Battle of Dorking - 1871

I first came across this book in Dorking library in the early 1990's when I was researching local history/natural history on Ranmore Common in Surrey for a university project. The common is above Dorking and great for reptiles especially Adders....naturally I got sidetracked immediatly I came across this book and an old copy it was too, in the 'not to be lent section.'



Looking at my Blog list I see that Historical Wargaming blog 'hub'mentions a game 1871: The Battle of Dorking, which can be downloaded, all the details are on the blog site. Basically it follows the book which was about the fictional invasion of Britain by Germany in 1871.

The book was Written by Sir George Tomkyns Chesney (1830-1895) 'who was a British Army general and brother of Colonel Charles Cornwallis Chesney. Educated at Blundell's School, Tiverton, and at Addiscombe, he entered the Bengal Engineers as second lieutenant in 1848. He was employed for some years in the public works department and, on the outbreak of the Indian rebellion of 1857, joined the Ambala column, was field engineer at the battle of Badli-ke-serai, brigade-major of engineers throughout the siege of Delhi, and was severely wounded in the assault (he received a medal and clasp and a brevet majority). In 1860, he was appointed head of a new department in connection with the public works accounts. His book Indian Polity (1868), dealing with the administration of the several departments of the Indian government, attracted wide attention and remains a permanent textbook. In 1871, he contributed to Blackwoods Magazine a highly influential short story called The Battle of Dorking: Reminiscences of a Volunteer, a vivid account of a supposed invasion of England by the Germans after their victory over France' (Amazon Biog description)



Another tangent using all those early Perry Franco Prussian war figs in a box in the loft? Helion figures?? What British figures to use in home garb not the usual colonial figs? Any suggestions ????....don't think with all my current projects I could take on another one but interesting all the same and something to think about at work! Also look at Matt's Blog Waterloo to Mons which this subject fits well and truly into and his links give a good list of potential figure suppliers!

Figures in the above pictures include some of my fathers original toy soldiers, an 'Astra' fort gun and some Unfinished (what a surprise!)Wargames Foundry Perry Prussians which had escaped the loft.

I have just ordered a copy of the battle of Dorking on Amazon plus the superb book on the Artwork by Roy Cross the artist behind the best of the original Airfix box tops for the nostalgia trip!!

If you ever visit Dorking it has a gem of a traditional model shop called logically 'Dorking Models'

Famous 1914 - 1918

Just finished another Richard Van Emden WW1 book 'Famous 1914-1918' co authored with Victor Piuk. This was another one of my Oxfam bookshop buys and is a very interesting read. In summary the book deals with well known people of the 20th century and their part in world war one. JRR Tolkiens service was reasonably well known to me and I must read Garths book 'Tolkien and the Great War' which is in the pending pile. The other famous people included were; AA Milne, George Mallory, Arnold Ridley, Ralph Vaughan Williams, John Reith, Dennis Wheatley, CS Lewis, Basil Rathbone, Nigel Bruce, Alexander Fleming, RC Sheriff, Montgomery, Tom Denning, Winston Churchill, Henry Moore, JB Priestly, Harold Macmillan, Peter Llewelyn Davies. All these names are extreemly well known like Churchill and Montgomery or at least familiar to most people even if their part in WW1 is not so well known.

The two unusal inclusions are the infamous John Christie of Rillington Place murders fame and Ned Parfett....who you ask? Well Neds face is well known as a boy to most historians of the 20th century as the face of the newspaper boy selling the evening news with the headline 'Titanic Disaster Great Loss of Life'


Ned joined up in 1915 and served in France with 126 Battery RFA part of 29th Brigade RFA and he worked as a signaller maintaining the telephone wire from the forward observation officer back to the battery. The battery was heavily involved with the German spring offensive of march 1918 and the battery caused significant casualties to the advancing German forces only loosing one gun in the process. Ned was mentioned in Field Marshal Douglas Haigs Despatches and remained with the battery through the summer of 1918. Three weeks before the armistice his battery was supporting the 1st BN the Somerset Light Infantry and 2nd BN Duke of Wellingtons Regiment in an action to take the village of Verchain in Belgium, by the 29th October 1918 Ned was waiting to go on leave in the quartermasters stores with 2 other men from 126 battery when a german shell made a direct hit. All were killed and were buried in Verchain British Military Cemetry, Ned was only 22 had been recommended for a Military Medal for supporting his officer 2nd lieutenant Percy Hunt in the dangerous activity of forward observation for the guns and would not have returned to his unit before the armistice was signed...what a cruel twist of fate.

This was a very interesting book as it encompassed people I had not read about before like the Sculptor Henry Moore the author Dennis Wheatley and writer, Playwrite,Broadcaster and founder of CND JB Priestly and would recommend it as a good alternative 'easy to read' book on what was a horrific conflict.


To lighten the mood a work colleague forwarded an amusing item from 'Newbiscuit' the spoof web based news channel with private eye like articles this one 'Screaming fans Mob Wargames Championship' was most amusing!!

Minifigs 'The Buffs' in progress!!

At last I return to the abandoned WSS 15mm project. Not being 100% over easter with dodgy tum, I havn't spent much time crouched over the painting table! But when I did have a foray with the paintbrush it was to endanger my eyesight further with these 15mm fellows.Living in East Kent my first regiment has to be the legendary 'Buffs' 3rd Regiment of Foot.

The photo shows 2 complete bases (following Wills rules via Steve the Wargamers invaluable WSS pages, 6 figs per base 30mmX30mm)The standard has just been glued in place...although as can be seen from the photo I removed the top half of the Minifigs Ensigns flagpole drilling out the hand (in 15mm mad eh!) and replacing it with a bit of wire long enough to take the flag. I super glued the 'spike' on top & will touch up the paint & add a couple of red tassles from fine cotton.

The remaining 10 tricornes are currently 'under the paintbrush' and then I must confess to being a 'right muppet'!! when I ordered the figures last year I forgot the Grenadiers as 2 will be needed to represent the Grenadier company!!! So have just ordered these plus a few other bits from Minifigs as it's best to keep the different ranges seperate in their own regiments so the height disparity etc doesn't look obvious (Black hat Grenadiers I have are bigger overal & different style). The Black Hat cavalry are superb but much larger than any other range....just look at Steve the Wargamers pages to see for yourself.

Just before Good Friday my Warlord Games ECW's arrived together with Boltaction miniatures WW2 Tommy's on bikes I just had to have....as you do...plus an easter egg from those kind folk at Warlord games!!! ...wow now thats the way to keep customers the human touch. Unfortunatly its still in its box due to aformentioned bug!





We had a quiet easter visited the Edwin Lutyens 'Salutation' House & Gardens at Sandwich on easter sunday with Hazels family and entertained my folks later in the week.



I did complete watching 'Piece of cake' the ireverant depiction of a Fall of France/Battle of Britain Squadron adapted by LWT and first shown in 1988, from a book by Derek Robinson. The story is absolute trash but the flying sequences (in the wrong marks of spitfire of course!) are awesome....and they would be with Ray Hannah at the controls. Ray 'Shooting the bridge' in a spitfire was a memorable bit of footage.




I caught up with a bit of reading also including a fun fictional novel by Guy Walters 'The Occupation' set on the Channel Islands in WW2 and picked up a few second hand books including a useful reference on Artillery 'Artillery Through the Ages' by Colonel HCB Rogers published by the Military Book Society in 1971. It does what is says on the cover! Describing the development of Artillery in sieges, in the field and at sea from the first certain record of ordnance in the city of Ghemt in 1313 to WW2 with an interesting further chapter on Rocketry.

I just hope that the SH book turns up soon and the Brigade Models Belgian Cavalry although it's not as if I havn't got any other projects on the go!......... must undercoat my Perry Riflemen, stick together a few Perry French & British Infantry get a few aircraft kits on the go.....it is 'mad' at the moment in the past couple of years so much new stuff has been released in wargaming and aircraft modelling terms it is absolutely impossible to keep up, a point one of my favourite blogs by good old Legatus has made well complete with picture of his 'lead mountain' (& Howards Way DVD...less said about that the better!)