Booklet 3

Question 1

How was nationalism developed in Piedmont following the Crimean war

Answer 1

•the national society: Cavour allowed the national society to grow in Piedmont, it was formed in the 1850s and dominated by Italian exiled living in Piedmont- membership was 8000 by 1857. The main aim of the group was to promote unification of Italy. They accepted leadership may be under a Piedmontese monarch rather than a republic. In 1856 Cavour met with Mazzini to discuss possible war with Austria. However Cavour didn’t want the French to think he was backing a group of dangerous radicals.

Question 2

How influential could the national society actually be in promoting Italian unification

Answer 2

• formed posters and leaflets
• only influenced academic elite
• encouraged others

Question 3

Why might Cavour be a little reluctant to openly support the national Society

Answer 3

• doesn’t want to upset France
• he doesn’t support radicals
• he only wanted to unite with the north

Question 4

What obstacles were being faced by the national society

Answer 4

• Piedmont could use other nationalism for their own benefit and create an empire
• Piedmont would prefer a kingdom on northern Italy with Turin and Milan as the capital instead of centre Rome

Question 5

Why did Napoleon take up the cause of Italian nationalism

Answer 5

• he was in Italy 1830-1831 because he had been exiled from France as part of the Vienna settlement 1815
• he had very liberal ideas so he was a sympathiser with nationalism
• his attitudes towards Italy changed in 1848 when he was elected president of the French Republic
• he came to the aid of the pope in 1849 so he would gain support of Catholic Church
• Piedmont was big enough to be a useful ally but not to big to threaten independence from France
• his plans for Italy was to enlarge Piedmont as a separate controlled state

Question 6

What was the Orsini bomb ploy in 1858

Answer 6

• an attempt made on Louis Napoleon life
• 4 Italian naturalists led by count felice orsini
• orsini made 3 large bombs in London
• bomb thrown ah Napoleon on way to opera
• 8 died and 150 were injured
• orsini aimed to kill Napoleon so that he would be replaced by a new republic government in France who would help Italy
• the letter appeared to Napoleon to help Italy get independence. Some believed that Napoleon may have wanted an excuse to invade Italy

Question 7

What was the pact of plombieres

Answer 7

A highly secret meeting between Cavour and Napoleon at plombieres on July 21st 1858. Plans were drawn up for French military intervention which would result in Austrian expulsion from Lombardy and Venetia, the enlargement of Piedmont and an Italy made up of 4 major power blocs.

Question 8

What were the term of the plombieres

Answer 8

• Austria would have to be seen as the aggressors who provoked the war
• a kingdom of upper Italy, ruled by the house of savoy would cover Piedmont, Lombardy and Venetia, the duchies of Parma, Moderna and the papal legations
• central Italy would be controlled by Tuscany and included Umbria and the papal marches
• rome and the surrounding area would be controlled by the pope
• Naples would remain as it is
• france would get Nice and Savoy in return for 200,000 soldiers
• the seal of the agreement would be the marriage of a 15 year old daughter of VE to the middle aged prince Jerome Bonaparte

Question 9

What were Victor Emmanuel’s issues in 1859 with creating a war with Austria

Answer 9

• how to provoke a war with Austria
• how to produce an army of 100,000
• how to encourage enthusiasm for war within Italy
• how to avoid upsetting other European powers
• how to keep Napoleon committed to a military solution

Question 10

What were the steps to the 1859 war

Answer 10

• March, Piedmont mobilised their army
• April, Austrians mobilised (costly for them as they couldn’t afford to mobilise for long)
• 23rd April, Austria demanded Piedmont to demobilise within 3 days
• 29th April, Austria declared war, general Franz Gyulai invaded Piedmont but were delayed by poor weather conditions giving time for the French forces to arrive by rail to support Piedmont

Question 11

Was Austria prepared for the 1859 war

Answer 11

• commanded by courtier soldiers
• took 10 days to mobilise
• only partial mobilisation, some troops were left in Hungary
• only 90,000 troops

Question 12

Were France and Piedmont prepared for the 1859 war

Answer 12

• Piedmont officers were reluctant to engage, wanted to leave fighting to the French
• the army arrived by train but in advance of their supplies and some men died of exposure before getting to the battle field
• Piedmont promised 100,000 troops but only provided 80,000

Question 13

What happened in Magenta on the 20th may 1857 and what was the outcome

Answer 13

• Napoleon moved his French troops by rail to circle the Austrian army to the north to cut of its lines of communication and supply
• Sardinia moved towards palest to on 30th May which caused the first battle.
• 14,000 Austrians supported by 40 guns attacked the French/Sardinia for of 10,700 men with 18 guns but Austria had heavy casualties
• garibaldi and the cacciatoridelle alpi had a minor victory at como. The Austrians retreated back across the river Ticino
• Napoleon took 30,000 troops across the Tinico heading for the village of magenta. The austrias made the village into a mini fortress
• the brunt of the fighting was borne by 5000 grenadiers of the French imperial guard
• ended 4th June with no Piedmont deaths and was a French victory

Question 14

How did the battle of magenta cause Italian unity and nationalism and what was the relationship with the French afterwards

Answer 14

• Piedmontese soldiers would gain unification of north or closer to it
• Piedmontese soldiers didn’t really take part and let the French do it so didn’t create nationalism
• French and Sardinia worked together with the same aim and relationship was ok but the French were annoyed that they did all of the work

Question 15

What happened in solferino from the 21-24th June and what was the outcome of the battle

Answer 15

• the Austrians moved back to the Quadrilateral fortresses In the Austrian territory
• the French/Piedmont army had taken Milan and then slowly marched further east to finish of Austria before Prussia got involved
• the Austrians found the French halted at Brescia and suddenly attacked causing multiple series of attacks and counter attacks
• French took 17,000 casualties out of 137,000 and the Austrians took 21,000 casualties out of 128,000
• on 11th July the Austrian emerge was defeated in battle and were faced with prospect of Revolution in Hungary, they met with Napoleon III to sign an armistice without consulting their Piedmontese allies

Question 16

How did the battle of solferino cause Italian unity and nationalism and what was the relationship with the French after

Answer 16

• very little Italian unity as they didn’t get Venetia but did get Lombardy
• duke and duchess of Moderna got replaced by the government
• wasn’t an Italian win so nationalism wasn’t high
• French went behind the piedmonts back and signed the armistice, relationship wasn’t good with the French as Piedmont hadn’t lost any lives

Question 17

Why did Napoleon sue for peace in July 1859

Answer 17

• new and more accurate weaponry and the deployment of large armies resulted in huge casualties
• there was only one doctor per 500 casualties on the French side
• French didn’t think Piedmont could maintain the conflict for much longer as they lacked equipment and expertise
• Austria had retreated to the quadrilateral, a series of fortresses on the boarder of Venetia. Defeating them would require a lengthy and expensive siege
• Cavour seemed increasingly interested in the central Duchies and this went beyond the terms of the plombieres agreement , Napoleon also beloved the Papal States were under threat
• 24th June 1859 the Prussian army mobilised on the banks of the Rhine

Question 18

What was the result of the 2nd war of Italy

Answer 18

• Napoleon met emperor franz josepgh of Austria in 11th July at villafranca and Piedmont was excluded form the talks
• Austria gave Lombardy to France however, Austria still had Venetia
• Piedmont wasn’t given control of Moderna or Parma and the rulers who had fled were restored
• an Italian confederation was to be set up as agreed at the plombieres, with the pope as its head
• France would not take Nice and Savoy even though they didn’t get Venetia

Question 19

What events happened after the war

Answer 19

• in the treaty of Zurich Napoleon declared no force should be used to implement the terms relating to Italy
• British foreign secretary lord John Russel proposed that the future of the Italian peninsula should be decided through self determination
• Cavour returned as prime minister on 21st January 1860 and negotiated the treated of Turin with Napoleon in which it was agreed that savoy and nice would be given to France if Napoleon agreed with Piedmontese annexation of the central duchies
• Cavour convinced Napoleon if central duchy annexation by using a series of plebiscites

Question 20

What were the results of the plebiscites in 1860

Answer 20

• savoy and nice both voted to join France but this may have been because French soldiers were in the cities while the votes were taken place. Nice: 130,000 to 285 voted in joining the French. Savoy: 24,000 to 160 voted to join the French
• Parma, Romagna, Modena voted 430,000 to 1506 in favour of joining Piedmont
• Tuscany voted 370,000 to 15,000 in favour of joining Piedmont but 153,000 thought they were joining Piedmont not being taken over

Question 21

What was the importance of the war with Austria 1859-1860: Italian unity, nationalism, relation with France, Austria strength

Answer 21

• for Italian unity: created a more unified Italy as an entire kingdom under VE II however, lost savoy and nice to French. All wanted Austrians out, majority voted to join Piedmont
• Italian nationalism: vote seemed like a majority for each annexation however, there were high numbers of abstention from voting. All wanted the same leaders, similar/same language
• relationship with France: France gains savoy of Nice, but the relationship is weakened as Italy forms a triple alliance with Austria. French won’t fight for Piedmont no more, France gave them Lombardy, Piedmont got the other northern states to join them which wasn’t in the French agreement
• Austrian strength: Austria looses main fortresses and its superior position. Although didn’t loose Venetia, still had some form of power of Papal States, didn’t technically loose the war, Austrian empire starts to crumble

Question 22

Who was giuseppe garibaldi 1807-1849
Early life, the South American years, the red shirt legend, 1848-49, his role in the Roman republic, the March to the coast

Answer 22

Early life: born as a French citizen in Nice his parents were Italian and he thought himself Italian. He joined the young Italy and in 1833 he became involved with revolutionary plans in Piedmont, the plot went wrong and he was sentenced to death
•the South American years: he escaped South America where he stayed for 12 years, he discovered a branch of young Italy and became involved in revolutionary plans. He joined the Uruguayan army and fought against Argentina, he raised an Italian legion of guerrilla fighters
•the red shirt legend: the legion wore red shirts because they were cheap and didn’t show blood, after returning to Italy the production of these shirts was undertaken, shows sign of nationalism
•1848–49: he returned to Italy with 60 of his men and offered his services to Charles Albert but the king didn’t trust him
•his role in Roman republic: Roman republic was declared in feb 1849, garibaldi arrived as the city was trying to defend itself form the French. The first French attacks were driven back but reinforcements arrived and so the republic fell
•the March to the coast: garibaldi appealed to a crowd in the Piazza, 5000 men volunteered after 800km only 1500 men reached the coast. Garibaldi escaped to Genoa and then fled to North America

Question 23

Giuseppe garibaldi 1850-1861:

Exile and his role in the 1859 war with Austria

Answer 23

• exile: garibaldi brought half of caprera, a small island of Sardinia, he took up farming but kept in touch with national society. After plombieres, Cavour invited garibaldi to discuss plans to force war upon Austria. Garibaldi offered to train and recruit volenteers
• role in the 1859 war with Austria: garibaldi and his men fought in northern Italy, their presence in the Piedmont army offended the Austrians creating tension. He took advance along the alps with 3000 volunteers. He had to pass the Ticino river and did so on 22-23 May. They attacked on 26th May. He launched an counterattack causing Austrians to retreat. Garibaldi occupied the town and captured a large amount of supplies

Question 24

Giuseppe garibaldi 1850-1861:

The betrayal of Italy, setting sail for Sicily 1860, cavours attitude to the expenditure

Answer 24

• the betrayal of Italy: as part of the agreement with Napoleon, nice and savoy were given to France, the handing over nice his birth city, was a bitter blow to him. He referred as a low intriguer.
• setting sail for Sicily 1860: garibaldi heard about the uprising taking place in Sicily and Mazzini urged him to take his men to the island and help the young Italy volunteer’s there. Garibaldi gathered together 1200 volunteer’s
• cavours attitude to the expenditure: Cavour sensed the trip would fail as they were outnumbered, he also was uncertain that he wanted it to succeed as the south was poor, so he refused garibaldis request for arms and equipment.

Question 25

Giuseppe garibaldi 1850-1861:

Success in Sicily, governing Sicily

Answer 25

• success in Sicily: garibaldi reached Marsala in Sicily on 11th May but was lucky as he arrived alongside the British naval ships so he wasn’t attacked by the French or Cavour. He advanced towards Palermo, the islands capital gathering support along the way and defeating a Neapolitan army. The thousand now numbering 3000 arrived in Palermo by the end of May and found 2000 energy troops waiting for him, he won and they retreated to Naples. He was helped by peasants, bandits and mafia
• governing Sicily: he appointed himslef dictator of Sicily and supported teh peasants initially. He abolished milling tax and promised land distribution (didn’t happen) and caused peasant revolts. He introduced Piedmontese law but refused to hand the island over to VE as he thought he would loose power to attack Naples.

Question 26

Giuseppe garibaldi 1850-1861:

The attack on Naples, Cavour stalls garibaldi

Answer 26

The attack on Naples: Cavour tried to arrange a Revolution in Naples in favour of Victor Emmanuel but this failed. Then he gave orders to arrest garibaldi, but he had already crossed the straits to Calabria. He fought his way northwards to the city of Naples. He ruled as dictator for 2 months, this gave Cavour time to act
•Cavour stalls garibaldi: Cavour feared an attack on Rome woudk lead to difficulties with France. The garibaldi I was now 60,000 sting men of whom were mazzinian and opposed the Catholic Church. Many were also republican. Cavour sent an army through the Papal States to Rome

Question 27

Giuseppe garibaldi 1850-1861:

Unification almost complete, the beginning of Italy and the end of garibaldi

Answer 27

• unification almost complete: in October the Piedmontese army reached Neapolitan territory and VE and garibaldi met on the 26th October, garibaldi hailed VE as the first king of Italy and agreed to hand over the south to him
• the beginning of Italy and the end of garibaldi: the Piedmontese takeover caused concern I’ve r the great powers because there was a fear of a shift of power in Europe. The British opposed the handover of nice and savoy to French expansion. Russia broke diplomatic ties with Italy and Austria reinforced its army with Venetia. Cavour wanted garibaldi out of political life, garibaldi still wanted Rome

Question 28

Was the kingdom of Italy an entirely good thing

Answer 28

• forced the south on the North
• forced the peace all to soon
• forced Piedmont to take the Papal States on the way to the south even though they didn’t want the south
• caused a long term rift with the pope
• Austrian reaction- reinforced troops in Venetia
• French reaction- concern for the papacy
• reform, especially land re distribution was neglected which caused resentment form the peasants and the upper class
• piedmontisation ignored southern culture and institutions which caused resentment in the south