The Rise of Nation-States: Germany and Italy Unification (1860–1871)

The Unification of Germany (1815–1871)

Following the 1815 Congress of Vienna, an association of German states known as The German Confederation was established. After the failed 1848 revolutions, German nationalists were divided as to how Germany should be unified:

• The Greater Germany Solution: Centered on Austria as the leading Catholic power.
• The Lesser Germany Solution: Excluded Austria and was led by Prussia, the dominant Protestant power.

Prussian Chancellor Otto von Bismarck successfully managed to unify Lesser Germany through a series of decisive wars with neighboring states.

Bismarck's Wars of Unification

1. German-Danish War (1864)

   This conflict secured territory and set the stage for future Prussian dominance.

2. Austro-Prussian War (1866)

   Prussia provoked this conflict with Austria over the administration of Schleswig and Holstein. Prussia's victory proved its military superiority and led to the unification of Northern Germany, permanently excluding Austria from German affairs.

3. Franco-Prussian War (1870–1871)

   A coalition of German states, led by Prussia, defeated Napoleon III at the Battle of Sedan and invaded France. Prussia annexed two German-speaking French provinces: Alsace and Lorraine. The Prussian King, William I, was proclaimed Kaiser (Emperor) at the Palace of Versailles. The resulting German Empire was established as a federal constitutional monarchy and a powerful new nation-state.

The Unification of Italy (Risorgimento)

Italian unification, known as the Risorgimento, was significantly more complex than the German process for two main reasons:

• The North-eastern part of the Italian Peninsula was occupied by a foreign power: Austria.
• The presence of the Papal States required nationalists to deal with the temporal power of the Pope.

The Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia became the focal point for nationalists. Piedmontese statesman Count Cavour, revolutionary Giuseppe Mazzini, and military hero Giuseppe Garibaldi are considered the key leaders of Italian unification.

Stages of Italian Unification

1. Lombardy and the Northern Duchies (1859–1860)

   Austria was defeated with the support of Napoleon III of France. Lombardy was annexed in 1859, but Venice remained in Austrian hands. In 1860, there were nationalist insurrections in Parma, Modena, Tuscany, and papal Romagna.

2. Central Italy and the Two Sicilies (1860–1861)

   In 1860, an army of volunteers nicknamed the Red Shirts (Camicie rosse), led by Garibaldi, conquered the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies (Naples and Sicily). At the same time, the Piedmontese invaded Umbria and the Marches (parts of the Papal States). The Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed, with Victor Emmanuel II as King.

3. Veneto and Rome (1866–1870)

   After Austria was defeated by Prussia in the Austro-Prussian War, the area around Veneto (Venice) was added to the Kingdom of Italy in 1866. During the Franco-Prussian War, Italian troops entered Rome, which had been protected by Napoleon III. The capital of the kingdom was moved to Rome in 1871, completing the unification process.