Key Topic 1 - The Liberal State, c.1911-18 Flashcards
Explain the Italian unification process, 1859-70.
- Risorgimento starts in 1859 as Napoleon III lets Piedmont wage war with Italy. PM Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, pioneers defeating the overlords of his area.
- 1860 - Kingdom of Two Sicilies attained by Giuseppe Garibaldi and his 1000-strong Garibaldi Brigade.
1861 - Elaborate Turin ceremony and inauguration of KVE III
1866 - Venetia attained after Austro-Prussian War.
1871 - Army annexes Rome when Napoleon III is distracted by Franco-Prussian War, 1870-71.
Explain what could be found within the Statuto Albertino.
The Statuto Albertino, or Constitution of Piedmont of 1848, was the constitution of Liberal Italy. He guaranteed the liberal privileges of access to free press, free assembly and free speech, yet had the detrimental effect of rendering the regime more susceptible to criticism.
What were the duties of the King?
He held executive powers to appoint and dismiss ministers and select senators. He was also the face of the regime abroad and in times of crisis.
What were the duties of the PM?
Chosen by the King, he relied upon the support of him and parliament. He was the head of daily administrative affairs.
How was parliament composed?
Upper House (Senato) and Lower House (Camera dei Depitati)
What were the powers of the parliamentary upper house?
Senators were chosen by the King for life. Held less power than the CdD.
What were the powers of the parliamentary lower house?
MPs voted in every 5 years by enfranchised population. Government ministers were taken from the CdD. Held more power than the Senato.
What were the main political factions of Liberal Italy?
Socialists, nationalists, Catholics, liberals, radicals and republicans.
THE SOCIALIST FACTION
PSI established by Filippo Turati (reformist republican) in 1895.
Aims: 8hr working day, women’s rights, universal male suffrage.
Extent of popularity:
250,000 members of national socialist federations in 1902.
13% of votes went from % in 1900 to 25% in 1913.
Reasons for growth:
Industrialisation (Milan x2 between 1880-1914) as people from different groups communicated in urban hotspots to become more politically educated.
Poor targeted with public lectures and free school books. Sig. as so oppressed by Liberal State.
Avanti! unified and popularised the party due to Mussolini’s journalistic flare.
Effective party structure: membership rules, party cards, congresses and local networks.
But divided between maximalists and reformists.
THE NATIONALIST FACTION
People, especially the urban lower-middle classes, felt disillusioned with democracy so they gave support to the ANI after 1910.
It was elitist, anti-parliamentary and anti-socialist; seeking expansionism and authoritarianism.
Popularised by effective, harsh response to strife and by Camicie Azzurre (Blue Shirts)
THE CATHOLIC FACTION
1870 - Pope Pius IX locks himself in Vatican in protest to Roman Question.
1886 - He formally bans Catholic participation in elections.
1892 - Pope Pius X orders an alliance with Liberals if they respect Catholic rights/uphold Catholic principles for 1913 election. Due to feared socialism.
1919 - PPI set up, causes tension as it goes against Giolitti’s parallel lines idea.
THE LIBERAL FACTION
Wanted parliamentary, constitutional democracy and the rule of law. Yet struggled to keep this up as people’s opinions were usually repressed as the party went more RW in the face of crisis.
Poor approach: applied uniform to an unequal nation. Therefore appealed to a limited MC interest group and not to the majority. Was weak in the face of franchise extension as a result.
THE RADICAL FACTION
May 1890 - new party programme at Felice Cavallotti’s congress:
POLITICAL CHANGES: convene parliament as 50 deputies requested it; decentralisation; reduce power of King so he couldn’t declare war or conclude any treaties; pay deputies.
SOCIAL CHANGES: free education at primary school; actual liberal rights, tighter rules on child/female labour; better pensions.
ECONOMIC CHANGES: don’t allow state intervention in the economy.
1900 - 7.1% of votes.
1890s peak with northern industrial base, perception of threat thus created.
THE REPUBLICAN FACTION
Italian Republican Party was founded in 1895 and shared the views of radicals whilst being more hesitant to compromise with Liberals and more focused upon anti-monarchism.
1900 - 6.2% of votes.
Northern intellectual and professional support, esp. in 1890s.
What were political problems facing the Liberal State?
Limited francise, trasformismo and anarchism.
How did franchise change from 1861-1912 and why was this significant?
Whether you had access to suffrage depended on property ownership and qualifications.
1860s - 500,000/32 million can vote; 2%.
1882 - 3 million can vote: 25%.
1912 - 8 million can vote. No women.
People now had a means of expressing their aversion to the LS clearly, after it had alienated them for 50 years. Liberals struggle due to limited support base.
Define Trasformismo.
Political manoeuvring; where political power depended not on public support, but the ability to win over the conditional support of other politicians through concessions. Governments were corruptly set up and subject to collapse.
These concessions could benefit the politician or the local area, not the whole country. Depended on a greater degree of campanilismo which was born from Liberal ignorance of the masses and a cause for disunion.
Democracy was an illusion. Created support for PSI (real democracy) or nat. groups (alternative).
How many coalitions were there 1870-1915?
20
Which was the longest lasting coalition of Liberal Italy?
Agostino Depretis - 1881-87 - 6 years.
Define anarchism.
The act of overthrowing the state and replacing it with a self-governing order of no bureaucratic rules.
Which 3 men developed Italian anarchism?
Mikhail Bakunin
Giuseppe Fanelli
Errico Malatesta
What events highlighted an anarchist threat?
Failed insurrections in Florence (1869) and Bologna (1874) and a failed national insurrection (1877).
29th July 1898 - King Umberto I is killed by Gaetano Bresci to avenge deaths of 100 protestors in Milan in May.
What were the anarchist trade unions?
Unione Sindacale Italiana in 1912, with 800,000 members by 1919.
Unione Anarchica Italiana - 20,000 members in 1919. Began factory occupation at Biennio Rosso.
How did Italy compare to Britain industrially in 1896?
ITALY -
had industrial revolution 1897-1913, average wage p/a was £8 and 60% of jobs depend on agriculture.
BRITAIN - had industrial revolution 1750-1850, average wage p/a was £31, 10% jobs are agricultural.
What was the industrial situation in NW Italy, and why was it so successful?
Focused on textiles and engineering.
More powerful due to industrial tradition, accessible markets, hydroelectric power and good transport links.
What was the industrial situation in North-central Italy?
Chemicals were produced.
What population growth was seen in Sesto San Giovanni between 1800-1911?
Grew from 5,000 to 14,000.
What was the industrial situation in Sesto San Giovanni, SE?
Milanese commune of Lombardy which produced lots of steel/heavy machinery. Home to Gruppo Campari beverages co. from 1860 - extends to represent 50 brands in 190 countries.
What were the strengths of north Italian industry?
1901-11 - 2 million more workers.
Industrialists could succeed due to access to state subsidies, technological advancements, plus improved agricultural production/state arbitration to create a strong workforce.
What were the weaknesses of north Italian industry?
Limited and localised, mainly around industrial triangle of Genoa, Turin and Milan. 55% of 1911 profits.
Italy too weak to produce its own goods so had to rely upon trade.
Workforce was large but unskilled.
Sesto San Giovanni was an exception, as most places lacked communication/transport links and access to reliable energy sources: all needed to produce effectively.
What percentage of industrial income did the south account for in 1911?
16%.
What industrialisation could be seen in the south of Italy?
Pockets in Naples, Veneto and Tuscany; sulphur mining in Sicily.
Who was Francesco Saveiro Nitti and what did he believe?
A liberal economist who believed that the economic development of southern Italy had been stunted by unification and so there was need for intervention.
What did Nitti do?
1900 - ended internal tariffs and the establishment of a single Italian market that encouraged free trade.
1904 - Law on Basilicata - Arranged hydro-forestal reconstruction in Basilicata, and the establishment of public work schemes (aqueducts, farm houses, drains, etc.), using tax incentives and loans to encourage private participation.
1906 - Law on Calibria - same as above.
1910 - Law to Extend and Consolidate State Forestry.
1911 - Law for the Reclamation of Mountain Basins.
Why didn’t Nitti’s measures succeed?
Northern initiatives were supported more than southern ones as it was in the interests of politicians to prioritise the former.
Maffeo Pantaleoni - 1910 - South pays 32% to receive 27% of income whilst North pays 40% of tax to receive 48% of income.
Why was agricultural development seen in the north of Italy, 1890-1910?
Mechanisation extends crop variety and increases rate of production. More goods means more sales and more profits, so further investment can be made. Could use them to fund land drainage and irrigation, which made ore land available to use.
What was the situation in the Po Valley?
Po Valley was a commercialised agricultural region in the Province of Mantua. It had a humid subtropical climate and irrigation/hydroelectric power from the River Po.
What were problems with northern Italian agriculture?
Capitalist farming emerged as there was less of a demand for staff due to the mechanisation and expansion of farms. Labourers employed on short-term contracts and were subject to redundancy. This created greater social division, political tension and national instability.
What were the positives of the agricultural industry of the south?
It produced some luxury products which were popular for exportation: wine, oil and citrus fruits.
What were problems with the southern Italian agricultural industry?
Extensive deforestation meant there was poor soil quality and soil erosion. Non-mechanised so thus inefficient compared to the north and the rest of Europe. Natural disasters - Mt Vesuvius (1906) Messina EQ and tsunami (Dec 1918) - the most destructive EQ to ever hit Europe.
