The British Heavy Cavalry was considered by Napoleon some of the best cavalry of Europe but the worst led. In fact the British cavalry at Waterloo was a mix of breathtaking bravery but also a disastrous lack of control. This led to its defeat in the 18 June 1815 by the French lancers and cuirassiers with the loss of many men and many officers including General Ponsonby (commander of the Union Brigade), Hamilton (commander of the Scots Greys) and Packe (commander of the Blues). Even so the initial charges destroyed a good part of the French D´Érlon corps and eventually being considered a factor of the final success of both British and Prussians.
To the left you can see the Household Brigade and to the right, the Union Brigade.
I didn´t paint the cornet´s horses in grey (exceptuating the Scots Grey which are already all mounted in grey horses) as the British had already officially abandoned grey horses even if it is known that the rule was only partially followed.
1st and 2nd Life Guards at the front and the Royal Horse Guards (The Blues) to the rear. All figures are Revell.
The King´s Dragoon Guards and 2nd Dragoons (Hat miniatures).
The Scots Greys (Italeri and Esci).
Having only one box of British Dragoons from Hat I sorted out the 6th Inniskilling by mixing Scots Greys from Esci with Italeri French Dragoons.
And here they are. This mix made me thought once again on how clever the old plastics designers were. Esci, for instance by providing a box of Scots Greys allows for conversions for other Dragoon units if you use for instance the heads of the Esci French Cuirassiers (or Italeri Dragoons as above). The plastic reigns were added later as the Esci horses are incomplete even if beautifully sculpted.
Next: more British cavalry
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