Franco Prussian War..................in 20mm....................... (2 Viewers)

Warrior

Warrior

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Ok, so as many of you know, I am an avid 20mm Napoleonic, ACW and WWII collector. There is another period I have toyed with getting into on and off for about 10 years, many stops and starts, the biggest issue was I'd be starting from scratch.

Well I finally decided to pull the trigger a few months ago and I am very happy with my decision. The Franco Prussian war was short but extremely bloody, the whole "the weapons are ahead of the tactics" angle, there were more major battles in the first 6 weeks of the war than in the first 6 years of the ACW by comparison.

The French did not lack bravery, but they did lack solid leadership, the Prussians and their allies defeated the French. What drew me to this conflict was two things; one, I'm a fan of the French military, I'm a Napoleonics nut, but I also love the French inspired ACW Zouave uniforms. Secondly, the wide variety and colors of the uniforms and the combatants involved; you had the French infantry, guard infantry, guard "mobie", zouaves, chasseurs, voltigeurs, plus Cuirassiers, hussars, lancers, chasseurs, not to mention the Prussians with their infantry, guard infantry, jaegers, Bavarian infantry, guard infantry, jaegers, Wurttemburgers, Baden troops, Saxons, plus dragoons, cuirassiers, hussars, chasseurs and lancers among others.

So here we go, many more colorful battles to follow once I take the training wheels off...............














 
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In addition to large, sweeping battles, there also was a lot of urban fighting in towns, both aspects of which I tried to depict with this first effort...............
 
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Impressive start considering it is in such a short time. Not familiar with this period, but as you say it's colourful and plenty to collect. All the best in your endeavours and await lots more scenes. Really like the ruined farm house and your terrain layout. Robin.
 
villagehorse said:
Impressive start considering it is in such a short time. Not familiar with this period, but as you say it's colourful and plenty to collect. All the best in your endeavours and await lots more scenes. Really like the ruined farm house and your terrain layout. Robin.
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Thanks Robin, I appreciate your feedback.

I am planning a Hougoumont 1870 assault, with the French holding the chateau and the Prussians and their allies attacking it; I think the chateau will lend itself well to this sort of attack, would work for 1870 as well as it did in 1815.
 
Warrior said:
Thanks Robin, I appreciate your feedback.

I am planning a Hougoumont 1870 assault, with the French holding the chateau and the Prussians and their allies attacking it; I think the chateau will lend itself well to this sort of attack, would work for 1870 as well as it did in 1815.
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And you know how I feel about Hougoumont so keep me posted. Robin.
 
A man after my heart. Love the French in their blue and red unis (basically the same as the ones they went to war in 1914 with, with a few changes). Who can't love red pants and white spats? Gravelotte/St. Privat, Mars-la-Tour, Sedan, Metz, massed cavalry. All great stuff. Bring it on. Looking good so far. This conflict also inspired some of the greatest military art I have seen. -- Al
 
George...

this is totally bad azz!

artillery bunkers...lines and lines of infantry...

epic for sure...

great display!
 
lancer said:
A man after my heart. Love the French in their blue and red unis (basically the same as the ones they went to war in 1914 with, with a few changes). Who can't love red pants and white spats? Gravelotte/St. Privat, Mars-la-Tour, Sedan, Metz, massed cavalry. All great stuff. Bring it on. Looking good so far. This conflict also inspired some of the greatest military art I have seen. -- Al
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That's great Al, glad you appreciate my effort and yes, the uniforms among other things is what drew me to the period. And man are you preaching to the choir about the artwork; I bought a book called "1870", French author, French text, the artwork is to die for, just stunning.

And yes, the artwork in many cases is iconic, the one depicting the fighting in the cemetery at Gravelotte St. Privat is a top 10 all timer for me. I'm going big into this epic period, hope to have about 1,000 infantry, 300 cavalry and 24 guns and then build from there.

Thanks so much for the feedback.............and those French infantry uniforms speak to me as well...............
 
mikemiller1955 said:
George...

this is totally bad azz!

artillery bunkers...lines and lines of infantry...

epic for sure...

great display!
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike, this period has been building for a long time, I'm glad I made a move and dove in.

The French uniforms really pop, will expand from here and see where it goes.................
 
George,

Thats one wicked awesome display! I am also a fan of this conflict and wish someone would dig into it in 54mm so I dont have to kill my eyes to see the detail! Cant wait to see what you put together next

Thanks for sharing

Dave
 
DMNamiot said:
George,

Thats one wicked awesome display! I am also a fan of this conflict and wish someone would dig into it in 54mm so I dont have to kill my eyes to see the detail! Cant wait to see what you put together next

Thanks for sharing

Dave
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Thanks Dave and I don't know why no manufacturer has done this conflict yet, the uniforms have enough variety and color to make a splash, plus the fighting at places like Gravelotte St. Privat is iconic, I don't quite get it....................
 
What a nice surprise George. Can't recall anyone doing the 1870 war (it was so brief can it be called a war?) prior to this. As always, you have a masterful combination of terrain, bldgs and figs. As mentioned, love the colors of the French. Really outstanding presentation. Chris
 
Terp152 said:
What a nice surprise George. Can't recall anyone doing the 1870 war (it was so brief can it be called a war?) prior to this. As always, you have a masterful combination of terrain, bldgs and figs. As mentioned, love the colors of the French. Really outstanding presentation. Chris
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Chris,
Thanks for the kind comments, I appreciate it.

As I've mentioned, this has been something I've gone back and forth over for about 10 years and the biggest obstacle is I like to do things big or not at all, so it would be daunting to start a collection from the basement floor.

I saw a number of well painted figures on Ebay from a UK seller, I went back and forth over it, found the company that makes the figures and come to find out, they are still in production, so I knew I could flush out the armies on my end, so I pulled the trigger, so glad I did.

The rest of the figures currently in my collection came from the late Ed Millers estate, he of the Gettysburg Toy Soldier fame, Ed was a friend of mine, his son Rusty graciously gifted the collection to me, I get sentimental everytime I look at the figures knowing Ed painted them, his passing was tough on me and my Dad at the time and it still is for me to this day.

These sorts of small things are what the hobby is really about; the people you meet along the way, the enjoyment you get from your collection, the memories you make and hold on to for the rest of your days...........................ok, the room is getting dusty now, time for me to sign off.....................but thank you again.
 
A great diorama on a subject matter that is not well covered. Many years ago I bought a collection of Franco-Prussian War Prussians which were converted from Quartermaster' s WWI Germans.
They are glossy 54mm figures mostly in marching poses. This would be a nice limited edition run for JJD or K&C, with colorful uniforms and interesting personality figures.
 
nysoldiers said:
A great diorama on a subject matter that is not well covered. Many years ago I bought a collection of Franco-Prussian War Prussians which were converted from Quartermaster' s WWI Germans.
They are glossy 54mm figures mostly in marching poses. This would be a nice limited edition run for JJD or K&C, with colorful uniforms and interesting personality figures.
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Thanks Rich; I think if Franco Prussian was done right and not something that dies on the vines, it would sell.

You've got personalities for both sides, large battles, large variety and colors in the uniforms, the French alone with infantry, chasseurs, guard infantry, guard mobie, various zouaves, on and on it goes......................I'll keep saying it, maybe eventually it will catch on.
 
http://i263.photobucket.com/albums/ii140/warrior_081/IMG_1357_zpsufhaqs3t.jpg?1501543425697&1501543426460&1501543430340&1501543436053javascript:void(0);javascript:void(0);
 
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George...see you re-posted some of those epic pics...still looks good...is everything on PB still working okay?
if you need help with that thing we talked about...let me know...
 
mikemiller1955 said:
George...see you re-posted some of those epic pics...still looks good...is everything on PB still working okay?
if you need help with that thing we talked about...let me know...
Click to expand...

Thanks Mike; I played around with FB and got it to work, thanks for the advice, will keep you posted, sorry for the late reply.........
 
Nice looking collection. I have a large collection of FPW in 28mm which I use for wargaming the period.

I think it is a fascinating period and, as you say, quite colourful. Challenging to win a game as the French but it can be done...

Mike
 
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