Twenty twenty two, two.

A hot year!  The rest of 2022!  After Waterloo I had only one day before going away again, then only a few days before Brettan and I confess the idea of writing up two events, now three, was a bit daunting yet a part of me still wanted to put something up for prosterity, like this blog was a diary I might look back on. I won't write an account of each event just any particular points or memories.

It was heat wave week at Waterloo and the camp was near the largely restored chateux/farm of Hougoumont but more importantly for many of us were the lovely leafy trees down the centre, separating the British and Prussian camps. A lot of time was spent under those trees, a real difference to Waterloo 2015 which as a very busy first time visit was spent sight seeing and drilling.   

Under my adopted tree.

So my role was as medical officer to the Prussian artillery, and just for one battle as I had to leave to get the Eurostar earlier than planned, but being one of the few in camp when the battle loomed on Sunday I got to open a gate and watch Napoleon, Ney and the French cavalry all ride through.

The cannon was towed up to the field on Friday evening and being on the trailer going over the rough road was the closest I'll probably get to being in the horse artillery.

 In the Saturday battle as well as helping to push a gun about I did have an actual nosebleed to deal with. My patient sitting next to field marshal Blücher himself! 

The sun set as the mighty French attack failed and they then made a last stand. I got the honour of firing the last shot from 'our' cannon on the far left flank. 

Bretten! (In Baden-Wurtemberg) My third visit, last one being 2017. I find the two covid years seem like a black hole when working out dates, something from five years ago feels like three. 

Not much had changed and the town was very keen to get back into it after the above break, it certainly was very busy and joyful and we were invited to a feast of watermelon and feta, fresh flatbread, eggs in green sauce, shredded oranges and cous cous and some sort of meat dollop, if you so wanted.

The tavern in it's little square is always a lovely place and you must be appropriately dressed on the Landskneckt side. No trainers! 

Friday was a battle practice, the 'Story' of the siege now in 60 parts each announced by a gun firing!  Aaaand your on.  I was an arrow magnet during practice but not on the Saturday night when I just got stabbed. 

The night ended in the town square with disco dancing to a covers band. 

What colour are the enemy? Er, red, yellow, blue... orange.. white.. anyone facing the wrong way.

Scary C16 bee-keepers or possibly baddies from Dr Who. 

Hole park.

Owing to some absences and injuries the French were lead into battle by an experienced NCO whilst I, having a big hat, took up being L'Emporer's aide de camp and adjutant to the French, even being equipped with a walkie talkie to aid co-ordination with the other side but generally just scribbled notes with an oversized pencil.

From it absolutely pissing down when we arrived and put up the tents the weather was sunny in the day.  Hat discipline has become very lax in camp! 

Saturday evening saw a repeat of last years skirmish in the woods (sending a horseman to ask if the British were coming was far more effective than trying to get an answer on the walkie talkie) so yours truely had a price on his head. After last year when we had about ten troops and they turned up with about thirty and an artillery crew we decided on being sneakier and I managed to elude capture and make it back to camp, though I almost collapsed when I got back, I'm clearly not used to such exercise.

 So what of the future?

I confess the weekend as ADC was enjoyable and would do it again although it was a particular set of circumstance. I am also aware that I don't want to be one of those guys who turns up as part of an entourage. There were messages to deliver, notes to take, hobnobbing to do, and just that Napoleon should have one or two staff or it looks odd, but not too many. 

I do like the fact I can take the field as a Doctor and treat the wounded, smell the smoke, get a muddy knee, and risk the cannon fire (and on occasion escape through the woods), so I have a purpose. 

But in camp as just a doctor it can be a bit slow, though there were plenty of general questions at Napoleon's tent, and there is already a very entertaining, lively and well equipped surgery display in the French camp so a further table of medical nik naks would be a bit redundant. 

 I think a middle path would be best, drop in to see l'emperor for a glass of vino and then roll the sleaves up and get stuck in. 

Dates are already on the calender for 2023...

Lewes and Nunhead.

It has been a couple of weeks since these two modest events and I pondered whether to write them up, but decided to as a matter of completeness.

The battle of Lewes, the official poster for the event, without a single mention of where or what time anything was happening! 

I was only going on the Sunday but as Lewes is a short train ride away I decided to nip over on the Saturday night to catch a bit of socialising and broke out the Fransiscan habit, the only bit of kit I've got that has been improved by being a bit Moth eaten during lockdown. 

Played an amusing medieval board game, which no one knew the name of, but I may try and make my own copy.  Had a couple of pints in my half pint mug which involved drinking half a pint at the beer tent counter before transferring the rest to my modest mug. I have tankards but as a poor friar I don't think it would be appropriate to have something big and shiny.

Back in Lewes on Sunday I was twice accosted by visitors wanting to know where the skirmishes were.. at three points on the advance into town.. I only vaguely knew and was wandering in the general direction myself. I didn't really get any historical questions all day, although I was mistakenly referred to as 'Father' to which I replied "Oh no, I'm not a father, not that I know of.' 

The king gets beaten again on Lewes high street, some good cajoling went on. 

Back at the camp there was an assortment of stalls and attractions from the inevitable hog roast and mead to crockery smashing, archery and a treasure hunt, a leather hooded executioner did a very good show every so often, although someone told me they didn't think it was entirely suitable for children, mainly due to the crushing of testicles.

Despite being fairly local I had never seen all the ruins of Lewes priory which was once a pretty big, solid complex, like many laid to waste by Henry VIII.  

                       The ghost of the priory!

Nunhead cemetery open day.. I thought would be a bit of a niche event, one of our small band chatting to an old lady and her small dog whilst the rest sip tea and nibble on cucumber sandwiches. 

It was actually quite full on and busy with all sorts of visitors, including quite a few goths, naturally. 

The connection with the 45e is that a number of veterans of the Napoleonic wars are buried there, including a Corporal Dickson, who was apparently with Sergeant Ewart when he captured the Eagle. Several times in the day we marched up the main path and saluted the grave which drew some attention and gave the MC a chance to talk about the subject.

We were all kept quite busy with three tables of displays to talk about, or answer questions, why we were here and is that a real gun? being most common.

I often think I'm not keen on children but like all people it depends on them and a lot of the kids were very bright, and polite in that muesli belt kind of way. 

A much needed pint and pub meal followed, a warm day of standing, talking and gesticulating can really tire you out. 

Next..  should be Waterloo!  For many the first big event since lockdown. 

There was a possibility of going with the Prussians last year but covid still shut things down to Netherlanders only, but I may see them this year so plan to go as a civilian doctor capable of literally being in both camps. 

I have a 'new' doctors bag that isn't actually falling apart but there is a rather too modern lock on one side not shown in the picture (on ebay). Oh well, I'm sure it can be disguised or just held out of sight.

I could have got away with being a French surgeon but was a bit wary someone would discover some irregularity!  Also means I don't have to travel with a sword and big hat. Bonus.

Two week today I'll be enroute! 

A farewell to arms.

 ..and with the stroke of a pen Henriette went to live with a friend.

My musket since 2014 (although first used on the field of Leipzig in 2013) has been given up for several reasons. We are moving in a few months and a new place would require a new securi-chord being bored into the wall, not a huge deal but my licence runs out next year anyway and renewal now requires approval by a doctor and mine has been quite negative about signing similar things before. It can also be quite expensive for what it is.. and I might not actually use a musket in any given season.

It was nice to have incase an event was short of people who could fire or a filming opportunity came up, or if there is a post apocalypse scenario where I have to defend the house but meh, I'll just have to use the machette. A musket is also too slow to load if facing multiple zombies. 

I am now there to save people, mainly, I did stab a riflemen at Crouch ridge, but I consider that just part of my civil duty. 

New research on 45eme kit also means much of it requires change if I go to an event as a soldier and again it isn't worth adapting or buying new gaiters, breeches, shirt, stock etc and not using it. My veteran campaign trousers have retired. 

We had some grand times together (with Henriette, not the trousers), I remember a particularly satisfying double-loaded shot at Waterloo! and skirmishing in the woods at campaign events was always fun.. but things move on, Let it go!  

And what of 2022?  Sadly what would have been my first event has just been cancelled. After two years of covid cancellations.. we emerge into the light of a new summer with restrictions ended.. then Putin's darkness swallows the false dawn. 

It would have been near Hanover at a small palace occasionally inhabited by Jerome Bonaparte and I would have enjoyed a royal appointment for the weekend, think how that would have looked on my CV!  

It is sickening that we can have war in Europe in 2022 but I feel cancelling an event over it being inappropriate is not something I can really get behind, events didn't stop because of war in Syria or Yemen or Iraq or Afghanistan or Yugoslavia. 

What of Waterloo?  Will that go the same way? Assuming a new covid variant doesn't emerge. Some reenactors I know have said the covid slump drained their enthusiasm, got them out of the habit. 2022 needs to get them back out there! 

A big event in Russia (Borodino 2022) was still inviting participants just a couple of weeks ago.. suffice to say it was lots of non/no/nein/ne's from the international community. 

Reenactment is a community, I remember having breakfast with some friendly Russians back in 2013.  Hopefully we will all come together again. At the same event there was a small protest that the reenactment glorified war..  everyone involved knows better than the average person how much death, wounding, hunger and sickness goes hand in hand with any war. Education is often a goal but it is still a hobby meant to be enjoyed. 

I look forward to the day I can post about an event with friends from around the world! Maybe that will still be this year.  Stay safe!   

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