Felicity of France

This allegorical image of Felicity, or Happiness, celebrates Napoleon’s second marriage, to the Austrian archduchess Marie-Louise. The newlyweds appear in portrait miniatures held aloft by Felicity, perhaps a clever comment on the fact that they were introduced and engaged to each other via the intermediary of painted portraits. Indeed, on first seeing her bridegroom in the flesh, Marie-Louise is said to have remarked, “You are much better looking than your portrait.”