First Italian Independence War
| First Italian War of Independence | |||||||||
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| Part of the Wars of Italian Unification | |||||||||
 The Battle of Novara (1849) |
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
.svg){kind=small} Kingdom of Sardinia Italian Volunteer ArmySupported by:  Provisional Government of Milan Republic of San Marco.PNG){kind=small} Kingdom of Sicily.svg){kind=small} Roman Republic
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 Austrian Empire
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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King Charles Albert
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Josef Radetzky
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| Strength | |||||||||
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115.000 men 22,000 men |
100,000 men |
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The First Italian War of Independence (Italian: Prima guerra d'indipendenza italiana) was fought in 1848 and 1849 between the Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont) and the Austrian Empire. The war saw major battles at Custoza and Novara in which the Austrians under Joseph Radetzky attained victory.
The war was part of the Revolutions of 1848 in the Italian states, which generally saw the reactionary forces triumphant and many rebels forced into exile.
In 1848 revolutionary riots broke out in many parts of Europe, including numerous places in the Apennines and other parts of Italy. Charles Albert of Piedmont (Sardinia) and Leopold II of Tuscany were forced to make concessions to the democrats. Charles II, Duke of Parma was ousted. Sicily, excepting Messina, revolted against the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
There were also rebellions in the two capitals of the Austrian-controlled Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, Milan (the Five Days of Milan) and Venice (the Repubblica di San Marco). With Vienna itself in revolt, the Austrian Empire was tottering.
The Kingdom of Sardinia decided to exploit the apparently favorable moment. Sardinia declared war on Austria, in alliance with the Papal States and the Two Sicilies, and invaded Austria's Italian possessions.
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