Cuirassiers

After the Old Guard, the Cuirassiers at Waterloo seem to have some iconic hold over the imagination.  Here are my Cuirassiers.  I have around a thousand and they are from many different manufacturers.  During the production of this entry I found 200 more, which goes to show this project is getting out of hand: to be exact there are 1109 Cuirassiers on parade.  I love the glint of silver which comes off massed heavy cavalry.

Les Higgins and Zvezda

Art Miniaturen and Kennington. The ensign is a conversion from the Italieri Dragoons.

Legio only ever produced one plastic set, their Cuirassiers.  

Newline -slightly smaller than many figures, but nicely compatible with Airfix and Esci, the mainstay of my cuirassier force.

Hinton Hunt - Hinton figures are so distinctive.  I have used a Strelets officer and ensign with them - they are surprisingly compatible.

Les Higgins and Art Miniaturen.

Airfix and Esci

A mix of metal and plastic

Strelets in cloaks.  The chunky nature of Strelets can be distracting but in this case the style works well with Cuirassiers.

Qualicast and IT.  Neither company lasted long and I wish the Qualicast figures were back in production.

Panorama

A few Call to Arms figures among the Esci and Airfix - the horses are too small, but are fine in this company.

More Strelets.  The plumes seem huge but contemporary pictures show this to be the case.

An RSM trumpeter with an Atlantic conversion.  They ought to be in the Bardin Green livery, but I like the reverse colours.

Les Higgins and Zvezda, which go well together.

The extra row are the 200 I forgot about!

Carriages

At first glance, one wouldn't think there would be many carriages present at a battle.  But both Napoleon's carriages were captured at Waterloo and accounts of the era frequently refer to carriages blocking routes along narrow muddy lanes.  Napoleon was so irritated by private transport blocking artillery getting into the firing line before Borodino that he ordered his Service Squadron to dismount and set them alight.

This is the S Range open carriage with a marshal seated.  The plume on his cocked hat is enormous.

  This is the Imex stagecoach adapted for service as Napoleon's baggage carriage.  The two riders are conversions using General Picton's head from the Strelets set.  This is complete imagination, but I had fun doing it, whatever its historic inaccuracies.

This is the actual dormeuse captured and then displayed at Madame Tussaud.

Ali the Mameluke (Roustam tried to rejoin Napoleon in 1815, but having defected the year before, Napoleon refused to have him back).

Camp Life

Before the start of the battle, both sides of the Waterloo battlefield  must have been alive with men, horses and equipment stirring themselves after a wet and uncomfortable night.  Here are a mix of figures, including the Strelets set and numerous conversions, with some rare metal figurs thrown in.

Here are some French prisoners of war, taken at Quatre Bras being led to the rear.

Card players, with some sappers with pick axes in the background.

Polish lancers and a vivandiere, all metal.

Camp fire, drink and a camp follower

Some musicians.  Vivandieres look on.

 A Sapper converted from an American Civil War figure

Soldier with dead rabbit, I think Imex, stands beside camp followers

Fiddle player and drummer

Some more staff officers

Here are a few more Allied Staff officers.  Austrian and Russian liaison officers join the group.  A tired Prussian galloper delivers a despatch.

I have put a Rose figure at the front of this group, which are mostly Hinton Hunt. I think I read somewhere that this is the oldest production figure still available.

Allied General Staff

Here are some of my Allied General Staff.  The figures are the usual mix.  The dismounted figures are mostly Strelets and LM, a manufacturer that didn't last long. There are some Italieri figures mixed up with various metal figures.  These ones are mostly Newline with another short lived producer, 20:20.

These Prussians include the classic Hinton Hunt with telescope.

Several British officers in this picture are wearing frock coats.  Certainly Wellington did so at Waterloo, but the Duke of Richmond appears to have done so too.

These Prussians are mostly Fine Scale Factory.  They appear to be waiting for someone to unfurl a map on the table

The Prince of Orange is Hinton Hunt.  The Staff Corps galloper is Les Higgins.  The dismounted officer is Qualicast.

Some more British staff officers.

Chasseurs a Cheval of the Guard

The bulk of these Chasseurs are the Revell figures to which I have added pelisses.  The officers are a mix of Art Miniaturen, Kamar and Kennington.  

This trumpeter is Lamming.

I have used the Waterloo 1815 Prince of Orange as another officer