Battle of Molinella

The Battle of Riccardina or Battle of Molinella, fought on July 25, 1467, in Molinella, was one of the most important battles of the 15th century in Italy.

Combatants

On the one side were 14,000 infantry and cavalry led by Bartolomeo Colleoni fighting for Venice, in coalition with Borso d'Este, Marquis of Ferrara and the Lords of Pesaro, Forlì, and some renegade families of Florence.
On the other side was an army of 13,000 soldiers in the service of Florence, allied with Galeazzo [Maria Sforza], King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Giovanni II Bentivoglio. The army was led by Federico da Montefeltro.

Battle

The battle was fought along the Idice river, between the villages of Riccardina and Molinella.
Historians disagree on who won the battle. The only certainty is that Bartolomeo Colleoni had to abandon his plans to conquer Milan. There were between 600 and 700 casualties. Notable was the large number of horses killed. Artillery and firearms were intensively used for the first time in Italy in this battle.
A large fresco in the Castle of Malpaga, probably by Girolamo Romani, depicts the battle.
In 1468 peace was concluded under the initiative of Pope Paul II.