SHINY TOY SOLDIERS
First published in THE FOREIGN CORRESPONDENT.
Three things I have always liked from an early age (excluding
beer and women) are: traditional toy soldiers; 19th century uniforms;
and wargames. I have never had them all together - until now! Originally
planning to make some toy soldiers for myself, based on a mid 19th century
war, I could not make up my mind which war, or the style of the toys
themselves.
This set me on a research trail unlike any other
that I have ever done - not into the uniforms and equipment, but into
the toys themselves.
In the history of toy soldiers there have been
many styles and sizes, from the flat Zinnfiguren figures (produced in
Nuremberg at the end of the 17th century), through to William Britain’s
hollow-cast miniatures from 1893, and to the myriad of types produced
throughout the 20th century (made in everything from wood composite through
to aluminium). Eventually, my mind became set on the look of late-19th
century European semi-flat figures, but with the size and bulk of early
Britain’s (42mm – for gaming purposes).
I was also intrigued by the painting
style of the French firm CBG-Mignot (a company with a long history, who
started producing miniatures in Paris in 1858). They manufacture a number
of basic figures and animate and paint them to suit the unit they wish
to create. If the unit has facings, they are painted in. If not, the
detail is simply covered over with a thick coat of paint.
It dawned on
me that if you turned this technique around and made masters with no
details (such as turnbacks, facings or buttons), you could paint them
in as you wanted in the style of CBG-Mignot. Combined with a basic set
of uniform types (tunic, tailed coat, shell jacket etc) and hat types
(shako, kepi, bearskin etc), you could make just about any unit you wanted.
The
look I eventually chose was long-legged and narrow-waisted (in a Zinnfiguren
style) but more rounded and 42mm in height. I must admit that the first
batch of designs favours the conflicts of 1848-1850 (especially the first
Schleswig-Holstein war and the Hungarian War of Independence), favourites
of mine because of the mixture and beauty of the uniforms. I have a special
liking for these ‘chocolate box’ periods and intend to add further figures
to the range that will allow me to do more of them.
I have been asked,
“How do you know which parts to choose for the army or unit you wish
to make?”. Well nothing could be easier! You pick the parts that give
you the basic shape of the unit in question. Here are some examples:
TB10,
tailed coat, running, plus TA1, shouldered musket plus TH17,
bell top shako with pom-pom and oak leaves (minus the oak leaves) plus TT10,
short sword plus a paint job equals A
Danish infantryman 1848.
Or
TB10, tailed coat, running plus TA1,
shouldered musket plus TH17,
bell top shako with pom-pom and oak leaves plus a paint
job equals An Austrian infantryman 1848.
Bodies with
tunic and heads with Pickelhaube will allow you to make many of the German
States from the 1840s onwards, and so on and so on.
There is nothing to
stop you inventing your own armies and countries in the style of the
Ruritainian troops from the Prisoner
of Zenda. It really is the paint job that finishes the model. More
unusual troop types can be attempted by adding wire or putty extras such
as shoulder rolls, cap line or plumes.
So far, I have painted all my toys
in a simple gloss finish, but there is no reason why the more adventurous
out there could not shade or line out their miniatures in the style of
Greenwood and Ball from the 1960s & 70s.
The choice is entirely up to you.
If you decide to use your Shiny Toy
Soldiers to game with, then that’s when the fun can really start. I made
my hills from MDF squares covered in felt, but you could use old books
(atlases would be most appropriate). My houses are made from card and
brick paper, but why not use building blocks in an H.G. Wells style?
It’s up to you if you wish to fire matchsticks at your toys - I choose
to rely on the roll of a dice. Your playing surface could be a table,
a piece of baize, a carpet or, if your old bones will let you, the floor.
Aly Morrison
The Foreign Correspondent Is the journal of The
Continental Wars Society
37 Yeading Avenue
Rayners Lane
Harrow
Middlesex
HA2 9RL