ITALY DS1: Challenge to the Restored Monarchs

Austrian strength in the 1830s

The Holy Alliance (Sep. 1815)

• Coalition between Russia, Prussia and Austria

• Restrain Republicanism and Secularism

Troppau Protocol (Nov 19th 1820)

• Declaration of intention taking collective action against revolution

• July 1820: Congress decided to take decisive action against democratic revolution in Naples

Klemens Von Metternich

• Insisted autocratic absolutism was the ONLY form of government

• Failings: Metternich ordered the occupation of Papal occupied Ferrara in Summer of 1847

Reasons for the failure of 1830 revolutions

Middle Class and Peasant revolutionaries divided

• Sicily revolt crushed 1821

Failure of foreign powers

• Following 1815 Vienna, Italy under proxy rule

• Lord Palmerstone wanted to maintain status quo

• Favoured the monarchies and conservative systems established in 1815

Political thinking within Italy

Giuseppe Mazzini

• Risorgimento

• Wanted to include peasantry

• 1831 created Young Italy - 60,000 members by 1833

• Inspired ideas of revolution in 1844 in Calabra

• 1849: The Kingdom of God - linked religion with nationalism

• 1849: Founded Roman Republic

Cesare Balbo

• Federation led by Piedmont Sardinia

• Did not want to include peasantry

• Saw military leadership as necessary

Vincenzo Gioberti

• Wanted a federal system led by Pope

Language

‘Biblioteca Italiana’ founded in Milan 1816

‘Il Poltenico’ produced in 1839 & 1845

Illiteracy rate was 67% of the population by 1871

Only 630k / 27 million population spoke the Tuscan dialect

Linguistic diversity was at the heart of Metternich’s dismissal of Italy

National Organisations

‘Congresso degli Scienziata’ est. 1839

• Delegates from EVERY region attended

Initial Revolutions / Revolutionaries

Italian Jacobins

• Buonarotti & TPSM ( The Perfect Sublime Masters ) - 1808

• Used ideas from the French revolution

‘Del Risorgimento’

16th Century writers such as Machiavelli and Dante wrote of Italians cultural identity

• 18th / 19th cent. writers began to link Italian Culture w/ Political Liberty

The Enlightenment ( 1685 - 1815 )

• Rousseau and others questioned the place and position of institutions

• Enlightenment figures favoured science over ideas of tradition / religion

Romanticism

Giuseppe Verdi

• ‘Nabucco’ (1841) talked of the subjugation of Italians

Pope Pius IX ( 1846 - 78 )

Reforms in the Papal States

• Appoints P.M Pellegrino Rossi

• Hostile to Austrian influence ( 1847 occupation of Ferrara )

• Many hailed him as ‘The Redeemer of Italy’

• 1/6 of the Roman population farmers

• Abolished requirement for Jews to attend Christian services ( 5% of population )

• Freed 1000 political prisoners

Opened Papal Charities for the needy

Population

17.8 - 24 million population increase

Economic

Slow growth 0.5% per annum ( 1830 - 60 )

Lack of Industrialisation

• 114k industrial workers in Piedmont

1847 depression ( result of 1844 Bank Charter Act )

• 1840: silk industry employed 70k workers in Lombardy

Piedmont: The First War of Independence

Five Days of Milan ( 18-22nd March 1848 )

• Milanese & Radetzky’s men

Declaration of War

• Charles Albert proclaims, “the help a brother expects from a brother”

• Austrians captained by 83 year old Radetzky

Novara 1849 - Charles Albert defeated

Custoza July 1849 - C.A wholeheartedly defeated

March 23rd 1849: Charles Albert abdicates

• abdicates in favour of son Victor Emmanuel

Total Casualties - 33,000

1849 Statuto

Promulgated March 4th 1849

• Statuto is a liberal constitution

• Granted suffrage to wealthy males over 25

• Expansion of civil liberties

The Roman Republic 1848

April 1848: Papal Allocution

• States that Charles Albert was the aggressor in the First War of Independence

• 20,000 Neapolitan & Papal Troops left - Pepe & Durango

Autumn 1848: Pius IX flees

• Nov 1848 Pellegrino Rossi assassinated

• In Pope Pius’s absence, Mazzini formed the Roman Republic

• ‘Constituente’ formed in 1849 following the news of Navara

• ‘Triumvir’ governed Rome ( Mazzini, Staffi, Armedlini )

Sicilian Revolution 1848

Causes

• Ferdinand II disastrous agrarian reforms

• Outbreak of Cholera ( 65,000 dead )

• 1815 Kingdoms United: Sicilains hated Neapolitan rule

Sicilian Revolution ( 12th January 1848 )

• The first revolution in 1848

• Sicilian nobles resuscitated 1812 constitution

• Quasi-independent state for 16 month

• March 13th: Ferdinand II abolishes the parliament

• Anti-constitutional Giustano Fortunato