Konzentrationslager Herzogenbusch revisited

This is some extra information on an earlier post about Konzentrationslager Herzogenbusch.
It is information i found on a news tweet today (Thursday October 28 2010).
Today two unique photo's were found at Camp Vught, as the location of the former concentration camp and now memorial centre is called today.
The photo's are from 1944 and show camp prisoners and their guards.
It is exceptional that prisoners and guards are stand together on photo's like these. Moreover it was prohibited to shoot photo's in and close surroundings of the camp, such photo's are very rare.

Prisoners walking on the Loonsebaan guarded by a camp-guard on a bike.

Same group somewhere in the outskirts of the camp probably Gement or  the Bossche Broek where they were put to work.

The photo's are from the family album of Klaas Bezema. From research it has become clear that the father of Bezema made these photo's. He was an amateur photographer and kept taking photo's during the war.

Thanks for reading.

Photo's: STIWOT

Today in Dutch WWII History: The Battle of the Scheldt

This is not exactly a Today in Dutch WWII History because the battle of the Scheldt took place from October 1st - November 8th, 1944.
It was a very bitter, bloody and hard fought battle from both sites. But also know as a forgotten battle. Where most people do know about D-Day, Market Garden or the Battle of the Bulge there are hardly people who have heard of the battle of the Scheldt.
It was also a very important battle. Although the allies now occupied the harbor of Antwerp the Germans still dominated the East-Scheldt area. This made it still impossible for allied ships to go to the harbor of Antwerp and thus creating a shorter supply line.
My first intention was to write the story about the battle myself but instead the following link has a great and nice write up about the whole battle.

The Battle of the Scheldt

Next link is specifically aimed at the battle for Walcheren (Thanks Paul for the link).

OPERATION INFATUATE - WALCHEREN - 1 to 8 NOV 1944

The The Battle of the Scheldt link leads to a page from the Canada at War website. A website dedicated to the contribution of the Canadian army in both World Wars and other wars.



Thanks for reading.

Photo: Canada at War

M5A1 Stuart Light Tank platoon Finished.

The last details are done.
Adding decals, give them a muddy look and seal them.
Lets start with the decals. This almost turned out to become a disaster.
When i got my sheets with decals i found out they were stuck together. By removing them from each other i damaged most of the decals. Luckily i had enough decals of the big stars that went on the front of the tank. The big problem were the ones that had to go on the side of the tanks. I had to see if there were 10 of then left that i could use. After 1 and a half hour i finally had 10 decals i could use of which 1 has little damage.
Time to add the decals.
First i paint a little layer of gloss varnish on the spots were the decals has to go. Then, when it it is dry, i put some Micro-Set on it, got a decal out of the water and gently put it with a brush on the right spot. I first did all the big stars on front. After the last 1 was done i went back to the 1st one and, because the surface wasn't flat, i gently pushed on the decal with a little pellet made of paper towel or something like that so the decal would set nicely around the raised edges. This is done with all 5 the tanks. After that it was time to add the decals on the side. Same procedure but then without the paper towel pressing because the surface was flat. Only had to line them out nicely.
After everything was dry i painted a thin layer of gloss varnish over the decals. I started with this because in the past when i sealed some models with matt varnish the decals suddenly started to dissolve. So to prevent of happing again i paint some gloss varnish over the decals.
Next was to give them a muddy look. This is simply done by a dry brushing a brown color, i used Vallejo Saddle Brown, on the side front and back. Some places a thicker layer then others.
Then last. Sealing them.

The end result!



Click on the Read More link to see more pictures

M5A1 Stuart Light Tank platoon Update 2

A second update.
De tanks are highlighted.
First highlighting is a dry-brush with the base color Vallejo 887 Brown Violet.
After that there was a second highlighting by dry-brushing using the color Vallejo 886 Green Grey.
Unfortunately because the models are still very shiny it is hard to see the highlighting.
After that it was time to paint all details, give them a thin layer of wash and highlight them if necessary.
Sorry for the somewhat crappy pictures i shall see if i can take some better one's.





All what is left to do now, before sealing them, is to add decals and give them a muddy look. And maybe do some touching up.

Thanks for looking and reading.

PS. Post #100. :)

Message for Dutch and Belgian FoW players.

This messages is specially for all Dutch and Belgian FoW players and all other FoW players who live in the Netherlands.
Since a few days there is a new forum on the internet that focus on everything Flames of War in the low country's. Flames of War Nederland en België
It is a forum to bring all players together into 1 place. And to find new opponents.
Just go and take look if you haven't done already.
If your a foreigner but are living in the Netherlands, plays FoW and understand a little bit of Dutch. Take a look too.

Thanks for reading.

M5A1 Stuart Light Tank platoon Update 1

All tanks are painted in their base color. Vallejo 887 Brown Violet.
As you can see the tracks, MG's and the stowage aren't painted yet. These will be done after the hull and turret are completely done.


After the basis color was dry the tanks were painted with layer of a very thinned down black wash. Vallejo Lavado.


Now i let them all dry for at least 1 day. Then i start with the highlighting.
In the meantime i can paint the 2 crew members. 1 Platoon leader, 1 gunner.

Thanks for reading.

All about Dice

Today one of the blog's i follow BigLee's Miniature Adventures, who also follows my Blog, has an interesting post about making good and bad dice. The Science of Dice : Rant and Learn
I found it very interesting.

Thanks for reading.

Irregular Magazine

Today i like to tell something more about the hobby magazine named Irregular Magazine. Maybe some of you already heard of it.
Irregular Magazine is a free quarterly magazine that can be downloaded as a PDF file. The whole magazine contains no advertisements!!.
You 'll find all kind of things about, Wargames, RPG, Miniature Painting, Scenery Building, Story's and much more inside the magazine. All the content is supplied for free by community members. And, if you like, even you can submit content.
Since a few days Number 6 is up for download from their website. Irregular Magazine.
Older number are still available for download too.
I would say try it out. It is free after all.

Thank you for reading.

New pictures of my painted 3rd Canadian Division

It is time to show some better pictures of my 3rd Canadian Division Regina Rifles Regiment company. The other pictures were too bad to look at. These new pictures are at least a little better.
You can also view them as a slideshow here:
Gallery: 3rd Canadian Division

Lets start

HQ


Click on the Read More link to see more pictures

What's next on my painting table

Next on my painting table is a M5A1 Stuart Light Tank platoon containing 5 tanks. The models are made by Battlefront and come in a box. UBX21 M5A1 Stuart Light Tank Platoon. 
All 5 tanks are individually sculpted so none of them looks the same. Personally i find these some great looking models. 
One thing i haven't decide yet is if i will, after the base color is applied, paint a camo pattern on them or not.
After painting this platoon can be used in my D-1 US Airborne company and in my Cobra 2nd Armored Tank company.

Primed M5A1 Stuart Light Tank Platoon

Thanks for reading.

Field Battery, Royal Artillery Platoon end result

This is the end result of the Field Battery, Royal Artillery platoon for my Canadian Company.
I know it probably won't be an award winning platoon for painting but i think it will look great on the gaming table.
The intention is to, in the future, increase the size of the platoon with four more guns.
I am sorry for the crappy pictures. Somehow no matter what i did the photo's turned out bad. In real the platoon looks better.
Comments are always welcome. Good or bad.

The Platoon


Click on the READ MORE link to see more pictures.

Today in Dutch WWII History: The Razzia of Putten.

An attack by a resistance group on a German Wehrmacht was the reason for the German occupier to take retaliation measures against the people of Putten a small city in the middle of the Netherlands.

The night before.
In the night of September 30 1944 members of the Putten resistance movement shot at a car of the German Wehrmacht between Putten and Nijkerk near the Oldenallerbridge. In this car were 2 officers and 2 corporals.
During the gunfight the corporals managed to escape unhurt, 1 of the officers, although heavily wounded, escaped to a nearby farm from here he later was brought to Harderwijk where he died the next day. The other officer was captured and held hostage.

Revenge.
On sunday October 1, at the Command of General Friedrich Christiansen, the German Werhmacht raided most of Putten and a part of Nijkerk . During this raid 7 men and 1 young woman got killed.
Putten was surrounded by the German Wehrmacht , which also included the Fallschirm-Panzer Division 1 Hermann Göring who was encamped in nearby Harderwijk.
The women and children were separated from the men and locked up in the church. The men were brought and locked up in the school or eierhal. In the evening the woman and children were released on the condition that they would come back the next morning with food for their men.
They all came back the following morning.
All men between 18 and 50 years of age were put on transportation to Concentration camp Amersfoort.
Not much later all the woman and children did get the order to leave Putten within 2 hours.
When they all have left the village about one hundred homes were set on fire by German and Dutch SS'. The returning women found nothing but ruins.

In Camp Amersfoort 59 men were released. On October 11 the remaining 601 men were deported to concentration camp Neuengamme (during this transportation 13 men managed to jump from the train). A part of the men ended up in several other camps, which were part of Neuengamme.
Here most of the men died because of malnutrition, slavery, exploitation and infectious diseases.

Aftermath.
After the war, only 48 men returned home, of these 48 men 5 more died because of the deprivations they had endured.

Total number of men deported 660
Released in Amersfoort 59
Deported to Neuengamme 601
Jumped out of the train 13
Arrived in Neuengamme 588
Died in German Concentration camps 540
Returned to Putten after the war 48
Died soon after return 5
Killed during the Raid 8

Total number of victims 553

Thanks for reading.

Monty's Meatgrinder army file update

New update for the Monty's Meatgrinder army file available. Version 1.7
A minor bug fixed in the OoB of the file.
When you selected the Heavy mortar platoon or the Tank Destroyer Platoon they showed up twice on the OoB when it should be only once.
Excel, Excel 2007, OpenOffice file available.

Thanks for reading