Napoleon's Army: 1790-1815

Lucien Rousselot is one of the world's most important military artists, having played an integral role in establishing uniformology as a true science. He was born in France at a time when the 1871 military defeat by Prussia was still very present in the psyche of the French people. After all, it had not been long since the French army under Napoleon I had not only amazed the world, but had stood victoriously astride the whole of Europe. Indeed, triumphant armies guided by the military genius of Bonaparte had marched down the avenues of Paris to the delight of enormous crowds.

It is no surprise, therefore, that the talented young Rousselot decided to devote much of his life to recreating the martial splendor of France’s greatest age. The Napoleonic period offered innumerable opportunities for his skills, as uniforms varied widely in style and color, as befitted an age when individual glory still counted for much on Europe’s battlefields.

Rousselot received his artistic training at the renowned School of Decorative Arts in Paris while at the same time immersing himself in the study of the classic military illustrators. His immense talent was equaled only by his innate modesty and intense commitment to his work. This level of dedication ultimately resulted in the marvelous watercolors and exacting narrative presented in this publication.

Aside from a now-rare work published in France costing many hundreds of dollars, Napoleon’s Army: 1790–1815 is the only complete collection of Rousselot’s life’s work on the period, here presented admirably yet affordably for the English-speaking public.