Army of Naples

Template:Distinguish2 The Army of Naples (Armée de Naples) was a French Army unit which took this name following its capture of Naples in 1799. It was related to the Army of Italy.

Context

General Joubert had just defeated northern Italy. On December 6, 1798, Joubert occupied Turin, forcing King Charles-Emmanuel to abdicate, giving up all his continental possessions and retreating to Sardinia. Meanwhile, Ferdinand III's Tuscany was also occupied.

Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, returning from Naples, ordered a massive attack on the French, but retired to Palermo at the same time. He named Pigantelli vicar general, but the city fought against him.

The army in Rome received reinforcements from Joubert, raising its strength to 29 battalions and 21 squadrons - a force of 24,000 infantry, 2,000 cavalry, and 2,000 artillery for a total of 28,000 men, including the garrisons of Ancona and Castel Sant'Angelo. On December 20, this army left Rome, which had been ordered to disarm, and advanced on Naples in five columns. Rey, who was already in pursuit of the enemy, took the right with twelve squadrons and twelve battalions. He had orders to advance to Terracina by way of the Pontins marsh. MacDonald, with three squadrons and twelve battalions, had orders to cross Frosinone and Ceprano. Championnet and the headquarters followed this column. The Lemoine division, six battalions and three squadrons strong, had orders to push on to Sulmona. Finally, eleven battalions and three squadrons made up the far left under the orders of Duhesme had orders to push back the enemy at Pescara then follow the river of the same name up to Popoli and there rejoin Lemoine. There was too great a distance between the right and left columns. To remedy this, Championnet directed a column of 800 men under the orders of battalion leader Maréchal to take the route that goes from Tivoli and Vicovaro around Celano Lake to Sulmona. A camp was established at Foligno to meet this group in case of failure. The poor state of the roads was just about the only difficulty Maréchal faced en route. There was a small battle between his troops and those of the enemy on the 27th and 28th of December at the crossing of the Garigliano, but the Napolitans fled in disorder after the first clash, abandoning all their artillery. On the 30th, MacDonald set up camp between Venafro and the road from San Germano to Capua in Caianello.

This weak resistance inspired Championnet to try a more decisive strategy. At the same time, Karl Mack, who wanted a peace treaty, let his weaknesses show. However, the French general did not receive news of his left columns, due to snow that blocked communications. After arriving at Ceprano, he recalled Rey's cavalry to him. After Rey arrived, Championnet decided to push to Calvi down the Volturno behind which the last remnants of Mack's columns had fled.

Attack on Capua

The Napolitan line extended from Castellammare di Stabia at the mouth of the Volturno to the Scafa di Cajazzo (now Caserta). Each wing was made up of eight battalions and ten squadrons, while the center occupied Capua and the bridgehead built in haste on the right side of the river. This highly defensible position was filled with artillery. Championnet, who had given an unanswered ultimatum to Mack on December 3, ordered reconnaissance of the enemy position and especially Capua. The French attack included three columns, one on the left, another on the main road, and the third to the right of the fortifications. Even though the first attack faced a strong redoubt called the San-Antonio, the Napolitans gave way. Mack was forced to threaten to have deserters shot in order to keep his men at their posts.

At first MacDonald was able to make the most of this disorder, and he was about to order the last fortifications destroyed when Mack, afraid to lose Capua, came up with a ruse: he asked MacDonald for a cease-fire for the safe passage of the Cisalpine Republic ambassador, returning to Milan from Naples. The French general reluctantly agreed to this demand and the enemy general used the time to rally his troops and reorganize them to his advantage. After the ambassador left, the battle began anew. The San-Antonio redoubt and all of its fortifications fell, but the artillery assault from the walls, which the French were ill-equipped to answer, was so deadly and constant that MacDonald was forced to pull back. Meanwhile, General Maurice Mathieu's arm was shattered by grapeshot. MacDonald took captured Napolitan artillery with him while returning to the morning's positions. He had lost about 300 men that day.

Capture of Gaeta

General Rey, whose small infantry column was reinforced at Fondi by that of François Étienne de Kellermann, took the gorges of Itri and pushed the Napolitan forces that had been defending it back to Gaeta. Inspired by this success, Rey decided to try to take the city, which was defended by 4,000 soldiers armed with seventy cannons, twelve mortars and amply supplied with ammunition and food and who had access to the seven small ships docked in the harbor. After an unsuccessful ultimatum, the French fired off several shells that started several fires, terrorizing the inhabitants and even the garrison, which the octogenarian governor general Tschudi ordered to stand down. 63 officers as well as the general had the shameful privilege of being sent home to await a prisoner exchange. The garrison remained prisoner. Besides the artillery and the ships, French forces took 20,000 guns and bridge-building equipment that would soon allow General Rey to cross the Garigliano.

Joining up with Lemoine's column

Rey's column reached Capua but Championnet decided not to risk a siege without further reinforcements necessary to a decisive attack. He worried about Lemoine and Duhesme who he had not had news of for the last ten days. Nor had he heard from Maréchal and his 800 men. He sent a party of 200 horsemen to Sulmona to try to regain contact. At the same time, General Elbé was putting together the materials for a siege at Gaeta.

On January 5, headquarters got news that Lemoine, on his way to Venafro, was being hassled by revolting peasants - he had only fought one battle against Napolitan soldiers. Those soldiers, after a deadly operation followed by an occupation of Popoli, had turned towards Sulmona and then on Benevento. Lemoine, master of Popoli, had waited there several days in hope of news of Duhesme, but because the number of angry peasants grew daily, he moved on to Sulmona and there rejoined Maréchal's column and the 200 men sent to meet him on the 4th. The Capua blockade tightened upon Lemoine's arrival.