Mazzini and Garibaldi The Unification of Italy Part 1
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Italy before Unification Italy never existed as one country. It
was a group of small city states or kingdoms that was linked
together only by language and culture. However, since Nationalism
hit Italy, (again we see the influence of Napoleon) Italians began
to feel like they should be together in one strong united country.
Parts of Italy were constantly invaded and/or occupied by foreign
powers In Northern Italy, for example, French, Germanic and Slavic
linguistic and cultural influences can be seen In Southern Italy,
there is the vast influence of the Catholic Church. The Papal
States literally cut the country in half Also, the church owned
approx. 60% of the land in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies During
the 19 th Century, the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies was controlled
by the Bourbons, the French Royal Family Vast poverty in Southern
Italy
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The 3 Wise Men The Story of Italian Unification (in Italian the
Risorgimento) can be best understood through the lives and
accomplishments of 3 men
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The Soul of Italian Unification Giuseppe Mazzini
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Mazzini Mazzini was a famous Italian Nationalist Writer. He
believed that all Italians should be joined together and that Italy
could be a great and powerful country. He also believed that a
strong Italian government could use liberal ideas to improve the
conditions of the poor throughout the land. Mazzinis works inspired
the revolutions of 1848 and he was a hero of the Nationalist
movement.
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Quotes from Mazzini A Country is not a mere territory; the
particular territory is only its foundation. The Country is the
idea which rises upon that foundation; it is the sentiment of love,
the sense of fellowship which binds together all the sons of that
territory. Slumber not in the tents of your fathers. The world is
advancing. So long as you are ready to die for humanity, the life
of your country is immortal. The theory of rights enables us to
rise and overthrow obstacles, but not to found a strong and lasting
accord between all the elements which compose the nation. God has
given you your country as cradle, and humanity as mother; you
cannot rightly love your brethren of the cradle if you love not the
common mother.
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The Sword of Italian Unification Giuseppe Garibaldi
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Garibaldi: The Early Years Garibaldi was born in Nice, which
was French, but given back to the Italians after the congress of
Vienna Garibaldi was, as a young man, passionate about building the
Nation of Italy He was enthralled by the works of Mazzini He
eventually joins Young Italy, a secret society dedicated to
destroying Austrian rule in Northern Italy He joins the Carbonari
Revolutionary Association and takes part in a rebellion against the
King of Piedmont in 1834 It fails and Garibaldi flees the country
He is sentenced to death in absentia
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To South America Eventually Garibaldi finds his way to Brazil
There he met his future wife, Anita, and they fought together
alongside Gaucho rebels to separate from Brazil and form a new,
democratic country This is where Garibaldi developed his look...
Red Shirt, Poncho and Sombrero... And his horse riding skills.
Garibaldi and Anita, then travel to Uruguay and took part in their
civil war He raised an Italian Legion and fought many victorious
battles against numerically superior opponents However, through it
all, he never forgot his homeland and wished to someday return to
liberate Italy In all his battles, his soldiers wore the trademark
red shirts and they carried with them a black flag with a volcano
in the middle Black representing mourning for Italy The Volcano
representing the dormant power of the Unified Italian people In
1848, much of Italy revolts and Mazzini, the now skilled warrior,
returns home
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1848 Garibaldi went to Milan and fought with their
revolutionary government against Austrian Rule However, after a
major Austrian victory, the cause was lost Garibaldi then went to
Rome, where revolutionaries had declared a republic in the Papal
States Garibaldi fought several battles and defeated numerically
superior French forces However, the French sent a massive amount of
reinforcements to defend the Pope Garbaldi was forced to retreat
His wife died and he was forced to leave the country again He
travelled to the USA and lived in New York There he worked in a
candle factory and a merchant ship captain
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Back to Italy and the March of the 1000 Garibaldi returned to
Italy and aligned himself with King Victor Emmanuel of Piedmont in
his war against Austria He was impressed with this king and
realized that a strong leader was needed to unify Italy He was
promoted to General and won many victories The war was won and
Garibaldi became a national hero However, he would not be satisfied
until all Italy was free In 1860, during popular uprisings, he took
1000 of his Red Shirts and invaded the kingdom of Sicily As, he
marched through, local peasants and rebels joined With just this
small force, he managed to defeat the entire army of the Kingdom He
proclaimed himself dictator in the name of King Victor Emmanuel...
He hoped to unify his new conquest under the leadership of a king
that he trusted
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The March on Rome Garibaldi wanted to continue and took his
Army north, into the Papal States However, he was blocked from
doing so by the Army of Piedmont King Victor Emmanuel did not want
to risk war with France Victor Emmanuel himself travelled south to
meet with Garibaldi The two men met of a bridge to discuss the
future of the country Victor was desperate to stop here and receive
the gift of southern Italy Garibaldi was desperate to unify all
Italians, get rid of the horrible influence of the catholic church
in Italy and now was beginning to distrust Emmanuel The result of
this meeting... Next time!