Bolt Action France

2 box sets · 19 kits we track

France's 1940 army, and the Free French who fought on after it fell - two different uniforms for two different chapters of the same war.

The French Army of 1940 fielded huge numbers of infantry and some of the best-armoured tanks of the campaign - the thick-skinned Char B1 bis and the cast-turreted Somua S35 among them - but lost the battle for reasons no wargame really captures. After the surrender, Free French forces re-formed abroad, equipped and uniformed by Britain and the United States and marked out by the Cross of Lorraine. That gives painters two distinct projects under one flag: the 1940 army in its mustard-khaki tunics and Adrian helmets, or the later Free French in British battledress or American olive drab with French insignia over the top. The rounded, riveted hulls of French 1940 tanks are also worth the attention - they look nothing like the boxier designs either side of them.

On the table: A mid-sized force with genuinely strong tanks for its era, fielded by two visually distinct armies depending on which year you choose.