Second Battle of Bassano
On the 6th of November 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte's French Army of Italy slammed into a Habsburg force near Bassano del Grappa in Northern Italy and came away beaten. For the first time in Bonaparte's career, he had suffered a clear tactical defeat. The Austrians, commanded by Feldzeugmeister József Alvinczi, had repulsed wave after wave of French attacks across the Brenta River crossings, inflicting losses on both sides and forcing Bonaparte to order a retreat that same evening, even as he filed a report claiming victory. What had pushed the two armies into collision here, just two months after another famous engagement at the very same location? And how did one day of fighting at Fontaniva and Bassano tip the entire campaign into its most dangerous hour?
Mantua sat at the center of everything. The French had encircled this northern Italian fortress, and the Austrians were making their third attempt to break the siege and relieve the garrison trapped inside. The backstory was grim. General of Division Charles Edward Jennings de Kilmaine held the city's large Austrian garrison under blockade, while a reserve of some 1,600 cavalry troopers and General of Division Francois Macquard's 2,800 foot soldiers provided additional support. Feldmarschall Dagobert Sigismund von Würmser had tried to relieve Mantua himself, but Bonaparte defeated his field army at the Battle of Bassano on the 8th of September. Würmser then made a dash for Mantua, arriving safely, only to watch the French drive his 12,000 remaining soldiers into the fortress on the 15th of September. Within six weeks of that moment, 4,000 Austrians inside the overcrowded city died of disease or wounds. Emperor Francis II of Austria then turned to Alvinczi to build a fresh field army and try again.
Alvinczi, Feldmarschall-Leutnant Paul Davidovich, General-Major Johann Rudolph Sporck, and Major Franz von Weyrother built a plan that called for striking France from two directions at once. The Friaul Corps, 28,000 strong and led by Feldmarschall-Leutnant Peter Vitus von Quosdanovich, would advance westward from the Piave River. Davidovich would press south through the upper Adige River valley at the head of 19,000 men from the Tyrol Corps. Bonaparte stretched his forces to meet both threats. He stationed General of Division Claude-Henri Belgrand de Vaubois with a 10,500-man division in the upper Adige valley to face Davidovich, placed General of Division André Masséna with 9,500 soldiers at Bassano on the Brenta River, and kept General of Division Pierre Augereau's 8,300 troops at Verona. Davidovich moved first. His corps clashed with Vaubois' outnumbered division near Cembra on the 2nd of November, and by the 5th he had pushed the French completely out of Trento. Vaubois fell back to Calliano. Meanwhile, on the 1st of November, the Friaul Corps began crossing the Piave. Masséna pulled out of Bassano early on the 4th of November as Alvinczi pressed westward, and General-Major Friedrich of Hohenzollern-Hechingen's advance guard moved in to occupy the town.
Feldmarschall-Leutnant Giovanni Provera positioned two brigades along the Brenta farther south near Fontaniva, forming Alvinczi's left flank. Masséna took a southerly road and struck the Austrian left wing at Fontaniva late on the 5th of November. General-Major Anton Lipthay pulled his troops back to the east bank of the river, setting the stage for the battle proper. At 7 a.m. on the 6th of November, Masséna attacked Lipthay's brigade at Fontaniva. From morning until 6 p.m., the French mounted as many as ten assaults on Lipthay's four battalions. The 2nd and 3rd battalions of Splényi Infantry Regiment Nr. 51 bore the brunt of the assault, losing 9 officers and 657 men out of a starting force of 2,000 soldiers before they were pulled from the line and replaced by the Deutschmeister Infantry Regiment Nr. 4. Lipthay himself was injured when his wounded horse fell on him, yet he stayed at his post. By afternoon, Provera reinforced him with troops from the brigades of Generals-Major Anton Schübirz von Chobinin and Adolf Brabeck, and the Austrians held their ground through the final hours of fighting.
North of Fontaniva, a separate fight was unfolding around Bassano itself. Early in the morning of the 6th, Hohenzollern crossed the Brenta, followed by Quosdanovich's right wing. That wing included General-Major Anton Ferdinand Mittrowsky's brigade, which had recently joined the army by descending the Brenta valley. The Austrians placed their right flank in the Alpine foothills and bent their left flank back to rest on the Brenta. Augereau's division began arriving in the area in mid-morning. Bonaparte himself accompanied Augereau as the division had advanced northeast from Vicenza. Augereau attacked Bassano in the early afternoon, before all the Austrians had even finished crossing the river. Severe fighting swept the village of Nove back and forth between the two sides several times. The action at Bassano finally ended at 10 p.m. One battalion of the Samuel Gyulai Infantry Regiment Nr. 32 suffered 390 casualties, nearly half its strength. Despite Bonaparte's report claiming success, that evening he ordered the French to retreat.
French casualties across both engagements totalled 3,000, including 508 men and 1 howitzer taken prisoner. Austrian losses numbered 2,823, along with two captured cannons. Provera's left wing at Fontaniva lost 208 killed, 873 wounded, and 109 captured. Quosdanovich's right wing at Bassano suffered 326 killed, 858 wounded, and 449 captured. Alvinczi ordered a pursuit, but the French moved fast enough to break contact and fall back to Verona. The following day, the 7th of November, Davidovich routed Vaubois at the Battle of Calliano. With both Austrian columns advancing and Würmser's large garrison still sitting in his rear, Bonaparte faced the most perilous situation of the campaign so far. Alvinczi sent Hohenzollern's advance guard all the way to the outskirts of Verona by the 11th of November. Bonaparte struck back on the 12th, attacking the Austrians at the Battle of Caldiero, but that assault also failed. The campaign's climax came on the 15th-the 17th of November at the Battle of Arcole, where the outcome of the entire third relief attempt would finally be decided.
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Common questions
What was the Second Battle of Bassano and when did it take place?
The Second Battle of Bassano was fought on the 6th of November 1796 between a Habsburg army under Feldzeugmeister József Alvinczi and Napoleon Bonaparte's French Army of Italy, near Bassano del Grappa and Cittadella in Northern Italy. The Austrians repulsed persistent French attacks, with both sides suffering heavy losses. It was the first tactical defeat of Bonaparte's career.
Who commanded the Austrian forces at the Second Battle of Bassano?
Feldzeugmeister József Alvinczi commanded the Habsburg army overall. Key subordinates included Feldmarschall-Leutnant Peter Vitus von Quosdanovich, who led the 28,000-strong Friaul Corps, and Feldmarschall-Leutnant Giovanni Provera, who held the Austrian left flank near Fontaniva.
What were the casualties at the Second Battle of Bassano?
French casualties totalled 3,000, including 508 men and 1 howitzer captured. Austrian losses numbered 2,823, plus two cannons captured. Provera's left wing lost 208 killed, 873 wounded, and 109 captured; Quosdanovich's right wing suffered 326 killed, 858 wounded, and 449 captured.
Why was the Second Battle of Bassano fought in 1796?
The battle was part of the Austrian third attempt to relieve the siege of Mantua during the War of the First Coalition. Emperor Francis II had appointed Alvinczi to assemble a new field army after earlier relief attempts had failed, most recently when Bonaparte defeated Würmser at the Battle of Bassano on the 8th of September 1796.
How did the Second Battle of Bassano affect Napoleon Bonaparte's campaign?
The defeat placed Bonaparte in a dangerous position, as both arms of the Austrian two-pronged offensive threatened to encircle him, while Würmser's large garrison remained blockaded in Mantua behind him. Bonaparte unsuccessfully attacked at the Battle of Caldiero on the 12th of November before the campaign reached its climax at the Battle of Arcole on the 15th-the 17th of November.
What regiment suffered nearly 50 percent casualties at the Second Battle of Bassano?
One battalion of the Samuel Gyulai Infantry Regiment Nr. 32 suffered 390 casualties during the fighting around Bassano, which amounted to nearly 50 percent of its strength. The 2nd and 3rd battalions of Splényi Infantry Regiment Nr. 51 also suffered heavily at Fontaniva, losing 9 officers and 657 men out of 2,000 soldiers.