Gerona 1684 : General of the garrison, Juan Domingo Pignatelli

 Hello guys, 

This is probably the last post of the year,  a command vignette, well, mini vignette, with Domingo Pignatelli, the commander of the Spanish forces at Gerona in 1684, with a grenadier bodyguard.

The miniatures are both Dixon miniatures, one of the is converted into a grenadier using a plastic head of the ex Wargames Factory WSS range, now boxed by Warlord Games. Also shoulder ribbons were added. 

Juan Domingo Pignatelli was appart from the commander of the garrison, an Artillery General (general de artillería),  so I used a siege engineer for depicting him, in armor, with his red sash and a painted paper map.

He was Marquis de San Vicente (Amendolara,Italy , 7.III.1640 – La Coruña, 25.VIII.1703). He was member of one of the Catalan branches of the Pignatelli lineage, one of the oldest and most relevant of the Kingdom of Naples, he was the son of Jaime Pignatelli, lord of Casalnovo, Duke of Bellosguard. He lived in Barcelona since 1660, there he married in 1675 with Ana de Aymerich, a native of Barcelona, ​​like his parents Bernardo de Aymerich Cruilles, lord of the places of Rajadel, Ayguafreda and others, and María Argensola.

Domingo, started his military career in Milan, and also was a veteran of the Wars against Portugal and Franco Dutch War. he was appointed governor of Gerona, where he distinguished himself during the French siege of 1684. In 1686, Domenico became capitán general of the cavalry of the army of Catalonia, and successively was appointed maestre de campo general and viceroy of Navarre. He continued his career, holding the same office in Galicia

The grenadier is a Dixon miniatures musketeer from League of Augsburg War, with flintlock musket, converted after Bruno Mugnai's illustration featured in the book by Helion  featuring the Spanish Army. So a head swap was done with a plastic head from Wargames Factory.

"The presence of this kind of weapon in the Spanish arsenal dates back to the first half of the century, and the presence of a company of granaderos, under the Captain Don Pedro Ramos, is already recorded in Galicia in 1662. This unit served alongside the artillery as a free company raised for siege tasks. However, it was only between 1684 and 1685 that the first permanent companies of Spanish

grenadiers appeared on the battlefield.

 The initiative is attributed to the Marquis of Cabezudo, the author of a ‘memorial’ addressed to Carlos II, who asked the King to be appointed captain of the first grenadier company. The King sent the request to the Duke of Bournonville, Viceroy of Catalonia, who confirmed the request to raise companies of grenadiers, who were the first to receive flintlock muskets." 

(Bruno Mugnai) from book :

                                               

Cheers!