Historical Note
During the night of 15 November, Bonaparte ordered his troops back to Ronco. He thought his troops were over extended and exposed on the dykes. Bonaparte also feared that an Austrian attack on his extreme left flank could cut off his entire command. Bonaparte's troops were shocked but they gave up their hard fought gains and returned to Ronco. The Austrians quickly sized Arcole and Bionde Di Porcile.
Before dawn on 16 November, Bonaparte realized his fears were unfounded. He quickly ordered his troops to repeat their attacks from the previous day.
Although Alvintzi was surprised when he heard that the French had fallen back he was not slow to react. Both Mittrovsky and Provera were ordered to drive the French back to Ronco. Oddly the French were already there but that was about to change.
Briefings and Orders of Battle
General Baron Joszef Alvintzi :
General order of the day issued at 6:00am November 16, 1796: "Today we will further strengthen
our position along the Alpone and make ready for another possible assault by the French, who hold
their bridge at Ronco."
General Baron Anton Mittrovsky : You are commanding the Austrian forces on the
east bank of the Alpone River. At Arcole are the forces commanded by Colonel Brigido.
Your personal command is currently at San Bonifacio (an hour north of Arcole) with
the commands of Schübirz and Sticker.
General Marchese Giovanni Provera : You are commanding the Austrian forces on the
west bank of the Alpone River and have positioned your advance field headquarters
at the village of Belfiore Di Porcile. A force commmanded by Lt. Colonel Gavasini
is about an hours march north of you and a second force, commanded by General Brabeck,
is at Bionde Di Porcile.
For a detailed Austrian Order of Battle click HERE.
General-in-Chief of the Army of Italy : Général Napoleon Bonaparte :
General order of the day issued by the commanding General Bonaparte at 6:00am November 16, 1796:
"Today we will outflank and and defeat the Austrian army that stands before us. We will not be denied
our goals as were yesterday."
Général Pierre-Francois-Charles Augereau : Your command will cross the bridge
at Ronco first and attack the Austrian army holding Arcole.
Général André Masséna : Your command will cross the bridge at Ronco after
Augereau and attack the Austrians at Bionde Di Porcile and Belfiore Di Porcile.
For a detailed French Order of Battle click HERE.
Arcole - November 16, 1796 : After Action Report
Both sides were eager to accomplish their goals and were on the move before dawn. Mittrovski arrived on the field from San Bonifacio at 6:30am. He ordered Schubirz to advance to Albaredo and hold it while the rest of his command advanced to support Brigido at Arcole. Once there he moved his command across the river and set up a battery on the dyke facing south.
Augereau's troops tried to advance on the dyke towards Mittrovski's troops, but the artillery fire was far too intense. Five battalions broke and fled back to Ronco. With over half his command gone Augereau was no longer able to advance.
Brabeck tried to push his troops down the dyke from Bionde Di Porcile but Victor's troops were more determined to push north. After pushing back and forth for over an hour Bionde fell to the French at 8:30am.
By 9:30am it was clear that the French would not be able to take Arcole and possibly not Belfiore Di Porcile as well. The Austrians would also not be able to push all the French back to Ronco. In view of this impasse the game was ended.
Arcole 16 November 1796 Map:
Arcole Map Notes
Conclusion
The first impression of this game is to call it a draw, but a draw is really an Austrian victory. The French were the attackers and they failed to even come close to the main objective, Arcole. While the Austrians failed in their attacks as well, the defense of Arcole was handled very well. Historically Brabeck was killed and the entire command under Provera (six battalions) routed. The reverse took place here, five French battalions routed. This fact alone puts the Austrian command ahead. Victory must be awarded to the Austrians.
As a footnote the players once again greatly enjoyed the game and found there were a lot of challenges that they never even saw until they started to play. They all are now a little wiser and are eager to fight day three.
