"American AWI Grenadiers?" Topic

OK I am starting a AWI army in 25/28mm. In reading the Osprey books I see there were a few Grenadier units on the American side. Has anyone used them before? If so did you use British figs and paint them like Americans?Were they as effective as the British Gren?

Not to start a bashing of Osprey books, but all the reading I've done has never indicated that there was any widespread use of grenadiers by American regiments. There may have been a few pre-war militia units that had a grenadier company but these likely went away very quickly once the war started.

Jim

Didn't we just have this discussion recently?

In short, the few grenadier companies in the American army were never put into a converged battalion, and never obtained the level of status the British grenadiers did. So paint a few if you must, but they would stay with their parent unit and function the same.

Do a search on this subject, as it was covered.

Sorry just found it. Thx

Glad to help. :-)

It's not just Osprey to blame. The Great God Troiani shows a few hats, too.

American grenadiers existed, but only very early in the war. Invariably, they were the "elite" company of an existing militia regiment that originally imitated British practice. When the regiment was "brought on the establishment", i.e., drafted into the Continental army, they came along.
When the regiments re-organized for "the duration", the organization was changed to include only line and light companies. Why? I suspect that it was a political reaction against European and monarchical practices. The regiment already had one elite company, the Light company, and did not really need another anyway.

I included a few in my New Jersey regiments in my Trenton game, but all I really did was include my FIW "Jersey Blues" in the OOB.
If they were even still around at Trenton and Princeton is problematic, but I doubt very much that there were any after that. Not needed, and politically incorrect.

There are some reports that some Americans stole Hessian mitre caps from POWs after Trenton, while escorting them into captivity. Ragged Continental Fusiliers would make a nice novelty figure or two in your Glover's Marbleheader regiment.

Yes we did!

TMP link

While American grenadiers were more or less an oddity, the assumption that they were limited to the early war, i.e. 1775/1776 is not entirely correct. The order of battle for American forces at Savannah in October, 1779 includes in Lt. Colonel John Laurens Light Corps, the Grenadier Company, Charlestown Militia with a strength of 31 men.

No idea whether they wore mitre caps…

db