Captain Jack

Re-reading Patrick O’Brian’s series about Captain Jack Aubrey and Stephen Maturin’s adventures is a great relaxer. A terrific piece of fantasy, especially for someone who loves nautical things and is a wargamer as well. So what is the next step in the wargamer’s process of relaxation? Why, to read about the historical character that Aubrey is based on. Actually, Aubrey ain’t the only seafarer based on this character either. C.S. Forester’s Horatio Hornblower is also a copy of this character and I am sure that there is more than a little of this character in Dudley Pope’s Ramage as well.

Who is this real-life character? He is Lord Thomas Cochrane, the tenth Earl of Dundonald, Marquês do Maranhão, also known as the Sea Wolf. Cochrane served with bravery and distinction in four navies – those of Great Britain, Chile, Brazil and Greece and his abilities and successes as a commander are almost the stuff of fiction. In fact, if you read Thomas’ biography of Cochrane before any of the fiction, you’ll probably find the fiction does not do justice to Cochrane.

However, I read Thomas’ biography first about 20 years ago and it is good to re-read it again. I can feel a wargaming project coming on and it involves 1/1200th scale ships, starting with a 20 gun brig with a raised poop. Cochrane’s was HMS Speedy. Aubrey’s was HMS Sophie. Cochrane took a Spanish frigate, the El Geco. Aubrey captures the Xebec rigged frigate. Thomo will be buying models.

I’ve been looking at the Langton Range again and thinking that the following would be a nice starter – then slowly work up the vessels involved in the books. To help with that I’ve come across some websites of interest. In the meantime, do yourself a favour and read up on Cochrane – a Boy’s Own Hero.

From Langton:

• Brig
• Xebec (Lateen Rig) or a Spanish Xebec (Lateen Rig)
• Rowed Gunboats
• A French Frigate and a couple of 74s
• Some Spanish First Rates
• Some British 74s

These will provide enough vessels to take care of Cochrane’s (and Aubrey and Hornblower) early career. Add a few merchant vessels in for something for the Sea Wolf to capture, destroy or burn and we are set for some fun. Rod Langton also publishes some good rules, Signal Close Action, which have both full and quick play rules for this period as well as painting guides and rigging guides.

For background reading, try the following books:

• Cochrane: Britannia’s Sea Wolf: The Story of Britannia’s Sea Wolf (Cassell Military Paperbacks)
• Master and Commander
• Beat to Quarters (Hornblower Saga). Note that this was published as the Happy Return in the UK
• Ramage

I’ll get round to putting up some interesting links for further reading and research. In the meantime, have some fun reading and do look at the Rod Langton website, there are some truly beautiful pictures of 1/1200th naval models there.