Rebels and Patriots- The Greek War of Independence

 

I started this Rebels and Patriots project in 2019. Smartly got the Turks done in 2020.  You can see them here. https://youdonotknowthenorth.blogspot.com/search/label/Greek%20War%20of%20Independence   

 

Above the Philhellenes- foreign volunteers. In R&P speak, Line Infantry. A unit of 12 figures.  Conversions, as are my Greeks.  Then I got distracted-until now.   What follows is pretty much a note to myself, a project outline if you like.

On to the Greeks which in 15mm means conversions.  Happily mine are all done.

You can see what I did here and throughout this page.   The base figures are Minifigs Albanian Sekhans and Derbents.

Green Stuff hair, sashes,sleeves and a bit of head gear variety.

 

Add swords too.  Swords were important and varied.  The latter was beyond my reach in 15mm.

In 2022 I spotted a bunch of Spiros Koumoussis designed Greek independence 15mm figures on ebay.  Badly painted, over priced and irresistable.  I bought them without a quibble.  The chances of them turning up were astromical nor will we see them back in production.  I will have to repaint and re-base them.  Starting with the cavalry.

The immediate task is to put together a Greek List for Rebels and Patriots.  Here, I claim no great expertise. Some of the Greeks had extensive fighting experience and some none at all. Anyone who turned out to fight was patriotic.  Some though were intensely committed to the cause and would fight against odds. Even to the last.

What follows is my first thoughts on categorising a Greek Force for Rebels and Patriots.  The actual units are not done yet. 

Sometimes Greeks fought mounted.  Raids and such like. Rebels and Patriots cavalry come in a minimum unit of 6 figures.  

I'm going to use two types, both of light cavalry. Type one is Agressive Light Cavalry, type 2, Light Cavalry Good Shots.

For City Greeks, I have opted to use Green Line Infantry.  Most of them had no previous military experience.  International trading links and the Greek Diaspora meant there were enough arms and ammunition. A unit of 12 figures.

In the mountainy countryside it was different. There, warriors could be found.  Men who lived accustomed to violence. 

Even those who were not full time Klephts (more or less bandits) didn't lack fighting experience.  Clan feuds were common and deadly.

For a general turnout I have opted for the Native Category. A unit of 12 figures.

For a unit of Klephts  I use Veteran Skirmishers who are good shots. A unit of 6 figures.

 

For the hard core of Greek resistance I'm using the Light Infantry category and Good Shots too.  Such a unit would be mainly comprised of very patriotic Klephts.

There were also some Greek Regulars.  I'll field them as Line Infantry a unit of 12 figures.

I'll produce a full stat's list shortly with pic's of the units and some pic's of my recently aquired figures.  It will probaby take a couple of posts over the Summer.

For the moment using the above a 24 point Greek Force might consist of:

1 unit of  Patriotic Klepht Light Infantry Good Shots-12 figures. @ 9 points

1 unit of Klepht Veteran Skirmishers- 6 figures.@ 6 points

1 unit of Natives-12 figures. @ 4 points

1 unit of Aggressive Light Cavalry -6 figures. @ 5 points

I'd say that is an affordable array even in the larger scales. Truly lovely 28mm Greek figures are available from Old Man Creations and Steve Barber.  For me, as ever, it is 15mm. 

Greek War of Independence-Ibrahim Pasha’s Army

This is my take on Ibrahim Pasha’s Army for the Greek War of Independence.  It is based for Rebels and Patriots.  The figures are all from Minifigs Napoleonic Ottoman range.  I’ve included my categorisation of the troop types under the rules.  It’s informed guess work at best.  If you have other suggestions I’d be interested.

The light cavalry at 4 points 6 figures in the unit. A couple of officers and some Yoruk volunteers.

The Egyptian Regular Infantry.  Line Infantry on the European model. Aggressive Line Infantry at 5 points 12 figures in each unit.

I have two units of these and may do three.

Balkan Sharp Shooters.  Skirmish troops good shooters 6 figures per unit costing 4 points.

Provincial Sekhans.  Irregular infantry who can skirmish or fight hand to hand.  Categorised as aggressive natives who are poor shooters.  Costing 4 points with 12 figures per unit.

A light gun with crew and limber.  Costing 6 points.

I will probably add a couple of units of Albanian skirmishers of six figures each.  Ibrahim Pasha will then have choices about what sort of force to field.  As it stands I have 24 points worth that constitutes a side in Rebels and Patriots.

The Greek War of Independence

A while ago I saw a few clips on youtube from a Greek language film "Papaflessas"on the above.  Very enjoyable and tempting.  Boys in the know on Lead Adventure Forum pronounced uniform and costume details to be correct.  I poked about a bit to see if I could get a hold of a DVD of the whole thing-but no luck.  The seed of a project had been planted all the same.

Then Konstantinos over at the wargames website posted a link to "Exodos" another Greek film set in the period and this time with English subtitles.  Watching it proved to be a rewarding and unusually moving cinematic experience, not least because it’s a true story.  I’d go as far as to say if you don’t feel a lump in the throat and a tear in the eye when the woman messenger reveals her name, you’re either not human or you don’t speak Greek. 

I’d post a link to both these films but the original ones are now dead so I cannot oblige.

All to the good but what about the toys?

In 28mm you can pretty much get everything you might want.  I do 15mm, and there you have to do a bit of lateral thinking and perhaps some fairly gentle conversion work.  The good news first, for the Ottomans Minifigs will do you proud from their Napoleonic range.  You want the Egyptian figures and very nice they are too. 

The Greeks can come from the same range, and from the Greek Volunteers in the Crimean Russian range.  That said the long shirts of the suitable figures could do with some more distinct pleating.  I intend to accomplish this with Green Stuff, and scalpel and my newly acquired Magnivisor Deluxe. Most of Irregular Miniatures Caucasus range have high Greek conversion potential too.

Here is the lead pile, enough for both sides.

Anyhow, early days but a start has been made.  Here is a stand of Turkish troops, lovely little castings.

Here are some conversions of Irregular Caucasus figures into Greek Mounted Infantry/Light Cavalry -the lad in black is a priest. The two other lads are Klephts sometimes bandits sometimes heroic liberators.   

If you have ever enjoyed a dish of Kleftiko it’s named after these boys.  Some decades ago I ate it in the mountains, prepared and cooked in the old way in a hole in the ground with a fire on top.  Appropriately, I then had very long hair and  a droopy 'tache. Precisely the look favoured by every respectable Klepht back in Byron's day and by most young men in my youth.

The troops are based for Rebels and Patriots as you can see.

This project might be a bit of a slow burn as I’ve recently fallen under the spell of the Third Rome* and have a galloping Russian fever of the Napoleonic sort.  More of that in another post.

* "Two Romes have fallen. The third stands. And there will be no fourth.” So said the Russian Orthodox monk Philotheus of Pscov in 1510.  It's an interesting thought and I often muse on it.