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37-753: After the Battle of Lodi in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte organized two states: one to the south of the Po , the Cispadane Republic , and one to the north, the Transpadane Republic . On 19 May 1797, Napoleon transferred the territories of the former Duchy of Modena to Transpadania and, on 12 Messidor (29 June), he decreed the birth of the Cisalpine Republic, creating a Directory for

74-416: A French crossing because the bridge was wooden and could have been burnt. The bridge was about 200 yards long and was simply constructed with wooden piles driven into the river bed every few yards with beams laid to form a roadway. The French advance guard was not strong enough to try to cross the bridge so several hours passed as additional French forces arrived. That afternoon, French artillery arrived and

111-589: A central element in the Napoleonic legend convincing even Napoleon himself that he was superior to other generals and that he was destined to achieve great things. Constitution of the Cisalpine Republic (1797) The Constitution of the Cisalpine Republic ( Italian : Costituzione della Repubblica Cisalpina ), was the first constitution of the Cisalpine Republic , a sister republic of France under Napoleon Bonaparte , roughly comprising

148-555: A clash followed them towards Lodi. Vukassovich was soon relieved by Gerhard Rosselmini 's covering force near the town. The town's defences were not strong, the defenders were few, and the French were able to get inside and make their way towards the bridge. The span was defended from the far bank by nine battalions of infantry arrayed in two lines and fourteen guns. The Austrian general in command at Lodi, Sebottendorf, also had four squadrons of Neapolitan cavalry at his disposal, giving him

185-633: A constitutional one. That this transition should experience no shock, nor be exposed to anarchy, the Executive Directory thought proper to nominate, for the present, the members of the government and the legislative body, so that the people should, after the lapse of one year, have the election to the vacant places, in conformity to the Constitution. For a great number of years, there existed no republic in Italy. The sacred fire of liberty

222-736: A single municipality, with each commune having its own municipal agent . The first constitution did not have a long life. On 14 Fructidor, year VI (31 August 1798), the French ambassador Claude-Joseph Trouvé (who was only thirty years old) dismissed the Directory, and the next day he promulgated a new constitution with a stronger executive power. The departments numbered eleven again, now covering larger geographical areas: Olona ( Milan ), Alto Po ( Cremona ), Serio ( Bergamo ), Adda and Oglio ( Morbegno ), Mella ( Brescia ), Mincio ( Mantua ), Panaro ( Modena ), Crostolo ( Reggio ), Reno ( Bologna ), Basso Po ( Ferrara ), Rubicone ( Forlì ). The membership of

259-502: A total of 6,577 men, who were mostly completely exhausted after a hasty forced march. Sebottendorf decided that it was inadvisable to retire in daylight, and opted to defend the crossing until nightfall. According to French grenadier François Vigo-Roussillon, the Austrians had men attempting to destroy the bridge but the French stopped their efforts by bringing up guns to fire along its length. It should have been fairly easy to prevent

296-702: The Treaty of Lunéville on 9 February 1801, the territory of the republic was extended to the east as well, placing the frontier with the Holy Roman Empire on the River Adige without the exceptions agreed in Campo Formio. On 23 Floreal (13 May), the territory of the republic was divided into 12 departments, adding Agogna ( Novara ), restoring Lario and abolishing Adda-e-Oglio. On 21 Brumaire, year X (12 November), an Extraordinary Cisalpine Consulta

333-490: The Austrian positions for several hours, at about 6 pm the French prepared to attack. Marc Antoine de Beaumont 's cavalry was sent to ford the river upstream while the 2nd battalion of carabiniers (elite light infantry) was readied inside the walls of the town for an assault onto the bridge itself. The carabiniers stormed out of the gates and onto the bridge. Vigo-Roussillon tells us that the enemy artillery fired one salvo when

370-472: The Directory presented this treaty to the Great Council for ratification. The council did not agree with the terms and delayed taking a decision, but in the end, the French general Berthier compelled acceptance by the members. The Elders, however, refused it from the very beginning, as the new state was unable to finance the requested institutions. Berthier threatened to impose a military government but

407-526: The Republican armies, to secure the political existence of the Cisalpine Republic, extends its care still further; and convinced that, if liberty be the first of blessings, the revolution which attends it is the greatest of evils, it has given to the Cisalpine people their peculiar Constitution, resulting from the wisdom of the most enlightened nation. From a military regime, the Cisalpine people pass to

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444-718: The assembled notables proclaim the Italian Republic. On 21 Pluviôse (10 February), the new constitutional government was proclaimed in Milan by Sommariva and Ruga. The same day, the Gregorian calendar was restored. 45°28′N 9°10′E  /  45.467°N 9.167°E  / 45.467; 9.167 Battle of Lodi The Battle of Lodi was fought on 10 May 1796 between French forces under Napoleon Bonaparte and an Austrian rear guard led by Karl Philipp Sebottendorf at Lodi, Lombardy . The rear guard

481-748: The defeat of France at the Battle of Cassano in April 1799 during the War of the Second Coalition , the republic was occupied by General Suvorov's Russian and Austrian forces, which appointed a provisional administration led by the Imperial Commission of the Mantuan Count Luigi Cocastelli . They departed only on 30 May 1800, just a few days before the French won the Battle of Marengo . The Cisalpine Republic

518-427: The following months: Benaco ( Desenzano ) on 11 Ventose (1 March 1798), Mella ( Brescia ) on 13 Floreal (2 May), Mincio ( Mantua ) on 7 Prairial (26 May), and five departments of Emilia. The structural phase of the republic was terminated on 14 Fructidor (31 August), when France dismissed all the authorities of the republic, replacing them with a stronger executive power under a new constitution. The Cisalpine Republic

555-612: The full international recognition and legality of the new state was ratified by the law governing the final annexation of the conquered territories. The parliament, composed of two chambers (the Great Council and the Council of the Seniors ), was appointed directly by Napoleon on 1 Frimaire (21 November). He justified this undemocratic action as a necessity of war. New departments joined the eleven original ones and Valtelline in

592-436: The heavy guns were positioned to fire across the river. With the heavy guns in place, a violent cannonade began to pound the Austrian positions across the river. It has been suggested that Bonaparte was personally involved in directing some of the guns and that his troops began to refer to him as le petit caporal (the little corporal) because of this. However, there is no contemporary evidence to back this up. After bombarding

629-537: The institution of the French Consulate . On 21 Vendémiaire (13 October), owing to the refusal of the escaped King Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia to sign a treaty of peace settling the situation of the occupied Piedmont , Napoleon ordered the annexation of Novara to the republic, shifting its western border from the river Ticino to the River Sesia . After the surrender of Austria and the signing of

666-595: The local directories was reduced to three, and the municipalities for communes between 3,000 and 10,000 inhabitants were disbanded. Trouvé appointed the new Directory, which had stronger powers, and a new parliament composed of two councils: the Anziani ("Elders") and the Giuniori ("Juniors"). The first was composed of 40 elected members together with the former directors. The second had 80 members. A new coup d'état, attempted by French general Guillaume Marie Anne Brune

703-416: The main Austrian army. The Austrian morale collapsed as the carabiniers rushed towards them and a hasty retreat ensued. The remaining Austrian soldiers made the most of the gathering darkness to make their escape towards Crema though some units maintained a dogged rearguard action thus discouraging the French from pursuing too closely. Oberst Count Attems of Terzi Infantry Regiment # 16 was killed covering

740-478: The modern-day northern regions of Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna . It came into effect on 20 messidor V (8 July 1797). It established a directorial republic , which effectively was a French puppet . The parliament had an upper house of 60 aldermen and a lower house of 120 members, both appointed by Napoleon . The territory was divided in French-like departments and municipalities . Every noble title

777-648: The next autumn, was disavowed by the French Directory on 17 Frimaire (7 December). Formally, the Cisalpine Republic was an independent state allied with France, but the treaty of alliance established the effective subalternity of the new republic to France. The French, in fact, had control over the local police and left an army consisting of 25,000 Frenchmen, financed by the Republic. The Cisalpines were also required to form another army of 35,000 of their own men to take part in French campaigns. On 4 March 1798,

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814-426: The republic and appointing its ministers. France published the constitution of the new republic on 20 Messidor (7 July), establishing the division of the territory into eleven departments : Adda ( Lodi ), Alpi Apuane ( Massa ), Crostolo ( Reggio ), Lario ( Como ), Montagna ( Lecco ), Olona ( Milan ), Panaro ( Modena ), Po ( Cremona ), Serio ( Bergamo ), Ticino ( Pavia ), and Verbano ( Varese ). The rest of Cispadania

851-401: The successful, though costly withdrawal. Austrian losses were 21 officers, 5,200 men, and 235 horses killed, wounded, or captured. In addition, 12 cannons, 2 howitzers and 30 ammunition wagons were lost. The French suffered approximately 1,000 casualties. The Battle of Lodi was not a decisive engagement since the bulk of the Austrian army managed to escape. Nevertheless, the engagement became

888-415: The thesis of a single attack.) As the French column pushed forward over the bridge, some French carabiniers climbed down the bridge pilings and waded through the river firing as they went. The Austrian troops, already exhausted from hours of marching and fighting without food and presumably demoralised by the French cannonade, were likely concerned that the French cavalry was in position to cut them off from

925-492: The tricolour flag was restored. Napoleon's new victories gave him a chance to stabilize the political situation in all of northern Italy. On 3 Vendémiaire , year IX (25 September), the powers of the Extraordinary Commission were concentrated in the hands of a more restricted Committee of Government, composed of three members: Giovan Battista Sommariva , Sigismondo Ruga and Francesco Visconti , reflecting

962-447: The troops were part-way across, causing numerous casualties, at which point the column wavered and stopped. It was then that a number of senior French officers, including André Masséna , Louis Berthier , Jean Lannes , Jean-Baptiste Cervoni , and Claude Dallemagne , rushed to the head of the column and led it forward again. (Some authorities suggest that the French retreated and attacked again, but an important Austrian source supports

999-625: Was based on the French Constitution of 1795 . A five-member directory constituted the executive branch of government. The territory was divided into departments which elected the judges of peace , the magistrates and the electors , one for every 200 people having the right to vote. The latter elected two councils: the Consiglio dei Seniori ("Council of the Seniors") and the Gran Consiglio ("Great Council"). The first

1036-493: Was composed of five members and exercised executive power. Directors included local politicians such as Giovanni Galeazzo Serbelloni , the first president, and Francesco Melzi d'Eril , who would later serve as vice president of the Italian Republic . The Directory chose its secretary and appointed the six ministers: for justice, war, foreign affairs, internal affairs, police, and finance. The supreme authority, however,

1073-466: Was defeated, but the main body of Johann Peter Beaulieu 's Austrian Army had time to retreat. It occurred as part of the Italian Campaign of 1796–1797 . French Army: General Napoleon Bonaparte (15,500 infantry, 2,000 cavalry) Austrian-Neapolitan Army: Beaulieu (not present) The French advance guard caught up with Josef Vukassovich's Austrian rear-guard at about 9 am on 10 May and after

1110-432: Was extinguished, and the finest part of Europe was under the yoke of strangers. It belongs to the Cisalpine Republic to show to the world by its wisdom, its energy, and the good organization of its armies, that modern Italy is not degenerated, and is still worthy of liberty. (Signed) Buonaparte. The institutions of the Cisalpine Republic were very similar to those of France. Its first constitution , adopted on 8 July 1797,

1147-586: Was for many years under the dominion of the House of Austria. The French Republic succeeded it by right of conquest. It now renounces this right, and the Cisalpine Republic is free and independent. Recognized by France and by the Emperor, it will soon be equally acknowledged by the rest of Europe. The Executive Directory of the French Republic, not content with employing its influence, and the victories of

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1184-534: Was initially composed of 40 to 60 members and approved the laws and modifications to the Constitutional Chart. The second initially had from 80 to 120 members and proposed the laws. Both councils discussed treaties, the choice of a Directory, and the determination of tributes. The legislative corps included men like Pietro Verri , Giuseppe Parini and the scientist Alessandro Volta . The electors had to be landowners or wealthy. The Cisalpine directory

1221-774: Was later replaced by General Brune. The latter, after replacing some Elders and Juniors, achieved the signing of the treaty on 8 June. Due to multiple attempts by the Cisalpine government to annex the Italian-speaking Swiss territories south of the Alps , relations with the Swiss Confederacy were strained. The Cisalpine Republic ended up taking control of Valtellina from the Three Leagues and Campione d'Italia and annexing them. A Cisalpine attempt to conquer Lugano by surprise failed in 1797. After

1258-575: Was merged into the Cisalpine Republic on 27 July, with the capital of the unified state being Milan . On 1 Brumaire (22 October), Bonaparte announced the union of Valtelline with the Republic, after its secession from the Swiss Three Grey Leagues . Austria acknowledged the new entity in the Treaty of Campoformio of 17 October, gaining in exchange what remained of the Venetian Republic . On 25 Brumaire (15 November),

1295-476: Was restored by Napoleon on 15 Prairial , year VIII (4 June 1800). On 28 Prairial (17 June), the First Consul appointed an Extraordinary Commission of Government of nine members and a legislative Consulta : the final list of the executive and legislative institutions was published on 5 Messidor (24 June). On 16 Messidor (6 July) all the acts issued during the Austrian occupation were annulled, and afterwards,

1332-663: Was summoned in Lyon . In January 1802, the Consulta decided to change the name of the State to the Italian Republic , when Napoleon had himself elected president, on 24 January, on the advice of Talleyrand . Two days later, in a scene officially commemorated by Nicolas-André Monsiau , Bonaparte appeared in the Collège de la Trinité of Lyon , attended by Murat , Berthier , Louis Bonaparte , Hortense and Joséphine de Beauharnais, and heard

1369-480: Was the commander of the French troops. The republic also adopted the French Republican Calendar . Each department had its own local directory of five members, as did communes between 3,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. The biggest communes were divided into municipalities, with a central joint commission to handle the general affairs of the cities. The smallest communes were united in districts with

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