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To say that François Gérard, painter of the famous “Bataille d’Austerlitz”, had a fine career during the First Empire is almost a truism. But it is hard to define the precise nature of this success: what were the actual benefits for the artist? Did it result in his social advancement?On Napoleon’s arrival in power Gérard was to make a great deal of money, achieving financial independence after 1807. He was also to receive real official recognition: the Légion d’honneur in 1803, official commissions, election to the Institut, etc.Alongside these advantages, Gérard also constituted for himself a huge network of relations. This too is a criterion for measuring his success in that by it we can measure his social advancement. This network, broad in France (Madame Récamier and Madame de Staël, Bernadotte, Talleyrand, Guizot, etc.), reached far and wide, particularly into Italy.