After the battle of Novara, the Imperial Guards lead by Marshal Soult advanced farther into Austria, trying to force a battle; which would hopefully effectively end Austria’s will and power to fight within northern Italy. A battle would occur between May 10th and into the next afternoon, however it was not the victory that Soult or France sought. The Austrians, though more numerous than in the Battle of Novara, were still outmatched at Modena by the Imperial Guards, who were accompanied by a detachment of forces from Sardinia.
The Austrian commander, Karl Geiss, a political appointee was inept, and had badly positioned his forces. The first day of battle witnessed minor skirmishes between both armies as the main forces were brought into position. On the second day of battle, heavy pressure was applied to the Austrian right flank. The flank had already been weakened by a feint attack on the left flank by Sardinia’s forces.
With his position compromised, Karl Geiss ordered a retreat, however it was too late. The Austrian army was in disarray and suffered heavy causalities. Geiss had walked onto the field with 16,896 soldiers and walked away with 11,653 soldiers in various states of alive or wounded. Meanwhile, The Imperial Guards, along with Piedmont had marched with 26,696 soldiers and suffered a mere 2,039 loss.
Soult would quickly follow Geiss in hopes of bringing about the destruction of the rag-tag remains of his force. However Mother Nature would aid the Austrians in the form of rain followed by a heavy fog, allowing them to escape the clutches of death. Geiss’s escape would come to an end on June 3rd, when he was trapped with his back near Verona because the nearby river was flooding and proven to be impassable due to its fast currents.
Shortly after ten in the morning, the Imperial Guards began marching across the open field, the magnificent colors, the thunderous music from the drums was almost enough to cause panic within the Austrian lines. A volley was unleashed upon the Imperial Guard, however the aim of the Austrians was quite off; while a few guards did fall dead or wounded, most were unscathed. A furious war cry came from the Guards who had already fixed bayonets before departing. As the Guards clashed with the front line troops, the Austrians morale quickly wavered. After a few minutes, white flags were raised.
At the Battle of Verona, Soult would obtain a the victory he had been seeking, Soult entered the field with 21,657 soldiers and would depart with 19,596. Meanwhile his counterpart Geiss began the day with 11,653 troops, of which all were either killed, wounded, missing or captured, including the general himself. With the defeat at Verona, no Austrian army was left within northern Italy, an army would have to be drawn from elsewhere in the country; which would lead to speculation. Who would challenge Austria while she was clearly weakened?
The situation in Northern Italy as of Mid July, 1843.