Battle of Luzzara
Battle of Luzzara | |||||||
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Part of War of the Spanish Succession | |||||||
Battle of Luzzara, by Jan van Huchtenburg | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Holy Roman Empire |
France Savoy | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Prince Eugene Prince Vaudémont Visconti Prince Commerci † |
Victor Amadeus | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
26,000 | 30,000 – 35,000 | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
2,000[1]-2,700[2] | 3,500[2]-4,000[1] |
The Battle of Luzzara took place in
Conflict in Northern Italy centred around the Spanish-held Duchies of Milan and Mantua, which controlled access to the southern borders of both France and Austria. When the war began in 1701, Savoy allied with France; despite being out numbered, by February 1702 the Imperialists held the strategic initiative.
Vendôme took the offensive, taking
Fighting continued until midnight, when the Imperialists ended their attack, having failed to break through; they suffered 2,000 casualties, the French lost around 4,000. While this ended Vendôme's offensive for the year, the French-Savoyard army had recovered nearly all the ground lost in 1701.
Background
The
The war in Northern Italy centred on the Spanish-held Duchies of
Over the next 12 months, Imperial general
On 12 July, Vendôme was joined by Philip V, who had been visiting Spanish possessions in Italy, including Naples, Sicily, and Milan. This brought their combined army up to 30,000 – 35,000, including 10,000 Savoyards and five regiments of the Irish Brigade. In July, Vendôme captured Modena, then turned north to take Guastalla; on 26 July, he clashed with Imperial cavalry under Visconti at Santa Vittoria.[6]
In early August, a detachment under Vendôme besieged
Battle
Between Luzzara and the Po River, there were two earth embankments, built to prevent the river flooding the countryside; a high one just outside the town, and a smaller one close to the river (see Map). Prince Eugene planned to conceal his troops behind these, and take the French-Savoyard army by surprise; since their first task would be to collect forage, and water the horses, he hoped to take them unarmed. He split his forces into two lines, the left under Visconti and the Prince de Commerci, the right under Vaudémont, while he commanded the centre.[9]
During the morning and early afternoon of 15 August, the Imperialists crossed the Po and moved into position, but were discovered by a French patrol.[9] They quickly formed up, and around 5:00 pm, Prince Eugene ordered a general assault. His right wing was repulsed four times, with heavy losses on both sides, particularly among the Irish units and Albemarle's Regiment holding the French left.[10] The struggle on the other wing was equally bloody; Commerci and his Danish infantry nearly broke through on several occasions, although he and several senior commanders were killed.[11]
The broken ground meant cavalry played little part in the battle, which meant casualties were even higher as a proportion of the numbers actually engaged. The French managed to hold their lines until exhaustion and darkness ended the fighting round midnight, and neither army was able to resume the attack in the morning. Since Prince Eugene remained in possession of the battlefield, he claimed it as a victory, according to the practice of the time.[12]
Aftermath
Although Vendôme suffered 4,000 casualties compared to Imperial losses of 2,000, most analysts consider the battle a draw, although it ended the French offensive; the two armies remained facing each other for the next month, occasionally bombarding each other.[13] This allowed Prince Eugene to hold on until the two sides went into winter quarters, but the French-Savoyard forces regained all the ground lost in the previous twelve months.[1]
Two days after the battle, Philip returned to
In 1708, Prince Eugene commissioned a series of paintings recording his victories from Dutch artist Jan van Huchtenburg, which included Luzzara.[15]
References
- ^ a b c d Lynn 1999, p. 276.
- ^ a b Bodart 1908, p. 127.
- ^ Somerset 2012, p. 168.
- ^ Dhondt 2015, pp. 16–17.
- ^ Lynn 1999, pp. 270–271.
- ^ Bancks 1745, p. 142.
- ^ Bancks 1745, p. 143.
- ^ a b Bancks 1745, p. 144.
- ^ a b Belsham 1836, pp. 167–168.
- ^ MacSweeney 1930, pp. 84–90.
- ^ Savoy 1811, p. 78.
- ^ Savoy 1811, p. 79.
- ^ Bancks 1745, p. 150.
- ^ Lynn 1999, pp. 284–285.
- ^ The Battle of Luzzara, 1702.
Sources
- Bancks, John (1745). The history of Francis-Eugene Prince of Savoy (2010 ed.). Gale ECCO. ISBN 1170621236.
- Belsham, William (1836). History of Great Britain, From the Revolution, 1688, to the Conclusion of the Treaty of Amiens, 1802 (2017 ed.). Forgotten Books. ISBN 133076840X.
- Dhondt, Frederik (2015). De Ruysscher, D; Capelle, K (eds.). History in Legal Doctrine; Vattel and Réal De Curban on the Spanish Succession; the War of the Spanish Succession in Legal history; moving in new directions. Maklu. ISBN 9789046607589.
- Lynn, John (1999). The Wars of Louis XIV, 1667–1714 (Modern Wars In Perspective). Longman. ISBN 978-0582056299.
- MacSweeney, Marquis of (1930). "The Casualty List of the Infantry Regiment of Albemarle at the Battle of Luzzara, 15th August, 1702". The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland. 20 (1): 84–90. JSTOR 25513547.
- Savoy, Prince Eugene of (1811). Memoirs of Prince Eugene of Savoy. Ezra Sargeant.
- Somerset, Anne (2012). Queen Anne; the Politics of Passion. Harper. ISBN 978-0007203765.
- "The Battle of Luzzara, 1702". The Royal Collection. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- Bodart, Gaston (1908). Militär-historisches Kriegs-Lexikon (1618–1905). Retrieved 3 February 2023.