"The Year of the French" by Thomas Flanagan Review

 

As soon as I started my 1798 Rebellion Project, "The Year of the French" was recommended to me by several different people. It is a historical novel, set during the French landing in Connacht in late Summer 1798. That sounded like an interesting premise to me, so I borrowed the book from my university's library. I was not disappointed!

The story begins in the village of Killala, after the defeat of the Rising in Wexford. Rumours abound among the local poor about a great "Army of the Gael" and the possibility of French assistance. Owen Rua MacCarthy, a schoolmaster, Gaelic poet and libertine, is more cynical than most. One evening he is called by a group of peasants to a tavern. As the only man able to write persuasively in English, Owen is made to write a letter to the "Big Lord", demanding an end to evictions. This group of men becomes known as the "Whiteboys of Killala", echoing an earlier tradition of Peasant resistance. Owen is then forced to take the Whiteboys' oath. 

Meanwhile, the leaders of the United Irishmen are attempting to organise for a possible French landing. These leaders are mostly landowners, with many Protestants among them. They must now look to the Catholic, tenant Whiteboys for assistance. The United Men are divided by class, religion and politics, and are only brought together by a desire for an Irish Republic. As these rapid developments are taking place, there are whispers that "the French are on the sea"...

The novel is told from the perspectives of quite a few narrators, many of whom were real people. I feel that this is the book's greatest strength. It would have been easy for the author to fall back on old tropes, presenting a story of virtuous, impoverished Catholic rebels against evil, rich Protestant landlords, as many others have done. Instead he presents us with a far more nuanced and realistic view. Individuals of different classes and religions take their respective sides for their own reasons. Every character's opinions and motivations are made clear. For this reason, despite being a fictional story, "The Year of the French" is quite a good introduction to Irish politics of the time.

The novel is long, but well paced. I was never bored while reading it. It isn't the most action-packed book, and I don't think it would appeal to everyone. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone who is interested in this period of history, though.

I've heard that RTÉ produced a TV series based on the book in the 80s. It seems to have been fairly well received, but I've been unable to find it anywhere online. If anyone knows somewhere the series is available, I'd love to hear it.

1798 Rebellion Project Part 12: United Irishmen Completed

I've just finished the last figures for the United Irishmen list! These mostly consisted of Leaders, which I had been looking forward to very much. I'm so happy to have completed this army. I've wanted to do something in the black powder period for years, and I've always had an interest in the Rebellion. The "heroic" models by Trent are exactly the style I like, and Sharp Practice is very much to my liking. In many ways this is the project I have always wanted to do.

This is Theobald Wolfe Tone, founder of the United Irishmen. In this scene he is stepping ashore from a French frigate, ready to reclaim Ireland! In reality, no such event ever took place, as Tone was captured on board the Hoche after the Battle of Tory Island. 

The flag carried by Tone's assistant may have been flown at the previous French landing in Mayo, according to this page. It features some nice faux-Gaelic script. The slogan "Erin go Bragh" is an anglicised version of the Irish "Éireann go Brách", which means "Ireland forever". 

Making the base was my favourite part of this model. I used Milliput to build up a shoreline. Baking soda and PVA made the sand texture. I painted the water by blending from very dark blue up to turquoise, and added a few white spots to simultate sea foam. I gave it a few coats of very glossy varnish to complete the effect. 

Wolfe Tone will count as a Status II Leader (reflecting his relative inexperience in military matters). He will also be a part of my French Expedition force, as the leader of the Irish contingent. 

Beauchamp Bagenal Harvey was a Protestant barrister who lived at Bargy Castle in Wexford. He joined the United Irishmen in 1792 and supported Catholic Emancipation. Harvey was arrested and imprisoned in Wexford Jail early in the Uprising, but was freed and became Commander in Chief of the Wexford rebels. He may or may not have been happy with this role. Some have argued that Harvey was given command as proof that the United Irishmen was not a sectarian organisation. He led the rebels at New Ross and resigned his post after the Scullabogue Massacre. He fled to the Saltee Islands (whose history is long and storied). Harvey was captured, executed and beheaded. He is still well remembered in Wexford history. 

I added a beard to this model with some Milliput. The base is intended to resemble the road to New Ross. 

This model doesn't represent any historical person in particular. I added a wolfhound (from CP Models) to enhance the pose. 

One of the support options available in Sharp Practice is a musician. I used a bagpiper to represent this. By the end of the 18th Century bagpipes would have been fairly rare in Ireland, with uilleann pipes taking their place. I really like this miniature though. 

This will serve as a deployment point for the rebels. I took inspiration from an illustration of a Wexford rebel camp by George Cruikshank. I assume the bell was used to organise camp life. The frame is made from cocktail sticks, while the bell itself is Milliput. 

Finally, a photo of the whole army! 

Next up on the painting desk are some Shock markers. Once they're done, I'll be moving on to "Stage 2" of this project, mostly consisting of French Republican Infantry.

Go dtí an chéad uair eile, beir bua! 

1798 Rebellion Project Part 11: The Last Pike Groups

 I haven't been painting as much lately, as I have just started my second year of college in beautiful Cork City ("da real capital"). I've been enjoying it so far, especially because my first year was entirely online due to COVID-19. Studying Celtic Studies and History gives me a great excuse to spend lots of time immersed in subjects I'm very passionate about! 

I've managed to get another batch of rebels completed, meaning the last two Groups are done. You'll notice that one of the Groups is a man short; I ordered one model too few at the start of the project. I just received a parcel from Skytrex containing the next batch of figures for the project, which has more than made up for the deficit!

The above flag is taken from this article. 

The flag can be seen on the right of this print!

The last Group needed for the project. 

Not based on any one historical example; just some fairly typical United Irishmen symbols. 

Throughout this project I have been using the glazing technique to add character to faces. It was very daunting at first, but well worth learning. 

The article linked above notes that some Wexford rebels displayed symbols such as "JHS" (Jesus Hominum Salvator) on their hats. It doesn't give a source, but this practice seems to have been fairly commonplace. Fr. Philip Roche distributed Scapulars to the rebels, which they believed would offer protection. He also wrote "Protections" for those under his command. (S. De Vál, "Father Philip Roche" in "Boolavogue", Fr. Murphy Centre, 1998). 

 

I'm now starting the final (yes, the very last!) batch of figures for the United Irishmen list. This contains mostly Leaders, which I'm excited to show you. 

This fella's name is Bran. He will be a companion to one of the Leaders. As far as I know, wolfhounds would have been quite uncommon by 1798. They had been in decline, as the last wild wolf had been hunted in 1786. Bran truly is a rare breed! I felt I had to include a wolfhound in the army, as they have long been an important image in Irish culture; one of Bran's ancestors had Fionn Mac Cumhaill for his master....

I am currently reading "The Year of the French" by Thomas Flanagan. It's a historical novel set in County Mayo towards the end of summer 1798. I had read excellent reviews of this book, and I have to say it's fantastic so far! I'll write a full review on the blog once I'm finished it.

The book is perfect inspiration for the next phase of this project. The Frenchmen have arrived on my painting desk!

Go dtí an chéad uair eile, beir bua! 

1798 Rebellion Project Part 9: Finishing off the British Force

This figure represents General Sir David Dundas, and is the last piece required for the British force in this project. I really like this sculpt; it's as if he's surveying the troops before battle. 

Dundas had a long and storied career, having fought in the Seven Years' War before being appointed to his role in Ireland. 

I've given his horse a dapple grey coat. This was painted using the stippling technique. I started with a grey basecoat with a shade colour glazed into the recesses. The highlights were applied using lots of little dots. In some areas, I used a glaze of the base colour to tone the dots down. 

With all the Brits done, I made a Deployment Point. These are quite important for Sharp Practice. Players are allowed to deploy their troops from them, so their positioning is very important and provides a range of tactical options. 

I went for a white canvas tent to represent my first Deployment Point. I used artwork from the 18th Century as inspiration, such as this picture:

I made a substructure from cocktail sticks. The canvas was made by cutting shapes from an old scrap of linen, and was attached using super glue. I primed and painted the whole thing, which gave it a lot more strength. The tent was kept separate from the base until the interior details were finished. 

There was a big gap in this corner of the tent, caused by my bad cutting skills! I made a patch to hide my mistake, and added a few extra around the tent to make it look intentional. This patch was painted using the MacKay tartan, which was worn by the Reay Fencibles during the rebellion. It's far from perfect, but I like it 😊

The bed and chest were sculpted straight onto the base with Milliput. I painted them before adding the tent over the top. 

I added a cavalry sabre from the bits box to the top of the chest. 

I really enjoyed making this, and I'm looking forward to doing more. I haven't had many ideas as to how to represent the other Deployment Points, so if anyone has suggestions I'd love to hear them!

Go dtí an chéad uair eile, beir bua!