Iraq 1941 - Iraqi 1st Infantry Division

Yesterday we had what could be described as the army's elite, remembering everything is relative. Today the noble footsloggers. They very much are leg infantry because despite being trained by the British the equipping only went so far. Thus they have no integral transport for the infantry, unlike their erstwhile trainers.

The typical Iraqi infantry division was modelled upon the British infantry of that period. So it has 3 brigades of infantry each of 3 battalions. 3 regiments of artillery with horse-drawn limbers. 1 squadron or regiment of cavalry which also fulfills a recce function. 1 horse-drawn LOG column and a motorised combined HQ, staff & signals unit.

The sources mentioned yesterday proved valuable again. Especially the Morval Earth site. The artillery is a ix of HAT WW1 German and Airfix RHA. HQ & LOG are diecasts. The cavalry is Zvezda Soviet cavalry with new heads. The infantry is HAT WW1 Turks straight from the box.

 Arty, HQ, LOG, Cav, Inf

 Aerial shot

PS The matt varnish I used was Humbrol Acrylic. I followed the directions given on the can and I got the super-dusty-been-in-the-desert-forever look you can see in the photos. Any help, tips or advice to avoid this is welcome! 

All the best!

Iraq 1941 - Iraqi Mechanized Troops

Hello all,
As you will remember I'm keen on the campaigns of the early part of WW2 and the one in Iraq fits the job description nicely. At first I was bereft of ideas on how to proceed. I knew it was going to be a Megablitz battle and that was it until I remembered my Grandfather has given me a copy of 'The Road Past Mandalay' by John Masters. In the book Masters details his involvement in the Iraq 1941 campaign. This was a good start.

I then purchased the Osprey campaign book 'Iraq 1941' by Robert Lyman. A good reference book; well illustrated with copious photographs, colour plates and maps. Spoilt in parts by Mr Lyman's rather confusing writing style and his anti-Iraqi bias. I feel a more even-handed editor could have eliminated some of the more glaring errors. I like the book a lot.

Finally I stumbled across this web page Morval Earth which is a fantastic resource for all manner of the esoteric including this huge section o Iraq 1941. Lots of fun, chock full of good gen. A real diamond of a web page.

I thought the siege of RAF Habbaniya was ideally suited to a small game: relief columns battling the desert and Iraqi defenders; RAF aircraft of various types defending and attacking; besieging Iraqi mechanized troops; aerial support from Fliegerfuhrer Irak. It's got it all. I already have sufficient figures and vehicles in the WDF boxes but had no Iraqis. I decided to created Iraqi 1st Mechanized Brigade and Iraqi 1st Infantry Division. The Iraqis had been trained and equipped by the British so their organisation follows that of their instructors.

So, for 1st Mech Bde I used HAT WW1 Turkish Infantry with some head swaps onto Revell 8th Army for the infantry. Trucks are all diecasts. The artillery is supposed to be 18lbrs but I used what I had which is HAT WW1 German Artillery. The Iraqi kit is described as olive green which I tried to recreate the colour on the vehicles and equipment followed by a heavy dry brushing with buff. The matt varnish added an unasked for further heavy dusting. Oh well, it is the desert after all. The photos aren't the best either!

Iraqi 1st Mechanized Brigade for Megablitz

 Left to right: POL & LOG Columns, Tankette & A/C Battalions, 

HQ/Staff & Signals, Mechanised Artillery Regiment, Motor MG Company, Motor Infantry

Note the Capacity Markers in the back of the MG & Infantry transports

 Close-up of the armoured units and the POL & LOG columns

 Close-up of the HQ, Artillery and Infantry units

All the best!

Le Vue D'Ensemble

Here are some shots I took of other parts of the battlefield. I've really got no idea what is going on in the pics but it does show the bigger picture of The Toy Battle of France.

Is that German armour?

Yes!

French Armour v German Armour

Look at all those tanks! Surely France is saved now?

Megablitz is fun! Try a game at your earliest opportunity.

MegaBlitz Sitrep

That nice Mr Gow has sent me a copy of the MB rule book. Which I have read several times and am now gagging to take part in an MB battle.

I've decided that the period 1939-1942 is the most fruitful in terms of armies good, bad and indifferent. The chance to field utterly crap tank units in simple block colours was too hard to resist, so I didn't.

The Soviet artillery division is nearing completion. All is in place save a High Power Artillery Regiment and LOG tractor. I think Irregular Minis & FrontLine will be my friends here. I'll post up some pictures of the toys tomorrow. The second Soviet tank corps is also nearly done. Sporting a mix of medium and light tanks I think it looks quite the 1941. 

The 1940ish German infantry division has its three infantry regiments in place plus a horsedrawn LOG column. The 1940ish German panzer division is coming along nicely: pictures below.

Milling about waiting for a start date are my BEF and French toys. Updates as they happen!

Polarina Oil Seconds Before The Hostile Wehrmacht Takeover

1940ish Pz Div (part)

Back Row R-L: POL Column, Pz Abt 1, Pz Abt 2, Motor Inf Bn 1, Motor Inf Bn 2

Front Row R-L: A/T Battalion, A/T Bn LOG, AA Battalion