How far was the intervention of foreign powers responsible for the failure of the 1848 Revolutions? Flashcards
What 5 factors need to be discussed?
1) Intervention of Foreign Powers
2) Reaction of the papacy
3) Piedmont’s weakness
4) Lack of revolutionary until and lack of popular support
5) Lack of international support
Who were still too strong for the Italian army?
Austria
When did Metternich resign following revolutions in Vienna and the declaration of the Venetian Republic?
March 1848
What demonstrated the Power of Austria?
The April 1848 Papal Allocution
When was the Papal Allocution?
April 1848
Why was Austria’s effective control of the Pope through the April 1848 Papal Allocution significant?
Because if they controlled the Pope they controlled 90% of the Population of Italy who were Catholics
Why did Louis invade and crush the Roman Republic?
He felt that if he did not Austria would, and he needed to gain support of Catholics across Europe by defending the Pope.
When did Louis invade and crush the Roman Republic?
1849
What did the Papal Allocution demonstrate to Italians?
Even a liberal Pope would not support a nationalist cause
What would the Pope not do?
Act in any way that may reduce the temporal power of the the papacy
What did the Papacy request?
Foreign action to help strengthen his hold on power
Why did many soldiers across Italy end their support for nationalism?
They did not want to go against the Pope
What was wrong with the revolutionary aims?
They were heavily divided, reflective of the society too
What did there lack of cohesion mean?
The revolutionary groups were no more similar to each other than enemies were, even if they shared the same ultimate aim.
Which monarch represses Sicilians?
Ferdinand II
What would have been necessary to try to remove Austria?
Foreign Support
Give an example of why foreign powers were concerned with other things?
Irish Potato famine returned in 1848
Why, other than distractions, did foreign powers not want to get involved?
They did not want to upset the French or the Austrians
What were the two foreign powers who were responsible for the failure of the 1848 revolutions?
Austria and France
How did Austria lead tot he failure of the 1848 revolutions?
1) Control over Naples
2) Collapse of the Venetian republic in August 1849
3) Winning the first war of Italian independence
Austria won which two battles as a part of the first war of Italian independence?
Custozza in July 1848 and Novora March 1849
Though ultimately cursing the 1848 revolutions, what happened initially to Austria?
Italy they were weakened, forced to withdraw from Lombardy to the quadrilateral in Venetia
After the victories over Piedmont in 1848 and 1849 the Austrians swept through the central Duchies, restoring which former ruler?
King Leopold II
Name three counter revolutionary methods used by the Austrians
Secret police
Political prisoners
Censorship
Though the Austrians may well be the most important short term cause of the failure of the 1848 revolutions, how are they limited?
Their influence was greatest in the north. In the peasant revolts of the south their influence was much less.
What was the newly elected French President who used the Roman Republic to consolidate his domestic support?
Louis Napoleon (Napoleon III)
What group was Napoleon III trying to gain favour with by restoring the Pope in july 1849 following the 100 days of the Roman Republic?
Domestic Catholics
Napoleon entered Rome with the backing of what?
The elected French National assembly
Rome was surrendered to France in a siege when?
July 1849
How many french forces entered Rome?
20 000
How long did it take French forces to enter Rome?
2 months
How did the French brutally restore the rule of the pope?
hunting down rebels, interrogating families and publicly executing any connected with the uprising.
How responsible were the French for the failure of the 1848 revolutions?
Whilst they were responsible to a great extent for the failure of one of the most successful and important parts of the revolution, they were not responsible for the Northern defeats, nor were they responsible for the Southern peasant failures.
What did the Papal allocation request?
foreign support to restore the temporal power of the papacy
What did the Papal allocution of 1848 crush?
Gioberti’s dreams of NeoGuelphism
What did the Papal allocation transform?
The nationalist cause from pro-papacy to anti-papacy
Due to the Papal allocution, Charles Albert lost the direct support of who?
The pope’s forces, except for the rebel Durando who ignored the pope’s orders, but also many people who would not support the Piedmontese army after it had lost its papal blessing.
Exponents of NeoGuelphism lost their leader and became what?
disillusioned with the revolutions.
The pope served as what for much of the damaging foreign involvement?
The short term trigger cause
What is the long term problem that the pope created?
The damage to the Piedmontese army
What was the limited impact of the pope?
it is likely that Austria would have had the military capability to crush Piedmont regardless
A part of Piedmont’s weakness, what did the 1848 revolutions teach Piedmont?
That they alone were not sufficient to expel a major foreign power from Italy
What meant that the Piedmontese army became increasingly weak?
The Papal Allocution, combined with Charles Albert’s refusal to accept recruits to the army unless they swore allegiance to him.
What is debatable about Charles Albert?
How committed Charles Albert was to the 1848 revolutions, or whether he was more intent on preventing the growing republicanism in Milan and Venice from spreading to Piedmont.
What shows that foreign intervention was a more significant factor than the role of Piedmont?
More domestic support alone would not have been sufficient, however, to change the outcome of the 1848 revolutions, yet if Piedmont had had foreign support, the 1848 revolutions in the north would had a greater degree of long term success.
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, in Milan and Venice who was fighting and what were the fighting for?
Professionals fighting for independence and a constitution
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, where did people fight to secure a constitution?
Sicily, Naples, the Duchies and Piedmont
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, where did people create Republics?
Rome and Venice
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, what was the challenge in Piedmont?
Removal of Austrians
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, what was the challenge in Sicily?
Famine
Showing that the revolutions served diverse and disparate aims, in Milan, what did the middle classes riot over?
Tobacco Prices
The fact that the revolution’s aims were so divided made it much easier for the Austrians to do what?
Divide and Rule, which cemented the ease with which the revolutions failed.
What epitomised the class divides in Italy?
Risorgimento
What did the ideas of Risorgimento failed to capture any unified spirit?
a largely apathetic, yet highly numerous lower class
When was Gioberti appointed by Charles Albert?
December 1848
What did Gioberti fundamentally miscalculate?
French support, thinking that should Piedmont return to war with Austria, they would have the support of the French.
When was the Armistice of Salasco?
August 1848
How long did the Amrtistice of Salasco last?
9 months
The armistice of Salasco was the product of what?
The British and French acting as mediators between the Austrians and Peidmotnese through the summer of 1848
Which two counties did not want war with Austria and so did not support them when Piedmont returned to war in March 1849?
Uk and france
The lack of support from the Uk and France ensured the comprehensive defeat of the Piedmontese at the hands of the Austrians at which 1849 battle?
Battle of Novora March 1849
What long term problems made it easier for Austria to divide and rule?
Structural problems
The main causes were…
The main cause of the defeat of the 1848 Revolutions was the French in Rome and the Austrians in the North, whilst in the South their disparate nature almost guaranteed failure.
