Italy and Germany
Chapter 8 Section 3 Part 2 Notes
Cavour Unites Italy

Nationalism did not only destroy empires, it helped build nations.

Italy formed from crumbling empires.
 1815-1848 – fewer Italians were content to live under foreign rulers.
Cavour Leads Italian Unification
 Italian nationalists looked for leadership from the kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia, the largest and most powerful of the Italian states.

Kingdom adopted a liberal constitution in 1848.

Unification sounded like a good plan to the liberal middle-class.
Count Camillo di Cavour

Became Prime Minister of Sardinia in 1852.

Worked tirelessly to expand Piedmont-Sardinia’s power.
 Wanted to gain control of northern Italy.
Roadblock to Italy

Cavour realized that Austria would cause a major roadblock.

Napoleon III agreed to help drive Austria out of the northern Italian provinces.

Cavour then started a war with Austria.

With the help of the French, Sardinia won two quick victories.

Sardinia took all of northern Italy, except Venetia.
Garibaldi Brings Unity

While Cavour was uniting northern Italy, he secretly helped nationalist rebels in the south.

May 1860 – a small army of Italian nationalists captured Sicily.

Army was known as the Red Shirts.

Leader – Giuseppe Garibaldi, and his followers, always wore a bright red shirt in battle.
Garibaldi

Garibaldi and his soldiers marched north from Sicily.

Garidbaldi agreed to unite southern areas with the kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia.

Garibaldi met with King Victor Emmanuel II.

Garibaldi agreed to step aside and let the King rule.
Final Additions

1860 – Venetia became part of Italy.

1870 – Papal States came under Italian control.

This included the city of Rome.

Rome became the capital of Italy.

The pope would continue to govern a section of Rome known as Vatican City.

Bismarck Unites Germany

Like Italy, Germany also achieved national unity in the mid-1800s.
 1815 – 39 German states formed a loose grouping called the German Confederation.

The Austrian Empire dominated the confederation.

However, Prussia was ready to unify all the German States.
Prussia Leads German Unification

Prussia had several advantages:

Prussia had a large German population

Unlike the Austro-Hungarian Empire

Nationalism unified Prussia and tore Austria-Hungary apart.

Prussia’s army was the most powerful in central Europe.

Berlin rioters forced a constitutional convention to write up a liberal constitution for the kingdom, paving the way for unification.
Bismarck Takes Control

1862 – Wilhelm I succeeded Frederick William to the throne.
 Liberal parliament refused him money for reforms that would double the strength of his army.

Major challenge to Wilhelm’s authority.

Based on this information, do you think Wilhelm was a liberal or a conservative?
Junkers & Bismarck

Junkers supported his view.

Junkers = strongly conservative members of Prussia’s wealthy landowning class.
 1862 – Wilhelm chose a conservative Junker to be his Prime Minister

Otto von Bismarck
Realpolitik

Bismarck became a master at realpolitik.

Means “the politics of unity”.

Used to describe tough power politics with no room for idealism.
Dealing with Parliament

Bismarck declared that he would rule without:

Consent of parliament

Legal budget

These actions were in direct violation of the constitution.
Prussia Expands

1864 – Bismarck took the first step toward molding an empire.

Prussia and Austria formed an alliance.

Went to war against Denmark to win two border provinces: Schleswig (P) and Holstein (A).
 The quick victory increased national pride among Prussians.

Won new respect from other Germans.
Seven Weeks’ War


Bismarck purposely stirred up border conflicts with Austria over the two provinces.

Austria declared war on Prussia in 1866.

Prussians used their superior training and equipment  devastating victory for
Prussia.

Austria = humiliated

Austrians lost Venetia.
Prussia’s Control

Due to its victory, Prussia took control of northern Germany.

Eastern and western Prussia were joined for the first time.
 1867 – the remaining states joined the North German Confederation.

Prussia completely dominated.
The Franco-Prussian War

1867 – a few southern German states remained independent.

Southern Germans – Catholic

Prussia – Protestant
 South resisted domination by Prussia.

Bismarck felt that the southerners would give in if they felt an outside threat.

Bismarck felt that a war with France would suffice.
Franco-Prussian War (cont.)

Bismarck manufactured “incidents”.

Created the impression that the French ambassador had insulted the Prussian king.

France reacted by declaring war in 1870.
 Prussia entered France and captured 83,000 people including Napoleon III.

Parisians finally gave in due to hunger.

Final stage of German unification.
After the War

Southern Germans finally had nationalistic feelings.

Accepted Prussian leadership.
 1871 – Captured Versailles.

King Wilhelm I of Prussia was crowned kaiser or emperor.

Called empire The Second Reich

Holy Roman Empire was the first.
A Shift in Power

The 1815 Congress of Vienna had established five Great Powers in Europe:

Britain, France, Austria, Prussia and Russia
 1815 – powers were nearly equal in strength.

1871 – Britain and Germany were the most powerful.

European balance of power had broken down.