Peter Gilder introduced Pony Wars into the Wargames Holiday Centre basically as a bit of light relief from the heavy going of large Napoleonic battles. It was a brilliant success. Basing the rules on [or plagarising depending on your point of view] ' B Company Aint Coming Back' by the talented Ian Beck the games enjoyed a lot of popularity before Peter Gilder sold the armies as he was wont to do.He replaced the western theme with the equally excellent Sudan period. I thought it would be nice to view some of the original western figures again
The reaction rules from Pony Wars/B Troop were used in his Sudan rules so they obviously made an impression..
ReplyDeleteGilder was a bugger for plagiarizing rules and figures.
DeleteThe Pony Wars collection stayed at the WHC when Gilder sold it to Mike Ingham, and Mike still had it when we went down to purchase part of the Napoleonic collection not long before he died - i enquired but he told me he'd promised it to someone else.
ReplyDeleteI dreamed of owning some of he great mans collection and still do. You were very lucky to be able to buy some of the units. Its sad that not many of the units ever surface again. I have this nightmare vision of some mad collector slavering over them in a dark cellar.
Deleteor even worse, pitching them into a vat of True Green.
DeleteI was just informed that I had received one such unit. I was fortunate enough to acquire Richard Tennant's collection of miniatures, and in touching up some of the figures in the collection, had inquired of Mr. Tennant about a unit of the French Legion of Hanover. Turns out this was one of Peter Gilder's Hinton Hunt units, originally painted as Swiss, but very slightly modified to be the Legion of Hanover (the figures were all HH 75s, Guard Voltigeurs and basically only the plumes and epaulets were changed I think). The figures themselves are much more appropriate as Hanoverian light infantry than as Swiss in any event. I kept my touch up to a minimum and think I was able to maintain the integrity of the original paint to a very large degree. I'll be posting pictures on my blog (miniatureminions) in the next couple of weeks.
ReplyDeleteYou lucky so and so, If they are Hinton Hunts then they were probably painted by Gilder as his early Napoleonic armies were his own, as his skill grew and he became well known he was able to recruit some wonderful painters who in exchange for unpainted castings would paint Gilder various units.I have a couple of these units that were painted by Tony Runkee who painted virtually all of Gilders ACW armies. I didnt dare touch up these figures but did rebase them very carefully.I look forward to seeing the figures.
DeleteThey are up on my blog now. Pop on by and take a look if you like.
ReplyDeletehttps://miniatureminions.blogspot.com/2020/06/legion-hanovrienne-peter-gilder-story.html
I went to the Wargames Holiday Center 1980-89, about 15 weeks all told.
ReplyDeleteIn those days its was a weekly 5 day event, 3 small battles then a 2 day big battle.
In the early 80s Peter broke it up with a Wednesday Sudan relief mission, all players against the Sudan, controlled at random Peters by Peters dice, which I played about 6 times, great fun.
Pony wars actualy came later, I only played that once.
You were very lucky, I was never able to afford to go there until much later when Mike Ingham had taken it over. Sadly I never actually met Peter.
DeleteI see Robbie that some of Ian Becks old friends are reviving and republishing his Pony Wars rules shortly. Great news!
ReplyDeleteGreat máy nước nóng năng lượng mặt trời loại nào tốt
ReplyDelete