Muster the British Army: Part One

It occurred to be that despite my plans to photograph my entire collection for insurance purposes some time ago, I haven't really followed through.  I had been doing it regiment by regiment, which is a laborious process and the thread I started on TMP had descended to ad hominem attacks and moronic name calling, which always puts me out of sorts and kills enthusiasm.

However, having an idle evening recently I set out my British army. Though I say British, they are brigaded with my Spaniards and Portuguese, but it was ever thus. The Dutch, Nassauers and Brunswickers didn't make it onto the field, but that was mainly because I was running out of room and I will attend to them in due course. A rough sort of seniority was followed, as set down in Rory Muirs article on order of battle in "Inside Wellington's Peninsular Army", but was abandoned when it interfered with the business of assembling the troops in such a way that they could all be seen.

I may repeat the process, once I've used this preliminary sketch to work out what I actually have, which was a bit of a mystery. 

The army entire, though I can think of a few pieces that are currently with Krisztian that will make this muster out of date, but such is the way of things. What began as a project to get a photograph of everything, turned into the closest thing to a diorama that I've made in quite a while.

The army from a differant angle, for the most part the line infantry are in the centre, cavalry on the wings, but behind the Rifles and the Guards. I'm not entirely sure why I did that. Spanish and Portuguese at the rear of the infantry and the guns behind them. Baggage to the rear right and hospital to the rear left. Staff and other such harmless persons to the front.

The staff, Wellington (blue coat, large nose) discusses with Picton and a chap with a letter (Harry Smith perhaps, I'm not sure I recognise him without his Spanish bride. A private of the Kings Royal Halberdiers watches the horses while the officer (including a second Picton discuss).

Wellington and his mounted officer are from the rather wonderful Italeri set. The umbrella wielding mounted Picton is by Waterloo 1815. The foot figures are mixture of Strelets, Italeri and HAT, while the private is a HAT British light infantryman. The standing horses, which are so small as to be effectively ponies are by Irregular Miniatures.

A rather badly focused picture of the HAT ponies, from their Second World War range. I bought these in 2002 when I needed dismounts for my German Don Cossacks in a Second World War roleplaying game. The light infantry (note the shoulder tufts) was the first Napoleonic figure I ever painted.

An Italeri Wellington, discusses with an Italeri mounted ADC. The chap in the middle (foxed by my seeming inability to properly manage depth of field) is by Strelets. Picton looks ready to lay about him with that umbrella.

Another shot slightly better. The figure with the sword under his arm was painted by my good chum General Creanor and he was used in a short lived Napoleonic roleplaying game I ran called "The Halberdiers". He is hands down one of my favourite figures.

A close up short, again with shocking focus of the command group. The supercillious looking adjutant fellow with the swagger stick is from HAT Peninsular British infantry and wonderful figure he is too.

Staff Cavalry Corps dragoons - I used to use them as couriers when I played rules that needed such figures. These are actually Stelets Crimean dragoons, but they were a good match for George Scoville's boys and I've always had a fondness for that mathematician cum frustrated cavalryman. I blame Mark Urban. The dastard.

Household cavalry and Scots Greys. These are Hinton Hunt figures, part of a collection that I part purchased as part of a consortium masterminded* by John Cunningham.  They are lovely little figures, but there aren't enough of them to form a unit. I think I'll be using them to guard the peer for a while.

And that gentlemen, is all there is for tonight. I have to be up and doing in five hours so I must to bed.


*And I do mean that, I can only presume he was stroking a large white cat when he called me.