Battle of Marengo in the context of "Napoleon Bonaparte"

Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led a series of military campaigns across Europe during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars from 1796 to 1815. He led the French Republic as First Consul from 1799 to 1804, then ruled the French Empire as Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1814, and briefly again in 1815. He was King of Italy from 1805 to 1814, Protector of the Confederation of the Rhine from 1806 to 1813, and Mediator of the Swiss Confederation from 1803 to 1813.

Born on the island of Corsica to a family of Italian origin, Napoleon moved to mainland France in 1779 and was commissioned as an officer in the French Royal Army in 1785. He supported the French Revolution in 1789 and promoted its cause in Corsica. He rose rapidly through the ranks after winning the siege of Toulon in 1793 and defeating royalist insurgents in Paris on 13 Vendémiaire in 1795. In 1796, he commanded a military campaign against the Austrians and their Italian allies in the War of the First Coalition, scoring decisive victories and becoming a national hero. He led an invasion of Egypt and Syria in 1798, which served as a springboard to political power. In November 1799, Napoleon engineered the Coup of 18 Brumaire against the French Directory and became First Consul of the Republic. He won the Battle of Marengo in 1800, which secured France's victory in the War of the Second Coalition, and in 1803, he sold the territory of Louisiana to the United States. In December 1804, Napoleon crowned himself Emperor of the French, further expanding his power.

Alessandria (Italian: [alesˈsandrja] ; Piedmontese: Lissandria [liˈsɑŋdrja]) is a city and commune in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. With a population of 92,518, it is the 3rd-largest city in Piedmont and the 53rd-largest in Italy.

Known for the famous hat manufacturing company Borsalino and for its proximity to the historical site of the battle of Marengo, led by Napoleon, the town is an important agricultural, industrial and logistic hub within its region and Italy's North-West. With a surface extension that makes it Piedmont's largest municipality and a population of 92 839 inhabitants (the third most popolous city in the region), Alessandria is located in the centre of the so-called "industrial triangle", whose vertices are Turin, Milan and Genoa. Alessandria is also home to one of the headquarters of the University of Eastern Piedmont, which is an academic institution that has a tripolar structure shared with Vercelli and Novara.

Peter Karl Ott von Bátorkéz (1738 – 10 May 1809) was a military officer in the armies of the Habsburg monarchy. Of Hungarian origin, Ott fought in the wars against the Kingdom of Prussia, Ottoman Turkey, and the First French Republic in the last half of the 18th century. During the French Revolutionary Wars, he rose in rank to general officer and twice campaigned against the army of Napoleon Bonaparte in Italy. He played a key role in the Marengo campaign in 1800. He was Proprietor (Inhaber) of an Austrian Hussar regiment from 1801 to 1809.

The Battle of Montebello (9 June 1800) was fought near Montebello in Lombardy between a French force under General of Division (GD) Jean Lannes and an Austrian force led by Feldmarschall-Leutnant (FML) Peter Karl Ott von Bátorkéz. The action occurred in the Marengo campaign during the War of the Second Coalition. During the lead-up to the Battle of Marengo, the vanguard of the French army in Italy engaged and defeated an Austrian force in a "glorious victory".

The Treaty of Lunéville (or Peace of Lunéville) was signed in the Treaty House of Lunéville on 9 February 1801. The signatory parties were the French Republic and Emperor Francis II, who signed on his own behalf as ruler of the hereditary domains of the House of Austria and on behalf of the Holy Roman Empire. The signatories were Joseph Bonaparte and Count Ludwig von Cobenzl, the Austrian foreign minister. The treaty formally ended Austrian and Imperial participation in the War of the Second Coalition and the French Revolutionary Wars, as well as the Imperial Kingdom of Italy.

The Austrian army had been defeated by Napoleon Bonaparte at the Battle of Marengo on 14 June 1800 and then by Jean Victor Moreau at the Battle of Hohenlinden on 3 December. Forced to sue for peace, the Austrians signed the Treaty of Lunéville, which largely confirmed the Treaty of Campo Formio (17 October 1797), which itself had confirmed the Peace of Leoben (18 April 1797). The United Kingdom was the sole nation still at war with France for another year.