The Battle of Neresheim was fought by the Republican French army under Jean Victor Marie Moreau against the army of the Habsburg monarchy of Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen. Pursued by Moreau's Army of Rhin-et-Moselle, Charles launched an attack against the French. While the Austrian left wing saw some success, the battle degenerated into a stalemate and the archduke withdrew further into the Electorate of Bavaria. Neresheim is located in the state of Baden-Württemberg in Germany a distance of 57 kilometres (35 mi) northeast of Ulm. The action took place during the War of the First Coalition, part of a larger conflict called the French Revolutionary Wars.
Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier, 1st Count Sérurier led a division in the War of the First Coalition and became a Marshal of the Empire under Emperor Napoleon. He was born into the minor nobility and in 1755 joined the Laon militia which was soon sent to fight in the Seven Years' War. After transferring into the regular army as an ensign, he was wounded at Warburg in 1760. He fought in the Spanish-Portuguese War in 1762. He married in 1779 after a promotion to captain. A newly minted major in 1789, the French Revolution sped up promotion so that he was colonel of the regiment in 1792. After leading Army of Italy troops in a number of actions, he became a general of brigade in 1793 and a general of division the following year.
The Alpini are the Italian Army's specialist mountain infantry. Part of the army's infantry corps, the speciality distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. Currently the active Alpini units are organized in two operational brigades, which are subordinate to the Alpine Troops Headquarters. The Alpini's name comes from their inceptive association with the Alps, the mountain range that Italy shares with France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia. An individual soldier of the Alpini is called Alpino.
Franziska Scanagatta was an Italian woman who disguised herself as a man in order to attend an Austrian officer school in 1794. She served during the French Revolution and was promoted to Leutnant (lieutenant) in 1800. In 1801 she left the army and was granted a pension by Francis I, Emperor of Austria, when he learned of her story.
The 4th Alpini Paratroopers Regiment is a ranger type special operations forces of the Italian Army, specializing in air assault, artillery observer, cold-weather warfare, direct action, forward air control, HUMINT, irregular warfare, ISTAR, long-range penetration, maneuver warfare, medical evacuation on mountain, military intelligence, mountain combat search and rescue, mountain rescue, mountain warfare, parachuting, special operation behind enemy lines, special reconnaissance, tactical emergency medical services, tracking targets on mountain, and urban warfare. The regiment is one of three regiments of the Army Special Forces Command. The regiment is a unit of the Italian Army's mountain infantry speciality, the Alpini, which distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. The 4th Alpini Paratroopers Regiment is one of the most decorated units of the Italian Army, although its two Gold Medals of Military Valor were awarded to the regiment's currently inactive Alpini Battalion "Aosta", respectively the currently active Skiers Battalion "Monte Cervino".
The Alpini are a mountain infantry corps of the Italian Army, that distinguished itself in combat during World War I and World War II. They are also famous in Italy for their songs and choirs.
The Gold Medal of Military Valor is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia for deeds of outstanding gallantry in war by junior officers and soldiers.
The Comando Truppe Alpine or COMTA commands the Mountain Troops of the Italian Army, called Alpini and various support and training units. It is the successor to the 4º Corpo d'Armata Alpino of the Cold War. The Alpini are light Infantry units specializing in Mountain Combat. The subordinate units of the COMTA distinguished themselves during combat in World War I and World War II.
Giulio Martinat was a brigadier general in the Italian armed forces during World War II. He was killed while leading his men in the Battle of Nikolayevka.
The Cappello Alpino is the most distinctive feature of the Italian Army's Alpini troops' uniform. The Alpini are light Infantry troops, specializing in mountain combat. Initially, the Cappello was only issued to the Alpini, but soon the Cappello was adopted by the Alpini Corps' support units like artillery, signals, and engineers. Today the Cappello is issued to members of 15 Army regiments, 3 battalions and various high commands. Thanks to the black raven feather, which is carried on each Alpini soldier's Cappello, the Alpinis are known as Le Penne Nere in Italy. A nickname the Alpini quickly adopted for themselves.
In the Battle of Sankt Michael on 25 May 1809, Paul Grenier's French corps crushed Franz Jellacic's Austrian division at Sankt Michael in Obersteiermark, Austria. The action occurred after the initial French victories during the War of the Fifth Coalition, part of the Napoleonic Wars. Sankt Michael is located approximately 140 kilometers southwest of Vienna.
The Battle of Graz took place on 24–26 June 1809 between an Austrian corps commanded by Ignaz Gyulai and a French division led by Jean-Baptiste Broussier. The French were soon reinforced by a corps under Auguste Marmont. The battle is considered a French victory though Gyulai was successful in getting supplies to the Austrian garrison of Graz before the two French forces drove him away from the city. Graz, Austria is located 145 kilometers south-southwest of Vienna at the intersection of the modern A2 and A9 highways.
Alois Graf von Gavasini led a combat brigade in the armies of Habsburg Austria and the Austrian Empire during a remarkable number of battles in the French Revolutionary Wars and Napoleonic Wars. A native of Bonn, he offered his services to Austria and won an award for bravery in 1790. While a field officer in the Italian campaign, he led the rear guard at Primolano in September 1796. Badly outnumbered by the French, he and his soldiers put up a vigorous fight until he was wounded and captured. At Arcole in November 1796, he commanded a brigade on the field of battle against Napoleon Bonaparte's French army. Promoted to general officer in the spring of 1800, he led a powerful brigade at Hohenlinden during that year's fall campaign in Bavaria. Though the battle ended in a decisive defeat, Gavasini's troops fought well before being forced to retreat. The 1805 campaign in Italy found him directing a reserve brigade at Caldiero. After briefly retiring, the warrior returned to lead a brigade at the battles of Sacile, Piave River, and Graz during the 1809 war. That year he retired from the army and did not return.
Giuseppe Fabre was an Italian Generale di Corpo d'Armata and skier.
The Battle of Tarvis was fought during 21–23 March 1797 near present-day Tarvisio in far northeast Italy, about 12 kilometres (7 mi) west-by-southwest of the three-border conjunction with Austria and Slovenia, and was the final battle before the end of the War of the First Coalition. In the battle, three divisions of a First French Republic army commanded by Napoleon Bonaparte attacked several columns of the retreating Habsburg Austrian army led by Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen. In three days of confused fighting, French divisions directed by André Masséna, Jean Joseph Guieu, and Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier succeeded in blocking the Tarvis Pass and capturing 3,500 Austrians led by Adam Bajalics von Bajahaza. The engagement occurred during the War of the First Coalition, part of the French Revolutionary Wars.
The Battle of Feistritz saw an Imperial French corps led by Paul Grenier attack an Austrian brigade under August von Vécsey. After putting up a stout resistance, the outnumbered Austrians were defeated and forced to retreat. The clash occurred during the War of the Sixth Coalition, part of the Napoleonic Wars. Feistritz im Rosental is located on the right bank of the Drava River near the southern border of Austria, about 16 kilometres (10 mi) southwest of Klagenfurt. At the time, it was located at the border with the French-controlled Illyrian Provinces to its west and south.
The Battle of Genola or Battle of Fossano was a meeting engagement between a Habsburg Austrian army commanded by Michael von Melas and a Republican French army under Jean Étienne Championnet. Melas directed his troops with more skill and his army drove the French off the field, inflicting heavy losses. The War of the Second Coalition action represented the last major French effort in Italy during 1799. The municipality of Genola is located in the region of Piedmont in northwest Italy a distance of 27 kilometres (17 mi) north of Cuneo and 58 kilometres (36 mi) south of Turin.
The Green Devils of Monte Cassino is a 1958 French–German war film directed by Harald Reinl and starring Dieter Eppler, Joachim Fuchsberger, Antje Geerk and Ewald Balser. The film is a fictional love story framed by actual historic events surrounding the Battle of Monte Cassino and the evacuation of its stores of art treasures. The title refers to the nickname of the Fallschirmjäger, the German Luftwaffe's paratroopers.
The 5th Infantry Regiment "Aosta" is an active unit of the Italian Army based in Messina in Sicily. The regiment is part of the Italian army's infantry corps and operationally assigned to the Mechanized Brigade "Aosta".
The Battle of Mortara was a battle between 19,000 Austrian and 26,000 Italian forces on 21 March 1849.
