French Line Infantry

Here below are the masters of my several French line infantry fusilier poses, in their 1740s uniform and equipment (I have also sculpted some command figures, which will be dealt with in future posts).

I sculpted all these figures starting from one of my preliminary, partially dressed mannequins.

The French fusilier cartridge box was somewhat smaller than its British counterpart. A variety of designs are shown in the sources. It could be made of brown, red, or black leather. It was suspended over the left shoulder by means of a buff strap, narrower than that of the British, and fitted with a cross piece to which the soldiers sometimes tied their forage caps or secured entrenching tools.

In addition to the cartridge box, the French fusilier was equipped with a powder flask suspended by a narrow strap worn alongside, or underneath, the strap of the cartridge box. The ordinance of 1747 prescribed that the powder flask be suspended by strings attached directly to the cartridge box, and this later arrangement was probably retained throughout most of the Seven Years War, before the powder flask was discarded altogether. There existed two powder flask designs: an older, pear-shaped version made of wood covered with leather, and a more recent version of flattened horn construction with spring-loaded dosing device. Apparently, the older version, judged obsolete by the late 1720s, came back into use in the 1740s on account of its simpler, more economical construction.

However, the powder flask had little use since the introduction of the paper cartridge, and soldiers often did without it. For this reason, I have not given  powder flasks to my French fusiliers. I shall perhaps sculpt some more figures wearing powder flask and various items of marching kit.

The buff waist belt was also somewhat narrower than that of the British, and supported a combined sword and bayonet frog of similar design. The sword, however, was somewhat longer, and of better quality than its British counterpart.

My French regular infantrymen are all armed with the M1728 military musket, which replaced the older regulation model of 1717. The main innovating feature of this musket was that the barrel was secured to the stock by means of bands as opposed to pins.

Apparently, in the French establishment only grenadiers were issued musket straps. As the strap was designed to hold the musket across the soldier’s back when throwing a grenade, it was secured to the stock by rings fitted to the left side of the latter (NOT to the underside, an arrangement more suitable for a strap designed to hold the musket over the soldier’s shoulder when marching). Since my first French regulars are meant to be fusiliers (as shown by the lack of mustaches, and by their being equipped with swords as opposed to sabers) I gave them no musket straps…