Napoleonic & ECW wargaming, with a load of old Hooptedoodle on this & that


Sunday 25 May 2014

Spanish Infantry Colonels 1805 - horse furniture?

Gallery picture borrowed from Front Rank website - thanks, guys.
Red? Facing Colour? White? Sky-blue pink?
Very quick post looking for clues, if anyone could be so kind as to supply any information. My Spanish army of 1809 now has a supply of mounted infantry colonels, conversions from bits of various figures, which look promising, but I cannot - for the life of me - turn up any pictures of such chaps on their horses.

With particular reference to the 1805 (white uniform) regulations, anyone got any idea what the officers' shabraques looked like? White is unlikely (impractical), though logic suggests they might be in regimental facing colour, braided in the regimental button/lace colour, but Front Rank's gallery pictures show red saddle cloths and holsters for (by implication) all regiments, since they depict a charging infantry unit with green facings, accompanied by a fiery looking colonel with a red shabraque (to match his sash). Red, as a national colour, was used by the general staff, so it is a possibility, but I'd like some kind of confirmation.

I checked out all sorts of books and online sources - the HaT site page showing painted test figures for set 8279, the Napoleonic Mounted Officers - which includes such a Spaniard - shows him painted up as a Wurtemburger, to demonstrate the versatility of the set. Drat.

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Subsequent Edit: thanks to the very fine sleuthing work of my main man Johnny Rosbif, here is some more evidence - a plate by Alvarez Cueto of the colonel of the Regto de Toledo, together with a standard bearer of the Regto de Mallorca.


Thus it looks as though Front Rank are probably correct (I never doubted it), and the colonel has a red shabraque with braid in button colour. Only slight quibble now is that the Toledo regiment should by rights have brass/gilt buttons…

Still. I'm happy to go with this.

5 comments:

  1. Front Rank - a while since I've seen this range. Cheerful figures - weren't some of these chaps in Snow White? - and the usual smashing paint job. I am not an expert, I think this is the Zaragoza regiment? a couple of the uniform details on this don't seem quite right - I wouldn't take this as an authoritative pointer to red horse blankets. Nothing in Bueno? Or Alfons Canovas' blog?

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  2. How about this? It's the Colonel of the Toledo Regt. in the 1805 uniform by Dionision Alvarez Cueto. http://i1256.photobucket.com/albums/ii481/sursumkorda/Alvarez%20Cueto%20Dionisio/CoroneldelRgtoToledoySubtenienteAbanderadodelRgtoMallorca_zpsb1680ca7.jpg

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    Replies
    1. You beauty! - very good - thanks for this. I'll add the pic to the post. Blogs work again...

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  3. Thank you Andrew - I've seen Bueno plates of senior staff, but no mounted infantry officers.

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