The Transpadane Republic () was a sister republic of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

established in

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

from 1796 to 1797.

History

On 10 May 1796, the French army defeated the Austrian troops in the Battle of Lodi, and occupied the

Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan (; ) was a state in Northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti of Milan, Visconti family, which had been ruling the city since 1277. At that time, ...

. Napoleon set up a temporary authority, the ''General Administration of Lombardy'', which replaced the Austrian administration and created a French client republic in Northern Italy, adopting the French Republican calendar. ''Transpadane'' indicates "across the

Po (river) The Po ( , ) is the longest river in Italy. It flows eastward across northern Italy, starting from the Cottian Alps. The river's length is , or if the Maira (river), Maira, a right bank tributary, is included. The headwaters of the Po are forme ...

," with the corresponding Cispadane Republic indicating "on this side of the Po." The administration was granted full civil powers by a proclamation of Napoleon on Brumaire 8, year V (29 October 1796), although its orders had to be approved by the French military commander of Lombardy. The administration was composed of four departments: religious and cultural affairs, transportation and engineering affairs, financial and tax affairs, and mercantile and commercial affairs. After the new victories of Napoleon's army, the territory of the republic grew; with the

Peace of Leoben The Peace of Leoben was a general armistice and preliminary peace agreement between the Holy Roman Empire and the First French Republic that ended the War of the First Coalition. It was signed at Eggenwaldsches Gartenhaus, near Leoben, on 18 Apri ...

on 17 April 1797, France invaded the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

, conquering

Bergamo Bergamo ( , ; ) is a city in the Alps, alpine Lombardy region of northern Italy, approximately northeast of Milan, and about from the alpine lakes Lake Como, Como and Lake Iseo, Iseo and 70 km (43 mi) from Lake Garda, Garda and Lake ...

and moving eastwards from the Adda River to the Oglio River, the Venetian demarcation line established more than three centuries earlier. On 19 May, Napoleon transferred to Milan the territories of the former Duchy of Modena from the bordering Cispadane Republic. On 29 June, he decided to give the republic a final arrangement: by his own decree, he proclaimed the birth of the Cisalpine Republic.

Sources

Historical database of Lombard laws
1796 in Italy 1797 in Italy Modern history of Italy Client states of the Napoleonic Wars Italian states Former republics States and territories established in 1796 States and territories disestablished in 1797 1796 establishments in Europe 1797 disestablishments in Europe {{Lombardy-geo-stub