Italian Unification Flashcards
What types of Political States were there?
The 18th Century was dominated by Kings and empires
“Divine Right of Kings”
What were the chief exceptions to rule via King?
The United Provinces (the Netherlands)
Venice
Switzerland
Britain –> A bit of both
What was the Enlightenment Period and how did it possibly give rise to the chance that Unification may occur?
Enlightenment was a force for change in the 18th century
The intellectual movement known as the Enlightenment gave rise to theories that questioned the power of kings
An example of this is Jean Jacques Rousseau Social Contract Theory
The revolution of the American colonies against British rule, starting in 1774 and ending with American independence in 1783, encouraged the spread of ideas about representative government
How did Romanticism contribute to Italian Unification?
The 18th century was characterised by a revival of classical forms in the arts and a culture based on the past
The established tradition was one of respect for authority, multinational empires and the right of kings and princes to rule.
Romanticism meant less respect for authority: individuality was viewed as more important, and freedom of expression and the creation of new forms to express feelings were encouraged
Dress and manners became less formal; there was renewed interest in the history of nationalities and a greater desire for nationalities to bond together
What was the Situation of Italy like before 1815?
Italy was a concept rather than a country
Contemporaries referred to Italy in an equivalent way that we might refer to the ‘Arab World’
Clemens Von Metternich described Italy as a “geographical expression”
The different states had little in common and other were different traditions, languages, and levels
Economic Barriers: poor communication and barriers to travel
What was the Piedmont-Savoy or Kingdom of Sardina like before 1815?
Savoy was occupied by France in 1792 and its people considered themselves French
Mountains separated Piedmont from Savoy, which was viewed as Italian
What was the Political Situation in Italy?
There were 3 republics - Genoa, Venice and Lucca - but these were oligarchies
Piedmont was an absolute monarchy - that is, the word of the King was law
The Papal states were rules as an absolute monarchy, as were Sicily and Naples
Smaller Duchies such as Parma, had no political freedom
What were the North Italian States and who ran them?
Piedmont - House of Savoy
Lombardy - Austrian Rule
Venetia - Austria Important
How did Napoleon manage to announce himself the ‘King of Italy’?
1792 - The French attacked the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardina, acquiring Nice and Savoy
1796 - Napoleon gained control of the army in Italy and, after the war with the Austrians in Lombardy managed to control the whole of the Italian Peninsula
1805 - Announced himself the King of Italy
Map of Italy pre-Napoleon?
SEE
How did Napoleon divide the Italian states?
1798 - Did away with the old, complicated patterns of state and divided most of the country into 4 separate Republics
1810 - Divided the country again but only into three parts
What were the 3 Italian states by 1810?
- One Third was annexed and ruled over as the Kingdom of France (Northwest Italy including Piedmont, together with the Duchies and the Papal states
- Another Third ruled as the Kingdom of Italy, with Napoleon’s stepson acting as a viceroy. This included Lombardy, Modena and Bologna etc:
- The Last Third was the Kingdom of Naples, not Sicily which was ruled by Britain
Who was the Kingdom of Naples after 1810 run by?
The ruling dynasty were no longer the bourbons.
Instead, Napoleon’s brother, Joesph, ruled it
Picture of 1810 Italy?
SEE
How was life under the rule of Napoleon bad?
Traumatic ‘from every point of view’
the ‘brutality and irreligion of the French soldiery’ were largely to blame’
A substantial number of men were required for the French army and a great deal of money was needed to train, equip and feed the French soldiers and the Italian conscripts
This evidenced with 27,000 Italian soldiers accompanying Napoleon to Russia and losing all their horses and cannons in the process
60% taxation rate and people and people hated conscription
How was the Church influenced under Napoleon?
Suffered severely
Power reduced greatly
Two Popes imprisoned
1809- Temporal power was declared to be at an end
1814 - All monasteries had been closed by the French and the Church lands were sold off
How did the Wealthy live under French Rule?
Accounts vary widely
The Cavours seem to have done well out of the purchase of Church lands
While d’Azeglio, in memoirs written half a century later, complained that this family was ruined under French rule
How did Urban Groups live under French Rule?
Substantial benefits from French rule for most of the 10% or so Italians who lived in towns
External customs barriers were simplified and internal trade barriers between the Italian states were swept away, weight and measures were standardised, tax collection was reorganised, and new roads were built
How did the Peasants live under French Rule?
80% of Italians in the early nineteenth century lived a life far remote from the elite and the middle classes
Considered as unworthy, uneducated etc:
What were Marriage customs like under French Rule?
Marzio Barzagli
In the south comparatively young –>
Men –> 25
Women –> 19
What were Occupations like under French Rule?
Lived in dark, damp cottages that they shared with livestock
They tilled their fields with wooden ploughs
Carried their crops home on their back
They only crop they could grow regularly was maize, but this caused vitamin deficiency and led to pellagra (which caused 95,000 cases in one year)
Thus, some men became bandits
Overcrowding in a house (of 80 people)
What are Foundling Hospitals and when were they implemented?
Common during Napoleon’s Era of Italy
Conclusion of Napoleonic Era in France?
Effects are paradoxical
Many Italians were influenced by the French thought of the time so they wanted to imitate them
On the other hand, French rule fell too all lamentably short of the standards it aspired to
When did Italy’s state come to an end and what happened to the country next?
1815 - Napoleon finally defeated
Congress of Vienna follows to decide what happens next:
They returned the Italian states to what it had looked like previously
Map of Italy after the congress of Vienna?
SEE MAP
How was land divided after Napoleon?
Piedmont - Restored to its King Victor Emannuel I
His territory now enlarged to include Savoy, recovered from France, and also Genoa
Papal States returned to the Pope
King Ferdinand was restored in the south
The Central Duchies were returned to the Austrians
What happened at the Congress of Vienna regarding the situation of Italy?
COV –> Austria to control a large portion of Italy
They believed that Stability was needed especially after the period of upheaval
It was decided that the French were to never be allowed to rule Italy again
What did Metternich say regarding Italian Unification in 1815?
Metternich also said ‘Italian affairs do not exist’ –> They don’t want an Italy
Did the Peasants care about who was ruling them in 1815?
Nobody cared nor did they know
They would have been pressed either way
What happened to the old rulers of Italy before Napoleon Napoleon left?
They came back and were nervous to do so
The nobility welcomed their arrival
What was lifelike under the Restored Monarchs?
They weren’t considered as Regressive for trying to be friends with the Habsburg family
They were trying to restore order and laws to an absolute government (like Pre Napoleonic Times)
