Battle of Cerignola

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Battle of Cerignola
Part of the Second Italian War
Date April 21, 1503 Location Cerignola, present-day Italy Result Decisive Spanish victory
Combatants
Spain	France
Commanders
Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba	Louis d'Armagnac †
Strength
8,000 infantry 20 guns	32,000 infantry and cavalry 40 guns

Italian War of 1499–1504
Novara – Cerignola – Garigliano – Ruvo

Italian Wars
1494–98 – 1499–1504 – League of Cambrai – Urbino – 1521–26 – League of Cognac – 1535–38 – 1542–46 – 1551–59

The Battle of Cerignola was fought on April 21, 1503, between Spanish and French armies, in Cerignola, next Bari, Southern Italy. It is noted as the first battle in history won by gunpowder small arms.

[edit] Preparations

Spanish forces, under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, formed by 8,000 men, with more than 1000 arquebusiers, and 20 cannons, defeated the French, 32,000 men, mainly heavy cavalry and Swiss mercenary pikemen, with about 40 cannons, and led by Louis d'Armagnac, Duke of Nemours, who was killed.

Despite being outnumbered 4:1, Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, called "El Gran Capitán" (The Great Captain), had many strategic advantages, he had occupied the heights of Cerignola, and entrenched his soldiers with walls, trenches and stakes, and his artillery was better placed than French one. Most of his forces were infantry troopers, which he had formed into new units called "Coronelías", that were the seed of the later Tercios, armed with a mix of pikes, arquebuses and swords. This type of formation had revolutionized the Spanish army, which like the French, had also centred upon cavalry during the 10th to 15th centuries, in the battles of the Reconquista against the Muslims in Spain.

This army faced a professional French army based on the Ordonnance reforms, relying on the heavily-armoured cavalry of the Compagnies d'ordonnance and mercenary Swiss pikemen; but, at the same time, this army had more artillery than the Spanish. This paradox would be constant in the French armies through the first half of 16th century.

[edit] The battle

The battle began with two charges by the French cavalry, against the centre of the Spanish army, but was disbanded by heavy artillery fire on both occasions. The next assault tried to force the right flank, but it was broken by a storm of fire from the Spanish arquebusiers, which killed the Duke of Nemours. With the Swiss commander, Chandieu, taking charge, the Swiss infantry attacked along with the cavalry, but this attempt was again driven back by the arquebusiers, during which Chandieu also died. This forced the French army to retire in disorder, the moment in which Spanish infantry countered. The result was a total French defeat.

It is considered the first battle in history won by gunpowder small arms.