Radetzky's Marches

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Radetzky's Marches Page 6

by Michael Embree


  Manin and the Provisional Government were criticised at the time, and a very great deal ever since, for not retaining these men under arms. Whilst superficially, it appears to be an obvious move, it is equally clear that few of the former troops themselves were interested in the revolution, and simply wanted to go home, and home was, in most cases not Venice, but the towns and villages of the mainland. Crucially, the bonds of discipline had been broken, ironically, by the very forces which now wished to re-impose them. Had a forcible attempt to retain the men been made, most would certainly have taken the first opportunity to desert, or perhaps worse. 30

  Despite the loss of these trained men, military preparations began in earnest. The formation of a larger Civic Guard of 10 battalions, to be recruited from volunteers, was promulgated on the 27th. Each battalion was to be composed of six companies, each of which was to have one captain, one lieutenant, two second-lieutenants, one sergeant-major, four sergeants, eight corporals, two drummers, and 100 men. Male citizens between the ages of 18 and 55 were to be eligible for service. The next day, the creation of four companies of gendarmerie was announced, each composed of 150 men. On April 3rd, it was announced that a corps of regular cavalry was to be formed, numbering 200 men. A Navy was to be organised, once again from volunteers, as was the first artillery formation of about 70 men, named the Bandiera e Moro31. All of this was able to proceed relatively smoothly, since the revolution itself had been so rapid and comparatively bloodless, in stark contrast to events in Milan. In addition, the great resources in the Arsenal available to the Venetians were not mirrored in Milan. This latter point was also of wider consequence, as calls for support and weapons were coming from all across the Veneto.

  Events elsewhere in Lombardy and Venetia

  As word of the events in Milan and Venice spread across northern Italy, and beyond, spontaneous uprisings took place across the two provinces, in towns and villages alike. The major occurrences are discussed below.

  Monza (pop. 6,000)

  Monza, 12 kilometres north of Milan, and connected with it by a railway line which had opened in 1840, was garrisoned by five companies of the locally recruited II/IR Geppert, Major Sterchele. The sound of cannon fire could be heard from the south on the 18th, and limited skirmishing occurred the next day. Orders from Milan required the battalion to march to the city, but the situation made this difficult. Three companies were able to comply, and fight their way through.

  On the 21st, a large crowd, many armed, confronted the remaining troops in the Piazza del Seminario, calling upon the troops to surrender. Then, with some of the insurgents losing patience, limited firing took place. Stecherle, not fully trusting his men to resist, ordered them to fall back to the Seminary itself, where they subsequently laid down their arms, and most of them deserted. Significantly, few joined the rebellion.

  Like the other officers present, Oberlieutenant la Larenotière, had attempted to retain the men’s loyalty, and failed to do so. He then made a gallant attempt to escape with the public funds, using seven cavalry horses. He was, however, intercepted, and wounded several times by a group of people, before a local man stopped the attack on him, and took him to the hospital, undoubtedly saving his life32 .

  Varese (pop. 8,500)

  The area’s garrison was the 10th Feld-Jäger Battalion, commanded by Colonel Kopal, along with a troop of Radetzky Hussars. In Varese itself, were the 1st and 3rd divisions of the battalion, a detachment of 3rd Company, and the hussars. The rest of 3rd Company was posted in Arcisate and Viggiu, with 4th Company in Ghirla.

  Word arrived of the outbreak of the revolution on Saturday, March 19th. The attitude of local people immediately soured, and communications with Milan were broken. Under these circumstances, Colonel Kopal confined the troops in Varese to barracks. On the night of the 20th, the colonel received orders to join the Strassoldo Brigade, assembling in the town of Saronno, a little over 25 kilometres to the south-east. The battalion moved in accordance with these, although some outposts were unable to comply, and were captured. One company of I/Warasdiner Kreuzer Grenz IR, which had been posted in Olbiate, very tired and hungry, losing some men taken prisoner, fell in with Kopal’s column on its withdrawal.

  Como (pop. 17,500)

  News of the Imperial concessions granted in Vienna arrived in Como at around 17:00 on March 18th, causing the immediate formation of a Civic Guard, the collection of weapons and the raising of barricades, while more volunteers entered the city to join the revolution. The garrison, five companies of I/Warasdiner Kreuzer, Major Baron Milutinović, and a troop of hussars, did not immediately react. The next morning, with the arrival of two companies of IR Prohaska from nearby towns, however, fighting erupted. During the struggle, Milutinović was mortally wounded, and the troops withdrew to two separate barracks in the city, both of which were placed under siege by the revolutionaries. With more men arriving to aid the rebellion, and with food and ammunition running low, a capitulation was agreed, whereby the Austrian troops would evacuate the city, and would then be free to make their way, via Swiss territory, to the Tirol. Austrian losses here numbered 25 dead, and over 60 wounded, and that of the citizenry seven killed and 15 wounded33.

  Bergamo (pop. 33,000)

  The city was the headquarters of the brigade of Major-General Archduke Sigismund, its garrison being I/Szluiner Grenz Regiment and I/IR Sigismund, an Italian unit. News of the revolution in Milan reached Bergamo on the same day, resulting in wild scenes in the suburb of San Bernardo. Barricades were erected in various parts of the city. About midday on the 20th, a gendarme appeared at the Archduke’s headquarters with orders that some of his troops be sent to Milan. As instructed, four and a half companies of the Sigismund battalion were despatched to the city.

  On the 21st, the troops were blockaded by the populace in their barracks, and exchanges of fire took place. Of two barracks in the city, that of Santa Marta was taken by the insurgents, and the garrison concentrated in that of S. Agostino. From there, on the night of the 22nd, the troops made their escape from the city.

  Brescia (pop. 35,000)

  Brescia was garrisoned by three battalions of Archduke Sigismund’s brigade, I & II/IR Hohenlohe, and III/IR Haugwitz (Italian), plus the 9th 6 Pounder Foot Artillery Battery. The city was the headquarters of the division of FML Prince Carl Schwarzenberg.

  News of the uprising in Milan reached the city quickly, and that same day, the National Guard was called forward. As the information on the scale of the revolt was circulated, a full-blown rebellion broke out, and the surrender of the garrison demanded. The situation was now beyond control, and one and a half companies of IR Haugwitz defected, taking the battalion commander, Major Baron Wimpffen, prisoner.

  The remaining troops had running battles with the insurgents for four days, as Prince Schwarzenberg received a stream of worsening reports from other areas. With a shortage of supplies also becoming acute, on the 22nd, he decided to abandon Brescia. An accord was reached with the city authorities for the troops to withdraw, but fighting continued as any remaining men of IR Haugwitz deserted. The prince withdrew from the city, and on the 24th, was able to join the main army at Lodi. On the morning of the 22nd, a convoy of eight wagons and 179 officers and men, on their way to Brescia, was attacked by insurgents from the Brescia area, and captured. Some 45 citizens were killed or injured in the city, and 20 wounded Austrian troops left in hospital there.

  Rocca d’Anfo (n/a)

  The troops at the fort consisted of Corporal Tscherne, one Gefreiter, and 17 men of IR Hohenlohe. On Mach 23rd, a large crowd of country people moved against them. Tscherne assembled his men in the upper part of thee fort, which he prepared to defend. Orders shortly arrived from his commanding officer to lay down his weapons, and leave the post. This he refused to do, until directly ordered by Prince Hohenlohe himself.

  Crema (pop 8,800)

  Upon the outbreak of the revolt in Milan, four of the six Austrian companies in the town were called to the city. On t
he 19th, the Imperial standard was pulled down, and replaced with a tricolour. Public disorder occurred, and military patrols came under attack. The garrison, commanded by Major Count Coudenhove, now comprised only two companies of IV/Kaiser Jäger, and two squadrons of Bayern Dragoons. In street clashes that evening, one officer and three men of the Kaiser Jäger were wounded, whilst four citizens were killed, and others wounded, before order was restored. The following day, Major-General Ernst, commanding at Lodi, about 16 kilometres to the west, despatched two companies of III/IR Geppert and two guns to assist Coudenhove, and there was no repetition of violence, before Austrian troops withdrew from the city on the 27th.

  Lodi (pop. 18,000)

  The headquarters, of Cavalry Brigade Archduke Ernst, Lodi contained comparatively few troops in March. These were four companies of III/IR Geppert, and 13 and 14/Kaiser Jäger, and, as related above, two companies of the former were dispatched to assist the garrison of Crema on March 20th.34 This left only the Archduke’s Headquarters, and the two Kaiser Jäger companies.

  That night, the troops quelled some rioting, standing under arms all night. The primary cause of the trouble appeared to have been the dispatch of the reinforcements to Crema. The situation was controlled by a combination of threat and bluff. On one occasion, a wounded officer of the dragoons, Oberlieutenant Fischer, was surrounded and knocked the ground. To save him from being beaten and kicked to death, Oberlieutenant Escher barged into the crowd, sabre in hand, and freed him35. The disorder gradually died away, and the town remained relatively quiet, until the retreating Imperial Army arrived on the 24th. Two days later, Lodi was evacuated as the Austrian withdrawal continued.

  Piacenza (pop. 30,000)

  The garrison of the city of Piacenza, under the command of the fortress Commander, Colonel Baron Haen, consisted of I & II/IR Rukavina, and a division of the Kaiser Uhlan Regiment. On March 22nd, the mood of the populace turned threatening, prompting the concentration of I/IR Rukavina, Lieutenant-Colonel Kessler, in the barracks, and II/IR Rukavina, Major Wutzel, in the Citadel. The following day, however, before matters could deteriorate further, Haen received orders to evacuate the city and move in the direction of Cremona, to join the main army. These orders were promptly obeyed.

  Cremona (pop. 28,000)

  The city was the headquarters of the brigade of Major-General Georg Schönhals. Three infantry battalions, I & II/IR Archduke Albrecht, and III/IR Ceccopieri, all Italian troops, along with three squadrons of the Kaiser Uhlans, and Foot Artillery Battery Nr. 7 comprised the garrison. At the first news of the insurrections, the infantry battalions all mutinied. Schönhals was able to negotiate the departure from the city of the three cavalry squadrons, along with the officers of the infantry battalions and the few loyal men, in exchange for the weapons, in particular, the six 6 pounder guns, which all fell into the hands of the insurgents, a major prize. The uhlans were able to retreat safely, but Schönhals, with 60 officers, 22 German-speaking NCOs, and 80 artillerymen, only reached the town of Desenzano, before they were captured by a volunteer corps from Brescia, commanded by Vittorio Longhena. Longhena refused to recognise the agreement in Cremona that they be allowed to retreat to the Tirol, and conducted them, as prisoners, to Brescia, though they were subsequently released in exchange for hostages taken from Milan by the retreating army, for just such an eventuality36 .

  Pavia (pop. 25,000)

  The garrison of Pavia consisted of I and II/IR Gyulai, two squadrons, Kaiser Uhlans, Horse Artillery Battery Nr. 1, and 1st 6 Pounder Foot Artillery, commanded by Colonel Ludwig Benedek. The city was very hostile to the occupiers, and in the preceding few months there had been several incidents between citizens and both officers and soldiers of the garrison. Benedek, a first rate officer, did his best not to inflame the situation, even, remarkably, forbidding troops to smoke in the street.

  Benedek received orders on March 22nd, to evacuate the city, and withdraw to the fortress of Mantua, via Pizzighettone. As the troops moved off that night, in a bizarre episode, a large crowd assembled to give them a rousing send-off.

  Rovigo (pop. 8,400)

  Immediately upon hearing of the outbreaks elsewhere, the two companies of Lombard 8th Feld-Jäger Battalion in the town deserted. Two other companies of the same battalion, passing through Rovigo on the march to Vicenza, promptly emulated their example, taking their commanding officer, Colonel Sebastian Poschacher, prisoner. The colonel was subsequently released, and the remaining two companies, and men from the depot, continued their march to Vicenza, along with 1/Reuss Hussars, Rittmesister Szalay, reaching that city on the 25th, and joining the column of FML D’Aspre, who marched in the same day.

  Treviso (pop. 20,000)

  The garrison of Treviso consisted of the locally raised III/IR Zanini, Major von Frank, and one squadron of the Windischgrätz Chevauxleger Regiment. News of the Revolution in Venice arrived on March 23rd. The infantry battalion immediately mutinied, and deserted. The Military Governor, FML Count Ludolf, was forced to capitulate to the new Civic Guard. The remaining Imperial troops were withdrawn under this convention.

  Udine (pop. 22,000)/Palmanova (pop 2,800)/Osoppo (n/a)

  The Veneto-recruited III/IR Archduke Ferdinand d’Este provided the garrisons for these three places, with most of the men deserting when called upon to move to Innsbruck, many of them making common cause with the rebellion. The Capitulation signed for Treviso also covered these localities. In the fortress of Palmanova, the insurrection was presented with 30 cannon and 15,000 muskets. General Carlo Zucchi, who had celebrated his 71st birthday imprisoned there only two weeks earlier, was freed and appointed fortress commander. Zucchi, as with so many, a former officer of Napoleon, in prison for his part in the 1831 revolutions, set about recruiting and training troops.

  Ferrara (pop. 26,000)

  Ferrara, though in the Papal States, by treaty contained an Austrian presence. The garrison consisted of only one battalion, I/Warasdiner St. George Grenz IR. These withdrew into the citadel, where they would remain for most of the campaign. Arrangements were agreed for their provisioning.

  Mantua (pop. 27.000)

  The great fortress of Mantua, 32 kilometres south of Peschiera, stands at the south-west point of the Quadrilateral, sited with three sides surrounded by water, with a swamp covering its fourth, southern side. Its garrison in March 1848, comprised two battalions of IR Haugwitz, an Italian regiment recruited in the Brescia region, the four companies of the 6th Garrison Battalion, also Italian, two squadrons of Windischgrätz Chevauxlegers, the 5th Foot Artillery Battery, and a number of Fortress Artillery, mostly semi-invalids. The whole numbered about 3,800. The Fortress Commander was the Polish General of Cavalry, Count Gorczkowski, a most intelligent and able officer.

  On the 18th of March, large crowds celebrated the announcement of the reforms from Vienna. The next morning, with more information coming to the city, a Revolutionary Committee was established, headed by the Mayor, Count Arco, which, with the Bishop, began negotiations with Gorczkowski on what was to happen. They also formed a Civic Guard. The Count, with comparatively few troops, acceded to many demands, and some barricades went up. Gorczkowski gathered all available artillery personnel in his command, enough to man 24 guns, and had these weapons placed on the walls, pointing inwards at the city.37

  The Revolutionary Committee did not consider the infantry of the garrison a threat, because they were Italian. The officers, however, succeeded in keeping the troops loyal to them. Even so, the fortress commander still considered it a good idea to get some non-Italian troops to Mantua – just in case.

  In fact, some troops were already on the way. The eight companies of IR Archduke Franz d’Este and the accompanying troop of hussars had managed to cross the Po and move north. The citizens of Mantua believed that the Austrian column would attempt to enter the city via the Ceresa Gate, and therefore barricaded it. The troops, however, marched around the ring road, and entered via the Pradella Gate. With the two battalions of IR Ha
ugwitz remaining loyal, these reinforcements sufficed to cause the revolutionaries of the city to hesitate. Gorczkowski continued negotiations with the Revolutionary Committee. With the arrival, from Verona, of two further battalions, I and II/Archduke Ernst, on the 27th, his attitude became less agreeable.

  On the 28th, the Field Marshal ordered Major-General Wohlgemuth, with seven battalions, three squadrons, and 16 guns, about 7,000 men, to march immediately on the city. Wohlgemuth did so, reaching it on the 30th. His arrival put an end to any chance of the city falling into revolutionary hands.38 The Revolutionary Committee was dissolved, along with the Civic Guard.

  Padua (pop, 51,000)

  The city of Padua, where rioting over the Tobacco Tax had cost two lives in early February, was the headquarters of II Corps, commanded by FML Konstantin D’Aspre, as was that of the division of FML Count Wimpffen, and of the brigade of Prince Friedrich Liechtenstein. The garrison comprised one battalion and a battery of the Prince’s brigade, and two battalions of that of Prince Thurn and Taxis. Advised of Radetzky’s withdrawal from Milan on March 24th, D’Aspre immediately grasped the strategic situation, and that Verona was the key to it. Quickly concluding an agreement with the municipal authorities, and issuing orders for other troops to conform to his movements, at 18:00 that evening, he marched the entire garrison towards Vicenza, having appropriated the Treasury funds for Imperial use, leaving behind the magazine, baggage, and the untransportable sick. Great spontaneous celebrations soon broke out in the city, and a Republic was proclaimed.

  Vicenza (pop. 33,000)

  In Vicenza, I and II/IR Piret and a battery of the brigade of Prince Thurn and Taxis comprised the garrison. The Municipality had formed a Civic Guard, and had requested, and received, unknown to the Prince, a shipment of muskets by train from Venice. Any further action, however, was stopped by the arrival, from 09:00 on the 25th, of D’Aspre’s column from Padua, and other troops. D’Aspre, always gruff, summoned the local leader of the independence movement, Valentino Pasini, and angrily demanded the money from Vicenza’s coffers. After a discussion, it was agreed that the city would make a contribution to the funds. After this, the two men had a more relaxed conversation as to the situation, which D’Aspre blamed on Metternich.

 

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