I still haven’t got those French grenadiers finished although the last three figures are sat on my work table in black undercoat looking a bit sorry for themselves – I will get them finished before Christmas. In the meantime I thought I would take the opportunity to post some more pictures of the splendid work Matt did on my Swiss infantry.
The 4th Swiss in line.
Advancing in column.
Here they are from the rear – not running away, this is the view their supports would have.
A close up showing the grenadier company (actually composed of FN23 Old Guard grenadier, firing).
One of the reasons I’ve not been painting recently is that we took a trip north of the border last weekend to visit our daughter in Perth (that’s the original one in Scotland not the one in Oz). Whilst up there we were taken to Killiecrankie ‘gateway to the highlands’ where we walked to soldiers leap. This is a rock in the middle of the river Garry where a government soldier made a huge leap to safety on the opposite shore pursued by Jacobite forces in the aftermath of the battle.
Soldier’s leap sign.
Another sign told us that Queen Victoria visited the place once and proclaimed the jump ‘impossible’ – I’m not sure how she came to this conclusion as I am guessing she was never chased by a bunch of claymore wielding highlanders.
It’s a bloody long way up.
We also went to see the Wallace monument near Stirling which to be honest I’d never heard of before but turned out to be a wacky gothic tower erected in the 19th century to honour William Wallace. It’s a long way to the top (and I didn’t make it all the way) but one of the chambers contains Wallace’s actual sword, which was impressive – he must have been a big bloke. As you may detect there was a bit of a theme running through the weekend namely the Scots thrashing the English, next time I hope to make it up to Culloden for a bit of balance.
11 comments:
Sounds like a neat trip! And your Swiss troops are eye-catching indeed.
Best Regards,
Stokes
Hi Ian,
I can't see enough shots of that wonderful Swiss battalion.The finish has a real high quality 'old school' look, I love them! Problem is that I already crave a Nassau battalion since you posted yours up, and now I want the Swiss too! Oh well, more painting ahead.
Glad you had a nice break, looks interesting. You mentioned Culloden, do you remember the old black & white 'documentary' style film made in the Sixties? (I think). It was brilliant and can now be found on YouTube, well worth a watch Ian. I'll post you the link if I can find it. Its a place I'd like to visit too. Billy Connolly visited there during one of his 'Tour of Scotland' series too, that was good :-)
Regards,
Lee.
Ian,
Re my last comment here's the link to the 'Culloden' clips on YouTube. 1964! only 30 minutes of the 75 minutes but VERY good. I like the rather 'dampened' sound of the muskets, far more realistic 'blackpowder' sound than you usually hear on things like Sharpe!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2BVeAz4Vzg
Lee.
Lee - I do remember seeing this programme repeated in the 1990s. Very atmospheric and goes to show how a low budget production can be very effective given the right treatment. Thanks for the link.
Ian
Hi
These red-clad French allies always look very smart to me!
Regards
Rafa
P.S. No snow here!
Like the German troops we all love the Swiss, and the Irish and the Croats, in fact anything to relieve us from painting that sea of blue.
On another point is it really Wallace's sword? It sounds as though it might be a later Claidh-mohr. After all, Wallace is about 1290 AD and there are really very few weapons surviving from then.
Roy
Hi Roy - well I did wonder when I saw it, bit hard to believe that it is the genuine item but of course it is just possible!
Ian
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wallace_Sword
Has what I would regard as a convincing explanation. Its the Loch Ness monster of swords and good luck to the canny Scot who first thought of elevating this rather ordinary weapon to the level of star tourist attraction.
It may well have never truly been a weapon, but one of those 'Town Swords' that was borne before the mayoralty in procession... or whatever passes for a mayor in a Scots town.
Nice Swiss though! Did it give your painter the opportunity to demand payment with a 'Point d'argent, point de Suisse!' comment??
Roy
Hi Roy - That's a shame about the sword, next you'll be telling me that King Arthur never pulled a sword out of a stone. No threats received about the Swiss other than a vague one to "push em down the hill" if I didn't cough up.
Ian
Hi Ian,
Nice job on the Swiss! On your next trip to Scotland, treat yourself to a visit to Culloden. The new visitor centre is excellent, and the battlefield is very atmospheric. We were there last September, and looking at the ground, it makes you wonder how on earth the Jacobite army ever managed to charge home against what was arguably the steadiest infantry in Europe.
Hi Iain - good to hear from you. Culloden sounds very interesting and is definately on my 'to do' list.
Ian
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