the Piedmontese and all major Piedmontese units kept their cohesion and their equipment), the battle was nonetheless a considerable reversal. On the 26th Piedmontese troops sought to prevent the Austrians from crossing the Mincio at the battle of Volta Mantovana. Their failure to do so and a decisive Austrian victory meant that the Piedmontese were first forced to retreat westwards to a new defensive line behind the river Oglio, and then further to Milan. After a small battle at the outskirts of Milan an armistice (originally of six weeks and then prorogued) was signed, and the Piedmontese Army retreated within the borders of the Kingdom of Sardinia. The attempt to renew the war effort the next year resulted in another victory for Radetzky and the effective end of the First Italian War of Independence. The Austrian marshal returned all the rebellious provinces to Austrian rule. See also Revolutions of 1848 in the Italian states References Sources Custoza 1848 Custoza 1848 Custoza 1848 Custoza 1848 in Italy 1848 in the Austrian Empire July 1848 events Joseph Radetzky von Radetz