Today – it’s Burns Night, Rabby Burns Birthday. Here is my Highland tribute to Burns , once a former volunteer or militia man of the Napoleonic invasion scare.
http://scottishmilitary.blogspot.co.uk/2009/07/robert-burns-and-royal-dumfries.html
Robert Burns received a full military funeral in 1796 as a member of the Royal Dumfries Volunteers.
Casting my Burns Night Highlander
I spent part of a day off home-casting metal toy soldiers like this 54mm Highlander, something I haven’t done for several years.
Some eBay finds of vintage metal toy soldier moulds you ‘buy blind’ and aren’t too sure what you’re getting. This was one such mould. Not yet sure of the manufacturer.
Sometimes the moulds have been over cleaned purely for show, apparently like some people collect and display vintage butter pats or cake tins. Sometimes they are cracked, damaged or overworn.
The only glitch was the casting getting stuck for a while, not prised out until very cool, so maybe some mould release powder next time.
This figure is not highly detailed but has minimal flash and a lovely vintage ‘Toy Soldier’ feel to it.
I look forward to making many more and getting them painted up for 54mm games this year. More photos of other moulds and castings to come soon.
Happy Burns Night (or Happy Birthday) if you are celebrating the occasion.
One of Burns’ Napoleonic wartime poems …
Does Haughty Gaul Invasion Threat?
(The Dumfries Volunteers) by Robert Burns
Does haughty Gaul invasion threat?
Then let the louns beware, Sir!
There’s wooden walls upon our seas,
And volunteers on shore, Sir!
The Nith shall run to Corsincon,
And Criffel sink in Solway,
Ere we permit a Foreign Foe
On British ground to rally!
We’ll ne’er permit a Foreign Foe
On British ground to rally!
O let us not, like snarling curs,
In wrangling be divided,
Till, slap! come in an inco loun,
And wi’ a rung decide it!
Be Britain still to Britain true,
Amang oursels united!
For never but by British hands
Maun British wrangs be righted!
No! never but by British hands
Shall British wrangs be righted!
The Kettle o’ the Kirk and State,
Perhaps a clout may fail in’t;
But deil a foreign tinkler loun
Shall ever ca’a nail in’t.
Our father’s blude the Kettle bought,
And wha wad dare to spoil it;
By Heav’ns! the sacrilegious dog
Shall fuel be to boil it!
By Heav’ns! the sacrilegious dog
Shall fuel be to boil it!
The wretch that would a tyrant own,
And the wretch, his true-born brother,
Who would set the Mob aboon the Throne,
May they be damn’d together!
Who will not sing “God save the King,”
Shall hang as high’s the steeple;
But while we sing “God save the King,”
We’ll ne’er forget The People!
But while we sing “God save the King,”
We’ll ne’er forget The People!
Two ways of reading the last verse of this supposedly patriotic poem!
A painting of Burns in his volunteer uniform by Scots military artist Douglas N. Anderson (who works for Osprey) can be found here http://halifaxburnsclub.org/Militia_Fletcher.html
For more about the Napoleonic era Volunteers in Britain https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/British_Volunteer_Corps
Posted by Mark, Man of TIN blog, 25 January 2017.
Man of Tin blog 
F.E. Perry. A man of genius. Interrogations, chemical warfare, firing squads and best of all a dictators bathroom. Priceless. Your Highlander is lovely.
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I agree Chris. Genius. The F E Perry book no. 2 was the only one of the two I had seen until last year (and quite practically useless without the first). Even on it’s own, it was a great visual delight of vanished hollow cast lead and exotic plastics mostly but not quite similar in scale with the settings (i.e. Exotic was anything that wasn’t Airfix or later Matchbox). He was sort of Slinkachu before Slinkachu existed.
I still love looking through this eccentric book and wonder at the the exotic, highly individual and complex games that went on in F E Percy’s garden, shed and (and head). It looked like he had a lot of serious and absorbing fun.
Best wishes Mark, Man of TIN blog.
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Interesting figure/mould haven’t seen that type before , Tony
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Thanks Tony,
hopefully someone might recognise the home cast mould manufacturer.
Mark, Man of TIN blog
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