"The Army of the Kingdom of Italy 1805-1814" Topic

…by Stephen Ede-Borrett

Sorry, don't know to link from my phone.

I'm enjoying this. A bit short on colour plates but every unit is described and its history related. It is one of those armies where you could easily acquire the whole thing.

Yes, kind of annoying though that the line infantry changed from the white to the green right in the middle of the period instead of more conveniently at the beginning. They just weren't thinking about us . . .

Cheers,
John

Here's the Amazon link -- link

and the Helion link -- link

Jim

Thanks Jim.

John, Yes, I have a pile of unpainted 1805 French so these guys seem spot on for those if I decide I CBA to paint all that blue. Apparently the same uniform except for the coat colour. The colour change to white is unfortunate because with Austrians, Westphalians, Neapolitans, Berg and Saxons in white already, we don't really need another army in Vallejo 951…

Although you would arguably need a different army for the later era anyway as with the 6-company organisation the proportion of elites is going to look different as well.

Yes, you could easily acquire the whole thing, indeed Colinthewargamer has:
link
Beautiful craftsmanship in 6mm! In the white uniform for 1809, as it happens, though I wouldn't put it past him to create the green version as well – not a huge chore in this scale.

How good is this volume with regard to color plates compared to the "Italian troops" Osprey men-at-arms volume?

I always worry that so many books recycle artwork.

@ Yogi

I'm not familiar with the Ospreys but SE-B doesn't use any original art at all AFAICT. It relies on some Knoetel plates, reproduced in black and white, but also a number of others that I've not seen before: Lienhart & Humbert from 1894, Zanoli from 1845, Malibran 1907 for some very detailed generals' lace diagrams. The colour plates are Boisselier reproductions. So far as I can tell, every uniform is pictured if in black and white in most cases, but all are described. He's even remembered to mention horse colours, eg the Royal Guard Dragoons rode bays same as the French Empress Dragoons.

The ideal allied army is 1812-14 Bavarian really, because depending on balance of your forces, it can fight on either side. However, my 28mm are all 1805 era, for which there is no obvious similar ally/enemy. Most of the candidates are in white anyway like the Austrians, so Italians fit the bill as an easy to source and differently colourful French ally.

I've been trying madly to reduce my pile of unread titles recently and have just finished reading Stephen Ede-Borrett's title: The Army of the Kingdom of Italy 1805-1814. I think it is a very good title, for what it offers, although saying that, it is still lacking in some areas. But it is hard to beat or fault if you are looking for uniform and organisational details of the various units included. The title does not cover the Neapolitan Army or offer battle descriptions or eyewitness accounts. And, despite offering sixteen colour prints, within a 229 page text, I felt it would have enhanced the title if it contained more, although of course this may have increased the overall cost. The reason I felt it needed more colour prints was because of the high number of units it covers, including Guard and Line, Cavalry, infantry, artillery, Naval and support organisations. The are some black and white prints and illustrations but again, could have done with more. As already stated, there are no battle or action descriptions. However, the title does include tables of various units in which you can see what actions they took part in, the locations and dates. And some include information on casualties. The author has also hinted in the Preface (page v) that he hopes to offer information on earlier uniforms of the Armies of the Italian Republics in a later volume. So more to come. Overall, I believe this title will be a welcome and informative addition to anyone's collection.

maybe Helion is listening or reading you who knows…
it will be published in 2024 a "revised and expanded edition in colour throughout and includes an additional 35 previously unpublished artworks"
a combination of Stephen acquiring a new set of plates, plus changes in printing that enable us to do the whole thing in colour which was not affordable when we first launched the title. Other than captions, no major text changes so campaign information remains as per the first edition – who served where, but not details of the actions.

Andrew Bamford Series Editor

link

the first edition still available
link