This portrait of Napoleon in his general’s uniform is from 1803, the year before he declared himself emperor. The snow-covered mountains allude to the campaign in Italy in 1798 –1799, when Napoleon led the French Army across the Alps. Following a military coup he now had the title “First Consul” (one of three), but in practice, he was the French dictator. Napoleon’s portrayers wished to move away from traditional royal portraiture – since Napoleon was not a king. To depict the face frontally was a new approach, inspired partly by religious representations of Christ.