Military Odyssey 2018

I usually have a range of choices for Living History events that I can go to each year. I never make it to all of them and as I drag my family along with me we try to vary which events we attend from one year to the next. This year I have missed all the usual events over the summer (including the War and Peace Revival show) so this weekend we decided that come-what-may we would go to the Odyssey show. Its been a couple of years since I last attended Odyssey and I'm glad we made the effort. The show is a multi-period event with groups depicting everything from ancient Greeks, medieval knights, English and American Civil Wars, WWI and WWII and even some later conflicts such as Vietnam. As always I went a little snap-happy with the camera but here is a small selection that you may find interesting.

A row of American Half Tracks

A Vietnam era Huey

A display showing of the work of RE Bomb Disposal in WWII

The 1942 Steyr Staff Car of General Hans-Jurgen van Arnim, captured by the British when the Germans trapped in Tunis surrendered in 1943. 

British 25pdr gun 

Members of the "Diehards" reenactment group depicting Zulu war era Artillery...

...and Infantry

Collection of materials collected from Alemein including the remains of a German Teller Mine. 

A Form V3000 truck - Many these saw service in the German army and were considered very reliable and sturdy, 

An SAS desert adapted Jeep

An ACW Parrot Gun being fired

A Soviet “Katyusha” rocket launchers in an Eastern Front reenactment battle

A Russian T34 carrying infantry into battle.

Dismounted Russian infatry attack a German position

Looks like the Russians have won

Later in the day an American Civil War reenactment takes place featuring five confederate artillery pieces

Union infantry advance on the Confederate position

Remote control tanks. That Tiger I weighs over a quarter of a Ton and would set you back a cool ten grand! 

Last battle of the day, a WWII action featuring loads of vehicles and about 200 reenactors

The charge of Bren Carriers and infantry was quite impressive! 

I view these displays as a form of open air museum where (if you ask nicely) the curator will let you handle the artefacts. Over the years I consider myself privileged to have seen original leaflets dropped by the Germans on the British at Dunkirk; handled a deactivated mine found at Alamein; felt the weight of a British Piat used at Arnhem; held a helmet worn by an american trooper that landed on D-Day; and even sat in one of Montgomery's Staff Cars. These items create a tangible link to historical events that fire the imagination and just can't be replicated in a regular museum.