Anton Ferdinand Mittrowsky Anton Ferdinand Count Mittrowsky von Mittrowitz und Nemyšl , or Anton Mittrovsky , ( 1745 - 30 September 1809 ) served in the Austrian army for many years . He was promoted to general officer in the spring of 1796 , just in time to lead a brigade against Napoleon Bonaparte during the 1796 - 1797 Italian Campaign of the French Revolutionary Wars . He played a pivotal role in the Battle of Arcole , nearly defeating Bonaparte . He fought in Italy again in 1805 during the Napoleonic Wars and became the Proprietor ( Inhaber ) of an Austrian infantry regiment from 1806 until his death three years later . War of the First Coalition . Born into a military family around 1745 , Mittrowsky joined the Habsburg army and , much later in his career , served as Oberst ( colonel ) of the " Callenberg " Infantry Regiment # 54 . He received his promotion to the rank of General - Major on 30 April 1796 . During the first relief of the Siege of Mantua , he led a brigade in Paul Davidovich ' s III Column . Detached from his parent column , he occupied the Chiusa fort and scouted toward Verona . At the Battle of Castiglione on 5 August , he defended the right flank against André Masséna ' s attacks . During the third relief of Mantua , Mittrowsky ' s 3 , 000 - man brigade held the upper Brenta River valley as a link between the Tyrol Corps and the Friaul Corps . After Jozsef Alvinczi reached the Brenta with the Friaul Corps , Mittrowsky joined it and participated in the Second Battle of Bassano on 6 November 1796 . When Bonaparte suddenly crossed the Adige River on the morning of 15 November , Mittrowsky lay nearby with three battalions . He played a prominent role during all three days of the Battle of Arcole . By early afternoon on the first day , his troops reinforced the village of Arcole . By virtue of seniority , Mittrowsky assumed command over the soldiers of Colonel Wenzel Brigido as well as his own . His troops stubbornly held the village all day , but the French forced his troops out of Arcole late that evening . He reoccupied the place when Bonaparte withdrew the isolated French force . On the second day , Alvinczi entrusted him with 14 battalions and gave him instructions to drive the French into the Adige . The order proved impossible to carry out because the French were too numerous , but Mittrowsky ' s capable defense of Arcole on the 16th kept Bonaparte ' s troops at bay . On 17 November he came close to defeating Bonaparte . The French finally drove the Austrians from the village at 5 pm on the third day , but only after drawing troops from the other wing of their army . Mittrowsky missed the Battle of Rivoli in January 1797 , being employed in guarding the Brenta valley with a 3 , 500 - man brigade . Later career . The outbreak of the War of the Second Coalition found Mittrowsky serving in the army of Italy under Pál Kray . He fought at the drawn Battle of Verona on 26 March 1799 . A little over a week later , he led a brigade in Karl Mercandin ' s column at the Battle of Magnano . During the Battle of Novi in August 1799 , his brigade fought with the left wing under the overall supervision of Michael von Melas . Mittrowsky was elevated in rank to Feldmarschall - Leutnant in October 1799 . Mittrowsky led a division in the army of Archduke Charles at the Battle of Caldiero in late October 1805 . During the period 1806 - 1809 , he was deputy to the commanding general in Upper and Lower Austria and Salzburg . Emperor Francis II appointed him proprietor of the " Anton Mittrowsky " Infantry Regiment # 10 in 1806 . ( A relative , Joseph Anton Franz Mittrowsky was proprietor of Infantry Regiment # 40 from 1786 to 1808 . ) Anton Mittrowsky remained proprietor through the War of the Fifth Coalition until his death in Vienna on 30 September 1809 .