Battle of Cassano

As Prince Eugene attempts to surprise the French army at Cassano, Vendôme counterattacks energetically. Fighting is extremely violent around the bridges and embankments of the Adda. French troops, although disorganized by heat and terrain, succeed in stabilizing the situation and then repelling the Imperial assault. Eugene narrowly escapes capture.

After the reverses suffered in Bavaria, France relies on Italy to rebalance the war. Eugene attempts a breakthrough toward Milan to cut the Franco-Spanish axis, but Vendôme, very active and on the ground, vigorously opposes him.

Tactical use of the river terrain: bridges defended at all costs, coordinated counter-attacks on the flanks, concentrated fire from light artillery. Vendôme personally led the action, galvanizing his men in the heart of the fighting. The battle, begun around one o'clock in the afternoon, saw Eugene of Savoy cross the Adda violently and push the French back beyond the river, before Vendôme rallied them to the charge; on the right wing, Austrian firearms, wet after crossing, prevented them from sustaining the assault and many soldiers drowned. The battle ended around five o'clock in the evening.

This French victory blocked the imperial offensive in Lombardy. It restored the prestige of the French army after Blenheim and strengthened the Spanish position in northern Italy. Eugene of Savoy, wounded, had 4,347 wounded evacuated to Palazzuolo and left 6,584 men on the battlefield along with 1,942 prisoners; Prince Joseph of Lorraine and the Prince of Württemberg died of their wounds. French resistance ruined Eugene's plans to penetrate Piedmont and forced the Imperials to take winter quarters on the spot.