British Forces circa 1889 - 1910

[DonL]

So, I am beginning a British Forces (28mm) VSF project. I'm thinking 1889 era up to turn of the century.

What manufacturers and/or product lines should I be looking at? I do not know allot about the uniforms of the era. If I recall correctly the home guard wore more traditional garb, other forces had moved to a khaki?

Any thoughts/ideas?

Thanks,
Don

[Sterling Moose]

So it looks like you're looking at the period from the Boer War (1899-1902), Boxer Rebellion (1899-1901), Anglo-Zanzibar War (1896), Anglo-Aro War (1901-1902) to 1910.

[Malamute]

If youw ant your Brits in home service kit the you look at Ironclad Miniatures or Redoubt Miniatures.

If you want the overseas look with pith helmets then check out the Perry's Sudan Wars or Empress Miniatures Zulu War or anyone else who does Colonial figures.

[DrVesuvius]

You missed the Mahdist War (1881-1896) AKA The Sudan Campaign, and of course the ongoing Northwest Frontier actions.

In this period, pretty much all British troops on foreign service wore khaki & sun helmets, usually with puttees (lower leg wrappings that look like stripy socks, were worn right through to WWII).  Troops on Home Service i.e. in Britain, wore traditional red coat, dark blue trousers a black spiked helmet, or possibly the Glengarry cap.  It's not a matter of some units switching before others, it's a matter of where a unit was posted.  A regiment might be wearing khaki on campaign, but on their arrival back in Blighty would

Since the khaki uniform was essentially developed for tropical or desert use, it's a matter of debate what British troops would have worn in a hypothetical European war, either on the continent or defending Blighty from invasion, prior to 1903.  After that the army universally adopted the darker WWI-style khaki for home service.

Home Service British infantry are available from Ironclad Miniatures and Redoubt Enterprises.  You can also find some useful figures in various Zulu War ranges - I have some infantry in Glengarries from Rapier Miniatures.

If you prefer to go the khaki route, then you can pick and choose from all the Sudan or Boer War ranges out there.

If you're playing VSF rather than a historical campaign, you're always free to bend history for aesthetic preferences.  the "Space 1889" setting has all British troops in Zulu War uniform (white sun helmet, red jacket, dark blue trousers) both at home and on Mars.

[Red Orc]

Then of course there's Naval forces too. They might get in on the action.

Beyond that, there's the possibility of 'unreal' regiments. My VSF British Army includes forces of the Royal Aeronautical Corps (like Marines, but from airships rather than conventional seagoing craft) and a 1891 version of UNIT; plausible but fictitious regiments such as the Royal Corps of Halberdiers, the Northdale Rifle Regiment and the Trumptonshire Regiment; and sepoys from Atlantis in the Combined Atlantean Rifle Brigade.

The Trumptonshire Regiment, the Northdale Rifles and the Atlantean Rifles follow something like a normal uniform pattern - the Trumptons and the Atlanteans have red coats and blue trousers, the Northdales have green jackets and Glengarry caps (the Atlanteans are Dwarves but what the hell). The Aetherines of the Royal Aeronautical Corps have a uniform similar to a standard British uniform of a slightly earlier period (Zulu War c1880) but wear blue jackets instead of red.

My way of looking at the 'reality' of it all is, we all know the British had red coats in 1850 and kakhi by 1900; we also know a lot of British wore pith helmets. As long as a bunch of your figures more or less conform to that, you can't go too far wrong I reckon. 'Normal' human figures that could be painted as British might get away with a 'special' paintjob (eg my Aetherines in blue jackets) for a special reason; more abnormal figures (my pith-helmeted dwarves for instance) benefit from a more conservative paintjob - the pith helmets, red jackets and blue trousers make them 'look' British even though they're only half the height. Just a rule of thumb to make it obvious who your guys are, really.

[Ray Rivers]

I've bought a bunch of Perry figures and am going to do some Brits.  I've been thinking about the uniform and as has been said, during this time frame foreign service Brits normally were issued with khaki.

My thinking is this.  If you are thinking of possibly using the miniatures for more historical settings, or if one day you may want to sell the miniatures, then stick with the khaki uniforms.  Personally, I don't plan to do any for those things, so that opens the uniform possibilities to what-ever I want and most likely will go with dark blue trousers, red coat and white pith helmet.

It's really up to the person, IMO, and pretty much anything goes. So it's up to you, really.

BTW... posting photos after a question like that demands photos upon completely!   

[DonL]

All,
Thanks for the input. A tremendous help.

I think I've setttled on Old Glory & Wargames Factory for rank n file troops.

Old Glory for Gatlings and Arty. Gatlings & Maxims from Foundry.

Looking back thru previous posts, they appear to scale well together.

Red Orc,
What are using for the 1891 UNIT?

Ray,
These Brits will be fighting on multiple fronts: Mars, Venus, Africa and repelling Martians at home. Seems that I'll be sticking with khaki. Makes them easier to paint.
Now I need to look at the Perry figures. Had not even looked at them this weekend.
Yes. Pictures will be in order. If i can ever focus, I'll try and blog the project(s). I have a box of Bolt Action Commandos and TAG FALs & Sterlings, that want to become the Wild Geese sitting in line first. Of course that doesnt stop me from purchasing the next project(s).

[answer_is_42]

All,
Thanks for the input. A tremendous help.

I think I've setttled on Old Glory & Wargames Factory for rank n file troops.

Old Glory for Gatlings and Arty. Gatlings & Maxims from Foundry.

Looking back thru previous posts, they appear to scale well together.

Apart from being the worst British figures money can buy, you do know that WF are zulu war (1879), right? A decade out of the period you've asked about and thus wearing the old uniform and armed with an old rifle.

You want troops from ranges for the second Sudan campaign, or perhaps the Second Boer War. Zulu War brits would look a bit odd in Khaki, is what I'm saying...

[DonL]

Apart from being the worst British figures money can buy, you do know that WF are zulu war (1879), right? A decade out of the period you've asked about and thus wearing the old uniform and armed with an old rifle.

Thanks for the heads up. I was looking at the price tag. I have some other WF, Zombies & GreatCoats, they are a bit fiddly to put together.

Back to the search. Maybe Boxer era also? Do you have any recommendations? A friend did just drop off some Ospreys of the era, so I have some reading/reference material.

[answer_is_42]

Old Glory's Boer War range should serve you well, and is a fairly cheap option, too. Foundry also has a good range, but these are rather costly. Redoubt are also an option, although their figures are huge, so you can't really mix them with other ranges.

Can't think of any others off the top of my head, but there are a few more out there. If I were you I'd go with Old Glory; at £24 for 30 figures, you can't really go wrong.

[Thunderchicken]

If you move away from historical uniforms there are some ready made VSF Brits on the market. Black Cat Bases and Black Pyramid are two manufacturers that spring to mind.

Modified: I blame the medication. 

[Red Orc]

...
Red Orc,
What are using for the 1891 UNIT?...

The figures are Wargames Factory. Sure they're a decade or more out of reality but hey ho, this is VSF after all(and yes they are a bit fiddly and some poses seem a little forced). Their commander will be a Westwind Zendarian Vampire-hunter, Commadore Alexander Cameron Lethbridge-Stewart, great-uncle to Brigadier Alistair Gordon L-S. Because my best 1891 explanation for 'UNIT' was 'Uniformed Naval Infantry Territorials' they're commanded by a Naval officer.

Because I'm old, and remember 1970s Doctor Who, my expectations of a modern UNIT are that they'll be wearing camo and have khaki berets, rather than the black battledress and red berets of the current series. So my 1891 UNIT are in the nearest plausible Victorian equivalent. I've painted them in something approximating Rifleman Green and given them khaki Glengarry caps. They don't look too out of place as a Victorian Rifle regimnent, as long as I don't include the chap wielding the alien 'galvanic projector' (AKA 'lightning gun' AKA laser-rifle), though I wouldn't expect them to pass muster with colonial gamers.

I did consider black uniforms with red Glengarries but thought they might look too much like military policemen. Anyway, in my timeline, the '70s version of the uniform stands, with a changeover in the early 1990s to black-and-red.

[Red Orc]

I know this thread's been quiet for a couple of weeks, but there is at last a photo or two of my Wargames Factory UNIT troops...



There's some more shots over at my blog, at http://redorcsblog.blogspot.com/2011/08/adventures-of-unit.html