The Sun.
London, England, 1859-07-02 00:00:00

of our losses, but they must be near 5,000 between
killed and wounded."

The King of Sardinia has issued the following
order of the day to his troops :
Soldiers !—in the space of two months of war-
fare you have had an uninterrupted course of vic-
tory from the Sesia and the Po to the banks of the
Garda and the Mincio. In that glorious itinerary
which you have performed in company with our gene-
rous and powerful ally, you have everywhere given
the most brilliant proofs of discipline and heroism.
The nation is proud of you; all Italy, which sees
with pride her best sons in your ranks, applauds
your bravery and your exploits, which inspire her
with joyous hopes and confidence in her future des-
tinies. To-day a new and great victory has been
gained. You have again shed your blood,
triumphing over a numerous enemy protected by
the strongest positions. On the ndw celebrated
day of Solferino and San Martino, you, fighting
from break of day until night, and headed by your
intrepid chiefs, repelled the repeated assaults of
the enemy, and forced them to mcross the Mincio,
leaving in your hands and on the field of battle,
men, arms, and cannon. On their side, the French
efforts have been crowned with equal success and
an equal glory, furnishing proof of that incompar-
able valour which, for ages past, has elicited the
admiration of the whole world. The victory has
cost serious sacrifices ; but by that noble blood un-
sparingly spilt for the most sacredof causes, Europe
will learn that Italy is worthy of taking her place
among nations. Soldiers ! in former battles I have
often had occasion to mention the names of many
among you in the order of the day ; this time I put
the whole army on the order of the day.
" From my head-quarters at Rivoltella, June 25,
1859. " VICTOR EMMANUEL."

(From a Special Correspondent of the Times)
AUSTRIAN HEAD-QUARTERS,
VERONA, JUNE 25.

A great battle was fought yesterday, as I ex-
pected, on the plain of Medole and the heights of
Solferino and Cavriana. On the side of the Aus-
trians seven army corps, or about 140,000 men,
were engaged. The battle lasted from 6 in the
morning till 7 o'clock in the evening. The Austrians
have retired behind the line of the Mincio.

I was present during the whole of the action, and
from a commanding position in front of the village
of Cavriana witnessed the greater part of it. My
narrative is founded on what I saw and what I have
since gathered from competent authorities, and al-
though it is impossible to obtain as perfect an out-
line as I should wish, yet I believe that my relation
will be in the main tolerably correct.

On the 23d the Austrians moved their whole
army from the direction of Mantua, Verona, and
Peschicra, and on the evening of that day it was
concentrated in the following positions :
Of the Ist army, under IVimpffen, the 3d and 9th
corps, commanded severally by Prince Edmond
Schwarzenberg and Gen. Schaffgotsch, bivouacked
in the village of Guiddizzolo, and in the plain be-
tween it and Volta; the 2d corps, under Prince
Edward Lichstentein, in their rear ; the 10th,
under General Wernhardt, and 11th, still further
behind in the direction of Gbito.

Of the 2d army, under Count Schlick, the Bth corps,
under Benedek, formed the extreme right of the
Austrian line, resting on Pozzolengo. The sth corps,
under Count Stadion, occupied the village of Sol-
ferino. The Ist corps, under Count Clam, held
Cm-Harm, while the 7th corps, under Zobel, bi-
vouacked on the road from San Cassiano to Volta.

The French head-quarters were at Castiglione
delle Stiviere ; large divisions, as it appeared to me,
lying on the road to San Vigilio and Medole, as
well as on that which leads to Solferino.

You will perceive by reference to a map that the
Austrian position formed a curve, the general di-
rection of which was from north to south ; that Sol-
ferino was the protruding part of the curve, and the
centre of the movements of the day. It was a. position
the upper, or northernmost, portion of which was
high and commanding, resting, as it does, on the
hills overhanging the Mincio, while the lower; or
more southern half, was on the great plain stretch-
ing from the heights of Castiglione southwards to
an immense distance. The position of the Allies
was similarly divided, their right being in the plain
between Medole and Castiglione, and their left on
the long spurs which stretch out all the way from
Lonato to Solferino. At the latter point, however,
the chain is cut at right angles by a valley, so that
Solferino stands out at the head of a triangle of hills
of which the sides trend south-west towards Volta,
north-west towards Pozzolengo. On the summit
of the pit stands the old square tower of Solferino,
" the traitor" or " spy" of Italy, because from its
battlements the country for miles is visible. The
hill on which the tower stands is, however, com-
manded by higher ground on the opposite side of
the vale. To the south and east of Solferino, and
separated from it by a vale of slight depth, is the
village of Cavriana, covered with stone houses and
old ruins, while a little to the south and west, in
the plain, lies San Cassiano. An excellent road
runs through Solferino to Castiglione, another
equally good from Castiglione to Guiddizzolo. The
highway from Solferino to Cavriana is through San
Cassiano, but there is a second road, over the hills,
in perfect order and repair. The plain between
Guiddizzolo, Medole, San Cassiano, and Castiglione,'
generally called in military maps Campo di Medole,
is completely flat, interspersed with trees, but ad-
mirably fitted for the evolutions of the celebrated
Austria cavalry. It is cut in the centre by a• road
almost due east and west, intersecting at right
angles that which runs between Guiddizzolo and
Castiglione.

The Austrians, having occupied the positions I
have mentioned, resolved to take the offensive at 9
o'clock on the morning of the 24th, but they were
forestalled by the Allies, who began the attack at
6 in the morning along the whole line from the
front of Pozzolengo to Medole.
The action had therefore commenced at the very
moment when the Emperor with his Staff, accom-
panied by the Archdukes, the Grand Dukes of Tus-
cany and Modena, took their departures from Valeg-
gio. The road by which we proceeded was a mere
cart-track leading direct from Borghetto or Cavri-
ana. It lay through the hills, and ran mostly over
a rough and stony ground, in which grew sparse
crops of maize and rye divided by rows of plane or
mulberry trees. As we advanced, leaving Volta to
our left, we could hear distinctly the roar of the
guns on the battle-field, from which we were only
separated by the heights of Cavriana. By half-past
7 o'clock we entered the stony streets of the village,
where already the first batches of wounded men
were under the care of the medical department. A
large field hospital had been formed in a spacious
house near the gates, from which the Staff had just
emerged. , Without delay we passed these melan-
choly accompaniments of every battle-field, and,
trotting through the streets, halted just outside the
village, and, leaving our horses to the orderlies,
proceeded, to some high ground on the western face
of the hills, where one of the grandest sights I have
ever witnessed lay open to view. Looking to the
north, the tower of Solferino stood out in the boldest
relief, overlooking the vale in front of it and the
hills on the opposite side, where a battery of French
artillery stood in position shelling the Austrians in
advance of the tower. In rear of the battery
columns of infantry were advancing in sections to
the front, while in the vale itself we could hear the
rattle of musketry. The air was filled with French
shells thrown to a great elevation, and exploding
as they descended. Not only was the action engaged
in front of Solferino, but to its left in San Cassiano,
and to its right along the ridges in the direction of
Pozzolengo. Looking to the west we could see the
plain stretching to the horizon covered with low
trees, from the midst of which rose the roofs and
steeples of countless villages. Strong bodies of troops
were moving in the open, and already the smoke of
the batteries in the hostile positions, and the dust
raised by the advance of tens of the asands of men,
were spreading a baleful cloud over the combatants.
In the level ground just outside Guiddizzolo stood an
Austrian battery facing towards Castiglione and ex-
changing shots with a crescent of French batteries,
presenting its two horns to the Austrian front, and
placing the latter consequently under a cross fire.
A large body of Austrian cavalry was manoeuvring
in the right front of its own battery, and diverting