After a delay, Swedish Light Cavalry units



I have recently picked up an assignment to teach full time at the local high school, in the field I am certified in the state.  This means an increase in hours spent as lesson preparation, student assessment and grading are now of my duties.   O, and the pay is better, at least until the end of June.

So that's my excuse for recently being quiet, but now the article on the Swedish Napoleonic light cavalry units can begin.  The units are again, those from the 1813 campaign in Germany. The three units mentioned were with the Army of the North.

The West Gotha Dragoons are outfitted in a dark blue coat faced red on collars and cuffs with a white piping around the front seams of the jacket. brown pants with black books complete the uniform.  The headgear topped is  a helmet of black leather with brass reinforcements, with a black peak and a white plume and white horsehair crest .



The horse furniture is dark blue saddle blanket, pistol covers  and valise, all with a broad yellow band.

The Smalands Light Dragoons had dark blue jackets, yellow cuffs and collars, buff belts and trousers. The headgear was a peakless shako, slightly wider at top than at bottom. There was a white plume and cord finishing up the shako. 


The horse furniture consisted of a dark blue saddle blanket, pistol covers and valise, all these items again had a broad yellow stripe and the pistol covers and saddle blanket had three crowns on the back corners. 

Both the West Gotha and the Smalands  regiments are Minifig 25mm troops, done back in the early 1980's.

The final unit of light cavalry is the Morenska Hussars, one of two hussar units in Northern Germany in 1813, but the only Swedish hussar regiment with the Army of the North.

These figures sport the buff pants, dark blue pelisse and dolman with yellow braiding and buff belting. Yellow cuffs and collars finish off the coats, the boots were black. The headgear is the tall mirliton similar to hussar units in other Continental armies with a white plume and red cords. There was a tail (my term) of yellow material which hung loose from the back of the hat down the the middle of the back.  A black cartridge box was worn on the back. 



 A dark blue saddle blanket, sabertache of the same color both trimmed with a yellow band were complemented by a white sheepskin cover over the pistols.These fellows are Minifig 25mm but I believe were in the catalog as Spanish cavalry.  Well, a hussar is a hussar, after all, and they fit the description in the Courier article.

Well, there you have it, these fellows and the heavy regiments have been excellent performers for nearly 30 years on the table.  Next post will feature the artillery.

Comments

Gonsalvo said…
Great vintage units; I have the Dragoons and Light Dragoons in my collection, except I think I have the "new " versions of them, plus the Lif Cuirassiers.

I think 7YW Prusian Huissars will also work for the von Monerska Hussars - I just have one figure on my command stand with Bernadotte (aka Kronprinz Karl-Johann). The "tail" on the Mirliton head dress is termed a "flamme", I think.

Will we be seeing these chaps at the 1813 "campaign in a Day" in 2 weeks?

Peter
Schrumpfkopf said…
Excellent - I too think I have these miniatures somewhere.
James Fisher said…
Thirty years old they may be, but they still look great. I look forward to seeing them featured in the reports of your coming games—running away, of course, given my bias in things Napoleonic! ;-)
pancerni said…
James, there will be some Swedish participation next weekend in our Snappy Nappy game based on the 1813 campaign. I'll be running a portion of the Army of the North. There will be combat, but I cannot predict the results!
James Fisher said…
Still smirking at the 'Swedish participation'. I look forward to seeing the results from the Snappy Nappy campaign in a day

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