Catholic League (Italian)
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The Catholic League (or Holy League) was a coalition of various European powers that was formed by Pope Julius II in 1511, at the height of the Italian Wars, to defend the states of Italy against Louis XII of France and thus to strengthen Papal power. The League fought a war against France from 1511 to 1516, but was ultimately unsuccessful at preventing French expansion.
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Formation of the League
Although his military efforts to stop the League of Cambrai in 1510 had failed to produce the expected results, Julius was more successful from a diplomatic standpoint. The promise of territorial gains at French expense caused Ferdinand I of Spain and Emperor Maximilian I to abandon their alliance with the French, and in October 1511, they joined the newly-formed Holy League together with Julius and the Republic of Venice; in November, Henry VIII of England joined as well.
Expulsion of the French
In February 1512, Gaston de Foix was appointed to command the French forces in Milan. He moved rapidly against the League, destroying a Spanish army under Ramon de Cardona near Bologna, then marching north to sack Brescia and Bergamo. In early April, he attacked Cardona at Ravenna and defeated the League; however, he was killed during the battle. His replacement, the Seigneur de La Palice, hampered by heavy losses and the recall of French troops to deal with an impending English invasion, contented himself with occupying Ravenna.
By the summer of 1512, the League, reinforced by a fresh army of Swiss mercenaries, was on the offensive once more, aided by uprisings in many of the cities held by the French. The Duke of Urbino rapidly captured Bologna and Parma. Faced with a revolt in Milan that put Massimiliano Sforza on the throne, La Palice withdrew to France with the remnants of his army.
Venice switches sides
In August 1512, the League met at Mantua to discuss the partition of the territories acquired from the French. Here, Maximilian was unwiling to part with any of what he considered to be Imperial territory, which according to him included everything claimed by Venice. The final partition thus ignored Venice entirely in favor of the other members of the League. When the Venetians objected, Julius threatened to form another alliance against them.
In response, Venice entered into negotiations with Louis, and on March 23, 1513 concluded a treaty at Blois, which divided Northern Italy between the French, who would receive Milan and the Venetians, who would receive the Veneto and Lombardy east of the Adda River.
The English, meanwhile, had success in northern France with successful sieges at Therouanne and Tournais, and at the Battle of the Spurs at Guinegate. This despite an attempted Scottish invasion of England — see Battle of Flodden Field.
Invasions of Milan
By May, a French army commanded by Trivulzio crossed the Alps and entered Lombardy; at the same time, a Venetian army under Bartolomeo d'Alviano marched west from Padua. The French advanced rapidly, aided by the unpopularity of Massimiliano Sforza. On June 6, 1513, they encamped near the town of Novara. Sforza's Swiss mercenaries launched a night attack on the camp, and in the resulting battle, routed the French, who fled back to the Alps.
Alviano, suddenly left without French support, withdrew into the Veneto, followed by Cardona's Spanish troops. After an abortive siege of Padua, Cardona turned for Lombardy; Alviano, unwilling to let him go without a battle, confronted the Spanish near Schio on October 7, 1513. The Venetian army, composed largely of volunteers, was easily routed by Cardona.
For the remainder of 1513 and most of 1514, Cardona and Alviano continued to skirmish in the Friuli, but avoided further open confrontations. This continued until the death of Louis XII on January 1, 1515. His successor was Francis I, who assumed the title of Duke of Milan at his coronation.
By July, Francis had assembled an army of more than 100,000 men in the Dauphiné, commanded by Trivulzio. The Swiss and Milanese attempted to block the Alpine passes against the French, but Trivulzio avoided the main passes, marching instead through the valley of the Stura, and on September 13, 1515, confronted the League armies at the Battle of Marignano. The superior firepower of the French, together with the timely arrival of Alviano, who had successfly evaded a Spanish army at Verona, resulted in an overwhelming defeat for the League. In October, Massimiliano Sforza fled from Milan, which passed once again into French hands.
Peace
After Marignano, the League no longer possessed the will to continue the war. In December, the new Pope, Leo X, surrendered Parma and Piacenza to Francis and Modena to the Duke of Ferrara. By December 1516, Maximilian had finally agreed to the terms demanded by Francis, which included the surrender to Venice of all Imperial possessions in the Veneto and Lombardy and the recognition of the French claim to Milan.
See also
- Catholic League for other similarly named coalitions.
References
- Norwich, John Julius (1989). A History of Venice. New York: Vintage Books. ISBN 0-679-72197-5.fr:Sainte Ligue