"What can French Old Guard figures be converted to?" Topic

I have quite a few Old Guard Grenadiers and Old Guard Chasseur figures. When I bought them I had in mind to paint some of the similarly uniformed allied troops.

With the adjustments in brackets I think the will do for

French Old Guard Grenadiers as…
1. Neapolitan Guard Grenadiers
2. Neapolitan Marines of the Guard (with painted lace across chest, pointed cuffs)
3. Neapolitan Velites (1st and second regiments, pointed cuffs)
4. Italian Guard Grenadiers
5. Italian Guard Velite Grenadiers

French Old Guard Chasseurs as…
1. Italian Velites Carabiniers
2. Bavarian Guard Grenadiers
3. Westphalian Grenadier Guard (lace across the chest)

Obviously any face plate on the bear skins would change from French to whatever and the uniform colours would change.

Anything else, or comments on the above?

I'd have to check a couple books but my first thoughts are:

Dutch Guards
Polish Guards

I think there are a couple other German states that can also use them in addition to the Bavarians and Westphalians.

Cheers,

The Bandit

Thanks. I'd forgotten the Dutch, even though I'm going to be painting them soon! I hadn't considered the Poles. I must look them up.

I once painted some French Old Guard Grenadiers as Wurttemberg Guard Grenadiers.

If you replace the bearskins with shakos, marine artillery would work as well:

link

Cheers,

Burkhard

Wouldn't they work for King Joseph's Royal Guards?

Regards

you would need a completely different bearskin for the Wurttemburgers and the Bavarians. You can add covered shakos and use them as Saxon Guard grenadiers in campaign.

IIRC, the later uniforms of the Saxon Footguards (glorious yellow coats, red facings) were also similar to the above.

Dutch guard grenadiers had no plate on their bearskin

Are they in "dress uniform," not in overcoats?

All my 30mm Stadden French line infantry, pre-Bardin of 1812, were converted from Old Guard grenadiers.

For line grenadiers, cut away bullet pouch decorations, grenade on back of bearskin, etc, and they will serve as grenadiers of some/many line infantry regiments. You will need to paint edge of the cuffs and cuff flaps to do the line. Also edge the lapels and turnbacks with Scarlet. You can make composite grenadier battalions with these.

The chasseurs might adapt at carabiniers (grenadiers of the light battalions) for the 2nd; 12th; ?16th? 27th leger – all long-tailed coats similar to the line. Scrape away Guard details.

GdeP

brunet,

Dutch guard grenadiers had no plate on their bearskin

True but French Guard Chasseurs à Pied works for those don't they?

Cheers,

The Bandit

No, Bandit, it is never that easy. Chasseurs bearskin indeed has no brass plate, but hang on, neither did they have that grenade on a patch on the back top of the bearskin (which the Dutch Guards did). OK, so the bearskin won't do.

What about the habit? The Chasseurs had pointed bottom ends to the lapels….not the Dutch Grenadiers…square for them.

No one said this would be easy. You would almost wonder if Boney was on the side of the commercial modellers? He made it very difficult to convert…….

Dutch grenadiers. All you need is a Perry Foot Guard Artillery man's head, file off his peak and stick it on to a Grenadier of the Guard's body. That is all……..

Cheaper might be some Greenstuff to cover the brass plate, mind you, on the Perry Grenadier. I know which I would do!

Also note that the New Orleans (LA) militia dressed as Old Guard!

link

Re-enactors? Not sure they'd cut quite the same figure though!

Las Vegas Drag Queens.
The bearskin hats and feathers are all the rage.

Witch's soldiers from the Wizard of Oz

Question of scale: are these 15mm, 28mm etc?

I ask because 15s are going to be far more forgiving regarding some of the differences people have pointed out where with 25s or 28s… less forgiving.

Cheers,

The Bandit

Baconfat wrote:

Witch's soldiers from the Wizard of Oz

There is a fair amount of work in that conversion. But I have to give you points for creativity.

Bandit wrote:

Question of scale: are these 15mm, 28mm etc?

28mm.

I am finishing off my Bavarian Guard Grenadiers at the moment. The figures are from Connoisseur but I had to conscript a drummer from Elite miniatures French Old Guard Chasseurs as only officers and men are in the range. The Colonel of the regiment is a Bicorne miniatures Gendarme officer for whom I sculpted a plume with green stuff, shako cords made from copper wire braided and flounders (if that is the word) made from green stuff again. The standard bearer is an Old Guard standard bearer from Connoisseur.

I have the Dutch Grenadiers from Front Rank figures. I'm glad I have the right figures now – thanks for pointing out the difference from French Old Guard. These have yet to be painted. I'm trying a new technique of painting white.

"Dutch guard grenadiers had no plate on their bearskin"

I used French grenadiers and just painted the plate black. Looks OK to me, but admittedly my eyesight isn't as good as it was.

Stick them on 300m range call them "targets".

Grenadiers for the Garde De Paris – nice uniforms, fought at Bailen, what's not to like?

Dansih Guard?

The Grenadiers. Cover the plate with Greenstuff. Add a peak with plastic card and use them to "pad out" the Artillery of the Guard. There seems to be a convention that we only have four men manning any gun….and none are falling,wounded or dead. Great thing about plastic. So easily converted.

Slight paint job and they become pontoniers. I have never, ever, seen them represented

Chop off their heads and buy Perry French heavy cavalry (ie cuirassiers…..I will not mention the carabiniers). Use the carabinier heads though and you have Guard Engineers. Yes, I know the heads are too thin in the coronal plane but……..

The final result is something unique to you. Gives me a buzz every time I look at something I created (OK, using Perry quality castings and only then some Greenstuff I admit)

Would they work for Joseph Napoleon's Royal Guard – in fact the uniform colour from the front looks close enough that if you painted a second command set you could use the rank and file for double duty!