Battle of Saorgio (1793)

The Battle of Saorgio (8–12 June 1793) saw a Republican French army commanded by Gaspard Jean-Baptiste Brunet attack the armies of the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont and Habsburg Austria led by Joseph Nikolaus De Vins in the Maritime Alps. Though the French were initially successful in this War of the First Coalition action, their main assaults against the strong defensive positions of the Massif de l'Authion and the Col de Raus failed with serious losses. Saorge is now located in France about 70 km northeast of Nice, but in 1793 Saorgio belonged to Piedmont. In April 1794 the French seized the positions from the Austro-Sardinians in the Second Battle of Saorgio.