1. The Unification of Italy:

2. Like Germany before Bismarck, “Italy” was divided into a number of independent states.
France controlled the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Austria controlled northern Italy
(Lombardy and Venice)
The Pope controlled the Papal States

3. In the 1830s, Giuseppe Mazzini founded a secret society called Young Italy, and led the push for Italian Unification:

4. Mazzini believed that a unified country with common ideals could best contribute to the well being of all its citizens.
After 1848, the Italian Nationalist Movement, or Risorgimento, was led by the small kingdom of Sardinia.

5. King Victor Emanuel II of Sardinia hoped to create a unified Italy.
His Prime Minister was Count Camillo Cavour, the brains behind Italian Unification
Goal:
Expel Austria
Add Lombardy
And Venetia to
Sardinia

6. In 1855, Cavour decided to have Sardinia join Britain and France in the Crimean War against Russia.
Three years later, Cavour provoked a war with Austria and cashed in on France’s pledge of support after Sardinia’s assistance in the Crimean War.

7. Meanwhile, in Southern Italy, nationalist Giuseppe Garibaldi recruited a force of 1,000 Red Shirted Volunteers and took over the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.

8. His forces won control of Sicily, crossed the mainland, and marched triumphantly north to Naples.
Garibaldi promptly turned over Naples and Sicily to Victor Emanuel, and he (Emanuel) was crowned King of Italy.