Cazadores de Los Andes - Battle of Chacabuco 1817

Received a 'wrong' package of   Fantassin figures from a UK supplier - infantry in Shakos with oilskins. Decided to use them for  the 1817 Battle of Chacabuco as Cazadores de Los Andes. I bought a battalion pack with came with three different styles of infantry. looking at the pic it's quite obvious that the men are of different heights, which I quite like. I think I can also use these for the Battle of Maipo.

The uniforms are meant to be a lighter blue than the usual French / Prussian Blue. This was achieved, perversely, by using AV Dark Prusia Blue (their spelling ) and Prussian Blue.

Patriots Tucuman Sept 23rd 1812

Well... What have we here? I found an old bag of Minifigs British with shakos, much smaller than the current '15'mm (18mm). I thought I might used them for some cadets, but when a supplier sent me the wrong Spanish figures (look like British with skirts on), I decided to add them to my Minfigs to complete a unit for the  Battle of Tacuman. So here are the Cacadores del Peru!

Clearly the drummers have been eating well and the Colonel has favoured them with some smart blue greatcoats :) These also fought at Salta, so we shall be seeing them in action more than once.

Patriot Artillery

Here's the artillery at last, painted them as natural wood since no one seems to be able to agree what colour they were! Using British RHA crew from Fantassin

Patriot Command

Here is the Command element for the Patriot forces, based on a general  from Fletcher's Libertors! book...

Patria Dragoon - Patriot

I think there were very few mounted Patria Dragoons, perhaps just one sqn...

These are Lancashire French Chasseurs a Cheval, I will add an Argentine guidon later. For the Battle of Huaqui it will also be necessary to field 2 sqns of Patria Dragoons dismounted. For these I have some Prussian Jagers waiting in the wings....

And here they are... although they appear to be carrying a full set of equipment,. I imagine that dismounted dragoons would be a little lighter, with their equipment left with the horses. However, these chaps may have been dismounted due to a lack of mounts. Anyway, I may replace these with less encumbered troops in the future.

Reserve Cavalry- Patriot

Next, the Reserve Cavalry, again without firearms, so using a mixture of Officers,  buglers and guidon bearers. Definitely Lancashire Prussians  painted up to look like Morenos and Pardos troops (Black and Mixed ethnicity). It escaped my mind that the Prussian would come with greatcoats, so again these guys are over dressed for the occasion and better equipped than their compatriots....

Cochabamba Cavalry

Now for some Cavalry...

These are Lancashire Prussian? Dragoons although I needed troops without firearms. I didn't think I could cut away the weapon at the time, but on some later units I have and I think it looks ok.

So here are the Cochabamba Cavalry ( Until such time as I replace them!). This is the first Regiment, there are two more to come. The Cochabamba Cavalry turned up  just as the Patriots were fleeing so  had little impact on the battle. Still, Orbats require 3 regiments of them and I'm having great fun converting the other two regiments from  various heads, bodies and arms. I'll be determined (as Patriot commander) to hold the Royalists up long enough for these chaps to strut their stuff.

Cochabamba Cavalry Regt.

Patriot - Patrios de Buenos Aires Regts

Finally for now, the Cochabamba Infantry and  the Patrios de Buenos Aires Regts...

Cochabamba Infantry Regt.

Chaps with the berettinas  are Lancashire Vendeans rabble, bicornes are Mirage figures.

Command Stand of the Patrios De B.A

Patriot Reserve Infantry Regt.

Next a bit of a hash up,  I needed uniformed troops without firearms so I cobbled together some Officers and standard bearers to make sword and spear armed infantry for the Patriot Reserve Infantry Regt...

I really like the Fantassin / Warmodelling drummer with the floppy hat ( Don't know it's real name) I need lots of heads like this for some future units but no idea where to find them. 

6th Infantry and La Paz Regts - Patriot

From a  Polish manufacturers Mirage -Austrian range, I found some likely candidates for troops wearing a mix of French and British styles. Here is the 6th Infantry Regt. obtained from the Bognor Model Shop I remembered seeing these a few months back  but at the time I had no use for 15mm Nappies. With the adoption of Principles of War for my smaller conflicts,  these  chaps came in very handy, especially since they were half price ( so I didn't choke so hard when I heard how much they were). Came in at  about 35p per figure. 

Patriot 6th Infantry Regt

Now the 2nd Btn. 6th Regt..

And the La Paz Regt...

Both these previous units are from Mirage.

Cochabamba Cavalry

Another two units of Cochabamba Cavalry were converted from Warmodelling / Fantassin french Chasseurs and Hussars. French Shakos were removed and replaced with Spanish Artillery Bicornes ( any bicornes would do, but I had these left over) and the officer had his  arm replaced with one from a top-hatted militia officer.

Again two bases of Fantassin figures, converted as above, with a base of Lancashire Dragoons with the carbines cut away. All the  Fantassin figures were guidon bearers or  officers armed with spears or bugles taken from infantry ensigns or buglers.