All Guns Blazing — January 2012

1 All Guns Blazing! Newsletter of the Naval Wargames Society No. 213 –February 2012 EDITORIAL Gentlemen, I trust you all had a splendid Christmas? I don’t know about you, but while Christmas gets me as excited as any six-year-old, New Year leaves me feeling, well, a trifle flat; it’s not half as much fun—no presents, for instance. But enough of Christmas, what does the New Year hold; what in particular for AGB? I mentioned last month that my new show in London at night coupled with keeping things going in Warwickshire during the day, means that for the foreseeable future I am going to be extremely busy work- wise; in fact just about all I’ll be doing is working. I mustn’t grumble because I know plenty of chaps in my line who aren’t doing much at all and I’m very lucky. One of the perils of being self-employed is having to take all the work you can while you can in case it suddenly dries up! On top of everything else we have introduced a pup to the family (er, canine not Sopwith!) and it is like having a baby on the go again! Therefore, and with a very heavy heart, I must announce to the Society that I shall be relinquishing my post as editor in the next couple of months or so. The silver lining is that member Mel Spence has already agreed to take my place, and I’m sure you will continue to support him as you have me over the past two- and-a-half years. I have become very attached to AGB over this time, and I’m sure I will miss it, but I really am struggling keeping everything on an even keel, as it were. Anyway, on with the issue. Once again I am indebted to the prolific Rob Morgan who has supplied just about the whole shebang. ‘Up Spirits!’ Richard Wimpenny wimpenny@talktalk.net Shipping the Medieval Military English Maritime Logistics in the Fourteenth Century. By Craig Lambert. Pub; Boydell 2011-hb. 240pp. ISBN 978-1-84383-654-4. Reviewed by Rob Morgan. An excellent and valuable book for the medieval naval enthusiast, its ample detail and information for the creation of a campaign or indeed for providing individual ships and fleets, small and large for a number historical ventures from these shores. Lambert starts by ‘raising a fleet’, the sources of ships, the requisition orders which flowed incessantly from the crown with remarkable complexity. The process of requisition, of the passage of fleets to France and Scotland, and their return journeys are considered. I think some wargamers forget that after the archers are deposited in the muddy fields of Picardy, and won, they have to come home! This account is intriguing, and in some ways provides a reverse of the usual naval wargames in the Channel. There are throughout, ample footnotes and references, many of which may not be known to those with any but the most specific 100YW interest.

2 The book moves on to ‘The Supply of Armies and Garrisons by Sea 1320-1360’; the logistics of planning war are dealt with in detail, and of course the ‘wars overseas’ were in not only France, but Brittany, Ireland and Scotland. Lambert reminds us that troops did not survive by foraging alone- they couldn’t rely on that except in extremis. The supply of English armies during the naval war in Scotland between 1322 and 1336 required substantial numbers of ships, large and small, despite there being a land border between the two states. In 1322, some 100+ ships, in transport roles, accompanied by 183 in ‘offensive naval capacities’ sailed, and there were 10,000 mariners in service! The Scots wars from 1337 to 1360 required no less effort, but at the time of Sluys the ship totals were reduced to 96; this long conflict was often, apparently, far more lively at sea than it was on land. Supplying English troops in France up t0 1349 included the massive naval activity surrounding the St.Sardos campaign of 1324; which Lambert says is one of the best documented campaigns of the entire period! He ventures to Gascony from 1337 onwards, and deals with the Crecy campaign separately. ’English armies campaigning on the continent’ he tells us, ’brought enough supplies so that living off the land became a secondary consideration.’ He takes away the idea of a small, half-starved force, foraging and fighting its way through enemy territory to a friendly port, and Edward III he tells us was particularly efficient, or his officers and system proved so! In a following chapter, Lambert deals with transporting English armies to France between 1324 and 1360, and assembling and preparing the fleets became a mountainous task, since the English at the outset didn’t control a safe port in France. The author considers many of the key fleets of the War, such as Surrey’s feet of 1325 en route for Gascony, some 84 ships in all, while the later fleets discussed make for interesting reading. In 1338 what he calls the first true military transport fleet of the 100YW comprised 403 ships with 13,000 mariners. Of course during this entire war, the Channel was without doubt the most remarkable, and most active theatre of combat. He looks at the 187strong fleet which carried the Black Prince to Aquitaine in 1355, and Lambert’s opinions seem true, that rather than being no more than a footnote to the land campaign which followed ( and sometimes it didn’t) the fleet was one of the crucial elements of all. Interestingly, as ships assembled they often sailed in ‘County’ fleets, until dispersed by orders. This sometimes gave the chance of ‘falling out’ between groups of ships, the Cinque Ports were notorious for this internecine strife, as was Yarmouth. The book concludes with an analysis of the developments of the period; changing fleet organisation, the immense value of Calais, and the impact of the Black Death after 1348. I can’t think of many wargamers who plan the Black Death into their 100YW campaigns! After this little plague incidentally, the tonnage of ships slipped and slumped from a mean of 92 tons per vessel tom53, with a third to a half fewer crewmen! In drawing to a close, Lambert considers that the contribution of the English to war at sea in the 100YW period was if anything far greater than that contributed to war on land. He puts an interesting point….for Crecy, King Edward only assembled 14,000 soldiers ( a substantial army of course) but he recruited 16,000 sailors and mariners to get them to France, sustain them, and protect their supply routes. He rightly says the Channel and the northern seas ‘were the main artery in England’s wars’. This is an interesting book, one which deserves to be read by any wargamer with an interest in that finest of all periods the medieval! Highly recommended. Fighting Ships and Prisons The Mediterranean Galleys of France in the Age of Louis XIV. By Paul Bamford. Minnesota Univ. Press. 1973. ISBN 0-8166-0655-2. Reviewed by Rob Morgan. I won’t apologise for reviewing a book which, at least in the UK, is long out of print, because it’s value to the Renaissance naval wargamer is obvious. Having encountered it on the neglected shelves of one of the University’s libraries, I honestly couldn’t put it down!

3 The author describes this as the first attempt to deal with the subject in English, and given the thorough bibliography that may be so. To Louis XIV, and the French people his galleys were symbolic, ‘religious tools’ of war; many, indeed at some stages in his reign most of them were commanded by Knights of the Order of St.John, though they were crewed almost entirely by Protestant prisoners and Muslim slaves. ‘Every French galley was a prison.’ The book is full of detail and of nuggets of valuable information. As late as 1690, Louis built a fleet of 15 galleys for use against his enemies on the Atlantic seaboard, for coastal defence and for trade protection, raiding and reconnaissance. There were some remarkable high points in galley warfare even this late. For example in 1638 off Genoa Rodrigo de Velasco commanding 15 Spanish galleys, considered an elite force, took on an equal number of French galleys. de Velasco lost six of his vessels compared with three French galleys, and ended as a wounded prisoner. The author asserts that thereafter, when French and Spanish galley squadrons met, the Spanish would refuse battle, they ‘lacked audacity’ he writes1 He compares the galley with the Ship[-of-the-Line, stating that ‘heavy guns were incompatible’ with their use in war; but he makes much of the loss of a Dutch 56 gun warship to six French galleys commanded by de la Pailleterie in 1702. He provides an extensive consideration of the Mediterranean galley fleet base at Marseilles, of the building of galleys and the problem of victualling. He deals with the officers, they were after 1680 inevitably noble by birth, with the lower ranks, the crew, even the Chaplains, and of course the rowers –slaves and prisoners. His account of life afloat and ashore for these men reflects that of Jean Valjean in ‘les Miserables’. In over twenty five years from ranks numbering in the tens of thousands, only 366 men managed to escape! Gradually of course as the 1700’s went on, the prison role became paramount, and the Knights of Malta, sensing the shift in the wind, turned away from galley warfare. This is an intriguing book, well worth reading, and filled with interesting line drawings. One of which is shown here. A series of galley flags. Though unfortunately, the author goes no further, the colours of the French and Spanish flags can be determined easily enough, but what of the others? The Arab states in particular. Can anyone explain? There’s a decent map of Marseilles too, useful for a wargame based on a raid in the Hornblower fashion! ROB’S CHRISTMAS SEA QUIZ! Last month Rob Morgan furnished us with a bumper Christmas quiz special, and here are the answers as provided by Dave Sharp. Dave has done a splendid job and duly won the paper model of HMS Dreadnought; he decided to donate it back to the Society for a future prize. Dave obviously didn’t spend all Christmas watching telly but glued to his reference books…stout fellow! 1. The 20 Destroyers of the 1912-13 Programme which formed the 'L' Class were originally named after literary characters. What were the original names, and to what were they changed? Daring – Lance Dragon – Lookout Florizel – Laforey Haughty – Lark Havock – Linnet Hereward – Laverock Hotspur – Landrail Ivanhoe – Lawford Orlando – Loyal Picton – Llewellyn Portia – Lennox Redgauntlet – Laurel Rob Roy – Leonidas Rocket - Lucifer Rosalind – Liberty

4 Sarpedon – Laertes Talisman – Louis Ulysses – Lysander Viola – Legion Waverley – Lydiard 2. What were the naval toasts for each night of the week? Monday – Our ships at sea Tuesday – Our men Wednesday – Ourselves (as no-one else is likely to concern themselves with our welfare) Thursday – A bloody war or a sickly season Friday – A willing foe and searoom Saturday – Sweethearts and wives (may they never meet) Sunday – Absent friends There are variations, but these are the most common forms. 3. Which 12 British armoured ships have been named after battles? Aboukir (1898) Agincourt (1861 & 1911) Barfleur (1890) Blenheim (1888) Camperdown (1882) Cressy (1898) Hogue (1898) Nile (1886) Ramillies (1889 & 1913) Trafalgar (1886) A number have been named after people (e.g. St Vincent) who took titles from battles or places (e.g. Lowestoft) which have had battles named for them, but I assume this is the required list. 4. In one Battleship Division at Jutland each of the 4 ships had different calibre guns. What were the ships and the guns? 3rd Division Iron Duke 13.5” Mk V Royal Oak 15” Mk I Superb 12” Mk X Canada 14” Mk I 5. Name 9 British warships lost in peacetime disasters whose names have never been used again. Captain (1870) Eurydice (1878) Cobra (1901) Gladiator (1908) K5 (1921) M1 (1925) Thetis (1939) Truculent (1950) Affray (1951) A number of others lost in time of war but through no enemy agency (e.g Association(1707)) or whose names were only used by minor warships (e.g. Victoria (1893)) could be added, but these are the only ones I can find lost in peacetime whose names were never reassigned.

5 6. When was the office of Lord High Admiral last held? By whom? At the time the question was asked, the last Lord High Admiral (of Great Britain) was Thomas Herbert, Earl of Pembroke. The office was put into commission from 1709 to 1964. Currently the title Lord High Admiral (of the United Kingdom) is held by the Duke of Edinburgh. 7. Name the first carrier to be designed as such, and have an island funnel on the starboard side. HMS Hermes (1924) 8. The last Royal Naval Destroyer to have three funnels? HMS Leeds (Ex-USS Conner) - sold 1947 9. Give 6 names each beginning with 'C, each borne by three or more warships since 1877. Assuming RN only and excluding ships extant in 1877. Cambrian (1893, 1916, 1943) Carysfort (1878, 1915, 1944) Cleopatra (1878, 1915, 1940) Colossus (1882, 1911, 1944) Comet (1910, 1931, 1944) Comus (1878, 1915, 1945) Constance (1880, 1916, 1944) Contest (1894, 1913, 1944) Cossack (1886, 1907, 1937, 1944) Cygnet (1898, 1931, 1942) 10. Which Royal Navy warship had the battle honours Sabang 1944, Burma 1945 and Korea 1950-52? HMS Ceylon (1943) Well, super work there, Dave. Now on with Rob’s regular quiz! NAVY LEAGUE QUIZ PART SIXTEEN Rob explains of the original compiler… Sometimes the compiler of this little amusement did strange things. Take Question 1; have you ever thought about that, has it crossed your mind? Then again, other questions, such as number 3, could have been written for any Marine who may have picked up a copy of the original quiz by chance. 1.Give ten British warships with adjective names. 2.What ships were nicknamed ‘pepper-pot’ during the WWII Malta convoys? 3. To which King (allegedly) was the title of Royal Navy attributed? 4. Name which ship suffered and sank due to HMSs Broke, Contest and Marksman, and say where it happened. 5. Name the first RN destroyer to burn oil fuel. Have fun, everyone; answers next month.

6 SIGNAL PAD! I received this email plug for this ‘General Quarters’ rule supplement from ‘Old Dominion Games Workshop’ a couple of weeks ago and I thought you all may be interested. Plan Orange-type games have always fascinated me! Dear Richard Wimpenny, We are pleased to announce the Cherry Tree Supplement is now ready for download - http://www.odgw.com/forums/index.php?/files/category/108-cherry-tree-supplement/ - free to all registered General Quarters Third Edition owners The powerful super dreadnought designs scrapped by the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 have long fascinated most of us. Now, Chris Cafiero has provided the means for you to explore how these Cherry Trees might have impacted history if they had not been chopped down. IJN: battlecruiser Amagi * battleships Kii and Owari * battleship Tosa USN: Constellation & Constitution * BB47 Washington * BB49 South Dakota Royal Navy: G3 class battlecruisers * HMS Anson, sister to HMS Hood Chris first sets the stage with informative articles on the Japanese “8 – 8 Plan" and how a delayed, re- negotiated Washington Treaty could have resulted in agreements to complete additional ships. Then, Sudden Storm provides the perfect laboratory for exploring how the Cherry Trees would have fared in naval combat. New options provide two implementation levels along with “what if" scenarios for clashes between the Royal Navy and the IJN or the USN. Cherry Tree Ship Logs are provided for three periods: 1925 as built, 1937 refits and 1942 WW II upgrades so you can add them to games in multiple decades. Download and Enjoy! Happy Holidays from ODGW JOINING THE NAVAL WARGAMES SOCIETY If you have been lent this newsletter and would like to join the Naval Wargames Society, please follow this link to join our Society: www.navalwargamessociety.org. NWS Events and Regional Contacts, 2009 NWS Northern Fleet – Falkirk East Central Scotland Kenny Thomson, 1 Excise Lane, Kincardine, Fife, FK10 4LW, Tel: 01259 731091 e-mail: kenny.thomson@homecall.co.uk - Website: http://falkirkwargamesclub.org.uk/

7 Falkirk Wargames Club meets each Monday night at 7pm with a variety of games running each evening. Naval games are popular with 2 or 3 run each month. Campaign games sometimes feature in our monthly weekend sessions. Games tend to be organised week to week making a 3- month forecast here a waste of time. Please get in touch if you’d like to come along.  Popular periods – Modern (Shipwreck), WW1 and 2 (GQ), WW2 Coastal (Action Stations), and Pre-dreadnought (P Dunn’s rules) NWS North Hants [Every 3rd Sunday] Jeff Crane 31 Park Gardens, Black Dam, Basingstoke, Hants, 01256 427906 e-mail: gf.crane@ntlworld.com NWS Wessex [Bi-Monthly Meetings] The Wessex Group has gone into (hopefully) temporary abeyance for the moment. If anyone living in the Bath / Bristol / Gloucester area (or further afield) would like to take on managing the group please contact myself or any of the other NWS officials.