Custoza, Battles

Custoza, Battles of

Two attempts at Custoza, Italy, to end Austrian control over northern Italy. In the first battle (July 24, 1848), an Austrian army under Joseph Radetzky defeated the Sardinians, led by Charles Albert. In the second battle (June 24, 1866), as part of an Italian effort to acquire Austrian-held Venetia, a disorganized Italian army of 120,000 men, led by Victor Emmanuel II, was defeated by an 80,000-man Austrian force. Despite its defeats, Italy subsequently obtained Venetia in the Treaty of Vienna (1866).