"British East Africa Askaris" Topic

Yesterday TCM showed "Sundown", a WW2 movie about a British out-post in BEA and T thought it could be a pretty neat scenario, only problem: Can't seem to find 28mm WW2 BEA Askari!

Does anyone know of any company that makes these? Please LMK!

Thanks,
Abel

Try Brigade Games; I have them in stock but as I'm in the UK and you're in the US then you would be better going direct.
Bob.

Do you have a link? All I can find are the WW1 KAR, which look suspiciously like the ones in the movie, as they wore pill-box caps, not the bush (Gurkha style) hat. Now I'm wondering if they used the wrong uniform in the movie?!

If anyone can verify this as a mistake in the movie, LMK!

TMP link

Thanks Caesar, it looks like they're wearing the wrong uniforms in the movie!!

I'm kind of mulling this over myself; consider using either Assault Group or Bolt Action 14th Army/Chindits for Burma, and regular early 8th Army, possibly with Woodbine Miniatures heads in slouch hat, for East Africa.

Because I'm deranged I'm considering buying some "Colo(u)red Heads" from an ACW line and doing a head/hat swap on some of these figures with an eye to doing Nigerian Infantry in Burma.

Sorry, didn't read the post properly, sent you to look at WWI Askaris.
Bob.

Hi

I dont think the British had Askaris as such in East Africa. They did have the KAR, Indian Army units and the Sudan Defense force, Somali Camel Corps as well as the Patroit army but no true Askaris.

If they did have any it would have been with Cunninghams Southern front (Nigerian and gold Coast untis) and not those that fought at Agrodat and Keren.

The Italians hovever had lots of Eritrean Askari units as well as Somali Dubats

Mark

Thanks All. In the movie they refer to the KAR as Askaris, so obviously another goof up by this movie!

I think I'm going to end up doing this as a WW1 scenario, and do it with German Askaris and Ost Deautsche troops against the KAR.

@The Wargames Command Post: your link will be useful, after all!

Thanks Again everyone.

What do you mean by "true askaris?"

Askari is just the Arabic/Swahili word for soldier. KAR troops were referred to as Askari, as were native police in British East Africa. John Nunneley in his memoirs of his time in the KAR uses the word when referring to the men who served under him.

By WW2 Brit colonial troops were fairly well equipped and standardised. I would suggest using gurkha troops. TAG has good WW2 sculpts:

link

Anyway, some pics of KAR from WWII for your perusal:

On Manoeuvres in Kenya.

Kicking the Vichy out of Madagascar.

In Somalia.

Kicking the Italians out of Ethiopia.

The rest are from Burma:

(Actually, that was a lie. This first one is Ceylon, on the way to Burma.)

@johnnytodd: I thought of using Gurkhas, but they'd probably be wearing their kukris and I'd have to cut it off (read: mutilate) the mini to remove them.

@plynkes: thanks for the photos. The movie refers to the British having kicked out the Italians from the area.

Unfortunately I was in a hospital bed with, among other IVs in me, painkillers from a small surgery I'd had the night before when I was watching this movie, so I've only retained a few things. I'm ordering the movie from Amazon tonight.

Thanks All!

Kukris – yes probably, however I see in photo above KAR carrying machete of similar size to gurkha knife.

Hope your hospital visit was brief.

johnnytodd

@johnnytodd: Yes, my visit was only 2 days and nights.

I'm thinking the WW2 Aussies in hat might actually fit the bill!

BTW, Youtube has Sundown (with commercials) if anyone's interested in seeing it. Obviously the uniform they show the KAR wearing is incorrect.