Dictionary of Battles / From the Earliest Date to the Present Time

by Thomas Benfield Harbottle

Mortara (Italian Rising).

Fought March 21, 1849, between the Piedmontese, under the Duke of Savoy (Victor Emmanuel) and General Darando, and the main Austrian army, under Radetsky. No steps had been taken by the Piedmontese to render Mortara defensible, and little guard was kept, with the result that they were surprised by Radetsky, and driven out of the town in confusion, with a loss of 500 killed and wounded, 2,000 prisoners and 5 guns. The Austrians lost 300 only.