Battle of Montebello (1859)

Battle of Montebello
Part of Second Italian War of Independence
Battle of Montebello
Date 20 May 1859 Location Montebello, present-day Italy Result Franco-Italian victory
Belligerents
France Sardinia	Austrian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Elie Frédéric Forey	Karl von Urban Philipp von Stadion und Thannhausen
Strength
6,600 infantry[1]	18,708 infantry[2] 600 cavalry 12 guns 4 rocket launchers
Casualties and losses
France: 81 killed 492 wounded 69 missing Kingdom of Sardinia: 52 killed, wounded or prisoners Total: 694	331 killed 785 wounded 307 missing Total: 1,423

The Battle of Montebello was fought on 20 May 1859 at Montebello (in what is now Lombardy, northern Italy). It was the first major engagement of the Second Italian War of Independence, fought between Austrian troops commanded by Field Marshal Karl von Urban against Piedmontese cavalry and French infantry headed by General Elie Foray.

Because of this battle, the Austrian commander-in-chief was obliged to keep troops to cover the southern part of the front.