"Finding Headquarters" Topic

Looks as though I need to build a couple of army HQs for my 6mm ACW forces. OK, I can probably find or scratch-build a farmhouse and a few wagons, but how were the headquarters flags displayed, if at all? I recall some serious flagpoles from movies, but did they actually carry flagpoles with them? (Mind you, I've seen lower-level headquarters carrying stranger things, but still…)

Headquarters indeed did have flags – for example, Meade's HQ flag for the Army of the Potomac was an eagle in a wreath on a purple background; as I recall when Grant first saw it he asked "Has Imperial Caesar taken up residence here?"

Here is a replica version

link

And then there's the Sam Elliott quote from the movie "Gettysburg"….

"Follow the seegar smoke, find the Fat Man…"

I'd say HQ personnel are as resourceful as their GO's want them to be… If it's im-po-tent to The Boss, they'd find a way to make it happen.

In 6mm? Why not? They're your figures.

Eric

They would certainly carry the HQ tent with them, and the center pole would be tall enough to fly the flag over the tent. There would also be a mounted flag bearer in attendance when the general was away from his tent.

Making a good sized flag pole is fairly easy. When I was reenacting a lot we would just find a tree that we felt was tall and straight enough, cut it down, trim the branches, dig a hole, and one of the guys made a removable pully system to raise the flag. When the weekend was over we just cut it down.