Mid War Spanish Additions (cont. 15) - Garrochistas and more commanders

First up, a few posts ago, I mentioned that I had two more command stands left in the lead pile but, looking into my bits and pieces box, I found two more figures that I could convert to make a third. 

I'm now down to a lead pile of just six Spanish units.

Command stand #6.

You have seen the bugler (he's the Russian figure with an added big feather plume) before. This is a changed / revamped cavalry command stand: I took the officer off and replaced him with this converted officer in a cuirass to make it even more flamboyant. The officer I removed found his way onto a new stand below.

Both of these figures are in made up uniforms - which would be nothing special in a Spanish army of which Surtees commented "It was really absurd and ludicrous to see the strange figures they generally made themselves. In one regiment alone you might observe more different uniforms than both we and the French have in all our armies....all the [styles and] colours of the rainbow.....in the uniforms of one regiment's officers; and every one of them appeared to vie with the other who could make the greatest harlequin of himself...."

The newly converted figure was a French general of cuirassier in a helmet and distinctive laced, square tailed coat. I swapped his head (with a spare British officer's in bicorn), added a large Milliput neckerchief (the neck was a bit of a mess because of the cuirass's ruff), then reshaped the coat tails and added more traditional turnbacks to using Milliput.

Command stand #7

Command stand #8.

Note that the uniform of the ADC is not made up; it follows a portrait by Denis Deighton. Officially the uniform should have been blue faced red with a plume-less bicorn: it goes to show that Surtees wasn't wrong in his opinion.

Command stand #9.

The officer on the left is the second converted figure mentioned at the start of this post. He was a Nassau officer. His new head is that of a decapitated (Renegade Miniatures) Roman with a large (Front Rank) bicorn. I also added some lapels to make him look more like an ADC and a big moustache to make him look more Spanish, using Milliput.

A unit of Garrochistas. These are Spanish cowboys and their 'lance', when not skewering Frenchmen, is for prodding bulls into obedience.

I'm not sure if these figures aren't more early than mid war but, they are very evocative of Spain: They can be used as Guerrillas or light cavalry stand ins.

I tried to make the most of the variation in the multi-coloured striped blankets but I kept the rest of the pallet fairly simple to speed up the painting process.

The majority wear green jackets (the most common colour, apparently) with a few blue and brown ones; trousers are tan (majority), grey or dark brown. 

Most Garrochistas seem to have favoured red head scarves (hair in a black hairnet beneath) and red sashes. 

I did all their hats and gaiters the same colour to speed things up a bit.

At some point, I might change the colour of some hats. I'm not sure what other colours would be appropriate - Zorro black perhaps?

All figures are by Front Rank.

All were painted by yours truly using enamels.

Next up, a Spanish Vs French battle and not a Brit in sight! I got there, in the end....