Napoleonic French Military Uniforms 1798-1814

Three talented French artists, Carle Vernet, Horace Vernet (son of Carle) and Eugène Lami, capitalised on the wave of nostalgia for the First Empire brought on by the death of Napoleon in 1821 by producing a series of prints of French military uniforms of the French revolutionary and imperial armies. These colourful lithographs, each accompanied by a text by an unidentified author describing the unit depicted, were published in book form in 1822 as Collection des Uniformes des Armées Françaises de 1791 à 1814 (Paris: Gide fils, 1822). The broad range of uniforms depicted includes many from infrequently-illustrated foreign and auxiliary units in the French army. The images also include unusual back and side views of uniforms. The images in this book are contemporary watercolour copies of the prints and are reproduced with permission from the Anne S. K. Brown Military Collection at Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, USA, where they currently reside.

“It's a great package that covers infantry, artillery, cavalry, sappers, Navy marines, Army of the Orient, and military school cadets. It's a valuable reference for those who paint Napoleonic miniatures.” Historical Miniatures Gaming Society

“This book is fascinating both from the historical point of view and for the military figure modeler point of view.....If you are into Napoleonic Uniforms (either as an historian or a figure modeler) you are going to love this book. Highly recommended.” IPMS/USA

"Monochrome reproductions of many of these plates have appeared as illustrations in many books on the Napoleonic Wars, but do not do them justice. Guy Dempsey and Helion are to be congratulated for enabling us to see such splendid artwork in colour." Miniature Wargames Magazine

"This is a delightful book. Guy Dempsey has rendered all students of the French army of Napoleon a great service by preparing a new edition and translation of the 1822 publication, Collection des Uniformes des Armées Francaises de 1791 à 1814......Highly recommended for all serious students of the Napoleonic army and of military art and costume during the period, 1798-1814." The Napoleon Series

"Many of these images will have been seen before, but probably not all between the covers of a single book, however a significant number are from often underrepresented troop types. The images in the book are all contemporary watercolour copies of the original prints and are reproduced with permission of the Anne S.K. Brown Military Collection at Brown University, Rhode Island, so it is quite a coup to be able to select 101 for this book. Each image is accompanied by a useful description and the single appendix serves as an index for each of the colour plates." carryingsonupthedale.com