structure was still in place until the end of list in 1506, though with slightly fewer archers per knight. I think the 'MM list could be continued until the end of the covered period i.e. 1515 since Margaret continued as regent with a good deal of independence until then.

There are some archers in the 'Weiss kunig' though at least some are likely English.
The Camisado blog has a collection of Weiss Kunig plates showing archers. Some are carrying Burgundian saltires but may actually be English at Guinegatte in 1513.
In others, English seem to be shown in different costume, such as kettle hats. One plate shows the archers looking like Landsknechte.

I used Freikorp/QRF/TSS figures for these. I like them though they are slightly 'old school' compared to most of my figures. There is a mixture of Burgundian and early Tudor figures.

The yellow and red is said by Stow to be the livery of the Duke of Burgundy - perhaps Margaret's own. Poynings' men received new coats of this red and yellow along with Henry VIII's white and green. How this was arranged isn't clear, only that "these four colours were 'medled' together." They received these coats after campaigning in Guelders so did not wear them in action.

Old Glory artillery. The gun colours come from various sources including Maximilian's zeugbuch. 

When Margaret campaigned against Guelders, there were apparently 36 English serpentines as well as Poynings' archers. These are given individual names in Stow, such as the Antelope, the Cockatrice, the Mermaid, the Rose and the Normandy.


For much of the period, Maximilian and the Swiss were on opposing sides. Things particularly came to a head with the Swabian War which really ended any pretensions that the cantons were part of the Empire.

These are Khurasan figures. Some of the figures have Swiss crosses moulded onto their armour or as slashing.

Most of the standard bearers are converted pikemen. The way he holds his pike makes it easy to give him a one handed banner. Flags are hand painted.

The figures are rather smaller than the Old Glory landsknechte. This is exaggerated both by the slighter build and the very thin base of the Khurasan figures.

I only have enough Swiss to be able to provide an ally for the French. I have bought some of the Donnington Swiss for using in earlier periods. I shall paint these with far more use of cantonal colours as shown in some of the chronicles.

Normans

A long while back I said I'd put some comparisons of various Normans on here. Now that painting for Montaperti is out of the way, here are the Normans.

Two Dragons and Khurasan versions of Duke William

William Rufus from Two Dragons

 from the left: Two Dragons, Donnington and Khurasan.

They mix pretty well sizewise but the style is different enough that I would not mix them on a base. This has the advantage as well that I can tell which command each element is from. Two Dragons are the most idiosyncratic with a good variety of pose and lots of movement though there is a touch more caricature about them. The shields are rather thick but this doesn't stand out too much.

Donnington have a good range of poses though the sculpting isn't quite as sharp as the others.

Khurasan have a  bit more limited range of poses but these are designed to give the impression of a galloping mass. I'm slightly wary about the chance of some of the horses coming off their stands though. The figures are probably the easiest to pain of the three as the mail definition is very clear - this does of course mean it is exaggerated compared to real life but it helps the effect. It is also handy that the hands are ready to take the separate weapons - no drilling required.

This shows Two Dragons dismounted knights and Khurasan infantry. Again there is a difference in style but the size matches pretty well.

Lots of variety in the Two Dragons range

Two Dragons Scouts

Some more of my favourite figures from any range.

In DBMM, the Normans are allowed to dismount so it is handy to have the mounts ready.

More characterful figures from Two Dragons.

The Marcher Lords and the Welsh

The English conquest of Wales was largely driven by the actions of the Marcher lords, those who held lands along the English-Welsh border. These were some of the most powerful subjects of the Kings of England at any time. They had far more independence than the majority of the barons with legal powers "like unto a king".  These powers are summaried in the Wikipedia article. One point I would disagree with is the opening staement that they were 'trusted'. That was the theory but in practice their power meant that they had to be carefully handled by the king.

 At the time of the 2nd Barons' War, the three Marcher Earls were those of Hereford, Pembroke and Gloucester. The Earldom of Shrewsbury had become extinct and the Earldom of Chester was held by Prince Edward. Another earldom, that of March, was created under Edward I and first held by Roger Mortimer.

I've already mentioned Hereford and Pembroke, so here is Gilbert de Clare, Earl of Gloucester and of
Hertford. 'Red' Gilbert (probably on account of his hair) had inherited the earldom at an early age - he wasn't actually knighted until de Montfort did so just before the Battle of Lewes. He threw in his lot with the Barons despite being married to the king's niece who was also daughter of the  Earl of Pembroke. His actions probably led to their estrangement so that they were legally separated after the war.

He led the central division of the Baronial army at Lewes. However, he fell out with de Montfort and began to aid the royalist party, joining Edward for Kenilworth and Evesham. He reaped the rewards, being given further lands in Wales. He had various disagreements with Llewellyn and led Edward's southern forces against the Welsh though without success.

He even engaged in a private war with de Bohun, Earl of Hereford. This was within the rights of a Marcher Lord but Edward stamped on it, prosecuting both parties and briefly imprisoning them to make the point.

 One feature of  Marcher warfare were the muntatores, the light cavalry known to have been used in Staffordshire and Shropshire from the late 11th century. They are described as having hauberk, iron helmet and lance. The lack of any mention of shields may not be significant - they are also not mentioned for the infantry the Assizes of arms and it is generally assumed that the infantry had them so the muntatores may also have done so. This article describes them and proposes a link between them and the hobelars which are often thought to have originated in Ireland. 

There may not have been any noticeable difference between the muntatores and the lesser equipped part of the Welsh cavalry. For my muntatores I have simply used some of the Legio Heroica sergeeants, mostly with no leg armour, on unbarded horses. However, for my Welsh cavalry I have used some Outpost cavalry and these may also be suitable for muntatores. Outpost's later sergeants are also suitable - they have kettle hats and cerveillieres. I don't have any comparison photos for Outpost yet but I would judge them pretty compatible with Mirliton and similar.

The English conquest of Wales relied to some extent on the fractious nature of Welsh politics. The Marcher lords and the King often involved themselves in a dispute between two Welsh parties and came away with gains from the loser. Some other gains were made through marriage and others through blatant annexation.

The Welsh also involved themselves in English politics - much of de Montfort's army at Evesham was composed of Welsh infantry and Llewellyn 'the last' was married to de Montfort's daughter.

By the mid-13th century, most of the south of Wales was under Marcher control and this seems to be the main area where archery was dominant.The north seems to have been fonder of spearmen and there were various occasions where they stood up to and defeated English knights, though often with the aid of favourable terrain.

The dress of these spearman is somewhat debateable.There is evidence that the standard form of dress found over most of Western Europe was becoming normal but there is other evidence that a more distinctive mode of dress remained in use. This has been dismissed as being English writers dismissing a more barbarous style of dress but the description seems no more outlandish or unsuitable than the broadly similar clothing worn in the Scottish highlands i.e. linen shirt and woolen cloak. Note - I don't think the overall appearance of these two forms of dress would have been similar, just the components. This article summarises the evidence. You can find Giraldus Cambrienensis' 12th century description here and some later depictions of Welsh soldiers here. This is one of the pictures from the National Archives of Wales.

There is a Flemish description which seems to confirm the appearance of the Welsh at the end of the 13th century. The Flemish version of van Velthem's Spiegel Historiael is here - the relevant section is around line 90. The link above has a translation into English.

One thing which I've pondered is the translation of 'roden rocke'. These are the red tunics which are mentioned in various books. I have absolutely no evidence for this, but I wonder if there is a Medieval Flemish equivalent of 'rude' (from the latin 'rudis') which this could represent. 'Rude garment' is a phrase which crops up in English to mean a simple or rough piece of clothing often used for something like St Francis's garb. The usual explanation however is that the king donated red cloth to them as an early form of livery. I have painted up some of my Welsh spearmen in red and the remainder in a motley collection using colours in the laws of Hywel Dda and here.

These are some of my Welsh spearmen.

From left to right they are from Lancashire, Donnington, Khurasan, Donnington, Khurasan and Lancashire.

Overall, my favourites are the Donnington figures. They have a proper hood and the proportions are IMHO the best. as can be seen, the three makes are very compatible in size. These are the first Lancashire figures I've used for a while and was largely as a result of them putting photos on their website. There is a third pose which I haven't used - it may well paint up well enough but I didn't like the figures as much. For the price it is affordable to discard the odd figure! Incidentally, their English foot such as these spearmen are very good figures - despite the number of feudal infantry I already have I shall have to find a home for them. I shall also probably use their Welsh archers as I seem to have accidentally found myself in possession of most of a Welsh army! I already have a few as samples but haven't painted them. They have a lot more action in the pose than Essex's Welsh.

More Spear comparisons

A while ago someone asked whether I had some comparison shots Donnington and Khurasan.

These are, from left to right - Khurasan, Donnington New Era, Old Glory (from Crusader range) and Black Hat (feudal range).