Italian Unification

Italian unification

1) There were a number of reasons as to the fact that Italian unification seemed so far away in the early 1850s, and reasons why nobody felt that Italy as one state would ever be possible. There had been a number of attempted uprisings between 1948 and 49, however all of these had been unsuccessful. The area that is now Italy was still separate parts, each part with their own culture and traditions. Around ninety percent of the population were uneducated and many did not even know the term Italy, many of these people did not have any concerns over who ruled them, and just wished to be ruled well. Austria was still very much the dominant power in Italy, and a dominant power in Europe, at the time it seemed impossible that they could ever be removed from Italy.

2) Cavour saw Mazzini’s ideas as negative, and idealistic, Cavour wanted Piedmontease expansion while Mazzini and his followers wanted a united Italy. Cavour detested Mazzini because of his extremist views, the opposite to Cavour’s middle of the road politics. As well as this Mazzini’s practical record had been one of complete failure, and many young revolutionaries died to no effect. Cavour believed that Mazzini was in fact a help to his cause, and so looked for support from different areas.

4) At Plombieres an agreement was signed in which the French under Napoleon the third agreed to help Piedmont eject the Austrians from states in the northern part of Italy, the meeting was vital because Cavour knew that he had no chance of removing the Austrians without outside support, which France agreed to give at the meeting at Plombieres. However they agreed only to do this on the condition that Austria were seen as the aggressors. To ensure that this was the case Cavour had troops mobilise inside piedmont which then resulted in Austria attacking, this gave France the excuse they needed to attack Austria and take many of the northern states. However fear of intervention by the Germanic states and fear of troubles at home lead Napoleon to him pulling out and not fulfilling the agreements made at Plombieres, and therefore not gaining niece and Savoy. When Cavour wished to continue the battle against the Austrians he was prevented from doing so by Victor Emanuel, and consequently resigned.

6) Cavour was a very skilled politician who wished Piedmont to be seen as a force in Europe, and to achieve this he did a number of things, firstly he involved himself in the Crimean war in which both Britain and France had a great interest in.