Spanish Gendarmes

Spanish Gendarmes

This post shows the resurrection of some very old figures. I used to have a Wars of the Roses collection made of Old Glory, Foundry and Front Rank figures which I have sold off on Ebay over the past year. I never got round to painting all of the Foundry men at arms and they have sat in a draw for around 10 years. I rediscovered them recently and thought a lot of the harness they are wearing are more suitable for the 1490s than the Wars of the Roses and that they would be perfect for the early Italian Wars like the War for Naples. I have put them on horses by The Assault Group and also added 3 of the Spanish Gendarmes by The Assault Group, the pack carrying swords: http://www.theassaultgroup.co.uk/store/product.php?productid=2572&cat=120&page=4 . I have swapped the swords with lances and added hilts to the empty scabbards. All of the figures, Foundry and TAG, have lances by The Assault Group.
With regards to the old Foundry figures very little conversion work was required. All that was needed in order to fit the TAG horses was a small saddle added to the front of the figure with greenstuff as the Foundry horses have this modelled on the horse while TAG have it modelled on the rider. This was relatively easy to do, a good example can be seen on the middle figure in the second photo below. They needed the legs straightened a little as they tend to be riding in too much of a seated position for some one in full harness. I also had my first opportunity to experiment with the metal feathers that Simon had provided me with: http://je-lay-emprins.blogspot.co.uk/2013/08/plume-castings.html . These are fantastic and really useful for renaissance conversions. On the closest figure in the below photo I used some feathers with the orb shaped holder in a hole I drilled in the helmet. I then added some feathers without the holder behind to create a substantial Gendarme style plume. I am really pleased with the result.
These Gendarmes will fit in really well with the early part of my collection shown here: http://camisado1500s.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/the-war-for-naples-1499-1504.html . As they are all on TAG horses they will mix well with the TAG Cavalry I already have for this era. While I commend The Assault Group for the beautiful Tudor figures they have recently released for the 1540s I really hope they return to the early Italian wars at some point as they have made some great figures for the 1490s -1500 era. As if I don't have enough Landsknechts already I would love them to complete the greens they started: http://www.theassaultgroup.co.uk/cms/uploads/LandsknectDoll2.jpg http://www.theassaultgroup.co.uk/cms/uploads/LandsknectDoll1.jpg as these early Landsknechts would be perfect for the 1499-1503 period which much of my collection is geared towards. While most of my Swiss are perfect for this early part, the Landsknechts I have are more for the 1510s and 1520s.
The flag is the same Adolfo Ramos one shown in my post of Renaissance banners. It is perfect for the early Italian Wars Spanish as it bears the motto of Ferdinand of Aragon: "Tanto Monta". The use of this motto seems to be disputed: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tanto_monta,_monta_tanto,_Isabel_como_Fernando but as it was on the 15th century sword of state held by the monarchs for ceremonial occasions I think it goes well here.

Spanish Gendarmes

A mix of late 15th and early 16th Century Harness, the middle figure shows the saddle modelled  in greenstuff

Flag bearing the motto of Ferdinand of Aragon