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Thursday 7 July 2022

Backstories for my Belle Époque imagi-nations: The Emirate of Khyberistan

During early 1990 my career was in a state of flux. I was working for the Inner London Education Authority (better known as the ILEA) as a Post-16 Education Coordination and local vocational education advisor, but as the ILEA was about to be abolished, I had no idea what was going to happen to me. For a time I was ‘handed over’ to the local authority (then known as the London Borough of Greenwich) which had taken over control of education in the Borough, but it was obvious that great changes were about to be made and my job was going to disappear.

I had hoped that I might be made redundant (the redundancy settlement was extremely generous, and I would have been able to pay off our mortgage and put a substantial amount of money in the bank), but Greenwich decided that they would not allow anyone to be made redundant due to the handover. In the end I was offered a job as a Housing Officer … for which I had no training whatsoever! Luckily for me, one of the headteachers I worked for needed someone with my skills, and I was offered a temporary (and later, permanent) contract to become Head of Careers and Technical and Vocational Education Coordinator.

Whilst all this was going on, I took my mind off my troubles by painting a batch of 15mm Irregular Miniatures Dervish Infantry. Over the years these figures have seen sterling service as Dervishes, Arabs, Pathans, and Afghans, and I decided that after such long and distinguished tabletop careers, they should be renovated as part of my Belle Époque project and be used to form a small native army, the Khyberistani Army.


The Emirate of Khyberistan

Khyberistan is a small mountainous country that is ruled over by an hereditary Emir. It’s people mainly rely on hunting wild animals for their meat, subsistence farming for their fruit and vegetables, and goat herding for their milk, cheese, and wool, and the wool from Khyberistani goats is renown for its softness, warmth, and water-resistance. The local tribes also trade small quantities of gold and precious gems with the outside world, but in general, foreigners (i.e. anyone who is not a Khyberistani) is viewed with suspicion.

The flag of the Emirate of Khyberistan.

The population is split into three main tribes, each of which comprises a number of family clans. Although blood feuds between clans and tribes occasionally break out, the Emir usually arranges for them to be resolved by a system that is akin to trial by combat. Each side chooses a champion, and they are pitted against one another in a series of tests (e.g. killing a mountain lion), which if both survive, culminates in a duel to the death with knives.

Because almost every male Khyberistani is a hunter, they are all marksmen, and a large number of small artisan metalworkers are able to produce copies of imported rifles that are indistinguishable from the originals.

Each tribe provides troops (mainly infantry but also including some light artillery) to defend the county when called upon by the Emir. They generally operate as individual tribal columns and have their own supply units. The Emir has a small full-time bodyguard that includes obsolete fortress artillery, and these act as a garrison for the fortress that protects the nation’s capital, Khyberpore.

14 comments:

  1. They sound deadly, Bob…..but which country will be daft enough to invade Khyberistan, possibly multiple times, in the vain hope that ‘this time it’ll be different’??!! Approach with caution, I’d have thought.
    Good to see another nation taking shape 👍🏼👍🏼.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Martin S.,

      In answer to your question … most countries might try … once!

      It is designed to be a small, mobile army that can hold its own in the mountains, a sort of Asian Swiss Army.

      All the best,

      Bob

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  2. Bob -
    I like these fellows already. Wasn't it the famous Belgian explorer, Count Patric O'Belisk de Galway (a descendant of an Hibernian 'Wild Goose') who remarked in his journal 'Explorations: In the Den of Thugs, Thieves and Hired Assassins' "... these Khyberistanis are crazy!..."? Maybe it wasn't...
    Cheers,
    Ion

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Archduke Piccolo (Ion),

      I think that the Count’s writings encouraged the Belgian explorer, Kuifje de Oudere, to visit Khyberistan. During his visit he persuaded the Emir to adopt a modern structure and up-to-date armaments for his army.

      All the best,

      Bob

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  3. I'm really enjoying your back stories Bob. Looks like this Campaign setting may need a book!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maudlin Jack Tar,

      Cheers … and there’s more to come!

      I may well turn this into a book at some point … once I’ve drawn some suitable maps.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  4. BOB,
    It is good to hear that your including most of your 15mm Collections into this Imagi-nations Project...your Maps will be an interesting challenge. Cheers. KEV.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Kev Robertson (Kev),

      I have quite a lot of 15mm figures in my various collections (more than I realised when I started this project) and I hope to unify them all in my Belle Époque project.

      My maps will be developed once I’ve added a few more countries to my list of imagi-nations.

      All the best,

      Bob

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  5. Hello there Bob,

    This is cracking along very nicely indeed! I have to say it is a great way to make use of all those figures from way back when. I will certainly be interested to see how the map turns out in due course. How many armies in all to do envisage raising?

    All the best,

    DC

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. David Crook,

      Every time I find some more suitable figures in my collection, ideas for new countries and armies begin forming in my mind. How many will I end up with? I’m not sure, but at least another couple.

      Creating the maps will be an interesting phase in the project. I’m currently vacillating between realistic and schematic styles of map. I’m tempted to adopt something along the lines of the simple maps used in Waddington’s CAMPAIGN Napoleonic board wargame (i.e. squares with minimal geographic features on them).

      All the best,

      Bob

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  6. Small world! My brother-in-law was also transferred from ILEA to Greenwich at that time too.

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    Replies
    1. Nundanket,

      What a coincidence! I know that there were a few of us who were handed over, but I’ve never met anyone who was.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  7. More excellent work. I'm looking forward to seeing all of them on parade. It's funny how something ax simple as a hobby can provide a much needed lift during troubling times.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mark Cordone,

      I featured a photo of them on my blog back in May (https://wargamingmiscellany.blogspot.com/2022/05/the-army-of-khyberistan_01316649689.html).

      Wargaming is a hobby that can provide lots of diversions from the problems of everyday life, and has certainly helped me, especially over the last two years.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

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