Poor Johnny Cope.

I've decided to model my Jacobite armies on the Battle of Prestonpans 1745 , so for my Government general I will need a model for Sir John Cope , pictured above about twenty years earlier than the fateful day . (seemingly the only portrait Google has of him).

Poor Johnny Cope remembered for just this one disaster , prior to this his military career had been rather successful , he was made a Knight of the Bath (KB) for his service at the battle of Dettingen but at Prestonpans was badly let down by his rather lacklustre army . I've always been one for the underdog so I thought I would have to have him as my commander.

The next problem was to find a suitable figure , nobody does any mounted figures for this conflict and for the Government Dragoons I am going to use Zvezda Dragoons of Peter the Great from their Great Northern War range . Looking through their box I came across a mounted Guidon bearer - a figure which will not be of any use in British employment so cutting the standard away and carving the attached belt away I left enough to be a marshal's baton to represent General Cope . I am also going to use another mounted Officer as an Aide De Camp - he was firing a pistol to one side which was not useful so I trimmed it away so that he looks like he's pointing ( "OMG ! look at all those Highlanders !" ) . I'm also cleaning up my first regiment of Government Foot and seeing it's stopped raining will get them sprayed with an undercoat of black .