At the Battle of Magnano on 5 April 1799, Pijon commanded 1,900 men of the 56th Line and 253 troopers of the 18th Cavalry Regiment in Victor's division. According to army commander Barthélemy Louis Joseph Schérer's plan, the divisions of Victor and Paul Grenier were to advance at dawn on the right flank. They got a late start and soon encountered Karl Mercandin's Austrian division about 11:00 AM. After a struggle, they overcame their opponents and killed Mercandin. However, the Austrian army commander Pál Kray launched a powerful counterattack which broke Victor's division and forced Grenier to retreat. During the confused French withdrawal, the Austrians got across Pijon's line of retreat near Villafontana. Pijon ordered a bayonet attack to break out of the trap, but it was repulsed. At this, the cohesion of the 56th Line collapsed and the regiment disintegrated. Some officers who tried to rally the demoralized soldiers were shot down by their own men. In the confusion, Pijon was fatally wounded, possibly by friendly fire. Most of the 56th Line's soldiers were soon rounded up and captured.