Category Archives: Russians

Terry’s Russian Army for Borodino refight

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So with the Borodino Game postponed thought would post my Russian force as it stands at the moment. There are still gaps I need to fill, but it is of an okay size now for most games. For the refight we are reducing the orbats by 50%, so for the Russians that made things quite easy as Russian Infantry Corps were normally 2 Divisions for example.

My force is based on the Second Western Army commanded by GoI Petr-Ivanovich Prince Bagration.

Bagration in front, Borozdin to left and Mecklenburg-Schwerin on the 2 figure base to right.

 

From the 8th Corps commanded by GL M Borozdin I have the 2nd Grenadier Division commanded by GM Karl von Mecklenburg-Schwerin.  This has 12 bttns of Grenadiers. Attached to this corps was also the 2nd Combined Grenadier Division of 11 bttns, I have added 5 of those. To tell them apart on the battlefield, the converged bttns have brown blanket rolls and the regulars have grey. Figures are a mix of Front Rank reinforcement pack commands and Warlord Games plastics. Flags by GMB.

Grenadier brigade of 4 bttns, lead bttn of each Regt has commander on horse.

2nd Combined Grenadiers of MG Vorontsov.

 

They are supported by 2 light and 1 position battery. I have a further position battery but PaulW is using it in the Redoubt so I did not base it so he could make a diorama feel to it.

3 batteries of 2nd Grenadiers. 2 light batteries with position battery in centre.

My cavalry force is the IV Reserve Cavalry Corps of MG Sievers which contains a heavy brigade of 2 regts of Dragoons(Kharkov and Chernigov) and a light brigade of double sized Uhlans(Lithuanian) and Hussars(Akhyrsk). There is also a horse battery, the 8th Horse company attached. The Uhlans are Polish Uhlans subbing in until purchase and paint Front Rank figures.

MG Karl Sievers, commander of 4th Reserve Cavalry Corps. My basing convention means he is a 3 figure base.

Dragoons

Hussars

Horse Artillery

Then there is the 2nd Cuirassier Division of MG Duka which had 5 regts split into 2 brigades. I have 3 regts in one command. These are the regts Ekaterinoslav, Military order and Glukhov.

2nd Cuirassiers

 

For my Cossacks commanded by MG Karpov, at present I have 1 unit, the Bykhalov. All my cavalry are Front Rank bar the cossacks where I chose to go with Perry Miniatures as they are smaller and so to me suited cossacks better. However, I have hit a road block in painting them. I just don’t enjoy painting Perry figures so have struggled through 1 unit so far. Thankfully there are plenty of other units available so will be borrowing some. 

Cossacks

I have a selection of Perry ammo wagons which have started painting, but with delay of refight have put them on a back burner for now while work through my Lockdown programme. They are rather cool, pictures from Perry website.

I am also adding the 12th infantry Division of LG Rayevsky’s 7th Infantry Corp with 2 bttns of the Narva Regt painted at moment but unbased. Will base them up bar the command base of the 1st bttn as I like a mounted officer in all my 1st bttns and with Front Rank shut, need to order the mounted officer. PaulW decided he had to many Jager bttns so I took 2 off his hands. Goldie painted these for him so at some future stage will get 2 more bttns from Front Rank, get Goldie to paint and then rebase them all while I work on the remaining 6 line bttns.

So I am quite happy with force as it is and am looking forward to finishing it all off!

 

Terrys Russians for the 1813 Campaign

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Although we are gaming an 1813 Campaign, the Russians I am collecting are from the Battle of Borodino in 1812. The reason for that is the next time Group organise one of our Really Big ******* Games, it may very well be Borodino.

The units I have chosen to collect are from the 2nd Western Army commanded by General Bagration and then the 8th Corps commanded by General Mikhail Borozdin.

Infantry Commanders…… more commanders to come…. lots of commanders……

Cavalry Commanders….. lots more of them to come as well…..

 

The Infantry Division is the 2nd Grenadier Division commanded by MG Karl von Mecklenburg-Schwerin.

1st Brigade: Colonel Ivan Shatilov

Kiev GR (1st and 3rd battalions): Lt.Col. Dmitri Chashnikov

Moscow Grenadier regiment (1st and 3rd battalions): Colonel Ivan Shatilov

2nd Brigade: Colonel Ivan Buxhöwden

Astrakhan Grenadier regiment (1st and 3rd battalions): Colonel Ivan Buxhöwden

Fanagoria GR (1st and 3rd battalions): Lt.Col. Yegeny Golovin II

3rd Brigade: Colonel Dmitry Levin

Siberia GR (1st and 3rd battalions): Major Ivan Potulov

Little Russia GR (1st and 3rd battalions): Lt.Col. Yegor Agte

2nd Artillery Brigade: Colonel Alexander Boguslavsky

11th Battery Company : Colonel Boguslavsky

31st Battery Company (from Corps reserve): Lt.Col. Peter Apushkin

 

For cavalry I have gone with:

2nd Cuirassier Division: MG Ilya Duka II

Combined the brigade of Cuirassiers with Dragoons…looks better

1st Brigade: MG Nikolay Kretov

Ekaterinoslav CR (4 squadrons): Colonel Mikhail Volkov

Military Order CR (4 squadrons): Colonel Andrey Gudovich

And then from the 4th Reserve Cavalry Corps:

2nd Brigade: Colonel Yegor Emmanuel

Kiev DR (4 squadrons):  Colonel Emanuel

New Russia DR (4 squadrons): Major Alexey Terenin

3rd Brigade: Colonel Dmitry Vasilchikov II

Akhtyrsk HR (8 squadrons): Colonel Dmitry Vasilchikov II

First 4 squadrons still on paint table. Almost ready to base then straight onto 2nd group. For the keen eyed experts on all things Russian…these are actually the Marioupol Hussars. Much better colour than the brown/ yellow of Achtyrka Hussars. And yes…that is a regiment of the Vistula legion tucked in behind them…they must have got lost.

Lithuanian Uhlan Regiment (8 squadrons): Lt.Col. Otto Shtakelberg of the Novorossiisk DR.

Artillery

8th Horse Company (3rd Reserve Artillery Brigade): Lt.Col. Zakhar Shusherin

If I decide to add more infantry they will be from the 12th Division.

For figures I have used Warlord Games plastic 1812-1815 figures but have added Front Rank reinforcement packs. These are the command packs although have filtered several packs normal Grenadiers in for variation. The figures are quite compatible in size and style. The same cannot be said for the Warlord Games metal command figures which although an improvement on earlier figures, are still not as good as their plastics.

Cavalry/Artillery and the Command figures are all Front Rank. Although I have painted some of the plastics I sent most of the plastics to Fernando Enterprises in Sri Lanka and am generally happy with the paint job on the Grenadiers. I also sent the Dragoons and Hussars but did the horses myself. The Dragoons required some clean up as someone had flick dried a white brush near them and they had a case of the white measles. The Hussars I have put into an isolation ward until I decide what to do with them.  My Cuirassiers were painted by Paul Goldstone for me. I did encounter some issues with some of the quality of the Front Rank castings with some heavy horses having solid metal between the front legs and far to much flash elsewhere, some Cuirassiers that seemed to have put their heads in vices for some reason, and a sample reinforcement pack of Prussian Fusiliers also had solid metal issues between legs(must have been quite painful for them). Once I alerted Front Rank to this unusual poor casting quality, all were replaced speedily. All one can ask for really.

With the command bases I sent 4 command figures to Fernando Enterprises and I have painted the rest. I still have a number to paint and will swap figures on bases around once I am finished. I am putting 3 command figures on Corps/Army Commander bases and 2 on Division/Brigade Command bases. in order to easily differentiate on the battlefield, my brigade commanders all have a blue tuft on their headwear!

All flags are by GMB.