Hi All, first post.

I've been excitedly watching the developing thread about the French Revolutionary Wars on the forums (particularly Colin's amazing Austrians!), so wondered if this little vignette would be of interest! 

The Guillotine itself is on a card base, constructed out of matchsticks and lolly sticks, cut down mostly with pliers. The blade and the hole for the head are card, the string's just a bit of black cotton, seated in a green stuff pulley. The severed head I sculpted out of greenstuff!

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Note the Sans-Culotte at right with flag, Ordinary tricolore off google images, edited in Word with a laurel wreath and added the motto 'Liberté, Égalité , Fraternité ou la Mort', basically illegible but nice to know it's there! The flag design is according to various examples I've seen, topped with a bonnet rouge/ Phrygian cap, which also appear in contemporary prints, he's also wearing one himself. (A Napoleonic French flag bearer with the hat chopped of and bonnet sculpted and added later. 

From Behind. The body is also a greenstuff sculpt. The Drummers in the second image are from the TYW Peasants command stands, the guard is from the French Napoleonic bicorne infantry.

Close-ups on the executioners, they're also from the TYW Peasants command stands, I saw the gestures and knew I could do something with them. 

These are all part of a project that I've had going for a while to do Divisional level games of the 1793 Vendée War using General de Brigade. It's a little-known, though in my opinion, important theatre of the French revolutionary wars, an internal counter-revolution by a largely peasant army that managed to hold off the Republic for a year, and control the equivalent of a whole department of modern France. During that time, although an irregular force, composed of local volunteers and led by local commanders, rebel armies in pitched battles could reach 20,000 with similar-sized Republican forces opposing them, moreover, if it had gotten out of control, and a timely landing of foreign troops had occured, it could have become a serious threat. 

Beyond this rather poor summary, Pen & Sword sell an excellent book about it, which is perfect for wargamers as it has in-depth accounts of individual battles, with maps, and details of the opposing forces. It also contains descriptions of both armies and their general tactics at the front, as well as, of course, a good history of the entire thing. https://www.pen-and-sword.co.uk/Fighting-the-French-Revolution-Hardback/p/15907. 

Vendéen Column, led by Henri de la Rochejacquelein, one of their most able commanders. Standards visible are displaying the old monarchist arms of France and the Sacred Heart, symbols of the rebels. 

If people are interested, I've completed a Vendéen division-strength force, and a lot of Republicans too that I could share, as well as some useful resources for paint guides/ flags etc. It might be a while till I can photograph more of them, and I'm aiming to get all of it done to play some games in the summer. 

Thanks for reading

Thank you for such an inspirational post.  I really like the guillotine model.  Guillotines & political interference do figure in both the internal and external French wars - losing French Generals tended to either take a one way trip to Paris, or do a quick runner to the opposition...  I look forward to further posts, as and when you complete your armies.  Excellent!

Thanks Colin! The Guillotine was partly inspired by those wagons of yours ( particularly the forge!) which just go to show what you can do with 6mm scratchbuilding. 

I suppose the natural accompaniments to the guillotine would be these units of Republican Sans-Culottes. They'll form the lowest troop grade of the Republican forces (levy), and are intended to represent hastily levied National Guard/ militia, or  armées récolutionnaires, paramilatary bands essentially raised to conduct Terror in the countryside, extract grain from 'hoarders' and generally raise hell. Some of these, particularly Nantes' Company of Marat were present in the Vendée. They tended to get placed on garrisson duty, or were resident in larger towns attacked by the Vendéens.

They're actually the 1812 Canadian militia, whose caps I thought I could convert into bonnet rouges with a bit of brushwork, and I think its worked rather well. The command stands and a few isolated more uniformed types are baccus Bicorne French Line Infantry. 

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In these shots, you might be able to discern the mottos on their flags, Ça ira! and Vive la République! respectively, Sans-Culotte flags often seem to be emblazoned with similar slogans in contemporary prints. My attempts at Republican cockades and the tricolore-strped trousers favoured by the Sans-Culotte might also just be visible. 

And again, in their natural habitat,  presumably about to break into a Carmagnole!