Battle of Palestro

Battle of Palestro
Part of Second Italian War of Independence
Victor Emmanuel II with French zouaves at the Battle of Palestro. Painting by Luigi Norfini, 1863.
Date 30–31 May 1859 Location Palestro, Italy Result Franco-Sardinian victory
Belligerents
Sardinia French Empire	Austrian Empire
Commanders and leaders
Victor Emmanuel II	Friedrich Zobel
Strength
14,000 1,000	14,000
Casualties and losses
101	2,000

The Battle of Palestro was fought on 30–31 May 1859 between the Austrian Empire and the combined forces of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont and France. The Franco-Piedmontese forces were victorious. It was fought just south to Palestro, a town in what is now the province of Pavia in northern Italy. It was believed that the Battle of Palestro was the last European battle in which a European Monarch rode into battle, that being King Victor Emmanuel II, who directly entered the fray with the Austrians.^[1]