"Colonial General Service Wagon" Topic

"After the unsatisfactory performance of the Army during the Crimean War, the British conducted a number of reviews into what had gone wrong and what could be improved for the future. Some of these related to the vehicles used during the campaign, and amongst the many results of these reviews the British Army adopted, in 1862, a number of specialised vehicles and a new wagon for general conveyance of supplies which with ruthless logic was named the General Service Wagon. It became the standard logistics wagon of the British Army at home and abroad, and over the course of its life this vehicle went through no less than 11 different marks. It was only finally retired in the early 20th century when motorised vehicles took over.

To date this vehicle more precisely we need to decide which mark is being modelled. This vehicle has springs, which were introduced in 1871, but its overall dimensions, the toolbox/seat at the front, and the size of the front and rear wheels all point to this being the Mark IV version, introduced in 1875 and in service until gradually replaced from 1888 by the Mark VII (the Mark V and Mark VI being experimental vehicles made in tiny numbers). The Mark IV had front wheels small enough to achieved underlock, which gave the wagon a terrifically tight turning circle, but at the cost of being liable to overturning if steered too violently with a heavy load. Initially this type had shafts for the team, but later examples were given a central pole and swingletrees, which this HaT model has, so this is the later, and most widely produced, Mark IV. Since it was in service through the late 1870s and the 1880s, it is appropriate for several colonial campaigns, including of course the 1879 war in Zululand as suggested by the box artwork…."

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