Short answers, pulled from the story.
Arcole is a comune in the province of Verona, Italy, with approximately 5,274 inhabitants. It is historically known as the site of the Battle of the Bridge of Arcole, fought in November 1796 during the French Revolutionary Wars.
The Battle of Arcole took place between the 15th and the 17th of November 1796. French forces first crossed the Adige River on the 14th of November before launching repeated attacks on the bridge at Arcole over the following two days.
Napoleon Bonaparte commanded the French Army of Italy at Arcole. He had recently been appointed to that command and had already defeated the Piedmont army and driven Austrian forces from most of Northern Italy earlier that year.
The Austrian forces were led by Josef Alvinczi. He ordered a tactical withdrawal on the 17th of November 1796 after French flanking movements convinced him that his army was threatened with encirclement.
The Alpone River made the bridge at Arcole a critical crossing point between the two armies. Despite lacking basic equipment and food, French forces continued their assaults over two days until flanking maneuvers on the 17th of November 1796 forced the Austrians to withdraw.
The following year, Napoleon defeated the Austrians again at the Battle of Rivoli. That defeat compelled Austria to sign the Peace of Campo Formio in 1797, ending Austria's control over most of Northern Italy.