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New Fall / Winter 2013 Catalogue - Expected Spring 2014!
Sierra Toy Soldier Exclusive - Zulu Storehouse Attack
We have partnered with our friends at Britain's to produce the first in a range of exclusive sets available from us. The first set is a limited production run of 300. We hope to have this available for release in March. It is available for pre-order now!
Zulu Storehouse Attack
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Zulu Wars
Zulu Wars
Clash of Empires
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In the 18th Century, the area known as the Northwest Territories was the traditional home to various native people. This same area was also important to the grand designs of European expansion and the clash of interests between the French and British culminated in the French and Indian Wars. The native people fought on both sides during this conflict.
British victory in 1763 gave control of the entire area to Great Britain. In the same year, a confederation of tribes resentful to the shift of power launched a series of attacks against British Forts which became known as 'Pontiac's Rebellion.' Hostilities ended after the British Army expeditions of 1764 and peace negotiations over the next two years established a new relationship.
The European view of land ownership and settlement was always at odds with Native views resulting in uneasy peace punctuated violence. Warfare on the North American frontier was brutal, and the killing of prisoners, the targeting of civilians and other atrocities were widespread. The ruthlessness and treachery of these conflicts was a reflection of a growing divide between the separate populations of the British colonists and the Native Americans.
The American War of Independence further aggravated the situation, and with the 1783 Treaty of Paris the territory again changed hands, this time to the young United States. Despite the treaty, the British kept forts and supported policies of native resistance to further settlement in the territories. President George Washington directed the United States Army to halt the hostilities between the natives and settlers and to enforce U.S. sovereignty over the territory.
The small U.S. Army was ill equipped for the task and suffered a series of defeats, including the Harmer Campaign of 1790 and St. Clair's Campaign in 1791. These humiliating defeats prompted Washington to appoint Revolutionary War hero General "Mad" Anthony Wayne to reorganize the Army to deal with the escalating situation. In 1793 Wayne took command of the new 'Legion of the United States' and led his men to a decisive victory over the confederation of tribes at the battle of Fallen Timbers in 1794, With the treaty of Greenville in 1795, the Native leaders agreed to give up their lands and move to Indiana where in 1811, tensions would again erupt into open warfare on the frontier.
Clash of Empires
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Napoleonic - Brunswickers
The Black Brunswickers were raised in 1809 to fight Napoleon Bonaparte's occupation of Germany. These Brunswickers were distinctively attired in black wool uniforms, black leather belting and wore silver death heads on their shakos, quickly earning the nickname 'The Black Legion' or 'The Black Horde.
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Napoleonic - British 44th Foot
In the Eighteenth Century, British Infantry regiments were normally made up of nine companies of regular infantry and one company of elite grenadiers. Although this was successful for fighting in the developed European terrain, it was less successful in the virgin forests of North America. The British forces in North America developed tactics for this new kind of warfare and light companies were trained to fight in a non-traditional method relying on marksmanship and extended order. Although the experiment was successful, the practice was abandoned for a short period at the end of the French & Indian War.
By 1770, regular Regiments were required to have one company designated and trained as Light Troops. The training was inconsistent and often inadequate, but by the beginning of the Nineteenth Century, progressive officers were writing well thought out manuals for this new corps.
While most companies of the regiment fought in tight formations, the 'Light Bobs,' as they were nicknamed, fought up to 80 paces in front of the main body of troops in pairs and in spaced intervals. Additional tasks of these light troops included rear guard and flanking protection, reconnaissance and protecting artillery.
When infantry formed squares, light infantry and artillerymen were often instructed to take cover in the squares when they were attacked by cavalry. Our new offering of 'Light Bobs' of the 44th Regiment of Foot are on their way back to the protection of the Battalion and Grenadier companies formed up into a defensive square. One enterprising soul pauses to loot a watch from a French casualty before sprinting to safety as the Sergeant signals others to follow with a sharp signal from his whistle!
Battle of Waterloo, 1815
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Titanic
At 2:40A.M. April 15, 1912, the unthinkable had happened. The 'unsinkable' White Star flag ship, RMS Titanic slipped beneath the waves and into history.
The Titanic had been the largest ship afloat at the time and was considered a masterpiece of design in White Stars Olympic class of ocean liners. On this maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, she carried 2,224 passengers and crew. Just two hours after the Titanic foundered the Cunard liner RMS Carpathia arrived on the scene of the sinking, where she brought aboard an estimated 705 survivors.
More than 1,500 people died in one of the deadliest peacetime maritime disasters in modern history and the disaster was greeted with worldwide shock and outrage at this huge loss of life. Even before the survivors arrived in New York aboard the Carpathia, investigations were planned to discover how this could have happened and what could be done to prevent a similar disaster in the future.
The Carpathia's arrival in New York led to a frenzy of press interest, with newspapers competing to be the first to report the survivor's stories. Newspaper reporters schemed and bribed to get the first news, with at least one boarding the rescue ship before it docked. Crowds gathered outside newspaper offices to see the latest reports being posted in the windows or on the billboards. It took another four days before a relatively complete list of casualties could be compiled and published, adding to the agony of the relatives waiting for news of those who had been aboard the Titanic. The Titanic's collision with an iceberg in the North Atlantic signaled an end to an era. The thought that anything was possible and that man and industry could design machines that could challenge nature itself, was now in question.
RMS Titanic
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Royal Airforce
The Lewis automatic gun was designed by U.S. Army Colonel Isaac Newton Lewis in 1911. Because of political disputes between Lewis and the U.S. Army Chief of the Ordinance Department, the weapon was not adopted by the U.S. Army.
Colonel Lewis retired from the Army and headed to Belgium to establish commercial production of the gun. By 1913, the Belgian Army had adopted the design using the standard .303 British round, and in 1914, BSA purchased a license to build the in the UK.
The Lewis gun was officially adopted for use by British land and Aircraft use in October of 1915. The gun proved to be reliable and effective and was widely used by the British Empire and her allies during that conflict. With the loss of so much equipment after the disastrous campaign in France in 1940, the British Army was forced to press available stocks of old Lewis guns into home defense.
Over 58,000 weapons were taken from stores and refurbished and repaired during the course of WWII and many were used as dual mounts for close range air defense by the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy. In this role, it was credited by the British as bringing down more low-flying aircraft than any other anti-aircraft weapon.
Royal Airforce
New Expected In December - Arriving Next Week!
Battle of Waterloo, 18152013!
Battle of Waterloo, 1815
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American Civil War
American Civil War
History of the British Army - Redcoats Collection
History of the British Army - Redcoats Collection
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Battle of the Somme
Battle of the Somme
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United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
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