The Zouaves were a light infantry corps of the French army created in 1830 during the conquest of Algeria, originally made up of Algerian soldiers and then, from 1842, of mainly French infantrymen. The name is taken from the word "zwawa" which designates a confederation of Kabyle tribes who provided soldiers to the Ottoman Empire. Their uniform consists of a red cloth headdress called a chéchia, a waistcoat, a jacket, and sarouel trousers. The Zouave regiments were dissolved in 1962 at the time of Algerian independence.
Signed "I. Pils" lower right.
Isidore Pils (1815-1875) was a French painter born in Paris. Trained in the studio of Guillaume Guillon Lethière and François Édouard Picot, he won the Prix de Rome in 1838. He then left for the Académie de France at the Villa Medici and also visited Naples, Venice, and Florence during his stay in Italy. Initially a painter of religious scenes, he turned to military subjects in 1854-55, when he accompanied French troops to Crimea and the Orient. In 1863, he left for Algeria, where he stayed for two years and where he produced orientalist compositions. Back in France, Charles Garnier called on him to participate in the decor of the Opéra Garnier, then under construction. A few years before his death, he entered the Académie des Beaux-Arts and was named an officer of the Legion of Honor. His most famous work is Rouget de l'Isle singing La Marseillaise (1849), now preserved at the Historical Museum of Strasbourg.
Some stains in the paper.
Good general condition.
From the 19th century.
Dimensions:
Framed: 27 x 19.5 cm
Viewed: 19.5 x 12 cm