A watercolour and bodycolour drawing of Queen Victoria's departure from Paris. The royal party is arriving by carriage at the Gare de Strasbourg (now the Gare de l'Est), surrounded by troops on horseback. The arcades are festooned with flags: the tricolore, Royal Standard and Red Ensign. Signed and dated at lower right: E Guérard 1855.

In August 1855 Queen Victoria and Prince Albert spent ten days in Paris, on the invitation of Napoleon III and his wife Eugénie. The historic state visit was intended to celebrate the military alliance between Britain and France in the Crimean War, and followed a visit by the imperial couple to Windsor in April that year. At the end of the visit the party returned via rail from the Gare de Strasbourg to Boulogne, from where they left by yacht to Osborne.

Eugene Guérard trained with the painter Paul Delaroche and regularly exhibited at the Salon. He also worked for the newspaper L'Illustration, and presumably used printed illustrations as source material for the two watercolours he made for the album (RCIN 920060).