Battle of Trebbia (1799)
Battle of the Trebbia | |
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Part of the Italian Republic 45°3′0″N 9°36′0″E / 45.05000°N 9.60000°E | |
Result |
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Habsburg monarchy
Jean-Baptiste Salme (POW)
François Watrin
Jean-Baptiste Olivier (POW)
Joseph de Montrichard
Jean-Baptiste Rusca (POW)
Jan Dąbrowski (WIA
- Salme's Advance Guard
- Watrin's Division
- Olivier's Division
- Montrichard's Division
- Victor's Division
- Rusca's Division
- Dąbrowski's Division
- Artillery Park
FM
- 1st Column (Rosenberg)
- Bagration's Advance Guard
- Povalo-Shveikovsky's Division
- 2nd Column (Rosenberg, Förster)
- Förster's Division
- 3rd Column (Melas)
- Ott's Division
- Fröhlich's Reserve Division
(incl. 8 generals and 502 officers[1])
…more calculations
7 guns, 8 standards[1]
(incl. 3 generals and 149 officers[1])
…more calculations
The Battle of (the) Trebbia (17 [6
In the spring of 1799 the Habsburg and Russian armies ousted the French from much of northern Italy after the battles of Magnano and Cassano and they placed the key fortress of Mantua under siege. Assembling the French occupation forces of southern and central Italy into an army, Macdonald moved north to challenge his enemies. Rather than playing safe by moving along the west coast road, Macdonald boldly chose to move east of the Apennine Mountains, hoping to be supported by Jean Victor Marie Moreau's French army. After brushing aside a much smaller Austrian force at Modena, Macdonald's army swept west along the south bank of the Po River. Suvorov swiftly concentrated his Russians and the allied Austrians of Michael von Melas to block the French move. The four-day battle took place in hot weather,[30] and despite the fatigue of the Allied troops, they moved into the fight immediately after the march.
On 17 June, the leading French divisions bumped into a holding force led by Peter Karl Ott von Bátorkéz along the Tidone River. Ott was rapidly reinforced by the mass of the Austro-Russian army and the French pulled back to the Trebbia. Suvorov attacked on the 18th: the French managed to hold off the Allied drive, but they abandoned positions on the west bank of the Trebbia. On 19 June almost entire Macdonald's 33,500-strong army was concentrated and he ordered an attack which was poorly coordinated and repulsed at all points by the numerically inferior 22,000-strong Coalition forces. Realizing that assistance from Moreau was not forthcoming, that night Macdonald ordered the beaten French army to slip away to the south and west. The French initially had more men during the beginning of the battle, 19,000 compared to the 12–15,000 of the Russians.[31]
On the 20th, along the Nure River, the Allies overran the French 17th demi-brigade acting as rearguard. Instead of bringing a powerful reinforcement to the hard-pressed French in northwest Italy, only the crippled remains of Macdonald's army arrived.[citation needed] This brigade (part of the Auvergne Regiment), considered to be "the pride of the entire French army", was largely captured.[32]
The battle of the Trebbia, or the Campaign of the Trebbia as Duffy called it,[33] is one of the great victories in Alexander Suvorov's military career, along with the storming of Izmail. French general Moreau referred to the battle as a masterpiece of the military art, with Macdonald, the French general whom Suvorov defeated, sharing the same opinion.[32]
Due to participation of some 3,000 soldiers of the Polish Legions, who were in the nominal service of the Cisalpine Republic, the Battle of Trebbia is commemorated on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Warsaw, with the inscription "TREBBIA 17 - 19 VI 1799". Macdonald's army also included one Cisalpine dragoon regiment and one Cisalpine hussar regiment[34] from the Lombard Legion.
Background
Coalition successes
The
On 27 April, the Coalition allies led by Suvorov were victorious over
Meanwhile, 30,000 Allies under Suvorov moved up the north bank of the
MacDonald's offensive
On 14 April 1799, the French Directory ordered MacDonald to help the French forces in northern Italy. Accordingly, he assembled the Army of Naples and moved north, leaving southern Italy in the hands of local forces. MacDonald reached Rome on 16 May and Florence ten days later. From there, the safest course was to use the west coast road to reach Genoa, keeping the Apennine Mountains between him and the Allies. However, MacDonald believed that the coast road was unusable for his artillery beyond Lerici and feared that Austrian columns might interfere with the operation. But perhaps the real reason was that MacDonald wished to make a theatrical entrance to the campaign by smashing his way through the Coalition allies. In order to accomplish this, he asked Moreau to march north and east to meet him near Piacenza, an impractical move that would place the Army of Italy in the midst of its enemies. After his passage across the Apennines, MacDonald hoped to crush some of the Austrian covering forces.[42] As it moved north, the Army of Naples absorbed the divisions of Victor, Montrichard and Gaultier, bringing its total field force to 36,728 soldiers.[10]
On 9 June Suvorov received news from Peter Karl Ott von Bátorkéz that Victor and Montrichard reinforced MacDonald and that the French captured Pontremoli. Ott commanded 5,000 soldiers that belonged to Bellegarde's corps, but were acting independently near Parma. Immediately, Suvorov ordered Ott to conduct a staged withdrawal to Stradella,[10] but to hold that position at all hazards. The Russian commander quickly made up his mind to move east to confront MacDonald. With the exception of Kaim's division, the Austro-Russian army marched to Asti, reaching there on 11 June. The Allied troops reached the Bormida River near the French-held fortress of Alessandria on 13 June. That day, Suvorov got definite news of MacDonald's offensive. Meanwhile, a French squadron put in at Genoa on 2 June to drop off French reinforcements. Intelligence indicated that Moreau was about to descend from the mountains. Suvorov ordered Bellegarde's corps to march on Alessandria to keep an eye on Moreau while the rest of his army concentrated against MacDonald.[43]
The Army of Naples negotiated the Apennine Mountains in four major columns. The divisions of Montrichard and
Since the fortress of Alessandria commanded the only crossing of the Bormida, the Austro-Russian main body waited on a pontoon train which finally arrived on 15 June. At 5:00 pm the span was in place and Suvorov's army crossed and marched all night to reach Castelnuovo Scrivia on the morning of the 16th. After only three hours of rest, the soldiers continued the forced march during the day to their bivouac between Casteggio and Casatisma.[47] In a period of 24 hours the Allied army covered 56 kilometres (35 mi)[47] in the scorching heat. Many fell down from fatigue.[48] To provide security for his right flank, Suvorov detached Mikhail Mikhailovich Veletsky with one battalion of the Jung-Baden Musketeer Regiment, 50 Cossacks and 80 dragoons from the Karaczay Regiment. Allowing for the possibility of defeat, the Russian army commander ordered the Po to be bridged at Mezzana Corti for the main army and Valenza for Bellegarde's corps.[47] By this time, Bellegarde and 14,500 troops arrived to maintain the siege of Alessandria and contain Moreau. To keep MacDonald from raising the siege of Mantua, Kray manned the north bank of the Po with several thousand troops.[33]
On 16 June at 10:00 am, MacDonald's vanguard arrived near Piacenza and began pressing Ott's command. Suvorov reiterated his orders for Ott to make a fighting retreat to the Stradella defile. By this time Austrian military engineer Albert Johann de Best got the Piacenza citadel into a defensible state after eight days of work; two or three companies of the Fröhlich Regiment were assigned to garrison it. Victor's division led the French attack on Ott as Rusca's soldiers edged toward the south as if to flank the Austrians out of position. That night, Suvorov's chief of staff Johann Gabriel Chasteler de Courcelles rushed toward Ott's position with 100 dragoons of the Karaczay Regiment plus a half-battery of horse artillery. Following behind was an improvised force including the Wouwermanns Grenadier Battalion, three battalions of the Fröhlich Regiment, the remainder of the Karaczay Regiment and one and one-half batteries of horse artillery. If Ott could hold out along the Tidone River, it would allow ample space for the Austro-Russian army to deploy between the Po and the mountain spurs to the south. If Ott were forced back into the narrow Stradella position, it would be difficult for the Allies to form a line of battle and might even cause a rout.[49]
Forces
Allied Army
The Austro-Russian army commanded by
Rosenberg personally accompanied the Second Column in the center. The division commander was Lieutenant General Förster and his infantry was made up of two battalions each of the
The Third Column under
French Army
In MacDonald's Army of Naples
The 3rd Division was supervised by General of Division Montrichard and was made up of the 3rd (or 2nd) Line (730), 21st Line (1,000), 68th Line (900) and 5th Light (1,900) Infantry Demi-Brigades, 1st Cavalry (263), 12th Dragoon (400), 11th Hussar (250), Cisalpine Dragoon (100) and Cisalpine Hussar (308) Regiments and gunners and sappers (112). The 4th Division was commanded by General of Division Watrin and consisted of the 62nd Line (3,420) and 78th Light (2,120) Infantry Demi-Brigade, 25th Chasseurs à Cheval Regiment (260) and artillerists (33). The 5th Division was directed by General of Division Dombrowski and comprised the 1st Polish Legion (2,000), 8th Light Infantry Demi-Brigade (893) and Polish Cavalry (500).[52]
The remaining infantry division was led by General of Division Victor and included the 5th Line (1,300), 39th Line (1,225), 92nd Line (1,240), 93rd Line (1,265) and 99th Line (1,320) Infantry Demi-Brigades and 15th Chasseurs à Cheval Regiment (400). There were also 526 men assigned to the artillery park. A second authority placed the 12th Line in Olivier's division rather than Salme's Advanced Guard, specified that the 17th in Rusca's division was Light Infantry, put the 2nd Line instead of the 3rd Line in Montrichard's division and listed different unit totals in some divisions. This second source gave the following division strengths for the end of May: Salme 2,997, Olivier 5,826, Rusca 5,397, Montrichard 5,773, Watrin 4,880, Dombrowski 3,555 and Victor 6,750. This yielded a strength of 30,980 infantry, 3,616 cavalry and 1,088 artillerymen and sappers for a 35,684 grand total. From this, losses from the Battle of Modena and other causes must be deducted.[14]
Battle
Tidone River - 17 June
The Tidone River runs north into the Po west of Piacenza. With steep banks 2 to 3 metres high and a width of about 100 metres (109 yd), the stream has some defensive value. Like the Tidone, the bed of the Trebbia is filled with white stones.[49] On 17 June at 8:00 am the French opened their attack against Ott's positions behind the Tidone. On hand were a total of 18,700 soldiers including Salme's Advance Guard. The French divisions were deployed with Victor on the right, Rusca in the center and Dombrowski on the left. Because of the wounds he sustained at Modena, MacDonald was bedridden in the village of Borgo San Antonio to the west of Piacenza. As senior officer Victor should have assumed tactical control of the fight, but he stayed in Piacenza, resulting in poor coordination of the French effort. Nevertheless, the determined initial assault ousted the d'Aspré Jägers from their west-bank positions in the hamlets of Agazzino, Pontetidone and Veratto di Sopra. As Dombrowski's troops mounted a flank attack to the south, the troops of Victor's division fought their way to the village of Sarmato where they were held up by an Austrian artillery battery and two battalions of the Nádasdy Regiment. Chasteler was with Ott when the French attack started. He urged Ott to hold as long as possible and went back to find that his task force was hurrying on its way. At 1:00 pm Chasteler's men arrived and were thrown into the fight. Nevertheless, at 3:00 pm the French overran both Sarmato and its defending battery, forcing Ott's troops back to a position in front of Castel San Giovanni.[3]
Soon afterward Melas arrived with three battalions of Austrians foot and some squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussars.
Finally, the Allies recaptured Sarmato and the abandoned Austrian cannons, compelling the French to retreat. The French fell back stubbornly, taking advantage of plentiful cover to repulse Austrian cavalry charges. Salme's Advanced Guard covered the last stages of the withdrawal, forming square at Ca' del Bosco on the northern part of the battlefield. The shooting ended by 9:00 pm.[51] The French suffered losses of about 1,000 killed and wounded plus 1,200 more captured. Allied casualties are not given.[56] Based on the results of 17 June, with up to 15,000 men Suvorov decisively rushed on 18,000[57] French, given the reinforcements that had arrived, and forced them to retreat.[58]
Trebbia River - 18 June
The Allied army had a total of 32⅔ battalions, 24 squadrons and 4 Cossack regiments. Each division was ordered to build in combat order in two lines, 300 paces distance; each cavalry regiment — in the
Unexpectedly confronted by a large Austro-Russian army, MacDonald was in a dilemma. He believed that his 22,000 available soldiers were outnumbered and ought to retreat, but he anticipated that Moreau might soon arrive to pitch into the Allied rear. So he hoped to hold out until his last divisions could arrive on the field. MacDonald was also aware of the presence of a force under Jean François Cornu de La Poype that was in position to threaten the Allied south flank.[14] On the 18th, Veletsky's detached force surprised La Poype's 1,500 French and 2,000 Genoese at Bobbio, sending them fleeing back to Genoa.[47] On morning of 18 June the injured MacDonald inspected his army. He found his men ready to fight and the enemy inactive.[14] Meanwhile, Suvorov and Chasteler planned to throw three columns at the French, with the main strength on the right to break down MacDonald's flank by advancing from the Tidone to the Trebbia and finally all the way to the Nure River, the next river to the east. With luck, the French would be driven back against the Po. The First Column on the right was headed by Bagration's Advance Guard followed by Schveikovsky's division. The Second Column in the center was made up of Förster's division. The Third Column included the divisions of Ott and Fröhlich. Ott was ordered to drive straight ahead to the Trebbia supported by his colleague. At some point Fröhlich's grenadiers were supposed to reinforce the right flank in order to give more weight to its attack.[59]
Suvorov's desire to start the attack at 7:00 am proved to be impractical due to the Allied soldiers' exhaustion, so it was put off until 11:00 am. Scouts reported that the French were defending behind the Trebbia with advanced positions near the villages of San Nicolò a Trebbia, Mamago Sotto Svizzera, Gragnano Trebbiense and Casaliggio, from north to south. Bagration's Advance Guard forded the Tidone and attacked Dombrowski's Polish Legion south of Casaliggio at 2:00 pm, achieving some surprise. Coming from the south, a Polish battalion threatened the Russian rear, but it was quickly hemmed in by Russian infantry, the Austrian Karaczay Dragoons, and Cossacks; 230 men were forced to lay down their arms. An alert French staff officer, Pierre Edmé Gautherin brought the divisions of Rusca and Victor to the west bank of the Trebbia where they stopped and drove back Bagration's troops.[59] Rosenberg brought Schveikovsky's reserve division into the fight while Suvorov personally rallied the shaken Russian infantry. "Halt!" cried Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov, and at that instant the line of retreating troops stopped, as a concealed battery spewed cannon shot into the French. They wavered in a state of shock, and stood for a while as the cannon shot, shells and canister from the hidden battery coursed through them. "Press on! Stupai, Stupai! With the bayonet! Hurrah!" continued to yell Suvorov. The Russians presently gained the upper hand and compelled Rusca to pull back to the east bank of the Trebbia, which his men accomplished while maintaining their ranks but hotly pursued by the allied cavalry. The fighting in the center began when the Levenehr Dragoons and Molchanov Cossacks clashed with some French horsemen and drove them back. Starting at 5:00 pm, Förster slowly pressed back the right wing of Victor's division.[60] 2 companies of Tyrtov's regiment knocked several hundred French infantry of Rusca's division out of Gragnano. As the advanced French troops were pushed out of this village, part of Monrichard's division went forward to support them. Förster then put all his troops into action, leaving only one battalion in reserve, and attacked the opponent on the left bank of the Trebbia; seeing his flank exposed, Monrichard was forced to retreat. Thus, the French finally evacuated Gragnano and fell back across the Trebbia.[60][61]
Salme's Advanced Guard, which was posted near Sant' Imento north of the highway, was unchallenged most of the day. At about 2:30 pm, the divisions of Montrichard and Olivier crossed the Trebbia and marched to Salme's support. Seeing these French reinforcements in his front, Melas decided not to release Fröhlich's division instead of helping the right flank as he was supposed to.[60] In general, during the two-day fighting at the Trebbia, Melas showed delay and indecision, or even half-heartedly carried out Suvorov's orders to put units into battle, which threatened the troops with a possible French breakthrough, including the decision not to bring Fröhlich into the battle.[62][63] If Suvorov was not on the right flank (8,5 km from Melas), but, for example, at the middle column, he would have been able to understand Melas' behaviour in time and force him to do his will; but because of the right flank's importance, where the fate of the battle was decided, Suvorov had to be there.[64][60] The Third Column commander sent Ott forward at 6:00 pm and the Austrians easily brushed aside Salme's outnumbered unit. Together, Ott and Fröhlich pushed Montrichard and Olivier back beyond the Trebbia by evening. That night in a bizarre operation, Rosenberg took two Russian grenadier battalions across the Trebbia south of Gossolengo. They somehow penetrated the French lines as far as Settima where they routed a French detachment and liberated some prisoners.[60] At 3:00 am, Rosenberg's expedition headed back to the west bank, again without arousing any French sentries. Four squadrons of the Karaczay Dragoons mounted a similar expedition but were detected and driven off by musketry. Both groups missed the pointless battle that occurred earlier in the evening. Hearing what they believed to be Moreau's artillery, three French battalions mounted an extemporaneous attack at 9:30 pm, surprising an Austrian battalion. Melas called up reinforcements from his own and Förster's divisions while Prince Liechtenstein charged into the fray with the Lobkowitz Dragoons. The artillery of both sides opened up on the melee, causing many friendly fire casualties. After strenuous efforts, the leaders of both sides managed to wind down the senseless fighting by 11:00 pm.[62] The total allied force in the combat of 18 June, if the casualties of 17 June are roughly deducted, was around 22,000, which is equal to the French forces.[55]
Trebbia River - 19 June
Chasteler sent orders for the Allied army to begin the assault at 6:00 am on 19 June. However, the plan was not delivered to Melas until 11:00 am. In the meantime, Melas noticed the presence of strong enemy forces at the north end of the battleline and sent 12 artillery pieces to the west bank of the Trebbia to blast the French positions. Two French battalions crept forward to deal with the threat, but they were discovered and driven off by the murderously effective fire of two masked cannons. Also during the morning, the French set up a battery of 10 to 12 guns and began to hammer Förster's positions. This was apparently to cover a shift to the south by a body of French troops.[62] The delay also affected the Russian forces and Suvorov began issuing orders at 11:00 am. Meanwhile, MacDonald determined to launch an assault, putting his faith in the French soldier's enthusiasm for the attack and his troops' good morale. He still believed his army was outnumbered but he hoped to preempt an Allied assault. In the south Rusca and Victor were directed to attack side-by-side near Casaliggio, supported by an outflanking move by Dombrowski via Rivalta. Montrichard was ordered to cross the Trebbia near Gragnano in the center while Olivier was instructed to crack the Allied line farther north near San Nicolò. On the extreme right flank, Watrin and Salme were told to seize Calendasco and turn the Allied left flank.[65]
Chasteler spotted Dombrowski's outflanking column and directed Bagration's troops against it. Dombrowski's division seized Rivalta and advanced up the Trebbia's west bank as far as the hamlet of Canetto before they ran into the Russians. Accompanied in person by Suvorov, the Russians defeated their mostly Polish opponents, who suffered serious losses. Suvorov's troops forced them to retreat to the east bank. Rusca's initial advance was blunted by the fire of 14 artillery pieces belonging to Schveikovsky's division. Farther north, Victor's division was repulsed by a combination of Schveikovsky's left wing and Förster's division and withdrew to the French-held east bank. But with Bagration's forces pulled to the south by Dombrowski's ill-fated attack, Rusca's men found a gap in the Allied line south of Casaliggio. The French infantry charged across the Trebbia while a horse artillery battery mauled the Rosenberg Grenadier Regiment. Suvorov appeared on the scene to rally his Russians.[65] Rosenberg swung the left wing of Schveikovsky's division to face the northern edge of Rusca's breakthrough while Bagration hurried north to hit the southern edge. At the same time, Chasteler borrowed four battalions from Förster and brought them to the scene. The combined attack forced Rusca's division to retire to the east bank. The Russians tried to follow up their success but Rusca's men repelled their attacks and the fighting in the south ended around 7:00 pm.[66]
The assault in the center was delayed because of the tardy arrival of Montrichard's division. Its 5th Light Infantry crossed the river and deployed into line but was hit by a devastating volley from an Austrian grenadier battalion. Montrichard's other units advanced in columns which were out of touch with each other. When Fröhlich's grenadiers and Förster's division counterattacked, Montrichard's division dissolved and its soldiers took to their heels. The grenadier battalion was swamped by fleeing Frenchmen, but it managed to keep its cohesion until some Russian infantry cut their way through to the rescue. Olivier's assault was preceded by a lightning cavalry charge around noon that swept the west bank clear of Austrians. The infantry crossed in the cavalry's wake and soon captured San Nicolò and two guns. Hearing cannon fire, Liechtenstein went forward to check on the situation and found a crowd of Austrian troops running away from Olivier's assault. He immediately went back to his command and led two squadrons each of the Lobkowitz and Levenehr Dragoons and one squadron of the Archduke Joseph Hussars against Olivier's south flank. Having disposed of Montrichard's division earlier, the Allies were free to mass against Olivier's division and eventually throw it back to the Trebbia's east bank. The Wouwermanns Grenadier Battalion recaptured two Austrian 12-pound cannons.[66]
Around the same time that Olivier made his attack, Salme's Advanced Guard and Watrin's division, which had previously been in reserve, crossed the Trebbia on the far right flank. Moving in two bodies, the French force brushed aside the Austrian outpost line. The right thrust reached Ca' Pernici on the Po's south bank while the left thrust carried almost to Calendasco. Here Watrin paused because the noises from Olivier's fight were not encouraging. By this time, Melas had Olivier on the run and wished to attack across the Trebbia. Hearing of the Watrin-Salme incursion, the Austrian general was forced to deal with it first. Melas sent Liechtenstein with a task force composed of one squadron of the Lobkowitz Dragoons, two squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussars, 200 Cossacks and nine companies of infantry.[66] Liechtenstein acted with selfless bravery – 4 horses were killed under him.[67] Meanwhile, an artillery battery detached from the Mantua siege corps under the command of Colonel Kinsky unlimbered on the north bank of the Po. The Austrian guns proceeded to bombard their enemies, encouraging them in their decision to recross the Trebbia though the Austrians made prisoners of 300 French. The firing ended in the northern sector about 9:00 pm.[66] The French maintained a firm grip on the west bank of the Trebbia, but MacDonald's division commanders were not able to give him any estimate of their remaining strength. In a scene of horror, thousands of dead and wounded soldiers littered the bed of the Trebbia while Piacenza's Austrian garrison blindly fired cannons into the night. Realizing that neither Moreau nor La Poype were coming to his assistance, MacDonald issued the orders to retreat at 10:00 pm. As soon as the engineers bridged the Nure River, the artillery and wagon train were sent across, followed by the infantry starting about midnight.[28] On 19 June with 22,000 Suvorov beat 33,000 of MacDonald.[58]
During all 3 days, the 70-year-old commander almost did not leave his horse, showed the most vigorous activity; at night he gave dispositions and other orders, and therefore was in dire need of rest—he could hardly keep on his feet; and, in spite of this, the Field Marshal cheerfully congratulated the assembled generals for the evening "of their third victory" and said: "Tomorrow we will give a fourth lesson to MacDonald". By 5 am orders were given to be ready for another attack.[68]
Nure River - 20 June
Suvorov determined to finish with the French so he ordered a new attack at 4:00 am on 20 June. When the Allied forces reached the west bank they found MacDonald's army gone. MacDonald abandoned 7,183 wounded men in Piacenza at the mercy of the allies; — as per Suvorov's earlier letter, 4,000.[n] The French General of Division Alexis Aimé Pierre Cambray was mortally wounded during the battle and died 2 July,[70] General of Division Dombrowski of the Polish Legion was also wounded;[71] Allied commanders Lieutenant General Povalo-Schveikovsky and Major General Bagration were wounded as well.[72][73] The Austrians advanced into Piacenza where they found the wounded generals Olivier, Rusca and Salme along with the other non-transportable French wounded. Melas secured the town with Fröhlich's division while launching Ott to support the pursuit.[74]
The chase was headed by the Karaczay Dragoons and one battery of horse artillery.
The battle at the Trebbia took place on the very places where, in 218 B.C., Hannibal had defeated the Romans. Suvorov was very proud of this coincidence, talked about it with enthusiasm and turned to an Austrian general with a question, why Hannibal did not go from the Trebbia directly to Rome. The latter replied that there was probably also a Hofkriegsrat in Carthage. The joke must have pleased Suvorov, as Petrushevsky notes.[76]
Result
Casualties
The Army of Naples withdrew southeast toward Parma where 200 wounded soldiers were abandoned.
By June 22, out of 35,000 French, barely 10,000 to 12,000 men remained in their positions, completely demoralized. It means that MacDonald loses 23–25,000 of his 35,000 troops, i.e. two-thirds (these losses also consist of deserters and stragglers).[82] Duffy notes that when MacDonald linked up with Moreau's 12,000-strong army, their combined force was scarcely 24–25,000 men.[26] Altogether, up to 60 guns were abandoned by the French during this withdrawal.[21] Suvorov, meanwhile, received the victory title of Prince Italiysky for his victory at the Trebbia.[83] The old Field Marshal taught:[82]
Pursue day and night, until he be destroyed.
Further steps
The Allies haunted the French until 21 June, reaching
By 28 June the Army of Naples was back at Pistoia where it stayed for several days before marching to the west coast in early July. The still ailing MacDonald was shipped off to France and replaced in command by
Besides the combat of the Nure, the
See also
- Capture of Brescia
- Battle of Cassano
- Battle of Bassignana
- First Battle of Marengo
- Battle of Modena
- Second Battle of Marengo
- Battle of Novi
- Battle of the Gotthard Pass
- Battle of the Klöntal
- Battle of the Muotatal
Notes
- ^ If the action of the Nure is excluded, 17–19 June.[2]
- ^ Macdonald, in consequence of suffering from wounds received at Modena, entrusted him with the exercise of tactical control of the battle, but Victor declined to intervene in this role, being in Piacenza.[3] Victor was sick, too.[4]
- ^
- ^ Duffy gave the total number of cavalry and infantry, without gunners. These figures from Stutterheim, and Duffy considered them trustworthy. He also stated that in terms of numbers, the armies were probably evenly matched.
n.b.: Rosenberg's forces (2 columns total) and Ott's division are included in this number. - ^ According to Petrushevsky, "during the first three days, the number could not exceed 30,000"[13] and "did not reach that figure".[17]
- ^ Dupuys: "Concentrating 37,000 men unexpectedly against MacDonald…"
- ^
- 24–25,000 at Suvorov's march on 17 June to the Tidone River—towards Peter Ott's division[11] (which then numbered approximately 5,000[10] out of 12,000[12])
- Total per Smith, Bodart, Rothenberg, and Dupuys:
37,000[2][f] (20,000 Austrians, 17,000 Russians[18]). - Grand total per Dupuys, Tucker, and Acerbi:
~40,000.[19]
- ^ That includes 2,000 Cossacks.
- ^
In battle:
In all:
- ~20,000–21,000[26]
- ^ In battle:
- ^ 17 June
- ^ 18–19 June
- ^ 20 June
- Archduke Charles, Suvorov indicates 4,000 captured wounded — it was sent to him even earlier.[69]
- ^ This estimate does not take into an account missing men, unlike some assessments.
- ^ Acerbi's numbers are the same.[4]
- ^ Probably a typo.
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h Bodart 1908, p. 337.
- ^ a b c d e Dupuy & Dupuy 1993, p. 755.
- ^ a b c Duffy (1999), p. 94
- ^ a b c Acerbi 2008.
- squadrons); Orlov 1892, p. 203 (33,500)
- ^ Eggenberger 1985, p. 443; Duffy 1999, pp. 96–97 (according to Duffy, a total of 35,684; if gunners and sappers are excluded, since the Coalition had an unknown number of gunners, the result is 34,596; however, Duffy deducted the losses suffered at the Battle of Modena and on 17 June at the Tidone from these figures: he estimated them to be about 33,500 as a grand total including gunners and sappers); Petrushevsky 1900, p. 592.
- ^ Longworth 1966, p. 250 (16,000 at the stage of Ott's reinforcement by Melas' column); Petrushevsky 1900, p. 583; Milyutin 1852, p. 254.
- ^ Longworth 1966, p. 251 (28,000 full strength); Duffy 1999, pp. 96–97; Orlov 1892, p. 205 ("The total allied force in the combat of 18 June, if the casualties of 17 June are roughly deducted, was around 22,000, which is equal to the French forces.")
- ^ Duffy 1999, pp. 106–107; Orlov 1892, p. 322 (33,000 on 19 June); Rickard 2009 (33,500 as "maximum strength"); Petrushevsky 1900, p. 592 (33–35,000 highest force)
- ^ a b c d e Duffy (1999), p. 84
- Demi-Brigade, 2 guns and 6 squadrons) took position at San Giorgio Piacentino, and his other troops at some distance behind the rearguard. Victor did not want to engage at all and was already preparing to retreat, but the Russians quickened their step, Rosenberg's main force came up to Chubarov; all of this rushed from different sides on San Giorgio, cut off the French units from retreating, and the famous Auvergne Regimentlaid down its arms…"
- ^ a b c Rickard 2009.
- ^ a b c d Petrushevsky 1900, p. 592.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Duffy (1999), pp. 96-97
- ^ Longworth 1966, p. 250 (*6,000 originally in Piacenza; 9,000 at the stage of Ott's reinforcement by Melas' column); Petrushevsky 1900, p. 583 (14–15,000); Orlov 1892, p. 322 (15,000)
- ^ Longworth 1966, p. 251; Orlov 1892, pp. 205, 322 (22,000 on 18 & 19 June: "The total allied force in the combat of 18 June, if the casualties of 17 June are roughly deducted, was around 22,000, which is equal to the French forces.", "On 19 June with 22,000 Suvorov beat 33,000 of MacDonald."); Petrushevsky 1900, p. 583 (22,000 on 18 June, not noted for 19 June); Rickard 2009 (35,000 men in all, still arriving as reinforcements on the 19th)
- ^ a b c d Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 127–128.
- ^ Smith 1998, p. 160 (according to Smith, this is the numbers of troops present); Bodart 1908, p. 337 (Bodart stated 44 battalions, 56 squadrons; the Russian Cossacks did not have squadrons, but sotnias and their unique regiments, so perhaps they are not being taken into account); Rothenberg 1980, p. 249.
- ^ Dupuy & Dupuy 1993, p. 755 ("the Russian general had about 40,000 men scattered around Alessandria"); Tucker 2009, p. 1008; Acerbi 2008 (42,000, with 62 guns)
- ^ a b c Eggenberger 1985, p. 444.
- ^ a b c Arsenyev & Petrushevsky 1901, p. 746.
- ^ a b c d e Smith (1998), p. 160. The seven listed grenadier battalions were Ficquelmont, Korherr, Mercandin, Neny, Soudain, Weber and Wouvermanns.
- ^ a b c Rothenberg (1980), p. 249
- ^ Blease 1920, p. 266.
- ^ Longworth 1966, p. 254.
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 114
- ^ a b Tucker 2009, p. 1008.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Duffy (1999), p. 110. Austrian casualties are listed in brackets like so: [107].
- ^ Blease 1920, p. 267.
- ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 120–124.
- ^ Osipov, K. (1939). Alexander Suvorov: A Biography. Hutchinson & Co. pp. 148–149, 177.
- ^ a b Osipov, K. (1939). Alexander Suvorov: A Biography. Hutchinson & Co. p. 152.
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 90
- ^ Duffy (1999), p. 97
- ISBN 1-85367-276-9.
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 151
- ^ Duffy (1999), p. 47
- ^ Smith (1998), pp. 152-153
- ^ Smith (1998), pp. 154-155
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 156
- ^ Duffy (1999), pp. 80-82
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 87
- ^ Duffy (1999), p. 85
- ^ Duffy (1999), p. 88
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 89
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 158
- ^ a b c d Duffy (1999), p. 91
- ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 113–115.
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 92
- ^ a b Orlov 1892, p. 207.
- ^ a b c d Duffy (1999), p. 95
- ^ a b Nafziger, George. French Army of Naples, 8 June 1799 (PDF). United States Army Combined Arms Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 June 2010.
- ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. p. 115.
- ^ Orlov 1892, p. 217.
- ^ a b Orlov 1892, p. 205.
- ^ a b c Smith (1998), p. 159
- ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. p. 116.
- ^ a b Orlov 1892, p. 322.
- ^ a b c Duffy (1999), pp. 99-100
- ^ a b c d e Duffy (1999), pp. 101-102
- ^ Orlov 1892, p. 213.
- ^ a b c Duffy (1999), pp. 103-105
- ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 213–224.
- ^ Orlov 1892, p. 215.
- ^ a b Duffy (1999), pp. 106-107
- ^ a b c d Duffy (1999), pp. 108-109
- ^ Orlov 1892, p. 223.
- ^ Orlov 1892, p. 224.
- ^ Suvorov, Alexander (1799). Wikisource. (in Russian) – via
- ^ Broughton, Tony (2006). "Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815: Cabannes de Puymisson to Cazals". The Napoleon Series. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ^ Skałkowski 1939–1946.
- ^ Velichko et al. 1915.
- ^ Novitsky et al. 1911.
- ^ a b c d e f g Duffy (1999), pp. 112-113
- ^ a b Orlov 1892, p. 228.
- ^ a b c Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 126–127.
- ^ Petrushevsky 1900, pp. 591–592.
- ^ Blease 1920, pp. 266–267.
- ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 230–231.
- ^ a b Dupuy & Dupuy 1970, p. 691.
- ^ Clodfelter 2017, p. 109.
- ^ a b Elchaninov 2003, p. 413.
- ^ Duffy (1999), pp. 111-112
- ^ a b Smith (1998), p. 161
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 169
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 173
- ^ Smith (1998), p. 163
Sources
- Broughton, Tony (2006). "Generals Who Served in the French Army during the Period 1789-1815: Cabannes de Puymisson to Cazals". The Napoleon Series. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ISBN 978-0-7006-3025-7
- Clodfelter, M. (2017). Warfare and Armed Conflicts: A Statistical Encyclopedia of Casualty and Other Figures, 1492-2015 (4th ed.). Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-7470-7.
- Longworth, Philip (1966). The Art of Victory: The Life and Achievements of Field-Marshal Suvorov, 1729–1800. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston.
- OCLC 42694091.
- OCLC 71235.
- Dupuy, Trevor N.; Dupuy, R. Ernest (1 January 1977). The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 BC to the Present, Revised Edition. New York: Harper. ISBN 978-0060111397.
- Dupuy, Trevor N.; Dupuy, R. Ernest (1 January 1986). The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 BC to the Present, 2nd Revised Edition. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 978-0061812354.
- Dupuy, Trevor N.; Dupuy, R. Ernest (1 April 1993). The Harper Encyclopedia of Military History (4th ed.). New York: HarperCollins. ISBN 978-0004701431.
- Dupuy, Trevor N.; Dupuy, R. Ernest (1 January 1977). The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 BC to the Present, Revised Edition. New York: Harper.
- Nafziger, George. French Army of Naples, 8 June 1799 (PDF). United States Army Combined Arms Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 June 2010.
- OCLC 3272721.
- Rothenberg, Gunther (1980). The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0253202604.
- Rothenberg, Gunther (1980). The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.
- OCLC 37616149.
- Eggenberger, David (1985). An Encyclopedia of Battles. New York: Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-24913-1. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
- ISBN 978-1851096725.
- Constable & Co Ltd. Retrieved 6 November 2023.
- Rickard, John (5 February 2009). "Battle of the Trebbia, 17-19 June 1799".
- Acerbi, Enrico (July 2008). "The 1799 Campaign in Italy: The Battle of Trebbia -- June 1799 Part II: The Three Day Battle at the Trebbia -- The Second Day and the Prince Liechtenstein's Cavalry Charge". napoleon-series.org. The Napoleon Series. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
- Bodart, Gaston (1908). Militär-historisches Kriegs-Lexikon (1618-1905) (in German). Vienna and Leipzig: C. W. Stern. Retrieved 7 July 2022.
- Petrushevsky, Alexander F. (1900). "Итальянская кампания; Треббиа; 1799". Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). St. Petersburg: Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. Retrieved 12 June 2023.
- ISBN 9785998994289.
- Milyutin, Dmitry (1852). История войны России с Францией в царствование Императора Павла I в 1799 году [The history of Russia's war with France during the reign of Emperor Paul I in 1799] (in Russian). Vol. II. St. Petersburg: Типография штаба военно-учебных заведений. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
- Elchaninov, Andrey Georgievich (2003). История русской армии от зарождения Руси до войны 1812 г. [History of the Russian army from the origination of Rus' to the War of 1812] (in Russian). St. Petersburg: Полигон. ISBN 5-89173-205-X.
- Arsenyev, Konstantin; Petrushevsky, Fyodor (1901). Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary (in Russian). Vol. XXXIIIа. Томбигби — Трульский собор. Friedrich A. Brockhaus (Leipzig), Ilya A. Efron (St. Petersburg). Retrieved 30 May 2023.
- Novitsky, Vasily F.; Schwartz, Alexey V. von; Apushkin, Vladimir A.; Schoultz, Gustav K. von (1911). Военная энциклопедия Сытина [Sytin Military Encyclopedia] (in Russian). Vol. IV: Б – Бомба. Moscow: Типография Т-ва И. Д. Сытина. pp. 328–331. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
- Velichko, Konstantin; Novitsky, Vasily; Schwartz, Alexey von; Apushkin, Vladimir; Schoultz, Gustav von (1915). Sytin Military Encyclopedia (in Russian). Vol. XVIII. Паукер – Порт-Артур. Moscow: Тип. Т-ва И. Д. Сытина. pp. 473–474. Retrieved 4 December 2023.
- Skałkowski, Adam (1939–1946). "Jan Henryk Dąbrowski". Polski Słownik Biograficzny [Polish Biographical Dictionary] (in Polish). Vol. V.
External links
Battle maps (without the Nure River):
- "Action on the Tidone River, 17 June 1799". Original plan copy;
- "First battle on the Trebbia River, 18 June 1799". Original plan copy;
- "Second battle on the Trebbia River, 19 June 1799". Original plan copy.
Media related to Battle of Trebbia (1799) at Wikimedia Commons
Preceded by First Battle of Zurich |
French Revolution: Revolutionary campaigns Battle of Trebbia (1799) |
Succeeded by Battle of Cascina Grossa
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