WATERLOO
Yes, Abba won the Eurovision with their song Waterloo in 1974,
but on a more serious note, Waterloo was the most important
European battle of the Napoleonic era, as this is where the French
Army was defeated and his empire destroyed.
Airfix produced four sets of Waterloo 1815 in the early 70s,
British Infantry, Highland Infantry, French Infantry and French Grenadiers
of The Imperial Guard. The sets are well sculpted, the poses are
superb and once painted they look great and lastly, flocking
the bases make them look that bit more realistic.
Battalion Charge!
BRITISH INFANTRY
This is an absolutely superb set with every pose being
very natural. The detail of the sculpting is very sharp and
this makes them easier to paint. The men with the bayonets
are excellent and very lifelike in their stances. The kit is well
detailed and correct. They look great unpainted but once
you paint them they look amazing! This is without
doubt one of the greatest Airfix sets of all time!
7 Figure Set
In their painted glory!
Box Front
Box Rear
HIGHLAND INFANTRY
This set is also excellent and in tow with the usual high
standards of the series but I would have preferred to see
a charging man instead of a man carrying a fixed bayonet.
The detail is superb again and the poses very
natural.
7 Figure Set
After a laborious paint job the laddies are fighting mad!
Box Front
Box Rear
FRENCH INFANTRY
This set is well sculpted with detail sharp and crisp.
The officer is superb as are the riflemen but the charging
man is the weakest pose of the bunch as he looks slightly
awkward along with the man about to ram his rifle.
These figures let this set down but it's just a
minor quibble!
7 Figure Set
After a lick of paint!
Box Front
Box Rear
FRENCH GRENADIERS OF THE IMPERIAL GUARD
Napoleon's own guards and don't they look grand.
This set is fantastic and offers an amazing 15 poses!
The detail is superb and there is a flag bearer and a drummer
in their too along with some great action poses. The only
figure I dislike is the man clubbing with his rifle which
is a pose I dislike across the board!
15 Figure Set
The Full Imperial Set
Box Front
Box Rear
FRENCH IMPERFECTION!
Airfix was great at doing oddball things, and as you
will have noticed all the sets are 7 figure poses except these!
There was going to be 16 poses with the addition of a second
officer but this was disputed by a rival manufacturer for
being too similar to their own. Also, it is the only box
that does not say 'Waterloo' in the title.
The missing unmoulded officier
from the set was later produced by CTS.
OTHER EDITIONS
CTS Edition British Infantry
CTS Edition Highland Infantry
CTS Edition Imperial Guard
CTS Edition Imperial Guard again!
PAINTING 'EM!
This is my first shot at Napoleonic era figures and yes,
they are tricky and time consuming to paint. Still, I am
impressed with the results and now I feel like doing some
more from the series. I just got to find the time!
Highland Infantryman
British Infantryman
French Grenadier of the Imperial Guard
French Grenadier of the Imperial Guard Officer
French Infantry Officer
British Infantry Officer
British Infantry painted as 95th Rifles or
'Green Jackets" as they were known as!
IN THE FIELD
The men in action!
Where's the party?
It's in that farmhouse over there!
Yeeeeaaaaaarrrgh!
Mind the horse!
Let them have boys!
Hand over the pastries Anglais!
WATERLOO 200 STAMPS
These were done as part of a project I recently
undertook. They are mock postage stamps and
maybe in 2015 we may see some real ones!
The image processing was done in Photoshop
and are the figures displayed above.
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