TheMontenotte campaign began on 10 April 1796 with an action atVoltri and ended with the Armistice ofCherasco on 28 April. It was the beginning of theItalian Campaign of 1796-1797, which would ultimately end theWar of the First Coalition a year later. In his first army command,Napoleon Bonaparte's French army separated the army of theKingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont underMichelangelo Alessandro Colli-Marchi from the alliedHabsburg army led byJohann Peter Beaulieu. The French defeated both Habsburg and Sardinian armies and forced Sardinia to quit theFirst Coalition. The campaign formed part of theWars of the French Revolution. Montenotte Superiore is located at the junction of Strada Provinciale 12 and 41 in theLiguria region of northwest Italy, 15 kilometres (9 mi) northeast ofCarcare municipality. However, the fighting occurred in an area fromGenoa on the east toCuneo on the west.

Montenotte campaign
Part of theItalian campaign of 1796–1797 in theWar of the First Coalition
View of the Battle of Mondovi by Giuseppe Pietro Bagetti (1764-1831)
Date 10–28 April 1796 Location Republic of Genoa andKingdom of Sardinia todayLiguria andPiedmont regions inItaly 44°39′N7°52′E / 44.650°N 7.867°E /44.650; 7.867 Result French victory
Belligerents
Republican France	Kingdom of Sardinia Habsburg monarchy
Commanders and leaders
Napoleon Bonaparte André Masséna Pierre Augereau Jean-Baptiste Meynier Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier	Michelangelo Colli Johann Beaulieu
Strength
37,600, 60 guns[1]	67,000 total
Casualties and losses
6,000	25,000 total
class=notpageimage| Location within Northern Italy Show map of Northern Italy Montenotte campaign (Europe) Show map of Europe

War of the First Coalition:
Italian Campaign

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In the spring of 1796, Bonaparte planned to launch an offensive against the combined armies of Sardinia and the Habsburg Monarchy. However, the Habsburg army moved first, attacking the French right flank atVoltri, nearGenoa. In response, Bonaparte counterattacked the center of the enemy array, striking the boundary between the armies of his adversaries. Beating the Austrians atMontenotte, the budding military genius strove to drive the Piedmontese west and the Austrians northeast. Victories atMillesimo over the Sardinians and atSecond Battle of Dego over the Austrians began to drive a deep wedge between them. Leaving a division to observe the stunned Austrians, Bonaparte's army chased the Piedmontese west after a second clash atCeva. A week after the French drubbed the Sardinians atMondovì the Sardinian government signed an armistice and withdrew from theWar of the First Coalition. In two and a half weeks, Bonaparte had overcome one of France's enemies, leaving the crippled Habsburg army as his remaining opponent in northern Italy.

SeeMontenotte 1796 campaign order of battle for a list of French, Habsburg, and Sardinian units and organizations.

The morale of the army was not of the highest order; the units were strung out in numerous small detachments[...], their communications exposed [...] For their meager rations they were dependent on the whim of fraudulent army contractors, who were amassing private fortunes at the expense of the soldiers [...] officers and men alike [...] quitted their units every day in search of food [...] their pay, already months in arrears [...] relied on the [...] practically bankrupt French Government. Every type of equipment was in short supply. Whole battalions were without shoes—many men even without muskets and bayonets; the entire transport facilities of the army amounted to 200 mules. [...] Part of the army was in a mutinous frame of mind, and it was common knowledge that royalist agents were at work in the ranks.^[2]

At the outset of theWar of the First Coalition in 1792, the Army of Italy was raised by theFirst French Republic with 106,000 men. Due to a combination of desertion, sickness, and military action this had dwindled to a nominal force of 63,000 men by the time Napoleon Bonaparte took command in March 1796, and of that number only 37,600 men and 60 field guns were available for immediate action.^[2]

The government of theFirst French Republic wished to drive Sardinia-Piedmont out of theFirst Coalition. To achieve this aim, the FrenchArmy of Italy first had to defeatMichelangelo Alessandro Colli-Marchi's 21,000-man Sardinian army (including 4,000 Austrians) andJohann Peter Beaulieu's 28,000-strong Habsburg army.^[3]

Several passes and river valleys crossed theLigurian Alps between theItalian Riviera andPiedmont. From west to east, they were theCol de Tende which was guarded on the north by the fortress city ofCuneo, theTanaro River which passed throughCeva, theColle di Cadibona betweenSavona andCarcare, the Col di Giovo nearSassello, the Turchino Pass north ofVoltri and theBocchetta Pass north ofGenoa. The coastal strip to the south was not sufficient to support an army unless it was well supplied. However, to the north, Piedmont and thePo valley were rich in resources. The theater of operations stretched from the Col de Tende on the west to Voltri on the east.^[4]

The town of Savona lies on the coast, 56 kilometres (35 mi) west ofGenoa.^[5] Going northwest from Savona, a road crosses the Colle di Cadibona and reaches Carcare on theBormida River, 20 kilometres (12 mi) from Savona. Continuing west from Carcare, the road passes throughMillesimo after another 8 kilometres (5 mi). Crossing a divide near the hamlet ofMontezemolo, the highway descends into theTanaro River valley at the small fortress of Ceva. From Millesimo to Ceva is about 21 kilometres (13 mi).^[6] From Ceva toMondovì is a distance of 22 kilometres (14 mi). Once past Mondovì, the road exits the mountains and enters the plains around the fortress ofCuneo (Coni). Cuneo is 25 kilometres (16 mi) west of Mondovì.^[7] The battle site at Montenotte Superiore is located on a side road 15 kilometres (9 mi) northeast of Carcare.^[8]Dego is 12 kilometres (7 mi) north of Carcare.Acqui, lies about 41 kilometres (25 mi) to the north of Dego.^[9]

Beaulieu planned forKarl Philipp Sebottendorf's Left Wing to attack the exposed French right flank. After smashing the French right, Sebottendorf would joinEugène-Guillaume Argenteau's 9,000-man Right Wing in crushing Bonaparte's main body near Savona. Beaulieu ordered Argenteau, based at Acqui, to attack Savona by way of Montenotte and Sassello. Though the Habsburg field army numbered 32,000 infantry, 5,000 cavalry, and 148 cannon,^[10] four battalions guardedLombardy, others were marching to the front from their winter quarters in thePo River valley, and thousands were sick. Available strength may have been as low as 25,000 soldiers.^[11]

The Austrian government feared that Piedmont wanted to drop out of the alliance and even change sides. Therefore, Beaulieu received secret instructions not to fully trust his ally. Consequently, he neglected to fully inform the Sardinians of his plans.^[12] Colli deployed his army between Dego and Cuneo, with his main weight to the west guarding the Col de Tende. He posted two battalions at Dego and part ofGiovanni Marchese di Provera's Austrian brigade at Millesimo.^[3] Meanwhile,François Christophe de Kellermann's FrenchArmy of the Alps and the Prince of Corrigan's Sardinian army, each about 20,000 strong, glared at each other in the mountains west of Cuneo andTurin.^[13]

The French government found it useful to keepJean-Baptiste Cervoni's brigade at Voltri in order to secure supplies from the nearbyRepublic of Genoa, which was neutral.Amedee Emmanuel Francois Laharpe stationed one brigade each on the Sassello and Carcare roads. Bonaparte postedJean-Baptiste Meynier's division at Savona andPierre Augereau's division farther west, with troops in the mountains.Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier's division heldOrmea, whileFrancois Macquard andPierre Dominique Garnier's small divisions covered the Col de Tende. About half ofHenri Christian Michel de Stengel's cavalry was with the army, while the rest were en route from France. On 5 April Bonaparte received intelligence that Austrian troops were advancing on Voltri, Sassello and Dego. He placed his army on alert, but did not make any other changes.^[14]

Bonaparte rejected the Ormea route as too difficult and the Col de Tende route as too distant for his planned offensive. After a meticulous study of maps he determined to lunge across the Colle di Cadibona from Savona to seize Carcare. This town was the vital point linking the Habsburg army to the east with the Sardinian army to the west.^[15] Bonaparte planned to commitAndré Masséna's corps (Laharpe and Meynier) and Augereau to the main attack, while Sérurier threatened Ceva. He ordered Macquard and Garnier to make a feint in the Col di Tende area. The French offensive was set to begin on 15 April.^[16]

In the event, Beaulieu moved first. On 10 April, the Habsburg army commander accompanied Sebottendorf and 3,200 men as they advanced across theTurchino Pass to attack Cervoni's 5,000 Frenchmen in theBattle of Voltri.^[17] At the same time,Philipp Pittoni von Dannenfeld's 4,000-strong column traversed theBocchetta Pass. "The attack was badly organized, poorly coordinated, and used a surprisingly small number of troops."^[18] Outnumbered, Cervoni "conducted a masterly withdrawal to the west" avoiding a trap.^[19] Beaulieu declined to pursue Cervoni and began transferring his units to support his right flank. He left two battalions to hold Voltri and sent four more withJosef Philipp Vukassovich to march through the hills to Sassello by a difficult road. The bulk of his troops were ordered back to Acqui.^[20]

A day late, Argenteau andMathias Rukavina von Boynograd assembled 4,000 soldiers near Montenotte on the morning of the 11th. This force advanced southeast toward 2,000 French soldiers at Monte Negino (Monte Legino). Meanwhile, a second Austrian brigade occupied Sassello.Antoine-Guillaume Rampon repulsed several Austrian attacks at Monte Negino during the day. Bonaparte ordered Laharpe to attack Argenteau the next day with two brigades while Masséna enveloped the Austrian flank with the third brigade. He also directed Augereau and Meynier to concentrate at Carcare.^[3]

On 12 April, Bonaparte's French army defeated Argenteau's soldiers at theBattle of Montenotte.^[17] While Laharpe mounted a frontal attack with 7,000 troops from Monte Negino, Masséna moved north with 4,000 men to turn Argenteau's weak right flank. Meanwhile, 11,000 more troops were moved up behind the striking forces.^[21] Masséna's flanking movement broke through and Argenteau's efforts to plug the gap failed. The Austrian pulled back and the French mauled his outnumbered force. Argenteau withdrew his battered force to Dego, complaining that he could rally only 700 men to the colors.^[22]

Bonaparte turned west against Colli's army on 13 April. Augereau's division easily pushed back Provera's weak force in theBattle of Millesimo. To cover the retreat, Provera and 1,000 picked troops occupied a ruined hilltop castle. Instead of bypassing this obstacle, Bonaparte ordered Cosseria castle to be stormed. For the rest of the day, the Austro-Sardinians repelled several assaults with heavy French casualties. Provera surrendered the following morning when his defenders ran out of food, water, and ammunition.^[23]

On 14 April, Bonaparte directed Masséna and Laharpe to attack Argenteau in theSecond Battle of Dego. After inflicting 1,500 French casualties, most of the outnumbered Austrians were killed, wounded or captured. Argenteau led the remnant of his force back to Acqui. Bonaparte left Masséna and one of Meynier's brigades to hold Dego and ordered Laharpe back to Carcare.^[24]

Beaulieu ordered Vukassovich's brigade to Dego on the 14th but a poorly written order caused his subordinate to be a day too late. At dawn on 15 April, Vukassovich surprised Meynier's troops in the act of looting the town and routed the French. Masséna hastily recalled Laharpe to retake Dego. Several hours later, the heavily reinforced French retook the town after a tough fight, with Bonaparte supervising the assault. Vukassovich retreated to Acqui.^[25]

After a clash between Augereau and Colli at Montezemolo, the Sardinians pulled back to Ceva. On 16 April, Augereau attacked the Sardinians and was repulsed in theBattle of Ceva. Fearing that Sérurier, who was approaching from Ormea, might attack him in the rear, Colli withdrew to the Corsaglia River atSan Michele Mondovi. He left a battalion behind to hold Ceva's small fortress. Bonaparte ordered Laharpe to scout Sassello to determine Beaulieu's whereabouts. Meynier reported sick, so Masséna took direct command of his division, which remained near Dego.^[24]

Laharpe returned to Dego, reporting no enemy activity. Meanwhile, Beaulieu reassembled his battered army near Acqui and Colli directedJean-Gaspard Dichat de Toisinge with 8,000 soldiers and 15 cannon to defend the Corsaglia position.^[26] On 19 April, Bonaparte ordered Sérurier to attack San Michele while Augereau flanked the river line from the north. Augereau's effort failed due to high water. Sérurier's soldiers fought their way across the river, but then dispersed in search of food and plunder. Colli counterattacked and threw the French back.^[27] That day, Bonaparte switched his supply line from the exposed Cadibona Pass to a safer route via Imperia and Ormea. Bonaparte called up Masséna to make a three division attack on the San Michele position. Laharpe guarded the army's rear against an Austrian attack.^[28]

Faced with a heavy French concentration, Colli abandoned the Corsaglia River line on the night of 20/21 April. But the vigorous French pursuit soon overran the Sardinian rearguard. Colli barely had time to arrange his troops before Sérurier attacked him in theBattle of Mondovì. The French general formed his least experienced troops into three columns and covered them with his veterans in open order. Then, leading his central column, Sérurier launched a charge with Masséna's division in support. Brushing aside spotty resistance, the French broke the Sardinian lines and forced them to abandon Mondovì.^[29] Dichat was killed. Stengel received a mortal wound while leading a force of dragoons in pursuit.^[30]

After forcing Mondovì's municipal authorities to hand over a large quantity of provisions, Bonaparte launched his pursuit.^[31] On the morning of 23 April, the French army commander received a letter from Colli requesting an armistice. Ruthlessly, Bonaparte urged his men forward to conquer as much territory as possible. The arrival of the ragged and hungry French soldiers in the relatively wealthy plains prompted an outbreak of looting and Bonaparte had several men shot to discourage the practice.^[32] By 25 April, Sérurier was inFossano on the left flank, Masséna heldCherasco in the center and Augereau occupiedAlba on the right, while Laharpe brought up the rear. Macquard and Garnier were instructed to seize Cuneo.^[33] Bonaparte shifted his supply line again, this time to the secure Col de Tende.^[34]

By the Armistice of Cherasco, signed on 28 April, territory east of theStura di Demonte andTanaro Rivers passed under French control. The fortresses of Cuneo, Ceva, andTortona acquired French garrisons. In addition, the Sardinians granted the French army permission to cross its territory if it wished. A secret clause allowed Bonaparte to cross the Po River at the city ofValenza. Ratification of the armistice and the signing of a formal treaty was left to the French government. Bonaparte dispatchedJoachim Murat to Paris with the details.^[34]

Succeeding where earlier armies had failed, Bonaparte and his soldiers knocked Sardinia out of the war in a single brief campaign. The French suffered 6,000 casualties during the campaign.^[35] Total Austrian and Sardinian losses stood around 25,000. With Sardinia-Piedmont pacified, the French were free to direct their attentions on their major enemy, Austria.^[36] Soon Bonaparte launched a new offensive, which resulted in victories over Beaulieu at the battles ofFombio^[37] andLodi in May.^[38]

Historian Martin Boycott-Brown listed the reasons for Bonaparte's victory:^[39]

...not just the disastrous separation between Beaulieu and Argenteau, but also to that between the Austrian and Piedmontese armies. If the Austrians had chosen to concentrate closer to the Piedmontese positions, as Colli had wanted, it would have been less easy for Bonaparte to effect their separation. The defeat of the Piedmontese became almost inevitable from the moment Bonaparte managed to drive a wedge between the allies and obliged the Piedmontese to draw ever further from their only source of help by threatening to outflank them. It would be easy to heap the blame for this on Beaulieu, but as we have said before, he was given a difficult hand to play, and if he came off second best in a contest with one of the greatest strategists in the history of war, it is not surprising.^[39]

• Boycott-Brown, Martin (2001).The Road to Rivoli: Napoleon's First Campaign. London, UK: Cassell & Co.ISBN 0-304-35305-1.
• Chandler, David G. (1966).The Campaigns of Napoleon. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan.
• Chandler, David G. (1979).Dictionary of the Napoleonic Wars. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan.ISBN 0-02-523670-9.
• Dodge, Theodore Ayrault (2011).Warfare in the Age of Napoleon: The Revolutionary Wars Against the First Coalition in Northern Europe and the Italian Campaign, 1789-1797. USA: Leonaur Ltd.ISBN 978-0-85706-598-8.
• Fiebeger, G. J. (1911).The Campaigns of Napoleon Bonaparte of 1796–1797. West Point, New York: US Military Academy Printing Office.
• Rooney, David D. (1987). "Serurier: The Virgin of Italy". InChandler, David G. (ed.).Napoleon's Marshals. New York, N.Y.: Macmillan.ISBN 0-02-905930-5.
• Smith, Digby (1998).The Napoleonic Wars Data Book. London: Greenhill.ISBN 1-85367-276-9.

• Boycott-Brown, Martin."Photos of sites of 1796 campaigns". Archived fromthe original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved2009-04-18.