Carl Frederich Heinrich Werner (Weimar 1808-1894 Leipzig)
Carl Frederich Heinrich Werner (Weimar 1808-1894 Leipzig)

The Battle of the Casino dei Quattro Venti during the Siege of Rome, 1849

Details
Carl Frederich Heinrich Werner (Weimar 1808-1894 Leipzig)
The Battle of the Casino dei Quattro Venti during the Siege of Rome, 1849
oil on canvas
16 ½ x 23 in. (42 x 58.5 cm.)
Exhibited
London, Hazlitt, Gooden & Fox, The Lure of Rome, Some Northern Artists in Italy in the 19th Century, 31 October - 27 November 1979, no. 71.

Lot Essay

This depicts an episode referring to the siege of Rome in 1849, during the Roman Republic. Following an order by the French King Louis-Napoléon, the General Charles Oudinot attacked the city with his troops on 1 June. Despite the stiff resistance offered by Giuseppe Garibaldi and the Republican Army, the French troops finally prevailed on 29 June. They entered Rome on 3 July, re-establishing the Holy's See temporal power and creating a provisional military government.
The present painting illustrates one of the most cruel attacks on French troops by the Republican armies: the siege of Villa Corsini also known as Casino dei Quattro Venti, happened during the night of 3 June.

More from Brian Sewell - Critic & Collector

View All
View All