Sunday, August 10, 2014

28mm Spanish Civil War Republican Guardia de Asaltos (Assault Guards) and a Spanish Romanesque Church from Barrage Miniatures


In an attempt to be somewhat simpatico with our recent hot weather I thought I'd feature some more Spanish Civil War figures, this time a few squads of tough-as-nails Republican Assault Guards.


The Guardia de Asaltos were a large body of para military police created by the Republican government in reaction to increasing instability throughout Spanish society. The Assault Guards were primarily tasked in maintaining public order in urban areas whereas the Guardia Civil's jurisdiction focused on rural areas.



When civil war broke out in Spain in the summer of 1936, the majority of the Assault Guards remained loyal to the Republican government. They quickly proved to be a highly dependable force for which the government relied on time and again in its struggle to control the cities of Spain. They were particularly effective during the siege of Madrid and it has been mentioned several times that of the Assault Guards that were in uniform in 1936, very few remained alive by 1938, being ground-up in the vicious street fighting in the intervening years.




These guys arrived from Empress Miniatures less than a week before my game with the guys from The Fawcett Ave Conscripts and so being a complete idiot I decided to try to get them done in time for kick-off. After several extremely late nights I managed to get the sixteen of them done and ready for deployment. 



Of course, as these things always work out, they never even made it onto the table as they kept missing their reinforcement rolls. Sigh. Anyway, they are now sitting in the wings, gnashing to get at the Nationalists. I know Peter has been chomping at the bit to get stuck-in commanding the Republicans so I think this is the unit for him. 


Also seen here is a 1:56 Spanish Romanesque church, a very generous gift given by the vastly talented Alf from Barrage Miniatures. This was part of the loot that I managed to smuggle home after visiting his workshop in Madrid earlier this past spring. 


This resin-cast building is inspired by the very picturesque 12th century Sant Quirc de Durro church found in the Vall de Boi, Catalonia. 


The church is a wonderful model, with loads of deep relief for easy of painting/drybrushing. Like a dolt, I first primed it dark brown, but then realized by looking at photos of similar mediterranean buildings, that the mortar used is typically cream coloured - so I traipsed back outside to respray it a light khaki. 


I can't say that I'm completely happy with my efforts, but I finally decided to throw in the towel and call it done. Nevertheless, it will be a welcome addition to the growing SCW and Napoleonic Peninsular terrain collection.  Thanks so much Alf!! 


Finally, I want to give a big shout out in celebration of the debut of Wargame Bloggers Quarterly which was launched this past Saturday. WBQ is the brainchild of the ever-industrious Millsy, one of the famed contributors of Canister & Grape. I had the pleasure to witness the whole production unfold (being characteristically lazy, I can't say I helped that much) and can attest to the high standard and tremendous level of work that has gone into this publication. So, please download the premier issue and enjoy! I understand that the editorial duties of WBQ will change from issue-to-issue so there should be a wonderful variety of articles and viewpoints as the Quarterly moves forward. Congratulations Millsy - this is a real triumph!



37 comments:

  1. Excellent work on the miniatures and the church, Curt. Honestly I can't second your doubts about it.
    And many thanks for the hint to WBQ. Seen the add on many blogs and will definetely follow your advice.

    Cheers
    Stefan

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    1. Thanks Stefan, I think my hand-wringing is because I botched the first paintjob on it. (I forgot to mention it also began with a red roof until it dawned on me that the tile-work was slate and not terracotta - doh!)

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  2. Excellent miniatures (and painting) and an outstanding piece of tabletop terrain with that building.
    Looking forward to digesting WBQ issue number 1.
    cheers

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    1. Cheers Kiwi! Enjoy WBQ, it's a great read.

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  3. Great work on the minis and the church, love the pictures too...And the WBQ n°1 is really stunning!

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    1. Thanks Phil! Yes, Millsy definitely pulled all the stops on the WBQ debut.

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  4. Another Curt's materpiece! Really nice painting work both, the Asaltos and the church

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    1. Thanks Benito, you're too kind (but I'll bask in your accolades anyway)!

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  5. Fine additions Curt, but that church is a stunning piece of kit - you lucky so and so!

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    1. It was indeed a coup getting that lovely model from Alf. I'm delighted you like it Michael.

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  6. ooh.. i do like that church... very , very nice

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  7. Thanks Curt! It really was a team effort and without some amazing content it would be nothing.

    Speaking of which, when can we expect a submission from you? :-)

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    1. But your steady hand at the helm clinched it my friend.

      Submission? Hmm, I'll have to ponder on that...

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  8. And while I'm here, what's with this "being characteristically lazy" cobblers? I seem to recall being involved in a couple of painting challenges in recent years which only a chronically un-lazy individual ever would attempt to run...

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    1. Curt's hiding his wealth under a bushel again, he's one of the busiest people in the blogosphere!

      Still, if you're planning any step-by-step project logs on SCW matters, I'm sure there'd be a lot of interest...!

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    2. Nope, I'm a complete slug at heart - if I didn't have my murder of hobby servitors on hand I'd be exposed as the fraud I am. :)

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  9. Great work Curt - having had the chance to see all of these up close a couple weeks ago, I can tell you they all look amazing on the table - just incredible.

    And way to go Millsy!!

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    1. Thanks Greg! A good portion of these were completed on your fine hobby desk prior to the game! I must have picked up some of your painting mojo when I was visiting.

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  10. Fantastic painting work with the Guardias and the church. Really nice!!! "Barrage Miniatures" have wonderful products in their catalogue.

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    1. Yes, Barrage does have a wonderful range of hobby treats to be sure (his matts are amazing). I need to make another trip to Madrid to ingratiate myself with Alf...

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  11. Curt
    Great looking figures and church. I up for leading the guards in the fight against the fascist scum!
    Ole
    Pedro

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    1. You got it Peter, they're all yours the next time we roll out with them.

      No Pasaran!

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  12. Great looking troops and church; very much like the actual items. Best, Dean

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  13. Great looking troops Curt and really like the church!!

    Christopher

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  14. Absolutely amazing work my friend! I'm really hard pressed not to get into SCW right now by ordering some of those amazing Empress figures. The church is great also and to be honest I'd have done the same mistake in using a too dark basecoat.

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    1. Thanks Nick. Yes, I often use dark basecoats for timberframe buildings as it makes sense (and saves time) but I stutter-stepped a bit with something featuring stone and mortar.

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  15. All you SCW stuff does look really good. It really is a joy to behold. The church is a triumph as well.

    I am planning to let postie control the Guardi Asalto when I run my game there!

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    1. Haha, Postie would be a good Asalto commander, but perhaps a fascist command may be more to his character? ;OP

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  16. Very nice figures Curt, always like that shade of blue. I almost just bought that church for my Dark Ages terrain, thought it was very nice. was not sure about Dark Ages though, do not think they had bells. Did find a nice one that should do on the Cavilier Books site. I hope you are well. Personal Regards,

    John

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    1. Thanks John! Great to hear from you. The bells are cast separate so you could leave them out if you wished.

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  17. Great work all round a Curt, Asaltos, Church.

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Thanks for your comment! As long as you're not a spam droid I'll have it up on the blog soon. :)