The unification of Italy and the reunification of Germany are two of the most important events in 19th-

century Europe. Mainly motivated by a sense of community bound by a shared language, culture and

attractive economic and colonial solutions, after the events of the Spring of Nations of 1948-1949, the

Italian states and German states continue their aspirations and join together to become significant

powers on the continent's map. The process of unification of both Italy and Germany was

accompanied by numerous wars and different concepts regarding their integration. Despite the similar

location of these events in time, the cycles of unification of these countries differed from each other.

The aim of my work will be to compare the unification processes of Germany and Italy.

I will start with the unification concepts that existed in the Italian state at that time. In Italy, the

unification of which is said to be bottom-up, i.e. in accordance with the general will of the people,

attempts were made to force two ways of unification: revolutionary, led by Giuseppe Garibaldi, and

non-revolutionary, led by Victor Emmanuel, the ruler of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and Camillo

Cavour. However, in order to understand the concept of this union, it is worth going back to the

genesis of these events.

In 1859, a war broke out between the hegemonic Empire of Austria and the Kingdom of Piedmont

(Sardinia). France is getting involved in the conflict, encouraged by the prospect of regaining some of

the lost land for Austria. This is why the French side with Sardinia. The Italian state, alongside France,

wins the war, as a result of which it conquers Lombardy, and the territories of Nice and Savoie are

incorporated into France. Then in Italy the idea of unification begins to resonate more and more

clearly among the population. The authorities are starting to organize the so-called plebiscites, i.e.

referenda to clearly and officially define the attitude of the people to the idea of unification. Some

states, including Naples, decide on the way of these plebiscites to join the Kingdom of Sardinia.

In 1860, the king of the ever-growing Kingdom of Sardinia began a dialogue with the revolutionary

Giuseppe Garibaldi, desiring his support in the process of the unification of Italy. Consequently,
Garibaldi organizes the "Expedition of a Thousand" of the same year. The aim of this expedition was

to take control of as many Italian states as possible in order to be able to incorporate them into the

slowly emerging united Italian state. Taking over most of these areas takes place without major

problems due to the social consent expressed in previous plebiscites. Garibaldi's expedition can be

considered as the direct cause of the creation of the united Kingdom of Italy in 1861, ruled by the then

king of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel, from then on called Victor Emmanuel II.

In fact, the only country that was not in favor of the unification of Italy was the ecclesiastical state.

Pope Pius was actually protected only by France, which did not want the fall of the European capital

of Christianity. It was not until 1870 that Italy occupied Rome, after the troops guarding the French

troops withdrew from it. It was the event that completed the cycle of unification.

Simultaneously, in 1864, the first events aimed at leading the German Union established at the

Congress of Vienna to unification begin. As a result of the Prussian-Danish war, the Kingdom of

Prussia conquered the territory of the Duchy of Schleswig. Two concepts of unification were

advocated in Germany. They were the concept of Little and Greater Germany. The first of them

assumed the unification of the German states with the exception of Austria. It was a solution promoted

in particular by Prussia and Otto von Bismarck, prime minister of the Prussian, reluctant to the

hegemony of the Austrian Habsburg family. The second concept proposed the opposite, involving

Austria.

In 1866, the Prussian-Austrian war broke out by the Kingdom of Prussia. The purpose of the conflict

was to oppose the concept of Greater Germany, not supported by Otto von Bismarck. As a result, the

Duchy of Holstein, previously controlled by the Habsburgs, was added to the Prussian territories.

Another consequence of this war was the creation of the North German Union, consisting of the
northern maps of Europe of the German states which submitted to the domination of Prussia and

supported the concept of Little Germany. It is also a war that Italy is using to regain Venice in its

unification process.

After the threat to Prussia was eliminated by Austria blocking the implementation of the Little

Germany concept, dissatisfaction with the growing power of the Kingdom of Prussia began to be

expressed by the aristocracy and the French authorities. For this reason, in 1871, Emperor Napoleon

III declared war on Prussia. However, he loses the fights, consequently losing the territories of Alsace

and Lorraine to the state of Bismarck. These events allowed the Prussians to finally implement their

plans for the unification of the German states. Moreover, the domination of Bismarck, who sought

unification "with blood and iron," being absolutely ruthless and uncompromising in his actions,

allowed him to push through the concept of Little Germany. In 1871, without the participation of

Austria, the German Empire is created, headed by King William I of Prussia, which finally completes

the process of German unification.

When comparing the unification of Italy and Germany, one can notice many similarities as well as

numerous differences. It is worth noting that although these processes take place in a similar period in

history, they consist of various, sometimes contradictory elements. This can be seen, for example,

through the prism of the approach of the population of these countries to the idea of unification.

Italians, openly expressing their support for it, were willing to engage in activities leading to

unification. On the other hand, the reunification of Germany under the leadership of Bismarck, who

united the German Union by force from above. For this reason, the reunification of Italy can be called

less bloody, and certainly more democratic (thanks to plebiscites, for example) than the reunification

of Germany. Another significant difference was the fact that in Germany there were already some

partner, economic and political organizations unifying them, such as, for example, the German Union.
Italy, on the other hand, began unification from the beginning. Undoubtedly, however, both of these

processes required a difficult war struggle, inter alia, with Austria and France, two strong European

powers, and a feeling of unity among the population of Italian territories and German territories.