Le général Bonaparte sur le pont d’Arcole, 17 novembre 1796

General Bonaparte on the Bridge of Arcole at the Napoleon Museum Arenenberg depicts the famous moment during the Battle of Arcole in November 1796 when the young general seized the tricolor and led a charge across the bridge. Gros’s original 1796 sketch of this scene launched his career as Napoleon’s painter and created one of the most iconic images of the revolutionary wars. Characteristic of Gros's approach, the work displays dramatic realism, vivid color, Romantic energy within a Neoclassical framework.

The dynamic composition captures Bonaparte in forward motion, flag in hand. Gros’s energetic brushwork and bold coloring create an image of irresistible martial energy that defined the Napoleonic heroic portrait.