Battle of Guastalla

The Battle of Guastalla is a major confrontation between Franco-Sardinian forces and the Austrian army. Fighting takes place on the Po plain near Guastalla. After several hours of intense struggle, French troops, supported by their Sardinian allies, succeed in outflanking Austrian lines, inflicting heavy losses and forcing the enemy to retreat.

During the War of the Polish Succession, France supported the interests of the Duchy of Savoy and Stanislas Leszczyński against the Habsburgs. Guastalla was a strategic point for control of northern Italy. After the Battle of San Pietro on 29 June and the marshals Coigny and Broglie's failure to exploit their advantage, the Imperials resumed the offensive and Count Waldeck won a local victory over Coigny at Quistello on the night of 14 September.

Line battles with infantry in line, cavalry charges on the flanks, intensive use of field artillery. Partial encirclement maneuvers that disorganized Austrian forces. On 19 September, around ten o'clock, Königsegg first attacked the French cavalry of the Duke of Harcourt, then the infantry on the left wing; after more than eight hours of fighting, the Dauphiné, Soufré, and Picardy regiments held the shock and the Austrians withdrew in good order around seven in the evening.

The victory allowed the Franco-Sardinians to consolidate their presence in Lombardy, even though the war would not end for several more years. It weakened the Austrian position in the region and enabled more favorable negotiations for France. Among the roughly 12,000 casualties were Prince Frederick Louis of Württemberg and generals Valpareze and Colminero; Charles Emmanuel III failed to exploit the success and the Austrians stabilized their lines at Luzzara.