RUPERT CAVENDISH ANTIQUES
THE EMPIRE STYLE
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Napoleon's throne room at the Palace of Fontainebleau The style developed from the Neoclassicism of the late 18th century, through the French Revolution, and into the official style of Napoleon and his court. It was inspired from the Imperial Rome of Augustus and Julius Caesar. Napoleon's influence on the style that is named after his empire must be acknowledged, even if he personally lacked any artistic talent. He had no feeling for paintings or sculptures, but he knew the importance of patronage and the propaganda value of the arts and the style was intended to idealise Napoleon's rule and the French state. He was keen to create a style worthy of his new Empire in order to impress the world; the splendour of his court had to surpass all the others. This was necessary as he was considered a usurper and a Corsican adventurer. His marriage to Joséphine de Beauharnais was happy, but the desire to have a son and heir lead to him divorcing her and marrying the Austrian Archduchess Marie-Louise in 1810. Now his father-law was Emperor Franz I and as his wife's aunt had been the executed Queen Marie-Antoinette Napoleon saw himself as the legitimate heir to Louis XVI.
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The Malachite Salon at the Grand Trianon Versailles The talented French architects Charles Percier and Pierre Fontaine worked for Napoleon and created the Empire style. They were responsible for the decoration and arrangements for such important events as Napoleon's coronation in 1804 and his wedding to Marie-Louise. Their immensely influential work 'Recueil de décorations intérieures comprenant tout ce qui a rapport à l'ameublement', first published in 1801 with a second edition in 1812, contained 72 engraved plates of interiors and furniture that they had designed.
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Napoleon's bedroom at the Palace of Compiègne The French Empire style is the first truly international style that influenced all Europe as well as America, even those countries that were opposing Napoleon or were conquered by him and his victorious armies. There are similarities between the French Empire and the English Regency style, but there were no true exchanges of designs due to the continuous hostilities between the two countries. If this hadn't been the case, it is very likely that Percier and Fontaine would have been commissioned to design interiors there. The Prince Regent's passion for all things French is well documented, and there were even exceptions made for him to import French luxury goods in spite of the Continental Blockade imposed by Napoleon. During the short lived peace between the two countries in 1802 after the peace treaty of Amiens, many English tourists flocked to Paris to see the latest French fashion.
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Napoleon's small bedroom at the Palace of Fontainebleau In Italy, Germany, Sweden and Russia the style remained fashionable long after it had lost its appeal to the French. The style suited the autocratic Tsars Alexander I and his brother Tsar Nicholas I of Russia. It was perhaps the deep interest in the antiquity that determined its long life in Germany and Italy. The style can be said to have arrived in Sweden in 1810 when the former French marshal Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte arrived as the newly elected Crown Prince who later became King Carl XIV Johan. Empire designs also heavily influenced the American Federal style.
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Empress Marie-Louise's bedroom at the Palace of Compiègne
Photos: Håkan Groth |
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