The Battle of Veillane (or the Battle of Avigliana) was fought on 10 July 1630 between a French army under the command of

Henri II de Montmorency Henri de Montmorency, 4th Duke of Montmorency (1595 – 30 October 1632) was a French nobleman and military commander. Made Grand admiral in 1612, governor of Languedoc in 1614, and by 1620 was viceroy of New France. Despite defeating a Protesta ...

and a Spanish army under the command of Don Carlo Doria. The result was a French victory."On 10 July 1630, in the Piedmont campaign, he won the crucial victory of Veillane" .

Prelude

During the

war of the Mantuan Succession The War of the Mantuan Succession, from 1628 to 1631, was caused by the death in December 1627 of Vincenzo II, last male heir from the House of Gonzaga, long-time rulers of Mantua and Montferrat. Their strategic importance led to a proxy war b ...

, Cardinal Richelieu sent a French army under the command of Montmorency to invade duke of Savoy's piedmontese countries in attempt to influence the Mantuan succession. This was the ''

casus belli A (; ) is an act or an event that either provokes or is used to justify a war. A ''casus belli'' involves direct offenses or threats against the nation declaring the war, whereas a ' involves offenses or threats against its ally—usually one bou ...

'' but his primary motive was to force

Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy Charles Emmanuel I (; 12 January 1562 – 26 July 1630), known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy and ruler of the Savoyard states from 30 August 1580 until his death almost 50 years later in 1630, he was the longest-reigning Savoyard monarch ...

from his alliance the

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 ...

(

Philip IV of Spain Philip IV (, ; 8 April 160517 September 1665), also called the Planet King (Spanish: ''Rey Planeta''), was King of Spain from 1621 to his death and (as Philip III) King of Portugal from 1621 to 1640. Philip is remembered for his patronage of the ...

and

Ferdinand II, Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand II (9 July 1578 – 15 February 1637) was Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary, Hungary, and List of Croatian monarchs, Croatia from 1619 until his death in 1637. He was the son of Archduke Charles II, Archduke of Austr ...

) and hence sever the land link between Habsburg lands in Italy and those in Germany and the

Spanish Netherlands The Spanish Netherlands (; ; ; ) (historically in Spanish: , the name "Flanders" was used as a '' pars pro toto'') was the Habsburg Netherlands ruled by the Spanish branch of the Habsburgs from 1556 to 1714. They were a collection of States of t ...

Battle

The French commander, General Montmorency, led the royal gendarmes in a charge across a ditch, capturing Doria with his own hand and reportedly fighting like a common soldier until the Spanish withdrawal from the field. The French inflicted about 700 on the enemy and captured 600.

Aftermath

Although this victory did not prevent Savoy and its allies from capturing

Mantua Mantua ( ; ; Lombard language, Lombard and ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Italian region of Lombardy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, eponymous province. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the "Italian Capital of Culture". In 2 ...

a week later, the French victory was followed by the raising of the siege of Casale and the taking of

Saluzzo Saluzzo (; ) is a town and former principality in the province of Cuneo, in the Piedmont region, Italy. The city of Saluzzo is built on a hill overlooking a vast, well-cultivated plain. Iron, lead, silver, marble, slate etc. are found in the su ...

and Pignerol. For his achievements during the Piedmont Campaign Montmorency was appointed a

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

later the same year. The outcome of the Piedmont Campaign reversed earlier French strategic losses and the Treaty of Cherasco signed in 1631 was largely favourable to France.

Notes

References

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Attribution

* Conflicts in 1630 Battles involving France Battles involving Spain 1630 in Italy Battles involving Savoy War of the Mantuan Succession Military history of Piedmont {{battle-stub