Galloping Major Kickstarter: "Compagnies Franches de la Marine"

[Galloping Major]

Concept sketch for "La Marine" one for each pack of FIW FCF4 & 5 - these two show the general appearance of Compagnies Franches in "small clothes": blue sleeved waistcoat (veste) and breeches with white gaiters. Command pack FIW FCF6 will also be wearing this order of dress, as will pack FIW FCF7 but all wearing mitasses instead of leggings


www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[Malamute]

Very nice. I like the appraoch you have taken with these, producing them in both styles of dress and mixing them up also.

Are you going to tempt us yet with how you want to move the Kickstarter forward?

I'm eager to see what else you have up your sleeves!

[RC_Robert]

sketches look great.    Are you planning on any packs wearing a coat over the small clothes ?

Pic from Wikipeadia 
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/7b/Compagnie_Franche_de_la_Marine.JPG/1280px-Compagnie_Franche_de_la_Marine.JPG

[Mindenbrush]

A bit of a mix in the replies from my local Montreal born friends.

All agree that the unit was originally raised in France and its original officers were French but as time wore on some replacements would be local born inhabitants to satisfy immediate requirements. 

[Galloping Major]

My research points at most officers being Canadian born by the time of the French & Indian War, the companies were raised individually of each other (independent companies) and although they existed for a few years in the 1620s, had a continual service from 1671, by the beginning of the 18th century there were 28 companies serving in Canada. 



www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[Galloping Major]

Malamute & RC_Robert - thanks for asking:

Here are the packs for the newly added stretch goal:

FIW FCF8: Compagnies Franches de la Marine in coats firing.

FIW FCF9: Compagnies Franches de la Marine in coats loading.

FIW FCF10: Compagnies Franches de la Marine Command pack in coats. 

The command pack will contain an officer with fuzee, two ensigns, a sergeant with musket, a drummer and a cadet 'a l'eguilette.

You'll be able to add-on Compagnies Franches de la Marine flags by Flags of War for £2.50, no extra shipping.

If we meet the goal and these packs become available, there'll be a new Canadian Militia scout up for grabs to accompany all pledges of £40 or more against the packs of La Marine in coats 

Cheers,
Lance

[Galloping Major]

To help us reach the stretch goal to get those Compagnies Franches de la Marine in coats under way, I'm introducing add-ons of our existing French and allies for backers of this project at special prices:
Canadian Militia x all 4 packs for £33.00 + £3.00 additional shipping
Huron x all 4 packs for £33.00 + £3.00 additional shipping
Canadian Militia x all 4 packs + Huron x all 4 packs for £64.00 + £5.00 additional shipping



llustration for uniform style only by the great Eugene Leliepvre, published by the Company of Military Historians.

You can't imagine how long I've been waiting for an excuse to put this picture up  

Lance

www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[fitterpete]

Hey Lance,
Are there anymore stretch goals planned? More in veste, coats? How about regulars?
your PITA buddy from the last KS,
Pete

[Galloping Major]

Hey Lance,
Are there anymore stretch goals planned? More in veste, coats? How about regulars?
your PITA buddy from the last KS,
Pete

Hi Pete, I've got a couple of ideas I'd like to develop for if it goes to a second stretch goal, I think I had better keep the army regulars for another launch though; although the thought is tempting ;-)

Lance

www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[coureurdesbois06]

Hi Lance, but does the compagnies franches in coats couldn't be also correct for regulars? I think that except the trouser colour, uniform is the same no?
regards.

[Galloping Major]

Hi Lance, but does the compagnies franches in coats couldn't be also correct for regulars? I think that except the trouser colour, uniform is the same no?
regards.

Hi coureurdesbois, you raise an interesting point. Although the overall look is very similar, there are differences of detail, for instance the Giberne and powder flask arrangement is different from the cartridge boxes of the army regulars - both grenadiers and fusiliers which are also distinctively different from each other. Also the army regiments' coats were gaining the addition of a collar during this period. 

The army regulars I plan to produce will not be just changes of detail, the stances will be different, with even greater variety and choices available - as with the Redcoats, where the 60th Foot are not the same figures but without lace .

I suppose the Compagnies Franches in coats could be painted as army troops, with a bit of alteration to equipment (or not, depending how much this troubles each person); and I know I could sell a lot more figures from the same moulds if I encouraged using them for both, but that's really not what I'm seeking to achieve, so the Army regulars in coats will be different

Thanks again for your useful input,
Lance

www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[Galloping Major]

A little inspiration for painting the Compagnies Franches de la Marine in coats as featured in our stretch goal. Left to right (above) officer, drummer, private soldier. The soldier's cartridge box is the giberne (shoulder-slung box), which like the gargoussier (waist box) and the musket sling were produced in a crimson-red leather, which would grow darker and more brownish over time. The drummer's coat is trimmed with the royal livery lace: crimson with a white chain pattern. The officer's coat is white rather than the pale grey of the other ranks.

The illustration below shows a cadet, distinguished by his blue and white shoulder knot, and a sergeant whose rank is shown by the gold lace trim on the cuffs and pockets of his coat, he carries a halberd in garrison - our command pack sergeant will be armed with a musket. All soldiers in this illustration including those in the middle ground without coats, showing the blue small clothes, are shown without the white gaiters normally worn on campaign.

All illustrations on this update are by Eugene Leliepvre.

I hope you'll find this useful, please comment if you do.

Lance


www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[RC_Robert]

Why are there 3 dress style for the Compagnies Franches de la Marine (outpost, veste, coat).  I really like the period for gaming but don't know a lot of the details.   Is it something simple like uniform coats are expensive and not everyone gets one or independent companies less strict in wearing a full uniform at all times (it's a hot day. You don't have to wear a coat today).

[Galloping Major]

Why are there 3 dress style for the Compagnies Franches de la Marine (outpost, veste, coat).  I really like the period for gaming but don't know a lot of the details.   Is it something simple like uniform coats are expensive and not everyone gets one or independent companies less strict in wearing a full uniform at all times (it's a hot day. You don't have to wear a coat today).

Thanks for that question RC_Robert. The coats would worn or not at the decision of their senior officer, weather being one but not the only factor, but as a general rule of thumb I would go for coats when serving in battalion (several companies drawn together) etc., and in Spring/Autumn weather coats removed and small clothes exposed in hot weather, small clothes and/or Canadian/outpost clothes works well for skirmishing. For winter fighting a mix of coats and capotes would be most likely, along with other warm articles of clothing. The Canadian/outpost clothing became introduced in companies which were stationed in remote outposts for long periods of time where re-supply was difficult or unlikely. The soldiers were allowed to dress in their shirts worn out over breeches (or in some cases shown in breech clouts) with mitasses (Indian leggings) in place of or to preserve their issue uniform coat and waistcoat. I've represented this as campaigning season (Spring-Autumn), for colder weather capotes were worn, often made up from the remnants of their grey coats.

My plan for my own ones is to have a unit or two in coats to act in the same way as army infantry, and a few sub-units in small clothes and Canadian clothes to act in support or separately as light infantry. The compagnies Franches being largely officered by Canadian-raised gentry and training alongside militia (having already learned their formal French infantry drill), and serving on raids with Indians and militia, had learned the woodland way of fighting so as well as fighting in tight military formations were able to work in a light infantry style.

For "La Marine" detachments sent on a raid with Indians and Canadian Militia I'll mostly use the figures in Canadian clothes with some in small clothes. For defending a garrison I'll use mostly soldiers in coats and in small clothes.

The different orders of dress and different hat types can be mixed together, but I think they'll come in very useful as a way of easily differentiating units and sub units.

"La Marine", being independent companies of which there 28 companies serving in Canada by the beginning of the 18th century, constituted the largest element of French troops (other than the militia) serving in the French & Indian War. As Independent Companies they had no battalion structure, though Montcalm did form a service battalion of Compagnies Franches de la Marine in 1757, Levis organised two battalions in 1760. Serving in battalion they fought in the more structured European style of the army battalions.

I hope this helps - I've structured the Kickstarter for "La Marine" in a way that makes it possible to back it by pledging only against troops in Canadian/outpost dress or in small clothes as well as both together, the soldiers in their uniform coats are the stretch goal which we're currently working towards.

Cheers,
Lance
www.gallopingmajorwargames.com

[Galloping Major]

Three more concept sketches for the "La Marine" in small clothes. Left is the drummer for command pack FIW FCF6 (drummers wore red veste and breeches instead of blue), the other two are one each for packs one for each pack FIW FCF4 & 5. These three are for packs in the initial stage of the "La Marine" Kickstarter which has been achieved, we're progressing towards the stretch goal of soldiers in coats with currently 19 days left to go.

See previous posting for different types of dress.

Lance
www.gallopingmajorwargames.com