Conflict: Italian Wars of Louis XII
Combatants: French vs. Swiss
Location: Italy
Outcome: Swiss victory
Although defeated at Ravenna and driven away, the French King Louis XII's army remained to menace Milan. Louis de La Tremoille, commanding an army of 10,000 Frenchmen, lay siege to the Italian city of Novara in 1513. On June 6th of that year, following a night march, an army of 13,000 Swiss linked up with the garrison of Novara and launched a dawn attack on the unsuspecting French . The Swiss rolled up the left flank and cut through the enemy camps while driving off the French cavalry. The French retreated across the Alps.
Point of Interest:
The English invaded France that same June after Novara and besieged Therouanne.
In September of 1513, the Swiss made peace with France; Italy and Spain would follow in December, as would England and the Holy Roman Empire in March of 1514.
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Sources:
Dupuy, Trevor N., Johnson, Curt, & Bongard, David L. (1992). The Harper's Encyclopedia of Military Biography. New York: Castle Books (HarperCollins).
Dupuy, R. Ernest & Dupuy, Trevor N. (1993). The Harper's Encyclopedia of Military History. New York: HarperCollins.
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