Working through my orders of battle for Barnet (1471) I realised that I needed a few more Lancastrian archers. As I had plenty of spares in my box of plastic Perry Wars of the Roses figures, I set to work.
I wanted them to be able to slot in with any contingent so I painted them relatively generically with no banner.
One man wears the Earl of Oxford’s tawny (brownish orange) livery with blue boar badge. Oxford was one of the very few Lancastrian notables to make it all the way though the Wars of the Roses and come out on the other side in one piece. This means than men wearing his livery can happily fight in many of the Wars of the Roses battles.
Two men wear John Lord Scrope’s white livery with Cornish chough badge (a crow with red bill and feet). Scrope was another survivor. Originally a Yorkist he was loyal to the Earl of Warwick and switched allegiance when Warwick changed sides to fight against King Edward at Barnet. Then Scrope switched back to the Yorkists making it through the wars despite his support for Richard III and Lambert Simnel.
Although on the same side at Barnet, Oxford and Scrope were on opposite sides at Bosworth and Stoke. I have, therefore put the liveried men on different bases so they can easily be switched to join other contingents.
I love having an excuse to use figures out of the spares box! And once again I really like your colour choices. The livery badges, especially the chough badges, are particularly well executed.