Bonaparte Crossing the Alps

''Bonaparte Crossing the Alps'' (sometimes called ''Napoleon Crossing the Alps'', which is also the title of Jacques-Louis David's better-known version of the subject) is a 1848–1850 oil painting by French artist Paul Delaroche. The painting depicts Napoleon Bonaparte leading his army through the Alps on a mule, a journey Napoleon and his army of soldiers made in the spring of 1800 in an attempt to surprise the Austrian army in Italy.
Several versions of this painting exist: in the Louvre- Lens and the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool, England. Queen Victoria owned a small version of it.

The work was inspired by Jacques-Louis David's series of five paintings of '' Napoleon Crossing the Alps'' (1801–1805), which present a glorified vision of Napoleon "calm on a spirited horse" rather than a mule, crossing Great St. Bernard Pass.

Painting

Historical background

As part of his 1798 campaign during the French Revolutionary Wars, Napoleon prepared to invade and conquer Egypt, which was at the time a province of the Ottoman Empire. Such a military action promised numerous benefits, including securing French trade interests, and inhibiting British access to India. By 1 July 1798, Napoleon had landed on the shores of Egypt. After a lengthy chain of conflicts with heavy casualties, the campaign resulted in an Ottoman-British victory. Napoleon received news from France that Austrian forces had retaken Italy and he decided to return to Paris.

In order to regain the upper hand, he planned to launch a surprise assault on the Austrian army stationed in the Cisalpine Republic. Based on the assumption the Austrians would never expect Napoleon's large force to be able to traverse the Alps, he chose that as his route. He selected the shortest route through the Alps, the Great St Bernard Pass, which would enable him to reach his destination as quickly as possible.

On 15 May 1800, Napoleon and his army of 40,000—not including the field artillery and baggage trains—(35,000 light artillery and infantry, 5,000 cavalry) began the arduous journey through the mountains.Herold, J.C. p.134 During the five days spent traversing the pass, Napoleon's army consumed almost 22,000 bottles of wine, more than a tonne and a half of cheese, and around 800 kilograms of meat.

After crossing the Alps, Napoleon commenced military operations against the Austrian army. Despite an inauspicious start to the campaign, the Austrian forces were driven back to Marengo after nearly a month. There, a large battle took place on 14 June, which resulted in the Austrian evacuation of Italy.

Artist and commission

Delaroche, who studied with Antoine-Jean Gros, a protege of David, was a popular French painter of portraits and grand subjects from history and the Bible.

The Liverpool painting was commissioned by Arthur George, Third Earl of Onslow, after Delaroche and George reportedly visited the Louvre in Paris, where they saw David's version of the famous event. It had only recently been re-hung in the museum after a resurgence of interest in Napoleon, nearly 40 years after he was exiled. Agreeing that the painting was unrealistic, George, who owned a sizable collection of Napoleonic paraphernalia, commissioned Delaroche to create a more realistic depiction. Elizabeth Foucart-Walker asserts that in fact the painting that hangs in the Louvre-Lens was produced first as it was already in America by 1850, when the Liverpool painting was produced. Stephen Bann suggests that Arthur George's meeting with Delaroche may have occurred, but Delaroche chose to produce two works that are almost identical and send one to America.

Reception

The work, despite its attempt to depict Napoleon realistically, was criticised by several authorities for a variety of reasons. A few disapproved of Delaroche's choice of painting, while others disapproved of Delaroche himself, saying, in some form, that he sought the genius of Napoleon, to no avail.Further reading – liverpoolmuseums.org
Retrieved on 6 August 2007

Soon after its completion, the work was taken to England, and there, in 1850, it was reviewed by the critic of '' the Atheneum'', a literary magazine. The magazine's comments on the work indicated that, while they praised the painting for several of its features, they criticised Delaroche, for various reasons:

Some were displeased with Delaroche's work at the time in general, and, in part, ''Bonaparte Crossing the Alps'', criticising what was described as his 'lowered standards in art'. Such critics included ''The Gentleman's Magazine'', who wrote the following text about Delaroche:

Notes

* I Bonaparte chose to ride across the alps on a mule (obtained at a convent at Martigny) rather than a steed, the typical gentleman's mount at the time, because the mule was considered to be more sure-footed on the slippery slopes and narrow passes of the Alps, and to be more sturdy and hardy while making such a perilous journey on such volatile terrain.Abbott, J. S. C., p.4
* II Napoleon ordered the assemblage of over 5,000 artillery for transport through the pass, despite the fact that the pass was widely considered to be much too narrow, and the route too volatile and unstable, to allow any form of artillery, light or heavy, to come through. Thus, Napoleon's military advisers warned him against this move, but he insisted on this presence of this great number of artillery.
* IIIIn addition to these figures, approximately 3,600 French men were wounded, with over 900 captured or missing, and almost 5,520 Austrians were wounded, with over 2,900 captured (missing numbers cannot be accurately estimated).Smith, D. ''The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book''. Greenhill Books, 1998.
* IVThe painting was rehung as a result of the revival of Napoleon's reputation, and a fresh interest into his exploits. However, before this, in 1815, the year Napoleon was exiled, Napoleonic-themed art was proscribed for artists and painters, as he was not well liked because of events that had occurred in the few years immediately preceding 1815, and Napoleon's exile. It was only truly by the 1830s that artwork related to the emperor was being created once more. As such, after being removed from the walls of the Louvre around 1815, David's version had been re-hung by the time Delaroche observed it.
* VThe king of Spain (of the time) commissioned Jacques-Louis David's ''Napoleon Crossing the Alps'' as a friendly gesture towards Napoleon, hoping that the flattering gift would strengthen relationships between France and Spain, to the degree that Napoleon would not consider invading Spain and taking it over, after he became emperor. However, the king of Spain's attempt failed, and, soon after Napoleon crowned himself emperor, he crossed the Pyrenees and conquered Spain.
* VIThe ''Athenæum'' was a widely read literary magazine or periodical that was published in London between 1828 and 1923. Published weekly, the ''Athenæum'' grew and expanded to become one of the most influential and most widely read periodical of the Victorian era. Most of its content was composed of articles, reviews, and scientific and political news, among others. The topics covered in these texts included works of literature, fine art, music and theatre, science and politics.

Citations

References

;Literature
*Abbot, J. S. C. ''Napoleon Bonaparte''. Kessinger Publishing, 2004.
*Alison, A. ''History of Europe from the Commencement of the French Revolution in MDCCLXXXIX to the Restoration of the Bourbons in MDCCCXV''. W. Blackwood and sons, 1854.
*Britt, A.B. ''The Wars of Napoleon''. Square One Publishers, Inc., 2003. .
*Bunbury, H.E. ''Narratives of some passages in the great war with France, from 1799 to 1810''. 1854.
*Chandler, D. G. ''Napoleon''. Leo Cooper, 2002. .
*Clancy-Smith, J.A. ''North Africa, Islam and the Mediterranean World: From the Almoravids to the Algerian War''. Routledge, 2001.
*Clubbe, J. ''Byron, Sully, and the Power of Portraiture''. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2005.
*Dodge, T.A. ''Napoleon: A History of the Art of War''. Adamant Media Corporation, 2001.
*El-Enany, R.; Inc NetLibrary ''Arab Representations of the Occident East-west Encounters in Arabic Fiction''. Routledge, 2006.
*Foucart-Walter, E. ''Paul Delaroche et le thème du passage du Saint-Bernard par Bonaparte'' pp. 367–384 in La Revue du Louvre No 5-6 1984
*Herold, J.C. ''The Age of Napoleon ''. Houghton Mifflin Books, 2002. .
*Jefferies, F. ''The Gentleman's Magazine''. Published 1856.
*Kelley, T.M. ''Reinventing Allegory''. Cambridge University Press, 1997.
*''The American Whig Review'', by the Making of America Project. Published first in 1845.
*Mason, D.S. ''Revolutionary Europe, 1789–1989: Liberty, Equality, Solidarity''. Rowman & Littlefield, 2005.
*Murray, C.J. ''Encyclopedia of the Romantic Era, 1760–1850''. Taylor & Francis, 2004.
*Quilley, G.; Bonehill, J. ''Conflicting Visions: War and Visual Culture in Britain and France, C. 1700–1830'' Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2005. .
*Thiers, M.A. ''History of the Consulate and the Empire of France Under Napoleon''. Kessinger Publishing, 2005. .
*Tuckerman, H.T. ''Poems''. Ticknor, Reed, and Fields, 1851.
*Walther, I.F.; Suckale, R. ''Masterpieces of Western Art: A History of Art in 900 Individual Studies'' Taschen, 2002.

;Other
DELAROCHE, Paul – ''Bonaparte Crossing the Alps''''Bonaparte Crossing the Alps'', 1848, Paul Delaroche (1797–1856)Bonaparte Crossing the Alps''; Delaroche, Paul; 1848

External links

Zoomable image of the artwork

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonaparte Crossing The Alps
Paintings by Paul Delaroche
1848 paintings
Paintings of Napoleon
Paintings in the collection of the Walker Art Gallery
Paintings in the Louvre by French artists
Paintings in the Royal Collection of the United Kingdom
Horses in art