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Battle of Trebbia (1799)

The Battle of (the) Trebbia (17 [6 OS] – 20 [9 OS] June, 1799[1]) was fought near the rivers of Tidone,[x] Trebbia,[y] and Nure[z] in northern Italy between the joint Russian and Habsburg army under Alexander Suvorov and the Republican French army of Étienne-Jacques-Joseph-Alexandre Macdonald. Though the opposing armies were approximately equal in total numbers, the Austro-Russians severely defeated the French, sustaining about 5,500 casualties while inflicting losses of 16,500 on their enemies. The War of the Second Coalition engagement occurred west of Piacenza, a city located 70 kilometres (43 mi) southeast of Milan.

Battle of the Trebbia
Part of the Italian campaigns in the War of the Second Coalition

Suvorov's battle at Trebbia by Alexander Y. Kotzebue
Date17–20 June 1799[1][a]
Location45°3′0″N 9°36′0″E / 45.05000°N 9.60000°E / 45.05000; 9.60000
Result
Belligerents
France Russia
Habsburg monarchy
Commanders and leaders
Étienne Macdonald
Claude Victor-Perrin
Jean-Baptiste Salme
François Watrin
Jean-Baptiste Olivier
Joseph de Montrichard
Jean-Baptiste Rusca
Jan Dąbrowski
Alexander Suvorov
Andrey Rosenberg
Pyotr Bagration
Yakov Povalo-Shveikovsky [ru]
Ivan Förster [ru]
Michael von Melas
Peter Ott
Michael von Fröhlich
Strength
c. 33,000[h]
Casualties and losses
16,000–18,000 killed, wounded, captured, & missing[v]
(incl. 8 generals and 502 officers[1])
...more calculations
7 guns, 8 standards[1]
5,500–6,000 killed, wounded, captured, & missing[w]
(incl. 3 generals and 149 officers[1])
...more calculations
class=notpageimage|
Location within Europe
  current battle
  Napoleon in command
  Napoleon not in command

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,[22] 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 army was concentrated and he ordered an attack which was poorly coordinated and repulsed at all points. Realizing that assistance from Moreau was not forthcoming, that night Macdonald ordered the beaten French army to slip away to the south and west.

On the 20th, along the Nure River, the Allies overran a French 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]

The battle of the Trebbia, or the Campaign of the Trebbia as Duffy called it,[23] is one of the great victories in Alexander Suvorov's military career, along with the storming of Izmail.

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[24] from the Lombard Legion.

Background Edit

Coalition successes Edit

The War of the Second Coalition in northern Italian began with the inconclusive Battle of Verona on 26 March 1799 between the Habsburg army of Paul Kray and the Republican French Army of Italy under Barthélemy Louis Joseph Schérer.[25] The subsequent Battle of Magnano on 5 April was a clear-cut victory by Kray over the French, with the Austrians sustaining 6,000 casualties while inflicting losses of 8,000 men and 18 guns on their foes.[26] The defeat was a crushing blow to French morale and prompted Schérer to plead with the French Directory to be relieved of command. Finding his strong position behind the Mincio River outflanked on the north by 12,000 Austrians, Schérer left 12,000 troops to hold the key fortress of Mantua, directed 1,600 more to defend Peschiera del Garda and retreated to the west on 12 April. Two days later, Alexander Suvorov arrived at Vicenza with an Imperial Russian army and assumed command of the combined Austro-Russian forces.[27]

 
Jean Victor Moreau

On 27 April, the Coalition allies led by Suvorov were victorious over Jean Victor Marie Moreau's French army at the Battle of Cassano along the Adda River. The next day at Verderio, Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier's division was surrounded and in the fighting that followed the French lost 252 men killed before the 2,700 survivors gave up. The defeats caused Moreau to fall back, leaving 2,400 men to hold the Milan citadel.[28] On 6 May the garrison of Peschiera capitulated to Kray while on 11 May Pizzighettone and 1,500 French soldiers surrendered to Konrad Valentin von Kaim. On 12 May, Suvorov's subordinate Andrei Grigorevich Rosenberg suffered a minor setback in the Battle of Bassignana,[29] but then Suvorov's troops were victorious at the First Battle of Marengo (Battle of San Giuliano) on 16 May. Ferrara, Ravenna and Milan all capitulated to Austrian besieging forces on 24 May.[30]

Meanwhile, 30,000 Allies under Suvorov moved up the north bank of the Po River toward Turin. On the morning of 26 May, Josef Philipp Vukassovich's advance guard seized Turin with its arsenal and over 300 cannons plus large stocks of ammunition. Pascal Antoine Fiorella and his 3,400-man French garrison withdrew to the citadel where they were besieged.[31] Early June found the Allied main body of 47,087 troops under Suvorov, Rosenberg and Michael von Melas camped near Turin. Karl Joseph Hadik von Futak with 9,900 Austrians watched the Swiss mountain passes. Kray's 19,760-man corps was engaged in the Siege of Mantua, covered by 6,122 Austrians under Johann von Klenau at Ferrera. Finally, Suvorov summoned the 19,458-strong corps of Count Heinrich von Bellegarde from Switzerland to Milan where they arrived on 5 June. To face this array, Moreau counted about 25,000 soldiers in the divisions of Paul Grenier, Claude Victor-Perrin, Pierre Garnier de Laboissière at Genoa, Paul Louis Gaultier de Kervéguen at Florence and Joseph Hélie Désiré Perruquet de Montrichard at Bologna. But the Allies were aware that Jacques MacDonald had a strong French occupation force in southern and central Italy.[13]

MacDonald's offensive Edit

 
Jacques MacDonald

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.[32] 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.[13]

 
Peter Karl Ott

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,[13] 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.[33]

The Army of Naples negotiated the Apennine Mountains in four major columns. The divisions of Montrichard and Jean-Baptiste Dominique Rusca formed the easternmost column, moving from Florence to Bologna. Next to the west were the divisions of Jean-Baptiste Olivier and François Watrin, accompanied by MacDonald and advancing from Pistoia on Modena. Farther west was Jean Henri Dombrowski's division descending the Secchia River valley.[32] The westernmost column was made up of Victor's division marching from Borgo Val di Taro down the Taro River toward Parma. Because MacDonald's offensive across the Apennines was so unlikely, it took the Austrian covering forces by surprise. These were Klenau's command southwest of Ferrara, now reduced to 3,500 men,[34] Prince Friedrich Franz Xaver of Hohenzollern-Hechingen at Modena with 4,800 troops and Ott west of Fornovo di Taro. MacDonald planned to destroy Hohenzollern's division by pinning it with his own column while enveloping it with Dombrowski's division from the west and Rusca's division from the east. Klenau deduced the French strategy and shifted northeast behind the Panaro River to block Rusca. MacDonald lost touch with Dombrowski's command. Nevertheless, MacDonald fell on the Austrians at Modena with two divisions.[35] On 12 June in the Battle of Modena, the French inflicted losses of 750 killed and wounded on their enemies while capturing 1,650 men, eight guns and three colors. French casualties were 400 killed and wounded and 200 captured.[36] During the pursuit, MacDonald was set upon by a troop of French Royalist cavalry and suffered saber cuts on the head and arm before his own soldiers could finish off their enemies.[35]

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.[37] In a period of 24 hours the Allied army covered 56 kilometres (35 mi)[37] in the scorching heat. Many fell down from fatigue.[38] 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.[37] 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.[23]

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.[39]

Forces Edit

Allied Army Edit

 
Alexander Suvorov

The Austro-Russian army commanded by Field Marshal Suvorov was organized into three columns on 18 June. General Rosenberg led the mostly Russian First and Second Columns while General der Kavallerie Melas directed the mostly Austrian Third Column. The Austrian forces numbered 9,851 foot and 4,586 horse while the Russians counted 16,219 infantry and 2,000 Cossacks. These numbers amounted to 32,656 and did not include artillerymen. The figures in brackets represent Austrian casualties. The First Column on the right was headed by an Advance Guard under Major General Pyotr Bagration which included the Dendrygin, Kalemin, Lomonosov and Sanaev Combined Grenadier Battalions, two battalions of the Bagration Jäger Regiment, Grekov and Posdeev Cossack Regiments and six squadrons of the Austrian Karaczay Dragoon Regiment Nr. 4 [62]. Lieutenant General Yakov Ivanovich Povalo-Schveikovsky led an infantry division consisting of two battalions of the Rosenberg Grenadier Regiment, one battalion each of the Dalheim and Schveikovsky Musketeer Regiments and six squadrons of the Austrian Lobkowitz Dragoon Regiment Nr. 10 [107].[8][21]

 
Michael von Melas

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 Miloradovich and Tyrtov Musketeer Regiments and one battalion each of the Baranovsky, Förster and Jung-Baden Musketeer Regiments. The cavalry contingent was formed from the Molchanov Cossack Regiment and six squadrons of the Austrian Levenehr Dragoon Regiment Nr. 14 [76].[8][21]

The Third Column under General der Kavallerie Melas was made up of a division under Feldmarschall-Leutnant Ott and a reserve under Feldmarschall-Leutnant Michael von Fröhlich with attached artillery [64]. Ott's division included four battalions of the Nádasdy Nr. 39 [565] and two battalions of the Mittrowsky Nr. 40 [198] Infantry Regiments, the Mihanovich Serbian Free Battalion [260], the 6th Battalion of the Banater Grenz Infantry Regiment [115], six companies of the D'Aspre Jäger Battalion, the Semernikov Cossack Regiment and six squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussar Regiment Nr. 2 [152]. Fröhlich's reserve consisted of the Morzin [29], Paar [109], Pertusi [106], Schiaffinatti [37], Weber [62] and Wouwermanns [102] Grenadier Battalions.[8] A second source stated that there were 17,000 Russians and 20,000 Austrians present and added three battalions of the Fröhlich Nr. 28 Infantry Regiment, six squadrons of the Württemberg Dragoon Regiment Nr. 8 [2] and listed seven rather than six Austrian grenadier battalions. This source also named as brigade commanders, Johann I Joseph, Prince of Liechtenstein for the grenadiers, Ferdinand Johann von Morzin for the Nádasdy, Mittrowsky and Württemberg Regiments and Friedrich Heinrich von Gottesheim for the D'Aspre, Mihanovich, Banater and Archduke Joseph units.[3][21]

French Army Edit

 
Claude Victor-Perrin

In MacDonald's Army of Naples Chef de brigade Victor Léopold Berthier served as chief of staff, Chef de bataillon Jacques Bardenet as chief of artillery and Jean-Louis Dubreton as commissary officer. In the 8 June order of battle that follows, the figures in parentheses are unit strengths. The Advanced Guard was led by General of Brigade Jean-Baptiste Salme and included the 11th Line (1,390), 12th Line (1,250) and 15th Light (1,340) Infantry Demi-Brigades, a detachment of the 25th Chasseurs à Cheval Regiment (85), the 6th Company of the 8th Foot Artillery Regiment (34) and the 3rd Company of the 1st Sapper Battalion (29). The 1st Division was commanded by General of Division Olivier and consisted of the 30th Line (1,508) and 73rd Line (2,009) Infantry Demi-Brigades, 7th Chasseurs à Cheval (321) and 19th Chasseurs à Cheval (314) Regiments and gunners and sappers (311). The 2nd Division was directed by General of Division Rusca and comprised the 17th Light (1,880), 55th Line (886) and 97th Line (1,760) Infantry Demi-Brigades, 16th Dragoon (488) and 19th Dragoon (330) Regiments and artillerists and sappers (116).[40]

 
Jean Dombrowski

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).[40]

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.[8]

Battle Edit

Tidone River - 17 June Edit

 
Country chapel is on the highway between Castel San Giovanni and Sarmato.

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.[39] 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'Aspre 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.[41]

 
Battle of the Trebbia. Unknown author

Soon afterward Melas arrived with three battalions of Austrians foot and some squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussars.[41] Suvorov inspired the Russian columns by suddenly appearing at odd places along the line of march. If inspiration failed, Cossacks were employed to prod stragglers back into line. Chasteler's units hustled off to the south to block a turning movement by Dombrowski's division. The Bagration Jäger Regiment veered off to the north while the four Russian combined grenadier battalions were committed to battle near Castel San Giovanni.[42] Bagration approached Suvorov and half-voiced asked for permission to delay until at least some of the stragglers arrive, because the companies do not number even 40 men. Suvorov answered him quietly in his ear: "and MacDonald has not even 20 men; attack with God".[43] Despite the odds turning against them, the French continued to mount spirited attacks. Gradually the Allies massed in two battle lines in front of Castel San Giovanni. Ott had held on with the help of Chasteler, and then the arrival of Melas, Suvorov and Bagration in very rapid succession built up the allies to a decisively superior 30,656 Austrians and Russians in regular troops alone (this is the overall numbers[8]).[42] Field Marshal Suvorov's orders for the forthcoming attack had in mind first of all to concentrate as large a force as possible; for this purpose officers were sent back to gather and bring the rest during the forced march on 17 June; orders were sent to Major General Nikolay Chubarov that he should hurry to join the army; besides, support from Kray was expected. However, neither Chubarov (he arrived on the 19th with 1,300 men[44]) nor reinforcements from Kray arrived on that day, and the troops were reinforced only by stragglers, who were pulled up throughout the 18th of June and went straight from the march into the fray.[11]

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.[42] The French suffered losses of about 1,000 killed and wounded plus 1,200 more captured. Allied casualties are not given.[45] Based on the results of 17 June, with up to 15,000 men Suvorov decisively rushed on 18,000[46] French, given the reinforcements that had arrived, and forced them to retreat.[12]

Trebbia River - 18 June Edit

 
Jean-Baptiste Rusca

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.[8] 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.[37] On morning of 18 June the injured MacDonald inspected his army. He found his men ready to fight and the enemy inactive.[8] 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.[47]

 
Pyotr Bagration

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.[47] 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. 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. Finally the French evacuated Gragnano and fell back across the Trebbia.[48]

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.[48] 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.[49] 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.[48] 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.[50] 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.[11]

Trebbia River - 19 June Edit

 
Johann von Chasteler

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.[50] 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.[51]

 
Battle of the Trebbia – Evening of the Third Day

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.[51] 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.[52]

 
The Trebbia's river bed is filled with white stones.

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.[52]

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. 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.[52] 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.[21] On 19 June with 22,000 Suvorov beat 33,000 of MacDonald.[12]

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.[53]

Nure River - 20 June Edit

 
Old railway bridge over the Nure in Ponte dell'Olio

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;[aa] the French General of Division Alexis Aimé Pierre Cambray was mortally wounded during the battle and died 2 July.[54] 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.[55]

The chase was headed by the Karaczay Dragoons and one battery of horse artillery.[55] They made excellent progress until were held up farther south at San Giorgio Piacentino behind the Nure River by a substantial French rearguard,[55] which was headed by Victor.[56] This force comprised cavalry, some infantry, and a number of guns that were performed well; they repulsed the Austrian dragoons and 2 pieces of the horse artillery. Bagration then came up with the main body of the advance guard (under the command of Chubarov[56]) and Chasteler deployed it for a set-piece attack on San Giorgio. The jäger regiment of Bagration on the upper Nure to the right, the jäger regiment of Miller out to the left towards San Paolo, and the four battalions of grenadiers in four lines against San Giorgio in the center. Chasteler has scarcely issued the necessary orders when Suvorov appeared at the head of the Schveikovsky's and Förster's divisions (which had united at Gossolengo), and ordered the attack to proceed. Intense musketry by 17th Light Demi-Brigade, the old Auvergne Regiment, held off the Bagration and Miller Jägers on the flanks but the combined grenadiers won a foothold in San Giorgio, and then with the help of the Russian main force they cleared the entire village. A total of 1,099 surviving French soldiers and officers surrendered along with four guns, two howitzers, and three colors. At this point any French resistance came to an end, the big four-day battle is over. The French retreated hastily. Following an unexpected fight on 20 June, Russian advance troops pursued the French almost all night long all the way to Castello di Montanaro. Over to the left the Austrian division of Ott advanced by way of San Lazzaro and Montale, but it encountered a whole French division deployed on the right bank of the Ponte Nure in front of Nure, and was held at bay until the French broke contact.[55][57] Suvorov doubled his energy, all day was on horseback and only with the onset of night stopped together with the Grand Duke Constantine. Suvorov, neglecting his military theory, came to the conviction that no more could be demanded and resolved to give the men a rest. MacDonald's intercepted letter to Moreau and Victor's repulsed correspondence convinced him that the damage done to the French was too great to be soon repaired. "MacDonald is more than defeated," he wrote to Kray.[57]

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 of course must have liked Suvorov.[57]

Result Edit

The Army of Naples withdrew southeast toward Parma where 200 wounded soldiers were abandoned.[21] The French losses may have been over 16,000 when the killed, transportable wounded (that were insignificant number), prisoners, including captured wounded, and missing were counted. The Russians reported 681 killed and 2,073 wounded for a total of 2,754 while the Austrians admitted losing 254 killed, 1,903 wounded and 500 missing for a total of 2,657. Historian Christopher Duffy rounded these figures up to 6,000 Allied casualties. He estimated French casualties at 12,000, but these figures do not include casualties on 20 June and contain only killed, transportable wounded, and missing.[21] Gaston Bodart in his statistics listed 5,500 Allied casualties and 16,500 French casualties: 2,500 killed, 7,500 wounded (most of them became prisoners on 20 June) plus 7,000 men captured or missing (these 7,000 do not contain wounded prisoners in Piacenza); seven guns and eight colors were lost.[1] Digby Smith reported similar Allied and French losses, he too included three Russian generals wounded. From a total of 33,000 French, he estimated losses as 2,000 died, 7,500 injured, and 7,000 prisoners.[3] In the 2nd edition of his book, Suvorov's biographer Alexander Petrushevsky [ru] estimated total Allied casualties at 5,500–6,000; the French casualties at 15,000 and noted that it is the minimal loss.[ab] In proportion to the wounded, the number of dead could not be less than 2,000–3,000 (the first edition stated 2,500–3,000[16]), 12,268 captured in all, according to the most recent letter of Suvorov (in compliance with various sources, it is possible to suggest that these prisoners were taken up to 21 June, since on 22 June Suvorov's pursuit was finally halted), thereof more than 7,500 captured wounded and sick in Piacenza. He also said that highest number of allies who fought did not exceed 30,000 during the first three days (the first edition said the number was under 30,000[16]).[58] David Eggenberger wrote about 4,000 killed and 12,000 wounded, captured, missing among 35,000 French, and 6,000 casualties among the Russo-Austrian allies.[18] Gunther E. Rothenberg gave Allied losses as 5,000 killed or wounded and 500 captured out of 20,000 Russians and 17,000 Austrians. He stated French losses as 9,500 killed or wounded and 7,000 captured out of 33,000.[17] N. A. Orlov wrote of 16–18,000 French losses with 4–6,000 killed; the rest were prisoners or abandoned wounded in the Piacenza hospital. The Russians and Austrians lost up to 5,500 men dead, injured, and missing in action.[59] In the 4th edition of their book, R. Ernest Dupuy and Trevor N. Dupuy revised the losses to 11,500 French casualties between June 17 and 19 (the first edition stated 10,000[60]), as well as 5,500 Allied losses (the first edition stated 7,000[60]), and asserted that 5,000 French became prisoners during the retreat that followed.[2] Spencer C. Tucker gave the same number of 11,500 losses of the French, but even from 17 to 18 June,[ac] excluding the combat of 19 June and the combat of the Nure, and also indicated an additional loss of 5,000 MacDonald's forces when he tried to link up with Moreau's army. Tucker put 5,500 allied casualties.[4] Michael Clodfelter noted 1,600 French killed and 7,685 wounded, 9,285 in total, and also an additional loss of 5,000 men after 19 June with no indication of prisoners or missing; 14,285 as the French total. Russian losses are indicated at 680 killed, 722 wounded, and he estimated Austrian losses at 254 killed, 1,903 wounded, 500 missing. Total Allied loss: 4,059 men.[5]

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).[61] Duffy notes that when MacDonald linked up with Moreau's 12,000-strong army, their combined force was scarcely 24–25,000 men.[20] Altogether, up to 60 guns were abandoned by the French during this withdrawal.[19] Suvorov, meanwhile, received the victory title of Prince Italiysky for his victory at the Trebbia.[62] The old Field Marshal taught:[61]

Pursue day and night, until he be destroyed.

The Allies haunted the French until 21 June, reaching Fiorenzuola where they rested the next day. Suvorov determined from captured dispatches that MacDonald's mangled army was no longer a threat to northern Italy and marched the Allied army back west on the 23rd, hoping to catch Moreau between himself and Bellegarde. Ott with 7,000 foot, 2,000 horse and 15 guns continued the pursuit, keeping an eye on the French army. MacDonald, scattering his forces once again, ordered Montrichard's division to the east where it was used to form some garrisons which were subsequently captured. One battalion of Warasdiner Grenz and one squadron of the Bussy Mounted Jägers tried to block MacDonald's retreat but were crushed on 24 June at Sassuolo south of Modena.[55]

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 Laurent Gouvion Saint-Cyr. The garrisons in south and central Italy were picked off one-by-one by the Allies.[55] Naples surrendered on 15 June,[45] Fort Elmo in Naples harbor on 11 July, Capua on 28 July,[3] Gaeta on 1 August,[63] Rome on 29 September[64] and Ancona on 13 November 1799.[65] Even the French-held fortresses of northern Italy fell rapidly. Turin capitulated on 20 June,[45] Bologna on 3 July, Fort Urbano on 10 July,[55] Alessandria on 22 July[3] and Mantua on 28 July.[63]

Besides the combat of the Nure, the Second Battle of Marengo (Battle of Cascina Grossa) took place on 20 June, and the next major engagement was the Battle of Novi on 15 August 1799.[66]

See also Edit

Notes Edit

  1. ^ If the Nure action is excluded, 17–19 June.[2]
  2. ^ Bodart: 38 battalions, 34 squadrons.
  3. ^ Orlov: 33,500.
  4. ^ 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.
  5. ^ Orlov: "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."
  6. ^ Orlov: 33,000 on 19 June.
  7. ^ Petrushevsky: 33–35,000 highest force.
  8. ^
  9. ^ Orlov: "Field Marshal Suvorov's orders for the forthcoming attack had in mind first of all to concentrate as large a force as possible; for this purpose officers were sent back to gather and bring the rest during the forced march on 17 June; orders were sent to Nikolay Chubarov that he should hurry to join the army; besides, support from Paul Kray was expected. However, neither Chubarov nor reinforcements from Kray arrived on that day, and the troops were reinforced only by stragglers, who were pulled up throughout the 18th of June and went straight from the march into the fray."; "Suvorov's forces [June 19] increased, but not much: to the Russian troops in the middle of the battle joined Chubarov with 3 battalions (1,300 men), and to the Austrians — Württemberg Dragoon Regiment (6 squadrons, about 1,000 men); but we must take into account the losses, which, of course, were not small in such a stubborn battle."; "The advance guard, under Chubarov, overtook Victor's rearguard and forced it to retreat behind the Nure [20 June]. Victor's rearguard (17th Line 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 Regiment laid down its arms…"
  10. ^ 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.
  11. ^ Petrushevsky: 14–15,000.
  12. ^ Orlov: 15,000.
  13. ^ Orlov: 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."
  14. ^ Petrushevsky: 22,000 on 18 June, not noted for 19 June.
  15. ^ According to Petrushevsky, "during the first three days, the number could not exceed 30,000" and "did not reach that figure".
  16. ^ Dupuys: "Concentrating 37,000 men unexpectedly against MacDonald…"
  17. ^ According to Smith, this is the numbers of troops present.
  18. ^ Bodart stated 44 battalions, 56 squadrons. The Russian Cossacks did not have squadrons, but sotnias; perhaps they are not being taken into account.
  19. ^ Dupuys: "The Russian general had about 40,000 men scattered around Alessandria."
  20. ^
    • 25,000 at Suvorov's march on 17 June to the Tidone River—towards Peter Ott's division[7][14][i] (which numbered approximately 5,000[13])
    • 30,000[9] to 32,656[8][j] in the action:
    • Total per Smith, Bodart, Rothenberg, and Dupuys:
      37,000[2][p] (20,000 Austrians, 17,000 Russians[3][q][1][r][17]).
    • Grand total per Dupuys and Tucker:
      ~40,000.[2][s][4]
  21. ^ That includes 2,000 Cossacks.
  22. ^ In battle: In all:
    • ~20,000–21,000[20]
  23. ^ In battle:
  24. ^ 17 June
  25. ^ 18–19 June
  26. ^ 20 June
  27. ^ This number comes from Suvorov's report to Paul, but this is an incomplete number and was indicated before the Coalition forces fully captured all the French soldiers in Piacenza. In a letter to Archduke Charles, Suvorov indicates 4,000 captured wounded — it was sent to him even earlier.
  28. ^ This estimate does not take into an account missing men, unlike some assessments.
  29. ^ Probably a typo.

References Edit

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Bodart 1908, p. 337.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Dupuy & Dupuy 1993, p. 755.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Smith (1998), p. 160. The seven listed grenadier battalions were Ficquelmont, Korherr, Mercandin, Neny, Soudain, Weber and Wouvermanns.
  4. ^ a b c d Tucker 2009, p. 1008.
  5. ^ a b Clodfelter 2017, p. 109.
  6. ^ Orlov 1892, p. 203.
  7. ^ a b Eggenberger 1985, p. 443.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Duffy (1999), pp. 96-97
  9. ^ a b c d e f Petrushevsky 1900, p. 592.
  10. ^ a b c Petrushevsky 1900, p. 583.
  11. ^ a b c Orlov 1892, p. 205.
  12. ^ a b c d Orlov 1892, p. 322.
  13. ^ a b c d e Duffy (1999), p. 84
  14. ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 205, 217–218, 228.
  15. ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 205, 322.
  16. ^ a b c Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 127–128.
  17. ^ a b c d Rothenberg, Gunther E. (1980). The Art of War in the Age of Napoleon. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press. p. 249. ISBN 0-253-31076-8.
  18. ^ a b c Eggenberger 1985, p. 444.
  19. ^ a b c Arsenyev & Petrushevsky 1901, p. 746.
  20. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 114
  21. ^ a b c d e f g Duffy (1999), p. 110. Austrian casualties are listed in brackets like so: [107].
  22. ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 120–124.
  23. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 90
  24. ^ Duffy (1999), p. 97
  25. ^ Smith, Digby (1998). The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill. pp. 149–150. ISBN 1-85367-276-9.
  26. ^ Smith (1998), p. 151
  27. ^ Duffy (1999), p. 47
  28. ^ Smith (1998), pp. 152-153
  29. ^ Smith (1998), pp. 154-155
  30. ^ Smith (1998), p. 156
  31. ^ Duffy (1999), pp. 80-82
  32. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 87
  33. ^ Duffy (1999), p. 85
  34. ^ Duffy (1999), p. 88
  35. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 89
  36. ^ Smith (1998), p. 158
  37. ^ a b c d Duffy (1999), p. 91
  38. ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 113–115.
  39. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 92
  40. ^ a b Nafziger, George. (PDF). United States Army Combined Arms Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 June 2010.
  41. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 94
  42. ^ a b c Duffy (1999), p. 95
  43. ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. p. 115.
  44. ^ Orlov 1892, p. 217.
  45. ^ a b c Smith (1998), p. 159
  46. ^ Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. p. 116.
  47. ^ a b Duffy (1999), pp. 99-100
  48. ^ a b c Duffy (1999), p. 101-102
  49. ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 213–224.
  50. ^ a b Duffy (1999), p. 103-105
  51. ^ a b Duffy (1999), pp. 106-107
  52. ^ a b c Duffy (1999), pp. 108-109
  53. ^ Orlov 1892, p. 224.
  54. ^ 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.
  55. ^ a b c d e f g Duffy (1999), pp. 112-113
  56. ^ a b Orlov 1892, p. 228.
  57. ^ a b c Petrushevsky, Alexander (1884). Generalissimo Prince Suvorov (in Russian). Vol. 3 (1st ed.). Типография М. М. Стасюлевича. pp. 126–127.
  58. ^ Petrushevsky 1900, pp. 591–592.
  59. ^ Orlov 1892, pp. 230–231.
  60. ^ a b Dupuy & Dupuy 1970, p. 691.
  61. ^ a b Elchaninov 2003, p. 413.
  62. ^ Duffy (1999), pp. 111-112
  63. ^ a b Smith (1998), p. 161
  64. ^ Smith (1998), p. 169
  65. ^ Smith (1998), p. 173
  66. ^ Smith (1998), p. 163

Sources Edit

  • 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.
  • Clausewitz, Carl von. Napoleon Absent, Coalition Ascendant: The 1799 Campaign in Italy and Switzerland, Volume 1. Trans and ed. Nicholas Murray and Christopher Pringle. Lawrence, Kansas: University Press of Kansas (2020). 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.
  • Duffy, Christopher (1999). Eagles Over the Alps: Suvorov in Italy and Switzerland, 1799. Chicago, Ill.: Emperor's Press. ISBN 1-883476-18-6. OCLC 42694091.
  • Dupuy, Trevor N.; Dupuy, R. Ernest (1970). The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 BC to the Present. New York: Harper & Row. ISBN 0-06-011139-9. 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.
  • Nafziger, George. (PDF). United States Army Combined Arms Center. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 June 2010.
  • Rothenberg, Gunther (1978). The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon. Bloomington: Indiana University Press. ISBN 0-253-31076-8. OCLC 3272721.
  • Smith, Digby (1998). The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London Mechanicsburg, PA: Greenhill Books Stackpole Books. ISBN 1-85367-276-9. OCLC 37616149.
  • Eggenberger, David (1985). An Encyclopedia of Battles. New York: Dover Publications. ISBN 0-486-24913-1. Retrieved 28 June 2023.
  • Tucker, Spencer C. (2009). A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-1851096725.
  • 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.
  • Orlov, Nikolay Aleksandrovich (1892). Разбор военных действий Суворова в Италии в 1799 году [Analysis of Suvorov's military actions in Italy in 1799] (in Russian). St. Petersburg: Тип. Тренке и Фюсно. ISBN 9785998994289.
  • 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.

External links Edit

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 Novi (1799)

battle, trebbia, 1799, hannibal, battle, trebbia, battle, trebia, battle, trebbia, june, 1799, fought, near, rivers, tidone, trebbia, nure, northern, italy, between, joint, russian, habsburg, army, under, alexander, suvorov, republican, french, army, Étienne, . For Hannibal s battle of the Trebbia see Battle of the Trebia The Battle of the Trebbia 17 6 OS 20 9 OS June 1799 1 was fought near the rivers of Tidone x Trebbia y and Nure z in northern Italy between the joint Russian and Habsburg army under Alexander Suvorov and the Republican French army of Etienne Jacques Joseph Alexandre Macdonald Though the opposing armies were approximately equal in total numbers the Austro Russians severely defeated the French sustaining about 5 500 casualties while inflicting losses of 16 500 on their enemies The War of the Second Coalition engagement occurred west of Piacenza a city located 70 kilometres 43 mi southeast of Milan Battle of the TrebbiaPart of the Italian campaigns in the War of the Second CoalitionSuvorov s battle at Trebbia by Alexander Y KotzebueDate17 20 June 1799 1 a LocationTrebbia River in Po Valley Duchy of Parma Northern Italy present day Italian Republic45 3 0 N 9 36 0 E 45 05000 N 9 60000 E 45 05000 9 60000ResultRusso Austrian victory Near destruction of the Army of Naples see Result BelligerentsFrance Polish Legion Lombard LegionRussia Habsburg monarchyCommanders and leadersEtienne Macdonald Claude Victor Perrin Jean Baptiste Salme Francois Watrin Jean Baptiste Olivier Joseph de Montrichard Jean Baptiste Rusca Jan DabrowskiAlexander Suvorov Andrey Rosenberg Pyotr Bagration Yakov Povalo Shveikovsky ru Ivan Forster ru Michael von Melas Peter Ott Michael von FrohlichStrengthc 33 000 h 32 656 t 18 219 8 u 14 437 8 Casualties and losses16 000 18 000 killed wounded captured amp missing v incl 8 generals and 502 officers 1 more calculations7 guns 8 standards 1 5 500 6 000 killed wounded captured amp missing w incl 3 generals and 149 officers 1 more calculationsclass notpageimage Location within Europe War of the Second Coalition Italy Interactive fullscreen map nearby articles current battle Napoleon in command Napoleon not in command 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 22 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 Batorkez 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 army was concentrated and he ordered an attack which was poorly coordinated and repulsed at all points Realizing that assistance from Moreau was not forthcoming that night Macdonald ordered the beaten French army to slip away to the south and west On the 20th along the Nure River the Allies overran a French 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 The battle of the Trebbia or the Campaign of the Trebbia as Duffy called it 23 is one of the great victories in Alexander Suvorov s military career along with the storming of Izmail 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 24 from the Lombard Legion Contents 1 Background 1 1 Coalition successes 1 2 MacDonald s offensive 2 Forces 2 1 Allied Army 2 2 French Army 3 Battle 3 1 Tidone River 17 June 3 2 Trebbia River 18 June 3 3 Trebbia River 19 June 3 4 Nure River 20 June 4 Result 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References 8 Sources 9 External linksBackground EditCoalition successes Edit The War of the Second Coalition in northern Italian began with the inconclusive Battle of Verona on 26 March 1799 between the Habsburg army of Paul Kray and the Republican French Army of Italy under Barthelemy Louis Joseph Scherer 25 The subsequent Battle of Magnano on 5 April was a clear cut victory by Kray over the French with the Austrians sustaining 6 000 casualties while inflicting losses of 8 000 men and 18 guns on their foes 26 The defeat was a crushing blow to French morale and prompted Scherer to plead with the French Directory to be relieved of command Finding his strong position behind the Mincio River outflanked on the north by 12 000 Austrians Scherer left 12 000 troops to hold the key fortress of Mantua directed 1 600 more to defend Peschiera del Garda and retreated to the west on 12 April Two days later Alexander Suvorov arrived at Vicenza with an Imperial Russian army and assumed command of the combined Austro Russian forces 27 nbsp Jean Victor MoreauOn 27 April the Coalition allies led by Suvorov were victorious over Jean Victor Marie Moreau s French army at the Battle of Cassano along the Adda River The next day at Verderio Jean Mathieu Philibert Serurier s division was surrounded and in the fighting that followed the French lost 252 men killed before the 2 700 survivors gave up The defeats caused Moreau to fall back leaving 2 400 men to hold the Milan citadel 28 On 6 May the garrison of Peschiera capitulated to Kray while on 11 May Pizzighettone and 1 500 French soldiers surrendered to Konrad Valentin von Kaim On 12 May Suvorov s subordinate Andrei Grigorevich Rosenberg suffered a minor setback in the Battle of Bassignana 29 but then Suvorov s troops were victorious at the First Battle of Marengo Battle of San Giuliano on 16 May Ferrara Ravenna and Milan all capitulated to Austrian besieging forces on 24 May 30 Meanwhile 30 000 Allies under Suvorov moved up the north bank of the Po River toward Turin On the morning of 26 May Josef Philipp Vukassovich s advance guard seized Turin with its arsenal and over 300 cannons plus large stocks of ammunition Pascal Antoine Fiorella and his 3 400 man French garrison withdrew to the citadel where they were besieged 31 Early June found the Allied main body of 47 087 troops under Suvorov Rosenberg and Michael von Melas camped near Turin Karl Joseph Hadik von Futak with 9 900 Austrians watched the Swiss mountain passes Kray s 19 760 man corps was engaged in the Siege of Mantua covered by 6 122 Austrians under Johann von Klenau at Ferrera Finally Suvorov summoned the 19 458 strong corps of Count Heinrich von Bellegarde from Switzerland to Milan where they arrived on 5 June To face this array Moreau counted about 25 000 soldiers in the divisions of Paul Grenier Claude Victor Perrin Pierre Garnier de Laboissiere at Genoa Paul Louis Gaultier de Kerveguen at Florence and Joseph Helie Desire Perruquet de Montrichard at Bologna But the Allies were aware that Jacques MacDonald had a strong French occupation force in southern and central Italy 13 MacDonald s offensive Edit nbsp Jacques MacDonaldOn 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 32 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 13 nbsp Peter Karl OttOn 9 June Suvorov received news from Peter Karl Ott von Batorkez 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 13 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 33 The Army of Naples negotiated the Apennine Mountains in four major columns The divisions of Montrichard and Jean Baptiste Dominique Rusca formed the easternmost column moving from Florence to Bologna Next to the west were the divisions of Jean Baptiste Olivier and Francois Watrin accompanied by MacDonald and advancing from Pistoia on Modena Farther west was Jean Henri Dombrowski s division descending the Secchia River valley 32 The westernmost column was made up of Victor s division marching from Borgo Val di Taro down the Taro River toward Parma Because MacDonald s offensive across the Apennines was so unlikely it took the Austrian covering forces by surprise These were Klenau s command southwest of Ferrara now reduced to 3 500 men 34 Prince Friedrich Franz Xaver of Hohenzollern Hechingen at Modena with 4 800 troops and Ott west of Fornovo di Taro MacDonald planned to destroy Hohenzollern s division by pinning it with his own column while enveloping it with Dombrowski s division from the west and Rusca s division from the east Klenau deduced the French strategy and shifted northeast behind the Panaro River to block Rusca MacDonald lost touch with Dombrowski s command Nevertheless MacDonald fell on the Austrians at Modena with two divisions 35 On 12 June in the Battle of Modena the French inflicted losses of 750 killed and wounded on their enemies while capturing 1 650 men eight guns and three colors French casualties were 400 killed and wounded and 200 captured 36 During the pursuit MacDonald was set upon by a troop of French Royalist cavalry and suffered saber cuts on the head and arm before his own soldiers could finish off their enemies 35 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 37 In a period of 24 hours the Allied army covered 56 kilometres 35 mi 37 in the scorching heat Many fell down from fatigue 38 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 37 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 23 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 Frohlich 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 Frohlich 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 39 Forces EditAllied Army Edit nbsp Alexander SuvorovThe Austro Russian army commanded by Field Marshal Suvorov was organized into three columns on 18 June General Rosenberg led the mostly Russian First and Second Columns while General der Kavallerie Melas directed the mostly Austrian Third Column The Austrian forces numbered 9 851 foot and 4 586 horse while the Russians counted 16 219 infantry and 2 000 Cossacks These numbers amounted to 32 656 and did not include artillerymen The figures in brackets represent Austrian casualties The First Column on the right was headed by an Advance Guard under Major General Pyotr Bagration which included the Dendrygin Kalemin Lomonosov and Sanaev Combined Grenadier Battalions two battalions of the Bagration Jager Regiment Grekov and Posdeev Cossack Regiments and six squadrons of the Austrian Karaczay Dragoon Regiment Nr 4 62 Lieutenant General Yakov Ivanovich Povalo Schveikovsky led an infantry division consisting of two battalions of the Rosenberg Grenadier Regiment one battalion each of the Dalheim and Schveikovsky Musketeer Regiments and six squadrons of the Austrian Lobkowitz Dragoon Regiment Nr 10 107 8 21 nbsp Michael von MelasRosenberg personally accompanied the Second Column in the center The division commander was Lieutenant General Forster and his infantry was made up of two battalions each of the Miloradovich and Tyrtov Musketeer Regiments and one battalion each of the Baranovsky Forster and Jung Baden Musketeer Regiments The cavalry contingent was formed from the Molchanov Cossack Regiment and six squadrons of the Austrian Levenehr Dragoon Regiment Nr 14 76 8 21 The Third Column under General der Kavallerie Melas was made up of a division under Feldmarschall Leutnant Ott and a reserve under Feldmarschall Leutnant Michael von Frohlich with attached artillery 64 Ott s division included four battalions of the Nadasdy Nr 39 565 and two battalions of the Mittrowsky Nr 40 198 Infantry Regiments the Mihanovich Serbian Free Battalion 260 the 6th Battalion of the Banater Grenz Infantry Regiment 115 six companies of the D Aspre Jager Battalion the Semernikov Cossack Regiment and six squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussar Regiment Nr 2 152 Frohlich s reserve consisted of the Morzin 29 Paar 109 Pertusi 106 Schiaffinatti 37 Weber 62 and Wouwermanns 102 Grenadier Battalions 8 A second source stated that there were 17 000 Russians and 20 000 Austrians present and added three battalions of the Frohlich Nr 28 Infantry Regiment six squadrons of the Wurttemberg Dragoon Regiment Nr 8 2 and listed seven rather than six Austrian grenadier battalions This source also named as brigade commanders Johann I Joseph Prince of Liechtenstein for the grenadiers Ferdinand Johann von Morzin for the Nadasdy Mittrowsky and Wurttemberg Regiments and Friedrich Heinrich von Gottesheim for the D Aspre Mihanovich Banater and Archduke Joseph units 3 21 French Army Edit nbsp Claude Victor PerrinIn MacDonald s Army of Naples Chef de brigade Victor Leopold Berthier served as chief of staff Chef de bataillon Jacques Bardenet as chief of artillery and Jean Louis Dubreton as commissary officer In the 8 June order of battle that follows the figures in parentheses are unit strengths The Advanced Guard was led by General of Brigade Jean Baptiste Salme and included the 11th Line 1 390 12th Line 1 250 and 15th Light 1 340 Infantry Demi Brigades a detachment of the 25th Chasseurs a Cheval Regiment 85 the 6th Company of the 8th Foot Artillery Regiment 34 and the 3rd Company of the 1st Sapper Battalion 29 The 1st Division was commanded by General of Division Olivier and consisted of the 30th Line 1 508 and 73rd Line 2 009 Infantry Demi Brigades 7th Chasseurs a Cheval 321 and 19th Chasseurs a Cheval 314 Regiments and gunners and sappers 311 The 2nd Division was directed by General of Division Rusca and comprised the 17th Light 1 880 55th Line 886 and 97th Line 1 760 Infantry Demi Brigades 16th Dragoon 488 and 19th Dragoon 330 Regiments and artillerists and sappers 116 40 nbsp Jean DombrowskiThe 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 a 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 40 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 a 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 8 Battle EditTidone River 17 June Edit nbsp Country chapel is on the highway between Castel San Giovanni and Sarmato 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 39 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 Aspre Jagers 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 Nadasdy 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 41 nbsp Battle of the Trebbia Unknown authorSoon afterward Melas arrived with three battalions of Austrians foot and some squadrons of the Archduke Joseph Hussars 41 Suvorov inspired the Russian columns by suddenly appearing at odd places along the line of march If inspiration failed Cossacks were employed to prod stragglers back into line Chasteler s units hustled off to the south to block a turning movement by Dombrowski s division The Bagration Jager Regiment veered off to the north while the four Russian combined grenadier battalions were committed to battle near Castel San Giovanni 42 Bagration approached Suvorov and half voiced asked for permission to delay until at least some of the stragglers arrive because the companies do not number even 40 men Suvorov answered him quietly in his ear and MacDonald has not even 20 men attack with God 43 Despite the odds turning against them the French continued to mount spirited attacks Gradually the Allies massed in two battle lines in front of Castel San Giovanni Ott had held on with the help of Chasteler and then the arrival of Melas Suvorov and Bagration in very rapid succession built up the allies to a decisively superior 30 656 Austrians and Russians in regular troops alone this is the overall numbers 8 42 Field Marshal Suvorov s orders for the forthcoming attack had in mind first of all to concentrate as large a force as possible for this purpose officers were sent back to gather and bring the rest during the forced march on 17 June orders were sent to Major General Nikolay Chubarov that he should hurry to join the army besides support from Kray was expected However neither Chubarov he arrived on the 19th with 1 300 men 44 nor reinforcements from Kray arrived on that day and the troops were reinforced only by stragglers who were pulled up throughout the 18th of June and went straight from the march into the fray 11 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 42 The French suffered losses of about 1 000 killed and wounded plus 1 200 more captured Allied casualties are not given 45 Based on the results of 17 June with up to 15 000 men Suvorov decisively rushed on 18 000 46 French given the reinforcements that had arrived and forced them to retreat 12 Trebbia River 18 June Edit nbsp Jean Baptiste RuscaUnexpectedly 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 Francois Cornu de La Poype that was in position to threaten the Allied south flank 8 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 37 On morning of 18 June the injured MacDonald inspected his army He found his men ready to fight and the enemy inactive 8 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 Forster s division The Third Column included the divisions of Ott and Frohlich Ott was ordered to drive straight ahead to the Trebbia supported by his colleague At some point Frohlich s grenadiers were supposed to reinforce the right flank in order to give more weight to its attack 47 nbsp Pyotr BagrationSuvorov 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 Nicolo 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 Edme Gautherin brought the divisions of Rusca and Victor to the west bank of the Trebbia where they stopped and drove back Bagration s troops 47 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 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 Forster slowly pressed back the right wing of Victor s division Finally the French evacuated Gragnano and fell back across the Trebbia 48 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 Frohlich s division 48 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 49 The Third Column commander sent Ott forward at 6 00 pm and the Austrians easily brushed aside Salme s outnumbered unit Together Ott and Frohlich 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 48 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 Forster 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 50 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 11 Trebbia River 19 June Edit nbsp Johann von ChastelerChasteler 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 Forster s positions This was apparently to cover a shift to the south by a body of French troops 50 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 Nicolo On the extreme right flank Watrin and Salme were told to seize Calendasco and turn the Allied left flank 51 nbsp Battle of the Trebbia Evening of the Third DayChasteler 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 Forster 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 51 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 Forster 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 52 nbsp The Trebbia s river bed is filled with white stones 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 Frohlich s grenadiers and Forster 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 Nicolo 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 52 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 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 52 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 21 On 19 June with 22 000 Suvorov beat 33 000 of MacDonald 12 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 53 Nure River 20 June Edit nbsp Old railway bridge over the Nure in Ponte dell OlioSuvorov 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 aa the French General of Division Alexis Aime Pierre Cambray was mortally wounded during the battle and died 2 July 54 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 Frohlich s division while launching Ott to support the pursuit 55 The chase was headed by the Karaczay Dragoons and one battery of horse artillery 55 They made excellent progress until were held up farther south at San Giorgio Piacentino behind the Nure River by a substantial French rearguard 55 which was headed by Victor 56 This force comprised cavalry some infantry and a number of guns that were performed well they repulsed the Austrian dragoons and 2 pieces of the horse artillery Bagration then came up with the main body of the advance guard under the command of Chubarov 56 and Chasteler deployed it for a set piece attack on San Giorgio The jager regiment of Bagration on the upper Nure to the right the jager regiment of Miller out to the left towards San Paolo and the four battalions of grenadiers in four lines against San Giorgio in the center Chasteler has scarcely issued the necessary orders when Suvorov appeared at the head of the Schveikovsky s and Forster s divisions which had united at Gossolengo and ordered the attack to proceed Intense musketry by 17th Light Demi Brigade the old Auvergne Regiment held off the Bagration and Miller Jagers on the flanks but the combined grenadiers won a foothold in San Giorgio and then with the help of the Russian main force they cleared the entire village A total of 1 099 surviving French soldiers and officers surrendered along with four guns two howitzers and three colors At this point any French resistance came to an end the big four day battle is over The French retreated hastily Following an unexpected fight on 20 June Russian advance troops pursued the French almost all night long all the way to Castello di Montanaro Over to the left the Austrian division of Ott advanced by way of San Lazzaro and Montale but it encountered a whole French division deployed on the right bank of the Ponte Nure in front of Nure and was held at bay until the French broke contact 55 57 Suvorov doubled his energy all day was on horseback and only with the onset of night stopped together with the Grand Duke Constantine Suvorov neglecting his military theory came to the conviction that no more could be demanded and resolved to give the men a rest MacDonald s intercepted letter to Moreau and Victor s repulsed correspondence convinced him that the damage done to the French was too great to be soon repaired MacDonald is more than defeated he wrote to Kray 57 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 of course must have liked Suvorov 57 Result EditThe Army of Naples withdrew southeast toward Parma where 200 wounded soldiers were abandoned 21 The French losses may have been over 16 000 when the killed transportable wounded that were insignificant number prisoners including captured wounded and missing were counted The Russians reported 681 killed and 2 073 wounded for a total of 2 754 while the Austrians admitted losing 254 killed 1 903 wounded and 500 missing for a total of 2 657 Historian Christopher Duffy rounded these figures up to 6 000 Allied casualties He estimated French casualties at 12 000 but these figures do not include casualties on 20 June and contain only killed transportable wounded and missing 21 Gaston Bodart in his statistics listed 5 500 Allied casualties and 16 500 French casualties 2 500 killed 7 500 wounded most of them became prisoners on 20 June plus 7 000 men captured or missing these 7 000 do not contain wounded prisoners in Piacenza seven guns and eight colors were lost 1 Digby Smith reported similar Allied and French losses he too included three Russian generals wounded From a total of 33 000 French he estimated losses as 2 000 died 7 500 injured and 7 000 prisoners 3 In the 2nd edition of his book Suvorov s biographer Alexander Petrushevsky ru estimated total Allied casualties at 5 500 6 000 the French casualties at 15 000 and noted that it is the minimal loss ab In proportion to the wounded the number of dead could not be less than 2 000 3 000 the first edition stated 2 500 3 000 16 12 268 captured in all according to the most recent letter of Suvorov in compliance with various sources it is possible to suggest that these prisoners were taken up to 21 June since on 22 June Suvorov s pursuit was finally halted thereof more than 7 500 captured wounded and sick in Piacenza He also said that highest number of allies who fought did not exceed 30 000 during the first three days the first edition said the number was under 30 000 16 58 David Eggenberger wrote about 4 000 killed and 12 000 wounded captured missing among 35 000 French and 6 000 casualties among the Russo Austrian allies 18 Gunther E Rothenberg gave Allied losses as 5 000 killed or wounded and 500 captured out of 20 000 Russians and 17 000 Austrians He stated French losses as 9 500 killed or wounded and 7 000 captured out of 33 000 17 N A Orlov wrote of 16 18 000 French losses with 4 6 000 killed the rest were prisoners or abandoned wounded in the Piacenza hospital The Russians and Austrians lost up to 5 500 men dead injured and missing in action 59 In the 4th edition of their book R Ernest Dupuy and Trevor N Dupuy revised the losses to 11 500 French casualties between June 17 and 19 the first edition stated 10 000 60 as well as 5 500 Allied losses the first edition stated 7 000 60 and asserted that 5 000 French became prisoners during the retreat that followed 2 Spencer C Tucker gave the same number of 11 500 losses of the French but even from 17 to 18 June ac excluding the combat of 19 June and the combat of the Nure and also indicated an additional loss of 5 000 MacDonald s forces when he tried to link up with Moreau s army Tucker put 5 500 allied casualties 4 Michael Clodfelter noted 1 600 French killed and 7 685 wounded 9 285 in total and also an additional loss of 5 000 men after 19 June with no indication of prisoners or missing 14 285 as the French total Russian losses are indicated at 680 killed 722 wounded and he estimated Austrian losses at 254 killed 1 903 wounded 500 missing Total Allied loss 4 059 men 5 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 61 Duffy notes that when MacDonald linked up with Moreau s 12 000 strong army their combined force was scarcely 24 25 000 men 20 Altogether up to 60 guns were abandoned by the French during this withdrawal 19 Suvorov meanwhile received the victory title of Prince Italiysky for his victory at the Trebbia 62 The old Field Marshal taught 61 Pursue day and night until he be destroyed The Allies haunted the French until 21 June reaching Fiorenzuola where they rested the next day Suvorov determined from captured dispatches that MacDonald s mangled army was no longer a threat to northern Italy and marched the Allied army back west on the 23rd hoping to catch Moreau between himself and Bellegarde Ott with 7 000 foot 2 000 horse and 15 guns continued the pursuit keeping an eye on the French army MacDonald scattering his forces once again ordered Montrichard s division to the east where it was used to form some garrisons which were subsequently captured One battalion of Warasdiner Grenz and one squadron of the Bussy Mounted Jagers tried to block MacDonald s retreat but were crushed on 24 June at Sassuolo south of Modena 55 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 Laurent Gouvion Saint Cyr The garrisons in south and central Italy were picked off one by one by the Allies 55 Naples surrendered on 15 June 45 Fort Elmo in Naples harbor on 11 July Capua on 28 July 3 Gaeta on 1 August 63 Rome on 29 September 64 and Ancona on 13 November 1799 65 Even the French held fortresses of northern Italy fell rapidly Turin capitulated on 20 June 45 Bologna on 3 July Fort Urbano on 10 July 55 Alessandria on 22 July 3 and Mantua on 28 July 63 Besides the combat of the Nure the Second Battle of Marengo Battle of Cascina Grossa took place on 20 June and the next major engagement was the Battle of Novi on 15 August 1799 66 See also EditBattle of Cassano 1799 Battle of Bassignana 1799 First Battle of Marengo 1799 Battle of Modena 1799 Second Battle of Marengo 1799 Battle of Novi 1799 Battle of the Gotthard Pass 1799 Notes Edit If the Nure action is excluded 17 19 June 2 Bodart 38 battalions 34 squadrons Orlov 33 500 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 Orlov 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 Orlov 33 000 on 19 June Petrushevsky 33 35 000 highest force 33 000 2 3 4 5 1 b 6 c to 35 000 7 8 d 9 in the action c 18 000 17 June 10 c 22 000 18 June 11 e c 33 000 35 000 19 and 20 June 12 f 9 g 36 728 whole strength 13 Orlov Field Marshal Suvorov s orders for the forthcoming attack had in mind first of all to concentrate as large a force as possible for this purpose officers were sent back to gather and bring the rest during the forced march on 17 June orders were sent to Nikolay Chubarov that he should hurry to join the army besides support from Paul Kray was expected However neither Chubarov nor reinforcements from Kray arrived on that day and the troops were reinforced only by stragglers who were pulled up throughout the 18th of June and went straight from the march into the fray Suvorov s forces June 19 increased but not much to the Russian troops in the middle of the battle joined Chubarov with 3 battalions 1 300 men and to the Austrians Wurttemberg Dragoon Regiment 6 squadrons about 1 000 men but we must take into account the losses which of course were not small in such a stubborn battle The advance guard under Chubarov overtook Victor s rearguard and forced it to retreat behind the Nure 20 June Victor s rearguard 17th Line 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 Regiment laid down its arms 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 Petrushevsky 14 15 000 Orlov 15 000 Orlov 22 000 on 18 amp 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 22 000 on 18 June not noted for 19 June According to Petrushevsky during the first three days the number could not exceed 30 000 and did not reach that figure Dupuys Concentrating 37 000 men unexpectedly against MacDonald According to Smith this is the numbers of troops present Bodart stated 44 battalions 56 squadrons The Russian Cossacks did not have squadrons but sotnias perhaps they are not being taken into account Dupuys The Russian general had about 40 000 men scattered around Alessandria 25 000 at Suvorov s march on 17 June to the Tidone River towards Peter Ott s division 7 14 i which numbered approximately 5 000 13 30 000 9 to 32 656 8 j in the action c 14 000 15 000 17 June 10 k 12 l c 22 000 18 and 19 June 15 m 10 n c 30 000 20 June 9 16 o Total per Smith Bodart Rothenberg and Dupuys 37 000 2 p 20 000 Austrians 17 000 Russians 3 q 1 r 17 Grand total per Dupuys and Tucker 40 000 2 s 4 That includes 2 000 Cossacks In battle 16 000 18 19 16 500 3 1 17 18 000 19 In all 20 000 21 000 20 In battle 5 500 17 1 2 4 9 6 000 21 18 9 17 June 18 19 June 20 June This number comes from Suvorov s report to Paul but this is an incomplete number and was indicated before the Coalition forces fully captured all the French soldiers in Piacenza In a letter to Archduke Charles Suvorov indicates 4 000 captured wounded it was sent to him even earlier This estimate does not take into an account missing men unlike some assessments Probably a typo References Edit a b c d e f g h i j Bodart 1908 p 337 a b c d e f Dupuy amp Dupuy 1993 p 755 a b c d e f g Smith 1998 p 160 The seven listed grenadier battalions were Ficquelmont Korherr Mercandin Neny Soudain Weber and Wouvermanns a b c d Tucker 2009 p 1008 a b Clodfelter 2017 p 109 Orlov 1892 p 203 a b Eggenberger 1985 p 443 a b c d e f g h i j k Duffy 1999 pp 96 97 a b c d e f Petrushevsky 1900 p 592 a b c Petrushevsky 1900 p 583 a b c Orlov 1892 p 205 a b c d Orlov 1892 p 322 a b c d e Duffy 1999 p 84 Orlov 1892 pp 205 217 218 228 Orlov 1892 pp 205 322 a b c Petrushevsky Alexander 1884 Generalissimo Prince Suvorov in Russian Vol 3 1st ed Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha pp 127 128 a b c d Rothenberg Gunther E 1980 The Art of War in the Age of Napoleon Bloomington Ind Indiana University Press p 249 ISBN 0 253 31076 8 a b c Eggenberger 1985 p 444 a b c Arsenyev amp Petrushevsky 1901 p 746 a b Duffy 1999 p 114 a b c d e f g Duffy 1999 p 110 Austrian casualties are listed in brackets like so 107 Petrushevsky Alexander 1884 Generalissimo Prince Suvorov in Russian Vol 3 1st ed Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha pp 120 124 a b Duffy 1999 p 90 Duffy 1999 p 97 Smith Digby 1998 The Napoleonic Wars Data Book London Greenhill pp 149 150 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 Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha pp 113 115 a b Duffy 1999 p 92 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 a b Duffy 1999 p 94 a b c Duffy 1999 p 95 Petrushevsky Alexander 1884 Generalissimo Prince Suvorov in Russian Vol 3 1st ed Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha p 115 Orlov 1892 p 217 a b c Smith 1998 p 159 Petrushevsky Alexander 1884 Generalissimo Prince Suvorov in Russian Vol 3 1st ed Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha p 116 a b Duffy 1999 pp 99 100 a b c Duffy 1999 p 101 102 Orlov 1892 pp 213 224 a b Duffy 1999 p 103 105 a b Duffy 1999 pp 106 107 a b c Duffy 1999 pp 108 109 Orlov 1892 p 224 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 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 Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha pp 126 127 Petrushevsky 1900 pp 591 592 Orlov 1892 pp 230 231 a b Dupuy amp Dupuy 1970 p 691 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 163Sources EditBroughton 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 Clausewitz Carl von Napoleon Absent Coalition Ascendant The 1799 Campaign in Italy and Switzerland Volume 1 Trans and ed Nicholas Murray and Christopher Pringle Lawrence Kansas University Press of Kansas 2020 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 Duffy Christopher 1999 Eagles Over the Alps Suvorov in Italy and Switzerland 1799 Chicago Ill Emperor s Press ISBN 1 883476 18 6 OCLC 42694091 Dupuy Trevor N Dupuy R Ernest 1970 The Encyclopedia of Military History from 3500 BC to the Present New York Harper amp Row ISBN 0 06 011139 9 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 amp 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 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 Rothenberg Gunther 1978 The Art of Warfare in the Age of Napoleon Bloomington Indiana University Press ISBN 0 253 31076 8 OCLC 3272721 Smith Digby 1998 The Greenhill Napoleonic Wars Data Book London Mechanicsburg PA Greenhill Books Stackpole Books ISBN 1 85367 276 9 OCLC 37616149 Eggenberger David 1985 An Encyclopedia of Battles New York Dover Publications ISBN 0 486 24913 1 Retrieved 28 June 2023 Tucker Spencer C 2009 A Global Chronology of Conflict From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East 6 volumes From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East ABC CLIO ISBN 978 1851096725 Bodart Gaston 1908 Militar historisches Kriegs Lexikon 1618 1905 in German Vienna and Leipzig C W Stern Retrieved 7 July 2022 Petrushevsky Alexander F 1900 Italyanskaya kampaniya Trebbia 1799 Generalissimo Prince Suvorov in Russian St Petersburg Tipografiya M M Stasyulevicha Retrieved 12 June 2023 Orlov Nikolay Aleksandrovich 1892 Razbor voennyh dejstvij Suvorova v Italii v 1799 godu Analysis of Suvorov s military actions in Italy in 1799 in Russian St Petersburg Tip Trenke i Fyusno ISBN 9785998994289 Elchaninov Andrey Georgievich 2003 Istoriya russkoj armii ot zarozhdeniya Rusi do vojny 1812 g History of the Russian army from the origination of Rus to the War of 1812 in Russian St Petersburg Poligon ISBN 5 89173 205 X Arsenyev Konstantin Petrushevsky Fyodor 1901 Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary in Russian Vol XXXIIIa Tombigbi Trulskij sobor Friedrich A Brockhaus Leipzig Ilya A Efron St Petersburg Retrieved 30 May 2023 External links EditBattle 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 nbsp Media related to Battle of Trebbia 1799 at Wikimedia Commons Preceded byFirst Battle of Zurich French Revolution Revolutionary campaignsBattle of Trebbia 1799 Succeeded byBattle of Novi 1799 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Battle of Trebbia 1799 amp oldid 1179786815, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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