ECW Royalist Artillery

Pictured below is my first unit of English Civil War Royalist artillery. The crew's red sashes and the red markings on cannon wheels denote its allegiance. I decided to edit the One Hour Wargames rules for my  English Civil War armies as artillery was at this time becoming a more common sight on the battlefield, despite of woeful mobility and a general lack of expertise in its use. I am led to believe by the second book of the Stryker Chronicles that artillery and siege specialists from mainland Europe were greatly sought after for their services. The Royalists, with their obvious connections to France would have been well connected with such experts, but let's not forget that Parliamentarian forces also used veterans of the Thirty Years War to bolster their military leadership.

In the wargaming rules themselves, artillery will be much like its American Civil War equivalent (a - 2 penalty to damage rolls) but with a range of 36",  so it cannot sweep the entirety of my gaming mat. 

My ECW artillery units are the only non-Revell figures in the collection - they are manufactured by A Call to Arms as Royalist Artillery, and you get 4 cannon and 16 crew in a box. 

ECW Royalist Infantry

This is a quick update on my English Civil War Royalist Infantry. As with all of my ECW collection, these figures are from Revell's Thirty Years War range of 1/72 plastics. The boys in blue represent Prince Rupert's regiment of foot. I believe this formation made a last stand or fighting withdrawal at the Battle of Naseby, but as I have a figure representing Prince  Rupert to lead the Royalists, he would naturally call upon his infantry to hold his front line whilst he charged forth to glory.

The second infantry unit are loosely based on a regiment named the Greencoats I came across whilst reading about the Battle of Marston Moor. I couldn't find any real detail on the colours, so I took inspiration from the much later Napoleonic Rifles of 'Sharpe' fame. The dark green is broken up with dark red sashes to denote their Cavalier loyalty. I'm thinking of labelling them "The King's Verderers of Foote" after huntsmen / groundkeepers who would be loyal to Charles I. 

The third Royalist infantry unit is currently on my painting table - they will represent the Whitecoats who made a brutal last stand at Marston Moor. They will be a good practice run before I begin my 1700s French army which  will be painted up in roughly the same colours. 

ECW Parliamentarian Reiters - Cromwell's Ironsides

These are my first unit of Parliamentarian Reiters. I've given them a classic sandy yellow uniform and partial plate armour. As seen in the photos they are armed primarily with pistols, which they would use to fire blistering,  short range volleys at their adversaries. 

Unlike the galloping, death or glory Royalist Horse, Parliamentarian cavalry had a bad reputation in the first half of the English Civil War. Only with dedicated new training and tactics did Oliver Cromwell manage to create steady but reliable cavalry - his troopers soon gained the intimidating nickname Ironsides. 

The Cavaliers had a tendency towards scattering the enemy in their immediate front and then pursuing their quarry far from the battlefield, stopping only to loot local settlements or the enemy baggage train. So whilst the Royalists boasted cavalry units of superficially high quality, they were only of limited usefulness on the day of battle. What made Cromwell such an effective commander of mounted units was the discipline and organisation of his troopers. They would advance at a more sedate pace, and use multiple pistol volleys to wear down the enemy before a comparatively modest, but nonetheless brutal, charge. However, Cromwell's horse were crucially able to reign themselves in after the adrenaline kick of  initial contact, so they remained a decisive battlefield asset. This would enable them to reform and exploit the damage they caused to the vulnerable flanks of their adversaries.