Finnish army of 1808

Perry miniatures have released a very nice range of Swedish/Finnish miniatures for the 1808-1809 war with Russia relatively recently. The figures are very nice and the campaign seems perfect for small scale skirmish wargaming, such as Sharp Practice or other systems.

Of course I ordered some of these soon after they were released. So far, two sets of line infantry (marching/firing line) have been released, as well as three different sets of jägers and some dragoons. However, I have been slow to paint the few figures I have, as some critical pieces are still missing. There are few alternatives to Perry when it comes to Swedes for 1808. Those that do exist are not quite of the high standard that Perry set for themselves, which means one is reluctant to use figures from other manufacturers together with these excellent miniatures.

Perry have now announced that they will soon be releasing sets of Swedish artillery. These are of course crucial. Even in the small scale skirmishes, often involving just a few companies or a couple of battalions of troops, artillery were still very often dragged along. The final missing piece will be mounted officers and generals. Let’s hope Perry have these in the pipeline as well, as they would round the whole thing off nicely.

But the main problem is flags. For my Russians I have used the excellent GMB flags. The range is comprehensive and the flags look great. Unfortunately, there is nothing comparable for the Swedish/Finnish army. Until GMB release a Swedish range, I will have to try making my own flags. I have tried but have yet to make one that looks good enough. We will see how it goes; for Sharp Practice I suppose you only really need one or two, maybe I can do really weathered and tattered ones to cover up my lack of skill in free-hand painting.