Tuesday 17 January 2017

From Curt: Miliciana from 'Columna Durruti' and AAC-1937 (20 Points)


I'm almost embarrassed to present this submission in light of the heavy artillery booming around these parts. It seems a bit of a damp squib in comparison, but progress is progress, so here goes.

This past summer saw the 80th anniversary of the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, and this autumn marked when Republican Madrid held fast against Franco's Nationalist forces. 

A significant amount of credit for the city's resistance was due to the arrival of reinforcements from Barcelona led by a charismatic anarchist by the name of Jose Durruti. His force, known as the 'Durutti's Column' became famous for its assistance in fending off Franco's hardened Moroccan professionals. The anarchists took particularly heavy casualties, including Durruti himself, fighting in the Casa de Campo (Madrid's largest park).


Durruti, in car crudely marked with 'C.N.T.', with his column heading west in the autumn of 1936.


Durruti's ad hoc column of Republican fighters on the move.

Durruti's death is still shrouded in controversy. Some say he was killed by enemy fire, while others contend he was a victim of friendly fire.  A few go so far as to say he was killed by Soviet-led Communists who saw him as a threat to their leadership within the Republican cause.

So, seen here is a miliciana standard bearer, wearing the distinctive blue workers overalls (el mono azul), giving the Republican clenched-fist salute and holding aloft an anarchist flag. The flag is emblazoned with 'Columna Durruti' and the acronyms of the two largest anarchist workers militias, the C.N.T and the F.A.I.

The figure is from the Empress Miniatures' range and the banner is from Flags of War.




Behind her is a AAC-1937 Chevrolet armoured car. This vehicle is often mistaken for a Soviet BA-3/6, but in fact was built in Valencia, using a Chevy 6x4 chassis as a basis. This one is armed with a hull machine gun along with a 37mm gun with a coaxial MG. It saw service in the later part of the civil war.


Many of these vehicles were captured by the Nationalists, or confiscated by the French during the Republicans' final retreat into exile. Oddly enough, many would see the end of their active service as German armoured cars on the Eastern Front.


This vehicle is, again, from Empress Miniatures. A nice, simple and clean kit. I've given it a fairly basic paint job in dark olive green, which seemed to be a relatively common colour  for vehicles at the time. It has 'U.H.P.' on the upper hull, denoting it's crew as supporters of the Uníos Hermanos Proletarios (United Brothers of the Proletariat) a socialist workers organization, part of the alphabet soup of socialist-anarcho-sydicalist trade unions that were (and still are) popular in and around Barcelona. 


There you have it! Thanks for visiting and thanks to Team Tuesday for letting me piggyback with you folks today. 

Alan and Paul: 'What's that, Master? You have a submission to publish? At once Master, at once!

I am really enjoying seeing your SCW figures, Curt. I really admire your painting style, especially the way you achieve contrasts that make the figures 'pop', and the basing helps to achieve this as well. Excellent armoured car as well, and thanks for providing the fascinating historical context. And there was me thinking the Durruti Column were a post-punk band from Manchester...

50 comments:

  1. Surely this was the golden age of the armoured car! Looks fantastic!

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    1. Thanks Barks. Yes, the amount and variety of armoured cars used during the SCW boggles the mind. Tanks on the cheap, I guess.

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  2. The ymay be few but they are always beautiful. No production line but handcrafted works of art

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    1. You're too kind, sir, too kind. Thank you very much, Martin.

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  3. Great work on these Curt

    Ian

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  4. Excellent work Curt, you must have quite a collection of SCW figures now?

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    1. Thanks Ray. Yes, it's one of those collections that slowly creeps along until one day you say, 'Gee, I have quite a bit of this. How did that happen?'

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  5. Lovely work as always Curt. To mess around with an old saw, "Quality has a quantity all of its own" :)

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  6. The Durruti Column? I had two of their albums! Happy days...!

    Terrific work as always, Curt!

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    1. Yes, me too, back when I had no clue what the title meant...

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  7. Sharp as ever with the painting. Nice to see the Anarchists getting a look in as well. You know I play SCW and seeing this I am leaning towards another game soon.

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    1. Thank you, Clint. I really like your 10mm SCW stuff as well. I too feel the urge to get these on the table soon.

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  8. Lovely work on the figure and the armoured car, gotta love those anarchist flags, in fact the SCW is good for flags and 20th century toys but even with such splendid work to entice me I will be strong and resist and who makes the figures? Empress mmm
    Best Iain

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    1. Thanks Iain. Yes, yet more things to lure me away from my Renaissance figures. :)

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  9. Embarrassed by a mere 20 point submission, as one of the runts of the Monday litter this year I feel your pain. Great stuff as usual.

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    1. I think my Challenge year is going to be made up of these smaller entries as I'm finding it difficult to get any traction with the larger units.

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  10. Impressive work Curt! Gotta love armoured cars, can't really figure out why they are so charming, but they just always seem to look cool

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    1. One of the things that drew me to the period initially. This AC is rather elegant in its lines, though many were highly improvised and very, very ugly.

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  11. Great work Curt! The AC is a wonderful bit, but a militant anarchist babe - be still my heart?

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    1. Thanks Pete! Yes, I realized we needed a banner-bearer for the Militia so there she is.

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  12. Excellent work yet again Curt! I really do enjoy all the background info as well as the painting.

    Christopher

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    1. Thank you Christopher. I can't seem to paint unless I'm keen on the subject, which makes for my constant (and sometimes aggravating) hopping between my favourite historical periods.

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  13. Beautiful brushwork as always dude. Was that armoured car a tight squeeze, or is that a 1/56 model...?

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    1. Don't get me started Greg... Historically is was a smallish armoured car, but it's still a bit too small by my reconning. I love the heft of 1/48 scale stuff and it seems to work better with 28mm figures, at least to my eyes.

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  14. Cracking work, really nicely realised and the historical context is always interesting.

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  15. great entry Curt, love the weathering on the armoured vehicle

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    1. Thanks James. Frankly, I always get a bit out-of-sorts painting vehicles. I don't do enough of them and I don't use an airbrush, which I know would speed things up immeasurably.

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  16. Excellent entry Curt! I would not be embarrassed by a 20 point entry of this quality. I would take a 20 point quality entry like this one is, over a 200 point quantity entry any single day of the week!

    I love the details on the vehicle and the harsh shading method you use on the infantry man, I almost feel you left the flag too clean though, given the vehicle and infantry style, maybe just me, but I would dirty it up a bit with powders or tear the edges? Probably just me though, right?

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    1. Haha. I agree, and I did precisely that last night after I took the photos. :) The Challenge deadlines are great for getting me motivated, but sometimes I rush to press without really completing the figure to where I want it. I can't tell you how many entries I've continued work on after they've been submitted. ;)

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  17. Very nice painting. Empress Miniatures really are quality products. cheers

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    1. Thanks Brendon. Yeah, I'm a big fan and feel you really can't go wrong with their catalogue.

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  18. There is a certain charm about individual entries. They allow crafting, construction and storytelling that is not present in bigger entries.

    Fantastic work, as always.

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    1. That's a very nice spin on it - Thank you Robert! :)

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  19. Done to your usual high standards, Curt. I love those period pictures, Durutti and his boys look like tough troops.
    My vision of interwar armies is increasingly coloured by chaps running around with flags. Perhaps its more imaginary than real (I blame VBCW) but its interesting how all the flags go away in 1939. Well, maybe except for Soviets ... and Japanese ...

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    1. Thanks, Padre. (I love saying that.) Yeah, I love looking at the archival photos as well. There are several photographs by Capa, Guzman and Taro that almost bring a tear to my eye.

      Yes, it seems the East had a particular affinity for taking banners into battle post 1918. I think of the Russian Civil War, the Chinese Civil War and the French Indochina war as good examples.

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  20. Gorgeous! Very cute armoured car all weathered up and the militia banner-woman is the business. Will we see these on the table soon?

    Seems the SCW entries are awash with flags this year.

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    1. I know, it's banner year! And I think I'll have another one for the East theme round as well.

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  21. Top notch painting and great historical background.

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  22. Oh well, somehow I can feel my chances to actually win our side duel dwindle away...
    But as long as you're knocking out such wonderful pieces I'm fine. The armoured car is great, but that little lady giving the salute is a real corker.

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    1. It's all a part of my shock and awe campaign. :0) Frankly, I don't have too much after this stuff so you should be able to catch up.

      Thanks for the thumbs up Nick!

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