Struggle for Freedom and Nation Building

Abstract

Among the European states of the 19th century, Italy and Germany were among those who had not yet found to national unity in a modern sense. Even after the defeat of Napoleon and the joint military struggle against the French emperor, Germany was a territory composed of many smaller and bigger dominions, which was neither politically nor administratively or linguistically unified. Yet, after the Wars of Liberation of 1813, the creation of a unified Germany was the aim of the liberal bourgeoisie and of the students, who, however, failed in 1848 and 1849. This aim was finally fulfilled “bottom-up” in 1871 by the Prussian Ministerpräsident (Prime Minister), Otto von Bismarck.

After the Congress of Vienna, Italy remained sport of foreign powers, although Reichsitalien (Imperial Italy) had ultimately become history due to the fall of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in 1806. The more foreign rulers and powers strove to control the fate of the Italian states, the more people were seized by the wish to free Italy from foreign rule, fragmentation and absolutism. The major role in this field was played by the publicist Giuseppe Mazzini and the movement Giovine Italia (Young Italy) he founded.