Cheers Ged thanks for the info, also I know Arthur has been a great help with this range are there any good books on the Uniforms for this period that either of you can recommend.
Thanks
Steve
There really isn't quite that much available in the English language. Besides
The Long Endure, René Chartrand's Osprey MAA (
The Maximilian Adventure 1861-1867) isn't bad at all if you take it for what it is, i.e a succinct introduction to the subject. The old FreiKorps 15 Campaign Booklet is probably still available and it's a generally decent primer on the subject, though it occasionally repeats erroneous information on some uniforms, notably the contra infantry. Most of the data I sent over to Ged comes from old (and therefore long out of print) issues of Uniforms, Tradition and Campaigns.
There is however a very comprehensive - and nearly definitive - work on the subject in French. Some twenty-odd years ago, the Club Français de la Figurine Historique put together a massive 600 page study entitled
La guerre du Mexique 1861-1867, which covered not only the French army but also its allied contingents and - to a lesser extent - both the Imperial and Republican Mexican armies. Production quality is basic - bordering on crude - but the standard of research and scholarship is very high, using only primary sources and official period documents culled from the French army's records and archives. The only drawback for non-French native speakers is that the four books require a good command of the French language as they're mostly text. They're not terribly expensive for what they are - around 50 euros for the lot if memory serves - and the books are still available from the CFFH. I can PM you the CFFH treasurer's address if you are interested.
Still in French, but more accessible because of the numerous illustrations is the Musée de l'Armée's volume on the Mexican Expedition and the Franco-Prussian War of 1870. Apparently out of print, but some copies may still be floating around on the net :
http://www.amazon.fr/guerre-Franco-Allemande-1870-1871-Lexpédition-1861-1867/dp/2904768017/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351198670&sr=1-3-fkmr0
03 October 2012, 01:37:08 PM
