from RayR - Donnybrook - Ottoman Bosniak Irregular Infantry 60pts

 

My last unit (for the moment?) of Ottoman Infantry for the Siege of Vienna in 1683.

The bulk of the Ottoman infantry were composed of Provincial militia and volunteers like Azabs usually armed with halberds or Musket armed mercenaries like Levends (usually from Anatolia or the Balkans) and Sekbans.

 These forces were vital for the Ottomans to make up the numbers. They were cheap and disposable and released after each campaign. While defensively and in siege warfare under able leadership these mercenary troops performed well, in field battles they usually performed below par. They lacked discipline, uniform, reliable equipment and were incapable of facing European line infantry in firefights employing salvo and volley fire techniques. They largely performed as individual marksmen which put them at a big disadvantage in firefights, as the slow loading and inaccurate musket required large numbers of bullets fired to put sufficient numbers on targets and to be followed by another rank firing volleys while first reloaded. This required drill and discipline which these Irregulars didn’t possess.

In melee combat however they were capable opponents. To the ottoman military these forces were a financial and strategic necessity. In 1683 over half the provincial forces in Kara Mustafa’s army were composed of this type of troops. 

The figures are from the great Warfare Miniatures and can be found here!

Did I mention Donnybrook?

12 figure @ 5pts each adds 60 pts to my total.