The army Wellington commanded at Waterloo was not really a British one. Of the roughly 68,000 men under him, only about a third were British; the rest were King's German Legion, Hanoverians, Brunswickers, Dutch-Belgians, and Nassauers like this grenadier — a coalition of nations and languages held together by a single commander. Wellington had few illusions about it, calling it "an infamous army, very weak and ill-equipped," with many units young and untried. Yet it held the ridge through a long June day against the best Napoleon could throw at it. The green-coated Nassauers did their share, posted at Hougoumont and on the threatened left, where the line came closest to breaking.

The figure kneels at the firing position — musket up to the shoulder, the dark green coat with yellow lace and the black fur cap with red plume and pompon. As the front-rank firer of a Nassau line, he leads the loading sequence behind him: place a Nassau Grenadier Reaching for Cartridge drawing the next round and a Nassau Grenadier Standing Ramming driving it home. For the defense of Hougoumont, set the green-coated Nassauers alongside the British Guards who shared the post — a British 1st Foot Guard Kneeling Firing at their shoulder.

W. Britain model 36172. 1/30 scale (approximately 60mm), matte-painted metal. Single foot figure on a sculpted groundwork base. Boxed.