The French Army of Italy fights in Loano again

On April 8th to 10th the historical recollection of the noted Loano battle takes place in Loano – a town in the Savona province, about 60 km southwest of Genoa and 30 km southwest of Savona. Groups coming from all over Europe and specifically from France, Belgium, England, Austria, Czech Republic, Germany, Switzerland, Malta, and Italy will participate to the reenactment of the 1795 French advance all the way to Liguria, on the Borghetto Santo Spirito line.

Troops will enter the city centre on Friday afternoon at 4pm, while on Saturday, starting at 10.30am, visitors will be able to visit the “French camp”. Fights will start at 11 am in the city centre, while the first battle will take place at 3.30 pm in via degli Alpini.

On Sunday, French troops will counterattack at 10.30am on the sea promenade getting the Austrian-Piedmontese troops to retreat. The event will come to an end at 2.30 pm, when troops will go back to their camps.

The Battle of Loano occurred on November 23rd-24th 1795 during the War of the First Coalition. The French Army of Italy led by Barthélemy Schérer defeated the combined Austrian and Sardinian forces under Olivier, Count of Wallis.

With the Battle of Loano a new way of fighting began, which Napoleon Bonaparte made his and that led to well-known triumphs of the Italian Campaigns. Napoleon took command of the Armée d'Italie in 1796 in Nice, replacing General Schérer, and made the Italian front into one of the most important and victorious war fronts of the time.