Unification of Italy

During the invasion of Napoleon, the people of the Italian peninsula got a taste of French
Revolution ideals, like liberty and nationalism, and realized that they were tired of being ruled
over by far-away monarchs and their Ancien Régime.

Secret nationalistic societies popped up around the Italian city-states that banded together
like-minded individuals who wanted to fight for a unified Italian state. It took almost half a
century, but by the early 1860s, they were successful. The battle for a unified Italy was hard-
won, and it took the collaboration of many individuals, groups, and countries.

Before unification in 1861, the Italian peninsula was made of individual city-states that saw a
lot of changes during the Napoleonic Wars. The borders of the Italian city-states were in flux
before and after Napoleon's invasion, in which the peninsula was reverted to its original 18th-
century borders, and during the unification of Italy.

For centuries, the Italian peninsula was a conglomeration of different city-states. Each had its
own culture, a form of government, and non-Italian rulers. The path to unification was a long,
windy, and bumpy road. The beginning of the unification movement called the Risorgimento,
is kicked off by Napoleon and ends with the savvy diplomat Count Camillo de Cavour.

Italian states before unification

The Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy

The story of Italian unification begins when the French military leader Napoleon Bonaparte
pushed the Austrians and Sardinians out of Northern and Central Italy in 1796. By the 19th
century, the Italian peninsula became the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy.
Napoleon's army also brought ideas about government and society that had been at the
center of the French Revolution:
 Banished old feudal practices
 Promote popular sovereignty

These new ideologies inspired thoughts of unification and stirred nationalist sentiment
among the Popolo, or the Italian people, two of the most potent ideologies to grow from the
French Revolution. In many cases, nationalists also pushed for liberal reform, as they believed
that political equality and freedom should be the basis of a nation.

Congress of Vienna
Napoleon's reign came to an end in 1815. The big powers of Europe at the time, Great Britain,
Austria, Prussia, and Russia, met at the Congress of Vienna in September 1814 to undo the
Napoleon debacle and hoped to squash any revolutionary ideas that circulated around the
French Revolution.

The Congress of Vienna and the Vienna Settlement redistributed the conquered lands across
Europe back to the pre-Napoleon monarchies. The leaders of Europe wanted to return
stability to the continent. There was no going back after Napoleon's reign; many people had
been exposed to French Revolutionary ideas, like republicanism and nationalism.

Revolutions of 1848 and The First Italian War of Independence

Secret societies, like the Carbonari and Giovane Italia, popped up all over Italy that spread
the word about nationalism and a future unified Italian country that could be controlled by
the people, rather than a sovereign or papal power. Thus, the Risorgimento movement was
born.

Nationalists like Giuseppe Mazzini rose to the top of the movement and created the secret
society Giovane Italia, or Young Italy. Giovane Italia was one of the early nationalist societies
that influenced and encouraged idealists, most of whom were young men, to fight for Italian
independence. Many influential leaders of the movement, like Giuseppe Garibaldi, were
members of these societies.
The first round of revolts pushing for unification happened in January of 1848 when the
people of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies led a revolt against King Ferdinand II. The revolts
spread like wildfire and spread to northern Italy, where King Charles Albert of Piedmont-
Sardinia declared war on the Austrian Empire in a doomed attempt to oust the Austrians. The
Austrians defeated King Albert and his Italian army in what became known as the First Italian
War of Independence.

While the Revolutions of 1848 and the First Italian War of Independence were unsuccessful
in ousting the Austrians, a minor success was that many uneasy rulers decided to grant
constitutions; even the Papal States responded by installing the short-lived Roman Republic.
After the failure, nationalists regrouped and focused their sights on the northern state of
Piedmont. After King Charles Albert abdicated, his son King Victor Emmanual II, and diplomat
Count Camillo de Cavour became the main leaders of the movement. They focused on the
idea of realpolitik and the French idea of government, which included civil liberties, elections,
and less influence from the Catholic Church.

Expedition of the Thousand

One of the most ambitious efforts of the Risorgimento was the Expedition of the Thousand.
The Expedition was led by Giuseppe Garibaldi on the ground, but other leaders like Camille
de Cavour, Giuseppe Mazzini, and King Victor Emmanual II all had a hand in planning certain
aspects.
Garibaldi led a group of young Northern Italian men, easily identified by their red shirts, who
were often referred to as "redshirts."

The campaign began in May of 1860 when they set sail toward Sicily. The Redshirts quickly
took the Sicilian city of Palermo and gathered Sicilians who were eager to defeat their
Bourbon rulers. They continued up the peninsula and entered Naples, where the Bourbon
rulers were defeated. Garibaldi combined conquered Naples and the Kingdom of Two
Sicilies into the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia.

Garibaldi and his readshirts in Palermo, Sicily

The Kingdom of Italy and the Third War of Italian Independence

In 1861, The Kingdom of Italy was officially declared with King Victor Emmanual II on the
throne. An Italian parliament was founded and created a government that represented all of
the Italian peninsula, minus the Papal States (which included Rome) and Venice, which would
not be a part of Italy until 1866 and 1871 respectively.

King Victor Emmanual II saw the war between the Austrians and Prussians, called the Austro-
Prussian War, as an opportunity to annex the Papal States and Venice. He strategically allied
Italy with Prussia and declared war on Austria. The Italian army pushed the Austrians out of
Venice, and after a series of diplomatic decisions, Venice was given to the Kingdom of Italy as
outlined in the Peace of Prague treaty.

Rome and the Papal States were added to the Kingdom of Italy in 1870 when the Italian army
captured the Vatican. Finally, the unification of Italy was complete.

Fathers of Italian unification

While many activists and Italian people played a role in furthering the unification movement,
the four leaders below are considered the "fathers of the fatherland."
Guiseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini, a Father of Unification, believed that this new Italy under unification
should be the third version of Rome. Mazzini's view is considered to be more romantic.

Mazzini was exiled for his nationalist actions. Then helped found the group Young Italy, or
Giovani Italia, in 1831 to:
 Replace the fading Carbonari society.
 Encourage youth to be involved.
 Further unification causes in general.
 Embrace all classes of Italian society.

Guiseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi believed in a democracy but worked with King Victor Emmanual II. His
view of Italian Unification, under a democratic government rather than a constitutional
monarchy, was never realized, but his role is nonetheless important.

Garibaldi was essential in assembling the Expedition of the Thousand and is credited with
capturing Naples and Sicily for the new Kingdom of Italy. As well as being known as an
incredibly effective military leader, he became a hero to those liberated from absolutist rule.
King Victor Emmanuel II
Victor Emmanuel II was the King of Piedmont-Sardinia between the years of 1849 and 1861
and became the first King of unified Italy in 1861 as the head of a constitutional monarchy.
He assisted Garibaldi's military expedition by leading the north into unification while Garibaldi
did the same with the south.

He led Italy through the Third War of Italian Independence and successfully annexed Venice
and the Papal States in 1871. King Victor Emmanual II also shaped the Italian government by
moving the capital of Italy to Rome and relocating the Pope to Vatican City.

Count Camillo di Cavour

Count Camillo di Cavour was a believer in the theory of realpolitik. He was a strategic leader
and proactive at creating alliances and situations that would benefit Italy. Cavour's application
of realpolitik meant that he was willing to compromise and take actions that would benefit
Italy as a whole.

Perhaps the most influential action he took was during the Crimean War, which broke out
while he was Prime Minister in 1853. Cavour threw Italy's hat in the ring by creating an alliance
with the British and French in 1855. This partnership with France allowed the constitutional
monarchy under King Victor Emmanual II to assemble.
The unifications of Germany and of Italy were very similar; both happened under what is
considered the Age of National Unification, which peaked in the latter half of the 19th century.
It was during this time that many nations across Europe began to overthrow their respective
ancien regime.