Battle of Ronco

Battle context

The Battle of Ronco was a further reverse for Joachim Murat's army during the Austrian advance through northern Italy in the Neapolitan War of 1815. Already weakened by the disaster at Occhiobello, the Neapolitan army turned at the Ronco River in an attempt to check the pursuing Austrian corps under Adam Albert von Neipperg. The failure of that rearguard action cost Murat nearly 1,000 killed or wounded, compelled a continued retreat southward to the Savio River, and accelerated the disintegration of his force as additional troops deserted. The engagement demonstrated that the Neapolitan army, outnumbering the Austrians by more than two to one at this engagement, could no longer hold a defensive line against a pursuing enemy, deepening the operational collapse that would culminate in the loss of Murat's kingdom.