Jacques-Louis David’s Mythical Napoleon
Take an in-depth look at the details in this imagined portrait of the legendary French emperor.
The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries (1812) by Jacques-Louis David National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
A striking portrait
Jacques-Louis David was the leading portraitist of his day in France. He was known for his ability to capture the likeness of his sitters. But he was even more skilled at communicating the personalities and accomplishments of his subjects.
The Emperor Napoleon in His Study in the Tuileries
is one of the ultimate examples. David filled the portrait with precise details, portraying Napoleon as a living legend.
Take a scroll with us through the painting and see how Napoleon’s appearance, the setting, and the items create a myth of an ideal leader.
Napoleon, the man of the people
The full-length portrait shows Napoleon standing in his study at the Tuileries Palace, his official Parisian residence.
The clock behind him shows the time—4:13. Details suggest that this hour is in the early morning.
On Napoleon’s other side, a candelabra lights his desk. The candles are nearly burnt out.
Napoleon looks tired and disheveled. His hair is out of place. He has bags under his eyes.
His stockings are rumpled. What has kept him up so late?
A clue rests on his desk—a curling sheet of paper shows the letters “COD.”
This suggests that Napoleon has been working late on the Napoleonic Code, France’s first code of civil laws. It created a unified set of laws for the entire country.
David shows Napoleon as a dedicated legislator, working all night on behalf of the people. But the achievement he is working on dates to a decade earlier.
The code was written between 1801 and 1803, and entered into force in 1804, before Napoleon crowned himself emperor later that year.
Portrait of Louis XIV (after 1701) by Hyacinthe Rigaud The J. Paul Getty Museum
David’s choice to paint the ruler at work was unconventional to begin with. Most royal portraits show kings just being . Dressed in their finest and set in splendor, they embody the state.
Emperor Napoleon I (1769-1821) (c. 1807) by Jacques-Louis David Harvard Art Museums
In earlier portraits of Napoleon, David had followed that tradition.
Bonaparte franchissant les Alpes au Grand-Saint-Bernard (1840) by Georges Rouget (Painter) and Based on Jacques-Louis David (Painter) Musée de l'Armée - Hôtel des Invalides
Napoleon, the military leader
No portrait of Napoleon could be complete without a reference to his military background. David had first won the emperor’s favor with a dramatic portrait of him astride a rearing horse, Napoleon Crossing the Alps . This work is an interpretation of David's painting by Rouget.
The Emperor Napoleon in His Study at the Tuileries (1812) by Jacques-Louis David National Gallery of Art, Washington DC
Here, Napoleon wears his uniform. He was a colonel of the Foot Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard.
On his shoulders are a general’s gold epaulettes. Stars on his chest represent ranks in the Legion of Honor and Iron Crown of Italy.
We can see the ornate golden handle of a sword resting on the arm of the chair in front of him. The dangling white leather strap suggests that he is about to put it on.
A map tossed on the floor next to the desk alludes to Napoleon’s military strategy.
Plutarch’s Parallel Lives sits askew on the base of the desk. The Greek philosopher’s biographies of famous Greek and Roman men would have inspired Napoleon. Is David casting Napoleon as the modern-day Alexander the Great or Julius Ceasar?
Napoleon places one hand in his vest. The pose was meant to show him as a measured and even-tempered leader.
An 18th-century etiquette book described it as signifying “manly boldness tempered with modesty.”
In reality, “tempered” was not a word many would have used to describe Napoleon. He was known for outbursts. And his desire for power and influence seemed to drive his quest to conquer Europe and create a French empire.
His risky and unnecessary military campaigns led many French soldiers to their deaths.
The same year this painting was completed, Napoleon directed an invasion of Russia that would be a massive failure. Five months of battle killed approximately 1 million French and Russian soldiers and civilians.
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