Essay on the Print Collections

Bonaparte at the battle of Arcole, 27 Brumaire year V. The engraving by Giuseppe Longhi executed after the major painting by Antoine-Jean Gros is one of the thousands of images available online from the Napoleon Collection of the Rare Books and Special Collections Division of McGill University Libraries.

Among the most extensive repositories of Napoleonic iconography in North America, the Collection houses over 2000 loose prints, 2400 monographs, and 10000 more original prints within these monographs. As well, the Collection includes over a thousand maps of the epoch, some drawn by contemporaries who accompanied Napoleon on his campaigns, others executed later to illustrate memoirs and other publications. Important collections of prints bound into books, such as Le Sacre de Napoléon Bonaparte, Arnault's Vie politique et militaire de Napoléon, and Percier & Fontaine's richly illustrated book commemorating the wedding of Napoleon and Marie-Louise, are also available for viewing online.

The site is still in development, and some information has not yet been included. Realia, such as coins and medals, broadsides, declarations, and related printed documents, will soon be catalogued and available online. Descriptions of prints in books, which contain only minimum information of artist and title for the moment, are being developed.

Whether original designs, or copies after paintings, the prints relate to all aspects of the Napoleonic era and posthumous legend: portraits, battle scenes, maps, caricatures, allegorical representations, depictions of monuments, costumes, and uniforms. To give focus to the digitalisation of such a vast amount of diverse material, we have limited our selection almost exclusively to those original prints published before 1871, the end of the Second Empire.

A study of these works reveals Napoleon not only as warrior and politician, but also as careful craftsman of his own image. There can be no doubt that from his earliest days as a general, Napoleon was very much aware of the power of the image as a tool of personal and political propaganda, and that he was able to use it to his own advantage.

Bonaparte at the battle of Arcole, 27 Brumaire year V. is one of the first works illustrating Napoleon's relentless drive to create a powerful self-image. The painting is based on an actual incident during the battle of Arcola, on 15 November 1796. The standard-bearer fell a few feet in front of Napoleon. Without hesitating, the then General Bonaparte, commander-in-chief of the armies of Italy, picked up the standard and led his soldiers across the bridge, ignoring the heavy shells coming straight at him and his troops. Though the French were not able to cross the bridge that day, they did cross it and win the battle the following day.

Through such acts of bravery Napoleon gained the love and loyalty of his men, showing them that although he had attained a high military rank, he still considered himself to be 'one of them,' and that he had not forgotten his humble origins as an artilleryman. His soldiers affectionately nicknamed him 'le petit caporal' during this period. Napoleon's demonstrated closeness to his men helped to give them courage and spur them on.

Napoleon continued to find himself at the forefront of his troops, ready to lead them and to share their fate, even when he became emperor. Such acts, unheard of among his political rivals, were much appreciated by his soldiers, and became powerful factors in military campaigns as well as in political rule. Because Napoleon recognised the impact that images could have on the public, scenes of his courage and closeness with his troops abound in Napoleonic art.

It is precisely this consciousness of the self-image that obscured a scene from Gros's painting and from other official images of the crossing at Arcola: the moment when Napoleon, during the thick of the battle, fell into the water, very nearly drowned, and had to be rescued by one of his men.

Napoleon was not interested in art portraying history. His intentions were to enact an almost mythical representation of himself, his military exploits, and his governance. He chose only the most flattering angle to be illustrated in the work of art. In the case of incidents such as that of the bridge at Arcola, the courage Napoleon displayed should not be denied, but the viewer must keep in mind that the Gros painting itself is myth and not reality.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

As Napoleon became conscious of the power of the image he began to surround himself with an exclusive team of painters, sculptors and printmakers, and to dictate a programme that would present a strong public persona. The contribution in this matter of close subordinates, particularly of Dominique Vivant-Denon, cannot be overlooked. Furthermore, Napoleon imposed strict censorship laws, which would ensure that his visual image was totally under his control.

Despite such extreme measures and stiff penalties for offenders, Napoleon's grip on his own iconography was not absolute. Many caricatures found their way into people's hands, and undermined the Emperor's authority. So was born the so-called 'black legend,' portraying Napoleon as an ogre, devouring human lives and precious resources. The McGill Napoleon Collection houses hundreds of caricatures from France, but also from England, Germany, Italy, among other countries. While most French caricaturists remained anonymous for fear of severe repercussions, research has uncovered some names such as Lacroix and Bassompierre. The English caricature section of the Collection includes an important number of prints by Cruikshank, Gillray, and Rowlandson. Most of the caricatures in the Collection provide a forceful indictment of the regime, while some attack its detractors.

The richness of the Collection, both in terms of numbers of prints, and breadth of subject matter, should prove an invaluable research tool. We have endeavoured to present the material in a way that would be most beneficial in the search for, and retrieval of, information. The prints can be located by subject matter, as well as by artist, by a word in the title, or by original work where one exists. Thus, Bonaparte at the battle of Arcole, 27 Brumaire year V. can be found under 'Bonaparte as General,' 'Battle of Arcola,' and the theme of 'Napoleon on the bridge of Arcola' . It can also be found under 'Gros' or 'Longhi.'

Portraits of Napoleon abound, depicting him at all stages of life, from his cradle all the way through to his death mask. Reproduction of all the most important portraits, by Appiani, Gérard, David, Lefèvre and Muneret, among others, as well as original portraits can be found. Some portraits are drawn from life, while others, in particular many of the earlier scenes, are invented by the artist.

The posthumous legend is also generously illustrated, from prints of the re-burial of the late Emperor in 1840, to imagined scenes of Napoleon being reunited with his son in death, or rising from his tomb, most famously represented by numerous copies after Vernet's painting.

Portraits of family members, associated military and state figures, foreign rulers and generals, combine to form a regular who's who of the epoch. Again, the most important portraitists of the time figure generously in the Napoleon Collection, as do some of the lesser-known artists. Many prints are original designs of the printmaker.

Thousands of battle scenes ensure all campaigns are richly represented. Many campaigns are illustrated from both sides of the battlefield, and the propaganda value can easily be gauged. Épinal prints show Napoleon's humility and closeness to his men, while Vernet's scenes concentrate on the courage of the Emperor and his troops. English prints featuring the battle of Waterloo, for instance, or the Peninsular War, portray the Emperor and his soldiers in a much less favourable light. Scores of images ridicule Napoleon's flight from Russia in 1813.

A number of allegorical representations glorify Napoleon and his achievements; these are mostly allegories of peace, such as a copy of the famous design by Pierre-Paul Prud'hon for The Triumph of Bonaparte or Allegory of Peace.

All major non-military events from Napoleon's life and reign are also represented. The Coronation, wedding, birth of his son, etc., are among the themes explored by a number of different artists. They show the enormous control Napoleon exercised over these events. The series of Coronation prints illustrate the care the Emperor took in developing the iconography that would characterise his reign. He organised the celebration like a military operation, controlling everything from costumes and symbols to the order of those present, and borrowing heavily from Roman and Carolingian iconography in order to present himself as the heir to those Empires. It is not only the official commissions that are available here. Caricatures such as Gillray’s The Grand Coronation Procession are also in the Collection, signalling the rich satirical possibilities embedded in these rituals.

Monuments to the glory of the Emperor and other contemporaries, images of uniforms worn by the different sections of the army, landscapes illustrating practically every place Napoleon ever set foot on, give us a powerful flavour of the time. In particular, images of the Vendôme Column, erected in honour of the victory at Austerlitz, abound, both in individual prints, and in bound collections detailing the friezes on the column. There are also images of the various triumphal arches erected in Paris and other European capitals to celebrate victories or commemorate visits of the Emperor.

A help section is available. A detailed timeline follows all major events from Napoleon's birth to his reburial at the Invalides in 1840. Subject headings have been loosely based on those of the Library of Congress, but we found them too limiting, as we wanted to be able to include themes such as Napoleon on the bridge at Arcola. We have included artists' names even when these are absent from the print. Titles and inscriptions are reproduced in pseudo-facsimile, and we have created a 'Composed Title' section so that we could include translations and titles in those cases when none was inscribed on the print.

This site is meant as a research tool rather than a definitive history of Napoleon I. We trust it will prove a valuable resource for all amateurs and enthusiasts of the Napoleonic era, and we welcome your comments and suggestions.