More Of The Best. New 15mm (this page) & 25mm Essex Napoleonics & Ancients & Revo Flags

Each pack includes 8 Infantry, 6 Com­mand , 4 Cavalry or 3 Mounted Com­mand for $2.49

EARLY MEDIEVAL 1125-1300 MFP1 Mtd. Man at Arms, Ket­

tle helm, lance, kite shield 1125-1250

MFP2 Mtd. Knight plain helm, lance, kite shield 1200

MFP3 Mtd. Knight plain helm, kite shield, lance for­ward 1200

MFP4 Mtd. Knight plain helm, sword , kite shield 1225

MFP5 Mtd . knight Great helm, lance, kite shield 1225

MFP6 Mtd. knight mail covered flat top helm, heater shield, sword 1250

MFP7 Mtd. knight mail covered flat top helm, heater shield, sword 1250

MFP8 Mtd. knight crested helm, lance, heater shield 1250

MFP9 Mtd. knight kettle helm, sword, heater shield 1250

MFP10 Mtd. knight crested great helm, lance, large heater shield 1265

MFP11 Mtd. knight crested great helm, heater shield , axe 1275

MFP12 Mounted sergeants, spear and kite shield (assorted) 1125-1250

Almost all of the 'following normal foot figures have been designed with head variants to give variety within each pack. MFP13 Light spearman MFP14 Medium spearman MFP15 Heavy spearman MFP16 Extra heavy spearman MFP17 Light billman MFP18 Medium billman MFP19 Heavy billman MFP20 Light/medium Halber-

diers MFP21 Heavy Halberdiers MFP22 Light pikeman MFP23 Medium pikeman MFP24 Heavy pikeman MFP25 Light/medium

crossbowmen MFP26 Heavy crossbowman MFP27 Light archer MFP28 Medium archer MFP29 Light handgunners

(early) MFP30 Medium handgunners MFP31 Heavy Handgunners MFP32 Foot command: 2 Std.

bearers, 2 drummers, 2 trumpeters

MFP33 Peasants (assorted poses)

MFP34 Artillerymen (aswrted poses)

MFP35 Sappers & Miners (assorted poses)

MFP36 Two horseholders with 4 horses

Painted 15mm Essex Boxed Armies-Call

PRUSSIAN NAPOLEONIC 1814-1815 PPN1 Musketeer PPN2 Grenadier PPN3 Command pack : (Musketeers

or Grenadier Officers, Std . bearers & drummers

PPN4 Fusilier or Jaeger PPN5 Command pack: (Fusiliers or

Jaeger) 4 Officers, 2 Buglers PPN6 Landwehr Musketeer PPN7 Command pack: Landwehr

Officer, drummer, std. bearer PPN8 Artillerymen (6 per pack)

MACEDONIAN & PUNIC WARS

MPA 18a Eastern Phalangites MEPA40 Four horse chariot with two

drivers, two archers & two javelinmen $4 .99

MEPA40a Sub General in 4-horse chariot with 2 drivers, archer and 2 javelinmen $4.99

MPA71 Ass . crewmen for bolt shooters , etc ., for Thracian , Macedonian, Greek, Bac­trian, Seleucid , Carthaginian .

MEPA82 Indian elephant with driver & two javelinmen in howdah $4.99

FRENCH NAPOLEONIC 1814-1815 PN33 Command pack: Infantry Of­

ficers (Mounted) PN34 Command pack: Napoleon &

2 Staff Officers (Mounted) PN35 Foot Guard Artillery in Great­

coat (6 per pack)

PPN9 PPN10

PPN11 PPN12

PPN13 PPN14

PPN15 PPN16

Cuirassier Command pack: Cuirassier Officer, Std. bearer, trumpeter Hussar Command pack: Hussar Of­ficer, standard bearer, trumpeter Dragoon Command pack: Dragoon Officer, Std. bearer, trumpeter Uhlan Command pack : Uhlan Of­ficer, standard bearer, trumpeter

Mail orders add S3.00 shipping and handling charges 10 all orders under $25. COO is an addilional $3.00

Telephone orders 304-547·0000 and use your major credil card)

PlellSe mill check & your order to:

BOX 278 ROUTE 40 EAST TRIADELPHIA WV 26059

Sam

ple

file

NEW AUSTRIAN 25mm INFANTRY, CAVALRY AND EQUIPMENT

A AHN1 Line infantryman C AHN2 Line infantry officer C AHN3 Line infantry standard bearer C AHN4 Line infantry drummer A AHN5 Grenadier C AHN6 Grenadier Officer C AHN7 Grenadier standard bearer C AHN8 Grenadier drummer A AHN9 Jager advancing A AHN10 Jager kneeling firing C AHN11 Jager Officer C AHN12 Jager Bugler A AHN13 Line infantryman (Helmet) C AHN14 Line infantry officer (Bicorn) C AHN15 Line infantry std . bearer

(Helmet) C AHN16 Line infantry drummer(Helmet) C AHN17 Artilleryman with rammer C AHN18 Artilleryman with handspike

NEQ15 Austrian 3 pdr. cannon .. . $3.99 NEQ16 Austrian 6 pdr. cannon . .. $3.99 NEQ17 Austrian 12 pdr. cannon .. $3.99 NEQ18 Austrian Field Artillery Limber

with four horse team & two mounted outriders . . ..... $9.99

NEQ19 Pair of Limber horses with mounted outrider to make Austrian 4-horse team into six . . . . . . . .. . ... . .. $3.99

NEQ20 Two gunners and a covered ammunition chest for mounting on a limbered Austrian cannon to represent Horse Artillery$2.99

25mm sheets No. 1 No.2 No. 3 No. 4 No. 5 No. 6 No. 7 No. 8 NO. 9 No. 10 No. 11 No. 12

No. 13

No. 14 No. 15 No. 16

No. 17

No. 18

No. 19 No. 20 No. 21 No. 22 No. 23

No. 24 No. 25

No. 26

No. 27 No. 28 No. 29

France Line Infantry 1804-15 Britain Infantry 1801-15 Britain History 1801-15 Britain Infantry 1801 -15 Austria Infantry 1806-15 Prussia Infantry 1803-15 Russia Infantry 1803-15 A.C.W. Union Infantry A.C.W. Confederate Infantry Bavaria 1803-15 Britain Guard Infantry 1815 Brunswick and Nassau Infantry 1815 German states Infantry, Hesse, Mecklenberg, Saxony 1803-14 Spain and Portugal 1806-14 France Infantry 1815 Cavalry standards, Austria, Britain , Prussia , Russia 1801-15 Cavalry standards, France, Saxony, Baden, Bavaria, etc. 1604-15 German states Infantry, Lippe, Wurttemberg, Baden etc. 1812-14 ECW Royalist info & cav. ECW Royalist info & cav. ECW Parlt. info & cav. ECW Parlt. info & cav. Westphalia & Grand Duchy of Warsaw info 1809-13 Russian Infantry 1813 A.CW. Union Infantry, State flags A.C.W. Confederate Infantry, Stage flags Medieval Standards Medieval Standards Landsknecht and German

AUSTRIAN NAPOLEONIC HORSES: E AHX2 Cuirassier or Dragoon Officers

horse E AHX3 Cuirassier or Dragoons hors!! E AHX4 E AHX5 E AHX6 E AHX7

Lancer's horse Lancer Officer's horse Hussar's horse Hussar Officer's horse

FRENCH HUSSARS pri ce codes: A FN103 Hussar Trooper C FN104 Hussar Officer C FN105 Hussar Standard Bearer C FN106 Hussar Trumpeter E FNH7 Hussars Horse

A = $ 0.90 B&C = $ 1.10 D = $ 1.49 E = $ 1.39

REVO FLAGS

An extensive and ever growing range of self­adhesive flats printed in full colour. Simply cut them out, peel off the backing paper and attach them to the flag staff.

Complimenting these are our transfer sheets & Heraldic, Japanese Mons and Greek shield designs. These waterslide transfers are ideal for use on figures, vehicles or for making up banners.

25mm Flags . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. $2.25 15mm Flags .... . . . . . . . . . ... ... $1 .39 Transfers .. $2.50 P&P 20% .. . ..... Min. 50'

Send $ for Full List

1

C AHN19 Artilleryman with ball C AHN20 Artilleryman with linstock H AHN21 Mounted General with horse A AHN22 Dragoon - AH X3 C AHN23 Dragoon Officer - AH X2 C AHN24 Dragoon Std . bearer - AH X2 C AHN25 Dragoon Trumpeter - AH X3 A AHN26 Lancer - AH X4 C AHN27 Lancer Officer - AHX5 C AHN26 Lancer Std . bearer - AHX5 C AHN29 LancerTrumpeter - AHX4 A AHN30 Hussar - AH X6 C AHN31 Hussar Officer - AHX7 C AHN32 Hussar Std . bearer - AHX7 C AHN33 HussarTrumpeter - AHX6 A AHN34 Cuirassier - AHX3 C AHN35 Cuirassier Officer - AHX2 C AHN36 Cuirassier Std . bearer - AHX2 C AHN37 Cuirassier Trumpeter - AHX3

NAPOLEONIC EQUIPMENT NEQ9 French Howitzer ........ $3.99 NEQ10 British Rocket Launcher with

two crewmen . . . ... $2.99 NEQ11 British Rocket Carriage with

Limber four horse team two drivers and two seated crew . . ........ $13.99

NEQ12 French Ammunition Caisson with four horse team and two mounted drivers . . .... $11.99

NEQ13 British Field Artillery Limber with two seated gunners four horse team with two mounted drivers . . $9.99

15mm sheets No. 1 No. 2 No. 3 No. 4 NO.5 No. 6 No. 7 No. 8 No. 9 No. 10 No. 11 No. 12 No. 13 No. 14 No. 15

No. 16

No. 17 No. 18

No. 19 No. 20 No. 21 No. 22 No. 23 No. 24 No. 25 No. 26

No. 27

No. 28

No. 29

No. 30

No. 31

No. 32

France Line Infantry 1804-12 France Line Infantry 1812-14 Russia Infantry 1813 Austria Infantry 1806-15 Prussia Infantry 1803-15 Britain 1801-15 Britain 1801-15 Britain 1801-15 France 1815 Spain and Portugal 1806-14 A.C.W. Confederate Infantry A.C.W. Union Infantry Bavaria 1803-13 Brunswick and Nassau 1615 German states, Saxony, Hesse etc. 1806-14 German states, Baden, Wurt­temberg etc . 1812-14 French Guard Inf. Nap. Cav. standards: Russ/Pruss/Aust. AWl Amer. & France AWl Brit. & German ECW Royalist info & cav. ECW Royalist info & cav. ECW Parlt. info & cav. ECW Parlt. info & cav. Russian Infantry 1803-12 A.C.W. Union Infantry, State flags A.C.W. Confederate Infantry State flags Seven Years War, French infantry Seven Years War, French infantry Seven Years War, Russian infantry Seven Years War, Austrian infantry British Guards 1815

Sam

ple

file

""\or-"- r~J .'. ~~ . ~ ( ,

"" ~ ;',~ '1 ~

.. . .

,; - " " ... . . ' dOOm 25mm - Amt'rican Civil War

MINIATURES

"\W.ID

A('\\ 14

ACW 17

ACW 23 ACW 24

INFANTRY ($0.99) ACW.1 Officer $1.49 ACW.2 Attack march! ACW.3 Loading rifle . ACW.4 At ready.

, " ,4..,.­.h; . . ( . .. .... .l... :

u .. ~ ,

,\( \I, , I

ACW.5 Standing firing rifle. ACW.6 Advancing (bayonet) ACW.7 At ready (Blanket roll) ACW.8 Charging. ACW.9 In tattered trousers, charging ACW.10 Zouave ACW.11 Standard Bearer ($1 .49)

(Standard not included). ACW.12 Drummer Boy ($1 .49) ACW.13 Officer/(revolver.) $1.49 ACW.14 Firing Enfield (blanket roll) . ACW .15 Advancing bayonet (blanket

roll) .

ACW 17 Kneeling firing ACW 18 Standing biting cartridge ACW 19 Greatcoat, at ready ACW 20 Greatcoat, firing ACW 21 Zouave advancing, bayonet ACW 22 Zouave firing ACW 23 Zouav'e drummer boy $1.49 ACW 24 Garibaldi Guard, at ready

.~-\(\\ 1: \( \I. I ~

ACW.25

ACW.26

ACW.27 ACW.2B

ACW.29

ACW.41 ACW.42 ACW.43

ACW.44

Kneeling firing rifle (shirtsleeves) Standing firing rifle (Shell jacket) At ready (blanket roll) Sharpshooter firing Sharps rifle Sharpshooter opening cart­ridge box Officer fi ri ng revolver - $1.49 At ready (shirtsleeves) Dismounted cavalry firing shotgun Standing firing (shell jacket & blanket roll)

CAVALRY ($0.99) ACWC.1 Waving Saber. ACWC.2 Firing Colt .

HORSES ($1.50) H.17 At gallop. H.18 At outstretched gallop.

ARTILLERY ($6.99) ACWG.1(a) 12 pdr 'Napoleon' ACWG.1(b) 10 pdr Parrott (rifled)

ACW.I

ARTILLERY CREW • $1.49 each ACW.30 Gunner (shell haversack) ACW.31 Gunner (sponge) ACW.32 Gunner (Lanyard) ACW.33 Officer/Sergeant directing fire ACW.34 Gunner (ramrod/sponge) ACW.35 Gunner carrying bucket ACW.36 Gunner (trailspike) ACW.37 Gunner with shell (for rifled

gun) 2

ACW.:

'.k­~~~~ .

. ~ I ~ ' . J. •.... ... ,

,\(\\ , 1

, ~l'7' 'r' •

'.': ~ \

' . \../;J' r

IlSM1NIIDCAVlARY ($0.99) ACW.16 Standing with Sharps

breechloader.

Mail orders add $3.00 shipping and handling charges to all orders under $25. COD Is an additional 13.00

Telephone orders 304-547·0000 and use your major credit card.

Pl .... mall ch.ck • your ord.r to:

ftwAOOAMES BOX 278 ROUTE 40 EAST TRIADELPHIA WV 21051

Sam

ple

file

~ e~~ \!rbe

] ~·l)utt.i~tt NORTH AMERICA'S FOREMOST MINIATURE GAMING MAGAZINE

ARTICLES

ACTION AT LA BElLE FAMILLE BRYAN LEE DUNNIGAN describes this interesting action ..... ................. .... .... ................................... .... ... ..... ............ ..... .. ... .. .. ..... .. ............. .... ...... ........ ...... .. .. .. ........... 5

LA BElLE FAMILLE AS A WARGAME BILL PROTZ presents a detailed scenario ....... .................. ......... .. .... .... ..... ......... .. ......... .. ... ....... .... .... ... .. .... ...... ... .. ... ............. .. ........ ..................... .. ....... ....... .. .... ........ ... . 13

PONTIAC'S REBElLION - A COMPLETE SET OF CAMPAIGN RULES GREG NOVAK w ith a campaign concept convertible to many periods ........................................... ...... .............. .. ............................. .. ......... ............... .......... ......... 19

CONFESSIONS OF AN ANCIENT WARGAMER JOHN BOEHM The new Ancient Editor w ith food for thought ........................................................ .... .. ......... .... ..................... ............................... .. ................ .. ..... 41

A LYKIAN INFANTRYMAN CONVERSION JOHN BOEHM shows how to create a unique unit .......................................................................................... ....... .... ...................... ...... ............................... ............. 42

A NEW APPROACH TO ANCIENT WARGAMING ART CONLIFFE describes rule concepts w ith a different slant .... .................................................. ........... ................................................................................... .... . 43

COMMAND DECISION'S BARBAROSA 25 GREGOR NOVAK (alias Greg Novak) suggests rule and o rganizational changes ..... ............... ........................... ....................... .. ................................ ........ ....... .. ... 55

CONTROL RULES FOR SKIRMISH WARGAMES MIKE BLAKE adds increased characterization to skirmish wargames .......... ........................ ................ ....... .. ............ .. .. .. .. .... ........................... .. .................. .. .. ... ....... 55

THE SWORD AND THE NAME... BILL HAGGART generates a list of dro ll names for use in colonial games .............. .. .......... ......... ............... .. .. .. ................................................................... ........ .... 61

THE UBIQUITOUS PERIOD HANK MARTIN lists troops for use in more than one colonial area .............. ................................... .... .. .... ... ........................................ ......... ................ .. ............ .... 62

DEPARTMENTS

SAPPER'S REPORT An Old West Prison and Hotel ............................................................. .................................... .. ................. .. .... .. .......... .... ....... ........... .. ..... ......... 29

THE REVIEWING STAND Figures, Rules and Reference Works ............. .............. .. .. .... ............ .. ......... ...................... .. ........ .. .. .. .. ........ ................ ...... .. .. .. ................ 33

THE COURIER DISPATCH News of The Hobby ............................................................................. .. .. .............................................................................................. 51

ERRATA misplaced photos and more ... .. ..... ... ..... ... ... .. .......... ... .. ... .. ....... .... ..... .... ..... .. ..... .... ... .................................. ......................... ..... ......... .. ... .. ...................... ..... .... 62

DISPATCHES FROM THE FiElD Letters to (or at) the Edito r .... .................. ...................... .... .......... .. ...................... .. .............. ............. .................................. ...... ... 63

VOllEY FI RE What you li ke (or hate) about THE COURIER ........ ..................................... ................... .. .. .. ........... .................................... .. ........... ......... ...... ... .. ....... 64 Also vote for the next THEME YEAR

COVER: Courtesy Old Fort Niagara Association. Artwork by Frederi c Ray. The 19 day siege of Fort Niagara ended July 25, 1759 after a French relief force was defeated nearby at The Battle of La Belle Famille. Here we see the fort commandant, Captain Pouchot of the Regiment of Beam surrendering the fort to the British.

3

Sam

ple

file

MANAGING EDITOR: Richard L. Bryant BUSINESS MANAGER: Leo Cronin

ART DIRECTOR: Joseph Miceli ADVERTISING MANAGER: Tom Desmond

THEME EDITOR:THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS William Protz

CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Jim Amold; Ken Bunger; Robert Beattie; Lynn Bodin; John Boehm; Rodman Burr; Pat Condray; Todd Fisher; Bill Greenwald; Jay Hadley; Ian Knight; Paul Koch; Doug Johnson; Tom McMillen; Nick Nascati; Greg Rice; Bill Rutherford; Walter Simon.

STAff CARTOONIST: Jose Niera

STAFF PHOTOGRAPHERS: Bill Greenwald Pat Condray

THE COURIER DISPATCH: Greg Rice

STAFF ILLUSTRATORS Alan Archambault, AI Karasa, Joe Matthews, Larry Schuman, Terry Manton, Bill Greenwald

TYPESETTING: Steve Brown

PRINTING: Quantum Printing

THE COURIER PUBLISHING COMPANY, INC. Richard L. Bryant, President

DIRECTORS Richard Bryant, Leo Cronin, Joseph Miceli

THE COURIER is published approximately bi-monthly at Brockton, MA 02401 USA.

SUBSCRIPTIONS USA - $19.00; CANADA & S. AMERICA, surface rate - $23.00. UNITED KINGDOM & EUROPE write to: Athena Books, 20 St. Mary's Rd., Doncaster, South Yorkshire DN1 2NP England. AUSTRALIA write to: Essex Miniatures Pty., Ltd., 40 Railway Parade, Lakemba, NSW 2195.

BACK ISSUES Recent back issues are available for $4.50, USA; $5.00 Canada & Foreign surface; $6.00 Foreign airmail. See last page of issue for I isti ng. Mon ies in US fu nds drawn on US banks or International Postal Money Order. Subscriptions start with NEXT published issue after receipt of payment.

No responsibility is assumed for statements of fact or opinion made by the authors. No responsibility is assumed for unsolicited manuscripts, but all sub­missions are welcome, no query necessary. All sub­missions should contain a self-addressed STAMPED envelope large enough to return the submission.

This magazine and other publications of The Courier Publishing Company are sold with the understanding that every reasonable attempt is made to deliver them safely through the mails. The Courier Publish­ing Company is not responsible for items lost in the malls. Replacements will be provided at their usual cost.

ALL DOMESTIC DEALER INQUIRIES, ADVERTISING COPY AND INQUIRIES, DOMESTIC SUBSCRIP­TIONS AND ARTICLES to THE COURIER, Box 1878,

Brockton, MA 02403.

Entire Contents Copyright 1989 by The Courier Publishing Company, Inc.

VOL. VIII, NO.5

THE VANGUARD

EDITOR'S NOTES

CHOOSING THE NEXT THEME YEAR

On the last page of this issue you will find a listing of the most popular suggestions forthe next theme year. It is imperative that you vote for the theme year of your choice. While we welcome write-in votes for periods not listed, it stands to reason that most likely one of the listed periods will be selected. Please note that we cannot select even the most popular theme if no Theme Editor is available or if we have no source of colored covers and illus­trations for the period. Suggestions for Theme Editor and such sources are welcome.

If any of you wish to volunteer as Theme Editor for a particular period please drop me a line describing your credentials and the resources available to you to fulfill those duties. Required resources include a source of illustrations and photos for the period; enough familiarity with wargame and historical authors of the period to be able to solicit their freely given help in generating good articles as necessary to properly present the period to readers of The Courier if no other articles are forthcoming. The only renumeration is the satisfaction of putting some­thing back into the hobby plus a free subscription, some review figures and books.

AN EXPERIMENTTHATWILL NOT BE REPEATED

The last issue was an attempt to print The Courier for less money than we took in. That it was not an appreciated attempt was evident by the number and vehemence of the letters that we received about our experiment in fiscal responsibility. One fellow even cancelled his sub­scription (I wonder if he is the same guy that came to my house some time ago to see the print­ing presses and meet the editorial staff!).

YOU CAN HELP

I wish to thankall of you who offered to pay higher sub rates orto send in supplementary mon­ies. None of this would be necessary if most who read pass-around copies of The Courier sub­scribed or bought their own copy at a store instead. This would triple our cash flow and allow for more color, better schedule keeping, and more. So get your friends who read your copy to subscribe. Use the form usually found in the dummy cover and get free extra issues added to your subscription as a bonus for helping out The Courier. This issue will not have that form because of...

THE GAMA AWARDS

In the dummy cover of this issue you will find a listing of the nominations for the GAMA Awards. Please take a minute to support yourfavorites by voting. Show GAMA that Miniature iGamers are as interested and involved as are others in the hobby.

4

QUOTABLE WARGAME QUOTES "Great painting is your cover for lack of generalship" - S. Scudder

QUOTABLE WARGAME QUOTES "I don't care what their orders are - I want them over here!" (Ancients) - S. Scudder

QUOTABLE WARGAME QUOTES "Sorry. Beer cans don't screen." - Leo Cronin

Sam

ple

file

WESTERN INDIAN COMPAGNIES FRANCHES DE LA MARINE

46th. FOOT CONVERGED NEW YORK PROVINCIAL REGIMENT

Drawings by joe lee. Courtesy of Old Fort Niagara Association.

ACTION AT LA BELLE FAMILLE BY BRIAN LEIGH DUNNIGAN*

The morning sun of july 24, 1759, beat down upon a solitary red-coated figure standing in a clearing. The officer paced a few yards, then glanced up a rutted cart track leading south across the flat terrain for about 100 yards. There it disappeared into dense hardwood forest. Another 1 00 yards to his left the clearing ended in more woods. To his right lay the mighty Niagara River, its green water running swiftly between fifty-foot banks. A mile to the north this strait joined lake Ontario, and on the east point of the juncture stood Fort Niagara. The white flag of France floated above its walls, and nearby banks of powder smoke marked the guns of a British army which were relentlessly pounding the defenses into ruin. A light northwest wind carried the monotonous booming of artillery from the vicinity of the fort. Except for these few scars of war, however, the view was both pleasant and picturesque. A Seneca warrior had told British commander Sir William Johnson that the French knew this spot as La Belle Famille.

Lieutenant Colonel Eyre Massey was not alone in the wilderness clearing. A few feet behind him lay 140 men of the battalion companies of His Britan­nic Majesty's 46th Regiment of Foot. The two ranks of silent figures lay on their muskets. Those of the front rank had, at Massey's orders, fixed their bayonets. Two other knots of redcoats were visible to the Colonel's right. On the other side of the cart track lay 50 men of Captain Richard Bayly's detachment of the 44th Foot and a mere two dozen of Captain james Marsh's grenadiers of the 46th. Behind Massey's left shoulder was a crude log breastwork which sheltered 150 carbine-armed light infantrymen of the 44th, 46th, and 4/60th Regiments under Captain james Delancey. To Massey's extreme left, just visible before the forest closed in, was the ter­mination of his thin line: 50 men each of the 46th and the New York Regiments. A few Mohawks could be seen filtering in and out of the woods atthe margin ofthe clearing. Although Massey's men could see little butthe

5

grass before their eyes, their attention was directed southward where the road entered the woods.

Even though he stood erect, Massey himself could see very little. He paced a few more steps and then, in nervous frustration, clambered upon a half­rotted log. The Colonel stared at the dim opening in the trees but could still discern nothingof a French army he feared might numberas many as 2,000 men. Their mission was to relieve Fort Niagara's 600 exhausted defenders. Massey was just as determined that his 464 soldiers would hold the road

. and protect the rear of the British siege lines which were slowly strangling the fortress of Niagara.

As Colonel Massey perched on his log a trio of Iroquois chiefs strolled through the prone ranks of the 46th. Casually, they glanced toward the forest and one remarked loudly that the French would soon appear with ten times the number of his small force. Massey winced at the comment as he heard a murmur of concern ripple through his battalion . Sensing his men's apprehension, the Colonel turned on his vantage point and, in a calm but firm voice, addressed those who could hear. " lads, you know the French are coming. I can see their numbers," he lied, "and if you will obey me I' ll engage them here and drub 'em." This reassured the men some­what, and Massey once again turned his attention to the forest. At that moment he spied a flash of white among the trees.

·Brian Leigh Dunnigan is Executive Director of Fort Niagara in Youngstown, New York and author of several historical works about Fort Niagara, including SIEGE - 17S9 THE CAMPAIGN AGAINST NIAGARA. From 7966 to 1974 he served as a seasonal staff member with the Mackinac Island State Park Commission, later becoming Managing Directoro(f-{fstoric Fort Wayne in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1974 and after"'tlards moving on to the position of Executive Director at Fort Niagara in 1979. He has a 8.A. and an M.A in History from the University of Michigan and an M.A. in History Museum Training from the Cooperstown Graduate Programs. He is a Fellow of the Company of Military His­torians and Honorary Member of the Seven Years ' War Association. Theme Editor: Bill Protz.

Sam

ple

file