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Miniatures Adventure => Colonial Adventures => Topic started by: Lord Raglan on December 11, 2018, 08:53:15 PM

Title: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 11, 2018, 08:53:15 PM
I have about 50 unpainted Artizan Design French Foreign Legion, just considering what are uniform colour options open to me?

Traditional
(https://www.artizandesigns.com/images/img1860.jpg)

Khaki
(https://monlegionnaire.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/legionuniforms-21.jpg)   

Any others?

Cheers,
Gareth
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: WitchfinderGeneral on December 11, 2018, 09:18:42 PM
I wanted some of the Artizan Foreign Legionaires myself but couldn't even decide if I should get those with greatcoats or without. And now youre telling me there's more than one colour option?!  ;)
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: vodkafan on December 11, 2018, 10:45:17 PM
Red trousers instead of white ;
unbleached white linen summer uniform
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 11, 2018, 11:18:32 PM
Not a fan of the red trousers brigade, puts them a little too earlier for the periods I intend using them for.

I suppose french WWI blue/grey is another option, but I don't know if they would be still wearing the kepi and sun cover in that colour uniform.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: vodkafan on December 11, 2018, 11:32:35 PM
I just looked at my Andre Jouineau book of colour plates, French Army 1914 August-December to see any other options but the ones mentioned look about it. Haven't got any other reference for later in the war.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: FifteensAway on December 12, 2018, 06:01:54 AM
Well, I think if you knock out earlier colors you are pretty much knocking out most of your options.  Earlier gives you the madder (red) trousers, light infantry, penal units at least.  Might not all be perfectly accurate but at least those give you painting options.  Matter of tastes, of course.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 12, 2018, 10:12:15 AM
Sadly, it looks like khaki/sand is going to be the most versatile option overall.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: lou passejaire on December 12, 2018, 12:24:54 PM
I have about 50 unpainted Artizan Design French Foreign Legion, just considering what are uniform colour options open to me?

Khaki
(https://monlegionnaire.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/legionuniforms-21.jpg)   


this one is not a choice  >:( it's a cavalryman , 1st Legion Cavalry regt in Syria around 1925 ... lol

The Artizan minis are earlier models, and you only have 2 choices : Red pants or white ones .
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 12, 2018, 03:26:41 PM
Do anyone want to buy some 28mm FFL?  lol
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Andrew_McGuire on December 12, 2018, 04:34:14 PM
Not a fan of the red trousers brigade, puts them a little too earlier for the periods I intend using them for.

I suppose french WWI blue/grey is another option, but I don't know if they would be still wearing the kepi and sun cover in that colour uniform.

A bit academic now, given that he models in question have been identified as from an earlier period, but I thought I'd mention that, at least to the best of my knowledge, the FFL contingent in France in WWI did not wear the horizon blue  - or earlier dark blue with red trousers - of the poilus, but khaki, in common with other colonial troops.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 12, 2018, 06:15:53 PM
Another khaki coloured example of the FFL

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/58/bd/a5/58bda5c5858bb7df2385697b075b8deb.jpg)
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: marco55 on December 12, 2018, 06:40:01 PM
Check out this book.
Mark
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: marco55 on December 12, 2018, 06:42:13 PM
Another one.
Mark
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 12, 2018, 07:36:30 PM
Apparently, this image portrays the French Foreign Legion in Gallipoli, sporting a little khaki trousers and blue jacket combo

(https://i.pinimg.com/originals/20/39/31/203931e61e6766dc4b36ba1174aa7762.jpg)

Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: marco55 on December 12, 2018, 07:46:48 PM
Here's some pretty good figures. https://www.grippingbeast.co.uk/French--category--239.html
Mark
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: italwars on December 12, 2018, 11:31:16 PM
Well, I think if you knock out earlier colors you are pretty much knocking out most of your options.  Earlier gives you the madder (red) trousers, light infantry, penal units at least.  Might not all be perfectly accurate but at least those give you painting options.  Matter of tastes, of course.

Very interesting, at least for me, new info..i research French Armee d Afrique from years and didn t know that les joyeux could wear madder red trousers..from the few available picts of the Moroccan Campaign the Infanterie Legere d Afrique penal btgs were undistinguishable from Legionaires..blue coat and white trousers or bourgeron and sash..do you have any evidence of red trousers?..it could be interesting , even in wargame therms, to distinguish them from Legion..not only because they saw action, as the only european troops, during the Oasis conquest Tikildet battles..that are well documented even with battle maps and fun to reproduce in tabletop as i m planning to do
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: FifteensAway on December 14, 2018, 06:14:21 AM
A bit late tonight and busy tomorrow but I'll try and find an old publication that lists the varied uniforms - I believe written by Peter Dennis but I could be wrong.  Stay tuned...for a few days.

edit: Okay, a little earlier than expected.

Here are some uniform options:
- dark blue jacket with either white or madder trousers, green epaulettes on jacket, dark blue collar patches. (your basic legion)
- light infantry as above except blue collar on jacket, facings (?), red epaulettes with green fringe.

The light infantry, or Bat d'Af, were the penal troops.

So, really, those are your three core options.  If you need more color then time for zouaves and tirallleurs - but Very different uniforms, of course.
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Golgotha on December 15, 2018, 08:35:42 PM
For anything French Foreign Legion related do see: https://monlegionnaire.wordpress.com/
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: italwars on December 15, 2018, 09:48:57 PM
thanks for the infos FifteensAway... :)
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: Lord Raglan on December 15, 2018, 10:01:38 PM
For anything French Foreign Legion related do see: https://monlegionnaire.wordpress.com/

nice one bud
Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: pacofeanor on December 22, 2018, 04:26:10 PM
FFL wore dark blue coats from ...1831 to 1910. in africa they used to wear white jacket with or without coat . White pants for summer red for winter . kepi with white cover and back flaps from 1873 to 1905. In 1905 a new patern of cover arrived , without flap.

from 1910 to 1918 the main battle dress in africa (and turkey) is the sand color coton dress1901 (jacket with one buton row, long  pants inside the black "gaiters" until 1915, inside dark blue  or horizon blue putties  from 1915 to 1917 inside mustard khaki putties  from 1917 to ...1940
with pith helmet (white or with a sand color cover) .

The dark blue coat was worn by FFL for the last time in gallipoli february 1915 during the landing ( and at the start of these campaign, as blue horizon / mustard khkai arrived before the end of the year 1915 in dardanelles)

If you want to paint  bataillon d'afrique, in algeria 1890/1914, they wore the same dress as FFL, the main difference in miniatures are buttons wich are silver instead of gold  as well as laces on officers kepi and arms. Privates, had yellow laces (-one for first class, two for corporals silver for sergents and sergents major) In tunique, the collar is dark blue with yellow number. Epaulettes are green with red tournantes, with silver tournante for NCO.

the khaki wool coat didn't arrived in africa before 1917_18.

I hope i'am a bit clear ...it is not very simple ....

best regards
paco

Title: Re: French Foreign Legion uniform options?
Post by: italwars on December 29, 2018, 07:45:54 AM
Thanks for the infos...
Anyway I think that if we plan to buy and paint the most iconic unit of colonial warfare which is the FFL .it s more enjoyable to field a uniform distinguishable from normal French Line Infantry..so covered kepi with flap and white trousers are a must..and as Infanterie Legere d Afrique penal btgs will not appear in every wargame battle we can use the same Legion to represent it..maybe along another French unit as the native Turcos..Or Zouaves even if less employed in offensive columns..