Army of the Alps

The Army of the Alps (Armée des Alpes) was one of the French Revolutionary armies. It existed from 1792–1797 and from July to August 1799, and the name was also used on and off until 1939 for France's army on its border with Italy.

Insignia of the Army of the Alps during World War II

1792–1797

The Army of the Alps was created by a decree of the French Convention on 1 October 1792 which divided the Army of the Midi into the Army of the Alps and the Army of the Pyrenees. On 1 November 1793 it was itself divided into the Army of Savoy and the Army of Italy by a conseil exécutif decree.

Following the decrees of 27–29 November 1792 which brought Savoy into the First French Republic under the name of Mont-Blanc department the Army of Savoy was renamed the Army of the Alps, before having the Army before Lyon split off from it between 8 August and 29 October 1793. The Army of the Alps was suppressed by a decree of 21 August 1797 (21 Fructidor year V), put into effect on 13 September, with its men and theatre transferred to the Army of Italy.

Composition on 15 December 1792

Below is the composition of the Army of the Alps on 15 December 1792.[1]

Camillo Rossi Division

Laroque Division
  • Maréchal de Camp, Jean-Jacques de la Roque d’Olès
    • 1ére Bataillon du 23éme Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne — Bramans and Modane
    • 2éme Bataillon du 23éme Régiment d'Infanterie de Ligne — Saint-André-les-Alpes
    • 2éme Bataillon de Chasseurs (Dauphiné) — Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis, Termignon, and Sollières-Sardières
    • 8éme Bataillon de Chasseurs à Pied (Vosges) — Séez and Saint-Maurice
    • 1ére Bataillon de Landes — Moûtiers
    • 4éme Bataillon d'Isère — Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne
    • 4éme Bataillon d'Ain — Aiguebelle and La Chambre
    • 5éme Bataillon d'Isère — Conflans and L'Hôpital-le-Grand

Camillo Rossi Division

Dubourg Division

Saint-Gervais Division

D'Albignac Division

Mixed Division
  • Generals Included: Lieutenant Général Jean-Jacques de la Roque d'Olès, Lieutenant Général Antoine François de Rossi, Maréchal de Camp Louis Joseph Marie Rogon de Carcaradec, and Maréchal de Camp André Horace François de Barral

Grouchy Division

Pourcin Division
  • Maréchal de Camp Charles Pierre de Pourcin

Oraison Division

1799

Created on 27 July 1799, this incarnation of the Army of the Alps only lasted until 29 August 1799, when it was merged into the Army of Italy.

Generals

Army of the Alps

Army of Savoy

  • 7 – 13 November 1792 : Montesquiou-Fézensac
  • 13 November – 4 December, temporarily : Jean Jacques de La Roque d'Olès d'Ornac

Army of the Alps

  • 5 – 24 December 1792, temporarily : Ornac
  • 25 December 1792 – 5 May 1793 : François Christophe Kellermann
  • 6 May – 1 June 1793, temporarily : Ornac
  • 2 June – 18 October 1793 : Kellermann, along with overall command of the Army of Italy. Kellermann, to whom the representatives on mission were ordered not to immediately communicate the decree by which he was deprived of this command, continued to command on the frontier until 18 October, when he was arrested and taken to Paris.
    • 2 June – 2 November : Ornac, second in command of the Army of the Alps
    • Army before Lyon:
      • 8 – 18 August, Kellermann was at the siege of Lyon
      • 19 – 21 August, Jean Baptiste de Félix du Muy
      • 22 – 31 August, Kellermann was in command before Lyon
      • 1 September, he went to put himself at the head of the troops guarding the frontier, leaving the besieging division under the command of Guy Coustard de Saint-Lo
  • 25 September – 28 October 1793 : François Amédée Doppet, in command before Lyon
  • 29 October – 17 November, provisionally : Jean-François Dours
  • 18 November – 22 December 1793 : Jean François Carteaux
  • 23 December 1793 – 20 January 1794, provisionally : Jean-Louis Pellapra
  • 21 January – 14 October 1794 : Thomas-Alexandre Dumas
  • 15 October – 30 November 1794, provisionally : Pierre Petitguillaume
  • 1 December 1794 – 7 October 1795 : Jean-François-Auguste Moulin, from 5 April subordinate to François Christophe Kellermann
  • 5 April 1795 – 13 September 1797 : Kellermann, commander in chief of the Armies of the Alps and Italy until 28 September 1795. He visited all the encampments of the Army of the Alps from 5 to 15 April 1795, then left for the headquarters of the Army of Italy at Nice.

1815
Further information: minor campaigns of 1815

During the Hundred Days, Napoleon activated the Army of the Alps and placed it under the command of Marshal Louis Gabriel Suchet. The force consisted on two regular infantry divisions, one cavalry division, three national guard divisions, and attached artillery. Philibert Jean-Baptiste Curial led the 10-battalion strong 23rd Infantry Division. Jean Mesclop's brigade was made up of three battalions of the 7th Line and two battalions of the 14th Line Infantry Regiment. Jean Louis Eloi Bouvard's brigade comprised three battalions of the 20th Line and two battalions of the 24th Line. Joseph Marie, Count Dessaix commanded the 24th Infantry Division with seven battalions in two brigades. Jean Montfalcon's brigade had three battalions of the 67th Line. Jean Revest's brigade included two battalions each of the 42nd Line and 53rd Line. François Jean Baptiste Quesnel led a cavalry division consisting of only one brigade. Bernard Meyer de Schauensee's brigade consisted of the 10th Chasseurs à Cheval and 18th Dragoon Regiments. The 5th, 6th, and 7th National Guard Divisions were led by Théodore Chabert, Claude Marie Pannetier, and Jean-Pierre Maransin, respectively. The artillery included six foot batteries from the 4th Artillery Regiment and one battery from the 4th Horse Artillery Regiment.[2]

Twentieth century

1940

In the mid-twentieth century, the Army of the Alps defended France's southeastern frontier with Italy, manning the Alpine Line fortifications of the Maginot Line. The army's commander was General René Olry, headquartered at Valence. Its chief units were the 14th Army Corps in the Fortified Sector of the Savoy and Fortified Sector of the Dauphiné, and the 15th Army Corps in the SF Maritime Alps.[3]

The Army of the Alps repelled every Italian invasion attempts, while being greatly outnumbered. Now there is an explanation because the French had the high ground in the situation, though for example, during the Battle of Menton, 9 French Alpine troops (chasseur alpin) fought against 3000 Italians and held their position until the surrender of the French government.

The army surrendered to German forces at the end of June 1940 in accordance with the terms of the Second Armistice at Compiègne, having repelled Italian forces in the Italian invasion of France.[4]

1945

On 6 June 1944 the Allies invaded Normandy, France; shortly after French Troops under Jean Lattre De Tassigny invaded the coast of Provence in south of France. Paris was liberated on by 25 August and General DeGaulle was reforming the French Military for the invasion of Germany. De Gaulle was very keen on France playing a major role in the war; as a result General Paul-André Doyen was recalled to service on 1 Feb 1945. General Doyen's first assignment was to be the Inspector General of Mountain Troops along the Franco-Italian border on 21 March 1945; it was under this command that the French 27th Alpine Division was assigned. In general the French divisions on the Franco-Italian border were grouped into the French Army of the Alps.

Since Italy invaded France in 1940, and since German troops were on the Italian side of the Franco-Italian border, De Gaulle ordered General Doyen to invade Italy. His army advanced attacking border fortification and taking back all the French territories across the Alps. In April 1945 the French marched into the Aosta Valley with the purpose of annexing it, but their advance was stopped by coordinated fascist and partisan Italian units and later on they were forced to withdraw under American threats.[5]

References
  1. Campagnes dans Les Alpes Pendant la Révolution, d'Après les Archives des États-Majors Français et Austro-Sarde. 1891, Paris, France.
  2. Schneid 2002, pp. 205–206.
  3. Mary, Tome 5, pp. 4-5
  4. Mary, Jean-Yves; Hohnadel, Alain; Sicard, Jacques (2009). Hommes et Ouvrages de la Ligne Maginot, Tome 4 - La fortification alpine (in French). Histoire & Collections. pp. 4–5. ISBN 978-2-915239-46-1.
  5. Rochat 2008, para. 29.

Sources
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