occupied another farmhouse. The remaining two brigades were in reserve. The vital bridges were behind the center of the position.
Nothing happened on the 7th, so the Spanish continued to sort out the mess at the bridges and dig in. Von Traun was expecting them to retreat to Bologna and was content to let them go, but if they remained in place, he was resolved to attack. Now, as noted, the Spanish would have retreated, but the bridges were clogged. So it appeared to von Traun as if they were intending to maintain a lodgement. He called a council of war. The Piedmontese commander, d’Aspremont, was eager to attack despite the enemy’s superiority, and the normally cautious von Traun was in agreement. He too had his accusers at Court whispering he was incapable. It would also help to cement the alliance if a little Piedmontese blood were spilled.
It was now too late in the day to attack. Besides, von Traun was hoping for a consignment of heavy artillery from Mirandola. So the assault was timed for the 8th.
On the morning of the 8th, the Allies formed for battle in two lines. The Austrian intent was to engage the strong Spanish left with light troops, which they had in abundance, and strike the weaker right flank with the bulk of their army. The cavalry, on their far left, would sweep along the Panaro, while the infantry in the center engaged the Spanish Guards and its associates. This deployment entailed a speedy march, including a canal crossing (the Fiumecello, running parallel to the Panaro), to avoid the Spanish observing what was afoot. The movement succeeded.
Von Traun’s men were in position around 1:30 in the afternoon. They were deployed parallel to the Spanish, but offset so that the center of their line was opposite the right flank of the Spanish. Earlier, von Traun’s Croats had begun harassing the enemy left, successfully pinning the Parma and Walloon Brigades for most of the day. The general advance began at 2pm, but due to the presence of many ditches it took two hours to advance a thousand yards (many of the later battles in this theatre began with the units advancing in columns, but here the by-the-book linear style was followed).
Though operationally von Traun had initiated the attack, it was the Spanish who began the actual combat. At 4pm, the Spanish Guards, led by General Macdonald, plus 6 battalions from the reserve, advanced to meet the enemy, extending their line to the right until it rested on a pond. An extra battalion was stationed on the right of this pond.
The Austrian cavalry now crossed the Spanish right in order to take the infantry in flank, but were exposed to the Spanish squadrons only 300 yards away. Without hesitation the 5 right-hand Spanish squadrons charged. Two Sabaudian squadrons wheeling to flank this movement were countered by 2 of the Spanish squadrons peeling off on the left, and the remaining 3 Spanish squadrons crashed into the Miglio Cuirassiers before they could form line. That regiment was routed from the field. The Austrian second line, 8 squadrons of the Berlichingen Cuirassiers, in turn attempted to flank the Spanish horse, but took heavy fire from the enemy battalion posted on the right of the pond, which had been lying down in concealment. Three Spanish squadrons brought over from the left wing then charged and routed the cuirassiers.
Fortunately for the Austrians, after seeing their much-vaunted cavalry chased off the battlefield, the Spanish horse lost control and wasted itself in a pursuit, leaving the infantry to slog it out. When they eventually did return, they merely reformed on their old position and took no further part in the action.
were close enough for muskets. Galled by artillery fire, the Spanish charged with the bayonet, driving back the Austrian infantry on its exposed right flank. D’Aspremont brought up one of his Piedmontese regiments and stabilised things, but both he and his second in command were wounded, d’Aspremont mortally so. Von Traun was everywhere in evidence, having two horses shot out from under him.
killed before order was restored.
The Battle of Campo Santo cost the Spanish 3,464 men (23%) and the Allies 1,751 (14%). This was the bloodiest battle of the war to date, and seemed even more so from the small numbers involved. Both sides claimed victory. The Austrians, with the better case, because they had repulsed the enemy and were ready to go a second round, the Spanish because they had retained the field at the end of the day.