One of the things about visiting the WHC is seeing many of the toys, scenery boards which featured in the world changing magazines of my youth. When those early Miniature Wargames magazine issues came out with all the Peter Gilder stuff in them I was blown away - this is how I wanted to play Napoleonics. They inspired my various collections & do so to this day.
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The original culprit.
Interestingly the 40 strong regiment of Hinchcliffe Carabinier pictured are all left handed!
They used the negative the wrong way around! |
What follows is a series of shots of toys & bits, please note that some of these are knocking on 40 years old or more. Fashions & technology has changed the manufacture of miniatures & painting has evolved way beyond what was achieved on the tabletop back then! Much of what follows may look "quaint" or even a bit "blobby" in 2019 - that's not the point, the mass effect is stunning & for me they have a certain charm about them.
Possibly I'm being nostalgic or soft in the head? Maybe, my post - my blog!
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| French line in campaign dress. Connoisseur models - they still muster. |
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| Connoisseur Austrian heavies with a few tweaks. Not convinced by the dodgy haircuts. |
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| More of the same. These boys are very much at rest in reserve. Cracking unit. |
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| A newer range but inspired by the Gilder Connoisseur sculpts. These are Elite Miniatures painted as Neapolitan Dragoons. |
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| French heavy cavalry, this lot could spoil you day! |
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Elite Miniatures French Hussars, possibly 9th?
I prefer to line my toys up neatly, my OCD creeping in here... |
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| These boys did spoil my day running down a Russian battalion in a buttock clenching moment or two! |
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| Saxon Garde de Corp - arguably the finest heavy cavalry of the age alongside their sister regiment the Zastrow Curassiers. |
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| More of the Neopolitans. |
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| More of the Saxons. |
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| Saxon command models with superb standard. |
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On the Allied extreme right Rich advances with Bagration's cavalry.
Only five regiments here, 160 models! |
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| Chris brings up elements of the Russian Guard, Cuirassiers & Hussars. |
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| Kollowrat's huddled masses struggled to get off the start line really. Austrian line infantry with pretty flags. |
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| Looking right from my positions to the Allied centre fighting to hold the Pratzen |
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| Russian six gun foot battery - We love big bangers! |
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| Russian Cuirassiers at rest, these are Hinchcliffe & mighty fine they are too. |
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| Austrian Uhlans - Elite Minis - I have these but with red Czapskas....? Spell check useless with period Polish headgear. |
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| Russian Uhlans - these look like Connoisseur to me. |
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| DCR brings up some Austrain heavies to prop up the centre on the Pratzen. |
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| Plus some Russian heavies too. |
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| Russian Guard Hussars - a riot of colour. |
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| French Middle Guard running up the Pratzen - Elite Minis with GMB flag -who else? |
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| Revisiting the Saxons - wonderful conversion & first class mustache - Capital! |
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| French line in campaign dress - less glamorous but the line foot do all the heavy lifting really, in most periods. |
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| Last shot is of Hungarian Grenadiers. This poor soul needs pain killers & some TLC - No "duvet day" for him though. |
There you go you cool cats! The remaining Austerlitz posts are to do with the other parts of the battle which I haven't covered yet & maybe some snaps of the players too.
Wargaming for me is as much about the aesthetic as anything for me. So, maybe these pictures of models spanning the decades yet all sharing the same tabletop space will please you & give an insight into the vast collection at the WHC courtesy of Mark Freeth.
Very best wishes until next time,
Jeremy
Wonderful. Not my preferred scale, but very impressive. Thanks for posting.
ReplyDeleteI think I just "got" Sun of York...
DeleteSun of Austerlitz etc?
Yes, yes, yes! Great stuff here. Like you, all of those photos from early MW and slightly later early Wargames Illustrated continue to inform how I pursue the hobby although my own era of focus is the mid-18th century.
ReplyDeleteBest Regards,
Stokes
Hi Stokes,
Deletewe are kindred spirits.
Your collection is well known to me. I often day dream of holidaying in the Grand Duchy of Stollen; the beautiful women, court musicians, timber frame architecture & immaculate military parades. Sheer bliss.
Have a great & productive year old chum. Best wishes,
Jeremy
How could any self respecting would be wargamer not be inspired by the images from Peter Gilder's collection.Like you when the Miniature Wargames first came out, it was the photographs that inspired me to not only improve the way I painted figures but also how I actually wargamed.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad I'm not alone in this, seems that quite a few of us draw from the same well of inspiration & motivation.
DeleteBest wishes Robbie,
Jeremy
Fabulous - you've brought some wonderful memories back to the fore. I was persuaded to ditch that copy of MW during one of our many moves, but the photo is still furmly locked in my head - hence my 2016 project to recreat a 1:20 French Cuirassier Division c.1812. It's still a little below Grand Manner standards with 'only' 89 cavalry figures mind. Thank you again.
ReplyDeleteAlways a pleasure to stir shared memories. Best of luck with your project, that's a big pile of metal & horse flesh to paint.
DeleteHere's to your brush in 2019 Stephen!
Jeremy
Agreed aesthetic is vital, thanks for the pics Jeremy! Had a few of those old Mini Wargames mags too :)
ReplyDeleteHi Chasseur,
DeleteI have kept those early magazines because I still read the occasional article & draw inspiration from the pictures. I ditched most of the later ones...
Best wishes for 2019,
Jeremy
Brilliant! Loved those pictures JJ.
ReplyDeleteHi Carlo, yeah they're a bit special aren't they!
ReplyDeleteBest wishes,
Jeremy
Fantastic pictures of a fantastic collection.
ReplyDeleteI still have my copy of MG Issue #1- the cover alone made it a must-by, and how I drooled over the Leipzig pictures in Issues 4/5.
Regarding Elite, I'm currently working on some Elite Miniatures packs that I ordered a while back- Saxon guns and infantry, and I am rapidly becoming a fan. Despite a few odd poses and some heavy work needed with a file and filler getting them all cleaned up, they're worth the effort.
When it comes to wanting a unit that conveys a sense of movement, flair and mass, there's nothing quite like them out there.
Glad you approve Robert.
ReplyDeleteI'm a big Elite Minis fan, especially their artillery & crews. Agreed there are some weird ones too, I have to see the range before buying as even some of the newest ones are a bit oddly posed! The "mass & movement" thing is something which really only comes together once the unit is based in my view - you need faith up front to believe that it will happen. The Middle Guard are a perfect case in point, you'd never buy the individual models but you'd snap up the 32 strong battalion pack! I got four...
There's another two posts to follow with loads more shots of the game & one with generals.
Best wishes Robert, have a great weekend,
Jeremy
Great photos, and there are some terrific memories in there which you will be able to come back to again and again. Those old Hinchliffe figures still hold their own.
ReplyDeleteYou're right Lawrence, part of the jpy of this blog ten years on is that I and others can refer back to games & updates which might otherwise have been forgotten! Yes the some of the Hinchliffes still pass muster, not all but some!
DeleteTake care,
Jeremy
Smashing post, but I can’t resist pointing out that the French hussars aren’t elite miniatures, but heavily converted connoisseur figures, mostly with heads, horses and trumpeters from Firing line miniatures - (I did them).��
ReplyDeleteGreat to have you on board Chris - Your blog inspired mine many years ago in 2010! Thanks for pointing the Hussars out; now you mention it I recognize the basing technique if not the models!
DeleteYour work with C.O.C. looks interesting & possibly worth us exploring further although Napoleonics is really where it's at for us.
Best wishes,
Jeremy
Lovely close-ups of some great figures. The talents of Doug Mason and Mark Allen appear to be in evidence methinks. I was at the WHC when Gilder took delivery of the Austrian cavalry conversions by Mark. He lost interest in umpiring the game to drool over the new additions. Great Stuff!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful figures Jeremy. I prefer the older-style figures and painting. Those fine Hinchliffe figures still look grand (fortunately available again now too).
ReplyDeleteSome of the modern washes and black-lining can be over done and the figures, especially many of the 28 mm ones, look like cartoon characters; often carrying huge trunks of wood for muskets! All IMHO...
*And Connoisseur
ReplyDelete