The Battle of Occhiobello was fought on 8 April – 9 April 1815 and was the turning point of the
Neapolitan War
The Neapolitan War, also known as the Austro-Neapolitan War, was a conflict between the Napoleonic Kingdom of Naples and the Austrian Empire. It started on 15 March 1815 when King Joachim Murat declared war on Austria and ended on 20 May 1815 ...
.
Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat ( , also , ; it, Gioacchino Murati; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French military commander and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the ...
, King of
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 ...
was repulsed by an
Austrian
Austrian may refer to:
* Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent
** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law
* Austrian German dialect
* Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...
force under the command of
Johann Frimont whilst trying to cross the bridge over the
Po River at
Occhiobello
Occhiobello ( Ferrarese: ''Ug’bèl'') is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Rovigo in the Italian region Veneto, located about southwest of Venice and about southwest of Rovigo.
Twin towns
* Mennecy
Mennecy () is a commune in ...
. Following the battle, the Austrians would not lose an engagement for the remainder of the war.
Background
By March 1815, it became increasingly likely that
Joachim Murat
Joachim Murat ( , also , ; it, Gioacchino Murati; 25 March 1767 – 13 October 1815) was a French military commander and statesman who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. Under the French Empire he received the ...
would lose the crown of Naples, which had been given to him by his brother-in-law,
Napoleon Bonaparte
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 wh ...
, in 1808. After hearing news that Napoleon had escaped from exile in
Elba
Elba ( it, isola d'Elba, ; la, Ilva) is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino on the Italian mainland, and the largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago. It is also part of the Arcipelago Toscano Nationa ...
and landed in France, Murat decided to take matters into his own hands and declared war on Austria, the greatest threat to his position as King of Naples. Following Napoleon's defeat in 1814, areas such as
Lombardy and
Venetia became part of the Austrian Empire and were directly ruled from Vienna.
On 30 March, hoping to start a popular uprising against the Austrians, Murat gave the
Rimini Proclamation calling all Italian nationalists to war. Although there were many Italians sympathetic to his cause, fearful of the increasing Austrian influence in Italy and longing for independence, most Italians saw Murat as someone trying to save his own crown rather than a figurehead for unification. The Austrians also quickly crushed any unrest and there would be no general insurrection so long as Austrian troops were stationed in Italy. Despite this, by early April, Murat has reached the Austrian border on the
Po River. Across the border in Lombardy, there were reportedly around 40,000 Italian partisans, mostly veterans of the
Napoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...
, waiting to join Murat's army as soon he arrived in
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
.
However, the Austrians had also been assembling troops in northern Italy. Originally intended for an invasion of southern France following Napoleon's return from exile, the Austrians troops now moved south to counter the threat Murat now posed. Realising the danger of an Italian insurrection should Murat arrive in Milan,
Johann Frimont moved his headquarters to
Piacenza
Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...
to block Murat's direct route to Milan. By now, the Austrian numbers on the frontier and available for war swelled to nearly 50,000, vastly outnumbering the Neapolitans. With his original route now blocked, Murat was forced eastwards to
Ferrara. On the 8 April, Murat made an attempt to cross the Po into Austria with the bulk of his army at the town of
Occhiobello
Occhiobello ( Ferrarese: ''Ug’bèl'') is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Rovigo in the Italian region Veneto, located about southwest of Venice and about southwest of Rovigo.
Twin towns
* Mennecy
Mennecy () is a commune in ...
, just a few miles northwest of Ferrara.
Battle
Murat chose Occhiobello as a crossing point because the bridge was only lightly defended by a small force of Austrians under the command of . However, the majority of the Neapolitan artillery had been diverted to the
Siege of Ferrara along with a significant portion of Murat's army, where the Austrian garrison was frustrating the Neapolitans. Nevertheless, Murat was still able to move on Occhiobello with around 25,000 infantry and cavalry.
Meanwhile, although the Austrians had spread their forces along their border, they had concentrated their guns at favourable positions around the bridges over the Po. When on 8 April, Murat finally launched his first attempt to cross the bridge at Occhiobello, a dogged defensive action by Mohr's outnumbered infantry combined with a devastating artillery barrage, threw the Neapolitan attack back in disarray. After successive charges, including one by an entire dragoon regiment, were repulsed by the Austrians, the Neapolitan morale slowly disintegrated and the assault petered out.
The following day, Murat again attempted to force a crossing but by now Frimont had reinforced Mohr's force to around 10,000 men. On the other hand, the Neapolitan force had dwindled due to large numbers of the less enthusiastic officers and men deserting Murat's cause altogether. By the end of the second day, Murat was compelled to fall back from Occhiobello and establish a new defensive position in preparation of the inevitable Austrian counterattack. To make matters worse, news had reached Italy that the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
had declared war on Murat and were sending a fleet of gunboats to the
Adriatic Sea
The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...
.
Aftermath
The Neapolitans had sustained over 2,000 casualties during the two days of fighting with thousands more deserting. The Austrians had sustained only 400 casualties and had established a bridgehead around Occhiobello from where they would able to launch attacks against
Carpi and
Casaglia. With the morale of Neapolitan army broken and the partisans in Lombardy unable to join his cause, Murat would eventually be forced to retire back to his original headquarters in
Ancona
Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...
by late April.
References
* Capt. Batty
''An Historical Sketch of the Campaign of 1815'' London (1820)
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Occhiobello
Conflicts in 1815
Battles of the Neapolitan War
Battles involving Austria
Battles involving the Kingdom of Naples
1815 in Italy
1815 in the Austrian Empire
April 1815 events
Joachim Murat