Italian Unification Historiography – Flashcards

Farmer; 'the 1848-9 revolutions changed everything' Trevelyn; 'the turning point at which history failed to turn' Farmer; 'given the strength of local loyalties and bitter regional antagonisms, the notion of a united Italy seemed a political fantasy'

Farmer; 1848 proved 'romantic idealism could not succeed against the existing order unless supported by force' Pallavinco (contemporary); 'to defeat cannon and soldiers, cannon and soldiers are needed'

Darby; 'Italy had come about by accident and was...an artificial creation' Gladstone; 'among the great marvels of our time'

Farmer; 'Piedmontese expansionism, rather than Italian nationalism, was the real driving force behind unification' Rathbone; by 1859 'the scene was set for the Kingdom to play a central role in the unification of Italy'

Farmer; 'without the favourable international situation, unification would not have come about when it did' Pearce; Austria 'the single most important factor in the failure of previous attempts at unification'

Darby; 'Cavour was not a planner, but he was a great opportunist' Darby; Cavour 'his aim was to create an enlarged Piedmont'

Taylor; 'the only admirable figure in modern history' Darby; 'his success owed a great deal to luck rather than forward planning' (but still vital)

Farmer; 'Victor Emmanuel united Italy with the help of Garibaldi (and Cavour)'

Stiles; 'Mazzini gave tremendous impetus to Italian nationalism'

Marriott; 'Italy was not, in 1870, ready for political unification' PM d'Azeglio; 'we have made Italy. Now we must make Italians' Stiles; 'little spontaneous national feeling' Stiles; 'the Italian government needed the friendship of other European powers'