Since the collapse of the Roman Empire, a single state entity on the territory of the Apennine Peninsula did not exist. The Italian kingdom has become one of the most recently united European states. While feudal France was united around a single center in the Middle Ages, Italy existed in a fragmented state until the nineteenth century.
The formation of the Italian kingdom
Before the proclamation of the kingdom in 1861, there was no single state on the territory of modern Italy. The northeastern part was ruled by the Austrian Empire of the Habsburgs, and all other lands housed various Italian states, the most powerful of which was the Sardinian kingdom.
It was under the banner of the Sardinian kingdom that the war began at the beginning of the nineteenth century for the liberation of Italy from foreign invaders and against its own feudal lords.
At the beginning of the war against the powerful Austrian Empire, it was not very successful, but they significantly raised the patriotic spirit among the inhabitants of the future Italian kingdom. The first armed conflict that brought significant political changes to the Apennine peninsula was the Italo-Franco-Austrian war, during which the hero of this war, Garibaldi, landed in Sicily and captured it. The victory over the Kingdom of both Sicilies made it possible to annex not only him, but also Lombardy, Tuscany, Parma, Romagna and Modena.
Risorgimento. Start
Translated from Italian, the word risorgimento is revival and renewal. And this term was not chosen by chance to refer to events that took place in Italy in the nineteenth century.
The prerequisites for starting the country's renewal movement were so diverse that it was not possible to single out the most important ones. The most important are usually enlightened, liberal, nationalist, anti-church and anti-Austrian.
Denying the expansionist policies of the House of Savoy, who ruled in Sardinia, is also not worth it. The rulers of the future Italian kingdom quite actively took up the fight against their competitors and managed to attract the inhabitants of all Italy to their side.
Apennine peninsula on the eve of unification
In the mid-19th century, Italy was an economically backward state with a predominantly medieval system of government. Only in the 1840s did the industrial revolution begin in the most developed northern part of the country, while the rest was divided into numerous small states, separated from each other by borders, customs duties and additional duties.
The openly feudal system of government, as well as the existence of the Papal state, which was controlled by church officials, played a significant role in the country's lagging behind other European states. The very existence of theocracy in nineteenth century Europe did not cause positive emotions among Italians, since church officials behaved towards local residents not much better than Austrians did towards residents of Italian territories they occupied.
It is also worth remembering that until 1590, Italy belonged to the Spanish Empire, after - to France, and as a result of the war for the Spanish inheritance, which ended in 1714, it fell under the rule of the Austrian Habsburgs. The kingdom of both Sicilies, which was ruled by the Bourbons, was extremely dependent on the Austrian ruling house, since it was his military support that kept it.
Social and economic crisis
By the mid-nineteenth century, the Italian bourgeois entered the period of the initial accumulation of capital, the active decomposition of the feudal economy began, and the political system was increasingly in conflict with the new economic conditions. Workers appear, more and more peasants move to the city and become active participants in urban social life, moving away from the church.
In 1846, a moderate reformation began in the Pontifical State with the active participation of Pope Pius IX, and a special commission was created to study the political and social problems of the state. It was Pius IX who created the prerequisites necessary for the future unification of Italy, proposing a single customs union for the entire peninsula and putting forward a proposal for the construction of railways in the Papal Region.
Such vigorous activity caused concern among the Austrians who, without much resistance from the local population, captured Ferrara. In response to these actions, the Pope advanced Swiss guards to the borders of his state. Residents of the region greeted this decision with universal glee, and it became clear that Italians were ready for more active actions to free their country from foreign occupation.
The revolution of 1848
In 1848, a revolution began in northern Italy, which quickly led to an active retreat of the Austrians from the occupied lands. On March 26, 1848, the Republic of Venice was proclaimed , led by Daniel Manin, who was recognized as the hero of the unification of Italy and one of the designers of the political structure of the Italian kingdom.
Soon after, an armed uprising began in Parma and Milan, they were supported by the king of Piedmont, who hoped to create a kingdom of North Italy. All these actions led to the beginning of the first Austro-Italian war, which went into historiography under the name of the war for independence.
All of Italy was engulfed in the fire of the revolutionary movement, barricades were erected in every major city. The revolution in Rome in 1848 led to the flight of the Pope and the proclamation of the Roman Republic. However, with the help of France, it was soon eliminated.
Despite the fact that the revolution crashed, it also led to the collapse of the traditional regimes on the territory of all states of the Apennine peninsula, except Piedmont, which determined the further course of the unification of the country under its banners.
Unification of Italy under the rule of Piedmont
Initially, the ruling elite of the kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia did not intend to create a new kingdom on the territory of the united country, but simply sought to expand the power of its own state to the entire peninsula and establish its own rules on it.
However, pretty quickly it became clear that the unification of the state into a single Italian kingdom is impossible on old grounds. By 1860, the actual unification of lands was completed, it remained to settle the formalities.
On March 17, 1861, an all-Italian parliament was convened in Turin, which proclaimed the formation of the Italian kingdom. At the head of the new country stood the King of Piedmont Victor Emmanuel II. The political structure of the Italian kingdom was framed on the basis of the principles that existed in Piedmont and in Sardinia.
Consequences of the Association
The unification of the state led to the growth of not only national identity, but also class solidarity. In the mid-1840s, several workers' organizations appeared on the territory of the Sardinian kingdom, which aimed to defend the interests of workers.
In addition, in the 1860s, the newly created state faced a number of problems. An early decision was required in the field of land relations. The pressure from the peasantry, infuriated by representatives of the Bourbons, was so great that on January 1, 1861, a decree was signed on the division of communal lands, which was demanded by the peasants.
The supporters of the former ruling dynasty found the greatest support in the papacy. Pope Pius IX rejected the armistice proposals one by one and refused to make Rome the capital of a new country.
Capital of the Italian Kingdom
Despite the fact that an all-Italian parliament congress had already taken place in Turin, Italy was still not fully united, since the most important city of the peninsula was still under the control of the Pope.
The ceremonial entry of the king of united Italy, Victor Emmanuel II, took place on July 2, 1871. Thus, the creation of the Italian kingdom was completed. Soon, state symbols were approved and relations with neighbors were established, but relations with the Pope continued to remain tense until Mussolini came to power, who nevertheless signed an agreement with the Pope.
The national flag of the Italian kingdom has become a green-white-red tricolor with the emblem of the Piedmont dynasty in the middle. To avoid the same colors on the flag and coat of arms, the coat of arms was circled in blue.
The Italian kingdom ceased to exist in 1946, when the monarchy was abolished, and representatives of the ruling dynasty were expelled from the country.