Regiment Beaujolais, Part 1

I finished the first two divisions of my impression of the Gallian Regiment Beaujolais, led by their commander, Colonel Charles, Sieur de Beaujolais.

They are Old Glory F&IW French infantry figures (FIW-06 and FIW-08) and the mounted colonel is from the Wolfe, Montcalm, and mounted colonels pack (FIW-18).  As I wrote in my earlier post about these figures, my only real problem with them is that the officer and drummer figures are out-of-step with the sergeant and fusilier figures.  A minor problem, I know, but it still grates on my military trained sensibilities.  Of course that doesn't mean that this regiment won't be a mainstay of the Gallo-Imperial Reichsarmeeabteilung Obere-Sachsen in its operations against the forces of the Elector.

I've begun work on the color guard and third and fourth divisions.  After them will be the grenadiers and picquets for a 76-figure battalion.

This unit will have its initial baptism of fire in a F&IW game in about 2-1/2 weeks.

"Red"Sonja at Margaritaville

While I was searching for a picture of "Frivolous" Fiona at Margaritaville, I found some of the other pictures that I took at our pirate game Saturday before last.  I commanded a band of scurvy cutthroats and ne'er-do-wells whose mission was to raid the Spanish church, capture the priests, and find out (by gentle persuasion, of course!) where the treasure was hidden.  My pirates were led by "Red" Sonja, whose sharp saber and sure pistol kept order among her men.  Here are a few of the pictures I took at the game.  As usual, a click or double click will enlarge these images for your viewing pleasure.

"Red" Sonja, followed by her bat-man carrying a cask of rum, encourages her desperadoes.

The sleepy little town of Margaritaville.  Fiona is at the left rear outside the red brick tavern.  The governor and his court sit on a balcony overlooking the town square where dandies, dandettes, and townspeople gather.  Notice old "Blind" Pew in the center with his back to the camera.

"Red" Sonja and her band of scurvy cut-throats and ne'er-do-wells slip through the brush towards the Spanish church.

Skirting a native village, part of Sonja's crew moves toward the rear of the Spanish church.

Sonja and part of her crew nab the priests outside the church as English Marines, Spanish infantry, and irate townsmen duel amongst each other on the plain below.  The other part of Sonja's crew cower in the jungle in the foreground, unwilling to risk crossing the open ground.

With some "friendly" persuasion, the priests tell Sonja where the Cross of Coronado is hidden.  With that in her possession, Sonja considers her mission a success.  But she and her cutthroats will still have to brave the English Marines, Spanish infantry, and irate townsmen, as well as angry natives boiling out of the jungle, in order to escape.

We stopped the game at this point since several of us had to leave.  Sonja and her band would probably not have been able to escape with the Cross of Coronado, but it was fun to be able to pose with it in a picture.

EDIT on 03/31/2010:

For more pictures and a complete report, see the Jackson Gamer's blog.

Fiona at Margaritaville

The rumors were true!  "Frivolous" Fiona McGillicuddy (back to camera, with parasol)  was visiting Margaritaville Saturday before last during the pirate raid.  Was she just having her "Spring Break" fling or was she there for more devious reasons?  Only time (and some creative story writing) will tell.

Photo courtesy of "Big John" (from his blog, Nomadic Old School Gamer)

Stay tuned for more news of Fiona and her favorite "Gentlemen Adventurers" as they continue their journeys through the 'Murican provinces.

Gallian Infantry - WIP

Last week I began painting the first two 12-figure divisions of a regiment of Gallian (AKA French) infantry for my Imperial army.  These figures are of the Regiment Beaujolais (a rather nice French wine, by the way).  The figures are all Old Glory French & Indian War figures from packs FIW-06 (French line command) and FIW-08 (French line marching).  I also have figures from pack FIW-07 (French line advancing) which will form the next two 12-figure divisions.  There will also be a division of 12 grenadiers and a division of 12 picquets, plus a 4-figure color party carrying the colonel's and regimental colors.

The colonel commanding is one of the French mounted officers from pack FIW-18 (Wolf/Montcalm/Colonels mounted).  He is Colonel Charles, Sieur de Beaujolais.  I still have a little work to do on him, such as shading his face and hands and painting the base.

Colonel Charles, Sieur de Beaujolais

The infantry figures are still being painted.  These two pictures are just to show how they are progressing.  I used an undercoat of light gray and then did a heavy drybrush of antique white over it to achieve my interpretation of the gris-blanc color of French uniforms.

Fusiliers of Regiment Beaujolais

Fusiliers of Regiment Beaujolais

Additional pictures will be provided when these figures are complete.

Rebellion and Relics

Saturday morning I participated in the Mississippi Department of Archives and History's Rebellion and Relics program as part of the Sesquicentennial of the American Civil War.  My presentation highlighted the Civil War related items in the various collections we maintain in the Archives and Records Services Division.  While I was there, I took some pictures of some of the artifacts that our Museum Division maintains and of a few of the reenactors who were there.  All of these activities were held in and around our Old Capitol Museum.  I hope that you enjoy these pictures.  As usual, please click on each image for a larger picture.

First, some of the artifacts:

The old Mississippi House Chamber where the programs were presented.

Two of the many uniform pieces in the Museum collection.  On the right is the butternut wool coat of Lieutenant T. Otis Baker of the 10th Mississippi Infantry Regiment.  On the left is a shirt made from brocaded silk curtains looted from the Old Capitol building by a Union soldier in 1863.

These are Jefferson Davis' .44 caliber rifled dueling pistols.  They were taken from him when he was captured in 1865, returned to the Davis family in 1914 by the War Department, and then donated to the Department's collection.

Restored flag of the 4th Mississippi Infantry Regiment.  If you look carefully, you can see that the "VICKS" in Vicksburg has been replaced during the restoration by slightly larger letters.  That was one portion of the flag that was completely missing.  The lighter red and blue places are where new material was added (as a backing) to replace material that had been lost over the years.

Flag of the Burt Rifles (Company K, 18th Mississippi Infantry Regiment.  This flag has also been carefully restored to its former full-color glory.  The tree in the center is a Magnolia tree with its white flowers in full bloom.  The leaves and the flowers were painted in great detail by the painter in 1861.

And now a few of the reenactors who set-up outside the main entrance to the Old Capitol:

A Union cavalryman showing some of the guests the flag carried by his regiment and the weapons and accoutrements he carried.

A sailor from the USS Benton talks to a guest about life aboard a Union gunboat on the Mississippi River.  This reenactor is also a master model maker and has done many models and dioramas for the Department and the Blue and Gray Naval Museum (in Vicksburg), among others.

Two United States Colored Troops reeanctors.  The sergeant on the left is from an infantry regiment while the sergeant on the right is from a heavy artillery regiment.  Mississippi contributed some 11 regiments (8 infantry, 1 cavalry, and 2 heavy artillery) of former slaves (some 18,000 men) to the Union cause.

There were, before I left, only two Confederate reenactors present.  There was such a crowd around their table that I couldn't get a picture.  But I will leave you with a vintage (1976) picture on Confederate Civil War reeanactors:

Two of the five (left and right outside men) are now deceased.  The center reenactor is who sent me the picture, which was taken at Asphodel Plantation in Lousiana.  All five were college mates of mine.

Gallian Canadien Militia Unit #2 and Pack Animals

I finally finished the second of my two 20-figure Gallian Canadien militia units.  Like the first, it is composed of one officer (Spanish from the old London Warroom, now Dayton Painting Consortium line) and 19 Old Glory Courier de Bouis.  These unit has gray shirts for a distinguishing feature.

And here are close-ups of the unit:

Additionally I finally put the finishing touches on two pack camels and two pack mules that have been sitting on my painting desk for ages.

These are Ral Partha pack camels, a generic one on the left and a Medieval one on the right.

And two pack mules, generic on left and Medieval on right.  I don't recall manufacturers on these as I bought them on eBay.