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FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS & DETAILS ABOUT THE FLAGS

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 1. What flags are included in this set?

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This set is comprised of 240 printed colour flags representing all the regiments of General Thielmann's 3rd Prussian Corps, and Marshall Grouchy's French forces that fought at the Battle of Wavre, on June 18th, 1815.

The flags are presented and laid out in the battle order of the day, along with the named commanding officers of corps, division and brigade. In addition, this set also includes the flags of:

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• Prussian regiments that were on the march to the Waterloo battlefield, but did not arrive in time to affect the outcome.

• The French 7th infantry division of General Girard, detached from Reille's II Corps to fight at Ligny under Vandamme. Girard was killed and his division suffered great casualties, so it was rest

 

My reason for including the flags of regiments that did not fight at Wavre or Waterloo, was so that I could present flags for the full French and Prussian armies that marched during the entire 100 Days campaign, thus assisting wargamers who wished to recreate the whole campaign. This means that all of the French and Prussian regiments are now included in the Wavre and Waterloo flag sets.

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The only remaining flags for me to complete for the 100 Days campaign, are the 17,000 British, Hanoverian and Dutch-Belgian forces that were stationed at Hal, which Wellington never used.

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 2. What size miniatures do the flags fit?

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• The flags have been designed for cutting out and gluing to 10 mm metal miniatures.

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​3. How should I fix the flag to the miniature flag pole? 

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• Many modellers and collectors attach their flags to thin wire, instead of the flag poles that come moulded with miniatures. This is done because the tin/lead alloy poles inevitably bend and break sooner or later.

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• The best glue to use is one that does not dry too quickly so that you can manipulate the flag into its final position before it dries. This will also allow you to form twists and turns to depict it waving and bellowing in the wind, if desired. The flags already include artistic folds and creases, but physically bending the flags will increase the realistic effect.

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​4. What type of paper are the flags printed on?

 

• The colour flags are laser printed onto 130gsm satin paper, which provides both endurance and flexibility, and gives a slight sheen.

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 4. How accurate are the flags historically?

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The French tricolours carried by the line regiments at Waterloo still exist in museums, so these designs are followed. The only question is whether some of these flags had a gold fringe, which for this set I decided to include because they look better!

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Dating from 1812, second, third and subsequent infantry battalions, were ordered to  carry flags of plain colour i.e. 2nd battalion - white; 3rd battalion - red;  3rd battalion - blue. However, some French Napoleonic regimental colonels were inclined to embellish these drab flags with unit details, but as none of these flags have survived, the design I've used includes the regimental and battalion number, along with symbols on the reverse side denoting the infantry class - an 'N' for Line, and a bugle for Light infantry.

 

One puzzle remains regarding which flags were carried by the 6th Light regiment at Wavre (Pécheux, 12th Division). Historical records show the 1st and 2nd battalions did not go on this campaign, only the newly raised 3rd and 4th. The Eagle and tricolour is therefore presumed to have remained with the 1st battalion. However, I have included this flag in the set for those who prefer to display this regiment's tricolour.

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The flags carried by the Prussian regiments pose a particular problem. This is because according to historical records, only a handful of regiments were supposed to have carried any flags at all, chiefly the established line regiments and Dragoon cavalry.

The remaining line regiments were in somewhat of a transitional state. Having previously been Reserve regiments in the army (13th, 14th, 19th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd, 27th, 28th, 29th, 30th, 31st), these were awarded regular line infantry status prior to the Waterloo campaign, but were not issued with their new flags until a few months afterwards, so logically, they should not have been carrying any.

The Prussian Landwehr too, had been officially instructed by their king not to carry flags. This was in response to the variety of unofficial flags being used by the Landwehr, and maybe the Reserve regiments too.
 

Quite clearly, if we follow what history states, there's no real need to create a Prussian flag set for this campaign at all, because so very few flags were officially carried. But we're in the business of creating personal, miniature armies, and many people prefer to have flags for all of their regiments! It is for this reason too, that I offer a flag for all three battalions of Prussian infantry regiments in this set, even though it was only the two Musketeer battalions that had colours. The third battalion of Fusiliers used for skirmishing, were not issued with flags until after Waterloo.

What I have set out to do, therefore, is to present a flexible choice of flags for both the former Reserve and Landwehr regiments:

For the former Reserve, now Line regiments:

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• Flags issued in late 1815 - the flags presented in this set are those that were eventually issued to the new line regiments a few months after the Waterloo campaign.
   
• Generic and hypothetical flags based on conjecture - these type of designs may have been used by both the Landwehr and Reserve regiments during 1813-14.
   

For the Landwehr, you can choose from:

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• Generic and hypothetical flags based on conjecture - these designs also utilize coat of arms and the various Prussian state Eagles, to produce flags that give some identity.

    
To add some colour and panache, I've included Russian flags for the 30th & 31st Line, which were formerly the German-Russian Legion. If undesired, however, its an easy matter to choose from several other alternatives instead.

I have also created flags for all the French and Prussian light cavalry units even though none were carried into the field. The Prussian designs for the Hussars and Uhlans are speculative regarding the field colours.

It is my hope that I have succeeded in offering you a fine choice with these flag designs, both useful and inspirational. If not, please do let me know.

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​​Michael

TBW Publishing

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