David, Jacques-Louis (1748-1825)
Napoléon au Grand Saint-Bernard (Napoleon at the Great St. Bernard)
1801
Oil on canvas, 275 × 232 cm
Österreichische Galerie Belvedere, Vienna
With the wind at his back – his red cape practically flying ahead of him – Napoleon (1769-1821) rides over the Great St. Bernard. The horse rears up, but Napoleon‘s sights are unwavering on his goal, Italy. He was still First Consul of the French Republic, but he aspired to more, the imperial crown. The names in the rock make this unmistakably clear. “Bonaparte” is written here, programmatically above Hannibal and Charlemagne, the two Alpine crossers before him. Napoleon at the Great St. Bernard is a propaganda image par excellence, and no painter was better suited to its execution than David. Like no other, he knew how to suggestively enhance historical events. (Belvedere)
See also:
• Napoléon I (1769-1821)