On 2 January 1709, orders arrived from Rome directing the Ruspoli regiment to march towards Ferrara, a city that had become increasingly isolated but still contained an important arsenal. As the troops advanced through the towns and countryside of Romagna, they were enthusiastically welcomed by the local population, who saw the Ruspoli Regiment as a visible symbol of the Papal army. By this stage, the regiment had been reinforced by detachments of fusiliers drawn from the garrisons of Cesena, Forlì and Faenza, (with different unifoms) bringing its effective strength to just under a thousand men.
It should be remembered that the Colonel’s Company had remained in Rome, and possibly the Grenadier Company as well. This would have reduced the regiment’s effective field strength to nine companies, comprising approximately 650 men. To these must be added the fusiliers drawn from the city garrisons, amounting to a further 250 men, or roughly four auxiliary companies.
Along the way, it encountered several enemy detachments, which were driven off with appreciable losses.
The Austrians, who until then had operated with relatively little opposition, recalled their scattered forces and began concentrating them in the area around Comacchio. Once they realised that the Papal column was advancing towards Ferrara, they moved rapidly to strengthen their bridgehead on the southern bank of the Po, at Pontelagoscuro.
On 12 January, Ferrara opened its gates to the Ruspoli Regiment. The Austrian forces had taken up positions only a few miles to the north, around Pontelagoscuro. According to contemporary intelligence, they already numbered between 2,000 and 2,500 men, with the possibility of further reinforcements arriving from the detachments operating throughout Romagna.
Although considerably outnumbered, the Ruspoli Regiment enjoyed one important advantage: artillery. The Austrians had little or no artillery immediately available, and it was therefore essential to act before they had time to strengthen and fortify their bridgehead.
Making use also of the guns and artillerymen available at Ferrara, the Papal forces were able to deploy as many as sixteen pieces of artillery approximately four miles north of the city. The Ruspoli Regiment was responsible for ensuring the transport and supply of ammunition, while the artillery maintained a heavy and almost continuous bombardment from dawn until dusk.
After only a few days of sustained fire, the Austrians abandoned their positions and withdrew to the northern bank of the Po.
The immediate threat to the Papal territories in this sector had therefore been removed, and the Ruspoli Regiment emerged from the operation with considerable prestige. As a mark of gratitude, on 3 February 1709 Pope Clement XI elevated the Marquisate of Cerveteri to the rank of a Principality.
The wider conflict, however, ended far less favourably for the Holy See. Following the serious defeat suffered by General Marsili, the Papal States lost control of Comacchio and were forced to accept the presence of an Imperial garrison in the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. At the same time, the Duchy of Mantua was incorporated into the Empire. These developments compelled the Holy See to conclude a rapid peace with the Imperial forces and to abandon its informal alignment with the Bourbon monarchies of France and Spain. This, in turn, provoked a diplomatic reaction from Louis XIV, who excluded the Papacy from the subsequent negotiations.
In the years that followed, the Ruspoli Regiment was gradually reduced in strength and was eventually incorporated into the Company of His Holiness’s Guards, while continuing to retain the Ruspoli coat of arms on its colours and drums.
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