The Munich painter Karl August Aerttinger was born in 1803. Little is known of his early training before he moved to Augsburg to study with the painter Klemens Zimmermann. In his mid-20s, he returned to Munich, where he attended the art academy. He concluded his training with a stay in Paris in 1830–31.

After he was called to Vienna in 1846, Aerttinger painted portraits of the imperial family. During his travels in Hungary and Poland, which began in 1848, Aerttinger gained an introduction to the Russian general Paskievich. He traveled with the general’s army for five years and completed many battle scenes recording Russian triumphs. In 1854, the artist returned to Germany, where he seems to have renounced battle scenes in favor of landscapes and genre subjects, which he continued to produce until his death.

This painting, dating from Aerttinger’s period with General Paskievich, records a scene from an earlier battle in the Russo-Persian war of 1825-28, likely the battle of Kirovabad or Ganja. Led by Paskievich, in 1826 the Russian army defeated Persia as an aspiring power and undermined British power in the East. In addition to the accurate depiction of the Russian leader and his troops, the painting explores the exotic costumes and culture of the defeated Persians.