Armistice of Treviso

Napoleon desired the city, which was within striking distance of a French force, and as a result was displeased with Brune, who had promised that Mantua would form part of any armistice deal.

The French were engaged in a campaign in northern Italy against the Archduchy of Austria, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Kingdom of Naples as part of the War of the Second Coalition.

[1] Bellegarde held his forces at Caldiero, intending to provide time for Laudon and Vukassovich to assemble, but was driven from that position by Brune.

[2] A French force under Bon-Adrien Jeannot de Moncey pursued Laudon and drove him from successive positions at Alta, St Marco and Roveredo to La Pietra.

[3] In Germany, a French victory at the Battle of Hohenlinden on 3 December and the subsequent capture of Steyr left Jean Victor Marie Moreau's forces only 65 kilometres (40 mi) from the Austrian capital at Vienna.

[8] However, with his army weakened by the mountain crossings, combat losses and detachments to blockade towns in the rear, Brune agreed to a treaty that excluded Mantua.

[9] His fear was that otherwise the Austrians, reinforced with troops from Tyrol, could attack the French on the open plains near Treviso with fresh cavalry forces.

[8] Austrian forces would remain in control of Mantua, which the Emperor Francis II called "the bulwark of the Empire".

The latter country was saved from occupation by the intervention of the pro-French Russian Tsar, but in the subsequent Armistice of Folgano was forced to withdraw from the coalition and close its ports to British ships.