Italian

Unification Review Guide

KEY PEOPLE
I. Camillo Benso di Cavour (1810-1861) a. Piedmontese Prime Minister b. Skillfully used realpolitik and his understanding of international relations to enhance Piedmonts stature as a European power and use the French-Austrian conflict to his advantage c. Intellectual, born of an aristocratic family d. Took steps to modernize Piedmont e. Had no faith in full democracy and was vehemently opposed to Mazzinis republicanism f. Supported traditional Piedmontese aims to free Italy from Austrian influence and to strengthen Piedmont by annexing territory in North and Central Italy II. Giuseppe Mazzini a. Italian patriot and democrat committed to the unification of Italy under a liberal democratic government b. Leader of the Young Italy movement c. Influenced the movement by disseminating ideology of unification and nationalism d. Provided intellectual basis for the nationalist movement III. Giuseppe Garibaldi a. Italian patriot, democrat and freedom fighter b. Led a legion of Italian fighters through Naples, liberating province after province c. Forced to relinquish his territories to Cavour/Vittorio Emanuele in the name of unification d. Supporter of Mazzini and his republicanism e. Focal point for patriotic emotion f. Could have established himself as dictator of Southern Italy but believed national unity to be more important that personal ambition IV. King Vittorio Emanuele a. Shrewd and politically skillful b. Cautious politician c. Main aim was to speed up Piedmonts recovery so that it could fight Austria again after the battles in 1849 d. He hoped to marry a policy of extending Piedmontese influence in Italy with the idea of nationalism

KEY CONFLICTS
I. What form of government the new Italy would take a. Constitutional monarchy vs. Liberal Democracy II. Realpolitik vs. True Nationalism a. Mazzini, Garibaldi inspired by ideology + nationalism

b. Cavours policy was shaped by other motives e.g. desire to secure a revision of 1815 settlement; did not want to pose a threat to France, etc. III. Who should get the credit for unification a. Garibaldi swept up towards the south and appointed himself dictator of Sicily, did not hand over Sicily to Cavour; Cavour was concerned that Garibaldi might get too much credit for uniting Italy if he continued unchecked

TIMELINE

I. 1831 a. Revolution in the Papal States; King Charles Albert becomes King of Sardinia; Young Italy foundd by Mazzini II. 1845 a. Pius IX Becomes Pope III. 1848 a. Uprisings in Palermo b. Constitutional edict in Naples c. Constitutional monarchy proclaimed in Piedmont d. Roman Republic proclaimed with Mazzini as head e. King Charles Albert (Piedmont & Sardinia) invades Lombardy (against Austria) and is defeated IV. 1849 a. King Charles Albert abdicates in favour of Victor Emmanuel II b. Austrians take Florence c. Venetia surrenders to Austria V. 1850 a. Pope takes control of Rome VI. 1852 a. Conte Camillo Benso di Cavour becomes Prime Minister of Sardinia VII. 1858 a. Cavour meets with Napoleon III in Plombieres and plans war with Austria that would benefit both France and Piedmont with land gains b. Cavour then provokes revolutions in Lombardy to incite war with Austria VIII. 1859 a. March: Piedmont battles with France against Austria b. July 11: Napoleon III meets with Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria and backs out of the war c. December: Tuscany, Parma, Modena and some other states join the United Provinces of Central Italy and seen annexation by Piedmont demonstrated through plebiscites IX. 1860 a. March 20: Piedmont annexes central Italian states by giving Nice and Savoy to the French; now only four states remain in Italy: Venetians (Austrian), the Papal States, the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (Spanish Bourbons) b. May 6: Garibaldi and his Thousand volunteers leave Genoa

c. September 7: After victories throughout Sicily and the Italian mainland, Garibaldi is welcomed into Naples d. October: King Victor Emmanuel II leads Piedmontese forces through the Papal States south to meet Garibaldi in Naples, Garibaldi hands over his power to Victor Emmanuel II X. 1861 a. February 18: King Victor Emmanuel II assumes title of King of Italy with an Italian parliament under his leadership b. June 6: Camillo di Cavour dies after seeing his lifes work almost fulfilled, with only Venetia and the Papal States not under Italian control XI. 1866 a. December: The last French troops depart from Rome, leaving only a garrison b. June 20: Italy enters the Austro-Prussian War supporting Prussia against Austria, and is promised Venetia if they win c. July 21: Italian forces under Garibaldi are victorious against Austria at Bezzecca, and move forward into Venetia d. July 26: Prussia signs armistice with Austria and on August 12, Italy ends war with Austria e. October 12: Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria cedes Venetia to Napoleon III for not entering the war, who then cedes it to Italy XII. 1867 a. October: Garibaldi seeks Rome and Papal States but fails; revolutions inside Rome are also suppressed XIII. 1870: a. July: With the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, Napoleon III calls troops stationed at Rome b. September 11: Italian Army advances towards Rome c. September 20: Italian forces enter Rome with some casualties and, after a plebiscite, Rome is annexed by the Kingdom of Italy XIV. 1871: a. June: The capital of the Kingdom of Italy is officially moved from Florence to Rome, Italy is officially unified

ISSUES AFTER UNIFICATION

I. Rivalry between North and South & Strong local loyalties a. For many southerners it was hard to distinguish between unification and colonization by Piedmont b. Southern opinion turned against Victor Emmanuel and law and order broke down c. By 1863 90,000 Italian troops were committed to peacekeeping operations in the south II. Popes hostility to the new state

 CONCLUSION
I. Without the favourable international situation, unification would not have come about when it did II. Piedmontese expansionism, rather than Italian nationalism, was the real driving force behind unification III. Mazzini, Cavour and Garibaldi were not united different ideas, aims, opinions

Italian Unification
During his occupation/rule of the peninsula, Napoleon had believed that the several states making up the Italian peninsula should be unified o His formation of the Kingdom of Italy briefly raised the hopes of Italian nationalists o Instead, the Congress of Vienna had reduced Italy to its politically fragmented state Between 1815 and 1848 a multitude of liberal-nationalist organizations (e.g. Carbonari, Young Italy) waged unsuccessful rebellion against the Austrian domination o This movement was led by idealist and founder of Young Italy, Giuseppe Mazzini Giuseppe Mazzini o Organized a national revolutionary movement his ideology of an independent republic spread across the Italian population o Imprisoned for revolutionary activities o Released in 1831, he founded La Giovane Italia, whose motto was God and the People it sought the unification of Italy o Mazzini pinned his hopes on the educated middle class and urban artisans he had no faith in the peasantry, and had little interest in land reform. This was ultimately a mistake he could have brought the rural masses on his side o Mazzinis efforts eventually failed, and he was forced to disband Young Italy in 1836 the movement had been too idealistic o HOWEVER, Mazzinis movement ultimately had an impact: His writings helped put the idea of a unified Italy on the political agenda Great influence on a section of patriots, including Garibaldi By the 1830s and 40s, the idea of a unified Italy was in books, operas, music, art, etc. Political Divisions after Congress of Vienna o Lombardy & Venetia direct Hapsburg rule o Duchies of Parma, Modena and Tuscany under Austrian puppet rulers o Papal states Pope Pius IX o Kingdom of Two Sicilies Ferdinand II, corrupt Spanish Bourbon o Piedmont only state in Italy ruled by Italians with freely elected parliament In Piedmont, King Victor Emmanuel had retained the constitution (Statuto) that had been granted by his father King Charles Albert (1831 49)

o Piedmont became a haven for Italian liberals None of the Italian states wanted to sacrifice their independence for Italian unity There were different ideas on the form the new Italy should take Prime Minister of Piedmont: Camillo Benso di Cavour o Intellectual, born of aristocratic family o Founded liberal newspaper Il Risogimento o As PM, he took steps to modernize the state Modernization of Piedmont o Efforts were made to stimulate agricultural production & give government support to growing industry o Trade treaties were signed with most European countries and state treasury was reformed o Cavour was excommunicate by Pius IX for dissolving monasteries and instituting state control of clerical incomes Cavour was respected by British and French liberals for his steps toward modernization o In fact, this is what Cavour wanted for when he would have to call on them for help against Austria At Plombieres, in 1858, Napoleon (king of France) agreed to support Piedmont against Austria, provided Austria was made to look like the aggressor Thus Cavour began to plan for war so that Austrians would appear to be the aggressors o Austria accused Piedmont of fomenting disturbances in Lobardy and Venetia, and demanded that Piedmont disarm o Piedmont refused, and Austria declared war o When Austrian troops mobilized, Cavour asked for Napoleons help o French troops went to fight Austrians two quick victories Without approval, however, Napoleon arranged for a treaty with Franz Josef of Austria o Lombardy was granted to Piedmont, Venetia was kept by Austria, and an Italian Confederation was to be formed, led by the Pope Cavour was enraged and urged Victor Emmanuel to continue to war without France King realized the necessity of French military and accepted the terms Cavour resigned and the Italian confederation was never formed Plebiscite was held in many duchies showing an overwhelming desire for union with Piedmont o Cavour returned to his position, and negotiated for Napoleons approval of the union in exchange for Nice and Savoy Now all of Northern Italy except for Venetia was in union with Piedmont; all that was needed was the Papal States and the Two Sicilies Cavour could not count on French aid for this because of hostile Roman Catholic opinion Unification movement was now inspired by Giuseppe Garibaldi o Sea captain, merchant, enemy of tyranny o Native of Nice, he participated in an uprising in Piedmont in 1834, was sentenced to death and escaped to South America o He returned to Italy in 1848 and joined Mazzinis movement o Led his volunteers to Rome to support the Roman Republic established by Mazzini in 1849 (one thousanders)

o Met Mazzini in Marseilles who impressed him with a vision of free and unified Italy o Gave up sea career and devoted time to Young Italy as active organizer In 1860, a revolt broke out in Sicily to protest corrupt ruler o This revolt drew Garibaldi out of retirement Within a week, Garibaldi had gathered a band of almost a thousand Italian patriots known as the Redshirts o Within 3 months of landing in Sicily he had reached the outskirts of Naples (capital of the Two Sicilies) Garibaldi wanted to enter Naples, march into the Papal States and capture Rome, but Cavour stopped him, fearing a clash with Napoleons garrison guarding the Pope Cavour also feared a clash between Garibaldis republicanism and his own scheme for a constitutional monarchy 1861 while Garibaldi mobilized his forces, two of Cavours secret agents met with Napoleon o They agreed that Piedmontese troops led by Victor Emmanuel would meet and defeat French forces outside Rome (led by Lamorciere) o The king would then quickly march south to Naples and meet Garibaldi The French troops were defeated, but Rome was left untouched Garibaldi met Victor Emmanuel with open arms, and the two toured Naples in triumph Plebiscites were held in Sicily and the Papal States (except for Rome) all voted for unification Victor Emmanuel crowned King of Italy in 1861 1866 Bismarck offered Venetia to the new kingdom in exchange for Italian help in an Austro-Prussian war Rome fell easily in 1870 French