Osman Digna and his personal standard bearer

My adjustment to the organisation of the Hadnedowa army is now complete, and very much a family affair.

Osman Digna leads it, of course, and I have just completed his standard bearer Abdul Adab, both shown in the image below. The artillery will be commanded by Digna’s nephew, Fai, and the rubs will be commanded by two of Digna’s cousins, Muhammad Mussa, and Mahsud Musa, another by his nephew Madani bin Ali, while the fourth is commanded by Abdallah bin Hasid.

Osman Digna and his personal standard bearer Abdul Adab.

Last of the Beja …

I have finished basing the last two bands of Hadendowa warriors, which will complete my black flagged rub, commanded by Osman Digna himself.

I finished the crouching miniatures’ bases with plenty of tufts for them to conceal themselves behind. I’m pretty pleased with the overall look of these fellows.

I added a wire spear to one of the crouching figures so that he could fly a black edged flag. The crouching drummer conversion looks the part too.

The rifle-armed band are similar to the previous ones, with some armed with rifles from the Zulu rifle frame.

Top–to–bottom: Hadendowa warriors crouching in ambush; the converted flag bearer; rifle-armed warriors.

The Beja army

I have finished my Mahdist army … for the moment. Comprising three rubs, a camel mounted band, another band of warriors on foot, and a brass gun battery, it’s 195 figures.

As I finish a unit I put the figures into box files (lined with magnetic sheet), so this is the first time I have had them all out … and it looks like quite a large host. There will be more – of course there will! I already have a handful of painted figures over, and a mix of plastic and metal figures in the drawer.

But first I want to finish the Empire uints I have.

Osman Digna’s Mahdist army. In due course I will name the tribal leaders.

The Berkshires, two command groups … and a small dog

I have finally finished my first army infantry unit, and added command groups for the Suakin Field Force and the Red Sea Littoral Mahdists.

My latest unit has been a long time coming – I first posted something about my idea for it back in January. I wanted to include some of the character of contemporary eye witness war correspondents’ illustrations, typical of The Graphic and The Illustrated London News, and embodied by the painting by Karl Kopinski, which adorns the cover of Mike Snook’s Go Strong into the Desert.

The 24 figure unit is now finished, and I am very pleased with the way they turned out.

While finishing these fellows, and working on three more bands of Beja warriors, I assembled Lt-Gen Graham’s HQ group and Osman Digna’s command group. The former comprises mounted figures of Graham, a staff officer, and a red flag bearer (who accompanied the chief to indicate his location). The latter comprises a mounted Osman Digna, two flag bearers, a tribal leader, and a drummer.

Today I learned that a Toy Spaniel accompanied one of the Berkshire’s officers in the Sudan, which led me to think about the possibility of a small vignette. More of this in a later post.

Top–to–bottom: The Berkshires, Graham’s HQ group, Osman Digna’s command group, and a slightly modified Bobby from Perry Miniatures’ plastic Afghan/Sudan British infantry set.

Merry Christmas from the work bench

Merry Christmas to my followers and visitors. I hope you have a relaxing time over the next few days and get a bit of time for whatever kind of wargaming activity takes your fancy.

I am in the middle of basing the 1st battalion, Princess Charlotte of Wales’s (Berkshire) Regiment (who look very keen to get stuck in), and Lieutenant-General Graham’s and Osman Digna’s command groups.

Also on the bench are some more palm tress and a cork-faced hill in three sections. Perfect holiday projects.

Command groups, Osman Digna’s on the left and Graham’s on the right, with the Berkshires getting stuck in at the front. (All Perry Miniatures.)

Last of the Beja …

As the British Infantry and command figures approach completion I prepped the last of the Beja, a healthy mix of plastic and metal figures.

These will form three bands, two of which will join a band of rifle armed fellows. The other will join the brass gun battery and camel mounted band, and form around Osman Digna and his command.

Osman Digna’s command, with variously armed warriors. I’m looking forward to painting these.