The League of Augsburg

Set up. Ayscue sweeps in on the westerly.

The Navigation Act was a piece of legislation designed to annoy the Dutch and wrest back some control over the global movement of trade commodities from the commercially adroit GWC/VOC and trade bodies of the Dutch Republic. 

T2. The faster English ships break away from Rainbow.

It went a considerable distance in starting the 1st Anglo-Dutch War as the...

I would not normally review a work of fiction on the blog but am happy to make an exception for Robert Harris's latest novel Act of Oblivion. It is a historo-fiction set in 'my period' as the purchaser, Mrs H described it. I have little time for fiction these days with other overlapping commitments, but decided to make the effort and consume this as quickly as possible. I like Harris's writing...

Tomorrow sees a return to Claymore for me. Last time I was there was three years ago and I was lucky enough to win the Best Display game with a land based Ottoman Wars effort in 28mm. This time I am significantly downscaling in line with my green-policy of getting rid of the German tank of a car and opting for a quiet little Nipponese hybrid with much less space inside. 

Having downscaled the...

Being just one of millions hit by the blight makes me nothing special. Some of my friends have had it three times. All I can say is that my usual drive to get things done disappeared for over two weeks and a couple of sobering visits to the local hospital led me to even more admiration for health care professionals and calibrated my expectations about going to bed early and having less energy than...

A grand fleet - Charles II's battleships 1666

At Partizan this year I am doing something different. I am running a 'demo rules-workshop' where anyone curious about Anglo-Dutch naval wargaming can come along, throw a few dice, try a few mechanisms and ask lots of questions. 

Line of battle developed between 1652 and 1660

I will set up gaming scenarios in three different scales to explain the scope of...

Beneath the Lily Banners

To coincide with May Bank Holiday, there is a special offer on 4Play packs. The original idea is coming up on two years old and has been an unqualified success. There are thirty-seven titles plus five free titles. Each has three scenarios focused on a particular campaign or period. 

Donnybrook

They cover all of our rule systems - Beneath the Lily Banners, Donnybrook, Mad for...

If you don't know much about the Four Days Battle of 1666 there is a hole in your life! This epic sea battle between the Restoration English Navy and that of the Dutch Republic involved a massive number of ships - around 160, over 40,000 men and in excess of 9,000 guns. It was fought over four days (hence the name!) with some fighting also happening at night.

It is crammed full of desperate...

This took a while but it was worth it purely from a personal point of view. Having been a bit unwell I needed something to motivate me and cheer me up. I decided to play a big solo wargame but with a difference. I wanted to do it slowly, recorded everything in text and photos and produce an analysis and compendium reference work for others to learn from and enjoy. 

That meant, playing the game in...

6 x 4 table 1/4800 scale

An express taken by the yacht Zwole from Michiel de Ruyter to The States General following an action on July 24th 1666

It is my misfortune to report to the States General that in an encounter with the English fleet under His Highness and the Lord Albemarle, my own squadron was unable to impress upon the enemy that a conflict between our nations leaves no winner. With the...

Set up on a 6 x 4 table

Where to begin? The last battle was a decisive victory for the English fleet. This encounter sees de Ruyter’s large 1^stsquadron of the Dutch fleet, badly battered after a day of engaging the Duke of Albemarle off the Suffolk coast. Having broken off in the late afternoon, the Dutch are heading southeast to regroup, repair and replenish when to windward, they spot twenty-one...