The Italian Risorgimento

By Martin Clark

Book Overview

The Unification of Italy in the nineteenth century was the unlikely result of a lengthy and complex process of Italian 'revival' ('Risorgimento'). Few Italians supported Unification and the new rulers of Italy were unable to resolve their disputes with the Catholic Church, the local power-holders in the South and the peasantry. In this fascinating account, Martin Clark examines these problems and considers:

- The economic, social and religious contexts of Unification, as well as the diplomatic and military aspects

- The roles of Cavour and Garibaldi and also the wider European influences, particularly those of Britain and France

- The recent historiographical shift away from uncritical celebration of the achievement of Italian unity.

Did 'Italian Unification' mean anything more than traditional Piedmontese expansionism? Was it simply an aspect of European 'secularisation'? Did it involve 'state-building', or just repression? In exploring these questions and more, Martin Clark offers the ideal introductory account for anyone wishing to understand how modern Italy was born.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1138137073
• ISBN13: 9781138137073
• Release Date: November 2015
• Publisher: Routledge
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 1.07 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.7" x 9.6"

Customer Reviews

nice introduction

This book is for first time reader of Italian Risorgimento, a period of time between 1840s to the 1860s when Italy unified itself into a singular nation. The book traced this from the Napoleonic Period where the seeds was initially planted to the final event when the French withdrew from Rome in 1870, allowing the Italians to regained their foremost city and making it their official capital once more. The book proves to be well written and researched. The author present his material with clarity without cluttering it up with too much details. It was interesting to note that this national unification wasn't exactly a national event in Italy. It was basically the works of the Kingdom of Piedmont and a small numbered of well educated urban minority. Its appears that the rest of the Italian peninsula was dragged into it by sheer force of will. The book comes with some documents that gives a nice contemporary feel to it. I thought more maps and maybe some illustrations would have been nice. But overall, the book proves to be an excellent introduction to this subject and should provided a solid foundation for further studies on the field if desire.