Battle of Novi (1799)

Battle of Novi (1799)
	Part of the Italian campaigns in the War of the Second Coalition
	; Battle of Novi, by Alexander Kotzebue
Date	15 August 1799
Location	Novi Ligure, Piedmont, Italy44°45′42″N 8°47′26″E / 44.76167°N 8.79056°E
Result	Coalition victory
Belligerents
Russian Empire; Habsburg monarchy	French Republic • Polish Legion; • Lombard Legion;
Commanders and leaders
Alexander Suvorov; Wilhelm Derfelden; Pyotr Bagration; Mikhail Miloradovich; Ivan Förster; Paul Kray; Michael von Melas; Peter Ott; Heinrich von Bellegarde; Michael von Fröhlich; Anton Mittrowsky; Alexander von Seckendorff; Johann Nobili	Barthélemy Joubert †; Jean Moreau; Dominique de Pérignon (POW); Emmanuel de Grouchy (POW); Louis Lemoine; Laurent de Gouvion Saint-Cyr; Gaspard Gardanne; François Watrin; Pierre de Laboissière; Jan Dąbrowski
Units involved
See Allied Army	See French Army
Strength
50,000 to 51,547 ≤35,995; ≤15,552; ;	34,930 to 40,000
Casualties and losses
8,000–9,000; …other calculations; Details: 7,000 dead, wounded;; 2,000 prisoners, missings.; ; 3 guns	9,663–12,000; …other calculations; Details: 7,000 dead, wounded;; 4,000 prisoners, missings.; ; 37 guns; 4 standards
	class=notpageimage\| Location within Europe

War of the Second Coalition:
Italy

50km
30miles

Marengo

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Verona

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current battle

Napoleon in command

Napoleon not in command

The Battle of Novi^[h] (15 August 1799^[i]) saw a combined army of the Habsburg monarchy and Imperial Russians under Field Marshal Alexander Suvorov attack a Republican French army under General Barthélemy Catherine Joubert. As soon as Joubert fell during the battle, Jean Victor Marie Moreau immediately took overall command of the French forces. After a prolonged and bloody struggle, the Austro-Russians broke through the French defenses and drove their enemies into a disorderly retreat, while French division commanders Catherine-Dominique de Pérignon and Emmanuel Grouchy were captured. Novi Ligure is in the province of Piedmont in Northern Italy a distance of 58 kilometres (36 mi) north of Genoa. The battle occurred during the War of the Second Coalition which was part of the French Revolutionary Wars.^[20]

Novi was a strong defensive position situated on steep heights. An old fortress wall from the 15th century surrounded the city. This medieval wall served as a good defense for the French chasseurs. It was damaged in many places, there were breaks, but the French had barricaded all these breaches.^{[citation needed]}

In 1799, Russian and Austrian forces swept across the Po River valley, recapturing lands taken by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1796. The French troops in Italy were badly defeated at the major battles of Magnano, Cassano and the Trebbia. Subsequently, French and Cisalpine Italian troops retreated into Genoa and the Ligurian Republic. A new French government placed Joubert in command of the reformed Army of Italy and ordered him to take the offensive. Accordingly, the French army moved north across the mountain crests and assembled on high ground at Novi Ligure on 14 August. To Joubert's dismay, it was clear that large Coalition forces were nearby. The next morning Paul Kray's Austrian corps assaulted the French left flank and the battle was on. After a delay, Suvorov committed a Russian corps to attack the center and Michael von Melas' Austrian corps to attack the French right flank. Kray's troops suffered heavy losses but by evening the French army was badly beaten and the French hold on the Italian Riviera was gravely weakened. Cavalry proved ineffective in such terrain and was hardly used by either the Allied or French sides. The Russo-Austrians deployed it en masse only to pursue. However, the Coalition planners proceeded to throw away their advantage by sending Suvorov's Russians to Switzerland, a change of strategy that ended badly.

Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).

^ ^a ^b Duffy (1999), pp. 137, 138
^ ^a ^b Orlov 1892, p. 303.
^ ^a ^b See maps
^ Orlov 1892, p. 280.
^ ^a ^b Griffith 1998, p. 200.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Cite error: The named reference Rothenberg was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Orlov 1892, p. 270.
^ Orlov 1892, pp. 267, 280.
^ ^a ^b Chandler (1979), p. 318
^ ^a ^b Eggenberger 1985, p. 314.
^ ^a ^b Arsenyev & Petrushevsky 1897, p. 252.
^ ^a ^b Orlov 1892, p. 301.
^ ^a ^b Egorshina & Petrova 2023, p. 144.
^ Duffy (1999), pp. 148–149
^ ^a ^b ^c Clodfelter 2017, p. 109.
^ ^a ^b Tucker 2009, p. 1008.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Bodart 1908, p. 340.
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference Smith163a was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ Velichko et al. 1914, p. 24.
^ Griffith, Paddy (1998). The Art of War of Revolutionary France, 1789–1802. Greenhill Books. p. 200. ISBN 1-85367-335-8.

[Duffy137-138-2] Duffy (1999), pp. 137, 138

[FOOTNOTEOrlov1892303-4] Orlov 1892, p. 303.

[Maps-5] See maps

[FOOTNOTEOrlov1892280-6] Orlov 1892, p. 280.

[FOOTNOTEGriffith1998200-7] Griffith 1998, p. 200.

[Rothenberg-8] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f Cite error: The named reference Rothenberg was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[FOOTNOTEOrlov1892270-9] Orlov 1892, p. 270.

[FOOTNOTEOrlov1892267,_280-12] Orlov 1892, pp. 267, 280.

[Chandler318-14] Chandler (1979), p. 318

[FOOTNOTEEggenberger1985314-15] Eggenberger 1985, p. 314.

[FOOTNOTEArsenyevPetrushevsky1897252-16] Arsenyev & Petrushevsky 1897, p. 252.

[FOOTNOTEOrlov1892301-17] Orlov 1892, p. 301.

[FOOTNOTEEgorshinaPetrova2023144-18] Egorshina & Petrova 2023, p. 144.

[19] Duffy (1999), pp. 148–149

[FOOTNOTEClodfelter2017109-20] Clodfelter 2017, p. 109.

[FOOTNOTETucker20091008-21] Tucker 2009, p. 1008.

[FOOTNOTEBodart1908340-22] Bodart 1908, p. 340.

[Smith163a-24] Cite error: The named reference Smith163a was invoked but never defined (see the help page).

[FOOTNOTEVelichkoNovitskySchwarzApushkin191424-26] Velichko et al. 1914, p. 24.

[29] Griffith, Paddy (1998). The Art of War of Revolutionary France, 1789–1802. Greenhill Books. p. 200. ISBN 1-85367-335-8.

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