In this image from 1789, the three figures in the foreground of the image personify the three

4^GL 2018/2019

In 1795, Jean Lecomte du Nouy painted the Supper of Beaucaire.

This painting is inspired to a pamphlet written by Napoleon in 1793 in which he represented a real conversation between him and 4 merchants. His goal was to keep them quite from the French Revolution that was in a critical moment. In fact, there was a bloody civil war and Napoleon himself was involved in some battles against some cities of southern France.

The setting is a room in which we can see a man (Napoleon) standing near a table and 4 men sitting. These man seem to be a little bit scared but fascinated by Napoleon, who is talking to them and telling them that they have to have faith in this Revolution.

In the background we see a woman, who is tidying some clothes but she is listening to Napoleon too, sign of his incredible Charisma.

Emile Jean Horacle Vernet, French painter born in Paris in 1789 and died in 1863, depicted the battle of Arcole Bridge in 1796.

The battle took place in the little town of Arcole near Verona (Italy) between November 15th and 17th 1796; this battle was so important for Napoleon’s life because exactly there started the First Campaign in Italy during the first Coalition War. In this event the protagonists were two formations: the French Army, led by Napoleon Bonaparte, and the Austrian Army, led by the general Joseph Alvinezj.

The French army was nailed by the Austrian barrage right on the Arcole bridge. With a stratagem Napoleon defeated the Austrian army, which folded with a ruinous retreat towards Vicenza, allowing his troops to join those of General Andrea Massena.

The images are characterized by the solidity of the color, which tends for its own vitality to restrict the visual field on the cluster tangled by the French troops on the same as the figure of the leader Napoleone Bonaparte who wields the French tricolor.

The painting was painted in 1810 by the famous author Jean-Pierre Franque. It rappresents an allegory of the state of France after that the English army prevented their retreat.

In the foreground we can see the two main figures, on the left, there is Napoleon sitting under a tree in his uniform. On the right corner there is a woman pointing at him. She rappresents the state, that needs his general after a tremendous defeat. Furthermore we can see some other figures behind the woman, they constitute all the threats by the enemies, against France. Indeed, this explains why Napoleon is about to draws his sword, ready to fight for his homeland.

In the background we can see some pyramids in the mist, that reminds us of the location: Egypt.

Clearly this panting represents the failed attempt of France to control England by conquering Egypt and the require of the state of its general, who had to withdraw after the arrival of the English army.

The scene is set in a mosque of which we can see its yard and minaret. The structure of the painting is divided into two groups thanks to the alternation of light and darkness. Napoleon, the main character, is in the middle of the scene accompanied by a doctor and a general of the french army. As regard the victims, their bodies represent the classical art.

Darkness dominates the second group: the characters are sad and powerless; on the left we can see a group of arabic soldiers. Always on the left there are symbols of the arabic architecture and a man, worn with typical asiatic clothes, is giving some bred to the victims.On the right Napoleon is touching the wound of a men and, thanks to the light, this gesture stands out.

In the foreground there are some bodies which are lying on the floor covered by blankets.

In the background, apart from the arches, which symbolize the culture of the land, we can see the walls of Jaffa and from a hill sticks out the french flag, that represents the recent conquest.

This scene represents the sack of Jaffa on 17th March 1799, during this period 1500 soldiers out of 13000 caught the plague and the majority of them died after a while. Napoleon went to Egypt in order to destroy the english military base and his desire was to take the possession of the commercial route to Asia. At first he succeed in doing this but, after Nelson’s intervention, who destroyed the entire navy during a night, the army was lost and isolated in the egyptian desert. In conclusion, Napoleon returned to France leaving this disastrous campaign.

The author of the painting, who is Antoine Gros, wanted to underline the importance of Napoleon signaling he had never abandoned his army.

On the 9th November 1799, which was the 18th Brumaire of the year VIII according to the French Republican Calendar, General Napoleon Bonaparte became First Consul of France thanks to a coup d’etat. For most historians this event ended the French Revolution. It was bloodless and overthrew the Directory replacing it with the French Consulate.
The painting by F. Bouchot, which is preserved in Versailles castle, shows the very moment in which Bonaparte entered the 500 Council supported by his followers in one hand but attacked and insulted by his enemies on the other.
The most attractive feature of this painting is the supremacy of the color red, which was the color of the napoleonic military uniform. Red is a color which symbolizes strength and passion, things that were typical of Napoleon’s personality.
The painting is though pervaded by red which means that the event portrayed was pervaded by Napoleon’s deed which had a central importance in French history.

Painting origins
“Napoléon Fiat sworn in as consul” was painted in 1799 from Auguste Couder, a French painter and officer of the theLégion d’honnour.

Painting description
The painting represents a french assembly, the foreground shows Napoléon, in a dominant pose, and four main deputes, that seems vexed, together with some secondary figures. The background shows more deputes and the walls with some 700’s frescoes. The main colors are red, blu (uniform’s colors) and gold together with some green.

Historical context
In 1799 the Directory was a government in decline, corrupt and hated by the French. Some of the Directors solicited Bonaparte’s return from Egypt, who agreed to help them overthrow the government. On 18 Brumaire, the two legislative assemblies were moved to the Château de Saint Cloud under the pretext that they needed protection from a potential plot. Bonaparte was charged with the protection of deputes, bet he made a mess with a confused speech. Some days later the constitution for a new, provisional government was passed. Revealing his political ambitions, Bonaparte imposed himself as candidate for First Consul. Under the new constitution he could name not only the members of the “Ancient council” who drafted the laws, but also ministers, ambassadors, army officers and judges. The “Tribunal” and the “legislative corps” were charged with the voting of the laws and the “senate” was the ‘guardian’ of the constitution.

In this painting Napoleon is collocated in the foreground, while riding a rearing horse. The equestrian portraits were famous between royals because they underlined their majesty and authority. In the background, on the other hand, we can see some mountains and the French troops transporting a cannon. This landscape is used as a setting for the hero and not as a subject itself. On the bottom left of the painting, for instance, there is a rock where Napoleon’s name is carved beside the names of Hannibal and Charlemagne. (two other important figures that led their armies over the Alps.) Napoleon’s figure dominates the painting and his hand, without the glove on, points at the background. With this the painter seems to suggest that this man has the ability and the capacity to do whatever he wants.

The painting was completed around 1800–1801, when France, after a decade of terror following the revolution, was emerging again as a great power. Napoleon was the principal reason why this happened, installing himself as First Council, becoming one of the most powerful men in the country. This portrait commemorates when, in 1800, Napoleon led his troops across the Alps in a campaign against the Austrians, that ended with the French victory. The painting was commissioned by Charles IV, the king of Spain.

This famous representation of Napoleon’s coronation was painted by the french painter Jacques-Louis David, in 1804. This painting is officially entitled The Coronation of the Emperor Napolean I and the Crowning of the Empress Joséphine in Notre-Dame Cathedral on December 2, 1804.

David was the official painter during the French Revolution; he was commissioned by Napoleone Bonaparte to paint this memorable moment. As we can clearly see, David decided to include lots of details in it and it took him two years to finish it.

Description
A large number of almost life-size figures are present in the Notre-Dame Cathedral for the coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte. This painting is one of the largest works in the Louvre. Napoleon is the person in the middle holding the crown, and the painting shows the moment that Napoleon is about to place the crown on the head of his wife Joséphine who is kneeling on a pillow. Napoleon is wearing his coronation robe, which is similar to the robes worn by Roman emperors. The person sitting to the right of Napoleon is Pope Pius VII. He is observing and blessing the coronation but is participating involuntarily under the pressure of Napoleon. The woman in the white dress sitting on a chair in the center of the painting is the mother of Napoleon. In the left foreground, you can see the two identically dressed (with the black hats) brothers of Napoleon, Joseph (on the left) and Louis (on the right). To the right of Napoleon’s brothers are his three sisters (also identically dressed). From left to right, Caroline, Pauline, and Elisa. To the right of his sisters, and again similarly dressed, are Hortense (the daughter of Joséphine) and Julie Clary (the wife of Joseph Bonaparte).

The predominant colours are red, white and gold; in the background we can also see huge and long blue curtains covering the majestic frescos. When we look at the background, we can also identify Jacques-Louis David who decided to paint himself as he was actually present at this event. Eventually, looking at the people’s expressions around both sides, it is impossible not to notice their serious and steady faces, signifying the importance of this event.

Historical context
This painting captures an important event in history, and Jacques-Louis David was in the audience that day. On December 2, 1804, the 35-year-old Napoleon Bonaparte crowned himself during a five-hour ceremony as the first Emperor of France, and he crowned his 41-year-old wife Joséphine to be the first Empress. Before the French Revolution of 1789, France was a monarchy. The revolution turned France into a republic. In this painting, you see the moment that Napoleon turned France back into a monarchy. He brought in Pope Pius VII from Rometo bless him at the event. The painting is a fairly accurate representation of history, but not everything in the painting is true. Several details are changed to favor Napoleon. For example, the mother of Napoleon, Letizia Bonaparte, was in Rome during the coronation, but still received a prominent place in this painting. His brother Joseph on the left was also not present at the event.

“Napoleon I on his Imperial Throne” is a portrait painted by the French painter Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres in 1806.
It is one of the best-known representations of Emperor Napoleon I in his coronation costume during the “Sacre” at Notre Dame de Paris in December 1804.

This painting shows Napoleon seated on a circular throne decorated with bees, which are a symbol of the Empire.
The Emperor wears the laurel crown (similar to the one worn by Caesar) that, with the purple velvet cloak, recall the Emperor Augustus, founder of the Roman Empire.
In his right hand he holds the sceptre of Charlemagne, while in the other hand he has the rod of justice.
Napoleon also wears an ermine hood under the necklace of the Legion d’Honneur.
Below the throne there is a carpet in which we can see a eagle that represents the imperial power, the scales, symbol of justice and a cryptic signature of the artist (INGRES P).
Instead, in the background we can see two coats of arms of the Kingdom of Italy.
At last we can say that this Napoleon can be read as a figure with an almost divine power, indeed he is seated in a position similar to that of the Greek god Zeus with one arm raised and the other at rest.

“Napoleon in his study” is a portrait painted by Jacques-Louis David in 1812, which has been kept in Washington D.C.’s National Gallery of Art since 1954.

This painting shows Napoleon in 1804 in the foreground, standing in the middle of his study at the Tuileries. The Emperor is depicted three-quarters life size, wearing a white and blue uniform with some red details, which was the uniform of a colonel of the Imperial Guard.
Furthermore, he is wearing his Legion d’honneur, that was the highest French order of merit for military and civil merits, and the symbol of the Order of the Iron Crown, an order of knights. Napoleon is near a chair, similar to a throne, where we can see the golden hilt of his sword, that refers back to his military successes.
As it regards the background, some objects and a part of the forniture of
his study are represented: we can notice a desk, on which several
books, dossiers and rolled papers are piled. Also,on the green velvet
carpet we can glimpse a book and a rolled paper signed by the painter,
who wrote “LDV DAVID OPVS 1812” on it. Meaningful is the
representation of a clock in front of the wall, which indicates the time
(4.13 am): this is meant to imply Napoleon has been up all night, writing
laws and the “Code Napoleon”.
The “Code Napoleon” or “Napoleonic Code” was the French civil code
established under Napoleon in 1804, which had the aim to replace the
previous patchwork of feudal laws. Through this code, the Emperor
reformed the legal system in accordance with the revolutionary ideas
and made laws clearer and more accessible to anyone, dealing with
comun rights and individual liberism.
It was published in 1806, year in which Napoleon also created the
Public School, managed by the State in order to avoid private lessons:
teachers were chosen directly by the State and they had to teach to the
students the national values and the imperial ideology. The purpose of
Napoleon was to build a modern education system more flexible and
suitable to French necessities.

Thanks to his reforms and his government, Napoleon was celebrate by
a lot of people, including the Scottish nobleman Alexander Hamilton,
who commissioned this portrait.

Napoleon, three-quarters facing to the right, is wearing the «petit habillement» (undress costume), one similar to that worn for the coronation in Notre-Dame, but embroidered on green rather than purple velvet, a green velvet coak ( with some gold and white details) and white and gold gloves.

The emperor is wearing the laurel crown of the Emperor of the French, created by Biennais, His hand rests on the crown of the King of Italy and he is wearing the Grand Collar, badge and sash of the Légion d’honneur. Absent from this painting are the crowns of the Lombard Kings (today in the Cathedral of Monza) and the insignia relating to the order of the same name, founded after Napoleon’s coronation. About twenty versions exist of this painting, produced by Appiani and his students. Notable versions are held by the Schatzkammer in Vienna, Dalmeny House in Scotland, and the Museo del Risorgimento in Milan.

Just as French artists were commissioned to immortalise the figure of the emperor after the coronation, so too Italian painters leapt into action after the proclamation in Paris of Napoleon as King of Italy on 17 March 1805 and the coronation in Milan on 26 May. And for the official portrait, Napoleon turned to the most famous of Milanese painters, Andrea Appiani. The result was a traditional expression of the all-powerfulness of a monarch bearing the attributes of power.

Appiani’s relations with Napoleon had begun in 1796 during the First Italian Campaign, Appiani was the principal exponent Neoclassicism and he was called the « painter of the Graces » because he was famous for his talent as a fresco painter and he was even compared to Raphael. His paintings of Bonaparte begun in 1796 using sketches but When he received the title of «First Painter» in 1805, the artist painted this famous portrait of Napoleon as King of Italy, known in several versions.

All the Italian states lost their autonomy/ independence, the Ciasalpia republic become the first Italian Republic and then Kingdon of Italy in 1805.

The Marche became part of the Italian kingdom in April 1808. Liguria was directly annexed to France on June 4, 1805, as was Tuscany in March 1808. In 1809 Napoleon abolished the temporal power of the papacy and annexed Rome and the remainder of the Papal States to France. Pope Pius VII responded by excommunicating Napoleon, who in response held the pontiff prisoner, first in France and later in the Ligurian town of Savona.

Napoleon directly controlled all of northern and central Italy. During his rule, far-reaching reforms were instituted. Although the new Italian legal codes were translated almost verbatim from the French with little regard for Italian traditions, they introduced a modern jurisprudence responsive to the rights of the individual citizen. Properties held in mortmain, the old feudal ecclesiastical tenure (specifically those of the regular clergy), were transferred to the state and sold. The remaining feudal rights and jurisdictions were abolished. Roads were improved everywhere, and both primary and higher education were strengthened. In return for higher taxes, Italians thus gained a network of new and improved services that were to hasten Italian social and economic progress and cohesion

The “first distribution of the legion d’honneur” is a painting of the French artist Jean-Baptiste Debret painted in the 1804. The picture depicts Napoleon giving the first insignia of the legion of honor during the first investiture ceremony. The lights focuses our attention on a chevalier receiving the cross of honor and Napoleon. During the French revolution, all of the French orders of chivalry were abolished and replaced with weapons of honor. It was the wish of Napoleon to create a reward to commend civilians and soldiers. From this wish was instituted a Legion d’honneur, a body of men that was not an order of chivalry, for Napoleon believed that France wanted a recognition of merit rather than a new system of nobility. However, the legion did use the organization system of the old chivalry orders, for examples the Ordre of Sant-Louis

The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805), also known as the Battle of
the Three Emperors, was one of the most important and decisive
engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. In what is widely regarded as the
greatest victory achieved by Napoleon, the Grande Armée of France
defeated a larger Russian and Austrian army led by Emperor Alexander
I and Holy Roman Emperor Francis II.
The Battle of Austerlitz is a painting made by François Gérard in 1810.
It’s very big: The height is of 510cm and the width is 958cm.
The composition is broad and balanced,but not so easy as it could
seem.
In the foreground there’s General Jean Rapp,who is showing to
Napoleon the standards taken from the enemy.There’re also dead or
wounded soldiers on the dirt that are trying to stand.
In the background there’re clouds and there’s also a town on the left
corner. The colors of the sky and of the light are divided in two parts:on
the right there’re dark hues:black,dark grey and dark blue. On the left
there’re pale hues:yellow, red,pink and white;During the battle the
weather was very cloudy and dark,dark,but when Napoleon won the
battle the weather started being sunny: it’s an allegory to say that
Napoleon could bring positive ideals to the zones he
conquered,conquered, and also that he could bring the “light” to the
countries that are backward.

Charles Meynier (1768/1832) decided to paint the triumphal entrance of Napoleon in Berlin, on the 27th of October 1806, using the ‘oil on canvas’ technique.

The painter managed to represent this moment emphasizing Napoleon’s glory, indeed as we can see, the main figure is him, in the centre of this work; every single person is turned towards him, in order to exalt his magnificence and make the observer focus on his person.

Meynier represented lots and lots of people around Napoleon, that’s why the painting might look a little confused at first sight, but by the use of bright colors the painter was able to transmit more tranquillity and solemnity.

In the background, excluding the huge crow, we can instantly notice an architectural element: Brandenburg Gate, which represents and reminds the moment in which Napoleon went through it after his victory on the battlefield.

The principal figure is of course Napoleon, but also marshal Davout’s troops, that are gathered around him, contribute to build the historical background: the General has gone to Berlin after winning Auerstaedt Battle and everyone congratulated on this heroic act.

Moreover, in Berlin Napoleon dictated some proclamations to his Great Army, exalting and motivating his soldiers, too.

In 1806 Napoleon was already Emperor of France and King of Italy, getting ready to face the fourth European coalition (Prussia, Russia and England) against him.

“Napoleon on the battlefield of Eylau” is a painting of Antoine-Jean Gros of 1807 that now is preserved in Louvre Museum in Paris.

In this work is represented a scene of the brutal and bloody battle of Eylau ,in Russia, between the Great Army of Napoleon and the Russians, that ended with the French win, even if the result is still uncertain.

In the foreground there is Napoleon on his horse, but not with his proudly attitude that he used to have, but with a clear exhausted and shocked expression because of the sight of the conditions that the battle brought to. With the gesture of his hand, he asks to help the uncountable number of hurt or dead men that surrounds him.

In the background the landscape is ruined, empty, and covered with snow: this elements want to improve the melancholy and the exasperation of the scenery through Napoleon’s sight.

The colours are mainly gloomy and faded, white triumphs above all and it isn’t much illuminated, everything has a dark atmosphere.

The message and the aim of this painting is to underline the emotional and human part of Napoleon, an emperor that even in the victories doesn’t forget the real important values of the human being.

Napoleon started his expansionist policy in Italy, creating the “Sisters Republics”, that were connected with France, and many Italian regions were included, from North to South. The italian lands were ruled by Napoleon, who proclaimed himself king of Italy in 1805. The next year, the reign of Naples was dispatched to Bonaparte’s brother, Giuseppe and then to his brother-in-law, Gioacchino Murat. Giuseppe Bonaparte became also king of Spain.

The French Empire achieved his biggest peak with 130 departments and 44 millions of habitants, after the annexations of other italian regions, the Northern German coasts and Holland, that was governed by another Napoleon’s brother, Luigi.

In 1843, Henri Frederic Schopin (1804–1880) painted “The Divorce of Empress Josephine”, the divorce between Napoleon Bonaparte and his first wife Josepehine.
The 15th December of 1809, Napoleon divorced from her first wife. He had met Josephine in September 1795 and he had been instantly smitten with her. They got married but it had been stormy from the start. It was clear that Josephine didn’t love her husband as much as he loved her.
The divorce is setting in a big room, with blue walls at the back and a white marble framework behind Napoleon.
In the foreground, in the centre of the paint, there is Josephine, who is wearing a long white dress; on the right, Napoleon is sitting on a green and gold armchair in front of her.
Between them there is a table covered by a green tablecloth, over wich there are the divorce papers. Josephine is supported by her daughter, Hortense. The man who is giving the papers to Josephine is Cambecerè, the jurist. Finally, beside Napoleon there is Eugenio, Josephine first son. In the background, there are some generals and other nobles.
The only light point comes from the top of the room, wich lights up Napoleon, Josephine and the principal figures in the foreground. The background is dark, deep and the subjects are not well
define. In this way, the attention relapses on the main theme of the painting.

The famous painting “Persian ambassadors”, realized by a French painter called Francois Mulard in the year 1810, shows one of the most important event of Napoleon’s life: the meeting between him and the Iranian Envoy Mirza Mohammed Reza, on 27 April 1807.

They are together at the Finckenstein Palace, in order to sign The Treaty of Finckenstein, which establishes the beginning of the Franco-Persian alliance.

According to this, Napoleon grants the integrity of Persia, recognises part of Georgia, Transcaucasia and Dagestan as a Persian leader’s possession, making all possible efforts for restoring those territories to him.He promises to furnish the Shah with arms, officers and workmen too. France, on its side, requires the Shah to declare war against the United Kingdom, to expel all British people from Persia, and to maintain an open way if France wanted to attack British possessions in the far East.

So, as it is represented in this painting, there’s Napoleon, who is talking with the Envoy, both surrounded by their supporters and located in the foreground. All of them are wearing red, blue, white and brown elegant clothes, decorated by golden jewels, symbolizing richness.

Also the walls of the meeting room, in the background, are decked out by precious war’s paintings with big frames.

It’s clear that the author of the picture uses realistic techniques to exalt the two main figures and the importance of this moment.

The painting ‘Marie Louise’s in Bedchamber at Compiègne’ was Made by François Gerard, who was the official painter of Napoleon, in 1811.
In this is represented Napoleon’s second wife Marie Louise of Austria: they married because Napoleon hadn’t a successor, more precisly, an heir. For this reason, Marie Louise, within only a year of wedding, gave him a boy, who was immediately titled ‘King of Rome’. In this portrait we can see the woman holding the child with her hands, proudly. They’re both wearing white on their dresses, and she has a lot of pink flowers above her head. Then, in the background we can see a little bed, that was probably of the child, covered by gold, sign of power, nobility and ,for sure, prosperity. Furthermore, we can notice on our left a red chair and behind it a little light. In general, there are a lot of energetic colors, as the green and the blue of the bedcover, the red and the pink of the flowers, as I said before.
This wedding meant a lot, because it ushered in a period of peace and friendship between France and Austria. In May 1812, Marie accompanied Napoleon to Dresden, where she met her father and stepmother. But, Napoleon left Dresden soon, to take charge of his army for the Russia’s invasion, so he kept in touch with his wife throughout the war. This invasion was a total disaster, because the french army was destroyed by russian winter. For this reason, Napoleon returned back to France on December.

This painting is “An episode from the Russian Campaign” made by Nicolas Toussaint Charlet in 1836. Its subject is the disaster of the french army’s retreat from Russia of 1812. It shows the remains of the Grande Armeé, that now is directionless, without a leader and almost devastated:

The painting hasn’t focus;In this work, beyond the historical military event itself, the artist expresses his vision of history, no longer depicting the great generals who commanded the battle but the men who fought it, revealing every aspect of their suffering.

In the foreground we can see a three almost covered by the snow, some soldiers, dead or next to death, and broken buggies (calesse).

In the background we can see lots of anonymous soldiers gradually sinking beneath a snowstorm and a desolate and icy landscape. Moreover the two main colours used by the painter are gray and white and they make sense . Gray represents the sky and the snowstorm whereas white symbolises the harsh Russian winter and his bitter cold and snow.

In this period, Napoleon is first consul for life, and he has also his title changed to emperor. He is extremely powerful, but England remains to oppose him. In order to defeat England he designs a blockade, called continental system, to close all the ports in Europe to British trade.

When Alexander I, king of Russia, decides to end Russia’s cooperation with the continental system, Napoleon launches an invasion of that country in 1812. The invasion of Russia turned out to be a colossal failure. Due to the cold weather,disease lots of soldiers died, from 600 000 only 10 000 survived. The fact that the painting is horizontally divided into two sections, and that the bigger one is taken up by the sky underlines the terrible action of nature, who destroyed the Grande Armeé.

Ernest Meissonier is famous for his military paintings and he soon attracted a following fascinated by his care for detail and the realism of his uniforms.

He painted this picture in1864, fifty years after the French Campaign.

For there he concentrates not on the action and the fighting but rather on the figures depicted and the emotion.There is just an atmosphere of loneliness and despondency.

The Emperor appears leading his troops, in a muddy and dead winter landscape and he advances with a determined but sombre expression.The doubts and resignation felt by the officers and the troops are palpable and are opposed to the determination that emanates from the isolated figure of Napoleon.

These feelings are accentuated by the colour range: the whole scene uses brown and grey tones, subdued, deadened registers. The protagonists are not trampling virgin snow, but muddy ground.

Meissonier, as a man of the 1860s, shows a demoralised army on a slippery mud-spattered path, and we know that the French Campaign cannot have a positive outcome.

In this painting, Napoleon and his staff are returning from Soissons after the battle of Laon.

Although his forces were outnumbered by the Coalition armies closing in on him, Napoleon’s campaign of 1814 was one of the finest demonstrations of his strategic and tactical skill. There were several significant battles, almost all of which Napoleon won against the odds, but perhaps the most prominent feature of the fighting was his ability to inspire his men to continue to resist despite crippling losses, punishing marches and diminishing supplies.

To conclude, the French campaign of 1814 saw Napoleon’s last great military achievements. Although the campaign ended with an Allied victory and Napoleon’s first abdication, he had managed to inflict a series of defeats on the Allied armies invading France in a campaign that recalled his great achievements in Italy at the start of his career, and demonstrated that Napoleon was still very adept at leading small armies.

“Napoleon returns from Elba” is a painting by Charles Baron Von Steuben of 1818, today it is preserved in Christie’s London.

In this painting we can see the soldiers who acclaim Napoleon after his return from Elba. In the foreground there are Napoleon and his soldiers, they are celebrating his homecoming using swords and helmets. On the right of Napoleon there is the French flag, symbolising their patriotism.

In the background we can see hills and a big three, but the landscape is not very clear. The predominant colours are black (used for the jackets and for the boots), red (used for the particulars of the jackets), white (used for the pants) and grey/yellow (in the background).

This painting represents one of the moments of the “hundred days”, which is the period between Napoleon’s return from exile in Elba and the second restoration of king Louis XVIII. Napoleon went on Elba after the disastrous campaign of Russia and the defeat in Leipzig; he stayed there for 10 months on Elba (3 May 1814–26 Februar 1815). Returning from the island, March 1, 1815, Napoleon lands on the south France; the people acclaimed him and the soldier who should have stopped him, joined with the others. His intention was overturning the fate of the conflict against Russian-Anglo-Prussian allied powers who defeated him in Leipzig: this dream will last only 100 days because he lost another time in Waterloo; after this failure, he will definitely abdicate on June 22nd.

Often described as showing Napoleon at Fontainebleau after his first abdication, this icon of the imperial legend in fact shows the emperor several days before he performed that political act, indeed at the very moment where he realised that the wheel of fortune had turned.

The painter is Paul Delaroche,a french painter who achieved his greated successes painting historical scenes. The portrait dates back to 1815, the scene shown,instead, took place a year earlier in 1814,the worst year for Napoleon. Infact,in the same year,the general was defeated by the Prussian, Russian and Austrian forces,after his defeat at the Battle of Waterloo, instead of remaining in the field with his shattered army Napoleon returned to Paris in the hope of retaining political support for his position as Emperor of the French. With his political base secured he hoped to then be able to continue the war. It was not to be; instead the members of the two chambers created a Provisional Government and demanded that Napoleon had to abdicate in favor of his son and desperate, aware of his fall, he attempted suicide.

Just off his horse, his great coat and boots still spotted with mud, and his hat thrown on the ground, his papers case thrown on the divan, the emperor sits slumped in a chair, aghast at recent events.
Defeated, and already abandoned by many of his erstwhile supporters, here he is alone in his private apartments in Fontainebleau, staring destiny in the face. He sees glory turns its back on him and understands that his fall is close.

In the background the dominant color is red, the color of the tent.while Napoleon wears a green jacket, a white uniform and black boots, as already said spotted with mud.

His face is expressionless and resigned, there is no hint of movement. Delaroche shows the emperor as an anti-hero, in a banal pose but transposed into the large format, traditionally the domain of history painting in the grand style.

‘Napoleon at saint Helene’ is a portrait of Napoleon painted by an unknown artist in 1820, that now hangs in the ‘Musee de la maison Bonaparte’ and it represents Napoleon alone on a remote island.

In the foreground there is Napoleon, represented from behind, who is standing on a rock, looking to the huge ocean. He is wearing his green and white military uniform, a black hat and dark boots. In his hands we can glimpse a grey sword. In the left side of the painting, on the promontory, we can make out some branches.

In the background there is a huge, light blue ocean and offshore there is a sailing boat surrounded by a white, fine mist. As it regards the sky, the main colours are white and light blue, but we can also notice some bluish shades. These are also the predominant colours in all the painting.

This composition represents one of the last years of Napoleon’s life in exile on a remote island.

On june 22,1815 Napoleon abdicated his powers for the second time and in order to prolong the dinasty, he pushed to have his young son named emperor but the British government rejected the offer and decided to send him to the island of St. Helene in the Southern Atlantic, where he wrote often and also read a lot. But this routine of life soon got to him and he often shut himself indoors. As a consequence, his health began to deteriorate and on May 5,1821 he died.

This portrait represents and transmits perfectly to the viewer the sense of loneliness that filled Napoleon; he was alone on a island and the only thing that he could see was the ocean that was everywhere. It also represents the sense of melancholy reflected in the image of Napoleon represented from behind and not from the front.

Napoleon on his deathbed, painted by Horace Vernet in 1821, is a painting that depicts the death of the French emperor.

In this painting, we are shown a close-up of the Napoleon, who’s laying in bed and is surrounded by a white background. Nothing else is presented except for a couple details, such as a cross on his chest and a laurel wreath on his head. This last aspect emphasizes the emperor’s greatness, and is a direct mention to the Roman generals and emperors, who were gifted with this award after victory. As a matter of fact, Vernet didn’t intend his painting to be a posthumous homage to Napoleon, but rather a painting of glorification.

The death of Napoleon has been a mystery for nearly two hundred years. For a long time, the most credible hypothesis was the one that saw the emperor slowly poisoned with arsenic by other European powers, who feared he would escape his exile and retake France. Even though high levels of arsenic were found by experts in his hair, that does not necessarily indicate poisoning, since at the time arsenic used to be found in many everyday objects, such as medicines and hair tonic. Some researchers attempted to solve the mystery, and found, by analyzing the reports of Napoleon’s doctors, strong evidence of gastric cancer, which appears to be the cause of death.

What message is the illustrator attempting to portray about French politics with this image from the early French Revolution?

Which of the following best characterizes the great fear that swept France in 1789?

Which of the following principles was embodied in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen issued by the French National Assembly in 1789?

How did the National Assembly affect the priesthood in France in 1790?