Battle of Marengo (1801-02)

This is Louis-François Lejeune's painting of The Battle of Marengo.

The Battle of Marengo took place in Italy's Piedmont region in June 1800; the combatants were Napoleon's forces on one side and the Austrians on the other. The French forces emerged victorious, consolidating Napoleon's political position at home.

The artist, Louis-François Lejeune, was also a soldier who took part in this battle and many others throughout the Napoleonic era. He participated in the Spanish campaign (the so-called Peninsular War), the Battles of Marengo and Austerlitz, and the ill-fated Russian campaign (during which Lejeune deserted his post due to frostbite and was arrested on orders from Bonaparte himself). He redeemed himself during the Battle of Lützen and continued military service until 1813. During the German campaign of 1806 he met the inventor of lithography and played a major role in introducing this method to France.