Crossfire: Steven's 2nd Tabor of Regulares of Tetuán
"As long as you led from the front where they [the Moroccans] could clearly see you upright, they would follow."
Alferez Juan Crespo.
Unit ID for Crossfire = "T" for Tabor or Turban or Tetuán.
My initial interest in the Spanish Civil War was La Marcha, i.e. the drive on Madrid in Sep 1936, so I decided to collect one of the Columns of the Army of Africa to field in Crossfire. I can't remember why but I latched onto Lt. Col. Carlos Asensio Cabanillas and his Column Asensio. According to Scurr (1985) this force contained:
- Column Headquarters
- 1 recon Assault Guard armoured car
- 2nd Tabor of Regulares of Tetuán
- 4th Bandera, Spanish Foreign Legion
- 1 battery of 70L19 mountain guns (Turnball, 1978, says ½ a battery of field guns)
- 1 Sapper Company
- Trucks
Figures
My Moroccan figures are all from Peter Pig Range 13: Spanish Civil War. In fact they are the older style of Moroccans, for example, the HMG teams have turbans rather than just Fez. I quite like the figures, but unfortunately there are only three variants for the riflemen.
Painting
Of course I used my SCW: Moroccan Painting Guide and the flocking is Sand and Dry Brushing. Some of the photos are prior to gluing on the static grass. For a long time I debated whether to have any grass for the Army of Africa as I wanted to use the same figures for the Rif War. Then I realised the Rif is actually arid but green.
Order of Battle
My Tabor is based on the historical SCW: Spanish Civil War TO&E and my interpretation as a Crossfire: Spanish Civil War Organisation.
1 BC (Tabor Commander) (+2)
Machinegun Platoon
1 x HMG
2 x Infantry Company
1 x CC (+2)
3 x Rifle Platoons
1 x PC (+1)
4 x Rifle Squads
I don't believe the Moroccan infantry had the full complement of light machine guns.
|
Morale |
Command & Control |
Reckless |
|
Regular in towns otherwise Veteran |
Adventurous / Dependent |
Yes |
Flags
I made my own Spanish Civil War Flags based on examples in Turnball (1978) and Bueno (1971).
 Tabor Commander |
 1st Company |
 2nd Company |
Other Photos
Sources
Crossfire: Spanish Civil War Organisation
Bueno, J. M. (1971). Uniformes Militares en color de la Guerra Civil Española. Madrid: Libreria Editorial San Martin.
Scurr, J. (1985). The Spanish Foreign Legion. Osprey.
Turnball, P. (1978). The Spanish Civil War 1936-39. Osprey.