Carrying on the theme of my
last post, the Pendraken
Austrian cuirassiers pack
(NPA24) came with the usual
officer, standard bearer,
trumpeter, and two trooper
variants. I’d got into the habit
of not homing in on the full
detail of figures until painting
them. That’s to say, not
scrutinising figures too much
during the deflashing stage.
Hence, the cuirassier officer’s
moustache eluding me. But the
moustache was a minor blip.
I was more than surprised after
deflashing and spraying two
regiments of Pendraken
Austrian cuirassiers to discover
as I began applying the first
licks of paint that the figures
had been sculpted not only
with breastplates but also back
plates – back plates that
historically Austrian cuirassiers
never had. Consequently, of
course, this meant the
Pendraken cuirassiers didn’t
“Courage, tenacity and strength were well matched, but
the defensive arms were unequal, for the Austrian
cuirasses only covered them in front, and gave no
protection to the back in a crowd. In this way, the
French troopers who, having double cuirasses and no
fear of being wounded from behind had only to think of
thrusting, were able to give point to the enemy’s backs,
and slew a great many of them with small loss to
themselves... This fight settled a question which had
long been debated, as to the necessity of double
cuirasses, for the proportion of Austrians wounded and
killed amounted respectively to eight and thirteen for
one Frenchman.”
Marbot, Volume I
Much Too Heavy Cuirassiers
sport the distinctive cross
straps of their breastplates
across their backs. Rather, they
had rather stiff backs that had
to painted looking unrealistic-
ally stout and barrel-like.
This sculpting slip-up seemed
even more surprising because it
is so well documented that the
Austrian cuirassiers of the
Napoleonic Wars did not have
back plates. It had proved a
distinct disadvantage when
fighting French cuirassiers,
who did have back plates. The
shortcoming was brutally
demonstrated in a clash of
cuirassiers at Eggmühl in April
1809 when 13 Austrians were
killed for every Frenchman, as
related by Antoine de Marbot
in his memoirs.
POST 103
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