Clubmen

When we think of the British Civil Wars we think of everyone belonging to one of the warring camps - there was another group of people who wanted no part in the war, wanting instead to live a peaceful life. When the war visited them, or more precisely soldiers foraging or looting, they rose up and banded together to protect their homes and property.

"Peace and truth"

Clubmen risings took place in Shropshire, Worcester, and most notably in Dorsetshire. In Bradford citizens rose up and sided with Fairfax, at Adwalton Moor, in defence of their home. The most significant clubmen rising was in Dorsetshire: for a fuller history of the Dorsetshire clubmen might I suggest the following article at Fontmell Magna village, and of course the Clubmen 1645 website and blog.

For those of you who like physical reading material might I suggest that you get a copy of this?

Written by @Clubmen1645, Haydn is a long time supporter of KeepYourPowderDry, and the author of the Clubmen 1645 blog. Get your copy here - although you'd better get a wiggle on if you want one!

My clubmen are, naturally, from the same manufacturer as the bulk of my figures.. However to represent a large rabble of people with just three poses has meant quite a number of headswaps (even harder when one of the figures is a somewhat ridiculously posed captain caveman figure). Must say I am a little disappointed the figure manufacturer (a Dorsetshire company no less!) only makes one pack of clubmen - you'd think with the local connection they'd represent the clubmen with several hundred unique figures at the very least 😉 .

I've based my clubmen in groups of twenty four, on six strips of four figures. Warbases provided custom casualty markers - "Repel all plunderers!" I've used the generic dead ECW figure to represent a dead clubman, I painted the powder flask the same colour as their jackets to try and differentiate their civilian status.

Whilst reading about the clubmen I learnt that they faced Cromwell and the New Model Army at Hambledon Hill, where they carried banners and marched to the sound of drums. So obviously I needed to produce some command stands.

"If you offer to plunder or take our cattle be assured we will bid you battle"

At Hambledon a considerable number of members of the clergy were captured, so my command stands have a preacher, a drummer, a standard bearer and a random bloke from the spares box. Stuart at Maverick produced the flags - the words are accurate, and we know that the flags were white; however I took the liberty of picking scroll designs from known Civil War cavalry cornets.

I liked researching the clubmen, and was looking forward to representing them, but they were a real struggle to produce. I only started feeling happy with them once they were based together. I actually think they've come out alright in the end, and look suitably random and rabble like.

These are the first of the five groups of clubmen. The remaining units will appear here when I get around to doing a gajillion headswaps, and trying to make captain caveman look a lot more realistic.

Channeling  my inner King Théoden "so it begins"

Second unit completed - lots of headswaps in this one

Third group complete

And the fourth, just one more to go..

Last one finished.

All five units. Pretty pleased, they look suitably unique and rabble like despite being made up of just three figures.

Update: somewhere up there ∆  I wrote the words "last one". Wrong!

Well, there was a space in their storage box. A space that would precisely fit another stand of clubmen, and their casualty marker. Not wishing to upset the karmic apple cart, such a gap needed filling. So I have.

Eagles eyed readers might spot a clubman wearing a lobster pot - let's just say 'there's always one', and leave it at that

If you enjoyed reading this, or any of the other posts, please consider supporting the blog. 

Thanks.