Not the Hidalgo Don Quitoxe and his side kick Sancho Panza but the “Lanceros de la Mancha”.

There is some dispute about the existence of this unit and what side it fought on. Aaron Martinet wrongly attributed them to the army of King Joseph, but the unit was definitely not a work of fiction like that of Miguel de Cervantes.

Recent research indicates that Aaron Martinet made a mistake when he identified a unit called “lanceros de la Mancha” as one of Jospeh’s army. It was in fact a “Bourbon” Spanish unit, raised by the Junta and bearing the monogram of Ferdinand VII on their shabraques.

I have had this unit, amongst a whole lot of French Lancers, almost finished for some time thinking it was in French service. I will now add it to my Spanish units. It is good just to get some of these units out of the box, finished and on to the shelves to join my Sharpe Practice collection. So much for the project list.

Let’s hope they do not come across a windmill on the table!