Revision – Italian Unification
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Transcript Revision – Italian Unification
Revision – Session 1
The Unification of Italy
Italy 1852-70
Treaty of Vienna 1815 Italy divided into 4
main areas
Naples
Papal States
Austrian Lands (Lombardy, Venetia, The
Duchies)
Piedmont-Sardinia
Italy 1852-70
King of Naples, The Pope and the
Austrians were not interested in
changing the way Italy was governed
Piedmont wanted change
Cavour’s domestic policies
Owned large estates and used modern farming
methods
Encouraged development of banking and
railways
Founded newspaper – Il Risorgimento – in
1847
Looked at Britain and France as examples
Supported creation of Piedmontese constitution
Reduced the power of the Catholic church
Abolished church courts
Cavour’s domestic policies
1850 he became a government minister
He raised taxes and borrowed from French
banks to clear debt and build railways
He invited foreign banks to invest in Piedmont
1852 he became Prime Minister
He abolished monasteries
He insisted on only speaking Italian
He persuaded the king Victor Emmanuel II that
parliament should stay
Cavour’s domestic policies
Main aim = to make Piedmont strong
and modern
Economy and industry = the strongest in
Italy
Wanted to get rid of foreign rulers in Italy
After failure of 1848-9 war with Austria
seems too difficult
He needed to get help of a foreign power
like Britain or France
The Defeat of Austria
Cavour would get the help of Britain or France
by helping them in the Crimean war (1854-5)
At the Paris Peace Conference at the end of the
war – Europe listened to Cavour’s problems
Nothing happened until 1858 when Orsini tried
to assasinate Napoleon III – Cavour helped the
French find the culprit
Orsini’s at his arrest made desparate plea for
help with Italy’s problems made Napoleon
decide to help
The Defeat of Austria
Napoleon met Cavour in secret at
Plombieres
In December 1858 a treaty was signed
to say that France would help Piedmont
in a war against Austria in return for Nice
and Savoy
Cavour provoked the Austrians into war
by ordering his army reserves to report
for duty
The Defeat of Austria
French forces helped the Piedmontese
win victories at Magenta and Solferino
The second battle was so bloody that
Napoleon sought an armistice
Napoleon was also worried things were
getting out of hand
People in the Austrian duchies had
driven out their rulers…
The Defeat of Austria
Napoleon offered an armistice without
consulting Cavour
He met the Austrian Emperor at Villafranca in
July 1859
They agreed that Lombardy should be given
over and Venetia would remain Austrian
Austrian dukes were reinstated to their duchies
Cavour was furious and resigned
Defeat of Austria
But when the Austrian dukes returned to their
duchies they were expelled and the people
voted to join Piedmont
Cavour became Prime Minister again in 1860
and persuaded Napoleon III to agree to their
Treaty – in return for Nice and Savoy Piedmont
kept Lombardy and the duchies.
Austria stilll controlled Venetia
The campaign was partly successful
Garibaldi
Revolts against their rulers occured in south as
well as north Italy
1860 revolt against the king of Naples – it was
crushed but did not go unnoticed
Garibaldi, a freedom fighter, decided to support
the people of Naples
He had supported Cavour but did NOT support
the fact that he had handed Nice over to the
French
He was about to go to Nice and help defend it
from the French when he heard of the troubles
in Sicily and went there instead
Garibaldi
In May 1860 he set sail for Sicily with a
thousand volunteer ‘soldiers’ – the redshirts
They defeated the king of Naples army in Sicily
by the end of July
Then went to the mainland – they were able to
cross the sea because they were mistaken for
British soldiers
Garibaldi took the city of Naples and the king
fled
Garibaldi then planned to march onto the Papal
States and possibly to Venetia
The Papal States
Cavour had watched on as Garibaldi conquered
Naples
He was that Garibaldi might attack Rome as
this would prompt the French to defend
Cavour ordered Piedmontese troops to march
south and stop Garibaldi
The two armies met and Garibaldi handed over
his conquests to Victor Emmanuel
The Papal States
Most of the Papal states broke away from the
Pope and voted to join Piedmont
Naples and Sicily did the same
Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed March 1861
Victor Emmanuel was first king
Rome and a small area around it and Venetia
(still controlled by the Austrians) were not part
of the kingdom – although it was what many
Venetians wanted
Venetia and Rome
1862 Garibaldi tried again to occupy Rome but
was stopped by Piedmont
1864 Napoleon agreed to move his troops from
Rome if Italian capital was moved to Florence
1866 French removed troops from Rome
May 1866 Italy signed a Treaty with Prussia
Prussia went to war with Austria
Austria signed a secret Treaty with France (so
the French would stay out of the war – terms =
hand Venetia over to Italy)
Venetia and Rome
Prussia defeated Austria
Austria leaves Venetia – Venetia becomes part
of Italy 1866
Garibaldi attempted to occupy Rome AGAIN
and results in more French troops being sent to
Rome
1870 Franco-Prussian war = withdrawal of
French troops
Piedmontese army occupy Rome in September
1870
Becomes part of Italy in October and is
proclaimed capital