Part 610

"The treaty concluded at Zurich in November [1859] between the ambassadors of France, Austria, and Sardinia substantially ratified the preliminaries arranged at Villafranca. Lombardy passed to the king of Sardinia; Venetia was retained by Austria. The rulers of Modena and Parma were to be restored, the papal power again established in the Legations, while the various states of the peninsula, excepting Sardinia and the Two Sicilies, were to form a confederation under the leadership of the Pope. According to the terms of the treaty Lombardy was the only state directly benefited by the war. … The people of central Italy showed no inclination to resume the old régime. They maintained their position firmly and consistently, despite the decisions of the Zurich Congress, the advice of the French emperor, and the threatening attitude of Naples and Rome. … The year closed without definite action, leaving the provisional governments in control. In fact, matters were simply drifting, and it seemed imperative to take some vigorous measures to terminate so abnormal a condition of affairs. Finally the project of a European congress was suggested. There was but one opinion as to who should represent Italy in such an event. … Cavour … returned to the head of affairs in January. This event was simultaneous with the removal of M. Walewski at Paris and a change in the policy of the French government. The emperor no longer advised the central Italians to accept the return of their rulers. His influence at Rome was exercised to induce the Pope to allow his subjects in the Legations to have their will. … The scheme of a European congress was abandoned. With France at his back to neutralize Austria, Cavour had nothing to fear. … He suggested to the emperor that the central Italians be allowed to settle their fate by plebiscite. This method was to a certain extent a craze with the emperor, … and Cavour was not surprised at the affirmative reply he received to his proposal. The elections took place in March, and by an overwhelming majority the people of Parma, Modena, Tuscany, and the Legations declared for annexation to Sardinia. Austria protested, but could do no more in the face of England and France. Naples followed the Austrian example, while almost simultaneously with the news of the elections there arrived at Turin the papal excommunication for Victor Emmanuel and his subjects. On the 2d of April the king opened the new parliament and addressed himself to the representatives of 12,000,000 Italians. The natural enthusiasm attending the session was seriously dampened by the royal announcement that, subject to the approval of their citizens and the ratification of parliament, Nice and Savoy were to be returned to France. It was, in fact, the concluding installment of the price arranged at Plombières to be paid for the French troops in the campaign of the previous year. … General Garibaldi, who sat in the parliament for Nice, was especially prominent in the angry debates that followed. … When the transfer had been ratified he withdrew to a humble retreat in the island of Caprera. … But the excitement over the loss of Nice and Savoy was soon diminished by the startling intelligence which arrived of rebellion in the Neapolitan dominions. Naples was mutinous, while in Sicily, Palermo and Messina were in open revolt. Garibaldi's time had come. Leaving Caprera, he made for Piedmont, and hastily organized a band of volunteers to assist in the popular movement. On the night of May 6, with about a thousand enthusiastic spirits, he embarked from the coast near Genoa in two steamers and sailed for Sicily. Cavour in the mean time winked at this extraordinary performance. He dispatched Admiral Persano with a squadron ostensibly to intercept the expedition, but in reality 'to navigate between it and the hostile Neapolitan fleet.' On the 11th Garibaldi landed safely at Marsala under the sleepy guns of a Neapolitan man-of-war. On the 14th he was at Salemi, where he issued the following proclamation: 'Garibaldi, commander-in-chief of the national forces in Sicily, on the invitation of the principal citizens, and on the deliberation of the free communes of the island, considering that in times of war it is necessary that the civil and military powers should be united in one person, assumes in the name of Victor Emmanuel, King of Italy, the Dictatorship in Sicily.'" On the 26th Garibaldi attacked Palermo; on the 6th of June he was in possession of the city and citadel; on the 25th of July Messina was surrendered to him. {1866} "Perhaps the excitement at Turin during these days was second only to that which animated the great Sicilian cities. The guns of Bomba's fleet at Palermo were no more active than the diplomatic artillery which the courts of Central Europe trained upon the government at Turin. … Cavour's position at this time was a trying, delicate, and from some points of view a questionable one. He had publicly expressed regret for Garibaldi's expedition, while privately he encouraged it. … Cavour's desire to see Garibaldi in Calabria was changed, a little later. La Farina was at Palermo in behalf of the Sardinian government, to induce Garibaldi to consent to the immediate annexation of Sicily to the new Italian kingdom. This Garibaldi declined to do, preferring to wait until he could lay the entire Neapolitan realm and Rome as well at the feet of Victor Emmanuel. This altered the aspect of affairs. It was evident that Garibaldi was getting headstrong. It was Cavour's constant solicitude to keep the Italian question in such a shape as to allow no foreign power a pretext for interference. Garibaldi's design against Rome garrisoned by French troops would be almost certain to bring on foreign complications and ruin the cause of Italian unity." On the 19th of August, Garibaldi crossed his army from Sicily to the mainland and advanced on Naples. "On the evening of September 6 the king embarked on a Spanish ship, and leaving his mutinous navy at anchor in the bay, quit forever those beautiful shores which his race had too long defiled. On the morning of September 7 Garibaldi was at Salerno; before night he had reached Naples, and its teeming thousands had run mad. … The Neapolitan fleet went over en masse to Garibaldi, and by him was placed under the orders of the Sardinian admiral. The Garibaldian troops came swarming into the city, some by land and others by sea. … Francis II. had shut himself up in the fortress of Gaeta with the remnants of his army, holding the line of the Volturno. … At Turin the state of unrest continued. Garibaldi's presence at Naples was attended with grave perils. Of course his designs upon Rome formed the principal danger, but his conspicuous inability as an organizer was one of scarcely less gravity. … Sardinian troops had become a necessity of the situation. … There was no time to lose. There could be no difficulty in finding an excuse to enter papal territory. The inhabitants of Umbria and the Marches, who had never ceased to appeal for annexation to the new kingdom, were suppressed by an army of foreign mercenaries that the Pope had mustered beneath his banner. … Cavour had interceded in vain with the Vatican to alter its course toward its disaffected subjects. At last, on September 7, the day Garibaldi entered Naples, he sent the royal ultimatum to Cardinal Antonelli at Rome. … On the 11th the unfavorable reply of Antonelli was received, and the same day the Sardinian troops crossed the papal frontier. … Every European power except England, which expressed open satisfaction, protested against this action. There was an imposing flight of ambassadors from Turin, and an ominous commotion all along the diplomatic horizon. Cavour had not moved, however, without a secret understanding with Napoleon. … The Sardinian army advanced rapidly in two columns. General Fanti seized Perugia and Spoleto, while Cialdini on the east of the Apennines utterly destroyed the main papal army under the French general Lamoricière at Castelfidardo [September 17]. Lamoricière with a few followers gained Ancona, but finding that town covered by the guns of the Sardinian fleet, he was compelled to surrender. 'The pontifical mercenary corps' became a thing of the past, Cavour could turn his whole attention to Naples. He had obtained from parliament an enthusiastic permission to receive, if tendered, the allegiance of the Two Sicilies. The army was ordered across the Neapolitan frontier, and the king left for Ancona to take command. In the mean time on October 1 Garibaldi had inflicted another severe defeat to the royal Neapolitan army on the Volturno. The Sardinian advance was wholly unimpeded. … On November 7 the king entered Naples, and on the following day was waited upon by a deputation to announce the result of the election that Garibaldi had previously decreed. 'Sire,' said their spokesman, 'The Neapolitan people, assembled in Comitia, by an immense majority have proclaimed you their king.' … Then followed an event so sublime as to be without parallel in these times of selfish ambition. Garibaldi bade farewell to his faithful followers, and, refusing all rewards, passed again to his quiet home in Caprera. … The people of Umbria and the Marches followed the lead of Naples in declaring themselves subjects of Victor Emmanuel. Except for the patrimony of St. Peter surrounding the city of Rome and the Austrian province of Venetia, Italy was united under the tricolor. While Garibaldi returned to his humble life, Cavour went to Turin to resume his labors. … On the 18th of February, 1861, the first national parliament representing the north and south met at Turin. Five days before, the last stronghold of Francis II. had capitulated, and the enthusiasm ran high. The kingdom of Italy was proclaimed, and the king confirmed as 'Victor Emmanuel II., by the grace of God and the will of the nation King of Italy.' … The work was almost done. The scheme that a few years before would have provoked a smile in any diplomatic circle in Europe had been perfected almost to the capstone. But the man who had conceived the plan and carried it through its darkest days was, not destined to witness its final consummation. Cavour was giving way. On May 29 he was stricken down with a violent illness." On June 6 he died. "To Mazzini belongs the credit of keeping alive the spirit of patriotism; Garibaldi is entitled to the admiration of the world as the pure patriot who fired men's souls; but Cavour was greater than either, and Mazzini and Garibaldi were but humble instruments in his magnificent plan of Italian regeneration."

_H. Murdock, The Reconstruction of Europe, chapter 13._

ALSO IN: _C. de Mazade, Life of Count Cavour, chapters 5-7._

_G. Garibaldi, Autobiography, 3d period (volume 2)._

_E. Dicey, Victor Emmanuel, chapters 27-34._

_E. About, The Roman Question._

_The Chevalier O'Clery, The Making of Italy, chapters 7-12._

{1867}

ITALY: A. D. 1862-1866. The Roman question and the Venetian question. Impatience of the nation. Collision of Garibaldi with the government. Alliance with Prussia. War with Austria. Liberation and annexation of Venetia.

"The new ministry was formed by Baron Ricasoli. … In the month of July, Russia and Prussia followed the example of England and France, and acknowledged Italian unity. … Baron Ricasoli only held office about nine months; not feeling equal to the difficulties he had to encounter, he resigned in March, 1862, and Signor Ratazzi was empowered to form a new ministry. … The volunteer troops had become a source of serious embarrassment to the government. … It was found disagreeable and dangerous to have two standing armies under separate heads and a separate discipline, and it was proposed to amalgamate the Garibaldians with the royal troops. Endless disagreements arose out of this question. … As soon as this question was in a manner accommodated, a more serious one arose. The central provinces lost all patience in waiting so long for a peaceful solution of the Roman question. The leaders of the Young Italy party became more warlike in their language, and excited the peasantry to riotous proceedings, which the government had to put down forcibly, and this disagreeable fact helped to make the Ratazzi ministry unpopular. Garibaldi's name had been used as an incentive to those disturbances, and now the hot-headed general embarked for Sicily, to take the command of a troop who were bound for the Eternal City, resolved to cut with the sword the Gordian knot of the Roman question. The government used energetic measures to maintain its dignity, and not allow an irregular warfare to be carried on without its sanction. The times were difficult, no doubt, and the ministry had a hard road to tread. … The Garibaldians were already in the field, and having crossed from Sicily, were marching through Calabria with ever-increasing forces and the cry of 'Rome or death' on their lips. Victor Emmanuel had now no choice left him but to put down rebellion by force of arms. General Cialdini's painful duty it was to lead the royal troops on this occasion. He encountered the Garibaldians at Aspromonte, in Calabria, and on their refusing to surrender to the king, a fight ensued in which the volunteers were of course defeated, and their officers arrested. Garibaldi, with a ball in his foot, from the effects of which he has never recovered, was carried a state prisoner to Piedmont. … This unhappy episode was a bitter grief to Victor Emmanuel. … Aspromonte gave a final blow to the Ratazzi ministry. Never very popular, it was utterly shaken by the reaction in favour of Garibaldi. … After a good deal of worry and consultation, the king decided to call Luigi Carlo Farini to office. … Unhappily his health obliged him to retire very soon from public life, and he was succeeded by Minghetti. On the whole this first year without Cavour had been a very trying one to Victor Emmanuel. … Meantime the Roman question remained in abeyance—to the great detriment of the nation, for it kept Central and Southern Italy in a state of fermentation which the government could not long hold in check. The Bourbon intrigues at Rome, encouraging brigandage in the Two Sicilies, destroyed all security of life and property, and impeded foreigners from visiting the country. The Emperor of the French, occupying the false position of champion of Italian independence and protector of the temporal power of the Pope, would not do anything, nor let the Italian Government do anything, towards settling the momentous question. … Victor Emmanuel, who had his eye on Venice all the time, having a fixed impression that if it could be recovered he would find less difficulty in getting rid of the foreign occupation in Rome, now adopted energetic measures to bring about a settlement of this Venetian question, urging the English Government to use its influence with Austria to induce her to accept some compromise and surrender the Italian province peaceably. … Meantime the Italian Government continued to invite the French to withdraw their forces from the Roman States, and leave the Pope face to face with his own subjects without the aid of foreign bayonets. This the emperor, fearing to offend the papal party, could not make up his mind to do. But to make the road to Rome easier for the Italians, he proposed a transfer of the capital from Turin to some more southern town, Florence or Naples—he did not care which. The French minister, M. Drouyn de Lhuys, said:—'Of course in the end you will go to Rome. But it is important that between our evacuation and your going there, such an interval of time and such a series of events should elapse as to prevent people establishing any connection between the two facts. France must not have any responsibility.' … The king accepted the conditions, which provided that the French were to evacuate Rome in two years, and fixed on Florence as the residence of the court. … On November 18, 1860, the first Parliament was opened in Florence. … The quarrel between Austria and Prussia [see GERMANY: A. D. 1861-1866] was growing all this time, and Italy proposed an alliance defensive and offensive with the latter power. … The treaty was concluded April 8, 1866. When this fact became known, Austria, on the brink of war with Prussia, began to think that she must rid herself in some way of the worry of the Italians on her southern frontier, in order to be free to combat her powerful northern enemy. The cabinet of Vienna did not apply directly to the cabinet of Florence, but to that arbiter of the destinies of nations, Napoleon III., proposing to cede Venetia on condition that the Italian government should detach itself from the Prussian alliance. … After an ineffectual attempt to accommodate matters by a congress, war was declared against Austria, on June 20, 1866, and La Marmora, having appointed Ricasoli as his deputy at the head of the council, led the army northwards. … Victor Emmanuel appointed his cousin regent, and carried his sons along with him to the seat of war. … The forces of Austria were led by the able and experienced commander, the Archduke Albert, who had distinguished himself at Novara. On the ill-omened field of Custozza, where the Italians had been defeated in 1849, the opposing armies met [June 24]; and both being in good condition, well disciplined and brave, there was fought a prolonged and bloody battle, in which the Italians were worsted, but not routed. … On July 20 the Italian navy suffered an overwhelming defeat at Lissa in the Adriatic, and these two great misfortunes plunged Victor Emmanuel into the deepest grief. He felt disabled from continuing the war: all the sacrifice of life had been in vain: national unity was as far off as ever. … Meantime the Prussian arms were everywhere victorious over Austria, and about ten days after the battle of Custozza it was announced in the Moniteur that Austria had asked the Emperor Napoleon's mediation, offering to cede him Venice, and that he was making over that province to the King of Italy. {1868} Italy could not accept it without the consent of her ally Prussia; and while negotiations were going forward on the subject, the brief seven weeks' campaign was brought to a conclusion by the great victory of Sadowa, and on July 26 the preliminaries of peace were signed by the Austrian and Prussian plenipotentiaries. … Venice was restored to Italy by the Emperor of France, with the approval of Prussia. There was a sting in the thought that it was not wrung from the talons of the Austrian eagle by the valour of Italian arms, but by the force of diplomacy; still it was a delightful fact that Venice was free, with the tricolour waving on St. Mark's. The Italian soil was delivered from foreign occupation. … As soon as the treaty was signed at Vienna, October 2, the Venetian Assemblies unanimously elected Victor Emmanuel with acclamations, and begged for immediate annexation to the Kingdom of Italy. On November 4, in the city of Turin, Victor Emmanuel received the deputation which came to proffer him the homage of the inhabitants of Venetia. … On November 7 Victor Emmanuel made a solemn entry into the most beautiful, and, after Rome, the most interesting city of the Italian peninsula. … Hot upon the settlement of the Venetian question, came the discussion of that of Rome, which after the evacuation of the French troops [November, 1866] seemed more complicated than ever. The Catholic powers were now anxious to accommodate the quarrel between Italy and the Pope, and they offered to guarantee him his income and his independence if he would reconcile himself to the national will. But Pius IX. was immovable in his determination to oppose it to the last."

_G. S. Godkin, Life of Victor Emmanuel II., chapters 23-25 (volume 2)._

ALSO IN: _J. W. Probyn, Italy from 1815 to 1890, chapter 11._

_G. Garibaldi, Autobiography, 4th period, chapter 1 (volume 2), and volume 3, chapter 8._

ITALY: A. D. 1867-1870. Settlement of the Roman question. Defeat of Garibaldi at Mentana. Rome in the possession of the king of Italy.