A combination of widespread mistrust of standing armies and a desire to not spend money, meant that the US Congress kept the size of the army in the first half of the 19th century extremely low, limiting it to no more than 6,000 men in 1821, for example. Only during periods of war, such as against Mexico, did the numbers rise significantly, which meant that when some military action was planned, the regulars had to call on local militia and civilian volunteers to make up the numbers. Thus during the Seminole Wars (roughly between 1816 and 1858), a large part of the deployed forces were short-term volunteers – over 30,000 were employed during the second war alone. Since the Seminoles used guerilla tactics, their small numbers could threaten a very wide area, requiring not only front line troops but also escorts and garrisons, which is how many such volunteers were used, though they also fought in many actions big and small. They suffered in the hot and swampy terrain of Florida, and many died of disease and heat prostration, but their contribution was essential.

Some state militia had varying amounts of uniform, but many volunteers turned out in whatever clothes they thought best suited service in the field, and were issued just weapons and basic equipment. This is basically what we find in this set, with a good variety of clothing presenting a pleasingly motley appearance. The headgear includes a number of round hats, some softer brimmed hats, and several peaked caps that look much like the military issue first made in 1825, or more likely the later 1839 model, but of course could just as easily be of civilian manufacture. Descriptions at the time also mention foraging caps of animal fur, and one figure in the bottom row wears such an item, called a mocknuter, which was common issue to militia, so we would have liked to have seen a bit more of this here. Clothing is just as varied, and several men are in shirt sleeves, some with a waistcoat as well, which fits with the often hot and humid climate in which they toiled. Another popular item was the hunting shirt, which several of these figures appear to wear, and the rest have an assortment of different coats, including the last figure, an officer, who looks to be wearing a standard Army frock coat (US military wear from 1832), as some militia officers did, although they generally did not do so when in the presence of the enemy as it made them obvious targets for marksmen. Indeed, this officer also has epaulettes at the shoulders, a sash around the waist, and a sword (a useless weapon in this conflict) from a belt, which would have been a very unwise choice of wardrobe once on campaign, but perfectly possible when safely at base. By the time of the first war, trousers were normal everyday wear for men, and all here wear them, mostly with shoes or over boots, though a few wear visible long boots. By the later wars more militia had a recognisable uniform, and perhaps some elements here might be more appropriate to the later years of the period (such as the peaked caps), but overall everything here is authentic.

Weapons and kit was often supplied by the state, even to volunteers, but was nonetheless often quite varied, and many volunteers preferred to bring their own. All but the officer are armed with a musket, and in as far as the detail allows, all look fine to us. One man even has a bayonet attached, but that displays considerable optimism as the Indians seldom stayed around long enough to be attacked hand-to-hand, although every man would have carried a knife of some sort, several of which are visible here. A few men also carry a tomahawk – a far more useful weapon than a bayonet – and a couple also have a pistol, which is reasonable. Kit is fairly minimal – mostly a cartridge pouch and a haversack or bag, but we were surprised that so many figures lack any visible canteen, an essential item, especially if campaigning in the summer Florida heat. The men’s burden could be considerably greater than this, as the terrain made logistics difficult, but as these are all in action, their light appearance makes sense. So apart from the officer’s dress sword everything here would have been seen during a fight.

All the figures are in fighting poses, with the majority using their musket. There are a couple of advancing figures, and others in various action stances, so there are no poses here that seem inappropriate to the subject. None seem to be in hand-to-hand combat, which as we have said is good, although the lack of a marching/walking pose is perhaps a shame. Our favourite pose is the man in the top row spitting a ball down his musket – a fairly common occurrence, but not taught to trained soldiers, so nice to see it here. The poses are not particularly flat, and quite lively, so good choices all.

For those familiar with the whole Strelets range, these figures remind us of their sets for the Boer Wars, as the proportions are good, and the detail is not bad, but not as sharp or refined as their best output. Occasionally we felt some detail could have been a bit better, and there were slightly too many perfectly smooth surfaces, but these are not bad figures, and they should paint up nicely. The faces are basic but okay, and the officer has been given a fine moustache and long whiskers, which gives him more character than the rest of the men. On our example we found some of the seams were nice and clean, but there were also a fair number of areas with noticeable amounts of flash, though no large blocks of ‘hidden’ plastic needing to be removed.

This is a workmanlike set from Strelets, which delivers some useful poses in a range of costumes that are accurate and reasonably typical, although some may well be more suitable for the later wars as we have said. The officer is the hardest to accept, since he is too obvious with his various marks of rank, although some modellers like their officers to be easily identified like this, and he does at least hold a pistol (for which he has no holster) rather than his sword. Most will probably find the standard of sculpting good enough for their purposes, so in general this set delivers what it should. Perhaps just as important, it does offer many uses beyond the Seminole wars. As these men are basically civilian in appearance, they could be used for all manner of other purposes, such as civilian hunters or raiders, Texian rebels, ‘Bleeding Kansas’ gangs and all manner of other possibilities up to the Civil War. That can only help sales, and please the widest possible audience, which is always a good thing, especially when the intended subject is one that is less well-known generally. However, should you be modelling any of the Seminole Wars themselves, then this set is an obvious place to start, and a good start it would be.