Siege of Antibes
1746–1747 siege
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Through Italy
Background
Earlier in the war the French had invaded Italy, attacking Savoy and the Austrian Duchy of Milan, but they were forced to retreat after the indecisive Battle of Rottofreddo (10 August 1746). The Allies then went on the offensive, their first target being France's ally the Republic of Genoa. The Republic was successfully defeated and occupied after the Siege of Genoa (1746), and the Allies subsequently drew up plans to invade France itself. Command of the operation was entrusted to the Austrian general Maximilian Ulysses Browne.
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Prelude
On 30 November, Browne led his Austro-Savoyard army over the River Var into France and encamped at Cagnes-sur-Mer. From here he had the option of pressing on westward, but before doing so he wished to take control of the fortified town of Antibes, which was situated on a promontory 10 kilometres to the south and had the potential to disrupt his communications with Italy if left in enemy hands. He therefore sent an envoy to offer surrender terms to the town on 4 December, but these were refused by the commandant, Joseph-David, Count of Sade, and so Browne broke camp and marched south to besiege Antibes.
Siege
The siege began on 5 December, and at 4 AM on the following day the Allies attempted to capture the town by storm, but the night attack was repulsed. Browne therefore brought up his artillery, which entrenched themselves at Golfe-Juan and from there began bombarding Antibes. During the week of 19–25 December the town was also subject to a naval bombardment by a British squadron commanded by John Byng.
Browne again offered terms on 26 December, but de Sade once more rejected them, supposedly responding with the celebrated words:
Sa Majesté m'ayant fait l'honneur de me confier cette place, je préfère infiniment, au deshonneur de la rendre, la gloire d'être enseveli sous ses ruines. His Majesty having done me the honour of entrusting me with this place, I would infinitely prefer the glory of being buried under its ruins to the dishonour of surrendering it.
Two days later, on 28 December, Browne made another attempt to seize the town directly, this time concentrating the attack on Fort Carré and deploying his Croatian shock troops to lead the assault, but again the besiegers were repulsed. The Austrians were therefore forced to revert to their previous strategy of bombarding Antibes into submission.
The siege dragged on into the new year, but by this point the Allies had received the disturbing news that the garrison they had left behind in Genoa had been expelled by a rebellion on 6 December. The Genoese resurgence imperiled the army's lines of communication from Italy and threw the invasion of France into jeopardy. Browne prevaricated for a few weeks, but his mind was made up for him on 1 February 1747, when the Antibes garrison was reinforced by sea with troops commanded by the Chevalier de Belle-Isle. The arrival of these reinforcements dashed the last hopes of capturing Antibes, and so on the same day the Allies lifted the siege and began the retreat to Italy. A Second Siege of Genoa followed later in the year.
By the time the Austrians withdrew, their artillery had fired 2600 bombs and 200 firepots into Antibes, levelling 350 houses and also gutting Antibes Cathedral, though the latter was subsequently rebuilt.