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History Of Wargaming: Historical Miniatures, Risk, Stratego And Chaturanga
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Published: November 28, 2006
Shall we play a game? More specifically… a wargame.
Whether you are a family man who enjoys playing Risk or Stratego with the kids, or you are a history buff who wants to experience the American Civil War as closely as possible, wargaming is a hobby for many different kinds of gamers.
Where did wargaming start and who invented the concept of wargaming as a leisure activity? The answers and facts on wargaming are surprising.
The first published account of someone playing a wargame occurred in 1898. Scribner's Magazine published an article written by Lloyd Osbourne. In the article entitled "Stevenson at Play," Osbourne wrote about author Robert Louis Stevenson's wargaming activity. After that, a game package called "The Great War Game" by a company called Hanks was released around 1910. The package included a rule book called "War Games for Boy Scouts." Lastly, in 1913, author H.G. Wells published what is considered the first published rules for wargaming with miniature figures: "Little Wars."
The Historical Miniatures Gaming Society (HMGS) provides another account of the history of wargaming. Although no date is given, the HMGS states that the first military game was a Chinese game called "Wei-Hai" which translates to "encirclement." The game is now called "Go." Later, an Indian wargame called Chaturanga was formed in which Chess is based from. Then finally in 1644, The King's Game by Christopher Weikmann was designed and released. King's Game consisted of "30 pieces per side of 14 military types, each with a different fixed rate of movement."
The evolution of wargaming continued in 1780 when Helwig, Master of Pages to the Duke of Brunswick, invented a wargame that broke away from the Chess movements; military wargames followed. Helwig's game used a board of 1666 squares coded for different movements and playing pieces that represented different groups of men rather than generic soldiers (infantry, cavalry, etc.). Helwig's version was updated in 1798 by Georg Vinturinus. His version used a map board whose terrain closely resembled that of the border between France and Belgium.
Closer to our present time, Milton Bradley/Hasbro released the board game Risk in 1959 and Stratego in 1961. After that, Milton Bradley released the "American Heritage" board games which used small plastic figures as playing pieces. The American Heritage game that covered the American Civil War was called "Battle Cry."
Whether you are a typical wargamer who plays Risk or Stratego in your leisure time, or a more historical gamer who plays Wei-Hai, Chaturanga, or the versions created by Helwig or Vinturinus, a good wargame can be enjoyed by all.
Beattie, Robert. "A Timeline of the Historical Miniatures Wargaming Hobby". The Courier: America's Foremost Miniature Wargaming Resource. University of Michigan. September 11, 2006. www-personal.umich.edu/~beattie/timeline2.html.
Historical Miniatures Gaming Society-Eastern Chapter. "What is Wargaming? Part 1". Historical Miniatures Gaming Society. September 11, 2006. www.hmgs.org/history.htm.
Risk. "History of Games: 1950s". Hasbro. 2006. September 11, 2006.
www.hasbro.com/games/default.cfm?page=history_de cade&decade=1950s.
Stratego. "History of Games: 1960s". Hausemann and Hotte. Hasbro. 2006. September 11, 2006. www.hasbro.com/games/default.cfm?page=history_deca de&decade=1960s.
Mingus, Scott. "History of Wargaming". North Coast Wargamers-greater Cleveland area. 2000. MilitaryHistoryOnline.com. September 11, 2006. www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wargaming/history.as px.
Whether you are a family man who enjoys playing Risk or Stratego with the kids, or you are a history buff who wants to experience the American Civil War as closely as possible, wargaming is a hobby for many different kinds of gamers.
Related Articles
The first published account of someone playing a wargame occurred in 1898. Scribner's Magazine published an article written by Lloyd Osbourne. In the article entitled "Stevenson at Play," Osbourne wrote about author Robert Louis Stevenson's wargaming activity. After that, a game package called "The Great War Game" by a company called Hanks was released around 1910. The package included a rule book called "War Games for Boy Scouts." Lastly, in 1913, author H.G. Wells published what is considered the first published rules for wargaming with miniature figures: "Little Wars."
The Historical Miniatures Gaming Society (HMGS) provides another account of the history of wargaming. Although no date is given, the HMGS states that the first military game was a Chinese game called "Wei-Hai" which translates to "encirclement." The game is now called "Go." Later, an Indian wargame called Chaturanga was formed in which Chess is based from. Then finally in 1644, The King's Game by Christopher Weikmann was designed and released. King's Game consisted of "30 pieces per side of 14 military types, each with a different fixed rate of movement."
The evolution of wargaming continued in 1780 when Helwig, Master of Pages to the Duke of Brunswick, invented a wargame that broke away from the Chess movements; military wargames followed. Helwig's game used a board of 1666 squares coded for different movements and playing pieces that represented different groups of men rather than generic soldiers (infantry, cavalry, etc.). Helwig's version was updated in 1798 by Georg Vinturinus. His version used a map board whose terrain closely resembled that of the border between France and Belgium.
Closer to our present time, Milton Bradley/Hasbro released the board game Risk in 1959 and Stratego in 1961. After that, Milton Bradley released the "American Heritage" board games which used small plastic figures as playing pieces. The American Heritage game that covered the American Civil War was called "Battle Cry."
Whether you are a typical wargamer who plays Risk or Stratego in your leisure time, or a more historical gamer who plays Wei-Hai, Chaturanga, or the versions created by Helwig or Vinturinus, a good wargame can be enjoyed by all.
Beattie, Robert. "A Timeline of the Historical Miniatures Wargaming Hobby". The Courier: America's Foremost Miniature Wargaming Resource. University of Michigan. September 11, 2006. www-personal.umich.edu/~beattie/timeline2.html.
Historical Miniatures Gaming Society-Eastern Chapter. "What is Wargaming? Part 1". Historical Miniatures Gaming Society. September 11, 2006. www.hmgs.org/history.htm.
Risk. "History of Games: 1950s". Hasbro. 2006. September 11, 2006.
www.hasbro.com/games/default.cfm?page=history_de cade&decade=1950s.
Stratego. "History of Games: 1960s". Hausemann and Hotte. Hasbro. 2006. September 11, 2006. www.hasbro.com/games/default.cfm?page=history_deca de&decade=1960s.
Mingus, Scott. "History of Wargaming". North Coast Wargamers-greater Cleveland area. 2000. MilitaryHistoryOnline.com. September 11, 2006. www.militaryhistoryonline.com/wargaming/history.as px.
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