The Story Behind Britains Toy Soldiers

William Britain began making toy soldiers more than a hundred years ago in 1893. Their original toy soldiers were made of lead using their famous hollowcast method. These soldiers were hollow on the inside which allowed W. Britain to use less metal in each soldier. By using less metal, the company saved money on materials and this saved money was passed on to the customer in more competitive pricing.

In the 1960’s, however, W. Britain’s lead toy soldiers took a big hit to production. William Britain had produced thousands of sets of lead toy soldiers up to this point but the cost of lead rose and UK increased safety regulations on lead. These factors stopped production of Britains’ famous lead toy soldiers. William Britain shifted their manufacturing focus. For more than 10 years, Britains focused their production on plastic soldiers and other toys.

In 1973, Britains began producing a new kind of metal toy soldiers. They were originally intended to be toys but eventually became collectors items. These figurines were die cast in metal alloy and these are the toy soldiers that W. Britain produces today. Die casting is a way of forming metal figures. A molten metal is poured into a cavity to form each figurine. These smart production methods and Britains renowned attention to detail are part of what have made them such a success today!

The process of creating a Britain toy soldier has also evolved over their years of production into a finely crafted process. These extremely detailed and accurate soldiers come from a strict series of steps for production. An idea for a toy soldier is sketched out with special attention to proportions of the figurines and perspective. Historians and historical books then validate the details of each soldier from their clothes to their hair. Toy soldier visions are brought to life by creating wax figures of the drawings then creating molds from the wax figures. Lead-free pewter is poured into the molds then these metal figurines are hand painted with realistic details.

So much attention is paid to the vision and creation of each W. Britain piece that it is no wonder these soldiers are considered some of the finest in the world.

Britains began as a family company and remained so for decades. But the company was sold for the first time in 1984. When Dennis Britain decided to retire, W. Britain was sold to The Dobson Park Group. The Britain company changed hands many times over the next 20 years going from Dobson to Ertl to Racing Champions and finally to First Gear. First Gear owns W. Britain today.

Toy soldiers have been a collector’s item for people of all ages for more than 100 years. It’s no wonder why when these lifelike figurines give collectors a little piece of history and an attractive set to show off. It is also no wonder why so many of these collectors choose W. Britain soldiers to build their collection. These meticulously manufactured figurines are of the highest quality available down to the last detail.

The Toymaker of Williamsburg has a huge selection of Britains Toy Soldiers and Collectible Figurines. Also check out our blog.