Pennsylvania School of Horticulture for Women - Wise Acres Yearbook (Ambler, PA)

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Allesandria in the same year was crushed without any thing having been gained by the revolutionists. Genoa was the hot bed of liberalism. The city had been formerly a republic, but by the terms of the Congress of Vienna it had come under the rule of the House of Savoy. The people always maintained a hatred for the Piedmontese government. In Genoa was born that most radical and energetic of the Italian republican partisans, Joseph Maz-zini, who became one of the leading spirits of the Carbonari, and lived most of his life as an exile from ;Italy on account of his out-spoken opposition to all the forms of government in existence in Italy. Such was the State of affairs into which Cavour entered to begin his public career. At the age of ten he had entered a military Academy in Turin, from which he had graduated at sixteen. He had served five years in the engineer corps of the army at Ventimiglia. Meanwhile the revolutions of 1820 had made strong impressions on the precocious mind of Cavour. He developed Liberal tendencies, which were nourished by visits to relatives in Geneva, Switzerland, where the different forms of religion and government opened his eyes to better possibilities for his native country. His ideas differed widely from those of his family, who were all reactionary. For this reason it was a relief to both himself and family when he was sent to Genoa, on the engineering staff of that city. The atmosphere of opposition to the government of Sardinia, in which he lived at Genoa, convinced Cavour more firmly that1 the old political institutions had to be changed. His enthusiasm led him to express his convictions too openly and he came under the sun eil-lance of the police. He left the military service in 1831, disgusted with the retrograde policy of the new Sardinian king, Charles Albert. He traveled in France, Austria and England. In the latter country he studied the English constitution. On his return he found life very monotonous since he could not engage in his favorite pursuit of politics, the king being decidedly unfriendly to him. lie settled down to the management of his fathers farm estate at Leri in 1835, remaining there about ten years, occasionally taking a trip to France and England. He spent much time in the study of political economy and languages, and evolved many schemes for the betterment of the industries and agriculture of the country, which he later put in practice when he came to power. Meanwhile Mazzini was stirring the Italian people with his fiery pamphlets, advocating revolution and the setting up of republican forms of government. Other patriotic writers, such as Gioberti, Balbo and d’Azeg-lio, advanced new ideas of political reform and protests against existing evils. The secret society, “Young Italy, flourished widely throughout Italy, spreading the seeds of revolt and educating the peasantry in the needs of new government and a unified Italy. A new era began when Pope Pius was elected in 1846. He was a man of kindly disposition and was animated by the best intentions. The people of Italy welcomed his promises for reform, and expected much from him. He was prevented from accomplishing any real results by the reactionary opposition of the Roman Curia and the representatives of the Powers. Yet the awakening was having its effects. In Sardinia, the king, Charles Albert, was impelled by the popular clamor to give certain privileges to his people; free election of communal and provincial councillors, improved police justice and a measure of liberty to the press. Political journals sprang up into existence. The first of these was “II Risorgimento,” (The Resurrection), which was founded by Cavour, in Turin. This paper at once advocated constitutional reform in Piedmont. Cavour’s plans now became evident. He wanted to prepare Piedmont for the leadership of the impending struggle of the Italian States against foreign domination. In a speech before a congress of journalists, Cavour declared that the king must take a decided stand and give the people a consti- 9

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(Cnlunir anb the (iftaking of ,iHobent 3lialg Italy is one of the youngest States in Europe. Its first national Parliament met in 1861, and in that same year Victor Emanuel II became King of Italy. Victor Emanuel II had been, up till that time, King of Sardinia, with his capital in Turin, in Piedmont. The kingdom of Sardinia comprised the islands of Sardinia, the province of Piedmont, and Nice and Savoy. The steps by which Victor Emanuel II went from the kingship of a small Italian kingdom to become ruler of all Italy from the Alps to Sicily, are the steps which mark the unification of the Italian States into one nation. Many forces worked together in accomplishing the unifying of Italy, and the man who was foremost in leading these forces to the fulfillment of the task was a Piedmontese, Camillo Cavour. Cavour was born in Turin in 1810, when the whole Italian peninsula was under the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte. He grew up in the unsettled atmosphere in which Italy was left after the withdrawal of the French in 1815. Under the Napoleonic domination the Italian States had been divided into three groups for the purposes of government. Napoleon fell, the Congress of Vienna, in 1815, assigned the various States to their old governors or made changes in accordance with changed conditions. Southern Italy, from Naples southward, along with Sicily, was restored to the Bourbon dynasty, which had ruled them before the French invasion. The Bourbon king renamed his realm the “Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.” Piedmont and Genoa, in the northwest, and the island of Sardinia formed the Kingdom of Sardinia, under the former rulers, the House of Savory. Genoa had been a republic before the invasion, but against her will she was annexed to Sardinia. Lombardy returned to Austrian rule. Venetia, formerly a republic, was added to this to form the Austrian province of Lom-bardy-Vcnetia, governed by the Archduke Rainer of Austria, with capital at Milan. The duchies of Parma and Piacenza were assigned to Marie Louise, wife of Napoleon Bonaparte, and daughter of Francis I, of Austria. These duchies were really under the domination of Austria. The duchy of Modena was given to a prince of the House of Austria, who became Francis IV of Modena. Tuscany was restored to its former Grand Duke, Ferdinand III, a brother of the Austrian Emperor. The rest of Italy, the central States, was returned to the papacy as the Papal States, with Rome as the capital. Of these six separate governments Austria, it is seen, possessed the richest and strongest, Lombardy-Venetia. She also virtually possessed Parma, Piacenza and Modena, through members of the Austrian royal family. The French influence caused an awakening of the life of northern Italy, and renewed progress in commerce, agriculture and social life. A new middle class arose, filled with liberal idea-s and dissatisfaction with the forms of government. But the peasantry were too ignorant or indifferent to interest themselves in changing the existing conditions. The Liberal movement was strongest among the middle class, which bore the larger part of the burdens of building the new Italy. All over Italy secret societies were formed to promulgate liberalism, and many conspiracies were hatched and uprisings attempted. The largest of the secret societies was the “Carbonari.” The activity of this society caused a revolt in Naples in 1820, which was soon suppressed by the King’s troops with Austrian aid. Another revolt of the Carbonari in Turin and 8

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tution. The municipalities of Turin, Alles-sandria and Novara took up the demand and the king was forced to grant a constitution on February 8, 1848. A ministry was formed by Balbo. Cavour was left off the ministry because of his too liberal tendencies. Revolts in Venice and Milan, and the setting up of republics in these two cities caused Austrian troops to pour into Lombardy-Venetia. Cavour urged the king and ministry to go to the aid of the cities, and to take the opportunity of fighting Austria and forever expelling her from Italian soil. Piedmont declared war on Austria and sent armies to help Milan and Venice in their struggle for freedom. This was a momentous step in relation to future events. Piedmont's position in the war made her appear as the savior of Italy, and this stand was made stronger by the fact that she was the only part of the peninsula which enjoyed a national independent government. The battle of Novara, in 1849, settled the fate of Piedmont and Lombardy-Venetia. The Italians were crushed, and the defeated Charles Albert abdicated his throne immediately after the disaster of Novara, his son Victor Emanuel II taking his place. But Cavour was not discouraged by the turn of events. He maintained that so long as the constitution was kept intact in Piedmont, the cause of Italian liberty and union was safe. Meantime another part of Italy resounded with the clash of arms. A revolt in Rome in 1849 resulted in the setting up of a republic of which Mazzini was the head. The Pope called upon the powers to aid him. Spain, Austria and France responded, and the French re-established the Pope's rule, after being obstinately opposed by Garibaldi's volunteers. Louis Napoleon was President of France, and he persuaded the French Assembly that France s', oid 1 fight the growing power of Austria in ltdy. The French troops remained in Rome as the protectors of the Pope's government. In Piedmont Cavour was constantly obtaining concessions for the people. He loomed up as the leader of the new movement for Italian nationalism, with Piedmont at the head. He was elected to the Parliament in 1849, and in 1850 became Minister of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce. A year later he also assumed the office of Minister of Finance. He reorganized the finances of Piedmont, and his offices gave him predominance in the Cabinet, because of his bold schemes and his courageous frankness in stating his views. He left office for a few months because of a disagreement with the Premier d’Azeglio. When he returned to the Cabinet he took up the premiership. In the interval he visited England and France. At London he became intimate with Lord Palmerston, who told him that if the constitutional experiment in Piedmont succeeded, the Italian despots were doomed. Sir James Hudson, who later became British Minister at Turin also became a close friend of Cavour’s. In Paris Cavour had a long interview with Louis Napoleon, President of France. He returned to his native land filled with new vigor and encouragement. He assumed the office of Premier in 1852, and also took the Ministry of Finance. He increased taxation, drawing popular censure on himself. But he satisfied the people that the extra money was being devoted to the strengthening of the State, commercially, industrially and in a military way. He built railroads and many public works. An event now occurred which gave him the opportunity for action in the plan of bringing on another struggle with Austria. The Austrian authorities at Milan confiscated the properties of some Lombards who had become naturalized Piedmontese citizens. Cavour protested to the Powers, whose indifference prompted Austria to reply unfavorably. Cavour at once recalled the Piedmontese minister from Vienna, causing astonishment among the European courts. Things remained in this condition until the Crimean war approached. England and France declared war on Russia in 1855. They tried to get the help 10