Tuesday 12 May 2020

British Officers for the Anglo-Zulu War


I am currently flitting between a wide range of projects at the moment but I have managed to get a little bit of painting done. The latest finished work is a new addition to my Anglo-Zulu War collection. When I painted up the companies of infantry - a couple of years ago now - I never made enough leaders for my British troops and so I decided to get some done at last...better late than never! These are from Baccus and compliment the foot officers I already have. 

The cliched image of the British officer during the Anglo-Zulu war is one of a bumbling idiot. Certainly, the ruling classes and their offspring did not cover themselves in glory during this campaign. They vastly underestimated their enemy and paid a hefty price as a result. But the British army was changing and the Cardwell reforms meant that more and more officers were being appointed based on merit, rather than their ability to buy a commission. However, change was slow as many officers had bought their commissions before the reforms and because new appointments still had to be able to fund the lifestyle of an officer. However, on the whole, the quality of British officers did improve during this period. It's true, leadership at the battle of Isandlwana was poor, but it shouldn't be forgotten that the same day, later in the afternoon a different quality of leadership was on display at Rorke's Drift. I think it's fair to say that the quality of officers in the army during this campaign was a 'mixed bag'.

Officers leading three columns of troops (which I painted a couple of years ago). 

I will no doubt paint some more officers at a later stage but these are ideal for the time being. 

10 comments:

  1. Very nicely done Lee, but how you paint something so small is beyond me.

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  2. Replies
    1. Thank you Mr Rousell. A long overdue project.

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  3. Nice work, they fit in with the original troops which is so important

    Ian

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    1. I worked on them side by side...the only thing that isn't quite right is the 'dirt'. I used a coloured filler on the original batch.I haven't been able to get the same stuff again so I used a different shade, then added paint to get a colour match. Its almost the same (I'm probably the only person that would notice).

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  4. Love these. Have you seen the Little Wars take on 6mm Isandlwana?

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  5. Replies
    1. Thank you Christopher. Not sure what I'm working on next, maybe some local militia?

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