The Italian Campaign of A. V. Suvorov in the Works of French Authors of the 19th Century

French historiography of the Italian campaign of A. V. Suvorov in the late 18th — 19th centuries was actively developed in several directions. Already in 1799 and during the first decade after the campaign, a number of works appeared, in which the events that unfolded in Italy were covered through the biographies of their individual participants. This trend simultaneously manifested itself in France, Russia, and other European countries. Among the participants in the campaign, Suvorov attracted the greatest attention, and his image quickly began to “grow” with many historical anecdotes, which to this day are an integral part of it and in which the commander appears, on the one hand, as a military genius, and on the other, as an unpredictable eccentric. He also became part of the stereotypical image of Russians in general and the Russian army in particular, which became a propaganda tool during the Napoleonic Empire. Subsequently, the image of Suvorov lost its former popularity in France, and after the end of the Napoleonic Wars, studies began to appear regularly examining in detail the Italian campaign in the context of France’s confrontation with the First and Second anti-French coalitions. This period is characterized by the active publication of historical sources in France, Russia, Austria, Italy and England, especially memoirs, as well as the active acquaintance of researchers from different countries with the works of foreign colleagues. Famous historians of the French Revolution made their contribution to understanding the political context of the Italian campaign of 1799, considering it not only as part of the foreign policy of the French Republic, but also of the internal political struggle that was going on in it.