Italian unification 1815-70 (textbook) Flashcards
What did Austrian statesman Metternich point out about Italy in 1815?
That it was only a geographical expression
How long had it been since the country experienced unity?
1500 years
Describe the state of Italy at this time
A collection of relatively small, often quarrelling states
Describe the mixed history of these Italian states
In the past there had been great wealth in cities such as Florence, Venice and Rome, together with impressive cultural achievements, but the country had rarely been free from war or foreign domination
Give an example of this mixed history in action
While the likes of Da Vinci and Michelangelo were creating their great works of art during the Italian Renaissance of the 15th and 16th centuries, Italy had been the battleground of Europe, as French and Spanish armies fought for supremacy
Describe the states in 1815
They were for the most part politically reactionary and economically underdeveloped
What did reactionary mean in this context?
Hostile to parliamentary or democratic government, dismissive of individual freedoms and deeply suspicious of change
Where was the most determined reaction to abject poverty to be found?
In the south, in the Kingdom of Two Sicilies
What dominated central Italy?
The papal states, over which the pope was not only the religious but political ruler
What could you find further north?
The small states of Modena, Tuscany and Parma, and the more economically advanced Kingdom of Piedmont, in Turin
Describe Lombardy and Venetia
They contained the cities of Milan and Venice and were ruled by the Austrian Empire
What did the period after 1815 witness?
An Italian literary and cultural revival known as the risorgimento
What does risorgimento translate as?
Resurgence of rebirth
What was this movement?
It lamented Italian divisions and foreign domination, called for a new sense of Italian patriotism and demanded the political unification of the country
Who did this movement particularly attract?
Students and the small professional classes, principally in the north
What was the driving force behind unification?
The Kingdom of Piedmont
How did the movement receive a boost in 1859?
Piedmontese statesman Camillo Cavour won French support for his expansionist ambitions
How did the French help unification?
French arms forced Austria to cede Lombardy to Piedmont
How did Piedmont help unification?
They persuaded Tuscany, Modena, Parma and the papal state of Romagna to give up their independence and join the Kingdom of Piedmont
What did Garbaldi do in the same year?
Invaded Sicily with 1000 red shirts. Despite his small army, he managed to conquer the Kingdom of Two Sicilies by late 1860
What was Garibaldi then persuaded to do?
Hand over the state to King Victor Emmanuel II of Piedmont
What happened in the unification process at the same time?
A second part of the papal states was annexed, leaving the Pope with only the area surrounding Rome
What was the Kingdom of Italy established as in 1861?
A constitutional monarchy based closely on that of Piedmont’s
How did the process receive a boost in 1866?
Italian support for Prussia in the Austro Prussian War led to the acquisition of Venetia from Austria
How was the process completed in 1870?
Rome, the last independent territory in the peninsula, fell to Italian troops after the French removed their soldiers to fight in the Franco Prussian War
