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Research dossier · Arts & Letters

The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies

painting by François Gérard

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 27, 2026
Entity authorityQ114354191 ↗
Source-derived summary

The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies (French: Lecture à l'Hôtel de Ville de Paris de la Déclaration des Députés et de la Proclamation du Duc d'Orléans) is an 1836 history painting by the French artist François Gérard. It depicts a scene from the July Revolution of 1830, which led to the overthrow of Charles X of France and his replacement by his cousin the Duke of Orléans who became Louis Philippe I. The painting portrays the moment on 30 July 1830 that a gathering at the City Hall in Paris

crowd round to listen to the declaration of the Chamber of Deputies proclaiming that Louise Phillipe be made Lieutenant General of the Kingdom, a step towards his gaining the throne several days later. In addition to Orléans, the painting features Benjamin Constant, Casimir Pierre Périer, Pierre-Agathe Heymès, Marshal Gérard and Jean-Pons-Guillaume Viennet.

François Gérard was a leading French painter, noted particularly for his portraits, who had navigated several changes of regime without losing official favour. The July Monarchy lasted until 1848 when Louis Philippe was himself overthrown in a revolution. The painting was commissioned by Louise Philippe, based on an earlier sketch, now in the Musée Carnavalet, for the new Musée de l'Histoire de France at the Palace of Versailles.

References

Bibliography

Boime, Albert. Art in an Age of Counterrevolution, 1815-1848. ISBN 0226063372. University of Chicago Press, 2004.

Editorial summary

Begin with the source’s own compact description: “The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies” is painting by François Gérard. The dossier treats that line as a proposition to test through Reading, Declaration and Deputies, not as a finished interpretation.

Editorial reviewA useful identification and reception guide that helps separate the work itself from editions, performances, ownership and later interpretation. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1836, 1830, 1848, 1815—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1836. For this dossier, Reading, Declaration and Deputies is the immediate research focus.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The phrase “painting by François Gérard” supplies a clear boundary for inquiry. It also exposes the unanswered questions: who defined that boundary, when it became stable and which sources sit outside it.

Evidence profile

Attribution, date and provenance are strongest when supported by the original work, a catalogue record and documented transmission. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 27, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q114354191. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1836, 1830, 1848 and 1815.

Critical limits

Titles can refer to several editions, objects or performances, making precise identification essential before interpretation. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies primary sources, The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies archive and Reading research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies”?
  2. Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
  3. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “The Reading of the Declaration of the Deputies” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.