Battle of Caldiero (1796)

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This article is about the battle in 1796. For other battles with the same name, see Battle of Caldiero.
Battle of Caldiero, 1796
Part of French Revolutionary Wars
Date12 November 1796
Location
Caldiero, in present-day Italy
45°25′N 11°11′E / 45.417°N 11.183°E / 45.417; 11.183
Result Austrian victory
Belligerents
First French Republic
 Habsburg monarchy Habsburg monarchy
Commanders and leaders
Pierre Augereau
France Dominique Martin Dupuy
Jozsef Alvinczi
Habsburg monarchy Prince Hohenzollern
Habsburg monarchy Giovanni Provera
Habsburg monarchy Anton Schübirz von Chobinin
Habsburg monarchy Peter Vitus von Quosdanovich
Strength
13,000 infantry 18,000 infantry
Casualties and losses
1,800 dead and wounded, 2 guns 1,300 dead and wounded
War of the First Coalition:
Italian Campaign
Map
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Maps: terms of use
100km
62miles
15
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Battle of Valvasone (1797) on 16 March 1797
13
Siege of Mantua (1796–1797) from 27 August 1796 to 2 February 1797
12
Battle of Rivoli from 14 to 15 January 1797
11
Battle of Arcole from 15 to 17 November 1796
10
9
Battle of Bassano on 8 September 1796 Second Battle of Bassano on 6 November 1796
8
Battle of Rovereto on 4 September 1796
7
Battle of Castiglione on 5 August 1796
6
Battle of Lonato from 3 to 4 August 1796
5
Battle of Borghetto on 30 May 1796
Lodi
4
Battle of Lodi on 10 May 1796
3
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Montenotte campaign from 10 to 28 April 1796
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Second Battle of Saorgio (1794) from 24 to 28 April 1794
  current battle
  Napoleon as subordinate
  Napoleon in command

In the Battle of Caldiero on 12 November 1796, the

Napoleon Bonaparte. The French assaulted the Austrian positions, which were initially held by the army advance guard under Prince Friedrich Franz Xaver of Hohenzollern-Hechingen. The defenders held firm until reinforcements arrived in the afternoon to push back the French. This marked a rare tactical setback for Bonaparte, whose forces withdrew into Verona that evening after having suffered greater losses than their adversaries. The action occurred during the War of the First Coalition, which was part of the French Revolutionary Wars. Caldiero
is a town located about 15 km (9.3 mi) east of Verona.

The battle was part of the third Austrian effort to relieve the

Pierre Augereau to attack. Sturdy Austrian resistance and bad weather contributed to the French defeat. Bonaparte soon embarked upon a new strategy which concluded with an Austrian defeat at the Battle of Arcole
a few days later.

Background

Further information: Order of battle for the Battle of Arcole

On 2 November 1796,

Dagobert Sigismund von Würmser, who was trapped in Mantua with a 23,708-man garrison. Of these, only 12,420 were well enough to fight.[2]

To face the twin threats, Bonaparte deployed a 10,500-man division led by

Charles Edward Jennings de Kilmaine with 8,800 men blockaded Würmser's garrison in Mantua.[2]

On 6 November, Bonaparte with 19,500 men, including Massena, Augereau, and a reserve brigade, attacked Alvinczi at Bassano and Fontaniva. In the hard-fought Second Battle of Bassano, Alvinczi and his two division commanders, Feldmarschall-Leutnants Peter Vitus von Quosdanovich and Giovanni Marchese di Provera, repelled their outnumbered opponents. French losses were 3,000 killed, wounded, and captured, while Alvinczi's army suffered about 2,800 casualties.[3]

Davidovich routed Vaubois in the Battle of Calliano on 7 November, inflicting 4,400 casualties on the French for an Austrian loss of 3,500.[4] Bonaparte focused on the threat from the north as he pulled back his eastern force to Verona. Davidovich remained inactive because he was under the mistaken impression that Masséna's division had reinforced Vaubois.

Battle

By 11 November, Alvinczi's advance elements reached

Adige River
to engage the Austrians. Hohenzollern lost 400 men and pulled back to a ridge running north of Caldiero. Bonaparte determined to attack the Austrians the next day.

Bonaparte sent a total of 13,000 men to attack Hohenzollern's position.[5] Masséna drove against the Austrian right and Augereau attacked the Austrian left, The Austrians, who had fortified themselves in several villages, sturdily resisted the French assaults. A violent rain and hail storm blew in the faces of the French troops, making it difficult for them to prime their muskets. At mid-day, Masséna began making headway on the Austrian right. In the afternoon, the brigades of Generals-major Adolf Brabeck and Anton Schübirz von Chobinin arrived on the field. Soon the Austrians forced back Masséna. Provera also appeared and drove back Augereau. The arrival of nightfall allowed the French to pull safely back into Verona.[6]

Result

Theater map shows the battles of San Michele, 2nd Bassano, and Calliano in November 1796.
Actions leading to the Battle of Caldiero, Nov. 1796

The French suffered 1,000 killed and wounded, plus 800 men and two artillery pieces captured. The Austrians lost 950 killed and wounded, and 350 captured.

Battle of Arcola
on 15–17 November and defeated the Austrians.

Notes

  1. ^ Chandler (1966), p. 101.
  2. ^ a b Boycott-Brown (2001), p. 448.
  3. ^ Smith (1998), p. 126.
  4. ^ Smith (1998), pp. 126–127.
  5. ^ Chandler (1966), p. 103.
  6. ^ Boycott-Brown (2001), p. 456.
  7. ^ Smith (1998), p. 127.

References

  • Boycott-Brown, Martin (2001). The Road to Rivoli: Napoleon's First Campaign. London: Cassell & Co.
    ISBN 0-304-35305-1
    .
  • Chandler, David G. (1966). The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York: Macmillan.
  • Fiebeger, G. J. (1911). The Campaigns of Napoleon Bonaparte of 1796–1797. West Point, New York: US Military Academy Printing Office.
  • ISBN 1-85367-276-9
    .
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