Founded by William Britain, Jr. in 1893, Britain’s is the most well-known and collected toy soldier producer of all-time. William Britain revolutionized the industry by inventing a hollow-casting process for lead soldiers that lowered cost and made the figures more widely accessible. The company was incorporated in 1907 as “Britains, Ltd” and was capable of producing millions of figures per year by the 1930’s. After WW II, the cost of metal and rise of plastic products led to a transition towards plastic products by the 1950’s. The use of plastic allowed for additional lines such as the Swoppets with allowed for interchangeable parts in 1954. The Deetail line was launched in 1971 with plastic figures featuring hand-painted details and metal bases that were produced through the 1980’s as an homage to the original figures. After the company was sold in 1984 to a British Conglomerate, the name was changed to “Britains Petite, Ltd”. Later production up to current times, has focused on the production of high-quality toy soldiers produced in China targeting collectors.
Britains Gallery
While Britains has had extensive production over the years, range of sets is actually limited. One of the rarer sets is included below. Britains produced an “Air Raid Precautions” set (set #1759) that featured toy soldiers representing first aid and rescue servcies, including a stretcher party, a gas detector man, and sometimes other figure like ARP wardens and firefighters. These sets, produced before and during World War II, were based on the real civilian volunteers who helped protect communities during bombing raids by performing duties like enforcing blackouts, providing first aid, and rescuing people from damaged buildings. Vehicles are listed in a different post as well as the later plastic lines produced by Britains.
N Joplin. The Great Book of Hollow-Cast Figures. New Cavendish Books, 1993.
J Wallis. Soliders of Greater Britain: Britains Limited Lead Soldiers, 1893-1924. Joe Wallis, 2016.
J Wallis. Armies of the World: Britains Ltd Lead Soldiers, 1925-1941. Joe Wallis, 1992
J Wallis. Regiments of All Nations: Britains Limited Lead Soldiers, 1946-1966. Joe Wallis, 2010.
