Ils grognaient, et le suivaient toujours - Denis-Auguste-Marie Raffet

A detailed lithograph by Denis-Auguste-Marie Raffet depicting the weary soldiers of the Napoleonic Imperial Guard marching through rain.

This lithograph by Denis-Auguste-Marie Raffet captures a quintessential moment of Napoleonic iconography. The title, translated as 'They Gumbled, and They Always Followed', refers to the 'Grognards', the nickname given to the veteran soldiers of the Imperial Guard. Raffet was a master of the lithographic medium, and he used its tonal range to convey the atmospheric conditions of a rain-swept march. The composition shows a column of soldiers trudging through mud, their figures partially obscured by the mist and the driving rain. A windmill looms in the distance, providing a sense of scale and setting the scene in the flat, damp terrain of the European campaigns.

Raffet focuses on the weariness of the men, yet their discipline remains evident in their steady, forward movement. The horses and riders in the foreground provide a clear silhouette against the softer, more impressionistic treatment of the marching infantry behind them. The artist avoids glorifying the conflict, choosing instead to document the physical toll of the campaign on the common soldier. His ability to render texture, from the wet ground to the heavy wool of the uniforms, demonstrates his technical skill. This work is a fine example of the mid-nineteenth-century interest in the Napoleonic era, which was often viewed through a lens of nostalgia and national identity in France. The print serves as a record of the aesthetic and historical preoccupations of the period, capturing the sombre reality of military life with precision and restraint.