Battle Scene 1818

Victor Lassus made this lithograph called Battle Scene in 1818. It depicts a snapshot of military action in a tropical climate. The image offers us insight into the glorification of military heroism in early 19th century France. The artist would have been working in the shadow of the recently defeated Napoleon. The soldiers are idealized, even as some of them suffer. Lassus’s print reveals how state institutions in that era– the military and the art world –worked in tandem to promote a particular vision of national identity. Lithographs like this one were important tools of propaganda. They spread the myth of French military superiority to a wide audience. To understand this artwork more fully, we can delve into military archives, popular print culture, and the history of French colonialism. By examining these resources, we can better understand the complex ways in which art reflects and shapes social attitudes toward war.