Generals

Fresh off the painting table are two more Swedish Napoleonic generals (converted from Russians)...

And one Russian general.

This completes the Swedish project started in November 2021. Maybe now they will make it to the table.

Workmen and Generals

Astute regular readers will think that they have seen the last civilians of below before...well you have, because when I placed this order I put down the wrong code and reordered a set I already had. Still, at least I have done them in different coloured clothes.

Finally there are three Swedish generals. Now, they are not really Swedish...no one makes Swedish general for 1807-08 so I needed to convert. The nearest I could find were the three figures that make up the Perry Prussian high command set that were decapitated and given new plastic heads. They still are not correct - contemporary illustrations dhow them wearing leggings and high boots rather than overalls. I could have cut down the overalls and given then green stuff boots, but since the cavalry wore overalls on campaign, I figured that it was probably not unreasonable that senior officers might too...well that's my theory and I am sticking with it!

There are still a couple more Swedish generals to be done, but they may not be done until the New Year.

Trooping the Colours

Four weeks ago, when I finished the last unit of the Swedish Army in Finland, I promised a parade when time permitted. Well time has permitted so here it is.

Ooops…not that parade…that is the real Swedish military band that I watched during a changing of the guard at the Swedish Military Museum in Stockholm back in May 2015….

Here is MY parade…counting sixteen infantry units, two cavalry and nine artillery (172 foot figures, 24 mounted and seven guns). 

Färdiga!

According the Google translate “färdiga” means “finished”, and finished this Swedo-Finnish army is…well apart from the generals, so maybe it should be “nästan färdig” (again consulting the gospel according to  Google this means “almost finished”  - apologies to any Swedish speakers if this has an incorrect or offensive meaning). As I type this I thought I could have been really smart and said “Finnished!” I always seem to think of the smart comments after the fact.

The final unit in the Swedish Napoleonic collection is the Tavastehus Infantry Regiment. Recruited from Tavastehus County (Hämeenlinna in Finnish), an inland region immediately north of  modern day Helsinki, it could trace its ancestry back to 1626. The regiment participated in the Thirty Years' War in Pomerania, and in Charles X Gustav's Polish War in 1655. In the Great Northern War it first garrisoned Riga then Viborg, surrendering to the Russians when that fortress fell in 1710. 

The regimental colours

Reformed, the regiment operated in the southeastern section of Finland and was later involved in the Norwegian Campaign of 1718. In 1741 it was engaged with Russia in the Hats War (that although it would make an interesting background for a campaign was not fought over hats, but was named after the Swedish Hats political party who sought to recover land lost in the Great Northern War) and fought at the Battle of Lappeenranta. It fought the Russians again in Gustav III's Russian War in 1788–1790. 

In 1792 the regiment was expanded, incorporating the Uusimaa and Hämeenlinna dragoon regiments. It was heavily involved in the Finnish War of 1807-09, fighting in most of the early battles, but surrendered along with most of the Finnish Army at Kalix in March 1809. At the conclusion of the war the regiment was disbanded.

Above are the two battalions: the first on the left, the second on the right.

A full army parade will follow when time permits.

Åbo läns infanteri regemente

Today’s unit is the Åbo läns Regiment from the Swedish Army of 1808-9. With this the only units left to in this collection complete are two battalions of the Tavastehus Regiment that are under the brush now and on schedule to be finished this month. So if all goes to plan all the fighting units of the Swedes will be completed…all I need to do then is to convince the Perry’s to make some generals!

The Åbo läns Regiment can trace its roots right back to 1613, when the first Finnish regiments were formed, and was recruited predominantly from southwestern Finnish province of Turku (Åbo in Swedish).

 

In the Great Northern War the regiment was split with one battalion going on to garrison duty in Riga and the other in the field where it fought in the Battles of Lesna and Poltava. Neither battalion saw out the war with the field battalion battalion surrendered and disbanded at Perevolotjna and the garrison battalion surrendering after the siege of Riga.

Re-established in 1710 it became part of the permanent army stationed in Finland. It participated in the Norwegian campaign of 1718. In the Finnish War it formed part of the Second Brigade in the Army of Finland and fought with credit at Pyhäjoki, Siiksjoki and Kokonsaari. The regiment was disbanded at the end of the Finnish War.

With this post the basing backlog is finally cleared, although fresh units are making their way there now.

The Last of the Swedish Artillery

This post, the last of the artillery for the Swedish Napoleonic collection, is another selection from the basing backlog.

These represent the artillery reserve of the Finnish Army and is made up of:

• lst Light 6pdr Foot Section
• 2nd Light 6pdr Foot Section
• lst Light 3pdr Foot Section

The Perrys do not make 3lb guns so all are modelled here as 6lb guns. These batteries only comprised of 4 guns as opposed to normal batteries of 6 guns, so in any game they will be rated as small batteries. 

Left in this project are four infantry battalions of the Abo lans and Tavastehus Regiments.

Swedish Artillery

This week has seen another couple of guns added to the Swedish Napoleonic Army.

I still have three more gun sets to complete for this army that will represent the army reserve. These will be done by month’s end.

Värmland Jagares

The Värmland Jagare Regimente regiment presented here didn’t actually serve in the Finnish War, but I didn’t know that when I ordered them.

That said, the Karelska Jagare regiment present in the Savolaks Brigade wore a very similar uniform although they wore the standard top hat without the green crest. For a while I did consider converting the figures by whipping the heads off some line troops, but what would I do with 24 headless figures? I can’t abide waste like that.

So I have decided that the Värmland regiment will replace the Karelska regiment in my structure - when did historical accuracy get in the way of a good model soldier collection!

And here is the Savolaks Brigade on parade…

The whole brigade, including two batteries of the Savolaks artillery regiment

…on the left the Savolaks jâger regiment 

 covered by two companies of the Värmland Jägers

…and on the right the Savolaks Infantry Regiment
covered by the other two companies of the Värmland Jägers

This collection is rapidly coming to a conclusion with just four battalions and a few guns required to finish it. All of the figures have been purchased and are stacked in the queue.

The only outstanding item will be the mounted officers, that are not yet available…need to convince the Perrys to make them!