The siege of Padua was a major engagement early in the

War of the League of Cambrai The War of the League of Cambrai, sometimes known as the War of the Holy League and several other names, was fought from February 1508 to December 1516 as part of the Italian Wars of 1494–1559. The main participants of the war, who fough ...

. Imperial forces had captured the Venetian city of

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

in June 1509. On 17 July, Venetian forces commanded by

Andrea Gritti Andrea Gritti (17 April 1455 – 28 December 1538) was the Doge of the Venetian Republic from 1523 to 1538, following a distinguished diplomatic and military career. He started out as a successful merchant in Constantinople and transitioned into t ...

marched quickly from

Treviso Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and ''comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 84,669 inhabitants (as of September 2017). Some 3,000 live within the Veneti ...

with a contingent of stradioti and retook the city, which had been garrisoned by some

landsknechts The (singular: , ), also rendered as Landsknechts or Lansquenets, were Germanic mercenaries used in pike and shot formations during the early modern period. Consisting predominantly of pikemen and supporting foot soldiers, their front line wa ...

hired by Emperor Maximilian I. In response, the emperor raised an army, composed mainly of mercenaries, and decided to invade the

Veneto Veneto (, ; vec, Vèneto ) or Venetia is one of the 20 regions of Italy. Its population is about five million, ranking fourth in Italy. The region's capital is Venice while the biggest city is Verona. Veneto was part of the Roman Empire unt ...

in an attempt to reclaim it. In early August 1509, Maximilian set out from

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th centu ...

with some 35,000 men and headed south into Venetian territory; there he was joined by French and

Papal The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

contingents. Due to a lack of horses, and generally poor organization, the army did not reach Padua until mid-September, which allowed the Venetian commander

Niccolò di Pitigliano Niccolò di Pitigliano (1442–1510) was an Italian condottiero best known as the Captain-General of the Venetians during the Most Serene Republic's war against the League of Cambrai. He was a member of the powerful feudal family of the Orsini, ...

to concentrate what remained of Venice's army after Agnadello, as well as several companies of volunteers from

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, in the city. The siege began on 15 September. For two weeks, Imperial and French artillery bombarded the city, successfully breaching the walls; but the attacking troops were driven back by determined Venetian resistance when they attempted to enter. An assault by 7,500

Landsknechts The (singular: , ), also rendered as Landsknechts or Lansquenets, were Germanic mercenaries used in pike and shot formations during the early modern period. Consisting predominantly of pikemen and supporting foot soldiers, their front line wa ...

in the Codalunga sector of the walls (the one that was most bombarded during the siege) was repulsed by mercenary commander Citolo da

Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part o ...

, whose mines killed 300 attackers and injured 400 others. By 30 September, Maximilian, unable to pay his mercenaries, lifted the siege; leaving a small detachment in Italy under the Duke of

Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

, he withdrew to

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

with the main part of his army. The defeat was a major loss of face for Maximilian, and the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

would not attempt another invasion of Italy until 1516.

References

* Norwich, John Julius. ''A History of Venice''. New York: Vintage Books, 1989. . * Taylor, Frederick Lewis. ''The Art of War in Italy, 1494-1529''. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1973. . {{DEFAULTSORT:Padua (1509), Siege of

Siege of Padua The siege of Padua was a major engagement early in the War of the League of Cambrai. Imperial forces had captured the Venetian city of Padua in June 1509. On 17 July, Venetian forces commanded by Andrea Gritti marched quickly from Treviso wit ...

Battles of the War of the League of Cambrai Sieges involving the Holy Roman Empire Sieges involving France Sieges involving the Papal States Sieges involving the Republic of Venice

History of Padua Sieges of the Italian Wars