Volume 3 Issue 3

August 2014

Cher Ami
G R E A T

C O N T A C T S

W A R

S I G

N E W S L E T T E R

W E L C O M E

great.war.sig@gmail.com
Dave Hooper adlth@btinternet.com
(Sig Leader)
Steve Cox steveoldglebe@gmail.com
(Deputy Leader)

Time seems to fly, and weve already made it to Newsletter number 3 for 2014. This is of
course as close to the centenary of the beginning of the conflict as I have managed and
many of the articles within have been drafted to reflect those early days when most people on both sides of the front line thought the whole thing would be over by Christmas.

C O N T R I B U T O R S

Knut Erik Hagen, Steve Cox,

David Calhoun, Richard Alexander, Mike McCabe, Dave Hooper,
John Harris, Nigel Denchfield,
Dugald Emans, Paul Thompson,
Nils R. Treichel, Peter Harrison,
Janet Cox, Geoff Carhill, Graham
James and Alan Pask.

I N S I D E T H I S
I S S U E :

Page 1: Welcome
Page 2: GWSig News
Page 4 GWSIG Shows
Page 12: Modeling News
Page 22: Reviews
Page 26: Builds
26: Ilya Muromets
29 Central Workshop Female tank
31 Model T Ambulance
33 German fuel cart
Page 35: Book News
Page 37: Book Reviews
Page 39 1/1 scale news
Page 42: AV7 - Wotan
Page 45 FT-17 part 4
Page 47: HMS Canopus
Page 49: Enver Pasha part 1
Page 54: St Symphorien
Page 56 On the Workbench

With SMW2014 getting ever closer, you may have noticed e-mails requesting information on relatives affected by the Great Conflict and reading some of the responses
that we have so far received has brought the reality of total war home to me in a much
more personal way than of the media has managed.
By the time you ready this letter, it will be one hundred years almost to the day that the
First battle of the Marne commenced which turned the tide of the German advance and
setting in motion a stalemate that would continue for four years. Its estimated that
500,000 soldiers (mainly French and German) were killed or wounded during this engagement. The sad part of the story is that mankind still does not seem to have learned
valuable lessons from what happened one hundred years ago other than how to kill each
other more efficiently.
As ever I would like to thank everybody who has kindly taken the time to contribute to
this letter, a complete list of which is printed in the top left hand column. In particular,
thank you to those who have contributed for the first time, which I hope will be the first
of many.
This will be the last letter before the big one; SMW2014 and we hope that the display
that we are putting on this year will be a good reflection of the enthusiasm we all have
for our hobby. I am looking forward to the weekend and to meeting many of you. As in
previous years when it gets closer to the event we will arrange some times when all
members can come along, meet each other and go for a quick pint. Steve Cox and Nigel
Rayner are designing the display based on the models that have been offered but Im
sure they would be happy of any help or input in this matter that any members want to
give.
Well thats about as much space as I have to waffle on. I hope you essentially enjoy the
Newsletter and I look forward to meeting some of you in November.
DH

Page 60: And Finally.

Visit the Great War SIG website at

https://sites.google.com/site/greatwarsig/home

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C h e r

T e l l

u s

a b o u t

As part of the GWSIG commemorative display at Scale

Modelworld this year, we are planning a "wall of remembrance." We would like to remember people who served
in the Great War, especially those connected with all of
us. One idea is to have a poppy of some form with the
name and details of someone who served on it. We will
then put all the poppies on one table at the end of the
display as a mark of respect. We would therefore like to
ask you all to provide us with the following information
for any of your family members that served in
WWI: Name:Unit: (any known unit, or just which arm they
served in, eg army, navy, RNAS, RFC etc) Served from/
until: (dates of service in years if known, eg 1915 to 1918)
Killed in service: Yes or no (we would like to be able to
highlight those that gave their lives) Please provide us
S c a l e

M o d e l

W o r l d

y o u r

A m i

R e l a t i v e s !

with details of as many family members that you know,

there's no need to limit it to one family member. We
hope you agree this will add the right degree of poignancy to the display.
Please contact us at the normal e-mail address;
great.war.sig@gmail.com

2 0 1 4

Thank you to everybody who has offered models for the

SMW2014 display. I think we had over 300 models in the
end. Steve Cox and Nigel Rayner are currently doing the
unenviable task of sorting these in to displays and should
be contacting everybody who has submitted models
shortly to confirm what models are
required. Themes will include a historical timeline, the development of
the aircraft during WW1, Jutland,
Falklands and Coronel, Bombing as
well as a Jasta of colourful German

fighters. The display will cover and island of twelve 6ft

tables with the end (13th) table being given over to the
British Legion.
If any members would like to be involved in helping to
design the final layouts of the display please contact us

G W S I G

G u i d e

p u b l i s h e d

Scale Aviation modeller International has published part 1 of the IPMS Great
War SIG guide to WW1 aircraft modelling in the September issue. This multi
parted guide has been compiled from Great War SIG members hints and Tips
and Id like to thank all those who have contributed. In particular Nigel Rayner,
Steve Cox, Alan Pask , Paul Thompson and Hugh Beyts all provided improvements to the final draft. The guide will provide monetary aid to the SIG, initially to help fund the SMW2014 display .

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I P M S

M a g a z i n e

W W 1

S p e c i a l

The latest IPMS Magazine is a WW1 centenary special containing a host

of WW1 related articles in a larger than normal magazine. These include
Steve Coxs build of HMS Iron Duke - well done Steve. Also included is a
beautiful 1/48th Felixstowe, A Rolls Royce Armoured car and a Trench
Crossing machine (which you will be able to see on the GWSIG display at
Telford). If you are already a member of IPMS you should already have a
copy, if you are not, now might be a good time to join, especially as Editor Don Carrick has enough WW1 material left over for at least one article in each of the next few issues.

GWSIG would like to welcome the following new members to the Group (that have joined since the last letter).
Geoff Carhill
Mark Woodall
Dave Smith

G W S I G

E V E N T S

C A L E N D E R

2 0 1 4

14th Sept Sutton Coldfield Model Spectacular

21st Sept Wings and Things 2014, Spalding
Oct 18th
Glasgow Model Fest
Nov 8th-9th Scale Model World 2014, Telford
Nov 23rd Bugle Call, Bath
Dates in Blue are unconfirmed
if you have a show in your area and would like to host a GWSIG table, feel free to arrange and contact me so that I can list it in the
events calendar.

Members discounts and special offers reminder

Rowan Broadbent of Pheon Models has generously
offered a 15% discount to all GWSIG members purchasing
Pheon Model decals directly from him. Pheon has a large
and growing selection of WW1 decals sets available in all
popular scales.
In order to take advantage of this offer your will need to
e-mail Rowan and Sabine directly at
pheon@pheondecals.com with your order clearly stating
in the mail that you are a member of the Great War SIG.
Please note that the 15% offer is not valid for Brian Fawcett models products which Pheon also stock.
A website for Pheon is currently under construction at
http://www.pheondecals.com/

Colin Strachan of Freightdog Models offers a 15% discount on Pegasus and Blue Max items ordered from his
website by GW SIG members. To get the discount simply
put the order in at www.freightdogmodels.co.uk and in
the comments box state 'GWSIG member'. Colin will
then refund the 15% from your order. Note all website
orders are processed via paypal. Alternatively you can
phone Colin on 01342 716004 and do a card payment
over the phone, with correct amount deducted first.

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S C A L E M O D E L S E X P O
W e l l i n g t o n N . Z
5 t h - 6 t h A p r i l

Hosted by Scale Models Wellington IPMS,

this years Scale Models Expo was held over
the weekend of 5-6 April 2014 and attracted
entries from all over New Zealand and some
from Australia. About 1000 models were on
display for the large numbers of the public
that made the journey to Upper Hutt.
Amongst the special themed displays was
one representing the Great War SIG which
had about 50 models covering figures, vehicles, armour and of course aircraft, most on
loan from Scale Models Wellington members James Fahey, Malcolm Thomas, Mike
Regan, Mike Butler, Bruce Adam, Dave Johnson, and myself. Additional to the display a
good number of Great War aircraft were
entered in the compettition and I have included some photos.
GW SIG signage was rather unobtrusive and
unfortunately the cards printed from the
supplied PDF for the public to take away
were only noted as being gibberish (see the

attached photo!) on the day of the show, too late to try and reprint
them.
All in all a great show and I'm sure there will be something similar at the
next scheduled Scale Models Expo in 2016.
Richard Alexander

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M i d l a n d

E x p o , H a l e s o w e n
2 7 t h J u l y

Photos by Steve Cox

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I P M S A V O N M o d e l S h o w
T h o r n b u r y 1 0 t h A u g u s t

This really is one of my favourite shows on the modelling

calendar, taking place for the second year in succession at
the Thornbury Leisure centre just slightly north of Bristol.
The GWSIG; represented by Nigel Rayner, Peter James,
Richard Andrews, Dave Lumbard and myself put on a
cracking display at this lively and busy show which pulled in
a lot of steady interest throughout the day. Graham James
also happened to be on the table next to us and so he
placed his growing collection of WW1 aircraft next to our
display. What makes the Thornbury show especially interesting is the inclusion of a large selection of wargames be-

ing demonstrated including a couple of WW1 games

(Wings of War being one). Elsewhere WWI had a good
showing with Isca IPMS in particular putting on a very
impressive commemorative display. The competition
area was not particularly well stocked with WW1 models. A WNW Bristol Fighter came second in its class and
a pair of 1/72 WW1 tanks came 1st and 2nd in their
class. Another classic show resulting in a sore throat
from too much talking.
DH

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A selection of photos from the IPMS Avon

show

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E a s t

o f

S c o t l a n d S h o w ,
1 6 t h A u g u s t

This years show was the most successful to date,

being able to attract Jamieson's Models from Glasgow as a trader for the second year has really given
us a boost. All the clubs generally come to exhibit
and a few SIGs are there including ours; the Great
War SIG.
As before it is pretty much a solo effort but it does
generate a great deal of interest and I am always
encouraging other exhibitors to place something
on the table.
Unfortunately the only new item in my layout was
the Zvezda 1/350 Russian Battleship, Sebastopol.
Dugald Emans

D u n d e e

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F e r t e - A l a i s

a n d

S a u m u r

Knut Erik Hagen visits the Concours International de Maquettes

The Whitsun weekend is a good time for WW1 modelling enthusiasts to visit France. It is usually possible to attend both the
airshow at Ferte-Alais in the outskirts of Paris and the model
competition "Concours International de Maquettes" held at
Muse des blinds in Saumur.
With both of them being two day events (Saturday and Sunday) is it possible to select the day you attend based on weather forecast if you are in Paris. Ferte-Alais is just an hour by local
train from central Paris and Saumur can be done as a day trip
using the TGV.
There were quite a few WW1 replicas and restored aircraft on
show at Ferte-Alais, but the only one I saw take to the air was a
SPAD 13.
It isn`t surprising to find many vehicle models on display at a
show held in a tank museum, but there were also a good number of aircraft and some ships as well. There were fewer vendors than in previous years, but still plenty of opportunities to
exchange money for kits and reference books.
Quite a few WW1 tanks and other vehicles both in 1:35 and
1:72 scale on the model tables, most of them from kits, but
also some scratch builds. The museum demonstrates some of
the tanks and AFVs in running condition during the model
show, but there were no WW1 tanks or trucks this year even

though they have a couple of Renault FT-17s available.

Might be that they are saving them for 2017/18.
Knut Erik Hagen

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A selection of models photographed at

Concours International de Maquettes

Knut Erik Hagen

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These pages attempt to give an overview of WW1 modelling News from

June 2014 to the present.

Wingnut Wings provided a pair of welcome surprises

in July in the shape of two DFW C.V kits:
32040 DFW C.V Mid production 1/32 : includes markings for
five aircraft, 3 styles of side mounted radiators 320 plastic
pieces and 12 photo etch parts
32057 DFW C.V late production 1/32: includes marking for
five aircraft on two sheets, 306 plastic parts and 12 photo
etch parts
Also recently released has been a further variant of the Albatros kit :
32047: Albatros D.Va (OAW): Including markings for five
aircraft and 5 colour lozenge. The 149 plastic parts are identical to the previous D.Va kit with the exception of an improved Axial Prop. The kit also includes 9 photo etch parts.
Visit http://www.wingnutwings.com/ww/ for further details

Fahrenheit miniatures latest release is a

75mm Lieutenant, French Chasseurs Alpins, "Diables
Bleus", 1918. The kit contains 10 parts. Visit http://
www.hvminiatures.com/?product_cat=fahrenheitminiature-project for information

Small stuff models have announced the addition of a

Mercedes D.IIIa/au engine to their growing range of 1/72 resin
WWI engines. Visit http://www.smallstuffmodels.com/ or their
facebook page for the latest info.

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Andrea Miniatures are to produce a 1/32 Mark I tank

(S3-A03) complete with steering trolley. The kit is a combination of metal and resin parts and depicts the Male Variant. Visit
http://www.andreaeurope.com/en/ for more information.

The Model Cellar has announced the release of a 1/35 scale WWI
French Tanker (MC35117). Sculpted my Mike Good, this figure comes with
two heads. One head with Beret attached, and a second half head and
separate helmet. This figure makes a great accessory for the new 1/35 FT17 kits from Meng, or the St.Chamond from Takom, and the upcoming
Schneider from Hobby Boss. In addition Model Cellar has re-issued a pair
of figures; WWI British Infantry 1916 Somme (MC35102) available either
as a pair or separately. Go to http://www.modelcellar.com/ for further info.

Valom continue to add to their line of

1/144th scale aircraft with the release of the
Albatros D.V/ DVa (14406). As with previous
kits the boxing contains enough plastic to
build two complete models. Valoms next
1/144th WWI scale set will be the Fokker Dr1.
Go to http://www.valom.net/index_en.html
for the latest info.

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The latest products from Tommys

War include the following;

TW10B02: 1/10 scale bust featuring a Captain of the 2nd Battalion

South Wales Borderers at Tasingtao in 1914. Based in Hong Kong
at the outbreak of the war the South Wales Borderers formed part
of a joint attack on the German port of Tsingtao with the Japanese
army in the latter part of 1914 before being sent to Gallipoli.
TW54023 - Corporal, London Irish Rifles, Loos 1915
TW54024 - Private, 1/7th Bn Lancashire Fusiliers, Cape Helles 1915
Go to http://tommyswar.co.uk/ for further News.

Migjimenez has released two paint products aimed

specifically at WWI and interwar armour. Each set includes six acrylic based paints:
A.MIG-7111: WWI British & German Colours. This set
includes: Dull Green, Ochre Earth and Clay Brown for
German vehicles Green Moss for most of the UK vehicles during WW I Stone Grey, Brown Soil and Ochre
Earth for Solomon paint scheme of UK vehicles deployed in Europe.
A.MIG-7110: WW I & WW II French Camouflage Colours.
This set includes the six most common colors used by
the French army with Scale Effect Reduction; Pale
Green, Warm sand Yellow, French Blue, Pale Grey, Earth
Brown & Forest Green.
More information can be found at http://
www.migjimenez.com/en/

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MPM will be producing two kits depicting the Bristol M1C in 1/32 to commemorate the Great War centenary. The
main parts are of a short-run standard, smaller parts from metal moulds and the intricate pilots seat is made using
3D printer and then cast from resin. There will be two boxings available, one with war-time fighter machines, the
other with very colourful training Bristols. MPM models are available via http://www.cmkkits.com/en/

Resicast has produced a 1/35 scale Holt Tractor which

was added to their range in June. This beautiful WWI
Heavy artillery tractor (351240) contains over 200 resin
parts and 20 PE parts and would be an ideal companion
to the Resicast 8 inch Howitzer. Visit http://
www.resicast.com/ for further details

Corsar Rex has added a new 1/35 scale Russian infantryman figure (CR-35040) to their range
of resin figures. Visit http://corsarrex.com/ for
further info

Niko Models has produced a tail for the

Meng Models 1/35 scale Char 2 Tank. This
aftermarket set includes 13 resin pieces and is
available from http://www.nikomodel.pl/
index.php/en/

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Hobbyboss have posted some CAD

pictures of a 1/35 Schneider C.A tank kit
(83861). The picture depicts an early version of
the French Tank and is slated for future release
in 2014. Visit http://www.hobbyboss.com/plus/
list.php?tid=7 for the Hobbyboss website.

NS-Prod has release a 1/9th scale bust depicting a French soldier of

WW1. The bust sculpted by Nelly Aufret contain 11 resin parts. Visit http://
www.n-s-prod.com/ for further details

AC Models latest
release depicts a WW1
Allied medic with a German
patient. This pair of 54mm
figures come cast in grey
resin complete with base.
You can visit AC Models
website here; http://
www.acmodels.co.nz/

Allarmi has released two 54mm Italian pilot figures;

Fulco Ruffo di
Calabria & Francesco Baracca. Both resin kits come with two heads. Further information on both kits can be found here; http://www.italiankits.it/

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First to Fight has released a 1/72 FT17 kit (FTF009). The

kit, which is aimed at the WWII market depicts the octagonal turret
version with machine gun and comes with a Magazine. Available in
the UK from the plastic soldier company; http://
theplasticsoldiercompany.co.uk/

Mast Miniatures has released a 54mm Italian Infantryman figure.

Visit http://www.mast-miniatures.com/ for further information

Academy are to rerelease their popular 1/32 Nieuport 17 and Sopwith

Camel kits in "WWI 100th Anniversary" Limited Editions. Each set will contain new decals and photo etch details. The kits are due for September
release. The Academy website can be found here: http://
www.academy.co.kr/eng/1p/1p_main.asp

IBG Models has released a 1/35

model of Skoda 100mm vz 14 Howitzer
(IBG 35026). This plastic kit is available from http://en.ibg.com.pl/

ICM has announced a set of WW1

accessories in 1/35 scale: 35681:
World War 1 French Weapon and
Equipment set.
A set of German Infantry figures
(1914) is now available along with a
German World War 1 weapon and
equipment set (35678).
Visit http://www.icm.com.ua/

Dr Tekla Miniatures has released a

54mm German soldier figure (1916). Visit
their website at http://drteklaminiatures.com/en/ for further information

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The Tamiya Mark IV tank in 1/35 scale is now available. The kit (30057) includes a single motor allowing for the option to motorise the tank.and depicts the
Male variant of the Mark IV. Tamiya is simultaneously releasing Item 35339 WWI
British Infantry. This set of 5 adaptable figures (which are also included in within
the Mark IV kit) depicts British infantry from WWI including an officer, machine
gunner and 3 riflemen. For further information on both of these items visit
www.tamiya.com

D-Day Miniature studios has released a pair of 1/35 scale

British Tank Corp figures:
35022: Tank Corps sergeant
35023: Tank corps staff officer
Go to http://ddayminiaturestudio.com/ for more detail.

Copper state models have announced

the

release of two new 1/32 scale sets of German

Ground crew and a 1/48th scale Maybach MB IVa
engine. All slated for a September release.
Visit http://www.copperstatemodels.com/ for information on Copper State Model products.

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WD Models has been very busy recently with plenty of new figure
sets on offer and has sent us this update:
2155 is the Austin armoured car crew, Also looking very impressive is the
new improved GS MkX wagon, now all in resin, 2148 is the staff car crew,
including a dead ringer for General Melchett, then we have the Lewis machine gun team, military police, Royal Marines Light Infantry of 1914 in
their fetching navy blue uniform with red trimmings, and lastly for now the
late war British sappers.
Coming shortly will be a set of late war British walking and French cavalry. The B type bus is with the caster at the moment to get some production details worked out, we hope to have that available for Telford. Also
currently in the design stage is a set of British weapons which will include
some highly detailed Lewis and Vickers machine guns with a photo etch
set, also included in the set will be two types of mortar, SMLE rifles with
etched bayonets and wire cutters and some range finders. This will be the
first of what will hopefully be a number of highly detailed sets to complement the figure and vehicle ranges.
There is also a new set of French tank crew due soon
All models are in 1/76 scale. Visit http://www.wdmodels.com/ for the latest information

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Aviattic has a new series of innovative decal sheets coming

very soon. The sheets are designed to simulated various clear
doped linens and Protective colourings. There will be various
shades of CDL to suit aircraft from different nations and different
shades of PC10 and PC12 to choose from. The sheets will be suitable for 1/32 and 1/48th models and have the same properties as
the current lozenge sets. Aviattic intends to sell test sheets at
cost which will enable modellers to experiment with the various
materials on offer.
Aviattic have also recently added 1/32 Roland D.IV lozenge cookie
sets to their growing list of Lozenge sheets.
Also new from Aviattic is a German Ground Crew figure set designed to compliment the re-fuelling cart (see elsewhere in this
Newsletter )
Visit www.aviattic.co.uk for the more information

Airfix has confirmed that the contents of forthcoming gift sets

which will include many new figures will also be made available as
individual figure sets. The set numbers and names are:
01764 - WWI French Infantry 1914
01765 - WWI British Field Gun and Crew
01766 - WWI French Field Gun and Crew
01767 - WWI German Field Gun and Crew
All the sets are new tools. The British set will include the 13-pdr,
the French set willl include the '75 and the Germans the 1896 n/A 77mm. All the guns will come with full crews and
limbers but no teams.
Airfix also say that they have plans for more new sets over the following three years but the first four are all expected
before the end of this year.
September should also see the re-release of the 1/32 Old Bill Bus.
Visit http://www.airfix.com/ for further info

Pheon Models has released three 1/32 decal sets intended

for the WNW Salmson 2A2:
32048 Salmson 2A2 in French Service Volume One.
32049 Salmson 2A2 in French Service Volume Two
32050 Salmson 2A2 in USAS and Polish Service
The French sets each contain nine decal options, while the US/
Polish set contains markings for seven colourful aircraft
Pheon are also about to start trying to get some pre-orders for
the DH9 decals, contact Pheon to express your interest. Rowan is
also planning on a second volume for Jasta 30 (following the recent book from Bruno Schmaling) and a set for Jasta 17 - these
two will have multiple aircraft types: Alb D.III and V, Fokker
D.VIIs. There are also plans for a set for the DFW CV, details
soon.
Visit http://www.pheondecals.com/ for further information

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A test shot of the forthcoming Eduard SSW D.III was on show recently
at the US Nationals. The kit, which was originally due for release in August, should now be ready for November.
Go to http://www.eduard.com/ for the latest news

Freightdog is due to re-release the Pegasus Martinsyde Elephant

(kit number PEG4015) with new decals, printed by Fantasy Printshop.
The kit has not been on sale for quite a while as the original decal
stocks were damaged. The new decals are a direct replacement for
the originals

The latest release from Elan

13 is entitled I

have a cunning plan (where have I heard that

before). The 1/12th Baldrick Bust who will
not be at home to mr.Cock Up is available
from http://www.elan13.co.uk/

Visit http://www.freightdogmodels.co.uk/ for the latest info

Blitz Creations latest 1/35th Resin kit depicts a French

light railway Loco-tractor Locotracteur Campagne from the
WWI period. This unusual subject is available from http://
www.blitz-kit.fr/index.php

Alexandros models
latest figure is a 75mm model of Paul von Hinderburg,
1914. Alexandros s website
can be found here: http://
www.alexandrosmodels.com

Victory miniatures latest offering is a

British/Allied WW1 120mm stretcher party and casualty. Visit their website here: http://
www.victoryminiatures.co.uk/index.php

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1/35th Taxi de la Marne

John Harris takes a look at the new Mach 2 kit of the French Taxi to the Front

It was something of a surprise, to me at least, when I saw

this kit first mentioned on the Internet. The use of Paris
taxis, impressed by the Parisian Military Governor, to move
troops to counter a German advance in September 1914,
has passed into French folklore as a symbol of national
unity and solidarity. The result was that the German advance towards Paris (they got within 30 miles) was halted
and the Germans withdrew to the Aisne River pursued
British and French forces, where both sides dug in, which
was the start of the trench war, which last four more
years. Around 1,300 of these cars carried the 6,000 French
troops who won the Battle of the Marne. While it was
superficially similar to the tactical use of London buses to
move British troops, it is also true that the use
of buses was trialled by the British Army prior
to the outbreak of war 1914, whereas the taxis
were an expedient measure in a crisis.
When the history of the war was written in
France, the taxis seem to be regarded more like
the 'Little Ships' of Dunkirk, especially as both
actions took place at a time of national peril,
when the respective war was threatening Paris
and the British mainland. To add to the similarities, the French also used Parisian buses to
carry troops.
Consulting Professor Google I find that the vehi-

cle depicted in the model, was built

by Renault and the official name was
the Type AG and Type AG-1. This
model was widely used across Europe, including around a thousand
exported to London, and quite a
number are preserved. It must be
said that the preserved examples all
look much more pristine than the
taxis pictured in period photos. It
seems that the taxis were used in
their street colours, the box-art depicts it in red with a black roof and
yellow wheels, and period accounts
refer to the little red taxis, but I
have seen preserved examples in
numerous shades of red, green and maroon, though I
assume the London ones might have been black. In
reality that can be considered a bit of a myth that these
were all Renaults, the taxis used were any that could
run, so many makes were involved, and even with the
Type AG-1 there were variations in details, such as the
roof and lighting arrangements.
A good start for references and the history is here,
http://taxidelamarne.over-blog.com/ which is in
French, though there are links available for an English
version.
As far as models, there are several die-casts in 1/43rd

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and I understand Historex once

offered a Taxi de la Marne in their
Great War series in their
(Historexs) heyday, though I have
never seen one and I assume that
was to 54mm (1/32nd scale) like the
rest of their range.
MACH-2 are a French company that
specialises in short run Kits, though
previously only aircraft, indeed only
fairly modern aircraft at that, at least
for WWl modellers.
The kit comes in a large box and the
main sprue fills the box. You also get
a small second sprue for the wheels,
a small decal sheet and a printed
clear film for the window glazing.
The generic blue MACH-2 box has a
charming print of a watercolour of the vehicle on the top.
It must be said that the moulding is not to the standard of a
modern kit from Tamiya or the other Far Easter manufacturers, it does not even come close. It feels more like an old
Airfix kit, indeed it reminds me much of
their original 1/32nd range of vintage
cars, especially in the parts breakdown. I must add the caveat that I
have not started the kit, but it will
need some care to clean up the abundant 'flash' before gluing anything together. It must be said that much of
the detail is rather clunky. The gates
where the sprues join the parts are
rather heavy, I would advise the use of
a small saw to remove these, rather
than risk damaging the parts removing them. As you can
see from the accompanying photos, there are a lot of small
parts which are little more than lumps of vaguely the right
shape, I would suggest that many parts might be best replaced. Sadly, the doors and the folding roof of the laudelet
are moulded in place, so some serious surgery might be
needed if modellers wish to open up the passenger compartment. The preserved vehicle at Muse Automobile de
Mulhouse is right hand drive, which the instructions give as
an option, which boils down to placing the steering column
and spare wheel on the opposite sides, though the changes
are minimal as the dashboard is rudimentary as was typical
at that time. The decals give the number plates, the taxime-

ter (I assume the troops were not charged?) and the names
and distances for the included kilometre stone.
The kit costs around 28 / 23 from French online model
shops, so around 30 including postage. Considering the

crudity of the kit, prospective purchasers need to consider

whether the kit is worth the cost, however, I guess its likely
to be the only kit of these historic vehicles (I know, famous
last words).
John Harris

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Recent 1/35th plastic figure sets

The Editor takes a brief and inexperienced look at the latest Tamiya, ICM & Masterbox figures
With the Centenary very much in
everybodys minds its not surprising that many of the mainstream
plastic modelling companies are
looking for niche areas where their
products can make their mark. The
big winner has been the Military
market where we have seen a huge
increase in WW1 armour and figure
releases. Three of the most recent
plastic figure sets are the Masterbox British and German soldiers
at the Somme set, the ICM Russian
Infantry set and the eagerly awaited Tamiya British WW1 infantry
set. So how do they compare?
First a disclaimer: I am not a Military Modeller or a particularly experienced figure painter so the review itself is based on my own views about the
structure of the figures rather than the accuracy of the uniforms.
Tamiya British WW1 Infantry set.
This set is designed to complement Tamiyas recent Mark IV tank and as such the figures
are included in the Tank kit but are also available separately. The box contains five figures and so is good value for around a tenner. The main parts are on a single sprue.
Two extra sprues are supplied containing a wealth of equipment making the set extremely useful for scratchbuilders. The figures themselves are posed in various actions
which remind me very much of the old Airfix polythene sets. All the figures appear to
have gone over the top perhaps following a Mark IV tank and appear in various Action
man like poses. I have to say I am not a particular fan of this style of posing and as such
this is perhaps my least favourite of the three sets for this reason. Having made up one
figure (the charging officer) I was not sure about the preportions of the figure. For me
the body and legs look very slightly too long and some of the folds of the uniform dont
look right to me. The figures all have gas mask bags making them useful for mid to late
war dioramas. Of the three sets this is my least favourite.
ICM Russian WW1 Infantry set
The set contains four figures and includes the equipment sprues which are
also available as a separate set. These are the largest of the figures reviewed here and are visually stockier than the Tamiya and Masterbox figures but are acceptable as 1/35 scale. The figures are all posed in a running
stance and I guess are intended to be displayed as a set rather than individually. The proportions and pose of the figure I built is fairly good if perhaps
a little wooden but the detail is excellent and the figures are likely to look
impressive in a built and painted state.

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Masterbox British and German infantry, Somme 1916

This is by far my favourite set of the three. The set, which is provided on
one sprue, is based on a well known photo depicting two British
soldiers escorting four German prisoners, two of which are carrying
a wounded prisoner. The kit is is true to the original photograph
and represents all of the soldiers very well. The figures when built
are very slightly smaller than the Tamiya figures but of much better
proportions and are in my opinion the most natural of the three
sets, although on reviewing the photograph of the made up model
the head appears to be a very slightly on the large side. I did find
the figure from this set the most difficult and complex of the three
sets to put together and would benefit from a more detailed set of
instructions, the water bottles were particularly difficult to fit.
Conclusion
All three sets are well worth taking a look at. For me the Masterbox set wins hands down, but this probably has as much
to do with the subject matter as much as the quality of the sculpting and mouldings. All three sets appear to be designed
to be used altogether in a diorama environment and I think the Masterbox and ICM sets would work well in this sense.
Im still not sure about the Tamiya set though and feel that the poses are more likely to appeal to the junior modeller
rather than serious figure modellers.
DH

Aviattic 1/32 1918 US Air Service Personnel

Aviattics first figure release is a set of three resin figures and accessories depicting members the US air service, circa
1918. The figures are beautifully sculpted by Steve Warrilow and have been well cast in grey resin. The set includes
three figures; a pilot, observer and ground crewman. Various assessories such as a bucket, tools and boxes are also
included providing lots of inspiration for the Diorama builder. I
particularly liked the mechanic
figure which strikes a very relaxed pose sitting on a crate
with a mug of coffee. This is the
first time that I am aware that
anybody has produced US Air
Corp figures in 1/32 scale and
will be a perfect companion to
the recent WNW Salmson.
DH

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Ilya Muromets
The editor renovates his an old Ilya as part if the 1914 group build

I built the ICM Ilya Muromets about 12 or 13 years ago

and made a hacking mess of the job at the time. So
much so that when we had some major work done on
the house I broke the model up rather than put it in to
storage but I always felt that it was worth trying again
and being the type of person that never likes to discard
a bad job, I put it aside for a rainy day.
Wind the clock forward 13 years: I was looking for
something to build for the 1914 groupbuild and came
across my box of broken up kits. Ship no.150 was according to my references delivered in December 1914
and as such fitted within the constraints of the group
build.
The first thing I did was to clean up all of the major
pieces. Clear parts such as windows were removed as
these would be replaced. When I originally built the kit
one of the lower
wings was rather
badly moulded to
the point where I
could not use it
and I ended up
scratchbuilding a
pair of replacements. thirteen
years on and I felt
that the scratch-

built wing was close enough in appearance to the originally undamaged wing that I could probably get away
with just cleaning up one wing and using the original unused kit part.
The original kit tail section is not particularly accurate
when compared to Harry Woodmans drawings found in

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parts were replaced using a combination of brass and plastic

rod. The renovated engines were then fitted to the wings
along with mounting boards and radiators.
The upper wing had been broken in half for storage and
therefore needed to be re assembled using brass rod to reinforce the joints. New strut recesses and rigging points were
marked and drilled on to both the upper and lower wings
before re-spraying the upper wing and fitting it to the cabane
struts. replacement interplane struts made from brass strutz
were then spring fitted between the wings. The outer bays of
the wings were then rigged using mending thread; the reason
for rigging the outer bays first in this particular case was to
provide a strong lock to the most vulnerable sections at the
many publications. As a solution I built up the shape of
the original parts (which I had already modified a little in
my original build) with plasticard and filler to an outline
closer to the drawings. This was then sanded and skinned
with 5 thou plasticard which I had embossed the ribs in
too using a fine BIC pen. The fuselage was also too short
when compared to St Harrys drawings and I used plasticard and filler to lengthen the section at the rear of the
fuselage. Once all the major parts were cleaned up and
modified I began reassembling and repainting them. The
cabane struts were made from brass strutz which were
rigged and skinned with a plasticard covering. The fuel
tanks from the original kit are a little large which if fitted
as is, interferes with the rigging. These parts were reduced in substance and lost detail replaced with strips of

tips of each wing.

Photos of Ship no.150 suggest that the aircraft had a few diagonal supports or aerofoil shaped battons on the inner bays
and these were simulated using the thinnest brass strutz I had
access too but are in reality too overscaled. I also use brass
strutz for the horizontal batons that appear to run from the
fuselage to the outer engine bay. The remaining wing sections
were then rigged using a combination of mending thread and
EZ-line.
The undercarriage was completely replaced with an assembly
built from strutz while strutz were also used for the outer
diagonal struts at the tips of each wing.

plasticard.
The original kit Argus engines are pretty good but I had
damaged most of the piping and exhausts and these

A new box shaped structure was fitted to the tail of the fuselage using a combination of brass and plastic rod. On the underside a of the fuselage rear a replacement tail skid made
from a combination of strutz, brass rod and plasticard was
fitted. The tail section was then completely rigged.
Replacement decals had been printed on to clear laser decal

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sheet and I therefore need to mask off and spray the base
colour white in areas requiring decals. Finally outstanding
clear parts were replaced, the original kit wheels and props
were fitted and a landing sight made from spare photo etch
parts was fitted to the nose of the aircraft.
Any serious collection of key WWI aircraft wouldnt be complete without an Ilya Muromets but unfortunately the long
discontinued ICM kit is the only serious contender
(Maquette also produced a kit of this type but was not generally well received). While there are plenty of faults with
the ICM kit they are not particularly difficult to rectify with
the tail section being the major area of inaccuracy. We all
have models which were built along time ago and maybe
seemed OK at the time. Often these will end up in a box in
the loft or even in the bin. Renovation of the type described
here is a useful method of revitalising these models especially if the subjects are hard to obtain.
DH

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Tank Corps Central Workshop Female tank

Steve Cox puts the left overs from the new Emhar 1/72 Tadpole to good use

The TCCW depot in France modified a Mk IV by cutting it in

half behind the sponson, inserting a 6ft section, and welding it back together. This was a different approach to the
Tadpole in producing a tank that could cross the wider
trenches being dug by the Germans as a defence against
the standard Mk IVs in service. The Tadpole suffered from
the extended tails twisting but its main flaw was the L/C
ratio. Any tracked vehicle is constrained by the ratio of the
length of track in contact with the ground (L) and the distance between the track centres (C). At anything above 2:1
steering becomes difficult. At the time this was not understood and the Tadpole with a ratio of about 3.4:1 was very
difficult to steer. So
although hundreds
of conversion kits
were manufactured
and sent to France
they were not used.
The TCCW tank,
though structurally
more rigid than the
Tadpole, would have
been just as difficult
to steer, as the L/C
ratio was much the
same.

The model is based on Emhar kits, a Mk.IV female from my

stash, and the left over parts from a Tadpole kit. I made
this shortly after Dave Hooper made his, but without any
of the corrections. The Tadpole kit contains a Mk.IV
standard sprue with an extra sprue for the extended sides
and extra lengths of track, so at the end of the build you
are left with a complete set of Mk.IV side panels. These I
chopped up for the missing plating.
I have found no photos so this conversion is based on a
couple of sentences in a book. It doesn't specify whether a
male or female was used, or how the engine and drive to
the tracks was affected. I've left the rooftop exhaust silencer (and by implication the engine) where it was. The
two round lumps to the rear of the sponson are the reduction gear mountings, I've ended up with two sets of these.
The Tadpole tanks had these just behind the sponson as in
the Mk.IV but it's debatable as to where the TCCW would
have located them. If they did just cut it in half and insert
a blank 6 ft section the reduction gear mount would have
moved back 6 ft, which is what I've done. I might grind
the duplicate set off sometime in the future. The build was
a bit of a rush job, bar painting the tracks it was all done in
a day.
I cut the 'host' tank sides behind the sponson, but cut the
spares more or less in the middle of the sponson, to make

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best use of the parallel section. The

sponson holes were plated in with
bits cut from the leftovers.
The roof was cut further forward so
as not to cut through the rear cupola, and the gap filled with bits cut to
make best use of the moulded rivets, this involved joining some parts
side to side along the centre line.
The gap underneath was filled with
plastic card with no attempt to mimic panel lines or rivets.
A new exhaust pipe was made from plastic rod.
There was enough spare track from the Tadpole kit to
make up the tracks for the TCCW. The tracks are flexible plastic, but they do stick together with polystyrene
cement, so much easier than the heat bonded track I
remember from the 'old days'.

Colour is Humbrol 26 Khaki, the tracks were painted in Natural Steel, then brushed over with Rust
After all that work it ends up looking much like an Mk.V*,
and after writing this I realise that I stuck the silencer on
the Tadpole in the wrong place.
Steve Cox

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Model T Ford Ambulance

The Editor makes quick work of the 1/72 scale RPM kit

On the face of it, the RPM 1/72 scale Model T Ambulance kit is fairly basic providing a pair of sprues of rather limited
run quality plastic, however with the help of the Part photo etch set and some basic scratch building a very nice little
model can be built from this kit.

Most of the underside parts are replaced with either

photo etch or brass rod. The photo etch replaced rather
than added to existing kit detail.

This photo shows some of the enhancements. In addition to the photo

etch parts I replace the seat and the
radiator with plasticard. The window
behind the drivers seat also needed to
be opened out.

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A stretcher was fashioned from masking tape and

brass rod

A replacement rear door was made from plasticard and

some interior detail added (also made from plasticard

Headlights and lamps were added, all enhanced with

photo etch. A rolled up rear canvas screen was added, made from aluminium foil and masking tape and
a spare tyre was sourced from my spares box where I
luckily had something suitable of the right diameter.
Alternatively a tyre could have been made from wire
wrapped around a suitably sized drill bit and soldered

Conclusion
I really enjoyed this little build. I initially bought the Part detail set for the ford logo on the raditator grill but
found the whole set very useful and I used virtually everything with the exception of the spokes. In fact If I were
to build another Model T Ford in 1/72 I would be tempted to buy the Part set and scratch build the rest.

DH

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Aviattic 1/32 Re-fuelling cart and ground crew

WWI Ffgures and accessories are a bit of a growth area at

moment, no doubt fuelled by the popularity of Wingnut
Wings. This is one of my favourite aftermarket sets to date.
It depicts a German fuel cart as seen in a famous photo of a
Roland C.II being re-fuelled (the best source of the photo
can be found in The German Army Air Service in World
War one by Ray Rimell). The fuel cart and figures are sold
as individual sets but are designed to compliment each
other. The fuel cart contains ten highly detailed resin parts
and a small length of hose which I initially thought was
made from rubber but is actually a combination of sprung
wire and thread. The ground crew set includes two figures ;
one of which is based very closely on the above mentioned
photograph. The second figure handling the hose has a
choice of optional heads

and fit is good. Some of the thinner parts can be replaced with brass rod or wire, but I chose to build out
of the box with the exception of the leg support

Construction
I would recommend beginning with the fuel cart so that
you can pose figures to fit the fuel cart. The resin on the
fuel cart requires quite a bit of cleaning up as there is a fair
amount of flash, but the material is quite soft and not too
brittle which makes use of a sharp scalpel possible in addition to the usual sanding stick and Razor saw. Holes already
exist in the drum for bracing wires but they do need to be
opened out on the brass feeder. The set does not include
instructions, however construction is fairly straight forward

which I replace with brass rod as I felt that the included resin piece would not be strong enough for permanent support. I painted the drum section before adding the wheels.
Colours are speculative as there are no known colour
references for a fuel and I used the photo on the box
as a guide. Once the fuel cart was complete

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The figures set designed by Steve Warrilow has twelve

parts (including a spare head). The operator is fairly simple and only requires the fitting of a head, right arm and
left hand. The right arm is designed to the positioned
opening the handle on the fuel cart while the left hand
should rest on the drum. It is therefore essential that

hands and head are all separate. The obvious place to

begin is by fitting the torso to the legs followed by the
shoes which should follow the fold of the trousers . The
left arm is fairly simple to position however it took me
quite a while to find the ideal position for the right arm
and hand. Of the choice of heads I chose the younger more
junior looking head.
The figures were primed and painted by hand. The photo
alluded to earlier shows the operator with what looks like
black jacket and trousers and I therefore chose to paint
the figure operating the hose with black trousers, although
these could just as easily have been field grey.
The hose is tubular which allows you to thread some wire
through the centre so that the hose can be posed as required. The hose itself is very easily damaged and requires
very careful handling. I cut a small piece to fit between the
hose operators left and right hands. The rest of what remained was then shaped and fitted to the cart.
Conclusion
This really was a fun piece to build and the result really
looks stunning, either as a part of a diorama or as a model
in its own right.

these parts are dry fitted against the cart to find the correct position. The mechanic holding the hose is a lot more
complex to put together as the torso, legs, shoes, arms
DH

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The latest books from Aeronaut includes Siemens -Schuckert Aircraft

of World War I by Jack Herris which continues the Centennial series. The
book includes 305 photographs, 49 profiles and 9 sets of drawings
spread across 200+ pages.
Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 30 was printed at the end of July. German
authors Bruno Schmling and Winfried Bock have written a detailed,
graphically lavish account of the airmen from Jasta 30, with 158 photos
and color profiles of 56 of their aircraft in the books 208 pages.
This book is the first in a series on Jastas; the next book will be on Jasta
23 and that project is underway. It is likely be published next summer.
The end of September should see the publication of American Military
Aircraft 19081919 by Robert Casari. This 750 page book will contain
over 1,000 photographs and include 16 pages of colour profiles
Finally, the next four books in the centenial series are written and laid
out. Aeronaut expects to publish at least three of them, and perhaps all
four, by the end of this year.
Visit http://www.aeronautbooks.com/ for further information

Recent publications from Osprey include the following WW1 related

books:
Collision of Empires: The War on the Eastern Front in 1914 by Prit Buttar
Soldiers Songs and Slang of the Great War collected by Martin Pegler
Invasion 1914: The Schlieffen Plan to the Battle of the Marne by Ian Senior
US Navy Dreadnoughts 191445 by Ryan Noppen
Future publications include Reconnaissance and bomber Aces of WW1 by
John Guttman which is due to be printed in December)
Visit http://www.ospreypublishing.com/ for the latest news

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Fonthill Media has published an account of the Hull Zeppelin Raids,

written by Arthur G. Credland. The book provides an account of the eight
Zeppelin attacks on this major port city on the east coast of England.
Books due for August publication include:
Prelude to the First World War, The Balkan Wars 1912-1913 by E. R. Hooton
Great Scientists Wage the Great War by William Van der Kloot
T. E. Lawrence: Tormented Hero by Andrew Norman
Visit http://www.fonthillmedia.com/ for further news

Albatros Productions latest Windsock datafile looks at the Handley

Page V/1500. Datafile no.164 written by Colin Owers. The book includes over 60
photographs, 6 colour profiles and new 1/72 scale plans by Martin Digimayer.
Visit http://www.windsockdatafilespecials.co.uk/ for further information

Bob Pearson has updated his Colours and Markings of the

WWI Era CD. There are 143 new profiles and 37 updated profiles in
this update. The CD is available for $50 USD/Cdn, 40 Euros or 30
GBP postage included. Anyone owning an earlier CD can get this for
1/2 price. Those with v3 or later will be able to download the update in the near future from the link inside the CD. Visit
www.cbrnp.com for information on this product.

Cross and Cockades latest book is takes a look at Godwin von Bromowskis career in the AH air force; Hauptmann Godwin von Brumowski:
Austria-Hungary's Ace of Aces by Ivan Berryman is a 60 page softback book
illustrated by 17 of Ivan Berryman's paintings (in colour) plus 50 b/w photos,
including some very rare family pictures, and a few treasured items preserved by Brumowski's descendants. The book is available directly from
Cross and Cockade International at http://www.crossandcockade.com

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The Belgian Air Service in the First World War

by Walter Pieters

Aeronaut Publishing

This book follows several other "real big ones" dealing with WW1 air forces, like
French, Czarist Russian and Italian aces. It weighs 2,9 kg, measures 5 x 22 x 28,5
cm and the page count goes up to720!
The first part of the book describes the history of Belgium's airmen and units,
starting before the war and including chapters about, among others, the seaplane Escadrille, the air war in East Africa and the balloon units.
Then follows a day-to-day account of the Belgian part in the aerial fighting. This is
maybe a bit dreary and definitely not for reading in one go, but many interesting
details and/or stories can be found here. And it can be seen, how the intensity of
the air-war increased over the years.
Next follows the individual histories with more or less details of every man-jack
who ever got in the air in a Belgian airplane.
And last but not least 81 colour side views of aircraft, with many an interesting
subject for us modellers, like a pink-nosed "Camel" and a "Pup" sporting the Red
Comet of 5eme Escadrille.
Interspersed among the above-mentioned chapters are lots and lots of photographs, not only of men and machines, but
also of weapons and equipment and even from aerial views of the front-lines.
All this doesn't come cheap, but I do not regret having bought it.
Nils R. Treichel

Rumpler Aircraft of World War One

by Jack Herris

Double the thickness of the recent

Aeronaut Publishing

Aviattic book, this book follows the

tried and tested format of Aeronauts earlier books covering every aircraft designed and built by Rumpler during the Great War. Understandably the C.IV gets the largest share of coverage with 40 of the 208 pages devoted to the well known two seater, however Rumpler built a
wide variety of aircraft types including Taubes, Two seaters, Single seat
fighters, twin engine bombers and seaplane. All are covered more than
adequately within this book. As with earlier Aeronaut books along side
the huge collection of period photos is a generous selection of colour
profiles by Bob Pearson as well as a large number of scale plans covering most of the major aircraft described in the book. These centenary
books are building in to comprehensive library of German WW1 aircraft and as such are an essential buy for anybody with a keen interest
in WW1 aviation.
DH

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Great War Tommy - Owners Workshop Manual

by Peter Doyle

Haynes Publishing

To many of us Haynes Owners Workshop manuals means weekends crouching

over or under our Pride and Joy with a spanner, but in recent years Haynes have
branched in to creating Owners manuals for anything from a B.17 to the Millennium Falcon. The latest book takes a look at the British Tommy which may seem
perhaps the oddest subject for a Haynes manual yet devised but it actually works
well with the Haynes format. The book is a one stop guide to everything you
might ever need to know about the British Soldier in WWI with sections covering
equipment and training, trench routines and trench warfare. What I really like
about this book is that it provides a real flavour of what being a soldier of the
period would have been like. In this book you can learn how Tommy assembled
his kit, how to clean your rifle, Drilling routines of the period and even how to
wind putees. For the military modeller there is a wealth of reference material
included in this book. Dont let the title fool you - this is a seriously good reference which is likely to be picked up and leafed through regularly.
Highly Recommended
DH

Siemens -Schuckert Aircraft of World War One

by Jack Herris

Jack Herris seems to be on a roll at the moment

Aeronaut Publishing

with an

average of one book every two or three months. The latest in the Centennial series (number 12) takes a look at
Siemens-Schuckert, a company that dabbled with aviation
as early as 1909 but it took the outbreak of war to kickstart SSWs aircraft department. Siemens-Schuckert are
best known for their series of D type fighters produced
towards the end of the war, which are of course given
plenty of coverage, but they began building R-type bombers in the early years of the war with mixed levels of success. This book covers every fixed wing aircraft designed
by SSW including what must have been the worlds first
guided missile (yes you heard right!). As with previous
books in the series the book is lavishly illustrated with
period photos and a large selection of Bob Pearsons profiles. The Book also includes three view 8 plans in 1/48th
and 1/72 scale. For many years the best single reference
of German aircraft of WW1 was Peter Grays Thetford
book and this centenary series is finally giving us a one stop
reference to all German aircraft of the period.
Highly Recommended
DH

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A pair of BE2es arrive at Shuttleworth

Two BE2e replicas arrived at Old Warden at the beginning of June. The two aircraft, both from TVAL in New
Zealand will be temporarily housed at Shuttleworth until
their semi perminant hanger is completed at Stow Maries
where the aircraft will eventually be on display. Both aircraft are flying replicas and are expected to take part in
Shuttleworth displays this year as well as other events
including Armed Forces day at Stow.
Aircraft serial number A2943 (NZ reg ZK TFZ) is part of
Oliver Wulff's collection on loan to WW1 Aviation Heritage Trust (WAHT) and is in the markings of a 7 Squadron
aircraft based at Odiham.
Aircraft serial number A2767 (NZ reg ZK K0Z) is in the

News

markings of 37 Squadron, which was formed as an

experimental squadron at Orfordness, Suffolk, in
April 1916. In September 1916 it was reformed as a
home defence squadron, with headquarters at
Woodham Mortimer in Essex. Aircraft operated
from a variety of landing grounds including Stow
Maries. This aircraft is painted in 37 Squadron colours deliberately as WAHT is seeking a donor to
acquire the aircraft for the nation so that it can stay
permanently in Essex when Stow Maries is restored
to its full WWI glory by 2018.
The BE2s recently took part in an aborted flight
across the channel to commemorate the first crossing of Be2s in August 1914
(photos by Steve Cox)

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Memorial Flight LVG replica flies

The Memorial flight LVG made its first
flight on June 6th at Arodrome Cerny La
Ferte Alais with test pilot Gene DeMarco at
the control. Then subsequent test flights
where carried out. The replica which has
been built by Memorial Flight and
equipped with an original Benz Bz.IV engine was built according to the original
Muse de l'Air et de l'Espace example. The
original was restored by the Memorial
flight providing then with an excellent opportunity to build a replica. The replica has
been built for the Vintage Aviator collection in New Zealand

German WW1 Submarine discovered

A Finnish diving group called Badewanne have announced the finding of a German U-26 submarine that vanished
nearly 100 years ago in the Gulf of Finland.
The Submarine The vessel disappeared in late August 1915. The previous autumn, it had sunk the Russian cruiser
Pallada near Hanko, mainland Finland's southernmost point.
According to the diving team the wreck is said to be in unbelievably good condition and was described in a Facebook post as probably the best preserved WWI German U-boat wreck in the world.

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Major Centenary event transports wreaths from London to France

To mark the first crossing of the channel
of the British Expeditionary force in August 1914 Wreaths representing each of
the units involved, as well as representing
the Royal and Merchant Navies were
transported from London to France for
Ceremonies at Amiens and Arras. , the
wreaths began their journey at
Knightsbridge Barracks in London, when
they were loaded onto a restored 191418 Mark X GS Wagon and transported to
Wellington Barracks in Westminster.

At Wellington Barracks, the wreaths were

transferred to a Crossley Light Tender and Trailer aircraft recovery vehicle for the journey onwards to Dover. The Tender and Trailer were accompanied by a 1909 Crossley Staff Car NA 577 and other, modern vehicles in convoy.
A ceremony at Dover greeted the wreaths before they are transferred to France
I n a separate event three Be2s (the two TVAL BE2s and the Biggles BE2) aborted an attempted flight across the Channel due to strong winds.

Old Bill unveiled!

The London Transport Museum unveiled its
restored double deck open top B-type bus
No. B2737 at the beginning of June. The unveiling took place at Covent Garden Piazza as
part of its commemorations of the First
World War. Throughout the day the public
were welcomed on board the bus to admire
the decoration on the lower deck saloon
with its wooden fretwork panels and the
original cushioned moquette fabric seat covering design, recreated thanks to a fragment
of material that was discovered during the
restoration process. In September B2737 will
be transformed into a war time Battle Bus
after which it will embark on a tour to the
battlefields of France and Belgium visiting key sites including Ypres, Arras and
Passchendaele.

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AV7 - Wotan
Peter Harrison provides some walk around photographs of the Panzer Museum Replica
These photos show the A7V Wotan replica at the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster. According to
museum it was build by Mercedes Benz, the company that built the originals from the original blue
prints.

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Peter Harrison

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FT-17 Part 4
Knut Erik Hagen continues his series of lesser known f FT-17 walk-arounds.

FT-17 - Rogaland Krigshistoriske Museum, Norway

The Norwegian Army did not operate tanks until just before the outbreak of WW2, but a number of FT17s were brought to the country by
the German occupiers for use as mobile pillboxes at airfields or coastal
artillery installations.
Even if outdated could they add a bit
of firepower against lightly armed
resistance fighters or commandos.
After the end of the war most of
them got scrapped, while some were
left in place or taken over by farmers
as sources of spare parts.
One survivor is stored at Rogaland
Krigshistoriske Museum near Stavanger-Sola. The intention is to restore it, preferably to running condition, but it is a long-term project since the interior is completely missing.
It is usually hard to access, being surrounded by other vehicles in a hall some distance away from the museum,
but once every spring, vehicles in running order are taken out for demonstration and the little tank becomes visible.
http://www.jaermuseet.no/anlegga-vare/rogaland-krigshistoriske-museum/om-rogaland-krigshistoriske-museum

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Knut Erik Hagen

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HMS CANOPUS - Camouflaged at Stanley in 1914:

Fact or Fiction?
Janet Cox provides research on Canopus during the Battle of the Falklands
The Model
For the display commemorating the Centenary of the Battles of Coronel and the Falklands, I decided to start my contribution with HMS Canopus. It was my first attempt at a 1/700 scale Combrig resin kit and presented me with a considerable challenge.
HMS Canopus was a Pre-Dreadnought
Battleship launched in 1896 with a main armament of 4 12-inch guns in two large turrets, one forward and one aft. Although part
of Admiral Christopher Cradock's Squadron
in late 1914, her slow speed meant that she
was left behind by the cruisers, HMS Good
Hope, HMS Monmouth and HMS Glasgow as
they hunted for Vice Admiral Maximilian von
Spee's East Asia Squadron. As a result she
was unable to take part in the Battle of Coronel, off the coast of Chile, where both Good
Hope and Monmouth were sunk by von
Spee's ships. On hearing of their loss from
Captain Luce of HMS Glasgow (Glasgows
speed had allowed her to escape but with some damage), Canopus' commanding officer, Captain Heathcote Grant,
turned his ship back towards the Falkland Islands. He was then instructed by the Admiralty to install her as guardship at Port Stanley to protect the coaling and wireless stations there. Grant initially anchored her in Port William,
effectively the outer harbour at Stanley, but this was found to be unsuitable. He then took her into the inner harbour and after a couple of moves finally settled her positioned north south in Whalebone Cove. Settled is the
operative word here as she was not just anchored fore and aft but also pulled up onto the mud to make her a very
stable gunnery platform. Thus Canopus main armament was able to cover both the inner harbour entrance and
the approach to the islands. Grant also landed sailors and marines, several 12 pounder and Maxim guns and communications equipment. He also set up lookout positions in radio contact with the ship to aid observation and gunnery.

The Conundrum
I wanted to model Canopus as the guardship at Stanley in December 1914 but there are no known photographs of
her taken at this time. However, most written sources on the Battle of the Falklands Islands state that she was camouflaged (no details given) and had her top masts struck to make her less observable from sea. I decided to check
more sources to learn more.
Naval artist W. L. Wylie produced an interesting sketch of her firing her guns at the approaching German ships,
based on information he was given by RN officers present at the time. This sketch (available online on the National
Maritime Museum website) shows the topmast missing but there is no obvious sign of camouflage. There are several photographs taken of Canopus whilst she was taking part in the Dardanelles Campaign in 1915 and two of these
clearly show camouflage; in particular an image taken at Mudros and one taken of her towing the damaged HMS
Inflexible to Malta. This camouflage appears to be similar to that carried by other capital ships during the Dardanelles Campaign. This is described as being in shades of grey.

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My task now was to check all other sources to find out

more about the camouflage. The log books of HMS
Canopus dated June 1913 to June 1915 are available
to read online at www.naval-history.net and I carefully checked all the pages for November and December
1914. I could find no mention of any painting being
done whilst the ship was at Stanley, however the removal of the topmasts and yards was clearly noted. I
then discovered that Captain Heathcote Grant's recollections of his time on Canopus had been serialised in
The Naval Review in the 1920s. As these issues are
also available to read online at The Naval Review's
website, I checked and found, as in the log, mentions
of grounding the ship to make her a more stable gun
platform and the removal of the topmast and yards
but nothing about painting or camouflage. I was puzzled as to where this information had come from.
I decided to check if there was any evidence that Canopus could have been painted in the camouflage scheme
before her time at Stanley. I went back to the ship's log online. Beginning in August 1914, at the start of the war,
Canopus had been in reserve and was brought to Devonport for fitting out. Here there was more useful information, for example on 1st August I found "3rd cutter, whaler and skiff returned to Dockyard" and on 4 August
there was "Hands employed returning upholstery and surplus gear to Dockyard and getting torpedo nets and
booms into lighter". This was all useful stuff for the model but there was nothing about painting at all.
I then checked all the log entries after Canopus' departure from the Falklands on 18 December 1914 up until she
went to the Dardanelles. In fact she was on her way home when she was diverted to Gibraltar and then on to
Malta for a refit before going on to the Eastern Mediterranean. Finally, on 10 February 1915 in Malta, I found
"Hands painting ship's side". The painting of the ship took a week, in and out of drydock. There was no actual
mention of camouflage but Malta would seem the right place for the Mudros scheme to have been applied. In
his memoir Captain Heathcote Grant mentions Canopus having a much-needed refit in Malta but unfortunately
gives no details.
I was still puzzled as to the origin of the information about the camouflage being applied at Stanley so I checked
all the remaining written sources that I could find in print and online. Initially, the earliest mention that I could
track down was in Commander H. Spencer-Cooper's 1919 book 'The Battle of the Falkland Islands' where he gives
a rather vivid description of Canopus, "Top masts were housed and the ship, masts and funnels were painted in all
the colours of the rainbow in great big splurges to render her less visible". Spencer-Cooper doesn't give any
source for his information.

However, after the model was finished, I came across Heathcote S. Grants book My War at Sea 1914-1916.
This was an online edition and also included a short descriptive piece, The Cruise of HMS Canopus, by Commander Philip J. Stopford (from the list of Canopus officers, Stopford was Grants second-in-command 1914-

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15). Stopford stated, The topmasts were

struck, sent down and landed, and masts
and funnels painted rainbow fashion in
splodges of red, green and yellow!!
I had no intention of trying to reproduce a
speculative pattern on the completed
model, so I had a play around with some
ideas on a basic sketch of the ship. What
was the source of the paints used? I suspected that red lead and possibly buff
paint could have been available from Canopus paint store but I was unsure about
the green. Perhaps this could have been
found ashore in Stanley. Illustrated is a
scheme that I think seems a possibility.
The moral of this story: never assume that you have checked all the possible sources there is sure to be another
lurking out there somewhere!
Janet Cox

Enver Pasha - Part 1

Alan Pasks tells the story of the Ottoman Empires War Minister in two parts
Enver Pasha was the war minister to the Ottoman Empire and the
man responsible for entering his nation into the Great War. I have
heard on several occasions the phrase The Great War was 40 years
in the making! With that in mind, to tell the story of Enver Pasha I
may as well begin in the 1870s. The Ottoman Empire then
stretched around the Black Sea and also included the Balkans, in
fact the word Balkans is Turkish for mountains. Russia had experienced a humiliating defeat a generation earlier in the Crimea
against the Ottomans who were allied with the superpowers Britain and France. In the 1870s however Tsar Alexander II saw a
chance of getting back control of the Balkans and the Black sea. A
concession France and Britain made the Ottomans take for their
help was equal rights for Christians within their empire. This was
never fully met as amongst many other things Christians were not
allowed to testify against Muslims in court. This led to horrendous
abuses and corruption. The Ottoman Empire itself was hardly a
stable one and rebellions such as the Druze Maronite in the Lebanon and the Greeks in Crete lead to massacres that put the Ottomans in a bad light. The Sultan himself Abdul Hamid II became
known as the Red Sultan for all the blood on his hands. The most

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rank of Major. The Ottoman Empire at the time was

awash with radical political talk much of which was
against the Sultan Abdul Hamid II. At the time due to the
desperate shape of the Empire which at one time even
declared itself bankrupt mutinies and revolts were commonplace, usually due to the armed forces not being paid
or officers not promoted. Ismail Enver Bey joined the
Committee of Union Progress (CUP) which was linked
with the Young Turk Movement. The CUP stood for pan
Turkism and declared that all peoples Bulgars, Jews, Armenians and Greeks should all glory in being Ottomans
and are all equal under the same blue sky. June 1908 saw
the Young Turk Revolution. The Sultan first viewed this as
yet another mutiny and called Enver Bey to Istanbul to
receive a promotion to resolve the issue. Enver Bey instead camped up in the mountains near Salonika and was
joined by Niyaza Pasha and a considerable force. The
Young Turks called for the removal of power from the
Sultan and a return to a constitutional monarchy. The
Sultan sent Shemsi Pasha to try and sort things out but
he was shot for his efforts. The Third Army shortly after
this declared their allegiance to the Young Turks. This
was now really serious, The Sultan sent troops from Anatolia with promises of great rewards to its commanders
but this did not work because they too succumbed to
mutinies. The Sultan as a last ditch attempt to save his
Ismail Enver was born shortly after these events in
thrown restored the power of parliament, something he
1881. He would later gain the Turkish titles Efendi, Bey and
had suspended early in his rule, making the Empire a conPasha. Ismail Enver was not born into nobility. His father was
stitutional monarchy. Despite the CUP being responsible
a small town official and his mother an Albanian peasant. He
for the revolution they did not gain a majority in the foldid however attend military not secular schools where he
lowing election. Taking advantage of the turmoil in the
excelled, finally graduating in 1903 with a distinction. In 1903
Empire Prince Ferdinand of Bulgaria declared independhe was stationed in the city of Salonika (now in northern
ence. The A-H Empire then decided to annexe BosniaGreece) with the Third Army. By then he had attained the
Herzegovina. The only action Parliament mustered was
sanctions against the two nations.
Abdul Hamid II used this as a reason
to regain all his power in a counter
revolution known as the March Incident but failed. He was forced to abdicate by the Young Turks and was
replaced by Mehmed V.
significant was the Balkan Crisis 1875-1876 during which
time he came to power . The Turks had been loosing their
grip on the Balkan states throughout the 19th century. Ottoman Bashi Bazouks massacred 30-100,000 Bulgarians including women and children to put down the rebellion. Tsar Alexander II thought the majority of the western powers
would not intervene in a war against the Ottomans given
current world opinion on them. One power that might act
was their neighbour, the Austro Hungarian Empire. The Tsar
made a secret agreement with the A-H Empire to cede parts
of the Balkans to them in exchange for neutrality. The resulting 1877-78 Russo-Turkish War, although hard fought
saw Russia take control of much of the Ottoman territory in
the Caucuses and the Balkans. If it were not for British intervention the Russians would have gone all the way to Istanbul
taking all of Ottoman Europe, this Britain did by sending warships to Istanbul. The western powers were not happy with
Russias newly acquired control of the area. The resulting
treaties, to which Bismarck was the main belligerent, saw
southern Bulgaria, Thrace and North Greece given back to
the Ottomans. The rest of the Balkans was allied to either
the A-H Empire or Russia. Although Bismarck was aiming for
peace and stability in Europe, he merely further tightened a
coiled spring that would eventually unleash the Balkan Wars
and ultimately the biggest war the World had seen.

Above: The Ottoman capitulation at Nibolu in 1877

Enver Bey was sent to Germany in 1909 as a military attach.

While he was there he became a real
Germofile and gained a high regard
for the German culture and its army.
He learned to speak German fluently
and even adopted a curled waxed
moustache emulating the Kaiser. He

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also strengthened ties between the two armies and invited

German officers to reform the Ottoman army. When Enver
Bey returned to Istanbul he replaced Mustafa Kemel Bey as
chief of staff of the Liberation Army. Mustafa Kemel had also
played a key role in the Young Turk Revolution but had been
outspoken about corruption in the new regime. Enver and
Kemel would become serious rivals, have several clashes and
grow to hate each other over the years to come.
Military alliances and packs were commonly proposed in those days and the Ottoman Empire certainly did
not escape these. Enver Bey amongst others rejected a proposal from Winston Churchill for an alliance with the British
Empire. One person they did listen to was the Marchese di
Sangiuliano. Italy had been a nuisance neighbour by supporting anti Turkish insurgents in the Balkans, it was no secret they had an unhealthy interest in them. The Marchese
swore that Italy would respect Ottoman territories. A few months later Italy sent a massive
invasion force of 20,000 men into what is now
called Libya. Enver Bey boarded a steamer and
assumed overall command of the defence of the
Tripolitania Vilayet. Although probably eager to
put his German military knowledge to action he
had a mere 4000 men at his disposal. The Italians predicted this would be like a walk in the
park. The Turks lacked the ability to move any
significant force to the Vilayet what with a ban
on them entering Egypt by the British a Italys
vastly superior navy (Sultan Abdul Hamid II during his reign made sure his navy had no ammunition for fear of them shelling his palace, such was the poor
state of the Ottoman forces). The Italians had every reason
to believe the Turks would put up little or no fight. The war
started out that way for Italy with Tripoli and other ports
being taken down the coast. Enver Bey surrounded these
Italian enclaves with trenches creating the same stalemate
that was to be seen later in the Great War. Mustafa Kemel
Bey made it to Tobruk with a small force that had been
fighting in the Yemen. He successfully rallied Libyan volunteers and attacked Tobruk re taking the important ground.
Enver Bey then sent Mustarfa Kemel Bey to Derna where
there was fierce fighting. The Italian forces took back their
ground in Kemels absence pushing the lines further back but
still remaining surrounded. Despite Italys unchallenged big
naval guns, superior ground artillery and soldiers they could
not break out of the seven small coastal enclaves they had
made. This was despite their numbers being increased to

100,000 with the Ottomans only being able to increase

their number to 8000 and muster up 20,000 Arabs. In
an attempt to open up other fronts in what was becoming a frustratingly difficult, not to mention financially crippling war Italy sent warships and arms to
help the Albanian uprising against the Turks. They successfully stirred up trouble in the Yemen, already a hot
spot. Italian warships sailed up the Dardanelles and
took the Dodecanese islands. However the final blow
to end the conflict was not to come from Italian
efforts. Greece and neighbouring Balkan countries
backed by Russia took advantage of the Ottoman
plight and invaded the Ottoman Empire from the
north. The Turks considered its European territories to
be more important so Enver Bey sued for peace ceding
Libya to Italy.

Above: Italian Artillery near Tripoli during the ItaloTurkish war of 1911-12
Even by the standards of the day the First
Balkan war was a nasty bloodbath. There was no love
lost between these sides. As the Balkan Alliance took
Ottoman territory brutal massacres followed as reprisals for previous atrocities. Fighting with little hardware, much of which dated back to the Russo-Turkish
war by the time Enver bey returned to Istanbul the
Turks had lost the war and with it almost all of their
European territories. The state of the CUP seesawed.
General elections had been held in 1912 and one of
the things that influenced them was the recently
passed Law of Associates. This banned all ethnic organisations and clubs, the CUP having a more liberal
ideology gained much support. The CUP won a 67%

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majority but this did not mean they now ran the empire.
The Ottoman Empire was a constitutional monarchy and
power was actually held by a group of old Turks called the
Sublime Porte. The CUPs popularity plummeted after the
humiliating defeat in Libya and they were replaced by the
Liberal Union. Despite peace negotiations taking place in
London Enver, now a Lieutenant Colonel in charge of the
10th Army Corps tried to persuade the Sultan and the Sublime Porte to restart the war. The Sultan would not grant
Envers wish so he took matters into his own hands and
along with other members of the CUP carried out a coup.
The Grand Vizier (president) Kiamil Pasha was ousted; other members of the Sublime Porte were shot including the
war minister Nazim Pasha and later Mahmud Sevket Pasha.
After the purge the CUP were back in charge and consequently threw the Ottoman army back at the Balkan Alliance. This ended in yet another humiliating defeat for the
Turks and a treaty was signed in London in May 1913. Despite the CUPs control of the empire these recent events
should have been their end but for a huge stroke of luck. In
June 1913 the Balkan Alliance fell out over their newly
gained spoils, this escalated in a full blown war when Bulgaria invaded Serbian and Greek territory. Enver Bey took
full advantage of the turmoil and once again launched an

Enver Bey (center) talking to the British attach in Istanbul

immediately after seizing power in the 1913 Raid on the
Sublime Porte

invasion into the Balkans, this time capturing back some

of their lost territory. The outcome of this war was a very
precarious one for Russia and her ally Serbia. Russia
wanted control of this area and more importantly warm
water ports. Bulgaria now saw the Central Powers
(Austro Hungarian Empire and German Empire) as her
allies leaving Serbia Russias only ally in the region surrounded by pro Central Powers Nations. For Russia to still
have a foothold in this region she would need to back
Serbia and of course Serbia needed Russian backing.
Ismail Enver was promoted to Colonel then just
one month later General, he was also now a Pasha. The
new government became known as The Three Pashas.
Grand Vizier Mehmed Talaat Pasha, Ahmed Djemal
(sometimes written Cemal) Pasha as Naval minister and
Ismail Enver Pasha as war minister now ran the country.
In March 1914 Enver Pasha married Naciye Sultan an
Ottoman princess now making him a member of the
Ottoman royal family. Enver Pasha had now, from his
humble beginnings reached the top of his ladder and was
now the most powerful man in the Empire. He set to
work re forming his army replacing over a thousand officers and recruiting the German General Liman Vob Saunders.
In the Meantime with tensions already at boiling point in
the Balkans the Austro Hungarian heir to the thrown
Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife Sofie made a visit
to Sarajevo, Capitol of Austro Hungarian province of Bosnia-Herzegovina. This was on June 28th 1914, their wedding anniversary but also the same day as Serbias most
important national festival commemorating St Vitus and
the battle of Kosovo. This was seen as a deliberate provocation, although Serbias neighbours were allied to the
Central Powers not all of its people were and there was
pro Slav feeling provoked by Serbia. After one assassination attempt failed a second one later in the day by Gavrilo Princip succeeded and both Habsburg royals were
killed. The Austro Hungarian Empire held Serbia responsible and gave them a set of demands which if not met
would mean war. With a major European war now on the
cards propositions and negotiations would be bounced
between the powers. Djemal Pasha set out to form an
alliance with Britain and France while Talaat Pasha had
already had a meeting with Nicholas II in the Summer
Palace of the Russian Tsars. The Entente powers did not
agree any alliance with the Turks mainly because such an

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alliance would completely surround the Central Powers with

enemies and possibly antagonise Germany into action all for
the sake of an empire on the verge of collapse. There was a
rumour that a secret meeting had taken place between the
British and the Russians agreeing a divvy up of the Ottoman
Empire in the event of its collapse, this angered the Turks
and was something they were paranoid about. On the 28th
July one month after the assassination the Austro Hungarian
Empire declared war on Serbia, Russia responded by mobilising its troops. Germany declared war on Russia on the 1st
August, the Great War had begun. The following day Enver
Pasha with the backing of the Sultan signed a secret alliance
with Germany; this did not actually commit them to the conflict as it was directed against an attack from Russia. On that
day the first military action took place at Joncherey. The next
day Germany declared war on France and the day after that
(the 4th) Britain declared war on Germany because of the
invasion of neutral Belgium.

Egypt for a meeting with Lord Kitchener and proposed

Britain back an Arab revolt against the Turks. This too
was turned down however the British did have the foresight to take this proposal seriously and did not burn
their bridges.
Enver Pasha made their minds up for them when without informing his cabinet he allowed two German warships to gain sanctuary while being pursued by British
warships. SMS Goeben and SMS Breslau were then gifted to the Ottomans along with their German crews. Britain then retaliated by seizing two cruisers that were
intended for the Ottoman Empire. Despite things going
this far Ottoman entry into the war was still not a done
deal. Although the warship saga would have pacified
Djemal Pasha, Talaat Pasha was clearly against an alliance with Germany. Talaat Pasha nationalised the Ottoman bank, expelled all foreign holders and seized all the
assets held by the banks of the Central Powers declaring
the empire solvent. This caused a massive ruckus but
was in vain. Despite Enver Pasha being hell bent on entering his empire into the war no military action was
taken for nearly three months after the outbreak of war.
This was partly due to the fact that the empires infer
structure and state of the armed forces was so poor
they simply could not mobilise men and arms anywhere
fast. This all changed when Admiral Souchon sailed SMS
Breslau, SMS Goeben and a flotilla of Ottoman vessels to
the Crimea and raided Russian ports. Russia declared
war on the Ottoman Empire on the 2nd November, Britain followed suit three days later. Enver Pasha now had
what he wanted, the Ottoman Empire had fully entered
the Great War and there was now no going back.

As far as the Entente Powers were concerned the Ottoman

Empire was still neutral. With the problem of upsetting Germany gone all three Entente powers held talks with the CUP.
Almost all of the Ottoman Government were either pro
British or French or simply did not want to be involved in
another war. They had after all undergone years of debilitating wars putting themselves on the brink of bankruptcy.
Ottoman finances were alone enough reason to enter the
war against the Central powers. 80% of the national income
went into paying interest alone on loans mainly from German banks that held huge collateral against them; such debts
had plagued the empire for over 80 years and made it the
Sick Man of Europe. It may be noted that if the CUP had not
taken power the Ottomans would have almost certainly
joined the Entente as the former Grand Vizier Mehmed Kamil
Alan Pask
Pasha was pro British. Enver Pashas belief was
the two sides were evenly matched so whatever
side the Turks joined a quick victory would be
guaranteed solving much of their economic problems in way of war retributions. Other negotiations concerning them were also afoot. The Greek
Prime Minister Venizelos approached Britain with
a proposal to back them against the Turks requesting 150,000 troops be landed in Salonika.
Britain did not oblige as the Turks were still neutral, Venizelos was removed from power on the
10th October by King Constantine I who was also
the brother in law of Kaiser Wilhelm II removing
with him a golden opportunity. Emir Abdulla Ibn
Hussein travelled from Arabia to
Above: SMS Goeben

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St Symphorien
In part 9 Nigel Denchfield visits the last resting place of some of
the wars earliest British casualties

I have decided on this collection as the timing of the newsletter is topical. St. Symphorien is located about 1.5 miles
east of Mons. It is most picturesque cemetery, being on several levels, and was established by the Germans as a final
resting place for both Commonwealth and German soldiers
who died during the Battle of Mons. There are 229 Commonwealth and 284 German service men buried in the cemetery,
and of these 105 are not identified. After the opening
battles, this area remained in German hands until the retreat
in 1918, and some of the graves date from then. It is curious
and symbolic that the first and last British servicemen lost in
the war are buried in St Symphorien.
The first man is Private J Parr [Middlesex Regiment] who died
on August 21st 1914 whilst on a scouting mission [by bicycle]
2 days before the battle began. Opposite his grave is that of
Private G E Ellison [5th Irish Lancers] who is believed to be
the final man to die. You will also find the last Canadian to be
lost, Private G L Price [28th North West Battalion, Canadian

The grave of Private Parr

Infantry ] who is buried nearby. A little further across the

cemetery beyond a cluster of German graves can be
found Lt. M J Dease V.C.
By the evening of 22 August 1914, the men of II Corps of
the British Expeditionary Force had taken up defensive
positions along the Mons-Cond Canal, preparing for a
major German attack expected to come from the north
the next day. The opening shots of the Battle of Mons
were fired at dawn on the morning of Sunday 23 August,
when the 4th Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment repulsed German cavalry who were attempting to the cross
the canal over a bridge at Obourg. The early morning was
misty and wet, and the British were still uncertain of the
numbers of enemy troops on the far side of the canal. By
10 a.m., the day had brightened up, artillery fire had intensified, and it became clear that they were facing a
large German force.

In the centre, marked by the VC is Lt Dease.

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Despite being outnumbered, the British soldiers on the south

bank of the canal fought tenaciously throughout the day. Many
were reservists who had returned to the army just weeks before, but they were well-drilled and disciplined, with a highlevel of rifle training. Their relentless fire inflicted heavy casualties among the Germans. Despite this stiff resistance, the sheer
weight of German numbers and the accuracy of their artillery
meant that the British struggled to hold their positions. By
10.30 a.m. the first German soldiers had crossed the canal and
some British units had been forced back, and by mid-afternoon
German infantry troops were crossing in force. By nightfall, the
Battle of Mons was over and the British had begun a long, hard
retreat towards Paris.
Dease, with Private S F Godley of the 4th Battalion Royal Fusilers were part of a company defending railway swing bridge
across the canal. Godley was part of the machine gun section
which held up the German advance that allowed their Division
to retire to new positions. Dease kept the gun in action until his
wounds prevented him from doing so, and then the wounded

Godley took over until he too could not continue. He destroyed the gun and threw it in the canal before being captured. Dease and Godley were a warded the first VCs of
the war. It is also possible that Godley inspired Bruce
Bairnsfathers Old Bill when he saw a photograph of Godley after being taken a prisoner, and was captivated by the
bushy- moustached Godley.
Nigel Denchfield

Above: In the distance is the replacement bridge

at the site of the swing
bridge where Dease & Godley served with such
distinction. Beneath it is a plaque to the 4th Royal Fusiliers, and the VC pair

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These pages are intended as a gallery to show

what GWSIG members have completed or are
currently working on

New GWSIG member Geoff Carhill has sent in the

photos of some of his models. Above left is the Dragon
1/48th scale Spad XIII, above right is the Eduard Nieuport 17 and right is the Roden / Encore 1/32 Se5a and
McCudden figure.

Nils R. Treichel has sent in photos of his

Nieuport 11 from the 5th Belgian Squadron,
based at Les Moeres in August 1916 and
flown by Adj. Egide Roobaert who was killed
during a test-flight on 121216. The model
was built from the excellent Eduard kit and
the decals came from a Blue Rider set, enlarged to 1/48th scale. I've only installed two
LePrieur rockets to save some of the excessive
wiring related to these.

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Paul Thompson has sent some in progress shots

of HMS Furious. An overall view with the ramps firmly
glued in what I fondly beleive is the right place. There
are a number of Sopwith Pups and 1 1/2 Strutters, I
wanted to sand the corrugations off the wings but
they're too brittle, although also too thick. If there's
time before Telford I may just replace them with plastic
card. Paul has also completed a WNW naval Sopwith
Pup. OOB except a very few items from the almost totally useless HGW detailing
set, and a plastic card shield I
made for the Lewis gun.

Dave Cahoun has sent in photos of his recently completed Nieuport Triplane. built using the Eduard Nieuport
17 fuselage, and a resin wing conversion set from
SPIN. The interior was detailed, and I added an engine
from a Dragon Fokker Dr.1. I scratchbuilt
the ailerons to represent the early French
version, as the kit comes with the ones
used on the British version. It is painted to
represent the French built triplane, not
overall aluminum as used on the British
one. It was also painted in the French
early Nieuport camouflage colors with
two browns and two greens over light
blue, with medium blue stripes around
the wing and control surfaces. .

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Its always a pleasure to see what Mike

McCabe has been

up too! Attached photos of my latest diorama, this is called

Le Pissoir and uses the W^D Models LGOC lorry and new
Military Police figures. The buildings are scratchbuilt with plastic card, there will hopefully be a full build up article in a future
IPMS magazine.

Steve Cox has been assembling and painting the Eduard

1/72 RFC figure set. He has also sent in an in progress shot of
his scratchbuilt HMS Redoubt. There will be a seaplane lighter
to go with Redoubt (eventually)

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Janet Cox has sent in progress photos of the Gneisnau (top) and Invincible (above). Both are 1/700 Combrig kits

Here are some more in progress shots of the Editors

1/144 scale scratchbuilt P
class Zeppelin. The model will
be ready for Display at Telford

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Graham James is on a roll at the moment.

The Fokker D.VII (F), is the Monogram 1/48th
scale, kit, OOB. Displayed in the markings of
Hermann Goering. The RAF S.E.5a w/Wolseley
Viper is the Roden 1/48th scale kit. Built from
the box contents with just the addition of the
rigging - Prym "knit-in elastic thread". The Nieuport Ni-17 is in the markings of Fulco Ruffo de

Calabria, 91a Squadriglia, Italian Front, Spring

1917. This is the Eduard (Weekend Edition),
1/48th scale. TheRoland C.II, depicting an aircraft from the Western Front, Summer 1917 I s
the Eduard (Weekend Edition),kit. colour accuracy very doubtful!

And Finally..
Thanks for reading this letter and I hope it has been of interest. One omission is that I forgot to mention that the
1914 group build which was originally scheduled to run until August 4th will continue to run until Xmas. If anybody
is interested in a 1915 build to run after Xmas please let me know as the 1914 build wasnt too successful.
Ive been encouraged by the amount of members I have managed to bully in to submitting something for this Newsletter and long may it continue (not the bullying).
The Next Newsletter will be due at the end of November which Im sure will contain lots of pretty pictures of our
Telford display and of GWSIG members propping up the bar.
Thanks for your continued support and I look forward to seeing many of you at Scale Model World
DH