1813-15 battles in 20mm and for AoE and V&F - (part 10) The Brunswick division at Quatre-Bras and Waterloo

   

These models were one of the reasons for the exchange I made recently between my 28mm armies and TC´s 20mm armies. This small group is some 40 years old and was kept dearly as my first Napoleonics. Then when I switched to 28mm I always felt sorry for leaving these ones behind in card boxes. When a late teenager I only had the rule book 'To the Sound of the Guns', some Napoleonics lists and the two volumes of Napoleonic Uniforms by the Funckens. Then, one day while in downtown I found in a local library my first Osprey book, Brunswick Troops. And fantastic it was as it portrayed excellent color plates an a very rich text as the unit is a relatively small one, so plenty of information was inside.

On those old days of the 80s there were already several Esci Napoleonic Boxes like the British, French and Russian. So all of them were used for this division: 

 The bodies of the Line and Light infantry had the British as base with carved tails and bedrolls; the Light infantry had French Shakoes while the Line had Russian kiwers. Some infantry is also based on Russian bodies without the bedroll on the torso for variety and getting some figures as NCO´s with the sabretache. The running figure was forced to cool down as it had his knees bent with some fire so both legs could touch the base. 

The blue/yellow shako tufts were made with a small pin enlarged with epoxy resin. 

The flags of the Line battalions (the Light battalions had no flags) were hand painted. They are bigger then they should but they were carefully painting in Enamel colors as typical of those pre-internet and Acrylic days. 

They are for sure some of the more beautiful flags of the period. 

The Avant Garde was made from Russian bodies with scratch-built Corsican hats made of EverGreen plastic card.

The artillery guns are Esci British with the Horse artillery made from British Esci due to the braiding and the Foot artillery made from Airfix French, all with new heads as for the Hussars.

The Hussars are Airfix with French Shakoes with tufts made from hardened cotton and pins with superglue. 

The lancers are direct Esci with needles instead of the small plastic lances.

The duke of Brunswick is a Waterloo1815 figure painted straight from the box. 

 Today Hat Industries has with all these types made in several boxes - Avant Garde; Leib Infantry and Cavalry -  and StreletsR also has the Leib battalion, so all this converting/scratch build work is useless even if it was fun to make. 

Next: French Old  Guard Chasseurs