2020 Review Time

 

 Well here we are again for the annual review.

 It's been a pretty involving one; the Dixon Confederate army has taken up a large percentage of this years' efforts, kicking off last January but not actually blogging anything until February; the second infantry unit and an artillery base.

 March and April saw more of the same with some Confederate cavalry, General Longstreet and a third infantry unit before I decided on giving the ACW a bit of a well earned break.

I wouldn't blog again until the July as I spent time trying out bits and pieces, planning a Tilean Mercenary army which took a bit of time. I did manage a few random empire figures but didn't end up blogging any of them.

 So by July I had organised enough and made a significant start on the Tileans with work on a mercenary halberdier unit and also a number of pikemen.

 It was all coming along nicely until I began to struggle with finding uniform colour schemes that I was happy with and wasted about a month trying things with unsatisfactory results. Enough was enough and I needed to put the brakes on the whole idea for now until I was able to find some colours that I was going to be happy with (however long that was going to take!).

 So the last three months were spent back with the Confederates with another artillery piece, a fourth infantry unit and two more command bases of Generals John Bell Hood and Robert E. Lee.

 I did manage to sneak in a Slaanesh Champion for the Scale Creep Champsgiving challenge....

....before rounding things off with a group shot on my Confederate army. 

 I had planned quite a bit over the Christmas holidays but illness totally put paid to that. So regarding 2021, I've no plans as yet, I think it's time for another break from the ACW. I'd like to think this coming year has a diorama or vignette in the offering - let's face it, one of them from me is overdue.

Dixon Miniatures American Civil War - Confederate Army group shot

 

 After getting to a substantial stage with my Dixon Confederate army, I thought it was high time to post up a group shot so here it is so far.

 

  To be honest, I had never planned for anything this size. Initially I bought about 10 figures on a whim just to have a mess around with. Little did I know I'd end up becoming obsessed with this somewhat quirky range of miniatures. Despite not being to everyone's taste, they are brimming with character and authenticity. I just love the little guys!

 

General Robert E. Lee

 

I had to carry out about half a dozen head swaps to avoid duplication thus making every man in the army different. There are another six infantry units still to come and at least one more artillery base and a limber team but it's cavalry that I certainly need to build on next.

 

General James Longstreet 

General John Bell Hood 

2nd Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment

 

8th Virginia Infantry 

3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment

28th North Carolina Infantry

JEB Stuart's Cavalry 

10 Pound Parrot Rifle & Napoleon Gun

Dixon Miniatures American Civil War - General Robert E. Lee

 So I've finally got around to finishing off what will be the centrepiece of my Confederate army, the command base of General Robert E. Lee. I had initially started it back around May or sometime around then before having a break from the whole Civil War thing.

 The figure of Lee from the Dixon range has a great deal of charm and was nice to paint up. There are a number of nice officer figures by Dixon which were well suited to what I wanted to achieve here. I think this is probably the first grey horse I can recall painting actually, which is Traveller of course. 

General Robert E. Lee with staff. Second from left is aide Walter H. Taylor. 

 Ever loyal to his beloved Virginia, it goes without saying that Lee was one of history's greatest military commanders. 

 A top graduate from West Point, Lee took command of the Army of Northern Virginia from June 1862 following the wounding of General Joseph E. Johnston up until the war's end three years later. He was successful in repelling the Army of the Potomac away from Richmond during the Battles of the Seven Days followed by success at Second Manassas.

 Lee's two most notable victories were at Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville, overcoming enormous odds against superior numbers with tactical mastery. After another invasion of the north, Lee was decisively beaten at Gettysburg, coming under fierce criticism for the doomed frontal assault on the Union centre, Pickett's Charge. 

 The following year there were inconclusive battles for Lee at the Wilderness and Spotsylvania before the siege of Petersburg. By the time of the capture of Richmond in 1865, Lee's army was a shadow of its former self and surrender was inevitable. 

 After the war, Lee became President of Washington College in Virginia before passing in 1870.

 I've a couple of infantry to round an 18 man unit up to 20 and then I shall organise a group shot of the army so far which I'll aim to post up at the weekend.