The Duke of Orléans asking for hospitality from the monks of the Mont Saint-Gothard hospice on August 27, 1793

Horace Vernet painted this history scene in 1818, depicting the young Duke of Orléans — the future King Louis-Philippe — seeking shelter at the hospice of the Grand Saint-Bernard during his flight from Revolutionary France in August 1793. The subject carries political weight: in 1818 the Bourbon Restoration was consolidating power while the Orléanist branch retained its own dynastic ambitions. Vernet, associated with liberal politics, creates a narrative of Orléanist suffering and humility that implicitly argues for the family's virtue. The painting hung at Chantilly's Condé Museum, closely associated with Orléanist heritage.

Vernet employs a clear, narrative-focused composition with figures arranged for maximum legibility. The Alpine setting provides a dramatic backdrop of severity and religious austerity that frames the duke's humility. Paint handling is confident and direct, favoring clarity of scene over painterly display.