Wehrschach

Last weekend there was a militaria fair/show/gathering in my home village, which took place at Fort Liezele, one of the forts that was built at the start of the 20th century as part of a belt of forts around Antwerp. The fort since long does not have a military function anymore, but is used to host all sorts of events, and is open to the public.

Such a fair is always a curious affair. Traders try to sell all sort of militaria, ranging from rusty old equipment, all sorts of insignia, uniform items, books on military history, to boxes full of what one can only describe as "assorted junk". Being in Belgium, there's an abundance of WW1 and WW2 items, and within the latter category a sometimes unhealthy fascination with all things German, if you get what I'm hinting at.

But such an event is always an opportunity to look for some new decorations for the wargaming room. Preferably nothing too big or bulky. I am definitely not a collector of militaria, but I do have an interest in toy soldiers and the history of wargaming. That's a very niche aspect of militaria (if it even belongs to that category), but you never know what you will find.

So what did I get? An original edition of Wehrschach (German wikipedia link, Boardgamegeek link), a game published in Germany in 1938, and which is basically a chess variant. I have no immediate intention of playing it, but I thought it would be a nice addition for my "history of wargaming" collection. The board is somewhat damaged, but the game is otherwise complete.

Here's my own not-so-good photo, but you'll find other photos through the links above.