Africa Desert Houses
Bring the built environment of the Second World War’s North African campaigns to life with this detailed set of Africa Desert Houses. Designed to evoke the simple, practical architecture found across arid towns and rural settlements, these buildings provide an atmospheric backdrop for military scenes, desert layouts and historically themed collections.
Historical Role
During the fighting in North Africa, local houses and settlements became important features of the battlefield. Buildings could provide shelter from the climate, accommodation for troops, storage for supplies and positions for observation or communications. In contested areas, their solid walls and enclosed spaces also offered useful cover, turning otherwise peaceful structures into temporary headquarters, aid posts or defensive strongpoints.
Distinctive Appearance
These houses feature the compact, rectilinear forms associated with traditional construction in dry climates. Flat or gently defined rooflines, simple wall surfaces and restrained openings give the buildings a convincing desert-settlement character. Their understated architecture works especially well beside dusty roads, market areas, palm trees, rocky ground and period vehicles without overwhelming the wider scene.
Modelling Uses
Africa Desert Houses are ideal for North African campaign dioramas, model railways, tabletop wargaming displays and collectors creating historically inspired scenes. Use them individually as isolated rural dwellings or combine several models to form a village, roadside settlement or contested urban position. They can complement a wide range of World War II forces and also suit broader desert or colonial-era scenic settings.
Fun Fact
In many hot, dry regions, flat roofs traditionally served as practical additional living and working spaces, especially during cooler parts of the day. This functional feature also created useful elevated observation points when settlements were drawn into wartime operations.
Available Scales
Available in 1:87, 1:76, 1:72, 1:48 and 1:35 scales, supporting HO and OO model railways as well as compact wargaming layouts and larger military dioramas.
Finish Options
Choose from Cleaned Resin Grey, Grey Primed - Ready for Painting, or Historical Base Colour. Each option provides a suitable starting point for adding weathering, dust, plaster effects and individual scenic details.
Very small details may vary slightly depending on the scale selected.
