These are a musket 'wing' from Sir William Pennyman's Regiment of Foote. The figures are from Bicorne Miniatures and I have to say I absolutely love the range and have done from the day I first saw them.
I love the detail; the holes in the uniforms, the patches, the individual characters. I like how the muskets have a solid look about them and with so much detail. Some companies have figures with awful stubby little muskets...not these...these have heft and are a joy to paint.
Traditionally I always seem to have used too dark a blue for my ECW figures. They looked more like Frenchmen with broad brimmed hats. I did my research with these and looked at the re-enactors from this regiment. Their uniforms have a lovely 'washed out' look, just like I would imagine vegetable dyed clothing would look (actually I say that but what vegetable is blue?..I know nothing of dyes to be honest!). Anyway I like the faded look. Campaigning in sun and rain must surely have faded the uniforms quickly.
A few rear shots of this Royalist unit. I really like the way that all of the equipment is visible and also a pleasure to paint and bring out.
You can have some fun with the details:
It took me hours to light all the match-cord! (only joking, but you can add little details like this with ease and it just adds something to the figures).
Here we have the new wing joined by the one I completed and re-based previously. I just need to purchase a pack of pikemen and I can finish the pike block. I will have a whole regiment complete then. I must be mad making 40 figure regiments, but it does look so good on the table!
Woad is a vegetable (a type of mustard I think) and is the classic blue dye.
ReplyDeleteLovely painting and, yes you are mad to do 40 figure regiments.
A great looking, well painted unit!
ReplyDeleteI like big regiments on the table as well, can't stand those 12-20 men regiments.
Cheers,
Thomas
PS: Nice blog, it's on my list from now on!
:-)
Thank you both for your kind comments. :-)
ReplyDeleteEpictetus, yes of course thank you - Woad - I should have realised that was the obvious dye source...the lack of which famously lead the French to use white coats for a short time under Napoleon.
I hope to finish another regiment shortly. I just need to go outside and hammer out some steel wire to make pikes. It makes me feel like a real 17th century blacksmith! ha ha! :-)
They look excellent, Jason!
ReplyDeleteThis is actually one of the few periods where I like big units, but really, most ECW battles were quite small affairs, so a relatively modest number of big regiments is reasonable (and do-able). I think big regiments for, say, the Napoleonic era is kind of insane myself, but to each their own.
Indigo was the blue dye used for French Napoleonic uniforms; it derives from a plant native to India and known to (and imported by) the Romans; the British blockade made it difficult to import, hence the expermental (and short lived) white uniforms. Evidently woad does contain the same dye, though.