Inspiration!

Stacky, one of the Southern Strategists had a flag pole erected in his yard when his house was built. Here is some proof that I obtained that shows clearly which side of the fence Wayne is on!

Wayne's blog can be found here
http://dispatchesfromthemess.blogspot.co.nz/

Inspiration

If you are looking for some inspiration here is a wonderful site with magnificent model buildings built up into an awesome layout and genuine ACW paraphernalia adorning the walls of his room.

http://captainrichardsminiaturecivilwar.blogspot.com/

Captain Richard's blog is full of wonderful photos, so go check them out.

Painting.

If you are looking at painting up some Rebels and who wouldn't want to after all they are far more colourful than the Union army! Here are some links to great photos and info on how to paint them.

http://minimike-ministories.blogspot.co.nz/2011/04/confederate-artillery-battery.html

http://minimike-ministories.blogspot.co.nz/2011/04/basing-walkthrough.html

http://minimike-ministories.blogspot.com/2011/04/painting-confederate-regiment-step-by.html

There are heaps more articles about ACW troops on Mike's blog, even some Union!

Recruits. 

After some discussion we have decided on a points system for the "recruits" section on this blog.

The intention is to encourage us all to put in some effort and get troops ready for the big game.

So, points will be awarded as follows,

        1pt per stand that was already set to go before we decided to do this refight.
        1.5 pts for stands that were largly ready to go but have required some touching up or re-basing etc.
        2 pts for freshly painted up stands.
        4 pts for freshly painted artillery or wagons or Commands stands containing more than 2 mounted figures.

Flags. 

Chris has sent me some links to free downloadable flag sites. If you want some cheap ACW flags take a look at these.

http://www.krigsspil.dk/download/download_4.html


http://grimsbywargamessociety.webs.com/flagdownloads.htm

General Johnson of Ewell's 2nd Corps

Russell has started painting his troops for the big game. Here are a couple of photos he has sent me of
General Johnson  Commander of Ewell's 2nd Corp. 
If the painting of this guy is anything to go by the Rebels will win the prize for "Best Painted Troops"! 

Russell also tells me he is well on the way to getting Jones Brigade painted, so expect more great looking troops soon.

The Journey begins.

July 1^st 2013 will be a special day to many Americans and Civil War afficianados alike.

It was on this day 150 years ago that cavalry units of the Union Army of the Potomac encountered the lead elements of General Lees Confederate Army of Northern Virginia at the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania.

Over the following three days an epic and bloody struggle ensued that has become immortalised as The Battle of Gettysburg.

Described by some as the ‘High tide of the Confederacy’ due to the seemingly endless previous string of Confederate victories and the invincible reputation of its Commander Robert E Lee.  General Lee planned to inflict a decisive blow to the Union Army deep inside Union territory to weaken the resolve of the Northern States to continue the conflict and gain support from Britain.  

Lee at this stage of the conflict commanded some of the most aggressive, battle hardened veterans, full of confidence in their martial prowess, their commanders and an almost God-like adulation of ‘Bobby Lee’.

It is claimed that at no time since this battle did the Confederacy regain the initiative and despite some outstanding victories their star never gained the ascendency. With hindsight we can see it must have been a massive reality check for the South.

It should be remembered that the toll on both sides combined was 7863 killed and 27,224 wounded. The fact that it took over two months to bury the dead and clear the field bears testimony to the sacrifice these men made.

It is in honour of that sacrifice that the Southern Strategists have chosen to commemorate this Battle with a Refight of the 2^nd and 3^rd days in 28mm scale using the excellent Fire and Fury Rules and Scenario notes. Inspired by a hugely successful Borodino refight that a number of talented New Zealand gamers staged in September in Christchurch we plan to make this event both memorable and fun.

So ‘Rally to the flag boys’ and keep your eye on events as they unfold on this blog devoted solely to the Gettysburg Refight 2013.

The photos below are from a demo game of the fight for the Round Tops we played a few years ago.

Here are a few very interesting facts from the battle of Gettysburg.

After the battle 37,574 rifles left laying on the battlefield were collected.
• 24,000 were still loaded
• 6,000 had one round in the barrel
• 12,000 had two rounds in the barrel
• 6,000 had three to ten rounds in the barrel

The Confederate wagon train of wounded sent back to Virginia after the battle was 17 miles long.

More than 3,000 horses were killed at Gettysburg. Lydia Lyster, who owned the small farmhouse used by George Meade as his headquarters, found 17 dead horses in her yard. Her only compensation for the extensive damage to her property was selling their bones at a half cent per pound.

After the battle the army paid 13 cents per pound for lead gathered by Gettysburg civilians. After a boy was killed trying to pound open an artillery shell to get the lead pellets out the army refused to accept lead from children under 18.

By Gavin (Hancock) Bowden.