How to Approach Collecting and Researching Britains Soldiers Regiments Of All Nations
Britains Soldiers Regiments Of All Nations was a line of toy soldier figurines produced by Britains Ltd starting in the late 1950s and running through the early 1970s. They were cast in tin-lead alloy and marketed primarily as educational collectibles rather than playthings. The figures represented military units from various countries including British, American, French, German, Japanese, and others, usually depicted in period-correct uniforms. The tricky part is that Britains used different base markings over the years. Early pieces from the late 1950s will have the "Britains" trademark stamped on the base along with a country name. By the mid-1960s they switched to numbered catalog references, and the later Revell-owned runs (post-1970) had yet another marking scheme. If you are buying figures individually, those base marks are your only way to confirm authenticity versus the many reproductions that flooded the market in the 1980s and again more recently. I spent years dealing with misattributed lots. The most annoying problem I ran into was figuring out which version of a specific officer figure you had. Take the British Officer Northumberland Regiment for example. The 1959 version has a distinct hat plume shape and the bayonet is attached differently from the 1964 re-release. Without checking the base stamp and comparing the mold details side by side, it is very easy to list something incorrectly. My workaround was to maintain a photo reference library and measure the figure heights against a caliper. The 1959 Northumberland officer stands at roughly 54mm while the later version is closer to 52mm. That two-millimeter difference, combined with the base text, resolved nearly all my attribution problems.
The Production History You Need to Know
Britains started as a die-cast toy company in Leeds in 1893. The Soldiers of All Nations line came much later as part of a push to diversify beyond their traditional British and Napoleonic ranges. The figures were not made in Britain anymore by that point. Production had moved to a factory in Taiwan, which explains why the metal composition and casting quality varied significantly compared to the older UK-made figures. The tin-lead content shifted too, with post-1968 pieces containing less lead due to changing regulations in the US market where Revell was selling heavily. One thing collectors consistently get wrong is the assumption that all Soldiers of All Nations figures share the same sculpt quality. They do not. The first few years from 1959 to about 1962 used higher quality molds and better finishing. After that, surface detail became softer and paint applications grew more rushed. This matters when you are assessing value. A 1960 German Jäger figure in original box with sharp detail will command significantly more than the same figure from 1967 with faded paint and worn mold lines.
Where to Find Information and Resources
There is no official website from the original manufacturer since the line was discontinued. What exists online comes from collector communities and independent researchers. The main resource is the Britains Society, which maintains forums and publishes periodic journals with catalog cross-references. Their materials are scattered across different volumes so you need to cross-reference manually. For someone wanting to build a reference collection, I would suggest starting with the published catalogs. The most useful are the 1961, 1964, and 1968 Britains catalog reprints that are available through specialist dealers. These show exactly which figures were offered in each year and at what price point. The 1968 catalog is particularly important because it shows the transition period when Revell was absorbing the brand and beginning to phase out some of the regiments while introducing new ones.
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Common Pitfalls for New Collectors
The biggest issue is paint condition. Original paint on these figures is soft and chips easily, especially on the uniform buttons and belt buckles where the paint was applied as a simple wash rather than individual hand-detailing. Many figures you will encounter have been refinished, sometimes badly. A refinished figure loses roughly sixty to seventy percent of its collector value. The telltale signs are paint that looks too glossy, colors that are slightly off from the catalog images, and painted-on details that lack the crisp edges of factory application. Another trap is assuming all boxed sets are valuable. The large boxed presentation sets from the mid-1960s are far more common than most people realize. Britains produced thousands of them for department store sales. A complete set in good box condition might fetch fifty to one hundred and twenty pounds depending on the regiment included. The real money is in individual rare figures or incomplete sets with missing pieces from the scarcer regiments like the Japanese or Brazilian units.
Maintaining and Storing the Figures
Store them away from direct sunlight. The paint fades noticeably within a few years of UV exposure. Keep them in a stable environment with moderate humidity because the metal can develop a surface oxidation that is difficult to remove without damaging the paint. I use acid-free tissue paper between figures in storage and keep them in sealed plastic containers with a silica gel packet. This has kept my collection stable for over a decade with no visible degradation. If you want to clean dirty figures, do not use harsh chemicals or abrasive pads. A soft brush with distilled water and a drop of mild dish soap applied gently will remove surface grime without affecting the paint. Dry immediately and thoroughly. Never soak them.
