Michelangelo Alessandro Colli-Marchi or Michelangelo da Vigevano or Michael Colli (1738 – 22 December 1808) entered the Habsburg Austrian army as a commissioned officer and became a general officer after fighting in the Seven Years' War, War of the Bavarian Succession, and Austro-Turkish War. During the War of the First Coalition, he was loaned to the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont for three years. In 1796, his army was defeated by Napoleon Bonaparte in a swift campaign that knocked Sardinia-Piedmont out of the war. In early 1797, he was given command of the army of the Papal States, but his troops were defeated at Faenza.
Early career
Michelangelo Alessandro Colli-Marchi was born in either Vigevano or Milan in 1738. His father Giuseppe Antonio Colli (1698–1766) had represented Vigevano with the Habsburg government in Milan and was granted a title of nobility. Well educated, Colli was commissioned as an Fähnrich (Ensign) at the age of 18 in the Pallavacini Infantry Regiment Nr. 15. He transferred to the General Staff and served at the Battle of Prague in 1757. He fought during the Seven Years' War with distinction. He was promoted to Unterleutnant in December 1757, and to Leutnant and Hauptmann (Captain) in 1758. He was wounded at the Battle of Torgau in 1760.
When the General Staff was reduced, Colli transferred to the Baden Infantry Regiment Nr. 23 on 1 May 1764. He received the noble title Freiherr in 1764. He transferred again to the Caprara Infantry Regiment Nr. 48 with the rank of Oberstleutnant (Lieutenant Colonel) on 1 November 1768. He led a battalion in the main army during the War of the Bavarian Succession. Colli was promoted Oberst (Colonel) on 1 May 1779 and assigned to the Milan garrison. During the Austro-Turkish War he led his troops in battle at Osijek (Esseg) in December 1787. His bravery was noted in the capture of Šabac. He received promotion to Generalmajor on 26 December 1788 to date from 30 November 1788. He fought at the Siege of Belgrade where he was badly wounded. He became the vice-commander of Josefstadt fortress in 1789.
Italian service
1792–1795
Though it was obvious that the First French Republic would invade the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, King Victor Amadeus III was unable to conclude a defense treaty with Habsburg Austria until 22 September 1792. By then it was too late because two days later, the French occupied Chambéry. Having lost the Duchy of Savoy and County of Nice thanks to the incompetence of his generals, Victor Amadeus asked the Austrians to provide his kingdom with an overall commander. On 21 December 1792, Feldzeugmeister Joseph Nikolaus de Vins was selected to fill the post. At about the same time, Colli and Generalmajor Eugène-Guillaume Argenteau were also loaned to the Sardinian kingdom. De Vins imposed a very awkward chain of command. He intended to direct operations from the capital at Turin. Meanwhile, Colli was ordered to obey his superior, Charles-François Thaon, Count of Saint-André, but only if de Vins approved. Unfortunately, Colli and Saint-André did not like each other. Also, the Piedmontese officer corps detested de Vins' chief of staff Argenteau.
The Piedmontese defenses in the south were based on a long line of peaks running from Roquebillière in the west through the Col de Raus, Authion massif, Colle Basse, and Saorge (Saorgio). This line was based on defensive redoubts. From Saorge, the line curved to the northeast toward the Colle Ardente and Monte Saccarello. In May and June 1793, the French army commander Gaspard Jean-Baptiste Brunet began a series of attacks on these positions which culminated in the First Battle of Saorgio on 12 June. The French were repulsed with losses of 280 killed and 1,252 wounded. Saint-André commanded the sector, but Colli was the local commander who defeated the French attacks on the 8 and 12 June. Another French attack on Authion was defeated at the end of July 1793. Historian Digby Smith named Colli as the Piedmontese commander in the 12 June engagement. Colli was promoted Feldmarschall-Leutnant on 29 December 1793.
In the Second Battle of Saorgio in April 1794, Pierre Jadart Dumerbion's French army turned the eastern flank of the Saorge defenses which were held by Colli and 16,000 Piedmontese soldiers. With 20,000 men, André Massena thrust east along the coast, then turned north. Massena drove off forces under Argenteau and captured Ormea on 17 April. Massena then turned west and stormed the Colle Ardente. The Saorge position was outflanked on its left and attacked in front by the divisions of Jean-Mathieu-Philibert Sérurier and François Macquard. Colli's troops were driven out of Saorge on 28 April and the French seized the Col de Tende.