43rd Regiment of Foot

The 43rd Regiment had a very long service history in North America during the American Revolution.  Its light infantry company was a part of Pitcairn’s expedition against Concord in 1775 and the entire regiment participated in the battle of Bunker Hill.  In 1776, the 43rd participated in the Long Island expedition.  The regiment then spent a few years garrisoning Newport, Rhode Island, where they defended it against a joint French-American attack.

2 units of Dundas's Brigade.  1 more to go...

General Sir Henry Clinton evacuated Newport, bringing the 43rd back to New York.  They remained in garrison in New York until April 1781, when they were sent to reinforce General Cornwallis' army in Virginia.  They arrived in Virginia just in time to play a major part in the battle of Green Spring (July 6, 1781).  As a part of Colonel Dundas's brigade, they ambushed Anthony Wayne's advance and inflicted heavy casualties on his brigade of Pennsylvanians (including the 2nd Pennsylvania http://redcoatsandruffles.blogspot.com/2016/04/2nd-pennsylvania-regiment-by-armies-in.html).

Of course the 43rd followed Cornwallis to Yorktown, where they were forced to surrender on October 19, 1781.  At the end of the siege, Banastre Tarleton records 1 captain and 11 rank and file of the 43rd missing, along with 10 killed and 18 wounded. [1]

At Yorktown, the 43rd Regiment also surrendered its King's and Regimental colours to the Americans, the most senior regiment to do so.  The 17th, 23rd, and 33rd colours disappeared.  Tradition speaks of the escape of the 23rd and 33rd colours, but is silent on the 17th.

Commodore Norrington (find him at http://redcoatsandruffles.blogspot.com/2019/12/commodore-james-norrington.html) begs leave to mention that these soldiers can also be placed under his command as a unit of marines.  No pirates or rebels will be able to stand before them!  He is disappointed, however, that these brave soldiers have not been granted the coveted title of "Royal Marines".  (This will happen in 1799, Commodore Norrington, so keep your chin up!) 

What does Norrington think of campaign uniforms?

Figures by Accurate (British Infantry Set #2 ) and A Call to Arms (American Maryland Infantry https://www.michtoy.com/item-CTA-010-Maryland_Infantry.html).  Both mix very well together.  Since the figures from Accurate had a mix of legwear (high gaiters and half-gaiters) and accoutrements sculpted, I decided to represent a slightly more "campaign" unit than the 80th.  Some have their hats cocked on one side, and some wear gaiter-trousers.  Painted with a mix of enamel and acrylic paints.

Notes

[1] History of the Campaigns in the Southern Provinces.  Banastre Tarleton.  https://archive.org/details/historyofcampaig00tarl/page/n477/mode/2up

Queen's Ranger Officer

"When did the rebels pass this way, madam?"

With the Queen's Rangers' recruiting drive kicking into high gear, they needed an officer in dapper uniform to attract likely lads...or intimidate rebel sympathizers...or charm those with valuable information.












This gentleman fills that role.  He began as one of BMC's artillery crewmen brandishing a sword while firing a pistol.

I often mention the steps involved in converting a figure, but a picture is worth a thousand words.  The original figure was cast in blue, and everything that is white on him was sculpted in Milliput.

His uniform is worth noting in some detail.  There are four known portraits illustrating Queen's Rangers officers' uniforms (Colonel Simcoe, Captain Saunders, Cornet Jarvis, and Ensign Smith) along with Cornet Jarvis's coat.  Two portraits of them (Saunders and Jarvis) show short V-shaped cuffs with herringbone lace.  Colonel Simcoe's unfortunately does not allow us to see his cuffs.  Ensign Smith's portrait shows round cuffs and buttonhole lace on the cuffs.

Captain Saunders [1] and Cornet Jarvis [2] both held commissions in the cavalry of the Queen's Rangers, while Smith held one in the infantry [3].  Their cuffs would then match standard British practice: V-shaped for cavalry and round for infantry.

It is true that Ensign Smith's portrait does not show an officer's sash, but there is one associated with Cornet Jarvis's coat.  I opted to add one to my figure.

"Open that door!"

Proudly wearing the green coat of the Queen's Rangers, this officer is ready to chastise the rebels!


Notes
This section is greatly indebted to Dr. Gregory Urwin for collecting all known portraits of the Queen's Rangers and the branch of service in which each of them held commissions.

[1] pg. 174. History of the Queen's Rangers by James Hannay, DCL. (Ottawa: Royal Society of Canada, 1909).  Online. https://archive.org/details/historyofqueensr00hannuoft/page/174/mode/2up.

[2] pg. 186, ibid. https://archive.org/details/historyofqueensr00hannuoft/page/186/mode/2up. The fact that he was commissioned a cornet also shows that he served in the cavalry.

[3] pg. 171, ibid. https://archive.org/details/historyofqueensr00hannuoft/page/171/mode/2up.

Independence Day

Happy Independence Day from Redcoats and Ruffles!

Some of the residents of Redcoats and Ruffles listen to the town crier read the news of the Declaration of Independence.  “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights.  That among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.”

Fun with Flowers

My sister was clearing out her floral arranging supplies recently and asked if I could use any of it.  I remembered some helpful advice from a diorama maker featured in King & Country's Collector Magazine: "Guy says his one 'golden rule' for collectors wanting to build their own displays and vignettes is... 'Think twice before you throw anything away...you might just need it sometime!'" (King & Country Collector Magazine, Issue #25, Winter 2009.  Available at https://www.kingandcountry.com/collector-magazine/)

Needless to say, a sizable amount of her flowery discards were added to my stash. They proved to be very versatile.

Some flowers can be cut into shrubby plants and types of ground cover.  The trees in this picture show this use for flowers.  Just about every tree now has a base covered with plants and bushes of this type.

The stalks of multiple flowers together on the same stem (called floral bushes), make interesting and textured tree trunks, when stripped of leaves and flowers.  I glued them together to create a log pile.  Unfortunately, these were all that I had and my pile is rather small.


Johnny Tremain may be glad that the logs have been delivered pre-cut, saving him the trouble of going to the forest and cutting them himself.

Some flowers are attached to the stem by plastic pipes.  When cut, these pipes resemble the shape of a bottle.  Gluing together six of them produced a nice effect of clustered bottles.  They were painted with Testors enamel and coated in old nail polish to give them a bit more gloss.

I hope that you enjoyed this little tour through a few uses of floral arranging supplies as miniature scenery.  It is worth mentioning that many of these supplies (such as small flower pieces and "log" stems) can be discarded by floral arrangers who do not need them for their projects.  This creates a nice synergy...and makes sure nothing goes to waste!

All scenery is shown with 54mm figures.  It could be used with other sizes as well (the floral stem logs would be quite formidable next to 28mm figures, for example).

"Liberty's Kids" Gallery

 In celebration of finishing all three main characters from the TV show "Liberty's Kids", here is a little gallery showing our heroes and heroine in action.

Benjamin Franklin's Gazette is eager to print a report on the action at Turnbull's Farm.  He is assigning his team of James Hiller (green waistcoat), Sarah Phillips (blue skirt), and Henri Lefebrve (red waistcoat) to gather information.

James Hiller interviews American and French officers.  The Gazette will be pleased to have this first-hand information.  A few earlier reports have appeared, but none have demonstrated the accuracy and clarity that these young reporters can achieve.  Sarah and Henri can be seen to James' right, also jotting down their notes.  Sentries ring the house, and one sits on a stool to  enjoy a pipe.

Despite control of much of the countryside by American militia, it still pays to be careful when scouting for news.  Those investigating events and asking questions are naturally suspicious characters and it would not do to incur even more suspicion by being seen meeting with rebel officers.

Moving carefully out of the house was a wise precaution, as the reporters are stopped by a British patrol.  However, Sarah Phillips is usually able to talk her way out of trouble by demonstrating her Loyalist sympathies.  The privates of the 80th Royal Edinburgh Volunteers regard her as a heroine, for she expressed her opinions of the Continental Congress too freely and escaped from captivity in the skirmish at Turnbull's Farm. (http://redcoatsandruffles.blogspot.com/2019/11/skirmish-at-turnbulls-farm.html)

 In addition to her own exploits, she is honoured as the daughter of Captain Phillips, believed killed at Turnbull's Farm. His body was carried from the field by the grenadiers, but he was not dead.  He is currently recovering from severe wounds suffered at Turnbull's Farm.  However, he is unable to endure the rigors of campaigning, and the grenadier company is currently without its captain.  His wife Lady Phillips has joined him in his convalescence.

Liberty's Kids character "Henri Lefebrve" (MPC)

Henri Lefebrve is the last of the three main characters from the TV show Liberty's Kids.  His companions James Hiller and Sarah Phillips have already been featured on Redcoats and Ruffles (at http://redcoatsandruffles.blogspot.com/2018/05/libertys-kids-character-james-hiller.html and http://redcoatsandruffles.blogspot.com/2018/01/sarah-phillips.html).

Henri is a spunky and optimistic character.  Originally from France, he was brought to the colonies as a slave, but rescued by James and Moses.  I enjoyed him because we both shared an intense admiration for the Marquis de Lafayette.








  The original figure began as a MPC militiaman running (similar to the one on far right, who was changed by lowering his musket to a "trail arms" position).  His coat was removed and changed into an unbuttoned waistcoat.

(The middle figure is another conversion from the same pose.  He is one of my earliest conversion works and a favorite of mine.  The hoop was a water bottle cap.)

Henri was painted in acrylics with the exception of his shoes, which were painted with a glossy enamel.

BMC House

This house began as a BMC "Gettysburg Frontier House."  Its basic style made it a perfect candidate for time travel to the 18th Century, but a few changes were required.

First, the covered porch was not attached.  Instead, a stone step (originally a flooring sample) was installed.






The walls were assembled and the house received a cream-colored interior coat of paint, as well as a black wash outside.  Interior windows and both sides of the door were accented with half-round plastic sprue (visible if you click on the top image).

The roof itself received very few changes, aside from shaving one edge slightly to accommodate the chimney.




The shutters were popsicle sticks that were embossed into the shutter pattern and painted.  They were then glued onto the building.  Most were glued open, but the window at the top does not have enough room for that.  Therefore, that window was permanently shut.

The chimney was an interesting and enjoyable piece of work.  Beginning with a piece of pink insulation foam, the shape was traced from a book and cut out.  Brick pattern was embossed using a pen.  The entire chimney was then painted in several different coats of red, and the mortar was painted after that.  Finally, a wash of black paint was applied to tone down the "fire engine red" color and give it a weathered look.

The interior was deliberately left plain to allow for the addition of any furniture desired.

However, I did add a fireplace (a wooden dollhouse accessory from Joann's).  The stone hearth was formed from Sculpey pressed into a rocky texture plate.  The hearth was painted gray, the mortar was painted beige, then washed with black wash.












It makes a perfect setting for the lovely Marx Colonial accessories, as well as Barzso's relaxed American Revolution camp figures.

Now this house is furnished inside and out, ready for any action that may arise!