Wednesday 5 February 2014

Spanish Militia

It felt a bit strange going back to Front Rank after a few battalions of Eagle miniatures, as the figures are arguably at opposite ends of the 28mm spectrum and these Front Rank definitely feel quite hefty in comparison.

I was also a bit wary about brown as a theme as well, but half-way through I was really starting to enjoy the experience and reminded myself how much I love the Front Rank style.

The first of these is my interpretation of a couple of the tercios of the Catalonia militia:


















While these figures were most likely initially intended for use as regulars for the Spanish army of 1811 and thereafter, I think they work quite well as urban militia:


















I have relied upon the dependable Rene Chartrand and his second Osprey to try and interpret the uniform for these:


















The second couple of units are based upon Chartrand's description of the Galicia militia, and I think the yellow facings work quite well with the brown uniforms:


















The top hats and brown uniforms remind me a little of Victorian chimney sweeps, but they make a nice contrast to the rest of the Spanish:


















The flags are GMB, and in this case I have used some from the Voluntarios de Barcelona. Not strictly a militia unit, and the flags could more probably have been home-grown rather than standard issue, but I decided to use these in case I wish to double them up as brown-uniformed regulars at some stage.

3 comments:

  1. I have the lead in hand for 2 units of Spanish Grenadiers (with the awesome bearskins) once I start my Spanish Napoleonic army project (in about 18 months). I think these troops look great. Overall, though, I am coming to prefer the look of your Eagle figures. Are you going to put Les Espagnoles on the table in lead combat soon?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. (Front Rank figures for the Grenadiers)

      Delete
    2. Thanks Peter, and I agree that the Spanish Grenadiers are unparalleled. The cloth bags on the bearskins can be a little off-putting at first, but can look great with a bit of perseverance.

      As to the Spanish army, I only have two more units to complete and then I'll be finished. The unfortunate thing is that my gaming group are primarily into 15mm so I'll have to complete the French, British and Portuguese before we have a game, but am hopeful I may be able to complete a quorum within the next couple of years.

      I'm very much looking forward to seeing your Spanish project unfold in a year and a half.

      Delete