birchbeer
New member
We all love the beautiful WWI chibi style miniatures Ted Terranova created for Rivet Wars and none are more impressive, IMO, than the air units in the Kickstarter and in the Battle of Brighton expansion. The crown jewel of these has to be the vaunted Red Baron, which was one of the funnest miniatures I have had the pleasure to paint. But Ted's choice for the Allied hero unit was the French Ace, René Fonck, which he aptly dubbed, Reme Funck.
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We can hardly blame him for his choice since Fonck did indeed end the war as the Allied's most successful pilot with 75 confirmed victories (Manfred Richthofen, aka, the Red Baron, had 80). However, Fonck is not France's most celebrated pilot. That distinction goes to Captain Georges Guynemer, whose 54 victories were said to be "second among French Aces, but first in his nation's heart."
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What made Guynemer so popular were his daring pilot skills, his charming demeanor, and his looks (he received countless marriage proposals from adoring women). As a pilot he was absolutely fearless, preferring direct up-close confrontations.
One of Guynemer's most famous 'dogfights' was with the German Ace, Ernst Udet, who wrote about the encounter in his memoir, "Mein Fliegerleben" (1935). According to Udet, he was on balloon patrol when he spotted a SPAD plane coming for him. As they circled he saw the words "Vieux Charles" written on the side, the hallmark signature of Guynemer's plane. Udet tried to fire his guns but they jammed. As they continued to jockey for position Udet pounded on the guns with his fists, desperate to unjam them. Guynemer realized what had happened, but instead of taking advantage of his predicament the Frenchman gave him a friendly wave with his hand and flew away.
Guynemer's most famous quote was: "Until one has given all, one has given nothing."
The quote was prophetic, and perhaps adds more mystique around the mysterious nature of his death. On September 11, 1917 the 22-year-old Guynemer was out on patrol near Poelkapelle, Belgium, when he spotted an enemy plane below and moved in on it. This was the last anyone ever saw him. Literally. He simply vanished, seemingly into thin air! Neither his body nor his plane wreckage were ever found. Actually, according to a Red Cross report a month later, his body was discovered, and identification taken from his body, but soon after heavy British bombing of the area completely destroyed Guynemer's downed plane. The same report said Guynemer's body had been removed from the plane and taken to Brussels where he was buried with honors. And yet no burial site has ever been identified! To this day his plane and body are missing! This disappearance led to much fanciful speculation, mostly that he was yet alive... and aloft. Even years later when asked of him, French people would look up, pointing to the sky and say, "Guynemer est dan le ciel" ... Guynemer is in the sky! On February 5, 1960 The Twilight Zone aired an episode titled "The Last Flight" which was loosely based on Guynemer's disappearance.
Even today Guynemer is still revered in France and Belgium, with memorials in both Poelkapelle (Belgium) and the Pantheon Mausoleum in France which, though still with no remains, has the following inscription in his honor (translation):
"Dead on the field of honor, September 11, 1917. A legendary hero fallen in glory from the sky after three years of hard and incessant struggle, he will remain the purest symbol of national ideals for his indomitable tenacity of purpose, his ferocious verve and sublime gallantry. Animated by an invincible faith in victory, he has bequeathed to the French soldier an imperishable heritage which consecrates the spirit of sacrifice and will surely inspire the noblest emulation."
I think Guynemer should have had a place in Rivet Wars, so I made some modifications to one of the Reme Funck planes to create one. This required changing the tail section to emulate the SPAD VII biplane, and also cutting back the exhaust pipes to make room for Guynemer's Stork emblem and his famous "Vieux Charles."
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If Ted Terranova ever returns to the Rivet Wars world with the promised expansions (...) perhaps Guynemer could officially find his place among the ranks of the greats!
View attachment 66738View attachment 66739
We can hardly blame him for his choice since Fonck did indeed end the war as the Allied's most successful pilot with 75 confirmed victories (Manfred Richthofen, aka, the Red Baron, had 80). However, Fonck is not France's most celebrated pilot. That distinction goes to Captain Georges Guynemer, whose 54 victories were said to be "second among French Aces, but first in his nation's heart."
View attachment 66741View attachment 66746
What made Guynemer so popular were his daring pilot skills, his charming demeanor, and his looks (he received countless marriage proposals from adoring women). As a pilot he was absolutely fearless, preferring direct up-close confrontations.
One of Guynemer's most famous 'dogfights' was with the German Ace, Ernst Udet, who wrote about the encounter in his memoir, "Mein Fliegerleben" (1935). According to Udet, he was on balloon patrol when he spotted a SPAD plane coming for him. As they circled he saw the words "Vieux Charles" written on the side, the hallmark signature of Guynemer's plane. Udet tried to fire his guns but they jammed. As they continued to jockey for position Udet pounded on the guns with his fists, desperate to unjam them. Guynemer realized what had happened, but instead of taking advantage of his predicament the Frenchman gave him a friendly wave with his hand and flew away.
Guynemer's most famous quote was: "Until one has given all, one has given nothing."
The quote was prophetic, and perhaps adds more mystique around the mysterious nature of his death. On September 11, 1917 the 22-year-old Guynemer was out on patrol near Poelkapelle, Belgium, when he spotted an enemy plane below and moved in on it. This was the last anyone ever saw him. Literally. He simply vanished, seemingly into thin air! Neither his body nor his plane wreckage were ever found. Actually, according to a Red Cross report a month later, his body was discovered, and identification taken from his body, but soon after heavy British bombing of the area completely destroyed Guynemer's downed plane. The same report said Guynemer's body had been removed from the plane and taken to Brussels where he was buried with honors. And yet no burial site has ever been identified! To this day his plane and body are missing! This disappearance led to much fanciful speculation, mostly that he was yet alive... and aloft. Even years later when asked of him, French people would look up, pointing to the sky and say, "Guynemer est dan le ciel" ... Guynemer is in the sky! On February 5, 1960 The Twilight Zone aired an episode titled "The Last Flight" which was loosely based on Guynemer's disappearance.
Even today Guynemer is still revered in France and Belgium, with memorials in both Poelkapelle (Belgium) and the Pantheon Mausoleum in France which, though still with no remains, has the following inscription in his honor (translation):
"Dead on the field of honor, September 11, 1917. A legendary hero fallen in glory from the sky after three years of hard and incessant struggle, he will remain the purest symbol of national ideals for his indomitable tenacity of purpose, his ferocious verve and sublime gallantry. Animated by an invincible faith in victory, he has bequeathed to the French soldier an imperishable heritage which consecrates the spirit of sacrifice and will surely inspire the noblest emulation."
I think Guynemer should have had a place in Rivet Wars, so I made some modifications to one of the Reme Funck planes to create one. This required changing the tail section to emulate the SPAD VII biplane, and also cutting back the exhaust pipes to make room for Guynemer's Stork emblem and his famous "Vieux Charles."
View attachment 66742View attachment 66747View attachment 66744View attachment 66743View attachment 66745
If Ted Terranova ever returns to the Rivet Wars world with the promised expansions (...) perhaps Guynemer could officially find his place among the ranks of the greats!
