Napoleon’s bivouac on the eve of Austerlitz (1808)

Louis-François Lejeune: Napoleon’s bivouac on the eve of Austerlitz, 1 December 1805

The Battle of Austerlitz was probably Napoleon's single greatest military victory. Lejeune illustrates the Emperor’s bivouac in the Moravian plains on the eve of the battle. Napoleon, at center (of course) consults with his generals while the soldiers forage and make camp. Other paintings, to be featured later, depict the battle itself - a bloody 9-hour affair.