Battle of Piave River ( 1809 ) The Battle of Piave River was fought on 8 May 1809 between the Franco - Italian army under the command of Eugène de Beauharnais and an Austrian army led by Archduke John of Austria . The Austrian commander made a stand behind the Piave River but he suffered a defeat at the hands of his numerically superior foes . The combat took place near Nervesa della Battaglia , Italy during the War of the Fifth Coalition , part of the Napoleonic Wars . The initial Austrian invasion of Venetia succeeded in driving the Franco - Italian defenders back to Verona . At the beginning of May , news of Austrian defeats in Bavaria and inferiority in numbers caused Archduke John to begin retreating to the northeast . When he heard that his enemies were crossing the Piave , the Austrian commander turned back to give battle , intending to slow Eugène ' s pursuit of his army . Eugène ordered his vanguard across the river early in the morning . It soon ran into vigorous Austrian resistance , but the arrival of French cavalry stabilized the situation by mid - morning . Rapidly rising waters hampered the buildup of French infantry reinforcements and prevented a significant portion of Eugène ' s army from crossing at all . In the late afternoon , Eugène launched his main attack which turned John ' s left flank and finally overran his main line of defense . Damaged but not destroyed , the Austrians continued their withdrawal into Carinthia ( in modern - day Austria ) and Carniola ( in modern - day Slovenia ) . Background . At the beginning of the 1809 conflict between the Austrian Empire and the First French Empire , General of Cavalry Archduke John led his Army of Inner Austria in an invasion of northeastern Italy . Emperor Napoleon I appointed his stepson Eugène to be Viceroy of Italy and commander of the Army of Italy . On 16 April , John defeated Eugène at the Battle of Sacile near the Livenza River . During this time an Austrian force led by Feldmarschall - Leutnant Johann Gabriel Chasteler de Courcelles advanced south from the Tyrol , capturing Trento on 23 April and Roveredo on 26 April . In the face of these two threats , Eugène ' s Franco - Italian army withdrew from Sacile to the Adige River . Once the Franco - Italian army arrived near Verona it gathered reinforcements . Eugène also reorganized his army , assigning Generals of Division Jacques MacDonald , Paul Grenier , and Louis Baraguey d ' Hilliers to command his infantry corps , and General of Division Emmanuel Grouchy to lead his cavalry . Baraguey d ' Hilliers halted Chasteler ' s drive in the upper Adige valley . Because Archduke John sent a division to blockade Venice , his army arrived on the Adige with only about 30 , 000 troops , much fewer than Eugène . Napoleon ' s victory in the Battle of Eckmühl and the subsequent retreat of Archduke Charles , caused Emperor Francis II to order John to fall back and defend Austria . Anticipating an Austrian withdrawal , Eugène created a Light Brigade consisting of three " voltiguer " battalions , a squadron of light cavalry , and two cannon . The " voltiguer " units were formed by taking the skirmisher companies from infantry battalions . Eugène placed this pursuit force under General of Brigade Armand Louis Debroc . Archduke John deployed his right flank behind the small Alpone River between Soave and Albaredo d ' Adige , near the old Arcole battlefield , while his left flank defended the Adige south to Legnago . In a series of clashes between 27 and 30 April , John successfully fended off Eugène ' s efforts to turn his north flank in the Battle of Caldiero . Austrian losses numbered 700 killed and wounded , plus 872 captured or missing . The French suffered about 1 , 400 casualties . On 1 May , Archduke John ordered his army to withdraw to the east . In several clashes on 2 May , the Austrian rear guard held off the French , inflicting 400 killed and wounded including Debroc wounded . Austrian losses were only 200 killed and wounded , but the French rounded up an additional 850 stragglers and sick . The Austrians paused on the Brenta River until 5 May , then continued retreating to the Piave . Eugène followed while sending the division of General of Division Pierre François Joseph Durutte along a more southerly route in order to relieve the blockade of Venice . When he reached that city , Durutte was reinforced by 4 , 000 troops from the garrison and marched to join Eugène on the Piave . The Light Brigade having proved too weak to pursue effectively , Eugène strengthened it into a Light Division by adding three additional " voltiguer " battalions , attaching an entire cavalry regiment , and boosting its artillery complement to four cannons . Replacing Debroc , the French army commander gave the Light Division to General of Brigade Joseph Marie , Count Dessaix . On 7 May , the Austrian army camped at Conegliano , northeast of the river , after burning all the bridges . Eugène ' s cavalry reached the riverbank and scouted the crossing places . The 8th Chasseurs crossed to the east bank and did some reconnoitering . Receiving notice that the French were nearby , John marched his troops back to defend the river line . Prelude . " The Piave River 1809 Order of Battle lists the units and organization of the Franco - Italian and Austrian armies in detail . " Forces . MacDonald ' s corps consisted of two French infantry divisions , those of Generals of Division Jean - Baptiste Broussier and Jean Maximilien Lamarque . Grenier ' s corps included the French infantry divisions of Durutte and General of Brigade Louis Abbé . Louis Baraguey d ' Hilliers only had General of Division Achille Fontanelli ' s Italian infantry division available . His other Franco - Italian division under General of Division Jean - Baptiste Dominique Rusca was detached . Grouchy ' s cavalry reserve included General of Division Louis Michel Antoine Sahuc ' s light cavalry division , General of Division Charles Randon de Pully ' s dragoon division , and Grouchy ' s own dragoon division which was led by General of Brigade François Guérin d ' Etoquigny . In addition to Dessaix ' s Advance Guard , Eugène held three units in reserve under his personal command . These were General of Division Jean - Barthélemot Sorbier ' s reserve artillery , General of Division Jean Mathieu Seras ' French infantry division , and General of Brigade Teodoro Lecchi ' s 2 , 500 - man Italian Guard . Feldmarschall - Leutnant Albert Gyulai ' s VIII Armeekorps was made up of the infantry brigades of Generals - Major Hieronymus Karl Graf von Colloredo - Mansfeld and Anton Gajoli . Albert ' s brother Feldmarschall - Leutnant Ignaz Gyulai commanded the larger IX Armeekorps . This formation included the infantry brigades of Generals - Major Johann Kalnássy , Franz Marziani , Alois von Gavasini , Johann Peter Kleinmayer , and Ignaz Sebottendorf . Frimont ' s Advance Guard counted only the brigade of General - Major Ignaz Splényi . John massed most of his horsemen into an ad hoc cavalry division and placed it under the command of Feldmarschall - Leutnant Christian Wolfskeel von Reichenberg with General - Major Johann Hager von Altensteig as his second in command . Anton Reisner ' s reserve artillery numbered 12 pieces in two 12 - pound position batteries . Geography . Eugène ' s cavalry found three places to ford the Piave , at Nervesa on the north flank , at Priula in the center , and at San Nichiol , near Cimadolmo on the south flank . The area between Conegliano and the Piave is flat , but just to the north of Nervesa and Conegliano the terrain becomes hilly . Most of the villages in Gunther E . Rothenberg ' s maps of the battle can be located on modern maps . However , since 1809 a few places either changed names , moved to a new location , vanished due to the river ' s action , or were destroyed in the Battle of the Piave River in 1918 . The changes are listed as follows . Susignano is now called Susegana . Santa Maria is near the Rothenberg map location of Campana . appears to have moved from its map position to a place northwest , closer to Nervesa . San Nichiol has disappeared . In 1809 a stream or canal known as the Piavisella began near Barco and ran west to east through Mandre , Santa Maria ( Campana ) , and Tezze di Piave before turning northeast . A dike ran east and west about 800 meters south of the Piavisella . Both the dike and stream played important parts in the battle . Two nearby canals known as the and lie on the south bank of the Piave , while the Piavisella of the 1809 battle is located on the north bank . Battle . Believing that the bulk of Archduke John ' s army lay at Conegliano , Eugène planned an ambitious assault crossing of the Piave . He did not realize that the Army of Inner Austria was deployed only north of the river . In fact , Albert Gyulai ' s VIII Armeekorps was ranged between Susegana and Santa Lucia di Piave , while Ignaz Gyulai had the IX Armeekorps in line between Santa Lucia and Bocca di Strada just to the east . Eugène greatly outnumbered John , who had between 24 , 120 and 28 , 000 troops at the Piave . Understanding that his defeat at Sacile was caused by poor preparation , Eugène made sure that he had most of his army assembled . He planned to feint at the Nervesa ford with Seras ' Reserve division while Dessaix ' s Light Division ( Advance Guard ) led the main attack at the Priula ford . He ordered Grouchy to cross with three divisions of cavalry at the San Nichiol crossing and swing left to help Dessaix ' s effort . To provide the Light Division sufficient fire support , Eugène massed several batteries on the south bank and placed them under the command of his artillery chief Sorbier . If Dessaix successfully carved out a bridgehead , Eugène planned to send the corps of MacDonald and Baraguey d ' Hilliers across the Piave . Grenier ' s corps waited at San Nichiol to follow Grouchy ' s cavalry . At 7 : 00 AM , Dessaix crossed the river with nearly 5 , 000 troops . By this time , Archduke John ' s army was moving up behind the Piavisella stream , much closer than Eugène realized . The archduke posted the VIII Armeekorps on the west flank with Frimont ' s infantry , while the IX Armeekorps defended the east flank . By 8 : 00 AM the Light Division was 400 meters south of the dike . Having massed virtually all his cavalry under Wolfskeel , he sent them charging at Dessaix ' s men . The French general reformed his soldiers into two large squares and repelled wave after wave of enemy horsemen . As Wolfskeel ' s disorganized troopers withdrew , a massed battery of 24 Austrian guns opened fire on the French . Deployed 800 yards from the French , these cannons were commanded by Reisner , Archduke John ' s chief of artillery . The artillery barrage soon caused serious casualties in the vulnerable French squares . As some French troops began to shrink from the heavy fire , couriers raced off to get help . Quickly , Eugène ordered twenty guns belonging to Broussier and Lamarque across the river . When the cannons arrived , the French formed their own 24 - gun battery in front of the infantry and replied to Reisner ' s bombardment . Wolfskeel asked for some infantry to be sent forward from the Piavisella line , but for some reason no help arrived . While Dessaix and Wolfskeel battled , Grouchy sent the divisions of Pully and Sahuc across the Piave at San Nichiol . The troopers encountered Kalnássy ' s IX Armeekorps brigade in the open and hustled the Austrians back to Cimadolmo and San Michele , where they took up a strong defensive position . Guérin d ' Etoquigny ' s division crossed around 9 : 00 AM , allowing the other two divisions to move to the left in support of Dessaix . By this time , the French artillery fire began to slacken . In their haste to help Dessaix , the French gunners had left their reserve ammunition behind . There are two accounts about what happened next . Having reorganized his horsemen , Wolfskeel returned to the attack around 10 : 00 AM . The Austrian cavalry trotted toward Dessaix ' s men in three lines . This time Sahuc ' s light horse and Pully ' s dragoons were waiting for them . The two French divisions countercharged , and the cavalry of both armies became embroiled in a terrific melee . A second account states that the French cavalry attacked first . Eugène sent Pully and Sahuc charging at the Austrian guns in a pincer attack . Under cover of the smoke from the two artilleries blasting away at each other , the French divisions struck Reisner ' s gun line from both flanks . While some horsemen began cutting down the gunners , the others galloped among the Austrian cavalry which was formed up behind the guns . The results of the cavalry action are not disputed . A French dragoon killed Wolfskeel in personal combat , while his second - in - command Hager became a prisoner . Leaderless and outnumbered , the Austrian horsemen broke and fled . The Austrians managed to bring away ten cannons but 14 cannons were captured by their enemies . During the struggle Reisner was wounded and captured . The French cavalry pursued the routed Austrian troopers as far as Mandra and Santa Maria ( Campana ) , where they came upon the brigades of Colloredo and Gajoli . Pully ' s troopers tried to break the Austrian infantry squares but they were unsuccessful . Unable to dent the Austrian line without support , the French horsemen fell back to the dike where they were joined by Dessaix ' s troops . Though the Piave began an alarming rise at this time , Eugène hewed to his plan of reinforcing the bridgehead . Around noon , MacDonald pushed three - quarters of Broussier ' s division and half of Lamarque ' s division across the river . While MacDonald began probing the Piavisella line , Grenier managed to get part of Abbé ' s division across the river at San Nichiol . With Eugène trying to get more troops across the Piave before it drowned the fords and Archduke John organizing his defenses , the fighting died down after 1 : 00 PM . By 3 : 00 PM Eugène had to suspend all troop crossings because of dangerous high water conditions . By this time , all his cavalry and only half his infantry reached the north bank , with Baraguey d ' Hilliers , Seras ' division , the Italian Guard , and part of Durutte ' s division remaining on the south bank . If the battle turned against the French , they would be trapped with an unfordable river at their backs . But with the bulk of his badly shaken and outnumbered horsemen still rallying in the rear , Archduke John elected not to expose his foot soldiers to cavalry attack by ordering them forward . By this time , there were approximately 27 , 000 to 30 , 000 Franco - Italian troops in the bridgehead . Assembling the available troops , Eugène planned to hurl MacDonald ' s corps , elements of Durutte ' s division , and Sahuc ' s division at the Piavisella line . Off to the right , the viceroy ordered Grenier to pin the left wing of IX Armeekorps at San Michele and Cimadolmo with Pully ' s and Guérin ' s cavalry and Abbé ' s infantry . The French attack got rolling in the late afternoon . Abbé ' s advance was counterattacked by squadrons of the " Archduke Josef " Hussar Regiment , the last unbroken Austrian horsemen on the field . Pully and Guérin quickly repulsed the gallant Austrian riposte and Kalnássy evacuated San Michele and Cimadolmo before Grenier ' s pressure . Kalnássy fell back to Tezze where he sturdily held his ground until evening , suffering 1 , 200 casualties during the battle . MacDonald ' s attack was preceded by a bombardment from 24 guns . His attack breached the IX Armeekorps line and John was forced to commit his last reserve , Kleinmayer ' s grenadier brigade . These elite troops attacked , but were unable to halt MacDonald ' s offensive . On the left flank , Dessaix and Sahuc seized Barco while Macdonald took Santa Maria ( Campana ) and drove toward Bocca di Strada . On the right , Grenier finally dislodged Kalnássy from Tezze and let loose his two dragoon divisions . John ' s army finally broke and streamed north into Conegliano . As darkness fell , Eugène suspended the pursuit on a line from Vazzola to Susegana . Aftermath . Archduke John retreated to Conegliano that night and soon had his troops on the road for Sacile . He managed the retrograde movement well . Eugène halted his advance at Bocca di Strada , deciding to wait until he could reunite his army . The French admitted only 700 casualties , but 2 , 000 is a more likely figure . The Austrians suffered 3 , 896 casualties , including 398 killed , 697 wounded , 1 , 681 captured , and 1 , 120 missing . The French captured 15 artillery pieces . The dead included Wolfskeel . On the extreme south flank , Kalnássy ' s brigade became separated from John ' s army and Grouchy ' s cavalry prevented him from rejoining John . Kalnássy rendezvoused with Feldmarschall - Leutnant Anton von Zach near Palmanova and the two retreated independently toward Ljubljana ( Laibach ) . At Sacile , Archduke John made a serious blunder . He split his army into two parts , sending Ignaz Gyulai with most of the IX Armeekorps east to Ljubljana in Carniola and the VIII Armeekorps northeast to Villach in Carinthia . This dispersal of available Austrian troops facilitated Eugène ' s advance from Italy into the Austrian Empire . One authority wrote , " From the Piave to Hungary John ' s handling of the campaign was a failure . " Frimont , who led John ' s rearguard made a stand at San Daniele del Friuli on 11 May with 4 , 000 soldiers . Eugène and Dessaix carried out a double envelopment and inflicted about 2 , 000 casualties on their opponents . Franco - Italian losses were 200 to 800 . Despite this defeat , Frimont kept his rear guard intact and maintained its effectiveness . The next major action was the Battle of Tarvis from 15 to 18 May . The engagement included two actions where small garrisons of Grenz infantry heroically defended two blockhouses against overwhelming Franco - Italian forces . This was followed by an Austrian disaster at the Battle of Sankt Michael on 25 May . Eugène pursued John into Hungary where he defeated him at the Battle of Raab on 14 June before joining Napoleon at the Battle of Wagram on 5 and 6 July . The last action of note in the theater was the Battle of Graz from 24 to 26 June . < br > " The following items are excellent sources for the full names of Austrian and French generals . "