New regiment of Foot - Green Coats

Another regiment of foot finished, one left to go to reach my target of the army sizes of the Battle of Roundway. This one in green coats, based on the uniform of Earl of Northampton's regiment - should have had a green flag, but I liked the yellow one with the dog on it.

[Figs: Officer and firing musketeers: Jacdaw TYW; Ensign: converted Eureka Planchet character figure;  all the rest Irregular Miniatures with an assortment of heads]

I'm currently painting up a couple of regiments of horse for the next battle in the ECW campaign. So piccies to come when they are done.

Encounter at Ramsbury

After their defeat at Axford the parliamentarians retreated up the valley to their outpost at Ramsbury. Sir Warwick Hunt continued on to Hungerford to find a place for his army to give battle to defend the town; he left his brother Herrick with his Lobsters (cuirassiers) at Ramsbury to hold off royalist advance.

---oXo---

The royalists advance up the valley towards Ramsbury ...

At Ramsbury the parliamentarians have taken up defensive positions by the bridge over the river. Herrick Hunt's Lobsters wait on the side of the river with the most open ground ...

The royalist horse charge impetuously up the valley and are met by the Lobsters ....

The Lobsters hack their way through the first royalist horse regiment and follow up, throwing the rest of the royalist column into confusion ...

The next royalist horse regiment make an attempt to hold off the lobsters and are beaten back with heavy casualties; Herrick Hunt manages to control his regiment and the Lobsters regroup...

While the Lobsters regroup and retire back to Ramsbury the royalist infantry on the other side of the valley exchange some vollies with the defenders....

As the light fades both side draw back, the parliamentarians withdraw towards Hungerford, covering their movement with their horse. The royalists move into Ramsbury in the late evening and make camp and wait for their artillery train to catch up with them, they will need its escort of two regiments of horse if they are to advance further.

to be continued ...

New Foot Regiment - grey coats

I've started back into the lead pile, fed up with painting horse so for a change did a regiment of foot. The uniform is that of Sir Thomas Glemham's Regiment, although the flag is not, should be red but I liked the white/black scheme it seems to fit with the uniform.

The figures used are a right mixture, this regiment was cobbled together from the spares box - so there are Irregular Miniatures, Romanoff, Jacdaw mixed together with arm and head swaps. I had to convert some Irregular Miniatures 'Soldier with flaming torch' into pikemen, plus a couple of engineer figures into musketeers as well.

Royalists cross the river at Axford

After their succesful move against Marlborough, the royalist commander Sir William de Willoughby is tasked with an attack on Hungerford - this move is in parralel with the Kings forces moving on Newbury.

Sir Warwick Hunt, the parliamentarian commander has moved to intercept the royalists advancing on Hungerford but his troops are strung out on the march. He reinforces the garrison of a regiment of foot at Axford with one regiment of foot and one of horse and makes a hasty defence of the river crossing.

The royalists with 4 regiments of foot and 2 of horse approach Axford ..

The royalists deploy and clear the bridge with the use of their galloper gun ...

The royalist manouvre on their right flank to cross the river ...

After an exchange of musketry and cannon fire the parliamentarian foot regiment routs, they are quickly followed over the bridge by the lead royalist regiment ....

The parliamentarian defence crumbles and they use their horse regiment to cover their retreat ...

The royalist set down to camp for the night at Axford, before moving on along the valley towards Hungerford the next day ...

to be continued ...

Sir William de Willoughby's Regiment of Horse

I thought it was about time my imaginary commander of the royalist forces in my Wiltshire campaign had his own regiment of horse - so I finished painting my TYW Jacdaw figs and allocated them to the royalists (the cornet is from Drabant).

Marlborough discomforted

A little action from history (slightly modified) which fits into my ECW camapign in Wiltshire quite nicely ...

Marlborough town was a potential problem for the royalists. The Seymours nominally held the old castle for the King but the town was for Parliament. With his headquarters in nearby Oxford, King Charles decided that Marlborough must be dealt with and sent Lords Wilmot and Digby with a body of horse to implement his wishes. They journeyed via Wallingborough to add a regiment of dragoons and a galloper gun to their troops, then they marched for Marlborough ...

When they arrived, they chose to parley first, thus giving the inhabitants a chance to prepare a defence. Commanded by Colonel James Ramsey with a small number of professional soldiers they mustered a few hundred poorly-armed men in the simple earthworks at the north of the town. Their response was to refuse to give up the town.

While the confrontation started at the north of the town, the royalists had dismounted a regiment of horse and they had started to try and gain access to the town from the side via its small alleyways.

The dragoons skirmish with the towns defenders at the earthworks on the common ...

The dismounted royalist horse have entered the outskirts of the town and encounter little resistance ....

The defenders fall back as the dismounted royalist horse gain the high street ....

Colonel Ramsey withdrew to the St Mary's church to make a last stand ....

The royalists move into the town from the north having overrun the earthworks, while the dismounted horse move up the high street to attack the church ...

The defence of the church continues, but they cannot hold out for long ....

After a fierce exchange of fire, all the windows were shot away, at this point Ramsey surrendered.

Following the surrender a number of houses and barns were burned down and the town was systematically looted. What could not be carried away was destroyed. Some 120 prisoners, were tied together and marched to Oxford and put in prison to await the Kings pleasure.

[the actual historical events can be read at http://www.marlboroughhistory.org.uk/timeline/Civil%20War.html]

Galloper Gun ready for action

The visiting officers from Oxford watch as the new galloper gun is put through its paces ...