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Author Topic: Russian GNW Uniforms  (Read 4656 times)

Offline Red Sveta

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  • Posts: 232
Russian GNW Uniforms
« on: June 19, 2016, 05:09:11 PM »
I have some Front Rank French for the WSS but I think I would like to try the Great Northern War instead. Is it possible to pass the French uniform off as Russian with a good paint job?  ;)

Offline Rogerc

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #1 on: June 19, 2016, 06:16:37 PM »
It is yes, main difference with Russians is the pockets had a bit of a zig zga cut (sorry cant think of the right word) although standard WSS might be better as I think French have a hat cockade and Russians don't.  Ideally you would add a small number of pike to each unit but soke might argue you don't need to do that either.
+
My blog gapagnw.blogspot.co.uk

Offline Rogerc

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #2 on: June 19, 2016, 06:33:39 PM »
Try below, look just like other European armies except pocket and no hat cockade. This was Peter trying to bring the Russian army in line with the rest of Europe.


Offline Rogerc

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #3 on: June 19, 2016, 06:34:12 PM »
Scalloped pocket!! New it would come to me.

Offline Arthur

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #4 on: June 19, 2016, 10:10:56 PM »
There are noticeable differences if you care about historical accuracy.

Besides the hat cockade and scalloped pockets (the shape of the pockets actually varied from one French regiment to the next, not all of them being horizontal), accoutrements also differed. The Russians had their ammunition pouch attached to a shoulder belt and wore it on the right hip. The French used a belly box on a waistbelt which also supported the sword and bayonet scabbards - see plate below :

 

You'd also need to file off the shoulder wings on the drummers as such ornaments were not used in the French army.

Offline Red Sveta

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  • Posts: 232
Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #5 on: June 20, 2016, 07:37:32 AM »
I think I will go ahead with painting them as Russian as they are. It will save me some money.
I want to game the period after Poltava in the Baltic and invasion of Finland but information in English is not easy to find but my idea was there may be more smaller actions during this period to re create on the table. As far as i can tell Pikes fell out of use a bit during this time

Offline WFGamers

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #6 on: June 21, 2016, 12:02:52 PM »
First a couple of links to Finnish battles which might help - http://www.wfgamers.org.uk/resources/C18/palkane.htm and http://www.wfgamers.org.uk/resources/C18/storkyro.htm

On Russian pikes after 1709 it is a little more complicated. certainly most of the time they were supposed to have them (1 pike for 7 muskets) but there is evidence that they didn't always have them. There is a little on this in the first page above. In short we know that some units had them or didn't have them during the post Poltava campaigns but usually not whether they had them in the Baltic/Finland campaigns. I now, contrary to the webpage, suspect that they did when they were expecting a battle but for much of this time the Russians are just doing sieges and so might not then.

Offline Khmorg

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Offline Red Sveta

  • Scientist
  • Posts: 232
Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #8 on: June 23, 2016, 02:03:37 PM »
Thank you for the links and info. Small actions of the GNW is what I would like to collect for does any one have any experience of finding these types of scenarios.  I have 10mm WSS for the really grand battles and want to try something smaller for 28mm.

Offline WFGamers

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #9 on: June 24, 2016, 01:57:06 PM »
Do you have any idea of the kind of the numbers of battalions or figures you want to use? Also are you 100% committed to Russians?

I ask the second because there were other armies involved in the war and the Saxons, for example, fought the Swedes about as much as the Russians. This is important as all of the armies involved in the war, except the Russians, are fairly small compared to the usual WSS battles. So it might be that doing these actions would be better if you wan to keep the battles small. Also the Saxons and others are often identical to 'Western' armies and indeed often also fought in the WSS.




Offline Rogerc

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #10 on: June 24, 2016, 05:20:17 PM »
 A good point about the Saxons being more usable, this is why I am collecting them, pictures on my blog

http://gapagnw.blogspot.co.uk/

All that said if its small scale skirmish type actions, raids and foraging expeditions then it doesn't really matter which army you are going for they all sent out these small parties to live off the land. There is an interesting section in the Great Northern War compendium about this. Great book but not cheap.

Offline clibinarium

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  • Posts: 132
Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #11 on: June 25, 2016, 12:32:39 AM »
The current view seems to be that Viskovatov's illustrations are later than most of the GNW, so the serrated pocket edges and neck ties which often appear are incorrect. This article has a good summation of the differences (I only found it after I had done my GNW Russians, though I had discovered most of the info through scouring the net)

http://peter.petrobrigada.ru/unif/project3342/page23296.html

Kmhorg, I know you mean well, but I think you might have to remove that link  :(

Offline Arthur

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #12 on: June 25, 2016, 02:11:47 AM »
Kmhorg, I know you mean well, but I think you might have to remove that link  :(

Failing that, mods should remove it as there's a virus on that page.

Offline Red Sveta

  • Scientist
  • Posts: 232
Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #13 on: June 25, 2016, 08:10:20 AM »
I am not commited to doing Russians I have also looked at Danes and Norwegians. Saxons? I had not given much thought too but I will have a look again at them. I was wanting to play mid size battles sort of 6-10 units per side I will be using Beneath the Lilliy Banners rules because I really like them. Having said that skirmish games too with Sharp practice and modified triumph and Tragedy.

Offline Rogerc

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Re: Russian GNW Uniforms
« Reply #14 on: June 25, 2016, 01:55:27 PM »
If its small actions you want Saxons are a good choice as mentioned above.  They are simple, in the same uniform pretty much everyone else was wearing at the time, they are all in red coats faced in various colours. Flags are available from a number of sources, they fought alongside the Russians, Danes and Prussians at various times against the Swedes and fought in the WSS for the Anglo Dutch at the same time. Its the army I am collecting to fight against my Swedes.

 

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