It symbolically depicts the
July Revolution of 1830 which led to the downfall of
Charles X and the
House of Bourbon. Cogniet uses three flags to demonstrate the overthrow of the government. On the left is the Royalist banner featuring
fleur-de-lis on a white background. On the second the royalist emblem of the flag has been shot away, leaving the blue sky gaping behind it. In the third the right portion of the flag is soaked in the blood of the martyrs of the revolution, giving it the appearance of the
French tricolour. The flags symbolically represent the changing of regimens and the lives lost in several revolutions. It is also known by the
alternative title Les Drapeaux. The tricolour was strongly associated with the
French Revolution and the
Napoleonic era and had been suppressed during the
Restoration period. The new
July Monarchy of
Louis Philippe I adopted the tricolour as the
national flag once more. Although a number of paintings of the July Revolution were displayed at the
Salon of 1831 in
Paris, this was not amongst them. ==References==