Napoleonic French Infantry 1804 – 1807, 28 mm Scale Model Plastic Figures

In 1804 Napoleon declared himself emperor the French. This ignited a new wave of conflict throughout Europe which only ended with napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo in 1815. The French infantry from 1804 to 1807 fought a series of arduous but victorious campaigns. They trounced the Russians and Austrians at the battle of Austerlitz in 1805 and humbled the mighty Prussians at the joint battles of Jenna or Auerstadt in 1806. Advancing into Poland, they fought the Russians to a bloody draw on the snowy fields Eylau, before forcing them to sue for peace after the great French victory at Ferdinand.

French battalions consisted of Fusiliers, Grenadiers and Voltigeurs. The infantry during the Napoleonic era was the bread and butter of the army, and provided the majority of the fighting force while on campaign. The nucleus of the army was formed in 1803, when the old ‘royalist term’ of Régiment replaced the ‘republican style’ Demi-Brigade, which subsequently referred to provisional units only. At the time, only some 90 regiments existed, the majority of them consisting of three battalions. By 1804, each battalion had been obliged to convert one of its fusilier companies into voltigeurs, thus augmenting the French light infantry establishment.

This set features figures heads in bicornes and new grenadier heads. Also included are 8 regimental flags.