A Young General Takes Command

In March 1796, a 26-year-old Corsican artillery officer named Napoleon Bonaparte arrived in Nice to assume command of France’s ragged Army of Italy. To his skeptical senior generals—hardened veterans like André Masséna and Pierre Augereau—he seemed an upstart, a political appointee who owed his rank to revolutionary connections rather than battlefield experience. Yet within weeks, this “little general” would stun Europe with a campaign that blended tactical genius, relentless energy, and psychological mastery over both allies and enemies.

The situation Napoleon inherited was dire. His 49,300 troops lacked shoes, uniforms, and pay; many resorted to stripping corpses for clothing. Supply lines had collapsed, leaving soldiers to forage like “brigands” (as Napoleon himself admitted). Meanwhile, Austria and Sardinia-Piedmont fielded 80,000 disciplined troops across the Alpine passes. Most French strategists considered Italy a secondary theater—but Napoleon saw opportunity where others saw only desperation.

Lightning Strikes: The Montenotte Campaign

On April 10, 1796, Austrian commander Johann Beaulieu launched a preemptive strike toward Genoa. Napoleon, anticipating the move, executed history’s first demonstration of his signature “central position” strategy. Over five days, he:

– Smashed Austrian forces at Montenotte (April 12), isolating them from Sardinian allies
– Split the coalition at Millesimo (April 13), exploiting rival strategic priorities
– Secured the vital Dego pass (April 14), opening the road to Turin

These victories—won with minimal French losses—revealed Napoleon’s hallmarks: rapid marches (30 miles/day), concentration of force at decisive points, and psychological warfare. His proclamation at Cherasco on April 26 captured his leadership alchemy: “You had no cannons yet won battles, no bridges yet crossed rivers, no shoes yet forced marches… Today you shall lack nothing.”

The Bridge at Lodi: Birth of a Legend

The May 10 battle at Lodi became legend. Facing 9,500 Austrians defending a narrow 200-yard bridge over the Adda River, Napoleon ordered a suicidal frontal assault under grapeshot. When grenadiers hesitated, he reportedly grabbed a flag and shouted: “Forward! Or must I show you how a general dies?” The bridge was taken—and with it, Milan.

Though militarily minor (900 casualties each side), Lodi transformed Napoleon’s self-perception. “From that moment,” he later confessed, “I foresaw what I might become.” Soldiers coined his enduring nickname “Le Petit Caporal”—the Little Corporal—blending affection with awe.

Governing Conquest: Art, Politics, and Revolt

Entering Milan on May 15, Napoleon unveiled a dual strategy:

1. Cultural Imperialism: He looted masterpieces by Michelangelo and Correggio for Paris’ Louvre, arguing Europe’s art deserved “liberation” in France.
2. Political Theater: He proclaimed the Lombard Republic, appealing to Italian nationalism while extracting 20 million francs in “donations.”

But resentment simmered. Peasants revolted in Pavia and Binasco, where Napoleon ordered villages burned as warnings (“Terror is sometimes humane”). Meanwhile, his letters to wife Josephine grew increasingly desperate—unaware she was embroiled in an affair with a dashing hussar lieutenant.

The Siege of Mantua: A Turning Point

By June, Austria’s last stronghold—the fortress of Mantua—became the campaign’s fulcrum. Four relief attempts would fail, but not before:
– Würmser’s July offensive nearly trapped Napoleon, who escaped via audacious night marches
– The November Battle of Arcole, where Napoleon famously seized a flag to rally troops across a bullet-swept bridge (a scene later immortalized by Gros’ painting)

When Mantua finally fell in February 1797, Austria lost 18,000 men and control of northern Italy.

Legacy: The Template for Empire

The 1796 Italian Campaign established Napoleon’s winning formula:
– Logistical Innovation: Living off conquered land (“An army marches on its stomach”)
– Propaganda Mastery: Bulletins exaggerating victories while masking setbacks
– Political Warfare: Exporting revolutionary ideals to destabilize old regimes

As Stendhal later wrote in The Charterhouse of Parma, those watching Napoleon enter Milan glimpsed “the heir to Alexander and Caesar.” Within two years, he would crown himself Emperor—but it was here, amid Italy’s battlefields and boudoirs, that the legend took shape.

The campaign also revealed contradictions: a liberator who plundered art, a republican who craved monarchy, a devoted husband betrayed. Yet none could deny his impact. As British historian Thomas Carlyle observed: “Italy was the school where Napoleon trained himself to rule the world.”