Available to the highest bidder, the Landsknechts stand tall and proud and ready to make full use of their pikes.
Landsknechts
The late 15th and early 16th centuries in Europe were defined by near-constant warfare. National ‘standing armies’ were unheard of and the ambitions of empires were reliant on the mercenaries they could afford to hire.
This box contains:
- Plastic components to make either 30 Pikemen or 24 Pikemen and 5 Arquebusiers
- Command sprue with options for officers, standard bearers, drummers, etc.
- Plastic bases.
- Background guide with 5 full-colour flags.
Landsknechts were instigated by the Holy Roman Emperor, Maximillian I, as a reaction to the Swiss Mercenary Pikemen that had dominated battlefields for decades before the Italian Wars (1494-1559).
Over the course of the Italian Wars, however, the Landsknecht tactics adapted far more than the Swiss and the use of firearms in conjunction with the Pike would give them the edge, at least tactically.
Maximillian was keen to give the men freedom to wear what they wanted, and this resulted in plumes, slashed sleeves and bright colours. The figures in this boxed set can be used to represent the Landsknechts raised in Germany or the Tyrol as well as early Swiss pike regiments.
Landsknecht Officers
Finely crafted by hand and a detailed joy to paint:
The term, Landsknecht, literally means ‘Land Servant’ or ‘Servant of the Country’ and seems to have been coined sometime around 1470. As a result, it takes a real soldier to lead the Landsknecht into battle, fighting for the simple notion of money.
This blister pack contains 4 metal Landsknecht Officers.
The brutality of these mercenary forces and especially the carnage of close combat against Swiss forces or opposing Landsknechts was a shock to most who hired them.
Landsknechts Brigade
The late 15th and early 16th centuries in Europe were defined by near-constant warfare. In an age where national ‘standing armies’ were largely unheard of, the ambitions of empires were reliant on the mercenaries they could afford to hire. As a result, they would be found in most armies in Western Europe of the time, even appearing in the British Isles in the service of Henry VIII.
To represent this easy fashion of countries gaining Landsknechts, we made this bundle to contains three Landsknechts boxes, overwhelm your enemy!
Dan Hewitson
