It was at Castiglione and in its vicinity that the wonderful spirit and
rapidity of Napoleon’s movements were more fully displayed than at any
other of his scenes of victory in Italy. The aged Beaulieu had been
superseded in the command of the Austrian army, by General Wurmser, a
commander of high reputation. His army was greatly superior in numbers
to that of Bonaparte. It descended from the Tyrol during the last days
of July, in three divisions, commanded by Davidowich, Quasdanowitch, and
Wurmser himself.
Wurmser, confident in his numbers, and calculating upon the absorption
of the energies of the French army, by its endeavors to subdue Mantua,
disposed his forces in the most admirable way to improve a victory;
never reflecting that he might happen to be defeated. Untaught by all
the previous disasters of Beaulieu, he committed the error of dividing
his army, in order to cover an extent of country. His right wing was
detached, with orders to occupy Brescia, and cut off the retreat of the
French in the direction of Milan: his left wing was to descend the
Adige, and manœuvre on Verona; while the centre, under his own
command, advanced to raise the siege of Mantua. During the two first
days of his approach, the French generals, after resisting to the
utmost, yielded up successively, Rivoli, Brescia, and Salo; but these
two days were sufficient to make Napoleon master of the plan on which
Wurmser proposed to carry on the campaign, and he instantly disconcerted
the whole of it, by a movement so unlike that of any ordinary general,
as to defy all calculation.
In one night, (31st July,) he raised the siege of Mantua; sacrificing
the whole of his artillery. The men were employed to destroy as much as
the time would allow. They spiked the guns, burnt the carriages, threw
the powder into the lake, and buried the balls. Augereau and Massena
were stationed to defend the line of the Mincio as long as possible.
Before morning the whole French army had disappeared from Mantua, and
Napoleon was hurrying forward to attack the right wing of the Austrian
army, before it could effect a junction with the central body of
Wurmser.
The Austrian right wing was advancing in three divisions. Napoleon
defeated one division at Salo, and another at Lonato. At the same time,
Augereau and Massena, leaving a sufficient number of men at their posts
to maintain a defence, or at least to impede the enemy, marched upon the
third division at Brescia; but it had already fled in disorder towards
the Tyrol. The French generals instantly countermarched to the support
of their rear-guards, which had been forced by the Austrians.
Wurmser reached Mantua and was astonished to find what he believed to be
a precipitate flight. He entered the city in triumph—but he was
completely deceived. (August 2nd.)
Bonaparte did not halt for a moment. His troops had been constantly on
the march, he had himself been all the time on horseback; he resolved to
make them fight the very next morning. He had before him Bayalitsch at
Lonato, and Liptai at Castiglione, presenting to both of them a front of
twenty-five thousand men. He had to attack them before Wurmser should
return from Mantua. Sauret had for the second time abandoned Salo;
Bonaparte sent Guyeux again thither to recover the position, and to keep
back Quasdanowitch. After these precautions on his left and on his rear,
he resolved to march forward to Lonato with Massena, and to throw
Augereau upon the heights of Castiglione, which had been abandoned on
the preceding day by General Vallette. He broke that general at the head
of his army, in order to make his lieutenants do their duty without
flinching. On the following day, the 16th (August 3rd,) the whole army
was in motion; Guyeux re-entered Salo, and this rendered any
communication between Quasandowitch and the Austrian army still more
impracticable. Bonaparte advanced upon Lonato; but his advanced guard
was beaten back, some pieces of cannon were taken, and General Pigeon
was made prisoner. Bayalitsch, proud of this success advanced with
confidence, and extended his wings around the French division. He had
two objects in performing this manœuvre; in the first place, to
surround Bonaparte, and in the second, to extend himself on the right
for the purpose of entering into communication with Quasandowitch, whose
cannon he heard at Salo. Bonaparte, not alarming himself about his rear,
suffered himself to be surrounded with imperturbable coolness; he placed
some sharp-shooters on his exposed wings, and next took the 18th and 32d
demi-brigades of infantry, ranged them in close column, gave them a
regiment of dragoons to support them, and rushed headlong upon the
enemy’s centre, which was weakened by its extension. With this brave
body of infantry he overthrew all before him, and thus broke the line of
the Austrians. The latter, divided into two bodies, immediately lost
their courage: one part of the division of Bayalitsch fell back in all
haste towards the Mincio; but the other, which had extended itself in
order to communicate with Quasandowitch, was driven towards Salo, where
Guyeux was at that moment. Bonaparte caused it to be pursued without
intermission, that he might place it between two fires. He let loose
Junot in pursuit of it, with a regiment of cavalry. Junot dashed off at
a gallop, killed six horsemen with his own hand, and fell, having
received several sabre wounds. The fugitive division, entrapped between
the corps at Salo and that which was pursuing it from Lonato, was
routed, and lost at every step thousands of prisoners. During this
successful pursuit, Bonaparte proceeded on his right to Castiglione,
where Augereau had been fighting ever since the morning with admirable
bravery. The heights on which Liptai’s division had placed itself had
now to be carried. After an obstinate combat, several times renewed, he
had at length accomplished his object, and Bonaparte on his arrival
found the enemy retreating on all sides. Such was the battle called the
battle of Lonato, fought on the 16th (August 3rd.)
This battle produced considerable results. The French had taken twenty
pieces of cannon and three thousand prisoners from the division cut off
and driven back upon Salo, and they were still pursuing its scattered
remnant in the mountains. They had made a thousand or fifteen hundred
prisoners at Castiglione, and killed or wounded three thousand men; they
had alarmed Quasandowitch, who finding the French army at Salo, and
hearing it in the distance at Lonato, thought that it was every where.
They had thus nearly disorganized the divisions of Bayalitsch and
Liptai, which fell back upon Wurmser. That general at this moment came
up with fifteen thousand men to rally the two beaten divisions, and
began to draw out his lines in the plains of Castiglione.
Bonaparte now determined upon fighting a decisive battle upon the ground
which the Austrian general had chosen, but as it was necessary to
collect all his disposable force at Castiglione, he deferred the action
until the 5th.
It was the night of the 4th of August. The weather had been excessively
warm for several days, and the troops were almost exhausted by their
rapid marches under a burning sun. The hostile armies were encamped
close in front of each other, vertically from the line of the heights on
which both supported one wing, Bonaparte having his left thereon, and
Wurmser his right. A series of heights formed by the last range of the
Alps extends from Chiessa to the Mincio, by Lonato, Castiglione and
Solferino. At the foot of these heights was the plains on which the
great battle was to be fought. Bonaparte had at most twenty-two thousand
men, Serrurier’s division not having come up yet; and, indeed, it had
been ordered to make an effort to gain the rear of the Austrians.
Wurmser had thirty thousand men under his command, and the wing of his
army which was on the plain was supported by a redoubt placed upon the
elevation of Medolano. It was a clear, warm night. The stars were
thickly sprinkled in the arching heaven, but there was no moon, and the
position of each army could only be clearly distinguished by the light
of the lines of watch-fires, stretching away from the foot of the
heights. In the rear of the Austrians, the low wall, and tower of the
old town of Castiglione could be distinguished, forming a looming and
shadowy background to a striking and imposing picture.
Around one of the fires in the vicinity of the tent of the
commander-in-chief, was sitting a group of officers, among whom
Bessieres, Duroc, and Augereau were the only men of renown. All ears
were opened listening to Bessieres, who was giving an account of
Bonaparte’s wonderful exploit that day, in escaping from a surprise at
Lonato. He told the story as follows:
“You know that this morning, our commander-in-chief set off for Lonato
at full gallop, to personally hasten the movements of the troops. He was
accompanied only by his staff and the Guides under my command. We
arrived at Lonato about noon. We found that the orders of the general
were already carried out; part of the troops were marching upon
Castiglione, and the rest were proceeding towards Salo and Gavardo.
About a thousand men remained at Lonato. Scarcely had the general
entered the place, when an Austrian flag of truce presented itself, and
the bearer summoned him to surrender. The general started at the
summons. He could not understand how it was possible that the Austrians
could be so close upon him. But the case was soon explained. The
division separated in the battle of Lonato, and driven back upon Salo,
had been partly captured; but a body of about four thousand five hundred
men had been wandering all night in the mountains; and seeing the town
almost abandoned, wanted to enter the place, in order to open for itself
an outlet upon the Mincio. General Bonaparte had no time to fight a
battle, or perhaps he would have done it, even with his force of one
thousand men. His plan was formed with his usual quickness and decision.
He ordered all the officers about him to mount their horses, and then,
the bearer of the flag to be brought before him, with his eyes
uncovered; for, as usual on such occasions, the officer was blindfolded.
You should have seen the Austrian’s astonishment when he found himself
in the presence of our general and his staff. ‘Unhappy man!’ said
General Bonaparte, ‘you know not then that you are in the presence of
the commander-in-chief, and that he is here with his whole army. Go tell
those who sent you, that I give them five minutes to surrender, or I
will put them to the sword to punish the insult which they have dared to
offer me.’ The astonished bearer of the flag returned with this message
to his general. In the meantime, General Bonaparte prepared his small
force for action. The Austrian then asked him to propose terms of
capitulation. But our general, knowing the importance of immediate
action, replied—‘No, you must become at once prisoners of war.’ The
Austrian hesitated, but when General Bonaparte ordered his artillery and
grenadiers to advance to the attack, the enemy surrendered; and thus,
without striking a blow, four thousand infantry and five hundred cavalry
surrendered themselves prisoners of war to about one thousand Frenchmen.
We gained, besides, two pieces of artillery.”
A general laugh followed this narrative. All agreed that it was an
admirable exploit, and quite worthy of the genius of Bonaparte. At this
moment, the young commander-in-chief appeared at the door of his tent.
His horse was standing near, and he was quickly mounted. “Come,
Bessieres and Duroc,” said he in a sharp voice, “we will go over the
field.” So saying, he rode away, leaving the officers addressed to
follow him as soon as they could. They immediately left the group, which
was now joined, however, by Lannes and Berthier, who, wearied out,
sought the vacant seats to obtain a short rest.
“Who ever saw the like?” said young Lannes,—he of the tall, stout form,
stern countenance, and long, fair hair, parted in the centre. “Such
incessant activity! That slender ‘little Corporal’ would tire a host of
us. In a few days he has killed five horses with fatigue. He will not
entrust any of us with the execution of his important orders. He must
see every thing with his own eyes, inquire into every thing, and set
every body in a fever of motion by his presence. Such tremendous energy
I never knew any other person to possess. I do not believe he sleeps at
all. There he goes again, to make his final arrangements for the
battle.”
“He will wear himself out too soon, I am afraid,” said Augereau.
“But he will accomplish more in one month than many men could achieve in
years. His immortality is already established, and he is but
twenty-six,” replied Berthier.
“He will have a glorious opportunity to achieve a decisive victory
to-morrow,” said Lannes; “but I doubt whether the battle will be as long
and as desperate as that of yesterday.”
“Yesterday was indeed a day of hard fighting, for my division here, at
least,” said Augereau. “My troops were completely exhausted, when
Liptai’s division was driven from the heights. But how did Junot get cut
up in such a way?”
“I’ll tell you,” replied Berthier. “When the Austrian line was broken by
the charge of our infantry, one division was driven towards Salo, where
Guyeux was posted. General Bonaparte caused it to be pursued, in order
to place it between two fires, and General Junot was let loose, with a
regiment of cavalry. Junot set off at full speed. He encountered Colonel
Bender with a party of his regiment of hussars, whom he charged, with
his wonted bravery. But not wishing to waste his time by attacking the
rear, Junot made a detour to the right, charged the regiment in front,
wounded Colonel Bender and attempted to take him prisoner, when he
suddenly found himself surrounded. Of course, he fought like a hero, as
he is, and it is said that he killed six of the enemy with his own hand,
before he was cut down, and thrown into a ditch. I suppose he will be
disabled for some time, which is a real misfortune to the army, as Junot
is one of the bravest and most active officers now under General
Bonaparte’s command.”
“Yes,” said the generous Lannes, “we shall miss him. He was promoted
from the ranks on account of his cool bravery, and he certainly has done
honor to the judgment of our general, who first noticed his merit at the
siege of Toulon.”
“Still,” said Augereau, “brave men are not scarce in the army of Italy.
We shall conquer without Junot, I have no doubt.”
Thus the group continued to converse, until General Bonaparte came up,
with Massena and others, and invited them to his tent to receive their
final instructions. The quick movements, and rapid, concise speech of
the young conqueror indicated the unwearied activity of his mind. He had
undergone tremendous exertion, but no trace of it appeared in his
bearing. The restless fire of his eye was undimmed; his mind labored as
vigorously and with as much precision as if he had been enjoying repose
for several days; and the commander of the Guides reported that the
general slept but an hour that night.
At the first peep of day, the two armies were in motion. Wurmser,
impatient to attack, moved his right along the heights; Bonaparte, to
favor this movement, drew back his left, formed by Massena’s division;
he kept his centre immovable in the plain. He soon heard Serrurier’s
fire. Then, while he continued to draw back his left, and Wurmser to
draw out his right, he ordered the redoubt of Medolano to be attacked.
At first, he directed twenty pieces of light artillery upon that
redoubt, and after briskly cannonading it, he detached General Verdier,
with three battalions, to storm it. That brave general advanced,
supported by a regiment of cavalry, and took the redoubt. The left flank
of the Austrians was thus exposed at the very moment when Serrurier,
arriving at Cauriana, excited alarm upon their rear. Wurmser immediately
moved part of his second line upon his right, now deprived of support,
and placed it _en potence_ to front the French, who were debouching from
Medolano. He took the remainder of his second line to the rear, to
protect Cauriana, and thus continued to make head against the enemy. But
Bonaparte, seizing the opportunity with his accustomed promptness,
immediately ceased to avoid engaging his left and his centre, and gave
Massena and Augereau the signal which they were impatiently awaiting.
Massena with the left, Augereau with the centre, rushed upon the
weakened line of the Austrians, and charged it with impetuosity.
Attacked so briskly on its entire front, and threatened on its left and
its rear, it began to give ground. The ardour of the French increased.
Wurmser seeing his army jeopardized then gave the signal for retreat. He
was pursued, and some prisoners were taken. To put him completely to the
rout, it would have been necessary to make much more haste, and to push
him while in disorder upon the Mincio. But for six days the troops had
been constantly marching and fighting; they were unable to advance
further, and slept on the field of battle. Wurmser had on that day lost
no more than two thousand men, but he had nevertheless lost Italy.
That night, the first time for five days, Bonaparte enjoyed the sweets
of repose. The anxiety was at an end—Italy was his own.
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