A Tachanka was a carriage with a rear firing maximum gun used primarily in the Ukraine and related areas. It was a support weapon for cavalry formations in the first and second World Wars, the Russian Civil War and the Russo-Polish War.
I put one of these together and painted it. I have to say the model is great. The crew are in in WWII uniforms but heads could be swapped to make earlier examples.
The Tachanka is always associated with Nestor Makhno, the anarchist leader in the RCW, who used them extensively.
There are all sorts of theories about how the word Tachanka was derived from various Ukranian or Russian language sources but the truth is no one knows. It is, however, as iconic to cavalry warfare on the Ukrainian plains as the Spitfire is to the Battle of Britain.
Very topical.
ReplyDeleteI suppose the modern equivalent is the Toyota technical.
ReplyDeleteDear John,
ReplyDeleteThat's exactly what I was thinking: the technical of 1920.
Dave
The comparison is striking.
DeleteI'd say more the Hurricane in BoB...
ReplyDeleteNice gun cart. The game rules are unforgiving where these things receive fire, but I guess that's how it's supposed to be.
Not the perfect vehicle for mechanised warfare.
ReplyDelete