The American War of Independence was one of my first miniature wargames projects. I still haven’t finished. There’s always another unit to paint and another battle to create terrain for. At the library of Congress website, there is a section of maps and charts of North America and the West Indies 1750 – 1789 that miniature wargamers will find useful.
18th Century
One If By Land AWI rules
Bob Bergman has written “One If By Land”, a set of free wargames rules for the American War of Independence on a 1:10 scale. The rules use a card activation system, movement is randomized with a die to reflect the uneven nature of terrain, and fire and melee combat are resolved by rolling a d10 and consulting a table. A nice touch is that the figures are based according to the popular “Age of Reason” rules set. I have a large collection of 15mm American Revolution figures and I’m going to give these a try.
Pictoral History of Costume
Braun and Schneider’s “History of Costume” was published from 1861-1880 in Munich. This website has the translated text and the original color plates, with more than 500 costumes. This is a great miniatures painting guide, especially for the “contemporary” (i.e., 1880s) plates of peoples in Europe, Africa and Asia.
AWI Figure Comparison
Dan Foley has a review and comparison of wargaming figures from several miniature manufacturers’ American War of Independence lines.
The Military Experience In The Age of Reason
I picked up this book at a closeout sale and I’m really glad that I did. As a fan of the American Revolution period, I found it to be full of useful information. Duffy is a superior historian and writer, who manages to combine great detail with an easy to read style. Every aspect of warfare in this period is covered: the officers, common soldiers, sieges, set piece battles, and the home front. It’s a superior read.
Military Experience in the Age of Reason (Wordsworth Military Library)
