I recently had an email from Nick Huband, who is an old friend and fellow member of Wargame Developments.
Knowing my interest in Peter Laing Miniatures, he sent me a number of photographs of his two small British armies that he has used to refight the 1912 British Army Manoeuvres. These took place from 15th to 19th September 1912. Blue Army (the defenders) was under the command of General Grierson, and Red Army (the attackers) was commanded by General Haig. Red Army was assumed to be invading England (Blueland) between Hunstanton and Well-next-the-sea, with its objective being London. Blue Army was concentrated around Cambridge, which is where the umpire (General French) was based,
Blue Army comprised:
- A cavalry division of two scratch cavalry brigades make up of the Household Cavalry, the Royal Scots Greys, some Yeomanry regiments, and several units of cyclists
- 3rd Infantry Division (from Southern Command)
- 4th Infantry Division (from Eastern Command and the Territorials)
- Blue Army’s headquarters staff were drawn from throughout the army, excluding Aldershot Command
Red Army comprised:
- A cavalry division drawn from Regular Army cavalry regiments
- 1st Infantry Division (from Aldershot Command)
- 2nd Infantry Division (from Aldershot Command)
- Red Army’s headquarters staff was drawn from Aldershot Command
Red Army was expected to beat Blue Army quite easily ... but General Grierson out-performed and out-generalled Haig, mainly because of his superior use of aerial reconnaissance
In the following photographs, Blue Army is wearing manoeuvre bands on their caps except for the umpire on the command stand, who has a white cap cover and brassard. The scale is broadly one stand to a brigade, regiment of artillery, or cyclist battalion.
A brief anecdote
Apparently, two of the official observers (the Canadian and South African Ministers of Defence) came to blows during the manoeuvres, and had to separated by onlookers. Their disagreement arose when the South African (Jan Smuts) said that one of his countrymen could fight better than twenty Britons, to which the Canadian (Sam Hughes) replied that one Canadian could outfight twenty South Africans.
A Canadian officer wrote a detailed report about the manoeuvres, and these have been reproduced on the CANADA AT WAR blog here (Part 1) and here (Part 2).
Please note that the photographs featured above are © Nick Huband.
What a wonderful set up and fascinating post. The armies are terrific.
ReplyDeleteI have used Pathe footage of interwar manoeuvres as inspiration for my games in 54mm. I was especially interested in the ones relating to the early days of mechanised warfare when cavalry were in use also.
I used a reprint of Report on Foreign Manoeuvres in 1912 as research when looking at National or Army characteristics for FLW. It is an excellent book and well worth a read.
Tradgardmastare,
DeleteThe more I read about the 1912 Manoeuvres, the more I’d like to refight the scenario. It would make for an interesting COW session, or possibly even a VCOW/online session. It certainly something I’m giving thought to.
Large sale manoeuvres lend themselves to solo wargaming, and the interwar period where you have that wonderful mix of armour and cavalry is particularly appealing. The Irish Army conducted such manoeuvres during the Second World War, and due to their general lack of modern weaponry, it resembled the British interwar manoeuvres.
I’ll look out for a copy of the Report you mention. It sounds as if it is a positive goldmine of interesting information.
All the best,
Bob
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Report-Foreign-Manoeuvres-1912-Military/dp/1847348459
DeleteTradgardmastare,
DeleteI’ve bought a copy, and it should be delivered by the weekend.
All the best,
Bob
Excellent, enjoy!
DeleteTradgardmastare,
DeleteCheers!
Bob
I've just ordered a copy too as it looks to be full of great info:)
DeleteSteve J.,
DeleteWell done, that man!
All the best,
Bob
Ahh, that was Sir Sam, any opinion of his would be defended to the grave. (not necessarily his own as his stubborn support for the Ross Rifle showed).
ReplyDeleteI was surprised at the extent of the use of aerial recce. Great stuff!
Ross Mac,
DeleteI read up about Sir Sam Hughes, and he does seem to have been a man with somewhat intransigent, deeply held belief in the rightness of his own point of view.
The range of aircraft used was very interesting, and included both biplanes and lighter-than-air ... but not monoplanes, which had been officially banned!
All the best,
Bob
What an interesting post - the figures look good too!
ReplyDeleteStryker,
DeleteI’m trying to find out more, as I think that there are the makings of a game that might appeal to a variety of wargamers.
The Peter Laing figures are simple to paint, and I wish that they were still available to buy.
All the best,
Bob
Bob, in one sense army manoeuvres are a perfect theme for wargames because in both the effects of fire and combat are resolved by abstract rules and umpires, rather than by actually shooting at each other, so the wargame can be a better 'simulation' of the umpiring process than rolling dice is of real combat.
ReplyDeleteA game of manoeuvres also avoids any moral qualms sensitive players might have about trivialising death and destruction by making it into a game! [Though manoeuvres could sometimes resulted in unfortunate accidents - my aunt's fiance was killed during training in WWII.]
Best wishes,
Arthur
Arthur1815 (Arthur),
DeleteI totally agree; on several levels, our tabletop battles are very, very similar to army manoeuvres. They are also something that you only need one side to fight ... although you do need to split the troops into two!
In the real world, army manoeuvres rarely pass off without someone getting injured or killed, especially if live ammunition is being used. Luckily, we don’t use live ammunition (except if fighting a LITTLE WARS battle), so our ‘injured’ rarely suffer anything worse than a small bit of chipped paint.
All the best,
Bob
The two sides look lovely and the manouevres sound fascinating, especially as it was fought over areas I lived and visited as a child. More research in the form of reading the links to happen soon:)
ReplyDeleteSteve J.,
DeleteI certainly know the area between Hunstanton and Wells-next-the-sea, and the thought of fighting a campaign over East Anglia appeals to me.
I’ve ordered a book about these manoeuvres from Amazon as well as a copy of a military observers report on military manoeuvres in the run up to the Great War. With luck, the end result will be a wargame.
All the best,
Bob
On a lighter note, years ago one of the masters at Kings College, Wimbledon, told me that when he was a boy [in the 1930s, I think] the school's Cadet Force used to stage wargame manoeuvres on Wimbledon Commons. The senior masters were mounted and acted as officers or umpires. Some of the boys discovered that a short pencil, used for compasses in maths lessons, could be muzzle-loaded on top of the blank ammunition in their rifles; when shot at close range into a horse's hindquarters the sharp pencil would cause it to rear, throwing its rider! At least that was one hazard we never had to face in our teaching careers...
ReplyDeleteRegards, Arthur
I wish we had done such things in my CCF days! Single section attacks against an imaginary enemy on the front lawns was as far as we got sadly.
DeleteArthur1815 (Arthur),
DeleteWhat a wonderful and totally believable tale!
Blank-firing guns can be dangerous, and these boys showed. In my day, we had a Bren gun that would not fire blanks. Instead, we were given a football rattle, which we used to simulate the sound of machine gun fire.
All the best,
Bob
Tradgardmastare,
DeleteDid you lay down covering fire with the section Bren, or did you go for an all out frontal charge?
All the best,
Bob
This sounds fascinating. I remember learning about these wargames some years ago while looking into the Great War. It might have been quite a different state of affairs if Grierson hadn't died en route to the front in 1914. I would love to hear how Nick's refight went.
ReplyDeletePeter Ball,
DeleteIt is a fascinating topic, and one I want to learn more about.
If Grierson had not died when he did, he might have risen to even higher command, although it is significant that he did not serve French as CGS in August 1914 as he had during the 1913 manoeuvres. It may well be that Grierson’s competence rather showed up French’s inadequacies.
All the best,
Bob
The Hastings book doesn't much mention Sir James Grierson, but what he does say suggests that his knowledge of the French army and rapport with them would have stood the BEF in good stead. I'm no fan of Douglas Haig, but it appears that the result of the 1912 exercise did nothing to diminish the friendship between Grierson and himself. That says much in favour of Haig's character, methinks.
DeleteArchduke Piccolo,
DeleteI’m no expert on the subject of Haig, but I know a man who is! I’ll ask his opinion, but I suspect that both men got on reasonably well, and that if Grierson had not died so suddenly, he might have replaced French instead of Haig.
All the best,
Bob
I've just been reading Max Hastings' account of WW1 in 1914 ('Catastrophe'). It is interesting to read about some of the major players in that drama in the account of the 1912 manoeuvres. Looking at this is strongly suggesting a possible model for an Azurian invasion of Ruberia (reversing the colours, of course...).
ReplyDeleteA most interesting posting, and especially the Part 2 Canadian report makes interesting reading.
Cheers,
Ion
Archduke Piccolo (Ion),
DeleteThe 1912 manoeuvres were probably more significant than those in 1913, and its interesting to follow the subsequent careers of the leading commanders.
An Azurian invasion of Ruberia ... now that is something that would be worth seeing fought out on the tabletop!
There is lots of interesting stuff on that website, and the Canadian observer’s report contains some extremely useful information.
All the best,
Bob
Peter Laing 15mm collectors and fans can find those with similar interests on the MeWe Peter Laing site set up by Ian Dury when Google+ pages closed.
Deletehttps://mewe.com/join/peterlaingfigures
Mark, Man of TIN,
DeleteThanks for the reminder. I’m a member buy only pay the group infrequent visits.
All the best,
Bob
Hi again, Bob -
DeleteHow's this for a narrative: The Republic of Azuria and the Kingdom of Ruberia are at odds. Azuria mounts an invasion through the Dover-Ostend isthmus, seizing the Ruberian Canal crossings and preparing to push on into the Ruberian southeastern counties.
Under cover of this, a small invasion force snuck up the Rijnlaag coast, then made a dash across the North Gulf to make a surprise landing on the north coast of Northfolk.
It is this landing that might be the subject of a '1912' refight, though the year is more like 1892...
Cheers,
Ion
Archduke Piccolo (Ion),
DeleteThat is a great scenario, and would make for an interesting short campaign. It’s the sort of thing that William Le Quex would have written about.
You have now got me thinking about the possibilities of mounting such a campaign ...
All the best,
Bob
I'm looking forward to your battle reports. I have thought of using my Peter Laings figures for such Maneuvers before. I was going to paint the hat bands different colors; however if I wanted to use them for WW1 I was afraid the color bands would distract me.
ReplyDeleteJhnptrqn,
DeleteI’m hoping that Nick Huband will send me some battle reports that I can post them on my blog.
I’m sure there must be some way to differentiate between opposing sides during manoeuvres that doesn’t jar on the eye. The problem is to find a solution.
All the best,
Bob
Hello BOB,
ReplyDeleteThe Peter Laing 15mm WW1 figures are rather nice and I'm wondering- is the Traction Engine and Guns also made by Peter Laing...it'd be great if these old-world figures were still available as they have a unique simple charm. Best Wishes. KEV.
Kev Robertson (Kev),
DeleteI don’t think that the traction engine or gun were made by Peter Laing. I only wish that they were still available to buy.
All the best,
Bob
Hi chaps
DeleteThanks for the comments, I've just got to prepare the map before starting my 1912 campaign.
BTW the traction engine is a Czech model by Hauler at 1/120 scale with a Peter Laing driver. The 60pdr uses the carriage of the Peter Laing 6" howitzer with a barrel made of nesting aluminium tubes.
The Be2 for the red army is by Red Eagle miniateures (ex Skytrex) and the Deperdussin monoplane is from Shapeways with a Red Eagle crew.
Cheers
Nick
Nic101 (Nick),
DeleteThanks very much for the additional information, which I think that we all found very useful.
I hope that you manage to prepare your map soon, and I look forward to reading your campaign report in due course.
All the best,
Bob
At the Guildford Club some people have been looking at the Bisley 1871 wargame as a possible demo game...
ReplyDeletehttps://sites.rootsweb.com/~engsurry/bisley/newspapers/18710921.htm
Mike Lewis,
DeleteHaving read the newspaper article, I can see why the Guildford Club are thinking about replicating it as a wargame.
All the best,
Bob
Fab find and Fab idea for a game
ReplyDeleteGeordie an Exile FoG,
DeleteI am really pleased that Nick Huband pointed me towards this. It’s given me all sorts of ideas ... and could well make an interesting session of COW.
All the best,
Bob