Gunnery practice .....

The Leopold now has its full complement of  crew and is out on the river Oudear for gunnery practice...

Monrovian Army Refurbishment (5)

The last three units of my own home-casts painted up for the Monrovia army...

Two more infantry regiments sporting Hesse-Kassel uniforms of IR 7 Erbprinz and IR 11 Prince Von Anhalt

 and a converged grenadier battalion

The Leopold moves to the river marines base ...

With a stock of oars delivered the initial fitting out of the river galley Leopold has been completed. Bidekker commands the ship as it takes the short voyage downstream from the one of the main wharves at Vanderhof to the river marines base...

 Once docked at the river marines base, Bidekker checks the clearance for the crane before the installation of the bow chaser cannon ....

Bidekker takes command ....

The two new river galleys for Wittenberg's river fleet near completion.. the Katerina has just been launched at the shipyard and the Leopold moved to Vanderhof ..

Captain Ernst Bidekker had just completed his breakfast when a note had arrived to inform him the Leopold was out of the shipyard and was now docked by Vanderhof lower wharf, at last a chance to see his new command up close. He donned his uniform and headed out ....

 down the street then turning left towards the wharves ...

 after cutting through an alley he reached the wharf,  getting his bearings he headed to the harbour masters office ....

 the harbour master showed him the way to where the Leopold was docked ....

 Bidekker talked to one of fitting out crew, to find out what remained to be done, meanwhile the harbour master has gone forward  to ask one of the crew to tighten up the mooring ropes...

There is much to do, basic fitting out to complete, oars for the galley are awaiting delivery. Once the basic fit out is done the Leopold will be moved to the wharf at the river marines' base for installation of ordnance - then river trials followed by a inspection by the King .....

Ships for the River Oudear ... a couple of add-ons

To increase the options for use of the ships I've made up a couple of bowsprits and some detachable oar banks so they can be setup as galleys.  The oar banks are made from cocktail sticks pushed into some thin foam, which will be attached to the side of the ship with blue-tak, then over that goes a cover