The 2018 Time-line at Backus Page House Museum.

Because of a large meeting of the Eastern Synod of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, I missed this event except to come out on Sunday and wander around. There were a few photos taken that I wish to share. (Photos courtesy of the Backus Page House Museum and Jeff Brown.)

The Jacobite camp.
The time-line was to reflect about 200 years of Canadian history. Although these folks are out of the limit, the area
around the museum was settled by Scots. Colonel Talbot didn't like them and gave them the swampiest land he could. 

A wider view of the camp.

Firing demonstration.
Jacobites, War of 1812, "Pony Wars" in the US, and WWI can be seen here.
Seamus, the story-teller is announcing the event.

Kevin and Jared of our reenacting group prepare their firearms.

Jared, our company's corporal, on the firing line in his pioneer's kit.
He does a great impresson.

Kevin demonstrating the musket on Saturday.

Kevin preparing to fire his jäger rifle on Sunday. 

... and firing the Brown Bess grenade launcher. Flaming tennis balls away!

US Cavalry for the "Pony Wars" of the so-called Wild West fires his breech-loading carbine.

The Swiss! They added a little seen aspect of WWI and demanded your pass and papers to get through the camp.
They were fun and made a good interactive impression.

The senior sergeant of the 1st Petrograd Womens' Battalion of Death
wrestles with her Mosin-Nagant rifle.

The Swiss riflemen take target practice.

The Swiss rifleman coolly chooses his target.

The WWI display manned by the French and the Russians.

The Swiss officer threatens the squirrels and dandelions. 

Our French poliu, Tyler, looking suitably belligerent.
Avance! Avec la baïonnette!

Katie, the senior sergeant of the Women's Battalion of Death and my daughter,
shows what the Mosin-Nagant is REALLY used for.

Katie is hunting ticks in the high grass. Here you can see the medals and the shoulder boards.

Another Kevin, in WWI Canadian kit with the ever-faithful SMLE.

Catie in the outfit of a Russian nurse.

Activity at the WWI display.

Katie, Nia, Catie, and Tyler lined up for publicity.
Tyler is holding a replica of the Chauchaut light machine gun, possibly the worst firearm ever built.

WWII Soviet Russians take the field in a "skirmish."

Wehrmacht and Luftwaffe troops in camp,

The German medical orderly treats a "casualty" in the field. I like the helmet!

The REAL guests of honour arrive.

On display from the South Ontario Military Muster were a Bren/Universal Carrier, a Canadian Military Pattern 15cwt truck, a jeep (to be seen later) and the last running Fox armoured car in North America!

The CMP 15cwt truck and the Universal Carrier

The Fox
What a beauty!

The Fox is worth a second viewing.

A mixed bag of reenactors evacuate the "wounded" in a Willys-Overland Jeep.

Holly and Stephanie sing "Hits from the 40's."

Raiffe explaining and exhibiting items in the Home Front station.
His group reenacts the British Home Front and he's dressed as a member of the Home Guard.

Well? Where is it?

The Viet-Nam era reenacting group included an early US intervention "adviser" armed with the M-1 Garand rifle.
You can see the clip ejecting from the rifle in this photo.

The rest of the boy in Company C including the adviser on the left and a Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP)
member in "Tiger stripes" in the right.

Deep in the bowels of the Fox armoured car were treasures for the reenactor. The car's owner pulled out a Bren light machine gun and a Thompson submachine gun. (both inactivated as required by Canadian law.) I was grinning like a loon when I got to handle them. So was Katie. As for Tyler and Kevin... just look at the faces.

I think Tyler's in love.

Kevin's considering a deeper relationship himself.

Canfest in Port Stanley

If anyone actually reads the blog, I am still alive... and busy. Because of that, I've not made a blog entry in quite a while. Today I have the time.

Last weekend, our reenacting group - the King's Company of Historical Reenactors - took part in the festivities in Port Stanley for the Canada Day weekend. Canfest, as it was called, had quite a few activities in the town of Port Stanley on Lake Erie. We were asked to put on a historical display on Saturday at Christ Anglican Church, and we found ourselves as part of a historical celebration there as well. (Photos courtesy of the local newspaper and the Magical Port Stanley FaceBook group.)

Christ Church from our fly under a wonderful tree.
The weekend was hot but there was a wonderful breeze and plenty of shade.

Nick (representing the Royal Marines), Stephanie (one of our singers and fifers), and Kevin (in the white hunting
shirt of the 17th US Infantry) appear to have captured a dragon! We were told later that it was a friendly sort and
there were no problems.

 We displayed a number of period items, including weapons, First Nations gear, and civilian items with an emphasis on toys.

My wife, Beth, demonstrating the communication a woman could do with her fan.

Pick-up sticks, dominos, and clothes peg soldiers and figures.
The toy soldiers were made by one of our members' father when he was a reenactor.
One visitor asked the price and was disappointed when we told him they weren't for sale.

Small dolls in US uniform and in civilian woman's clothing.

We discovered that we were to take part in the re-dedication of the grave of John Bostwick, an officer of the local Canadian militia during the War of 1812. There was a marker next to his for his brother, Henry, although his actual grave has been lost. Their family was instrumental in the settling of the area and actually gave the land to the Anglican Church (then known as the Church of England in Canada) for Christ Church.

A historical plaque giving a lot of the information on Colonel Bostwick

The province's historical marker held the line while the piper warmed up.

Henry Bostwick's marker in the Church cemetery.

John Bostwick's tombstone in the cemetery. Bob, in his full officer's uniform, is a descendant of
the Bostwick's, a fact that came to light during the ceremony. 

A militia officer, one of the church's wardens, and Bob in the cemetery after the ceremony.

The re-dedication included a colour party from the Royal Canadian Legion, a contingent of members of the United Empire Loyalists, and a firing party of reenactors representing the Royal Scots (1st of Foot) light company, the Royal Marines, the local militia, and the 17th US Infantry. The firing party fired one volley in honour of the Bostwicks, but only one because of the complexity of reloading the muskets. It was an honour to take part in this event.

Beth talks to me as we all "kit up" for the ceremony in the cemetery.

Further kitting-up. I'm glad it wasn't too hot with the shade and the breeze. Our cotton/linen hunting shirts or roundabout
jackets are cool, but the red wool coats of the Crown forces (or our blue coats) can be murder!

Brad and Nick return from the firing line.

Cole and Tom of the Royal Scots get ready. Kevin of the 17th US cools off behind them.
This was Cole's first time out and he did just fine. Brad and Tom are old veterans and they
taught him right.

The Royal Canadian Legion colour party get lined up before the ceremony.

There were a  number of people interested in our displays and the buffalo burgers for sale at the event were fine. (It was a fund-raiser for the church and the local food bank.) We all left by late afternoon/dinner time and counted the day a success.

Brad and Nick share a joke. I wish I knew what it was!

5 Men at Kursk - the 54mm experiment

I've been to busy to blog, believe it or not. Today, I've decided to remain at home because of a forecast of freezing rain among other problems. (Winter just won't leave southwestern Ontario!)

In any event, last Saturday at the Hamilton Road Games Group, Andy and Kevin decided to try the set of rules called "5 Men at Kursk" by Nordic Weasel games. It's a skirmish game using a very small number of figures - as few as 5. I blogged a while ago about the sister game of medieval gaming called Chevauche, which made for a very satisfying small game. Andy was eager to play the WWII game using his extensive collection of plastic 54mm figures. In truth, although the game was set for 15mm or 28mm figures, when the ranges are played with (usually doubled), it works well for 54mm figs.

In the first game, I played the Germans defending a ruined farm house and ridge against Soviet troops. Both sides had a commander, a light machine gun and loader, and some other infantry, the Soviets having the advantage of numbers and more submachine guns... which seemed right. (Photos by Andy and myself)

The German defenders in place at the beginning of the game.

A low ridge where the Soviet troops would set up once the giant set of rules were removed.

Based on the strictures laid out in the game, each side has so many activations, bonus moves, and responsive moves/snap fires per turn. This was based on historic points of fire discipline, general morale, and other intangibles.

As it was, My LMG worked to keep the Soviets' heads down and they had to crawl around a lot. The MG-42 also handed out some casualties. The Soviet DP LMG wasn't quite so effective primarily because my dice rolling was astounding, especially to me. (In the game, a 1 might would and a 6 kills, 2-5 having no effect. If a 1 is rolled, the man is "down" until one of his mates checks on him. Then a die is rolled and he might be just stunned or he might be out of the game, depending on the die roll.

The Soviets decided to to a left hook and send some troopers over the bridge on their left to flank the farm house where the German LMG was holed up. I sent a trooper and the officer with his SMG to bolster the ruined house. Just in time, too. The Soviets stayed low and advanced on the house, while causing two troopers and the officer to be frightened and take cover. They began to exchange grenades over a low stone wall.

On the German left, two soldiers came down the hill and assaulted the Soviet LMG from the base of the copse of trees, first using grenades. One man was taken out by a Russian grenade while the other one came on through the trees and attempted to hand-to-hand the LMG gunner. It didn't work well. In the end, the Soviets losses were too much to bear and the German defenders were declared the winner.

The fortified ruin of a farm house with the Wehrmacht defenders.

The sand-bag firebase further down the ridge.

The reinforcement arrives

A Soviet SMG trooper advanced behind the cover of the bridge stone railing.

The Soviets behind their low ridge, keeping their heads down.

The bridge and the small stream from the other end of the table.

I sat out the second game, which saw a switching of sides and the Soviets defending the Motherland and the small farmstead. The assaulting Germans won that one as well, but it was not a bloodless victory. Both Andy and Kevin were pleased with the results of the playing of the game. The squads behaved as they were "supposed to" according to their military experience and study: use the LMG to keep the enemy's heads down and use your maneuver element to take the territory.  The rules allow vehicles and larger weapons, but HMG are stationary and deny space to the enemy. Tanks take up all your activations because you have to separately activate the driver to move, the gunner to fire the main gun or the coaxial MG, and the commander to fire the turret MG, That's THREE activations plus the commander is exposed when firing the hatch MG. Suppose you only have 4 or 5 activations in total? Either your AFV becomes a terrain piece or it sucks up all your activations. Decisions have to be made.

I'd like to see this game set up for WWI. It could be quite interesting, although some adjusting of the rules would be required.

My German flanking force leaves the redoubt to take the fight to the pinned down Soviets.

A pre-game photo of the German force in the field works.

Once again.

All the figures were supplied by Andy, who has been collecting and painting
these for years. They're older Airfix or Matchbox 54mm plastics. He also has
Americans, British/Canadians, Commandos, Japanese, SS, Afrika Korps,
8th Army in Africa, and late-war Germans. Kevin wants to find some Italians
in the scale. It makes for a good looking table.

Soviets! Urrah! The DP-LMG peeks over the edge of the rise.

The German view of the Soviet starting point. The Soviets were considered to be crouching and crawling.

Andy also has been collecting the terrain from Bring-n-Buys and thrift stores over the years This includes the sandbags, the trees, the bridge, and the house. The small walls seen in the left of the photo should be higher, but there's only so much time and cash in the world.

 I agree that the 54's make for a good looking table. Will I buy some figs for this? I can't say just now. It's tempting, especially since I've seen some WWI figs. Well, one step at a time.