Toy soldier
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For other uses, see Toy soldier (disambiguation).
54mm (1:32 scale) toy soldiers by Imperial Productions of New Zealand.

A toy soldier is a miniature figurine that represents a soldier. The term applies to depictions of uniformed military personnel from all eras, and includes knights, cowboys, American Indians, pirates, samurai, and other subjects that involve combat-related themes. Toy soldiers vary from simple playthings to highly realistic and detailed models. The latter are of more recent development and are sometimes called model figures to distinguish them from traditional toy soldiers. Larger scale toys such as dolls and action figures may come in military uniforms, but they are not generally considered toy soldiers.

Toy soldiers are made from all types of material, but the most common mass-produced varieties are metal and plastic. There are many different kinds of toy soldiers, including tin soldiers or flats, hollow cast metal figures, composition figures, and plastic army men. Metal toy soldiers were traditionally sold in sets; plastic figures were sold in toy shops individually in Britain and Europe and in large boxed sets in the U.S. Modern, collectable figures are often sold individually.
Contents

1 Scale
2 History
3 Collecting
4 Varieties
5 Gaming
6 See also
7 References
8 External links

Scale
Further information: Miniature_figure_(gaming) § Scales, and List of scale model sizes
Ratio Inches per foot Size Examples
1:35 0.342" [8.68 mm] 1.811" [46 mm] Popular military modelling scale for vehicles and light aircraft (Tamiya). Also used for the accompanying human display models like crew and passengers.
1:32 0.375" [9.525 mm] 1.98" [50.3 mm] Model railroad "I scale". Also used for display models. Britain's LTD toy farm sets (animals, structures, and most vehicles) and "Stablemate size" model horses were in this scale.
1:30 0.4" [10.16 mm] 2.125" [54 mm]
2.165" [55 mm] Traditional "Normal scale" lead or die-cast metal toy soldiers (Britain's LTD).
1:28 0.423" [10.87 mm] 2.36" [60mm] Spanish 60mm size (actually closer to 1/26 or 1/27 scale) (Alymer Toy Soldiers).
1:24 0.50" [12.7 mm] 3" [76.2mm] American "Dimestore" 3-inch size (Barclay or Manoil) or German 75mm size (actually closer to 1/21 scale). 1/2-scale dollhouses are built in this scale.
1:16 0.75" [19.05 mm] 4" [101.6 mm] Used for Ertl's toy farm sets (animals, structures, and most vehicles) and most plastic toy animal figures.

Scale for toy soldiers is expressed as the soldier's approximate height from head to foot in millimeters. Because many figures do not stand up straight, height is usually an approximation. Standard toy soldier scale, originally adopted by W. Britain, is 54 mm (2.25 inches) or 1:32 scale. Among different manufacturers, standard scale may range from 50 mm or 1:35 scale, to 60 mm or 1:28 scale. For gamers and miniatures enthusiasts, 25 mm and even smaller scales are available. On the larger end of the scale are American Dimestore figures, and many of the toy soldiers produced in Germany, which are approximately 75 mm (3 inches) or 1:24 scale.
History

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Military figures have been found in ancient Egyptian tombs, and have appeared in many cultures and eras. Tin soldiers were produced in Germany as early as the 1730s, by molding the metal between two pieces of slate. Toy soldiers became widespread during the 18th century, inspired by the military exploits of Frederick the Great. Miniature soldiers were also used in the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries by military strategists to plan battle tactics by using the figures to show the locations of real soldiers. In 1893, the British toy company William Britain revolutionized the production of toy soldiers by devising the method of hollow casting, making soldiers that were cheaper and lighter than their German counterparts.[1]
Vintage plastic Trojan War figure by Herald.

In addition to Britains, there have been many other manufacturers of toy soldiers over the years. For example, John Hill & Company produced hollow cast lead figures in the same style and scale. Companies such as Elastolin and Lineol were well known for their composite figures made of glue and sawdust that included both military and civilian subjects. After 1950, rising production costs and the development of plastic meant that many shop keepers liked the lighter, cheaper, and far less prone to break in transit polythene figure. This led to greater numbers of plastic toy soldiers.[2][3] The first American plastic soldiers were made by Beton as early as 1937. The first plastic toy soldiers produced in Great Britain were made in 1946 by Airfix before they became known for their famous model kits range.
World War I-era toy soldiers.

One large historical producer in plastic was Louis Marx and Company, which produced both realistic soldiers of great detail and also historical collections of plastic men and women, including the "Presidents of the United States" collection, "Warriors of the World", "Generals of World War II", "Jesus and the Apostles", and figures from the Coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. Marx also produced boxed playsets that featured many famous battles with armies of two sides, character figures, and terrain features. Britains produced plastic figures under the brand names of Herald and Deetail. Also in England, the scale model company, Airfix produced a variety of high quality plastic sets, which were frequently painted by hobbyists. Many Airfix figures were imitated by other companies and reproduced as inexpensive, bagged plastic army men. Timpo Toys, Britains main competitor in terms of sales and quality in the 1960s and 70s developed the 'Over - Moulding' system. Different coloured plastics were injected into the mould at various stages, creating a fully coloured figure without the need of paint.

During the 1990s, the production of metal toy-grade painted figures and connoisseur-grade painted toy soldiers increased to serve the demands of the collectors' market. The style of many of these figures shifted from the traditional gloss-coat enamel paint to the matte-finished acrylic paint, which allows for greater detail and historical accuracy. The change was largely inspired by the introduction of very high quality painted figures from St. Petersburg, Russia.[citation needed]
Collecting

There is a substantial hobby devoted to collecting both old and new toy soldiers, with an abundance of small manufacturers, dealers, and toy soldier shows. There are even specialty magazines devoted to the hobby, such as "Toy Soldier Collector (www.toysoldiercollector.com)", "Plastic Warrior" and "Toy Soldier and Model Figure". Collectors often specialize in a particular type of soldier or historical period, though some people enjoy collecting many different kinds of figures. The most popular historical periods for collecting are Napoleonic, Victorian, American Civil War, World War I, and World War II. Many collectors modify and paint plastic figures, and some even cast and paint their own metal figures.

Actor Douglas Fairbanks Jr had a collection of 3000 toy soldiers when he sold it in 1977. Fantasy novelist George R. R. Martin has a substantial collection of toy knights and castles.[4] The most extensive collection of toy soldiers was probably that of Malcolm Forbes, who began collecting toy soldiers in the late 1960s and amassed a collection of over 90,000 figures by the time of his death in 1990. Anne Seddon Kinsolving Brown of Providence, Rhode Island, USA, began collecting miniature toy soldiers on her honeymoon to Europe in 1930, eventually amassing a collection of over 6,000 figures; these are on display at the Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection at Brown University Library in Providence.
Painted and unpainted Civil War-era plastic figures by Accurate.

Some of the more noteworthy, annual toy soldier and historical figure shows include the Plastic Warrior Show, which is the oldest established show in the U.K. Beginning in 1985 and still being held annually in Richmond, South London. Another well known show is the London Toy Soldier Show held in central London (now owned and operated by the magazine Toy Soldier Collector), the Miniature Figure Collectors of America (MFCA) show in Valley Forge, the Chicago Toy Soldier Show (OTSN) in Illinois, the East Coast Toy Soldier Show in New Jersey, the West Coaster Toy Soldier Show in California, the Sammlerbörse (Collector's Market) in Friedberg, Germany and the biennial Zinnfigurenbörse (Tin Figure Market) in Kulmbach, Germany.

In recent years, collectors of vintage toy soldiers made of polythene PE and polypropylene PP thermoplastics as well as PC/ABS plastic blends have reported brittling and disintegration of collectible miniatures or components thereof.[5]
Varieties

Different types and styles of toy soldiers have been produced over the years, depending on the cost and availability of materials, as well as manufacturing technologies. Here is a list of some of the most commonly collected varieties of toy soldiers.[6]

Aluminum – slush cast aluminium, made chiefly in France during the early and middle 20th Century
Army men – unpainted, soft plastic toy soldiers sold inexpensively in bags or with terrain pieces and vehicles in boxed playsets
Composition – made from a mixture of sawdust and glue, manufactured in Austria and Germany
Connoisseur – high quality, collectible figures featuring highly detailed paint jobs
Dimestore – hollow or slush cast iron, sold through five and dime stores from the 1920s to 1960 in the United States
Flat – thin, two dimensional tin soldiers cast in slate molds
Hollow cast – cast in metal, usually a lead alloy, which cools and sets as it touches the mold; the excess molten metal is poured out leaving a hollow figure
Paper – printed on sheets of paper or cardboard, frequently mounted on blocks of wood
Plastic – hard and soft plastic, generally painted figures
Solid – cast in solid metal, usually lead, common in Germany during the 19th and early 20th Century
Wood - From the 19th century Germany produced large amounts of wooden fortresses and toy soldiers[7]sometimes working on a scissors mechanism .

Prominent vintage toy soldier makers include Airfix, Barclay, Britains, Herald, Elastolin, Johillco, Lineol, Marx, Manoil, Reamsa and Timpo.
Gaming
H. G. Wells playing a wargame with toy soldiers, 1913

The playing of wargames with toy figures was pioneered by H. G. Wells in his 1913 book, Little Wars.[8] Wells, a pacifist, was the first to publish detailed rules for playing war games with toy soldiers. He suggested that this could provide a cathartic experience, possibly preventing future real wars. Although this was not to be, Little Wars was a predecessor to the modern hobby of miniatures wargaming. According to Wells, the idea of the game developed from a visit by his friend Jerome K. Jerome. After dinner, Jerome began shooting down toy soldiers with a toy cannon and Wells joined in to compete.[8]

A similar book titled Shambattle: How to Play with Toy Soldiers was published by Harry Dowdall and Joseph Gleason in 1929.

Although people continue to play wargames with miniature figures, most contemporary wargamers use a smaller scale than that favored by collectors, typically under 25 mm.
See also

Army men
Miniature wargaming
Model figure
Tin soldier
W. Britain
The Parade of the Tin Soldiers
Doll
Reamsa Plastic Toy Soldiers

References

Hampshire Museums Service Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
PlasticWarrior.com
Sheil, T., and Sheil, A., eds. Army Men. Retrieved on August 25, 2008.
G. R. R. Martin's Home Page Archived 2007-01-15 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
Plastic Corrosion of Collectible Miniatures Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
Collecting Toy Soldiers Retrieved on August 25th, 2008.
p. 59 Fritzsch, Karl Ewald & Bachmann, Manfred An Illustrated History of German Toys Hastings House, 1978

Rundle, Michael (9 April 2013). "How HG Wells Invented Modern War Games 100 Years Ago". The Huffington Post.

External links

Antiques View - New York Times article
Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection, Brown University Library - collection of over 6,000 miniature toy soldiers
Chicago Toy Soldier Show - largest annual show in the United States
Home page of Plastic Warrior Magazine
Military Miniature Society of Illinois
World Model Expo 2017 (Chicago)

Military uniform of the Soviet army
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Soviet army
SA
Red star.svg
Emblem of the armed forces of the USSR
Years of existence 1918-1946 (as the red army)
1946-1993 (as SA)
The country of the RSFSR → Soviet Union → RSFSR → Russia
Subordination Revolutionary military Council (RVS) and people's Commissariat for military and naval Affairs of the RSFSR, (until 1922)
Revolutionary military Council (RVS) and people's Commissariat for military and naval Affairs of the USSR, people's Commissariat of defense of the USSR, war Ministry, Ministry of defense of the USSR (1922-1991)
The Ministry of defence of the Russian Federation (1991 - 7 may 1992)
Part of the Armed Forces of the RSFSR
(until 1922)
Armed Forces of the USSR (1922-1991)
The armed Forces of the Russian Federation (1991-1992)
Function protection of the territorial integrity of the USSR
Motto For our Soviet Motherland!

Military uniform of the Soviet Army — items of uniform and equipment of the Soviet Army (formerly called the Workers 'and Peasants' red Army and the red Army), as well as the Rules of their wearing in the period from 1918 to 1991, established by the highest government bodies for the personnel of the Soviet Army.

Article 1. The right to wear military uniforms are servicemen who are on active military service in the Soviet Army and Navy, Suvorov, Nakhimov, pupils of military music schools, students of special boarding schools and military builders, as well as marshals, generals, officers, warrant officers and midshipmen who are in reserve or retired with the right to wear military uniforms.
- APPENDIX No. 1 to the order of The Minister of defence of the USSR of 1988 No. 250.

Content

1 civil war Period
    1.1 Spontaneous search for new solutions
    1.2 Attempts to organize and order uniforms of the red army
        1.2.1 form of the 1919 model
            1.2.1.1 Armbands of the armed forces
        1.2.2 Uniform for military personnel of the General staff of the red army
    1.3 the first regulation of the Soviet military uniform: January 1922
        1.3.1 New insignia and colors of the armed forces
        1.3.2 Changes in the shape of clothes
        1.3.3 Further innovations
2 1924-1935
    2.1 the New insignia. Changes in military colors
    2.2 form of clothing and its elements
        2.2.1 Uniforms of military pilots and aeronautical units
        2.2.2 New rules for wearing military uniforms
        2.2.3 "Colored caps" in the red army cavalry
    2.3 Special types of forms. Equipment.
3 1935-1940
    3.1 Colors of troops and services
    3.2 Uniforms command and commanding the composition of the red army
        3.2.1 Uniform komnachsostava of the air force and ABT.
        3.2.2 Summer off-duty uniform of the red army komnachsostava
    3.3 Uniforms of Junior commanders, cadets of military schools of the red army and the red army
    3.4 Changes in uniforms cavalry red army
    3.5 Special types of uniforms
    3.6 Changes in 1939-1940.
    3.7 film Incarnations
4 1940s-1950s
    4.1 Uniform of red army generals and Marshals of the Soviet Union
    4.2 Spring 1941
        4.2.1 Command and the political composition of the
        4.2.2 Sergeants, red army, cadets
    4.3 The first year of the war
    4.4 Introduction of new uniforms and insignia-January-February 1943
        4.4.1 shoulder Straps: shape and color
        4.4.2 Uniform of generals, marshals of military branches and Marshals of the Soviet Union
            4.4.2.1 Dress uniform of 1945
            4.4.2.2 Form Of Generalissimo Of The Soviet Union
        4.4.3 Uniform of red Army officers
        4.4.4 Uniform of soldiers, sergeants and petty officers, cadets of military schools
        4.4.5 Special types of uniforms
    4.5 post-War changes
        4.5.1 New commanders of the air force and Armored forces
    4.6 film Appearances
5 1950s
    5.1 Stage 1. Generals of the Soviet Army, marshals of aviation, arms and special forces, marshals of the Soviet Union
    5.2 Step 2. Officers Of The Soviet Army
    5.3 Step 3. Sergeants, cadets, petty officers and soldiers
    5.4 Some special types of forms
        5.4.1 Special ceremonial uniform: Separate Honor guard company
        5.4.2 Consolidated orchestra regiment of the Moscow garrison
    5.5 Failed "Zhukovsky" reform
    5.6 film Incarnations
6 1960s
    6.1 Generals and Marshals
    6.2 Officers
    6.3 supernumerary Sergeants and petty officers
    6.4 conscripts
    6.5 Special and special form
    6.6 New reform projects and experiments with uniforms
        6.6.1 Parade of November 7, 1967
    6.7 film Incarnations
7 1970s-1980s
    7.1 the Form of the Soviet Army the sample 1969
        7.1.1 Senior command staff
        7.1.2 Officers
        7.1.3 re-Enlisted
        7.1.4 conscripts
    7.2 Unification of colors
    7.3 ORPC
        7.3.1 musicians of the ORPK orchestra and the Consolidated orchestra regiment of the Moscow garrison
    7.4 Changes of the 1970s and 1980s
    7.5 Development of a new field form
    7.6 Uniform for officers and generals — representatives of the USSR defense Ministry abroad
    7.7 New uniform regulations 1988
    7.8 Outcome: new projects
    7.9 film Incarnations
8 See also
9 References
10 notes
11 References

During the Civil war

The prototype of the Workers 'and Peasants' red Army were the red guard detachments, which began to form after the February revolution of 1917, and the revolutionized parts of the Russian Imperial army RIA. The red guards did not have any established form of clothing, they were distinguished only by a red armband with the inscription "Red guard" and sometimes a red ribbon on the headdress. The soldiers wore the uniform of the old army, at first even with cockades and epaulettes, but with red bows under them and on the chest.
Spontaneous search for new solutions

When creating the red army actively used the remainder of the RIA huge stocks of uniforms held at the quartermaster warehouses throughout Russia. The red army was also allowed to wear civilian clothes with an indication of belonging to the red army (red ribbon, badge, etc.). The personnel of the red army mainly wore cloth caps, hats, protective shirts with a standing collar, cloth trousers tucked into boots or windings with boots, overcoats and coats. Equipment could be domestic (approx. 1907 or 1912 devolving) or foreign (English, French, American and even ... Austrian or German (the latter in conditions bloody carousel Civil war also not was rare)). Since 1919, British and American French jackets have been widely used. Commanders, Commissars, and political officers often wore leather caps and jackets. The hussar cavalrymen wore pants Chancery and Dolman, and Lancer jackets.
L. D. Trotsky in parts of the red army in 1918. Clearly visible the entire inconsistency in the uniforms of the red army (including the lack thereof).
Chairman of the RSFSR RVS L. Trotsky and N. Egorov during the review of cavalry units of the red army. 1919 Pay attention to the hussar dolmans of the red cavalrymen.
Images.png External images
Image-silk.png Commander of the red army in a tunic and equipment ar. 1912 For a belt-revolver "Nagan". On the chest is a sign of the commanders of the red army, on the cap - badge-badge is missing. One thousand nine hundred eighteen
Image-silk.png Cavalry unit. Unidentified (or privately installed) uniforms. One thousand nine hundred eighteen
Image-silk.png "a Red army officer-cadet". One thousand nine hundred twenty four
Image-silk.png Graduate Of 1 Machine gun courses. May 1, 1919 Pay attention to the Dirk, awarded to each graduate of educational institutions of the red army according to the order of the RVSR.
Image-silk.png Cavalry commanders of the red army in 1918-1920, clearly visible badges conacaste and hazing patches
Image-silk.png graduate AGSH in a special ceremonial uniform of the General staff of the red army. Moscow, autumn 1920 - 1921
Image-silk.png GALEEV Fedor Ivanovich, commander of the 1st squadron 63 kapolka 11 KAV. division, Knight of the order of the BKZ (PR. RVSR number 190, 1921). Staged open wings of the helmet, the sign of the red army command staff, uncovered binoculars, non-adjustable armbands.

However already in 1918 military-political leadership RSFSR has become clear the need the introduction of for red army regulated forms clothing.

Its first element was a protective color cloth helmet with a star, approved by the order of the revvoensoveta of the Republic of January 16, 1919 and received the unofficial name "bogatyrka". It began to wear the red army Ivanovo-Voznesensk, where at the end of 1918 was formed detachment MV Frunze. She later received the name "frunzivka" and then "budenovka"[1].