Battle of Staffarda

Battle of Staffarda
Part of the War of the Grand Alliance
Date August 18, 1690 Standort Italien Result French victory
Belligerents
Frankreich	Piedmont Spain Austria
Commanders and leaders
Catinat	duke of Savoy
Strength
18,000	17,000
Casualties and losses
2,000	6,700

The Battle of Staffarda, was a battle in the War of the Grand Alliance, fought in Italy on August 18, 1690 between the French army of Marshal Catinat and the Allied army of the duke of Savoy .

In Italy the armed neutrality of the duke of Savoy had long disquieted the French court. His personal connections with the imperial family and his resentment against Louvois, who had on some occasion treated him with his usual patronizing arrogance, inclined him to join the Allies, while on the other hand he could hope for extensions of his scanty territory only by siding with Louis.

In view of this doubtful condition of affairs the French army under Catinat had for some time been maintained on the Alpine frontier, and in the summer of 1690 Louis XIV. sent an ultimatum to Victor Amadeus to compel him to take one side or the other actively and openly. Louis demanded access to the citadel of Turin. The result was that Victor Emmanuel threw in his lot with the Allies and obtained help from the Spaniards and Austrians in the Milanese.

Catinat thereupon advanced into Piedmont. The battle was fought near the cultural important abbey of Staffarda, which was completely destroyed . The duke of Savoy attacked the French, without waiting for the arrival of his Austrian and Spanish allies.

Catinat won the battle, principally by virtue of his own watchfulness and the high efficiency of his troops.

This did not, however, enable him to overrun Piedmont, and as the duke was soon reinforced, he had to be content with the methodical conquest of a few frontier districts.