Granadier Francois Pils, (French, 1785-1867)

Napoleon mounting his horse; Soldiers at Dranchowitz; Combat D'Amstetten; Soldiers resting at Drisviatoui

Napoleon mounting his horse; Soldiers at Dranchowitz; Combat D'Amstetten; Soldiers resting at Drisviatoui
a set of four, one inscribed and dated 'Dranchowitz/a 8 heures du soir, le 19 Mai 1813' (lower right), one inscribed 'Drisviatoui, 11 Juillet 1812' (lower left)
pen, ink and watercolour, the largest
19 x 30cm
(4)

François Pils, from Alsace, was the valet de chambre for General (later Marshall) Oudinot, and was with him on the battlefields of Austerlitz, Jena, Essling and Wagram. A talented artist and author of the famous journal of the Napoleonic campaign Journal de marche du grenadier Pils, 1804-1814, he would later study with Horace Vernet. His son, Isadore, was also an artist. A watercolour entitled The Surgeon Capiomont Stitching the Ear of General Oudinot at the Battle of Wagram, 1809 is in the Wellcome Collection.

The works in the present lot depict various engagements which took place in the early 19th Century: 'Combat D'Amstetten' was a skirmish between French and Austrian troops in November 1805; 'Drisviatoui' was a position occupied by Oudinot during the invasion of Russia in 1812; 'Dranchowitz' was a position occupied by the French during their retreat through Saxony in 1813.