Now but then: Battle of Arbedo

One of the few defeats suffered by the Swiss in the fifteenth century. On 30th of June 1422 The Swiss Confederation was raiding south over the Alps, and gaining territory in the northern Po Valley. Their actions provoked Filipppo Maria Visconti, who sent his best generals against the invading Swiss. The Swiss were outnumbered two to one, and despite initial successes against an Italian cavalry charge, they were soon put under serious pressure by a combination of crossbow fire on the flanks, and columns of dismounted men at arms in the centre. The larger Milanese force began to push back the Swiss, who were only saved from total disaster by the appearance of a band of foragers, who the Milanese were convinced represented a major new force. When the Milanese force pulled back to reform, the Swiss fled the battlefield, having taken heavy casualties.