Voluntary Partisan (1822)

Horace Vernet prints bring the drama of French military history, galloping horses and the colour of North Africa into your home. Vernet was the leading French battle painter of the 19th century, the third generation of a family of painters, and a favourite of kings and emperors. Our collection of fine art prints covers his battle scenes, Orientalist and hunting pictures, horses, portraits of fellow artists, and studies.

About Horace Vernet

Émile Jean-Horace Vernet was born in the Louvre in Paris on 30 June 1789, where his parents were living during the Revolution. His father was the painter Carle Vernet and his grandfather the marine painter Claude-Joseph Vernet. He turned away early from the serious, Classical style of academic art and chose subjects from contemporary life. Under Napoleon he began painting French soldiers in a familiar, everyday way rather than as idealised heroes, and at twenty he exhibited The Taking of an Entrenched Camp.

During the Bourbon Restoration he made his name with battle paintings commissioned by the duc d'Orléans, the future King Louis-Philippe, including The Battle of Jemappes (1821) and The Battle of Valmy (1826). Critics marvelled at the speed with which he worked. Favoured by both the court and the opposition, he was director of the French Academy in Rome from 1829 to 1835.

Louis-Philippe became his greatest patron, and Vernet decorated the Constantine room at Versailles in only three years, painting France's conquest of Algeria in vast canvases such as The Capture of the Smala of Abd-el-Kader. After 1848 he found a new patron in Napoleon III and followed the French army to the Crimean War. He was also an early photographer, making daguerreotypes in Egypt and Malta in 1840. He died in Paris on 17 January 1863.

Style and Subjects

Vernet's battle pictures are crowded, lively and full of action, with careful attention to uniforms, horses and landscape. He was praised for historical accuracy and for "charged landscapes", and for showing ordinary soldiers with warmth and humour, as in The Dog of the Regiment.

He painted horses superbly, and his travels in North Africa gave him many Orientalist subjects: Arab horsemen, lion hunts, desert travellers and biblical scenes in Eastern dress. He also painted romantic and literary subjects and fine portraits of friends and fellow artists.

Famous Works

• Death of Prince Poniatowski. The Polish marshal's death crossing a river after the Battle of Leipzig in 1813.
• The Barrier of Clichy (1820), Louvre, Paris. The defence of Paris against the allied armies in 1814.
• Portrait of Théodore Géricault (1822). His friend, the painter of The Raft of the Medusa.
• Mazeppa and the Wolves (1826), Calvet Museum, Avignon. A Romantic hero tied to a galloping horse and chased by wolves.
• Italian Brigands Surprised by Papal Troops (1831), Walters Art Museum, Baltimore. A dramatic scene from his years in Rome.
• The Battle of Jena (1836), Palace of Versailles. One of his large Napoleonic battles for Louis-Philippe's history museum.
• Judah and Tamar (1840), Wallace Collection, London. A biblical story painted in Middle Eastern dress.
• The Seizure of Abd-el-Kader's Camp in 1843 (The Capture of the Smala) (1844), Palace of Versailles. A vast panorama of the French army in Algeria.

Decorating with Vernet Prints

Vernet's horse and hunting scenes, like The Start of the Race of the Riderless Horses, suit a study, den or library, especially with dark wood and leather furniture. His battle scenes are natural choices for anyone who collects military history.

The Orientalist pictures of Arab horsemen and desert travellers bring warm, sandy colour to a living room or hallway, and his portraits of artists such as Géricault and Thorvaldsen make an interesting pair in a study.

FAQ

What is Horace Vernet known for?

He is best known for his large battle paintings of French military history, from the Napoleonic wars to the conquest of Algeria, and for his Orientalist and horse subjects.

Was Horace Vernet from a family of painters?

Yes. His father was Carle Vernet, a painter of horses and battles, and his grandfather was Claude-Joseph Vernet, the famous marine painter.

Where can I see Horace Vernet's paintings?

The Palace of Versailles holds his great battle paintings, including the Constantine room. Other works are in the Louvre, the Wallace Collection in London, the Walters Art Museum and the Hermitage.

Was Horace Vernet a photographer?

Yes. He took an early interest in the daguerreotype and made some of the earliest photographs of Malta and Egypt around 1840 as references for his paintings.

Related Artists

• Carle Vernet: his father, a painter of horses and battles
• Claude-Joseph Vernet: his grandfather, the great marine painter
• Théodore Géricault: friend and fellow painter of horses, whom he painted in 1822
• Eugène Delacroix: Romantic painter of North Africa and history in the same era
• Jean-Léon Gérôme: later French painter of Orientalist subjects