The Arrival of King Louis XVIII of France at Calais
Painting by Edward Bird
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The Arrival of King Louis XVIII of France at Calais is an oil on canvas history painting by the English artist Edward Bird, from 1816.[1]
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| The Arrival of King Louis XVIII of France at Calais | |
|---|---|
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| Artist | Edward Bird |
| Year | 1816 |
| Type | Oil on panel, history painting |
| Dimensions | 110 cm × 174 cm (43 in × 69 in) |
| Location | Wolverhampton Art Gallery, Wolverhampton |
History and description
It depicts the arrival of Louis XVIII, the long-exiled claimant to the throne of France, arriving in Calais, on 24 April 1814, following the downfall of Napoleon.[2][3] Louis, the younger brother of the guillotined Louis XVI, had spent the later stages of the Napoleonic Wars in exile in Regency Britain. The First Bourbon Restoration proved to be short-lived as Napoleon escaped from Elba in 1815. It was a companion piece to The Embarkation of Louis XVIII at Dover, which shows the beginning of the voyage.
Bird was a founder of the Bristol School and in 1815 was elected a member of the Royal Academy. He was known for his genre paintings, but his career ended in bankruptcy, and his early death in 1819.[4] The painting is in the collection of the Wolverhampton Art Gallery, which purchased it in 1935.[5] Another version is on display at Burton Constable Hall, in Yorkshire.[6]
See also
- Louis XVIII Raising France from Its Ruins, an 1814 painting by Louis-Philippe Crépin featuring an allegorical depiction of the king's arrival at Calais