Colonial Forces On Display

This is an overhead shot of many of my first 19th Century African Colonial Wars figures. They are mostly in 4 stand company's and include Colonial Infantry units of the Boers, Italian Askaris, Royal Nigerian Rifles, 3rd Sikhs, 24th Foot, German Southwest African Corps, 42nd Highlanders, 2 companies of French Foreign Legionnaire's, & 2 companies of the 3rd London Volunteers.  The Colonial Cavalry units include Skinners Horse, Sapahi's, Colonial Mounted Rifles & 2 squadrons of the Sudan Camel Detachment. All supported by 3 batteries of Gatling guns and 2 batteries of field artillery. African units include Zulus (Induyenge and Ingiondto Regiments), 3 companies of Arab Rifles, Arab Spearmen, Arab Cavalry and Sudanese Camel Riders.

 There are over 200 figures here, several units are still AWOL in storage boxes which is why there are so many more Colonial than "Native" units.

My first African Colonial Wars forces were metal N Gauge Scrubby figures that I painted with Testors Oil paints in the Spring of 1976.

Presenting, Gandalf the Grey Wizard

Gandalf the Grey has grown old due to the weight of the future of Middle Earth on his shoulders.

Frend of Man, Hobbits, Elves and Dwarves.

This is one of my older t pieces that I painted back in 1976. He is a Scrubby piece that I painted with my old Testors oil paints. He is showing some wear and tear, but brings back fond memories of my early figure painting. He is solid metal; the dwarf is a 28mm plastic piece to show the scale.

African Colonial "N" Scale

A French Gatling Gun and Australian Mounted infantry ready for battle in Colonial Africa.

The first miniatures war game I ever played was African colonial in 1974, at Jack Scrubby's Toy Soldier Factory in Cambria California. 

These metal pieces are Scubby "N" scale, small, easy to paint and inexpensive (a real advantage to a college student on a tight budget). These guys and their 19th century comrades saw lots of combat before they were retired.

22,000+ plus figures later, they still have a special spot in my heart for long past friends and days.

`Old School Napoleonic's

These French Imperial Guard Cavalry are some of my first wargame pieces I ever painted.

They are old Scrubby's from 1974, he called them "N" scale. They cost about 15 cents and I painted them with Testor's oil paints.  They bring back lots of memories.
 

Skinners Horse-Guardians of the Raj

Throughout the 19th century the Raj relied on loyal native cavalry to protect the frontiers. Skinners Horse was just such a unit.

Armed with a carbine, sword and the deadly lance, Skinners Horse patrolled the frontiers and fought the enemies of Her Imperial Majesty.

These were some of my first colonial figures I painted, they were painted with old Testors oil paints in July 1976. They are "N" gauge scale from Jack Scrubby's Toy Soldier Factory in Cambria, California.

French Colonial Power

On the frontiers of their Colonial Empire the French Army ruled with an iron fist. This column of French Regulars, Foreign Legion, and Artillery held enough firepower to deal with any colonial threat.

The infantry is well supported by a 75mm field piece and a rare Gatling gun.

These Jack Scrubby "N" gauge metal pieces were painted in 1976 as part of my first Colonial forces.

Victoria Mounted Rifles

The Victoria Mounted Rifles were one of the many loyal colonial units formed throughout the British Empire during its height. Here they are in their 1899 uniform, when they were armed with the Lee-Metford Mark I rifle in .303 cal. with a sword bayonet for close in work.

These are the first figures I ever painted. When I orginally started miniature gaming and painting, in 1973, Jack Scrubby, of the Toy Soldier Factory, introduced me to the great world of 19th Century Colonial Armies. My first game was an African Colonial battle, were I learned the importance of forming square when facing hordes of melee armed natives. I was hooked and painted up Arab, British, French, German and Zulu colonial armies in this size.

As I had just started painting, I used my old Testors oil based plastic model paints for these guys. I started using waterbased acrylics later in the mid '70's. These troopers are from Jack's old n-gauge, they are about 9mm scale. The last photo shows a 25mm Minifig of the same unit for size comparison.