The Toledo Regiment

I always like this time of year in Auckland. The weather is still variable, but the cold days have gone and the high humidity hasn't yet arrived. Best of all for me is that the Pohutukawa trees (often called the New Zealand Christmas Tree) are coming into bloom.  In front of my office window I can see maybe thirty of these trees and their blazing, bright red flowers are glorious sight. In a week or two the flowering will be over, this spash of colour will be gone and my weekday view will be dull for another twelve months, but for now I shall enjoy.

This week has seen the completion of the first full Spanish Napoleonic infantry regiment - all three battalions of the Toledo Regiment, still waiting for their flags. 

Above and below, the third battalion

When I ordered the first batch of figures I forgot to order the grenadiers so I simply ordered the equivalent of another three battalions (including command) to make up the difference. No sooner had the new batch arrived when I realised that I had ordered too many grenadiers and I thought I would need to place another order to balance everything out. Then I re-read René Chartrand's text in the Osprey book that said that the grenadiers were all assigned to the first battalion of the regiment and that gave the battalion a structure for the first of two grenadier and two fusilier companies. The second and third battalions were all fusilier companies. With that in mind I decide that my first battalion of the regiments would consist of one command stand and two grenadiers. The nearest I could get to a fifty-fifty mix. I could have gone to two stands with four grenadier and two fusilier figures, but that would have looked a little silly. Besides this way uses up all my grenadiers without the need to buy more figures.

The first battalion

Along with the Toledo Regiment I have completed three infantry colonels that will see service as senior commanders my Spanish collection.

Also completed this week are two items that have been on the painting table for several weeks, but the last components have finally been painted and the item based. These are the last two limbers for the British in Egypt and mark a quiet end to that project - the fourth project completed during the year.