Research Paper on Italian Unification

In 1815 hopes of Italian Unification were dented by the Vienna congress. Austrian control was restored directly in Lombardy and Venetia, indirectly in the Papal states. Mazzini remarked in 1815 "through out Europe one stroke of pen erased all our hopes, all our liberties'. The settlement resulted in numerous groups like the Cabonari, Young Italy being formed, spear heading for the unification. By 1848-49 the forces working for unification had completely failed.

From 1850 onward events rapidly took place that are still being debated, were the events planeed or not? The traditional view say that Cavour planned the unification, they assert that he carried the Piedmont industrialiasation to equip it economically and militarirly for the challenge of unification. This notion must be dismissed with the greatest cotempt it deserves because Cavour was not a an Italian patriot at all, but a piedmonteese expansionist at heart. He carried those reforms to equip piedmont militarily and economically in preparation for expansion in Northern Italy. Cavour wanted to expel Austria from Lombard and venetia because they were rich proviences.

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Then came the cremean war, it is a distortion of histry to claim that Cavour engineered entry into cremean war in order to gain foreign assistance for unification.It must be noted that it was not Cavour but Britain and France who invited Italy into war, also it was King Victor Emmanuel who accepted not Cavour.

Entry into war had nothing to do with unification, it was a way of diverting public attention from domestic problems. After all the participation in this war wasted resources like finance and army equipment that was desparately needed for unification. Then came the Paris conferance, Italy was not even on agenda. By 1856 there was nothing that was in shape italy was still a geographical entity than a political entity. After that came the Plombiries meeting with Napoleon, it was not Covour but Napoleon who called for the meeting after the failed assination attempt on his life. Admittedly planning was done here. France was to help Piedmonte in a war against Austria with 20 000 troops, this as liberate Lombard and venetia for piedmonte. Austria was to provoked in a way that will make her appear as an agressor, France was to be rewarded with Nice and Savoy. This planning shows that Cavour was a not an apostle of unification but a piedmonteese expansionist. This is showed by being prepaped to cede Nice and Savoy to France. As per plan war broke out and France and Piedmonte won two quick battles at Magenta and Salferino, however Napoleon wavered and signed the Villa Franca treaty with Astria behind Cavours back, the result was Cavour resigned because France got Nice and Savoy whilst Piedmonte got only Lombardy. Events in the cental duvhies were the crux of the unification.

During the war with Austri the rulers of Parma, moderna and tuscany were deposed and after war they voted for union with Piedmonte rather than allowing back the despotic rulers. This was purely an accident not a planned process. Cavour quickly came back to Piedmontise the process.

In southern Italy Garibaldi took advantage of the revolutionary situation that was in Naples and sicily, with 1000 men he took over both, it must be noted that for garibaldi it was adventerism than nationalism that drove him into Naples and Sicily. Surely one who is seriouse can gather 1000 men and dream of unifying Italy with such an army. When he wanted to march to Rome Cavour sent an army that stopped Garibaldi. This because Cavour did not want Austro- franco alliance since Rome was under France. Garibaldi handed over sicily and Naples to Piedmonte.

This was more of anexion than unification. By now only Rome and Venetia were still in foreign hands. In 1866 there was Austro-Prussian war, Piedmonte took advantage of Austrian commitment to figthing and seized Venetia, then in 1870 duringthe Franco-Prussian war Piedmonte took advantage of that war and anexed Rome.

All these events were not calculations but oppotunities that Piedmonte took, in fact this uinfication can be safely said to be Piedmonteese expansion rather than Italian inification.

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