Napoleonic Wars - Saxon Cuirassier

Not sure how I missed taking a photo of these guys when I painted them earlier this year!

Four squadrons (a full regiment) of Cuirassier from the Kingdom of Saxony. Depending on which part of the Napoleonic Wars I am fighting, they would either be allied with the Prussians against the French, or the French (as part of the Confederation of the Rhine).

While Saxon sympathies seemed to be more with the French (at least until Leipzig, when the writing was pretty much on the wall for Napoleon), their kingdom was located in eastern Germany immediately south of Prussia, with Russia not too far further east. So until Napoleon actually crushed Prussia in the 1806 campaign, they weren't really in a position to assert themselves.

I might also be able to use them for the Seven Years War if I overlook the fact that their uniforms are a little more modern than that. At that time Saxony was in a difficult position - its ruling family was Catholic and supported the Hapsburgs of Austria, but the bulk of the population was Protestant, and more in tune with Prussia. Frederick "The Great" of Prussia solved the dilemma for the Saxons by invading their kingdom early in the war and absorbing the Saxon army into his own!

Napoleonic Wars British Army - Infantry

British infantry battalions during the Napoleonic Wars comprised three different types of soldier. Eight of the 10 companies were ordinary Line Infantry, while two additional companies, one each of Grenadiers and Light Infantry either deployed on each flank (the Grenadiers on the right, the Light on the left) or detached to form a separate battalion, joining with the other flank companies of similar regiments.

The photos show the full battalion, then each of the three separate types individually.

(I don't yet have a battalion of Highlanders, so these couldn't be included.)

Napoleonic Wars British Army - Rifles

With technology improving, rifles were slowly replacing muskets as the infantry man's weapon of choice, and the British had learned the value of light infantry through its experiences in the American colonies during their War of Independence.

The British army therefore had raised two regiments of Riflemen - dressed in a similar green to the jager of the German nations. They lacked the flanking (light and grenadier) companies, but in other respects were organized in much the same way as the regular line infantry.

Napoleonic Wars British Army - Heavy Cavalry brigade

My Heavy Brigade is still a little Spartan, with just two squadrons each (only one of each pictured) of Life Guards and Scot's Greys - the Greys were all mounted on white/grey horses. Both regiments were heavy dragoons.

While the British army was a little short in terms of heavy cavalry, I'm pretty sure there is room for future additions here.

Enjoy the pics - infantry still to come.

British Light Cavalry from the Napoleonic Wars

So far I don't have any British hussars, so the Light Cavalry brigade of my British army only includes British Light Dragoons and King's German Legion cavalry - essentially also Light Dragoons. Light cavalry of other allied nations present, such as the Belgio-Dutch I posted yesterday, can be added to the brigade to boost it up.

Pictured are the British Light Dragoons (yellow lace on their outfits) and the KGL troops. King George III was also Elector of Hanover as well as King of England, and it was the Electorate of Hanover that provided most of the KGL troops.

Artillery from the British army of the Napoleonic Wars

The British army that fought in the Napoleonic Wars had two main types of artillery - foot and horse.

The Horse Artillery was mainly light-weight guns that were easily and quickly transported around the battlefield to meet needs as they arose. In the accompanying photo, one gun remains to continue firing at a nearby enemy, while a second is towed away to another part of the battlefield.

Foot Artillery guns were slightly bigger and heavier, and more difficult to move, although not as much so as the guns of some armies. Pictured is a lone gun sizing up an enemy target and preparing to fire.

Belgio-Dutch contingent for my Napoleonic (Wars) British army (Post 2 of 2)

The Belgian Light Dragoons are in green, the Dutch in blue.

Belgio-Dutch allies for my Napoleonic Wars British army (Post 1 of 2)

Well, it's been a while since I posted here, but I have been busy painting and organizing. Hopefully over the coming week, given I have some time off from my regular day jobs, I'll be able to post some of my recent months' work.

This post features the Belgio-Dutch contingent that will be part of my Napoleonic British army. So far I have one battalion each of Belgian and Dutch Line Infantry, two squadrons each of Belgian and Dutch Light Dragoons (only one of each pictured) and supporting artillery. William, Duke of Orange, leads the force and is pictured here on a white horse, waving his hat to encourage the troops. (Not all the pics will fit on one post, so I'll post the cavalry separately).

I plan to add forces from the Duchy of Nassau (which was also ruled by William) and some Dutch militia, but that won't happen until later next year some time.

Napoleonic Wars - Brunswickers

Maybe I could have picked a better background, but these are my Black Brunswickers from the latter portion of the Napoleonic Wars, supported by a section of their avante-guarde (the guys in grey on the left of the picture.)

Brunswick fought alongside Prussia during the early stages of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, but after the death of the Duke and the Prussian defeat of 1806, Napoleon "reorganized" all the German kingdoms and principalities - totally disbanding some - to form the Confederation of the Rhine. Not wanting anything to do with the "new Germany" the new duke originally sided with Austria, before leaving for England with a small army of loyal followers, the bulk of whom were dressed in the new "black" uniform.

The Brunswickers fought as part of the British army for the remainder of the Napoleonic Wars, playing a significant role in the 1815 Waterloo campaign that ended Napoleon's reign.

I still have Brunswicker cavalry to do, but that will be a little way off yet.

Republican Roman Army - General Comments

Photos of my (two legion strong) Republican Roman Consular army - well, the "Roman" part of it anyway. The hordes of Celts, Italians, Spanish, and other mercenaries who could have fought for (and also against) this army aren't pictured here.

The figures are mostly produced by Hat, with some Zvezda and also a couple of Esci figures. Buildings (barracks and stables) by Hovels.

As you can see, this part of the army alone takes up a full 4x2-foot table. It's based on a scale of one figure = 20 real men. (The models are 1:72nd scale).

Roman command (with a closer look at my Commanding General (the Consul himself!) below. To see the troops, scroll down to the previous post!

Republican Roman Army - The Units

Pictured, in the order in which they typically came in contact with the enemy:

velites - the skirmishers (light infantry) who spread out in front of the army

equites - the cavalry. They protected the flanks and, if competitive, engaged enemy cavalry.

hastati - the least experienced combat troops, with a shield but little armor

princepes - the second line of combat troops, well armed and wearing plenty of armor

triari - the legion's elite. By this stage, the battle was either won, or going very badly!

Finished my battalion of jager for my 18th century Prussian army - well, except for their Colonel, as I don't have an appropriate figure. (Photo attached).

Next project is to finally finish my Republican Roman army. Up till now I've just been fielding the one legion, even though I'm only about a dozen figures short of the two legions that made up a consular army. Hopefully I can rectify that over the next week or so.

I'm hoping to have some neat battles coming up - if I can just stop "improving" my rules for long enough to actually get stuck into a decent scrap. I've certainly got lots of great matchups that I can test my new rules out with. :-)

June update

Made it to 10,995 figures painted. I should cross the 11,000 mark next weekend while I work on my 18th century Prussian jagers.

Meanwhile, this week, some of my figures will be on display at the Shelby County Museum as part of their "History Camp 2013" for campers aged 7 to 12 years. I've attached a couple of photos from the main portion of the display which is an American Civil War skirmish between Confederates (coming across the bridge on the right) and Union forces (defending a farm house.)

More from inside the village....

I guess I've found a "guide" for a tour of the town!

"Inside the village"

Various views as you walk the streets.....

Some cool pics of my new "Napoleonic Era" European village......

.....currently being occupied by British troops (coming across the bridge, with some officers already in the village).

With this post I have an aerial overview, and a view from a distance, more on ground level. For my second post I experimented a little placing the camera inside the village and trying to get a view as if you were walking in among the buildings yourself.

Enjoy....

No I haven't forgotten it!

With my move south, I haven't had much time to work on my blog over the past few months. I have started painting again thugh, and am working on a European village (unfinished version pictured above), Numidian cavalry for my Carthaginian army, and some command figures in chariots for my upcoming Trojan army.

Now that I've figured out how to download photos from my "new" (bought last November) camera to my pc, I should be able to start taking pics of my work for this blog again.