French painting occupied a modest place in European art before the 17th Century. Only after this date did hitherto largely anonymous practioners give way to a pleiad of famous names: Nicolas Poussin, Georges de la Tour, Clause Lorrain, the Le Nain brothers... In the 18th and 19th Centuries, French painting was at its zenith. Today museums all over the world have canvases of Watteau, David, Ingres, Delacroix, Monet, Renor, Matisse and many more. This book offers the reader a complete and illustrated guide for each genre (landscape, still life, portraits, etc.), through five centuries of French Painting.