v16_1440 - 20 francs Marengo 1802 Turin VG.845

ITALY - SUBALPINE GAUL

(06/16/1800-09/11/1802)

The second Italian campaign was one of General Bonaparte's most brilliant. He crossed the Alps between May 16 and 20, 1800, on June 2, he seized Milan, defeated the Austrians at Montebello on June 9 and at Marengo on June 14 where Desaix was killed. On June 16, the armistice of Alexandria in Piedmont put an end to the campaign and the Austrians withdrew beyond the Po. Following this armistice, a new republic was proclaimed: the Subalpine Republic, or Subalpine Gaul, with Turin as its capital. The annexation of Piedmont to France, on September 11, 1802, put an end to this ephemeral republic.