Siege of Genoa (1800)

Siege of Genoa
	Part of the War of the Second Coalition
	; Bombardment of the city of Genoa by the English on the night of 20 May 1800; by Giuseppe Pietro Bagetti, 1806-1807
Date	19 April – 4 June 1800
Location	Genoa, Ligurian Republic44°24′40″N 8°55′48″E / 44.41111°N 8.93000°E
Result	Anglo-Austrian victory
Belligerents
France; Liguria	Habsburg monarchy; Great Britain
Commanders and leaders
André Masséna; Jean-de-Dieu Soult	Michael von Melas; Peter Karl Ott; Lord Keith;
Strength
12,000 fit, 16,000 sick	24,000; 1 British naval squadron
Casualties and losses
Siege: 4,000–8,000 dead; Campaign: 14,000	Siege: 6,000–6,500; Campaign: 20,000
	Location within Liguria Siege of Genoa (1800) (Italy)

War of the Second Coalition:
Italy

50km
31miles

12

Marengo

11

10

9

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5

4

3

2

1

Verona

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current battle

Napoleon in command

Napoleon not in command

The siege of Genoa saw an Austrian army led by Michael von Melas besiege the port of Genoa, which was occupied by a French garrison under the command of André Massena, from 19 April to 4 June 1800. It formed part of the larger Marengo campaign during the War of the Second Coalition. The Austrian army isolated Massena and half of the French army in Genoa, while driving the other half from the area. Once Genoa was under siege, Massena conducted a very active defense with frequent sorties. Besieged on land by 24,000 troops led by Peter Karl Ott von Bátorkéz and at sea by a Royal Navy squadron under Lord Keith, famine reduced the defenders to starvation. By the time Massena surrendered the city on 4 June, 30,000 of Genoa's 160,000 inhabitants had died of starvation and disease. While the Austrian army was focused on the siege, a French army under Napoleon invaded Italy from the northwest, winning a close affair at the Battle of Marengo.