The monarchy

Question 1

What did Victor Emmanuel II become the figurehead for?

Answer 1

The risorgimento movement of the 1850s and 60s

Question 2

Why was Victor Emmanuel II so popular in his kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont?

Answer 2

Because of his respect for the new constitution and liberal reforms

Question 3

What did Victor Emmanuel II encourage Italy to do in 1853?

Answer 3

Join Britain and France in the Crimean war against Russia. As he was convinced there were rewards to be gained from the alliance with Britain and, crucially, France

Question 4

What happened at the Congress of Paris in 1856?

Answer 4

After successfully ingratiating themselves, Emmanuel and Cavour arranged a secret meeting with Napoleon III where they agreed that if the French were to help Piedmont combat Austria, France would awarded Nice and Savoy

Question 5

What did Victor Emmanuel II do in March 1860?

Answer 5

He sent his forces to fight the papal army at castelgandolfo and drove the pope back into the vatican city. This led to his excommunication from the catholic church

Question 6

What happened on the 17th of March 1861?

Answer 6

The kingdom of Italy was officially established and Victor Emmanuel II became the King

Question 7

Who did Victor Emmanuel II ally himself with in 1866?

Answer 7

Prussia, in the 3rd Italian war of independence

Question 8

What did Victor Emmanuel II in 1870?

Answer 8

After 2 failed attempts by Garibaldi, he took advantage of Prussian victory over France to capture Rome following French withdrawal. He entered Rome on 20 Sep 1870 and set up the new capital there on 2 Jul 1871

Question 9

Why was it a terrible move for Emmanuel II to not take up the title of Victor I following Italian unification?

Answer 9

It was not indicative of the fresh start the Italian people wanted and suggested that Piedmont had taken over Italy rather than unifying it

Question 10

What was the statuto albertino?

Answer 10

Said that all ministers were responsible to the crown, but in practise they were now responsible to parlaiment

Question 11

Describe the death of Victor Emmanuel II

Answer 11

Died in Rome in 1878, after refusing to meet with Pope Pius IX, who could have reversed his excommunication. He was succeeded by his son Umberto I

Question 12

Describe the foreign policy of Umberto I

Answer 12

• Approved the triple alliance with Austria-Hungary and Germany in 1882
• Repeatedly visited Vienna and Berlin
• Many viewed the alliance with their former Austrian enemies with hostility, as they were still occupying areas of land claimed by Italy

Question 13

What was Umberto I’s philosophy on colonial expansion?

Answer 13

• He was keen on the idea of colonial expansion
• Started in 1885 with the occupation of Massawa in Eritrea
• Italy expanded into Somalia in the 1880s aswell
• Aspired to have a vast empire in the north east of africa
• His popularity was diminished after the disasterous Battle of Adowa in Ethiopia in 1896
• In the summer of 1900, Italian forces participated in the boxer rebellion in Imperial China.
• Through the boxer protocol, Italy gained a concession territory in Tienstin

Question 14

What was Umberto I’s attitude towards the pope?

Answer 14

Uncompromising. In an 1886 telegram, he declared Rome ‘untouchable’ and affirmed the permanent Italian possession of the ‘Eternal City’

Question 15

What happpened to Umberto I on 22 Apr 1897?

Answer 15

He was attacked by an unemployed ironsmith, Pietro Acciarito, who tried to stab him near Rome

Question 16

How did Umberto damage his reputation in 1898?

Answer 16

Huge demonstration were held over the price of bread on 7th May 1898 during the colonial wars in Africa, and the city of Milan was put under militry rule. 82 were killed according to the authoriities, with opposition sources claiming the death toll was 400 with 2,000 wounded. King Umberto sent a telegram to congratulate the army on their restoration of order and awarded them the grand cross of savoy, causing mass public outrage

Question 17

What happened to Umberto I on the 29 July 1900?

Answer 17

He was assassinated while attending a gymnastics display in Monza. The king was shot 4 times by an Italo-American anarchist called Bresci. Bresci claimed he wanted to avenge the people killed in Milan during the suppresion of the riots in May 1898

Question 18

How old was Victor Emmanuel III when he succeeded to the throne?

Answer 18

30

Question 19

What was the only advice that Umberto I ever gave his heir?

Answer 19

‘Remember: to be a King, all you need to know is how to sign your name, read a newspaper and mount a horse

Question 20

What was Victor Emmanuel III especially comitted to as King, and why was this so odd?

Answer 20

Even though his father was killed by an anarchist, he was comitted to constitutional freedoms and government

Question 21

What was Victor Emmanuel III happy to do for the majority of his reign?

Answer 21

Let the liberal centre parties of the new Italy run the country for him and retire to his world famous coin collection

Question 22

What residual powers were granted to Victor Emmanuel III through the statuto albertino, despite the fact that parliamentary rule had been firmly established in Italy?

Answer 22

He had the right to appoint the PM, even if the individual in question did not command majority support in the chamber of deputies

Question 23

Describe the personality of Victor Emmanuel III

Answer 23

He was a shy and withdrawn individual who hated the day-to-day stresses of Italian politics. However, the country’s poliitical instablility forced him to interven on no fewer than 10 occasions between 1900-1922 in order to solve parliamentary crises