The wonderful thing about our North Star 1672 range is that the figures will do for many different nations armies in the period 1665-1680. This is
because it is a time just before uniforms, and the figures are all dressed in the fashions common amongst soldiers throughout Western Europe.
This of course includes Britain.
The years covered by our range is called the Restoration Period in Britain as it was the time the monarchy, represented by Charles II, was
restored after the English Civil War.
It was also the genesis of the British Army. Britain, tired of soldiers and war, had disbanded much of it’s forces after the Civil War and Oliver
Cromwell’s reign. With the return of Charles II to England in 1660, the units still under arms swore allegiance to the King and became the senior
units of the British Army.
Some of the infantry regiments:
Coldstream Guards
Grenadier Guards
Scots Guards
1st Regiment (Royal Scots)
2nd Regiment (The Queen’s)
3rd Regiment (The Buffs)
st
because it is a time just before uniforms, and the figures are all dressed in the fashions common amongst soldiers throughout Western Europe.
This of course includes Britain.
The years covered by our range is called the Restoration Period in Britain as it was the time the monarchy, represented by Charles II, was
restored after the English Civil War.
It was also the genesis of the British Army. Britain, tired of soldiers and war, had disbanded much of it’s forces after the Civil War and Oliver
Cromwell’s reign. With the return of Charles II to England in 1660, the units still under arms swore allegiance to the King and became the senior
units of the British Army.
Some of the infantry regiments:
Coldstream Guards
Grenadier Guards
Scots Guards
1st Regiment (Royal Scots)
2nd Regiment (The Queen’s)
3rd Regiment (The Buffs)
st
Colour.
WARGAMING WITH
THE MATABELE
The Founding of the Kingdom
The Matabele saga began in 1822, when Mzilikazi of the
Kumalo, a Ndwandwe clan which had been incorporated into
Shaka's new Zulu kingdom, was sent to attack the Swazis.
Mzilikazi succeeded in capturing a large number of Swazi
cattle, but rashly decided to keep some of them instead of
sending them all to Shaka. Aware that the Zulu king was not
likely to look kindly on this sort of thing, he went into hiding in
the hills of the Kumalo country. Eventually the Zulus found
him, took him by surprise and scattered his followers, but
Mzilikazi and a few hundred others escaped across the
Drakensberg Mountains and onto the High Veldt of what was to
become the Transvaal. Here they encountered scattered groups
of Sotho, Tswana and other peoples, many of whom had
already been impoverished by Nguni or Afrikaner
encroachment, and whose traditional fighting methods were no
match for the Zulu-style tactics introduced by the newcomers.
There Mzilikazi's people continued to pursue their new
Kumalo, a Ndwandwe clan which had been incorporated into
Shaka's new Zulu kingdom, was sent to attack the Swazis.
Mzilikazi succeeded in capturing a large number of Swazi
cattle, but rashly decided to keep some of them instead of
sending them all to Shaka. Aware that the Zulu king was not
likely to look kindly on this sort of thing, he went into hiding in
the hills of the Kumalo country. Eventually the Zulus found
him, took him by surprise and scattered his followers, but
Mzilikazi and a few hundred others escaped across the
Drakensberg Mountains and onto the High Veldt of what was to
become the Transvaal. Here they encountered scattered groups
of Sotho, Tswana and other peoples, many of whom had
already been impoverished by Nguni or Afrikaner
encroachment, and whose traditional fighting methods were no
match for the Zulu-style tactics introduced by the newcomers.
There Mzilikazi's people continued to pursue their new
vocation of cattle rustling. They soon made themselves rich at
the expense of the local Sotho and Tswana tribes, many of
whose survivors were incorporated more or less willingly into
their ranks in the same way as the Zulus had done to the
Ndwandwe. This was the beginning of the class system which
characterised their society in the second half of the century. The
"amaZansi" or "those from the south", in other words the
original Ndwandwe families, constituted the aristocracy. Below
them came the "abeNhla" or "those from the road", who were
absorbed during their time on the High Veldt. Later, when they
moved north of the Limpopo River, the local Shona and
Kalanga tribes were brought in under the name of "Holi". It was
about this time that the name Matabele (or Ndebele) first came
into use. Among the various theories about its origin, the most
appealing is that it meant something like "They Disappear From
Sight", referring to the way in which the warriors took cover
behind their great Zulu-style shields.
the expense of the local Sotho and Tswana tribes, many of
whose survivors were incorporated more or less willingly into
their ranks in the same way as the Zulus had done to the
Ndwandwe. This was the beginning of the class system which
characterised their society in the second half of the century. The
"amaZansi" or "those from the south", in other words the
original Ndwandwe families, constituted the aristocracy. Below
them came the "abeNhla" or "those from the road", who were
absorbed during their time on the High Veldt. Later, when they
moved north of the Limpopo River, the local Shona and
Kalanga tribes were brought in under the name of "Holi". It was
about this time that the name Matabele (or Ndebele) first came
into use. Among the various theories about its origin, the most
appealing is that it meant something like "They Disappear From
Sight", referring to the way in which the warriors took cover
behind their great Zulu-style shields.
