The Anglo-Russian occupation of Naples was the stationing of

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

forces in the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as 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 ...

from the summer of 1805 until January 1806 during the

War of the Third Coalition The War of the Third Coalition) * In French historiography, it is known as the Austrian campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Autriche de 1805) or the German campaign of 1805 (french: Campagne d'Allemagne de 1805) was a European conflict spanni ...

Background

A previous cooperation in July 1799 between British admiral

Horatio Nelson Vice-Admiral Horatio Nelson, 1st Viscount Nelson, 1st Duke of Bronte (29 September 1758 – 21 October 1805) was a British flag officer in the Royal Navy. His inspirational leadership, grasp of strategy, and unconventional tactics brought abo ...

and Russian

admiral Ushakov Fyodor Fyodorovich Ushakov ( rus, Фёдор Фёдорович Ушако́в, p=ʊʂɐˈkof; – ) was an 18th century Russian naval commander and admiral. He is notable for winning every engagement he participated in as the Admiral of t ...

led to the reconquest of Naples and suppression of the pro-

French revolutionary The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are consider ...

Parthenopaean Republic The Parthenopean Republic ( it, Repubblica Partenopea, french: République Parthénopéenne) or Neapolitan Republic (''Repubblica Napoletana'') was a short-lived, semi-autonomous republic located within the Kingdom of Naples and supported by the ...

. The war ended with the

Treaty of Florence The Treaty of Florence (28 March 1801), which followed the Armistice of Foligno (9 February 1801), brought to an end the war between the French Republic and the Kingdom of Naples, one of the Wars of the French Revolution. Forced by the French mi ...

(28 March 1801), in which Naples had to do various concessions to France, including closing its ports to all Ottoman and British ships, giving France preferential treatment in trade, and allowing French garrisons in the Apulian trading ports of

Pescara Pescara (; nap, label= Abruzzese, Pescàrë; nap, label= Pescarese, Piscàrë) is the capital city of the Province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 119,217 (2018) residents (and approxim ...

Brindisi Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. Histo ...

and

Otranto Otranto (, , ; scn, label= Salentino, Oṭṛàntu; el, label=Griko, Δερεντό, Derentò; grc, Ὑδροῦς, translit=Hudroûs; la, Hydruntum) is a coastal town, port and ''comune'' in the province of Lecce (Apulia, Italy), in a fertil ...

and the province of

Terra d'Otranto The Terra di Otranto, or Terra d’Otranto (in English, Land of Otranto), is an historical and geographical region of Apulia, largely corresponding to the Salento peninsula, anciently part of the Kingdom of Sicily and later of the Kingdom of ...

on Neapolitan costs. For his upcoming confrontation with Austria and Russia in Central Europe in autumn 1805, French Emperor

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

sought to secure his southern flank. He was willing to abandon the French-occupied coastal cities in Apulia to Naples in exchange for Neapolitan neutrality in the war ahead. King Ferdinand of Naples and Sicily agreed and signed a treaty with Napoleon.

Course

However, after receiving the Apulian cities, Ferdinand soon went back on his promise and allied himself with France's enemies Britain and Russia, which landed troops in Naples with his permission in order to guard against a possible French invasion, and to plan an attack on the Napoleonic states in central and northern Italy. The British commander was general

James Henry Craig General Sir James Henry Craig KB (1748 – 12 January 1812) was a British military officer and colonial administrator. Early life and military service Craig came from a Scottish family whose father was a judge of the civil and military cour ...

, who had ill health at the time and had 7,000 troops, while the Russian forces were led by Maurice Lacy and Roman Anrep. The combined army was too weak and poorly equipped to withstand any serious French attack. When the combined Austro–Russian Army was dealt a severe blow by

at the

Battle of Austerlitz The Battle of Austerlitz (2 December 1805/11 Frimaire An XIV FRC), also known as the Battle of the Three Emperors, was one of the most important and decisive engagements of the Napoleonic Wars. The battle occurred near the town of Austerlitz in ...

on 2 December 1805, 30,000 French troops were freed up for a campaign against Naples. Tsar

Alexander I of Russia Alexander I (; – ) was Emperor of Russia from 1801, the first King of Congress Poland from 1815, and the Grand Duke of Finland from 1809 to his death. He was the eldest son of Emperor Paul I and Sophie Dorothea of Württemberg. The son of ...

ordered his troops to withdraw from southern Italy to

Corfu Corfu (, ) or Kerkyra ( el, Κέρκυρα, Kérkyra, , ; ; la, Corcyra.) is a Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands, and, including its small satellite islands, forms the margin of the northwestern frontier of Greece. The isl ...

, which they did after Lacy received the tsar's dispatch on 7 January 1806. Meanwhile, Craig was awaiting orders from

Lord Castlereagh Robert Stewart, 2nd Marquess of Londonderry, (18 June 1769 – 12 August 1822), usually known as Lord Castlereagh, derived from the courtesy title Viscount Castlereagh ( ) by which he was styled from 1796 to 1821, was an Anglo-Irish politician ...

; he wrote on 30 December that he received his most recent instructions on 16 October. Against the wishes of ambassador

Hugh Elliot Hugh Elliot (6 April 1752 – 1 December 1830) was a British diplomat and then a colonial governor. Education and early career Hugh Elliot was born on 6April 1752, the second son of Sir Gilbert Elliot, 3rd Baronet, of Minto, Sir Gilbert El ...

, who warned evacuation would provoke the French to attack, Craig had the vastly outnumbered British troops depart Naples and set sail for the island of Sicily on 10 January 1806, ending the Anglo-Russian occupation and leaving the Neapolitan army to defend the kingdom on its own. The British fleet reached

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...

on 22 January and the soldiers disembarked.

British Expeditionary Force

* Lieutenant-General Sir James Henry Craig :*Advanced Corps: Brigadier-General

John Brodrick General the Hon. John Brodrick (3 November 1765 – 9 October 1842) was a British Army general and Governor of Martinique. He was born in Reading, the youngest son of George Brodrick, 3rd Viscount Midleton and his wife Albinia Townshend. His eld ...

::* Corsican Rangers (740 men) ::*Battalion of light infantry ::*Battalion of grenadiers ::*

Chasseurs Britanniques The Chasseurs Britanniques was a battalion-sized corps of foreign volunteers, who fought for the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland during the Napoleonic Wars. The regiment was formed from the remnants of the Louis Joseph, Prince of Condé ...

(645 men) :*First Brigade: Brigadier-General

Wroth Palmer Acland Lieutenant-General Sir Wroth Palmer Acland KCB (16 March 1770 – 8 March 1816) was an English soldier, notable for his role in the Peninsular War. Biography Acland was the 12th child of Arthur Palmer Acland, of Fairfield House, Somerset, an ...

::* 20th Regiment of Foot (801 men) ::*

35th Regiment of Foot The 35th (Royal Sussex) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1701. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 107th (Bengal Infantry) Regiment of Foot to form the Royal Sussex Regiment in 1881. History ...

(1003 men) ::*

61st Regiment of Foot The 61st (South Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot was an infantry regiment of the British Army, raised in 1756. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 28th (North Gloucestershire) Regiment of Foot to form the Gloucestershire Regiment ...

(834 men) :*Second Brigade: Brigadier-General

Galbraith Lowry Cole Hon. Sir Galbraith Lowry Cole, (1 May 1772 – 4 October 1842) was an Anglo-Irish British Army general and politician. Early life Cole was the second son of an Irish peer, William Willoughby Cole, 1st Earl of Enniskillen (1 March 1736&ndash ...

::*

27th Regiment of Foot The 27th (Inniskilling) Regiment of Foot was an Irish infantry regiment of the British Army, formed in 1689. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 108th (Madras Infantry) Regiment of Foot to form the Royal Inniskilling Fusiliers in 18 ...

(1063 men) ::*

58th Regiment of Foot The 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot was a British Army line infantry regiment, raised in 1755. Under the Childers Reforms it amalgamated with the 48th (Northamptonshire) Regiment of Foot to form the Northamptonshire Regiment in 1881. His ...

(973 men) ::*

de Watteville's Regiment De Watteville's Regiment was a Swiss regiment founded by Frédéric de Watteville and recruited from regiments that served between 1799 and 1801 in the Austrian army but in British pay. The troops then signed on as mercenaries, to be paid by the B ...

(725 men) :*

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

(273 men) ::*2 light brigades ::*1 heavy brigade (4

howitzer A howitzer () is a long- ranged weapon, falling between a cannon (also known as an artillery gun in the United States), which fires shells at flat trajectories, and a mortar, which fires at high angles of ascent and descent. Howitzers, like ot ...

s, 4 12-pounders, 8 6-pounders) :*Ancillary units ::*2 squadrons of the

20th Light Dragoons The 20th Regiment of Light Dragoons was a cavalry regiment of the British Army. History The regiment was raised as the 20th (Jamaica) Regiment of (Light) Dragoons in 1792; it was deployed to Jamaica in 1795 during the Second Maroon War. The regi ...

(335 men) ::* Staff Corps (20 men) ::*

Royal Engineers The Corps of Royal Engineers, usually called the Royal Engineers (RE), and commonly known as the ''Sappers'', is a corps of the British Army. It provides military engineering and other technical support to the British Armed Forces and is heade ...

(19 men) * Source:

Aftermath

After Austerlitz, Napoleon rallied his forces to punish Ferdinand's treason and take possession of all of southern Italy. French troops invaded and conquered the kingdom from 8 February to 18 July 1806.

External links

Pagedas, Constantine A., 'Counterpoint to Trafalgar: The Anglo-Russian Invasion of Naples, 1805-1806 (review)'
in ''Mediterranean Quarterly'', Volume 16, Number 1, Winter 2005, pp. 120–122.

References

Campaigns of the Napoleonic Wars Invasions by the United Kingdom War of the Third Coalition Military history of Naples 1805 in Italy Military operations involving the United Kingdom Military operations involving Russia

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...