gets started with Flintloque.
15mm gaucho cavalry are now available from Grenadier Productions. Sculpted by Mike Broadbent, these horsemen of the plains held the line in northern Argentina and southern Bolivia for over 7 years after the defeat of Argentina's regular army at the Battle of Ayohuma in November 1813.
Beginning as scouts and recruits for the regular army, the gauchos, hardened by generations of life on the pampas, found that their natural skills for herding cattle and fighting the Indians were perfect for harassing isolated garrisons and picking off stragglers from Royalist columns. Led by caudillos, local leaders of strong enough will and charisma to gather these proud and independent men under their banner, gaucho units excelled in quick raids and flanking attacks. Fearless and deadly, some units earned the name "Infernales" from the Royalists because their red clothing matched their demonic fighting ability. Under the overall command of Martin Guemes, the gauchos even began to organize regular units as the war progressed.
Eventually, after numerous campaigns and countless small actions and combats, the Royalist forces gained the upper hand. With the ascendant Royalists advancing to the front and anarchy and civil war breaking out to the rear, the caudillos and their gaucho forces were neutralized one by one. Guemes himself was mortally wounded in an ambush in 1821, but their legend had already been established, and to this day, their exploits are recalled with pride across the Southern Cone.
The Liberators! Miniatures gaucho release features a set of four different gauchos, a set of four different "Infernales," and a command pack featuring Martin Guemes and an unnamed caudillo to lead the troops into battle. In addition to the Wars of Independence, these figures can be used in battles all the way through the Paraguayan War (or War of the Triple Alliance) from 1865-1870.
Grenadier Productions is in the process of building scenarios incorporating gaucho forces, and will release some free on the website and Yahoo! Group, and incorporate others into a new scenario book to be released in early 2009.