Thursday 13 November 2008

Von Lossberg Fusilier Regiment


Lossberg's regiment arrived in the first division of Hessian troops. Although the regiment suffered particularly from desertion on the journey from America, Lossberger diaries indicate that the troops were relatively eager to teach the colonists a lesson for having rebelled against their rightful King. I have noted before the age of some of the more senior Hessian commanders, but Atwood uses Lossberg to show that whilst the presence of veterans in the ranks no doubt brought much needed experience, it was not just the high command who were "long in the tooth": of the regiment's 35 NCOs, 16 were over forty and 10 over fifty.

The regiment fought at Long Island, White Plains and Fort Washington. It distinguished itself in the attack on Chatterton's Hill at White Plains, earning the admiration of Cornwallis. However, the regiment was stationed in Trenton when Washington attacked at the end of 1776. The survivors of Trenton were placed into the Combined Battalion that was formed of those soldiers who had escaped capture, and which was present at Brandywine, Germantown and Monmouth. In 1780 the regiment was renamed Alt-Lossberg and transferred to Canada.

This regiment should not be confused with Mirbach's regiment, which was renamed Jung-Lossberg's in 1780. I made this mistake and a few weeks before the Long Island gamje realised I had bought the wrong set of GMB flags. Consequently the troops fought under the wrong colours at the Long Island game, but in the photos they have the correct ones (the two flags in the GMB pack are identical for some reason). This is an attractive regiment to model - you have the neat fusilier caps and nice orange facings. Like most Hessian regiments, it appears as a unit of 24 figures in most of the "British Grenadier!" scenarios. I chose charging figures simply because the last unit of fusiliers I painted was in the marching pose. I find it quite difficult to photograph charging figures satisfactorily, so please excuse the rather crappy pics.

24 figures. Painted September 2008. Flags by GMB.





9 comments:

Steve-the-Wargamer said...

Giles - lovely stuff, and those flags are outstanding - really make the unit...

Thanks for the "push" as well - I have a regiment of Hessians (with the cap) waiting to be undercoated on the painting table and I think this might just be the thing to get them going...!

Sire Godefroy said...

Really a neat bunch with lots of character. I'm still struggling with my first British line (only 12 figs!), but I NEED some sturdy Hessians as soon as possible. Their colourful appearance (especially those fusilier mitres) and the link to local history make them a personal must-have.

However, I can see myself misconducting as regards uniforms etc. Still haven't found a decent guide to some of the more unusual matters like British allies or field modified uniforms (any ideas if and where to find chrest colours for British regiments with slouch hats?)... :(

Cheers

WSTKS-FM Worldwide said...

Hello there Gilees,

Give yourself some credit! The photos of your von Lossberg boys are lovely, showcasing the orange facings and fusilier caps to good advantage. You just can't beat orange on dark blue. And the standards fit in rather well too. I think I'll think I'll have to get some figures in the charge pose now! By the way, I really enjoy the fact that you always include some of te history for each new unit you add to your collection. It's fascinating stuff.

Best Regards,

Stokes

WSTKS-FM Worldwide said...

Drat! "Giles". Sorry about the poor typing skills. It's still too early in the morning here.

Best Regards,

Stokes

AJ (Allan) Wright said...

Giles, I particularly like the texture work on the helmet fronts. Well shaded. I agree the orange facings are striking, especially with the orange flags.

Anonymous said...

as always fantastic work, in fact don't come say hello at warfare i'd be embarrassed by my terrible attempts

nigel b

Anonymous said...

I should just hire you Giles to paint mine....why is it I always want to stab myself in the eye with a paint brush whenever I see your work.

Anonymous said...

"I always want to stab myself in the eye with a paint brush"

as Freaky as hilarious

David P. Hansen said...

I have a great grandfather which was a member of one of the regiments captured at Trenton on December 26, 1776. Is there any record of the men who served these regiments? My grandfather's name was Henry Veon. Dphansen@comcast.net