Gérard, BARON FRANÇOIS PASCAL

Gérard, BARON FRANÇOIS PASCAL, painter, born of French parentage at Rome, 11th March 1770, at ten was brought to France, and at sixteen became the pupil of David. In 1795 he exhibited 'Belisarius,' which first brought him into notice; shortly afterwards he painted 'Psyche receiving the First Kiss from Cupid.' Previous to this he had already begun to work at portrait-painting, his portrait of Madame Bonaparte in 1799 being the beginning of his career as the 'painter of kings.' Almost all the royal and other celebrities who visited Paris between 1799 and 1837 were painted by Gérard, who owed his success not alone to his skill as a portraitist, but also to the charm of his manners and conversation. The grandest of his works are, however, historical pictures, the 'Battle of Austerlitz' (1810) and the 'Entry of Henry IV. into Paris' (1814). Gérard was appointed first court-painter and raised to the rank of baron by Louis XVIII. He died at Paris, 11th January 1837. Gérard's most celebrated portraits are those of Napoleon in his coronation robes, the Queen of Naples and her Children, Talleyrand, Talma, Louis-Philippe, and Madame Récamier. See books by Adam (3 vols. 1852-57) and H. Gérard (1867).