Neapolitan War
Encyclopedia
The Neapolitan War was a conflict between the Napoleonic Kingdom of Naples
and the Austrian Empire
. It started on 15 March 1815 when Joachim Murat
declared war on Austria and ended on 20 May 1815 with the signing of the Treaty of Casalanza
. The war occurred during the Hundred Days
between Napoleon's
return from exile and before he left Paris to be decisively defeated at the Battle of Waterloo
. The war was triggered by a pro-Napoleon uprising in Naples, and ended after a decisive Austrian victory at the Battle of Tolentino
and Ferdinand IV
was reinstated as King of Naples and Sicily. However, the intervention by Austria caused resentment in Italy, which further spurred on the drive towards Italian unification
.
, Naples was ruled by the Bourbon
King Ferdinand IV
. Ferdinand was a natural opponent of Napoleon
and was allied with the Third Coalition
against him. However, after defeat at the Battle of Austerlitz
and the Treaty of Pressburg, Ferdinand was forced to cede Naples to the French in early 1806.
Initially, Napoleon’s brother Joseph Bonaparte
ruled Naples. Then in 1808, Joseph was made King of Spain and Napoleon's brother-in-law, Joachim Murat
, became King of Naples.
Murat originally ruled Naples following the same legal and social system used in France, whilst still participating in Napoleon's campaigns. But following the disastrous Battle of Leipzig
, Murat abandoned La Grande Armée
to try to save his throne. As defeat in the War of the Sixth Coalition
loomed, Murat increasingly moved away from Napoleon, eventually signing a treaty with Austria
in January 1814 and joined the Allied side.
But as the Congress of Vienna
progressed, Murat's position became less and less secure as there was growing support to restore Ferdinand to the throne. The most vocal of all Murat's opponents was the United Kingdom
, which had never recognised Murat's claim to the throne and moreover had been guarding Ferdinand in Sicily, ensuring he retained the Sicilian throne.
When Murat was informed of Napoleon's plan to escape from exile in Elba
on 1 March 1815, Murat sided with him once more, and declared war on Austria as soon as he learned of Napoleon's return to France.
declared war on Austria on 15 March 1815, five days before Napoleon's return to Paris and the beginning of his Hundred Days
. The Austrians were prepared for war, after their suspicions were raised when Murat applied for permission weeks earlier to move his troops through Austrian land in order to attack the south of France. Austria had reinforced her armies in Lombardy
under the command of Bellegarde prior to war being declared.
At the start of the war, Murat reportedly had 82,000 men in his army, including 7,000 cavalry and 90 cannon, although this figure was grossly exaggerated to try to encourage Italians to join his cause. The real number was somewhere in the region of 50,000 men.
Leaving behind a reserve Army of the Interior in case of an invasion from Sicily, he sent his two elite Guard Divisions through the Papal States
, forcing the Pope to flee to Genoa. With the remainder of his army, Murat established his headquarters at Ancona
and advanced on the road towards Bologna
. On 30 March, Murat had arrived in Rimini
, where he gave the famous Rimini Proclamation
, inciting all Italian nationalists to war.
The Italian population was mostly wary of Habsburg
Austria, as they feared the increasing Austrian influence in Italy. This was because the Duchy of Milan
, which had been under direct Austrian rule before Napoleon's invasion
, had been returned to the Austrians after 19 years. Habsburg princes had also been reinstated in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
and the Duchy of Modena.
Murat was hoping that an Austrian army in Naples would prove too much, and that the Italian population would rise up in support of his cause. However, no such general insurrection occurred as any unrest was quickly quashed by the Austrian authorities and Murat found few Italians outside Naples were willing to take up arms and join his cause. Many saw Murat as a man trying to save his crown rather than a beacon of Italian unification.
By now, the number of Austrian troops in Lombardy
had swelled to 120,000 and the commander entrusted with the force to confront Murat was Baron Frimont
. The army was originally intended to invade southern France after Napoleon's return, but now had to be diverted to face the approaching Neapolitan army. Frimont moved his headquarters to Piacenza
in order to block any potential advance on Milan
.
Meanwhile, on the same day that Murat gave the Rimini Proclamation, the Austrian advanced guard under the command of General Bianchi
was beaten back at an engagement near Cesena
. Bianchi retreated towards Modena
and took up a defensive line behind the River Panaro
, allowing Murat to take Bologna on 3 April.
Murat engaged Bianchi again at the Battle of the Panaro
; the Austrians were defeated and driven back. The Austrian vanguard was forced to retreat to Borgoforte
, allowing the Neapolitans to advance on Modena.
Following the battle, the division under the command of General Carascosa immediately occupied Modena, Carpi and Reggio Emilia
, whilst Murat moved against Ferrara
. However, the garrison in Ferrara withstood the best efforts of the Neapolitans to take the citadel, tying up a large number of Neapolitan troops in a costly siege.
On 8 April, Murat attempted to cross the Po River
and finally set foot in Austrian-controlled Italy. Murat had received little reinforcement from the Italian populace up to this point but he hoped he would find more support north of the Po River, which was under direct Austrian rule.
The region had once been part of the Kingdom of Italy
, a French client republic, and it had been reported that about 40,000 men, mostly veterans of Napoleon's campaigns, were ready to join Murat once he arrived in Milan. He chose a crossing at the town of Occhiobello
. It was there that Murat finally engaged with the bulk of the Austrian army under the command of Frimont.
Meanwhile, the two Guard Divisions Murat had sent into the Papal States had passed unmolested into Tuscany and by 8 April had occupied Florence
, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The Grand Duke fled to Pisa
, whilst the Austrian garrison in Florence under the command of General Nugent
was forced to retreat to Pistoia
, with the Neapolitan army in pursuit.
But with reinforcements arriving from the north, and his army in a strong defensive position, Nugent was able to turn and halt the Neapolitan pursuit. Murat and the Neapolitans had reached the zenith of their campaign.
proved to be the turning point of the war. Murat's
attempts to cross the River Po proved unsuccessful and after two days of heavy fighting, the Neapolitans fell back after suffering over 2,000 casualties. To make matters worse, the United Kingdom
declared war on Murat and sent a fleet over to Italy.
Meanwhile, Frimont
had ordered a counterattack to try to relieve the garrison in Ferrara
. He ordered a corps under the command of Bianchi
to advance on Carpi
, which was guarded by a brigade under the command of Guglielmo Pepe
.
Another column was ordered to cut off Pepe's line of retreat. However, Carascosa, who was in command of the Neapolitan troops around Modena, saw the Austrian trap and ordered a retreat to a defensive line behind the Panaro
where he was joined by the remainder of his division, which had been evacuated from Reggio Emilia
and Modena
.
But even after Carascosa's retreat, Murat was still in a position to continue the siege at Ferrara. In response, Frimont ordered a corps under the command of General Neipperg
to attack his entrenched right flank. On 12 April, after bitter fighting at the Battle of Casaglia
, the Neapolitan troops were driven from their entrenched positions.
Murat was forced to lift the Siege of Ferrara and retreated back on the road to Bologna
. On 14 April, Frimont attempted to force a crossing of the Panaro, but was repelled. However, only two days later, Murat and his army retreated from Bologna, which was quickly retaken by the Austrians.
In Tuscany meanwhile, Murat's two Guard Divisions also inexplicably retreated without being harassed in any way by Nugent
. By 15 April, the Austrians had retaken Florence
and when the news reached Murat, he ordered a general retreat of his main force back to their original headquarters in Ancona
.
With the road to Florence now clear and the Italian peninsula opening up in front of him, Frimont ordered two corps south to deal with Murat once and for all. Bianchi's corps was ordered to march towards Foligno
via Florence in an attempt to threaten the rear of the Neapolitans and to cut off their line of direct retreat, whilst Neipperg's corps was sent into direct pursuit of Murat as he retired to Ancona.
With the war turning in Austria's favour, Frimont was ordered back to Lombardy to oversee the army that was now amassing in preparation for an invasion of France. A large portion of the Austrian force was also recalled, leaving only three Austrian corps totalling around 35,000 men in Italy.
Murat, who placed too much faith in his Guard Divisions and believing they would be able to halt the advance of Bianchi and Nugent, retreated slowly, even turning to check the pursuit at the Ronco
and Savio rivers.
But the Austrian advanced guard caught the retreating Neapolitan force twice by surprise at Cesenatico
and Pesaro
. Murat hurried his retreat and by late April, his main force had arrived safely in Ancona
, where he was reunited with his two Guard Divisions.
's corps had made swift progress. Arriving in Florence on 20 April, they had reached their target of Foligno
by 26 April and now threatened Murat
's line of retreat. Neipperg
's corps was still in pursuit and by 29 April, his advanced guard had arrived in Fano
, just two days' march away.
However, the two Austrian armies were separated and Murat hoped to quickly defeat Bianchi before turning on Neipperg. Much like Napoleon's tactics before Waterloo, Murat sent a division under Carascosa north to stall Neipperg whilst his main force headed west to face Bianchi.
Murat originally planned to face Bianchi near the town of Tolentino
, but on 29 April, Bianchi's advanced guard succeeded in driving out the small Neapolitan garrison there. Bianchi, having arrived first, then formed a defensive position around the hills to the east of Tolentino.
With Neipperg's army approaching to his rear, Murat was forced to give battle at Tolentino
on 2 May 1815. After two days of inconclusive fighting, Murat learned that Neipperg had outmanoeuvred and defeated Carascosa at the Battle of Scapezzano
and was approaching. Sensing the inevitable, Murat ordered a retreat.
The battle had severely damaged the morale of the Neapolitan troops and many senior officers had been casualties in the battle. The battered Neapolitan army fell back in disarray. On 5 May, a joint Anglo
-Austrian fleet began a blockade of Ancona
, eventually taking the entire garrison of the city as prisoners.
By 12 May, Bianchi, who was now in command of both his and Neipperg's corps, had taken the town of L'Aquila
along with its castle. The main Austrian army was now marching on Popoli
.
During this time, General Nugent
had continued to advance from Florence. Having arrived in Rome on 30 April, allowing the Pope to return, Nugent advanced towards Ceprano
. By mid May, Nugent had intercepted Murat at San Germano (now Cassino).
Here, Murat attempted to check Nugent's advance but with the main Austrian force under Bianchi in pursuit, Murat was forced to call off the action on 16 May. Soon afterwards, the Austrian armies united near Calvi
and began the march on Naples.
Murat was forced to flee to Corsica
and later Cannes
disguised as a sailor on a Danish ship, after a British fleet blockading Naples destroyed all the Neapolitan gunboat
s in the harbour.
On 20 May, Neapolitan Generals Pepe
and Carascosa sued for peace and concluded the Treaty of Casalanza
with the Austrians, bringing the war to an end. On 23 May, the main Austrian army entered Naples and restored King Ferdinand to the Neapolitan throne.
Murat, meanwhile, would attempt to reclaim his kingdom. Coming back from exile, he landed with 28 men at Pizzo, Calabria
on 8 October 1815. However, unlike Napoleon months earlier, Murat was not greeted with a warm welcome and was soon captured by Bourbon troops.
Five days after he landed at Pizzo, he was executed in the town's castle, exhorting the firing squad to spare his face. This ended the final chapter of the Napoleonic Wars.
. Although the two kingdoms had been ruled by the same king since 1735, the formal union did not happen until 1816. King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Sicily would become King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. Meanwhile, the Austrians consolidated their gains in Northern Italy into the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
.
Although Murat failed to save his crown, or to start a popular nationalist movement with the Rimini Proclamation, Murat had ignited a debate for Italian unification
. Indeed, some consider the Rimini Proclamation as the start of Risorgimento. The intervention of Austria only heightened the fact the Habsburgs were the single most powerful opponent to unification, which would eventually lead to three wars of independence
against the Austrians.
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
and the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
. It started on 15 March 1815 when Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
declared war on Austria and ended on 20 May 1815 with the signing of the Treaty of Casalanza
Treaty of Casalanza
The Treaty of Casalanza, which ended the Neapolitan War, was signed on 20 May 1815 between the pro-Napoleon Kingdom of Naples on the one hand and the Austrian Empire, as well as the United Kingdom, on the other....
. The war occurred during the Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
between Napoleon's
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
return from exile and before he left Paris to be decisively defeated at the Battle of Waterloo
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815 near Waterloo in present-day Belgium, then part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands...
. The war was triggered by a pro-Napoleon uprising in Naples, and ended after a decisive Austrian victory at the Battle of Tolentino
Battle of Tolentino
The Battle of Tolentino was fought on 2 – 3 May 1815 near Tolentino, in what is now Marche, Italy: it was the decisive battle in the Neapolitan War, fought by the Napoleonic King of Naples Joachim Murat to keep the throne after the Congress of Vienna. The battle itself shares many parallels with...
and Ferdinand IV
Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand I reigned variously over Naples, Sicily, and the Two Sicilies from 1759 until his death. He was the third son of King Charles III of Spain by his wife Maria Amalia of Saxony. On 10 August 1759, Charles succeeded his elder brother, Ferdinand VI, as King Charles III of Spain...
was reinstated as King of Naples and Sicily. However, the intervention by Austria caused resentment in Italy, which further spurred on the drive towards Italian unification
Italian unification
Italian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
.
Background
Before the French Revolutionary WarsFrench Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
, Naples was ruled by the Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
King Ferdinand IV
Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies
Ferdinand I reigned variously over Naples, Sicily, and the Two Sicilies from 1759 until his death. He was the third son of King Charles III of Spain by his wife Maria Amalia of Saxony. On 10 August 1759, Charles succeeded his elder brother, Ferdinand VI, as King Charles III of Spain...
. Ferdinand was a natural opponent of Napoleon
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
and was allied with the Third Coalition
Third Coalition
The War of the Third Coalition was a conflict which spanned from 1803 to 1806. It saw the defeat of an alliance of Austria, Portugal, Russia, and others by France and its client states under Napoleon I...
against him. However, after defeat at the Battle of Austerlitz
Battle of Austerlitz
The Battle of Austerlitz, also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of Napoleon's greatest victories, where the French Empire effectively crushed the Third Coalition...
and the Treaty of Pressburg, Ferdinand was forced to cede Naples to the French in early 1806.
Initially, Napoleon’s brother Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph Bonaparte
Joseph-Napoléon Bonaparte was the elder brother of Napoleon Bonaparte, who made him King of Naples and Sicily , and later King of Spain...
ruled Naples. Then in 1808, Joseph was made King of Spain and Napoleon's brother-in-law, Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
, became King of Naples.
Murat originally ruled Naples following the same legal and social system used in France, whilst still participating in Napoleon's campaigns. But following the disastrous Battle of Leipzig
Battle of Leipzig
The Battle of Leipzig or Battle of the Nations, on 16–19 October 1813, was fought by the coalition armies of Russia, Prussia, Austria and Sweden against the French army of Napoleon. Napoleon's army also contained Polish and Italian troops as well as Germans from the Confederation of the Rhine...
, Murat abandoned La Grande Armée
La Grande Armée
The Grande Armée first entered the annals of history when, in 1805, Napoleon I renamed the army that he had assembled on the French coast of the English Channel for the proposed invasion of Britain...
to try to save his throne. As defeat in the War of the Sixth Coalition
War of the Sixth Coalition
In the War of the Sixth Coalition , a coalition of Austria, Prussia, Russia, the United Kingdom, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and a number of German States finally defeated France and drove Napoleon Bonaparte into exile on Elba. After Napoleon's disastrous invasion of Russia, the continental powers...
loomed, Murat increasingly moved away from Napoleon, eventually signing a treaty with Austria
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
in January 1814 and joined the Allied side.
But as the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
progressed, Murat's position became less and less secure as there was growing support to restore Ferdinand to the throne. The most vocal of all Murat's opponents was the United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
, which had never recognised Murat's claim to the throne and moreover had been guarding Ferdinand in Sicily, ensuring he retained the Sicilian throne.
When Murat was informed of Napoleon's plan to escape from exile in Elba
Elba
Elba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
on 1 March 1815, Murat sided with him once more, and declared war on Austria as soon as he learned of Napoleon's return to France.
Neapolitan advance
Joachim MuratJoachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
declared war on Austria on 15 March 1815, five days before Napoleon's return to Paris and the beginning of his Hundred Days
Hundred Days
The Hundred Days, sometimes known as the Hundred Days of Napoleon or Napoleon's Hundred Days for specificity, marked the period between Emperor Napoleon I of France's return from exile on Elba to Paris on 20 March 1815 and the second restoration of King Louis XVIII on 8 July 1815...
. The Austrians were prepared for war, after their suspicions were raised when Murat applied for permission weeks earlier to move his troops through Austrian land in order to attack the south of France. Austria had reinforced her armies in Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
under the command of Bellegarde prior to war being declared.
At the start of the war, Murat reportedly had 82,000 men in his army, including 7,000 cavalry and 90 cannon, although this figure was grossly exaggerated to try to encourage Italians to join his cause. The real number was somewhere in the region of 50,000 men.
Leaving behind a reserve Army of the Interior in case of an invasion from Sicily, he sent his two elite Guard Divisions through the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
, forcing the Pope to flee to Genoa. With the remainder of his army, Murat established his headquarters at Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
and advanced on the road towards Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
. On 30 March, Murat had arrived in Rimini
Rimini
Rimini is a medium-sized city of 142,579 inhabitants in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, and capital city of the Province of Rimini. It is located on the Adriatic Sea, on the coast between the rivers Marecchia and Ausa...
, where he gave the famous Rimini Proclamation
Rimini Proclamation
The Rimini Proclamation was a proclamation on 30 March 1815 by Joachim Murat, who had been made king of Naples by Napoleon I. Murat had just declared war on Austria and used the proclamation to call on Italians to revolt against their Austrian occupiers and to show himself as a backer of Italian...
, inciting all Italian nationalists to war.
The Italian population was mostly wary of Habsburg
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
Austria, as they feared the increasing Austrian influence in Italy. This was because the Duchy of Milan
Duchy of Milan
The Duchy of Milan , was created on the 1st of may 1395, when Gian Galeazzo Visconti, Lord of Milan, purchased a diploma for 100,000 Florins from King Wenceslaus. It was this diploma that installed, Gian Galeazzo as Duke of Milan and Count of Pavia...
, which had been under direct Austrian rule before Napoleon's invasion
French Revolutionary Wars: Campaigns of 1796
The French Revolutionary Wars continued from 1795, with the French in an increasingly strong position as members of the First Coalition made separate peaces. Austria and Great Britain were the main remaining members of the coalition...
, had been returned to the Austrians after 19 years. Habsburg princes had also been reinstated in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
Grand Duchy of Tuscany
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...
and the Duchy of Modena.
Murat was hoping that an Austrian army in Naples would prove too much, and that the Italian population would rise up in support of his cause. However, no such general insurrection occurred as any unrest was quickly quashed by the Austrian authorities and Murat found few Italians outside Naples were willing to take up arms and join his cause. Many saw Murat as a man trying to save his crown rather than a beacon of Italian unification.
By now, the number of Austrian troops in Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
had swelled to 120,000 and the commander entrusted with the force to confront Murat was Baron Frimont
Johann Maria Philipp Frimont
Johann Maria Philipp Frimont, Count of Palota, Prince of Antrodoco was an Austrian general.Frimont was born at Fénétrange, in what is now French Lorraine...
. The army was originally intended to invade southern France after Napoleon's return, but now had to be diverted to face the approaching Neapolitan army. Frimont moved his headquarters to Piacenza
Piacenza
Piacenza is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...
in order to block any potential advance on Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
.
Meanwhile, on the same day that Murat gave the Rimini Proclamation, the Austrian advanced guard under the command of General Bianchi
Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza
Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza , was an Austrian general and later field marshal.-Biography:...
was beaten back at an engagement near Cesena
Cesena
Cesena is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, south of Ravenna and west of Rimini, on the Savio River, co-chief of the Province of Forlì-Cesena. It is at the foot of the Apennines, and about 15 km from the Adriatic Sea.-History:Cesena was originally an Umbrian...
. Bianchi retreated towards Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
and took up a defensive line behind the River Panaro
Panaro
The Panaro is an Italian river and the final right-hand tributary to the Po, discounting the Cavo Napoleonico canal. It runs right across Emilia-Romagna in a north-easterly direction: from its source close to the Apennine watershed, where Emilia-Romagna meets Tuscany, to its outlet where the Po...
, allowing Murat to take Bologna on 3 April.
Murat engaged Bianchi again at the Battle of the Panaro
Battle of the Panaro
The Battle of the Panaro was a victory for King Joachim Murat's Neopolitan forces over a smaller Austrian force under Frederick Bianchi on 3 April 1815 early in the Neapolitan War...
; the Austrians were defeated and driven back. The Austrian vanguard was forced to retreat to Borgoforte
Borgoforte
Borgoforte is a comune in the Province of Mantua in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 130 km southeast of Milan and about 14 km southwest of Mantua....
, allowing the Neapolitans to advance on Modena.
Following the battle, the division under the command of General Carascosa immediately occupied Modena, Carpi and Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
, whilst Murat moved against Ferrara
Ferrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
. However, the garrison in Ferrara withstood the best efforts of the Neapolitans to take the citadel, tying up a large number of Neapolitan troops in a costly siege.
On 8 April, Murat attempted to cross the Po River
Po River
The Po |Ligurian]]: Bodincus or Bodencus) is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest face...
and finally set foot in Austrian-controlled Italy. Murat had received little reinforcement from the Italian populace up to this point but he hoped he would find more support north of the Po River, which was under direct Austrian rule.
The region had once been part of the Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state founded in Northern Italy by Napoleon, fully influenced by revolutionary France, that ended with his defeat and fall.-Constitutional statutes:...
, a French client republic, and it had been reported that about 40,000 men, mostly veterans of Napoleon's campaigns, were ready to join Murat once he arrived in Milan. He chose a crossing at the town of Occhiobello
Occhiobello
Occhiobello is a comune in the Province of Rovigo in the Italian region Veneto, located about 80 km southwest of Venice and about 25 km southwest of Rovigo.-External links:*...
. It was there that Murat finally engaged with the bulk of the Austrian army under the command of Frimont.
Meanwhile, the two Guard Divisions Murat had sent into the Papal States had passed unmolested into Tuscany and by 8 April had occupied Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, the capital of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany. The Grand Duke fled to Pisa
Pisa
Pisa is a city in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the right bank of the mouth of the River Arno on the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa...
, whilst the Austrian garrison in Florence under the command of General Nugent
Laval Nugent von Westmeath
Laval Graf Nugent von Westmeath was a soldier of Irish birth who fought in the armies of Austria and the Two Sicilies.-Biography:...
was forced to retreat to Pistoia
Pistoia
Pistoia is a city and comune in the Tuscany region of Italy, the capital of a province of the same name, located about 30 km west and north of Florence and is crossed by the Ombrone Pistoiese, a tributary of the River Arno.-History:...
, with the Neapolitan army in pursuit.
But with reinforcements arriving from the north, and his army in a strong defensive position, Nugent was able to turn and halt the Neapolitan pursuit. Murat and the Neapolitans had reached the zenith of their campaign.
Austrian counterattack
The Battle of OcchiobelloBattle of Occhiobello
The Battle of Occhiobello was fought on 8 April – 9 April 1815 and was the turning point of the Neapolitan War. Joachim Murat, King of Naples was repulsed by an Austrian force under the command of Johann Frimont whilst trying to cross the bridge over the Po River at Occhiobello...
proved to be the turning point of the war. Murat's
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
attempts to cross the River Po proved unsuccessful and after two days of heavy fighting, the Neapolitans fell back after suffering over 2,000 casualties. To make matters worse, the United Kingdom
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
declared war on Murat and sent a fleet over to Italy.
Meanwhile, Frimont
Johann Maria Philipp Frimont
Johann Maria Philipp Frimont, Count of Palota, Prince of Antrodoco was an Austrian general.Frimont was born at Fénétrange, in what is now French Lorraine...
had ordered a counterattack to try to relieve the garrison in Ferrara
Ferrara
Ferrara is a city and comune in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital city of the Province of Ferrara. It is situated 50 km north-northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream of the Po River, located 5 km north...
. He ordered a corps under the command of Bianchi
Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza
Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza , was an Austrian general and later field marshal.-Biography:...
to advance on Carpi
Battle of Carpi (1815)
The Battle of Carpi was a battle in the Neapolitan War between a brigade of Neapolitan soldiers under the command of Guglielmo Pepe and an Austrian force under the command of Frederick Bianchi...
, which was guarded by a brigade under the command of Guglielmo Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe was an Italian general and patriot. He was brother to Florestano Pepe and cousin to Gabriele Pepe. He married to Marianne Coventry, a Scottish woman.-Biography:Pepe was born at Squillace in Calabria....
.
Another column was ordered to cut off Pepe's line of retreat. However, Carascosa, who was in command of the Neapolitan troops around Modena, saw the Austrian trap and ordered a retreat to a defensive line behind the Panaro
Panaro
The Panaro is an Italian river and the final right-hand tributary to the Po, discounting the Cavo Napoleonico canal. It runs right across Emilia-Romagna in a north-easterly direction: from its source close to the Apennine watershed, where Emilia-Romagna meets Tuscany, to its outlet where the Po...
where he was joined by the remainder of his division, which had been evacuated from Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia
Reggio Emilia is an affluent city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has about 170,000 inhabitants and is the main comune of the Province of Reggio Emilia....
and Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
.
But even after Carascosa's retreat, Murat was still in a position to continue the siege at Ferrara. In response, Frimont ordered a corps under the command of General Neipperg
Adam Albert von Neipperg
Adam Albert, Count von Neipperg was an Austrian general and statesman. The son of a diplomat, famous for inventing a letter-copying machine, and a French mother, he was the grandson of Wilhelm Reinhard von Neipperg....
to attack his entrenched right flank. On 12 April, after bitter fighting at the Battle of Casaglia
Battle of Casaglia
The Battle of Casaglia was a battle in the Neapolitan War between an Austrian force under the command of Johann Freiherr von Mohr and a Neapolitan force under their king, Joachim Murat...
, the Neapolitan troops were driven from their entrenched positions.
Murat was forced to lift the Siege of Ferrara and retreated back on the road to Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
. On 14 April, Frimont attempted to force a crossing of the Panaro, but was repelled. However, only two days later, Murat and his army retreated from Bologna, which was quickly retaken by the Austrians.
In Tuscany meanwhile, Murat's two Guard Divisions also inexplicably retreated without being harassed in any way by Nugent
Laval Nugent von Westmeath
Laval Graf Nugent von Westmeath was a soldier of Irish birth who fought in the armies of Austria and the Two Sicilies.-Biography:...
. By 15 April, the Austrians had retaken Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and when the news reached Murat, he ordered a general retreat of his main force back to their original headquarters in Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
.
With the road to Florence now clear and the Italian peninsula opening up in front of him, Frimont ordered two corps south to deal with Murat once and for all. Bianchi's corps was ordered to march towards Foligno
Foligno
Foligno is an ancient town of Italy in the province of Perugia in east central Umbria, on the Topino river where it leaves the Apennines and enters the wide plain of the Clitunno river system...
via Florence in an attempt to threaten the rear of the Neapolitans and to cut off their line of direct retreat, whilst Neipperg's corps was sent into direct pursuit of Murat as he retired to Ancona.
With the war turning in Austria's favour, Frimont was ordered back to Lombardy to oversee the army that was now amassing in preparation for an invasion of France. A large portion of the Austrian force was also recalled, leaving only three Austrian corps totalling around 35,000 men in Italy.
Murat, who placed too much faith in his Guard Divisions and believing they would be able to halt the advance of Bianchi and Nugent, retreated slowly, even turning to check the pursuit at the Ronco
Battle of Ronco
The Battle of Ronco was a battle in the Neapolitan War the took place on 21 April 1815 in the village of Ronco, just south of Forlì. The main Neapolitan army, retreating following the disaster at the Battle of Occhiobello, was being pursued by an Austrian corps under the command of Adam Albert von...
and Savio rivers.
But the Austrian advanced guard caught the retreating Neapolitan force twice by surprise at Cesenatico
Battle of Cesenatico
The Battle of Cesenatico was a minor battle in the Neapolitan War that took place on 23 April 1815 in the town of Cesenatico on Adriatic coast. The main Neapolitan army, commanded by their king, Joachim Murat, was retreating to their original headquarters in Ancona following a string a defeats in...
and Pesaro
Battle of Pesaro
The Battle of Pesaro was a minor battle in the Neapolitan War that took place on 28 April 1815 in the town of Pesaro. The main Neapolitan army, commanded by their king, Joachim Murat, was retreating to their original headquarters in Ancona following a string a defeats in northern Italy...
. Murat hurried his retreat and by late April, his main force had arrived safely in Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
, where he was reunited with his two Guard Divisions.
Battle of Tolentino
Meanwhile, BianchiFrederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza
Frederick Bianchi, Duke of Casalanza , was an Austrian general and later field marshal.-Biography:...
's corps had made swift progress. Arriving in Florence on 20 April, they had reached their target of Foligno
Foligno
Foligno is an ancient town of Italy in the province of Perugia in east central Umbria, on the Topino river where it leaves the Apennines and enters the wide plain of the Clitunno river system...
by 26 April and now threatened Murat
Joachim Murat
Joachim-Napoléon Murat , Marshal of France and Grand Admiral or Admiral of France, 1st Prince Murat, was Grand Duke of Berg from 1806 to 1808 and then King of Naples from 1808 to 1815...
's line of retreat. Neipperg
Adam Albert von Neipperg
Adam Albert, Count von Neipperg was an Austrian general and statesman. The son of a diplomat, famous for inventing a letter-copying machine, and a French mother, he was the grandson of Wilhelm Reinhard von Neipperg....
's corps was still in pursuit and by 29 April, his advanced guard had arrived in Fano
Fano
Fano is a town and comune of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort 12 km southeast of Pesaro, located where the Via Flaminia reaches the Adriatic Sea...
, just two days' march away.
However, the two Austrian armies were separated and Murat hoped to quickly defeat Bianchi before turning on Neipperg. Much like Napoleon's tactics before Waterloo, Murat sent a division under Carascosa north to stall Neipperg whilst his main force headed west to face Bianchi.
Murat originally planned to face Bianchi near the town of Tolentino
Tolentino
Tolentino is a town and comune of about 20,000 inhabitants, in the province of Macerata in the Marche region of central Italy.It is located in the middle of the valley of the Chienti.-History:...
, but on 29 April, Bianchi's advanced guard succeeded in driving out the small Neapolitan garrison there. Bianchi, having arrived first, then formed a defensive position around the hills to the east of Tolentino.
With Neipperg's army approaching to his rear, Murat was forced to give battle at Tolentino
Battle of Tolentino
The Battle of Tolentino was fought on 2 – 3 May 1815 near Tolentino, in what is now Marche, Italy: it was the decisive battle in the Neapolitan War, fought by the Napoleonic King of Naples Joachim Murat to keep the throne after the Congress of Vienna. The battle itself shares many parallels with...
on 2 May 1815. After two days of inconclusive fighting, Murat learned that Neipperg had outmanoeuvred and defeated Carascosa at the Battle of Scapezzano
Battle of Scapezzano
The Battle of Scapezzano was a short engagement in the Neapolitan War on 1 May 1815 between an Austrian corps under Adam Albert von Neipperg and Neapolitan division under Michele Carascosa....
and was approaching. Sensing the inevitable, Murat ordered a retreat.
The battle had severely damaged the morale of the Neapolitan troops and many senior officers had been casualties in the battle. The battered Neapolitan army fell back in disarray. On 5 May, a joint Anglo
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland was the formal name of the United Kingdom during the period when what is now the Republic of Ireland formed a part of it....
-Austrian fleet began a blockade of Ancona
Siege of Ancona
Siege of Ancona was a battle in the Neapolitan War....
, eventually taking the entire garrison of the city as prisoners.
By 12 May, Bianchi, who was now in command of both his and Neipperg's corps, had taken the town of L'Aquila
L'Aquila
L'Aquila is a city and comune in central Italy, both the capital city of the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 73,150 inhabitants, but has a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people for study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism...
along with its castle. The main Austrian army was now marching on Popoli
Popoli
Popoli is a comune and town in the province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region of Italy.-History:Its Latin name was Castrum Properi , which name was recorded as early as 1016 as the property of Girardo, son of Roccone...
.
During this time, General Nugent
Laval Nugent von Westmeath
Laval Graf Nugent von Westmeath was a soldier of Irish birth who fought in the armies of Austria and the Two Sicilies.-Biography:...
had continued to advance from Florence. Having arrived in Rome on 30 April, allowing the Pope to return, Nugent advanced towards Ceprano
Ceprano
Ceprano is a town and comune in the province of Frosinone, in Ciociaria traditional area, part of the Lazio region of central Italy.It is located south of Rome, and c. 127 km north of Naples.-History:...
. By mid May, Nugent had intercepted Murat at San Germano (now Cassino).
Here, Murat attempted to check Nugent's advance but with the main Austrian force under Bianchi in pursuit, Murat was forced to call off the action on 16 May. Soon afterwards, the Austrian armies united near Calvi
Calvi (Italy)
Calvi is a comune in the Province of Benevento in the southern Italian region Campania, located about 60 km northeast of Naples and about 10 km southeast of Benevento. It also belongs to the Samnium historical region...
and began the march on Naples.
Murat was forced to flee to Corsica
Corsica
Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the island of Sardinia....
and later Cannes
Cannes
Cannes is one of the best-known cities of the French Riviera, a busy tourist destination and host of the annual Cannes Film Festival. It is a Commune of France in the Alpes-Maritimes department....
disguised as a sailor on a Danish ship, after a British fleet blockading Naples destroyed all the Neapolitan gunboat
Gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.-History:...
s in the harbour.
On 20 May, Neapolitan Generals Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe was an Italian general and patriot. He was brother to Florestano Pepe and cousin to Gabriele Pepe. He married to Marianne Coventry, a Scottish woman.-Biography:Pepe was born at Squillace in Calabria....
and Carascosa sued for peace and concluded the Treaty of Casalanza
Treaty of Casalanza
The Treaty of Casalanza, which ended the Neapolitan War, was signed on 20 May 1815 between the pro-Napoleon Kingdom of Naples on the one hand and the Austrian Empire, as well as the United Kingdom, on the other....
with the Austrians, bringing the war to an end. On 23 May, the main Austrian army entered Naples and restored King Ferdinand to the Neapolitan throne.
Murat, meanwhile, would attempt to reclaim his kingdom. Coming back from exile, he landed with 28 men at Pizzo, Calabria
Pizzo, Calabria
Pizzo is a seaport and comune in the province of Vibo Valentia , situated on a steep cliff overlooking the Gulf of Santa Eufemia.Fishing is one of the main activities, including that of tuna and coral.-History:...
on 8 October 1815. However, unlike Napoleon months earlier, Murat was not greeted with a warm welcome and was soon captured by Bourbon troops.
Five days after he landed at Pizzo, he was executed in the town's castle, exhorting the firing squad to spare his face. This ended the final chapter of the Napoleonic Wars.
Aftermath
Shortly after the end of the war, the Kingdoms of Naples and Sicily were finally united to create the Kingdom of the Two SiciliesKingdom of the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, commonly known as the Two Sicilies even before formally coming into being, was the largest and wealthiest of the Italian states before Italian unification...
. Although the two kingdoms had been ruled by the same king since 1735, the formal union did not happen until 1816. King Ferdinand IV of Naples and Sicily would become King Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies. Meanwhile, the Austrians consolidated their gains in Northern Italy into the Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia was created at the Congress of Vienna, which recognised the House of Habsburg's rights to Lombardy and Venetia after the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed by Napoleon in 1805, had collapsed...
.
Although Murat failed to save his crown, or to start a popular nationalist movement with the Rimini Proclamation, Murat had ignited a debate for Italian unification
Italian unification
Italian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
. Indeed, some consider the Rimini Proclamation as the start of Risorgimento. The intervention of Austria only heightened the fact the Habsburgs were the single most powerful opponent to unification, which would eventually lead to three wars of independence
Italian Independence wars
The Wars of Italian Independence were three wars fought between Italian states and the Austrian Empire between 1848 and 1866, ending with the conquest of the entire Italian Peninsula...
against the Austrians.
External links
See also
- History of NaplesHistory of NaplesThe history of Naples is long and varied, beginning in the 9th-century BCE Greeks colonized many parts of south Italy. Naples was one of the latter cities founded in the Magna Graecia, founded as "Parthenope" in the sixth century B.C. It was a second-generation colony, in that it was settled by the...
- Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
- Risorgimento
- Timeline of the Napoleonic eraTimeline of the Napoleonic eraTimeline of the Napoleonic era . The Napoleonic era began in 1799 with Napoleon Bonaparte's coup d'état, that overthrew the Directory and established the French Consulate...