La Meridiana’s rather large “54mm” Compagnie franche de la marine figure from the French and India War period. These were independent companies whose officers were from New France and whose enlisted men were recruited in France in the hopes they would settle after their periods of service were completed. They were part of the Navy department but not Marines as we use the term today. These companies fought from the Detroit area down to Indiana. The official uniform was typical of the French for the time, long coats, leather shoes, waistcoats, tricorns. In the field, the more common uniform is as seen here, (and based on a Don Troianni painting in Soldiers in North America). Dark, not navy, blue coat and trousers, matching blue cocked hat, images vary including plain, or with yellow trim or trim with a Fleur de lys badge. The napsack was linen or leather, sometimes with the hair left on. Leggings, or Indian stockings, were the norm as were the more practical moccasins. The sword’s place in the frog was regularly replaced with a hatchet.
The figure is painted in Andrea and Vallejo acrylics with oils as washes. The tree stump is a Bayardi casting, the shorter grass is from 3 Guyz and the longer from a friend as are the shrubs. The boulders are pea stones stolen from the back yard path (Don’t tell SWMBO!) painted and shade to my liking.
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