Battle of Marengo
On 14 June 1800, Napoleon's Army of Reserve crossed the Alps through the Great St Bernard Pass and descended into Piedmont to threaten the Austrian army's communications. General Melas, commanding some 31,000 Austrians against Napoleon's 28,000, attacked first at Marengo on the Bormida plain. By early afternoon the French were retreating in disorder across nearly the entire front; Melas, believing victory complete, handed command to a subordinate and retired to Alessandria. The battle was rescued by General Louis Desaix, who had been detached with a division to cover a road to Genoa. Hearing the distant cannon, Desaix turned his column and arrived on the battlefield at around 5 p.m. — famously remarking 'this battle is lost, but there is time to win another.' His attack, supported by General Kellermann's cavalry charge that broke the Austrian right, transformed the retreating French into a counter-attack that shattered the Austrians, who had already begun to celebrate. Desaix was killed leading the charge. Marengo secured French dominance of northern Italy, forced Austria to the armistice and subsequently the Treaty of Lunéville (1801), and consolidated Napoleon's grip on France as First Consul — but the victory that sealed his political position had nearly been a catastrophic defeat.
- Year: 1800 CE
- Category: Military
