The Empire style, French pronunciation: [ɑ̃.piːʁ],the second phase of Neoclassicism, is an early-19th-century design movement in architecture, furniture, other decorative arts, and the visual arts that flourished between 1804 and 1814 during the First French Empire, although its life span lasted until the late 1820s (or more depending on each country). From France it spread into much of Europe and America.
The style originated in and takes its name from the rule of Napoleon I in the First French Empire, where it was intended to idealize Napoleon's leadership and the French state. The style corresponds to the Biedermeier style in the German-speaking lands, Federal style in the United States and to the Regency style in Britain. The previous style was called Louis XVI style, in France.