The Battle of Assietta was a significant engagement of the

War of the Austrian Succession The War of the Austrian Succession was a European conflict fought between 1740 and 1748, primarily in Central Europe, the Austrian Netherlands, Italian Peninsula, Italy, the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea. Related conflicts include King Ge ...

and pitted a numerically superior French force of 25,000-40,000 menBrowning, p. 311. under the command of Louis Fouquet, Chevalier de Belle-Isle against a Sardinian army of 7,000-15,000 menBrowning, p. 311. led by Giovanni Bricherasio. The French were soundly defeated and their commander, Belle-Isle, killed during the course of the battle. The siege was part of the Italian campaign of the

, in which

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

and

Bourbons The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a dynasty that originated in the Kingdom of France as a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. A branch descended from ...

contested for domination over Northern Italy and the various Italian states. The Kingdom of Sardinia joined the war on the side of the Pragmatic Allies in 1742 and rallied itself to

Maria Theresa Maria Theresa (Maria Theresia Walburga Amalia Christina; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was the ruler of the Habsburg monarchy from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position suo jure, in her own right. She was the ...

's cause. There were also concerns about growing French influence in its territories. The war in Italy had already been going on for seven years, and the Sardinian army had already suffered several defeats in the field, leading to them opting for a more defensive approach. The French led several expeditions in Italy during the war, combining their forces with the Spanish Bourbons to accomplish their political aims.Browning, p. 311.Browning, p. 312. By 1747, the war was coming to an end, but the French were still interested in acquiring more influence in Italy, and so dispatched an army under the command of Belle-Isle to capture Colle dell'Assietta from the Sardinians. The

French army The French Army, officially known as the Land Army (, , ), is the principal Army, land warfare force of France, and the largest component of the French Armed Forces; it is responsible to the Government of France, alongside the French Navy, Fren ...

organised into thirty-two battalions,Browning, p. 311. encountered fortified Sardinian positions at the

Susa Valley The Susa Valley (; ; ; ; ) is a valley in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont region of northern Italy, located between the Graian Alps in the north and the Cottian Alps in the south. It is one of the longest valleys of the Italian Alps. ...

, and launched wave after wave of fruitless assaults on their fortifications. The French divided their forces into four

columns A column or pillar in architecture and structural engineering is a structural element that transmits, through compression, the weight of the structure above to other structural elements below. In other words, a column is a compression member ...

and launched several assaults personally led by Belle-Isle. They were all repulsed with heavy casualties inflicted, and Belle-Isle himself was killed, whereupon a retreat was ordered. The Sardinians suffered only light casualties, while the French had over a fifth of their force killed or wounded. The Sardinian victory proved to be the last major battle in the Italian campaign of the war.Browning, p. 311.Browning, p. 312.

Background

The cause of the War of the Austrian Succession was Maria Theresa's alleged ineligibility to succeed to the hereditary lands of her father, Emperor Charles VI, because

Salic law The Salic law ( or ; ), also called the was the ancient Frankish Civil law (legal system), civil law code compiled around AD 500 by Clovis I, Clovis, the first Frankish King. The name may refer to the Salii, or "Salian Franks", but this is deba ...

precluded royal inheritance by a woman. This became the key justification for the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the Middle Ages, medieval and Early modern France, early modern period. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe from th ...

and the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

, joined by the

Electorate of Bavaria The Electorate of Bavaria () was a quasi-independent hereditary electorate of the Holy Roman Empire from 1623 to 1806, when it was succeeded by the Kingdom of Bavaria. The Wittelsbach dynasty which ruled the Duchy of Bavaria was the younger ...

, to challenge Habsburg power. Maria Theresa was supported by the

Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain, also known as the Kingdom of Great Britain, was a sovereign state in Western Europe from 1707 to the end of 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the Kingd ...

, the

Dutch Republic The United Provinces of the Netherlands, commonly referred to in historiography as the Dutch Republic, was a confederation that existed from 1579 until the Batavian Revolution in 1795. It was a predecessor state of the present-day Netherlands ...

, the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

and the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

. Since 1739,

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

had been fighting the separate

War of Jenkins' Ear The War of Jenkins' Ear was fought by Kingdom of Great Britain, Great Britain and History of Spain (1700–1808), Spain between 1739 and 1748. The majority of the fighting took place in Viceroyalty of New Granada, New Granada and the Caribbean ...

with Britain, which primarily took place in the Americas. It joined the war in Europe, hoping to recapture its former possessions in Northern Italy, now held by Austria. Having previously re-gained the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples (; ; ), officially the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was established by the War of the Sicilian Vespers (1282–1302). Until ...

in 1735, doing so would restore the territories the Spanish lost under the 1713

Treaty of Utrecht The Peace of Utrecht was a series of peace treaty, peace treaties signed by the belligerents in the War of the Spanish Succession, in the Dutch city of Utrecht between April 1713 and February 1715. The war involved three contenders for the vac ...

.Browning, p. 312. In the late phase of the

, France had decided to eliminate the Sardinian army, which they considered a threat due to the strong strategic position the Sardinians held. King

Louis XV of France Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached maturity (then defi ...

had already dispatched forces into Sardianian territory, besieging

Cuneo Cuneo (; ; ; ) is a city and in Piedmont, Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the fourth largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres (1,804 ft) in the south-west of Piedmont, at the confluence of the ri ...

and engaging the Sardinians at Madonna dell'Olmo and Bassignana, winning both battles but gaining little strategic advantage overall. A French army comprising one hundred and fifty

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

battalions, seventy-five

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

squadrons and two

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

brigades, under the command of Marshal Charles Louis Auguste, duke of Belle-Isle, and Marquis De La Mina, was dispatched into Italy. The two commanders had different views on how to conduct the campaign: Belle-Isle favoured menacing

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

directly via crossing the

Alps The Alps () are some of the highest and most extensive mountain ranges in Europe, stretching approximately across eight Alpine countries (from west to east): Monaco, France, Switzerland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Germany, Austria and Slovenia. ...

, while his Spanish colleague instead wished to send troops to relieve the Austro-Sardinian siege of Genoa. Belle-Isle's ideas prevailed and the French troops occupied

Antibes Antibes (, , ; ) is a seaside city in the Alpes-Maritimes Departments of France, department in Southeastern France. It is located on the French Riviera between Cannes and Nice; its cape, the Cap d'Antibes, along with Cap Ferrat in Saint-Jean-Ca ...

as well as the county of

Nice Nice ( ; ) is a city in and the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative city limits, with a population of nearly one millionChevalier de Belle-Isle, led an army of fifty infantry battalions, fifteen cavalry squadrons and numerous cannons, and advanced towards the northern Italian mountain passes.Browning, p. 312.

Battle

The French army was divided into two corps: one descended from the Moncenisio towards

Exilles Exilles (Occitan: ''Eissilhas''; nonstandard Occitan: ''Isiya''; Piedmontese: ''Isiles''; Latin: ''Excingomagus'' or ''Scingomagus''; Italianization under Italian Fascism: ''Esille'') is a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Itali ...

while the other advanced towards

Fenestrelle Fenestrelle (, ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about west of Turin. It is the location of the Fenestrelle Fort, an alpine fortification which guarded the route between t ...

from the Assietta Pass. The latter formed a bare plateau, at an altitude of 2,500 meters. Although he outnumbered the French in the area,Browning, p. 311.

Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy Charles Emmanuel III (27 April 1701 – 20 February 1773) was Duke of Savoy, List of monarchs of Sardinia, King of Sardinia and ruler of the Savoyard states from his Victor Amadeus II, father's abdication on 3 September 1730 until his death ...

was forced to dispatch forces to defend all the passes into his country while the French could concentrate their forces and needed attack only one mountain pass to enter Sardinian territory. The decision was made by the French to advance through Assietta. The Sardinians had fortified the area with thirteen infantry battalions: nine were Sardinian, with the remaining being Austrian and

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

battalions which were taken from the troops that had unsuccessfully besieged Genoa. French scouts had notified their commander that the Sardinians were fortifying the pass, and a decision to launch an attack immediately was taken. Numerous obstacles,

redoubt A redoubt (historically redout) is a Fortification, fort or fort system usually consisting of an enclosed defensive emplacement outside a larger fort, usually relying on Earthworks (engineering), earthworks, although some are constructed of ston ...

s and an eighteen foot high

palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a row of closely placed, high vertical standing tree trunks or wooden or iron stakes used as a fence for enclosure or as a defensive wall. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymo ...

had been built on the slope by the Sardinian defenders. The forces involved amounted to thirty two French battalions against thirteen Sardinian battalions. The French troops were divided into three columns with the center column pressing the attack and the flank columns launching various half-hearted attacks from the side.Browning, p. 312. The attacks began at about 16:30 in the afternoon. Despite the desperate attempts by the French soldiers and the personal show of valour of their officers, all four attacks were repulsed by the Sardinian forces with heavy losses inflicted upon their ranks. After five hours of battle, the French made the decision to retreat. The French commander, Chevalier de Belle-Isle, was killed while raising the

French flag The national flag of France () is a tricolour featuring three vertical bands coloured blue ( hoist side), white, and red. The design was adopted after the French Revolution, whose revolutionaries were influenced by the horizontally striped r ...

near the top of the slope. What ensued in the late afternoon was celebrated as the most one-sided victories of the war. Neither flanking columns engaged the Sardinians significantly enough to influence the catastrophe that was befalling the center column. These battalions, led by determined officers, struggled up the slope, disassembling the various man-made impediments as they proceeded, while suffering withering musket fire from concealed and protected Sardinian hideouts, which exacted the heavy toll on the flanking columns. Four separate times the French faltered before the onslaught; each time they returned to the struggle. The living climbed over the dead as they tried to surmount the palisades. Sardinian defenders rained bullets and rocks down on the relentless blood-drenched attackers. A retreat, which proved more orderly then the previous butchery, was portended. The one-sided character of the slaughter was apparent. French casualties totaled 6,400 killed and wounded including 400 officers, and for the first and the only times in the war the majority of them, 3,700, were fatalities while only 299 Sardinians were killed or wounded.

Aftermath

The beaten French troops retreated from the field. This would be their last engagement on the Italian front as they entirely withdrew from Italy after it, although minor skirmishes continued between Hapsburg and Italian forces and the remaining Franco-Spanish troops in the region. The body of Belle-Isle, carefully preserved during the march home, was buried in the Embrun Cathedral with full military honours. His death was immortalised in a painting, depicting his moment of death when attempting to plant the French flag at the top of the Sardinian redoubt. The valour of the Sardinian troops became household news in Europe, and

King of Prussia The monarchs of Prussia were members of the House of Hohenzollern who were the hereditary rulers of the former German state of Prussia from its founding in 1525 as the Duchy of Prussia. The Duchy had evolved out of the Teutonic Order, a Roman C ...

, Frederick II, upon hearing of news of the Sardinian defence at Assietta, declared that, if he had such valorous troops under his command, he could easily become

King of Italy King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a constitutional monarch if his power is restrained by ...

. The following year, by the terms of the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the Kingdom of Sardinia obtained the territories around

Lake Maggiore Lake Maggiore (, ; ; ; ; literally 'greater lake') or Verbano (; ) is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest lake in Italy and the largest in southern Switzerland. The lake and its shoreline are divided be ...

and

Ticino Ticino ( ), sometimes Tessin (), officially the Republic and Canton of Ticino or less formally the Canton of Ticino, is one of the Canton of Switzerland, 26 cantons forming the Switzerland, Swiss Confederation. It is composed of eight districts ...

.Browning, p. 312. The battle of Assietta, from a strategic point of view was a stalemate in regards to the military operations that were being conducted in Italy, while from a tactical point of view, it was a clear success that made apparent the failure of combat tactics employed by the French troops under Belle-Isle, which primarily consisted of massed bayonet assaults in column formations without bothering to ensure the columns had sufficient support in the form of covering fire. After the war, a long peace reigned in Italy between the various Italian states until the French Revolution and the ensuing French Revolutionary and

Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...

.Browning, p. 312.

References

Bibliography

*Browning, Reed (2008). ''The War of the Austrian Succession.'' St. Martin's Griffin. * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Assietta Assietta Assietta Assietta Assietta Assietta 1747 in Italy 1747 in France Assietta

Background

Battle

Aftermath

See also

References

Bibliography