|
The Alpine region of Tyrol (Tirol) in western Austria was the scene of a
peasant rebellion led by Andreas Hofer (1767-1810), a Catholic innkeeper loyal
to Austria's House of Hapsburg, who desired to free his homeland (Tyrol) from
Bavarian rule (Napoleon had placed it under Bavaria in 1805). Hofer's armed
peasants, aided by Austrians, won minor battles against Bavarian and Italo-French
forces occupying Tyrol, where Hofer became commander in chief after
decisively defeating the Bavarian army near Innsbruck in August 1809. However,
by the Peace of Schonbrunn in October 1809, Austria ceded Tyrol to the
victorious French, and Hofer's resistance failed against Italo-French occupying
forces in Tyrol. Forced into hiding, Hofer was betrayed, seized by the French,
and taken to Mantua, where he was shot on February 20, 1810, on Napoleon's
orders.
|
