Battle of Fombio

The Battle of Fombio

Date	7–9 May 1796
Location	Fombio, Lombardy
Result	French victory

Belligerents

France

Austria

Commanders and leaders

Napoleon Bonaparte
Amédée Laharpe †
Claude Dallemagne

Johann Beaulieu
Anton Lipthay
Anton Schübirz

Strength

11,500

Lipthay: 5,000
Schübirz: 1,580

Casualties and losses

450

1,568, 20 guns

The Battle of Fombio was fought between the French Army of Italy led by Napoleon Bonaparte and the Austrian army under Feldzeugmeister Johann Peter Beaulieu between 7 and 9 May 1796. It was the decisive strategic point of the campaign, as Bonaparte crossed the Po River at Piacenza in Beaulieu's rear, threatening both Milan and the Austrian line of communications. This threat forced the Austrian army to withdraw to the east.

After forcing the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont to sue for peace at the end of the Montenotte Campaign, Bonaparte turned on the Austrians, who retreated to the north bank of the Po. The French army commander ordered General of Division Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier to launch a pinning attack on Beaulieu's positions near Valenza. Forming an advance guard of 3,500 grenadiers and 1,500 cavalry, Bonaparte placed it under General of Brigade Claude Dallemagne. Then he sent Dallemagne on a rapid march to the east along the south bank of the Po. The advance guard was followed by General of Division Amédée Emmanuel François Laharpe's division. Bonaparte intended to turn the Austrian left flank by crossing the Po near Piacenza.

Early on 7 May, the advance guard seized a ferry near Piacenza and quickly crossed the river, Colonel Jean Lannes being the first Frenchman on the north bank. Soon both Dallemagne and Laharpe's commands formed a bridgehead on the north bank. General-major Anton Lipthay de Kisfalud's forces, which numbered 4,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry, soon detected the French and several clashes occurred during the day. When Beaulieu heard about the incursion, he ordered General-major Josef Philipp Vukassovich to march from Valeggio to Lipthay's support and ordered his army to pull back in the direction of the Adda River. Meanwhile, General of Division Pierre Augereau got his 7,000 soldiers across the Po farther west by using a captured barge.

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