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The First Italian War of Independence was fought in 1848 between the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Austrian Empire. The war saw main battles at Custoza and Novara in which the Austrians under Radetzky managed to defeat the Piedmontese. Image File history File links Wiki_letter_w. ... The Battle of Custoza (1848) was fought (23-25 July 1848) during the Austro-Sardinian War (also known as First Independence War within Italian unification process) between the armies of the Austrian Empire, led by Field Marshal Radetzky, and of the Kingdom of Sardinia, led by king Charles Albert of... Combatants Kingdom of Sardinia Austrian Empire Commanders Albert Chrzanowski Joseph Radetzky von Radetz Strength 85,636 156 guns 72,380 156 guns The Battle of Novara or Battle of Bicocca (Bicocca is a borough of Novara) was one of the battles fought between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of... Year 1848 (MDCCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Kingdom of Sardinia, in 1839: Mainland Piedmont, with Savoia upper left (pink) and Nizza (Nice) lower left (brown) both now French, and Sardinia in the inset. ... Anthem: Volkshymne (Peoples Anthem) Capital Vienna Language(s) German Religion Roman Catholic Government Monarchy History  - Established 1804  - Disestablished 1867 Flag of the Habsburg Monarchy The Crown of the Austrian Emperor The Austrian Empire (German: ) was an empire centred on what is modern day Austria that officially lasted from 1804... The Battle of Custoza (1848) was fought (23-25 July 1848) during the Austro-Sardinian War (also known as First Independence War within Italian unification process) between the armies of the Austrian Empire, led by Field Marshal Radetzky, and of the Kingdom of Sardinia, led by king Charles Albert of... There are two military events that are called Battle of Novara, fought next to Novara, Northern Italy: Battle of Novara (1513), fought between the Holy League and France, within the War of the League of Cambrai; Battle of Novara (1849), fought between Austrian Empire and Kingdom of Sardinia, within the... Josef Graf von Radetzky Johann Josef Wenzel Graf Radetzky von Radetz (en: Count John Joseph Wenceslaus Radetzky von Radetz, in Czech: Jan Josef Václav hrabÄ› Radecký z Radče) (November 2, 1766 – January 5, 1858) was a Bohemian nobleman and soldier, immortalised by Johann Strauss Is Radetzky March. ...

The revolution of 1848

In 1848 revolutionary riots broke out in numerous places of Italy, as well in many other parts of Europe. Charles Albert in Piedmont and Leopold II in the Grand-Duke of Tuscany had been forced to make concessions to the democrats. With Vienna itself in revolt, both Milan and Venice, the main cities of the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia, under Austrian rule, revolted. Sicily, except Messina, expelled the Bourbon armies. Charles II of Bourbon also was compelled to leave the Duchy of Parma. Year 1848 (MDCCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... Charles Albert of Sardinia Charles Albert (October 2, 1798 – July 28, 1849) was the Duke of Savoy, Piedmont, Aosta and King of Sardinia from 1831 to 1849. ... Leopold II (October 3, 1797 - January 29, 1870), of Habsburg-Lorraine, grand-duke of Tuscany. ... The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a state in central Italy which came into existence in 1569, replacing the Duchy of Florence, which had been created out of the old Republic of Florence in 1532, and which annexed the Republic of Siena in 1557. ... Vienna (German: , see also other names) is the capital of Austria, and also one of the nine States of Austria. ... Milan (Italian: ; Lombard: Milán (listen)) is one of the biggest cities in Italy, located in the plains of Lombardy. ... Venice (Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venezsia) is the capital of region Veneto, and has a population of 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ... The Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia (Italian: ; German: ) (1815 - 1866) was established after the defeat of Napoleon, according to the decisions of the Congress of Vienna (9 June 1815). ...

The Kingdom of Sardinia decided to exploit the apparently favourable moment, and declared war on Austria, in alliance with the Papal States and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies and attacked the weakened Austria in her Italian possessions. Kingdom of Sardinia, in 1839: Mainland Piedmont, with Savoia upper left (pink) and Nizza (Nice) lower left (brown) both now French, and Sardinia in the inset. ... Map of the Papal States. ... The Two Sicilies The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was the new name that the Bourbon king Ferdinand IV of Naples gave to his domain (including Southern Italy and Sicily) after the end of the Napoleonic Era and the full restoration of his power in 1816. ...

First Italian War of Independence

The Piedmontese army was composed of two corps and a reserve division, for a total of 12,000 troops. Artillery and cavalry were the best units. On March 21 the Grand Duke of Tuscany also declared his entrance in the war against Austria, with a contingent of 6,700 men. The Papal Army had a similar sized force, backed by numerous volunteers. On March 25 the vanguard of the II Piedmontese Corps entered Milan and two days later also Pavia was freed. Church San Michele in Pavia The Old Bridge (Ponte Vecchio) on the Ticino river is a symbol of Pavia Pavìa (the ancient Ticinum) (population 71,000) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, northern Italy, 35 km south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its...

After an initial successful campaign, with the victories at Goito and Peschiera del Garda, the pope, fearing possible expansions of Piedmont in case of victory, recalled his troops. The kingdom of the Two Sicilies too retired, but the general Guglielmo Pepe refused to go back to Naples and went to Venice to protect it against the Austrian counter-offensive. King Ferdinand II retreat was mainly due to the ambiguous behaviour of Charles Albert of Piedmont, who had not clearly refused the proposal to obtain the Sicilian crown received from representants of rebellious island. The current Pope is Benedict XVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger), who was elected at the age of 78 on 19 April 2005. ... Guglielmo Pepe (1783-1855), Neapolitan general, was born at Squillace in Calabria. ... Naples panorama. ... Venice (Italian: Venezia, Venetian: Venezsia) is the capital of region Veneto, and has a population of 271,663 (census estimate January 1, 2004). ... Charles Albert of Sardinia Charles Albert (October 2, 1798 – July 28, 1849) was the Duke of Savoy, Piedmont, Aosta and King of Sardinia from 1831 to 1849. ...

After the Piedmontese defeat at Custoza, an uneasy armistice made in 1848 between Austria and Sardinia which lasted less than seven months, before Charles Albert denounced the truce on March 12, 1849. The Austrian army took the military initiative in Lombardy and heavily defeated the Piedmontese at Novara. After this victory the Piedmontese were driven back to Borgomanero at the foot of the Alps, and the Austrian forces occupied Novara, Vercelli, Trino and Brescia, with the road to the Piedmontese capital, Turin, lying open to them. Year 1848 (MDCCCXLVIII) was a leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian Calendar (or a leap year starting on Monday of the 12-day slower Julian calendar). ... March 12 is the 71st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (72nd in leap years). ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Lombardy (Italian: Lombardia, Lombard: Lumbardìa) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy. ... The west face of the Petit Dru above the Chamonix valley near the Mer de Glace. ... Vercelli (Varséj in Piedmontese; Vercellae in Latin) is a commune and city of about 46,000 inhabitants in the Province of Vercelli, Italy. ... Country Italy Region Piedmont Province Province of Vercelli (VC) Mayor Elevation 120 m Area 70. ... Country Italy Region Lombardy Province Brescia (BS) Mayor Paolo Corsini (since June 10, 2003) Elevation 150 m Area 90 km² Population  - Total (as of December 31, 2004) 192,165  - Density 2,087/km² Time zone CET, UTC+1 Coordinates Gentilic Bresciani Dialing code 030 Postal code 25100 Frazioni Fornaci, Sant... Torino redirects here. ...

Charles Albert abdicated in favor of his son Victor Emmanuel, and a peace treaty was signed on August 9, 1849 and Piedmont-Sardinia was forced to pay an indemnity of 65 million francs to Austria. Victor Emmanuel II, King of Italy (Italian: Vittorio Emanuele II; March 14, 1820 – January 9, 1878) was the King of Piedmont, Savoy and Sardinia from 1849–1861. ...

The war marked the failure of Sardinia to defeat Austria singlehandedly. This caused Sardinia to seek allies against Austria and ultimately only with French (1859) and Prussian (1866) help would Sardinia be able to drive out the Austrians from Northern Italy.

See also

• Italian Wars of Independence