Military Odyssey 2019

Over the weekend I went to the Military Odyssey living history show in Kent. I've been to this show several times over the years but rarely in such good weather. This is a multi-period event with reenactors covering everything from Ancient Greece through to the present day. Some of the groups were small in number but all were as enthusiastic and friendly as I have come to expect at this show. Indeed the organisers had put special emphasis on engagement with the public this year and there were some very interesting displays across the site. As usual, I shot a lot of pictures and here is a small selection of my favourites. 

As usual with these sort of events, there was a preponderance of WWII related equipment on display, so I'll start with that. 

M8 Greyhound armoured car - This 6x6 armoured car entered service in 1943 and was used throughout the war by the Allies (some were still in service in foreign armies as late as 2006!). It was fast and reliable but was generally accepted to be too lightly armoured. 

SAS Desert Jeep - When the SAS was created it started life being ferried around by the LRDG. Very quickly the SAS acquired and adapted the jeep as its carriage of choice and many raids were carried out in these fast reliable vehicles.

StuG III - I think this is a replica vehicle I have seen before but sporting a new coat of paint, a late war splinter camo pattern. 

I have seen this replica Supermarine Spitfire Mk IIa at several events as part of static displays.

This clever and interesting Parachute Regiment display shows a specially adapted jeep being unloaded from what I assume is meant to be the hull of a Horsa glider. 

A  nice little vignette showing American Parachute troops from the 101st Airbourne. Note the 'Screaming Eagle' arm patch on the right shoulders of these uniforms. 

The thing I like about Military Odyssey is that this isn't an exclusively WWII event. At least half of the displays were dedicated to a wide range of earlier periods.

Medieval Cannon - There were three guns being fired and I had a chance to speak with one of the owners earlier in the day.  He explained how he build his replica but emphasised that the originals were made with poorer quality materials and with variable quality gunpodwer...not a safe combination!

I was able to capture the moment the touch hole was lit, showing just how much flame was expelled from the top of the gun as well as the barrel. 

And a microsecond later its all over bar the smoke. These guns are never used to fire projectiles as they would be just too dangerous. With an effective range of about half a mile and an extreme range of a mile, they could make someone's day very bad indeed. 

Very oddly sized reenactors... It seems scale creep is not just a wargaming phenomenon! 

The Hoplite Association was formed in 2001 and was the first re-enactment group to focus exclusively on the Classical Greek Period. Their equipment was first-rate, but I felt their Phalanx was a bit thin! 

Despite being only two ranks deep it gave a vivid impression of what it would be like to face a wall of speartips. 

I missed most of the big battle reenactments this year as I spent a lot of time exploring the trade stands, but I did arrive in time to see the Sothern Skirmish Association fire massed volley at the end of their display  

The Union troops gave a rousing chorus of Rally Round the Flag as they marched from the arena.

I may not be able to afford to buy militaria from the traders, but I didn't come home empty-handed. Three new T-Shirts from Art of War and some excellent reference books from Dave Lanchester