Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour
Encyclopedia
Camillo Paolo Filippo Giulio Benso, Count of Cavour, of Isolabella
and of Leri (kaˌmilːo kaˈvuːr; 1810–1861) was a leading figure in the movement toward Italian unification
. He was the founder of the original Italian Liberal Party
and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia, a position he maintained (except for a six-month resignation) throughout the Second Italian War of Independence
and Garibaldi's
campaigns to unite Italy. Cavour died only three months after the declaration of a united Kingdom of Italy
, and thus did not live to see Venetia or Rome as part of the new Italian nation.
Cavour, as he is usually called, put forth several economic reforms in his native region of Piedmont
in his earlier years, and founded the political newspaper Il Risorgimento
. After being elected to the Chamber of Deputies
, he quickly rose in rank through the Piedmontese government, coming to dominate the Chamber of Deputies through a union of left-center and right-center politicians. After a large rail system expansion program, Cavour became prime minister in 1852. As prime minister, Cavour successfully negotiated Piedmont's way through the Crimean War
, Second Italian War of Independence
, and Garibaldi's expeditions
, managing to maneuver Piedmont diplomatically to become a new great power
in Europe, controlling a nearly united Italy that was five times as large as Piedmont had been before he came to power.
during Napoleonic
rule, into a family that had gained a fair amount of land during the French occupation
. He was the second of two sons of Michele Giuseppe Francesco Antonio Benso, 5th Marquess of Cavour
and Count of Isolabella
, Baron of the French Empire
(1781 – 1850) and his wife Adélaïde (Adèle) Suzanne, Marchioness of Sellon (1780 – 1846), herself of French
origin.
Cavour was sent to the Turin Military Academy when he was only ten years old. Cavour frequently ran afoul of the authorities in the academy, as he was too headstrong to deal with the rigid military discipline. He was once forced to live three days on bread and water because he had been caught with books that the academy had banned. He was found to be apt at the mathematical disciplines, and was therefore enlisted in the Engineer Corps
in the Piedmontese-Sardinian
army in 1827. While in the army, he studied the English language as well as the works of Jeremy Bentham
and Benjamin Constant
, developing liberal
tendencies which made him suspect to police forces at the time. He resigned his commission in the army in November 1831, both because of boredom with military life and because of his dislike of the reactionary policies of the new ruler of Piedmont, Charles Albert.
Cavour then spent his time in Switzerland, along with his Protestant
relatives in Geneva
. He grew acquainted with Calvinist
teachings, and for a short while he converted from a form of unorthodox Catholicism
, only to go back later. A Reformed
pastor, Alexandre Vinet
, impressed upon Cavour the need for the separation of church and state
, a doctrine Cavour followed for the remainder of his life. He then traveled to Paris where he was impressed by parliamentary debates, especially those of François Guizot
and Adolphe Thiers
, confirming his devotion to a political career. Afterwards, he left for London, where he was much more disappointed by their politics, though continuing to tour the country, heading to Oxford
, Liverpool
, Birmingham
, Chester
, Nottingham
, and Manchester
. A quicker tour through the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland (German part and Lake of Geneva) eventually landed him back in Turin.
Between 1838 and 1842 Cavour began several initiatives in attempts to solve economic problems in his area. Firstly he experimented with different agricultural techniques on his estate, such as the use of sugar beet
, and was one of the first Italian landowners to use chemical fertilizers. He also founded the Piedmontese Agricultural Society. Cavour was a heavy supporter of transportation by steam engine
, sponsoring the building of many railroads and canals. In his spare time, he again traveled extensively, mostly in France and the UK.
The first apparently "liberal" moves of pope Pius IX
and the political upheavals of 1848
spawned a new movement of Italian liberalism, allowing Cavour to enter the political arena, no longer in fear of the police. He then gave a speech in front of numerous journalists in favor of a constitution for Piedmont, which was eventually granted. Cavour, unlike several other political thinkers, was not at first offered a position in the new Chamber of Deputies
, as he was still a somewhat suspicious character to many.
Cavour never planned for the establishment of a united country, and even later during his Premiership his objective was to expand Piedmont with the annexation of Lombardy and Venetia, rather than a unified Italy. For example, during the conservative period, he gained a reputation as a non-revolutionary progressive
. He had trouble publicly speaking as he tended to speak French
privately but preferred to attempt speaking in Italian in Parliament. Cavour then lost the next election, while the Piedmontese army was destroyed at the Battle of Novara
, leading Charles Albert to abdicate, leaving his son, Victor Emmanuel II
in charge.
Cavour was then brought back into Parliament by the voters, where he was much more successful. His knowledge of European markets and modern economy earned him the position as Minister of Agriculture, Commerce and the Navy in 1850. Cavour soon came to dominate the cabinet and united the Right Center and the Left Center in the chamber to show dominance there as well. In 1851, Cavour gained a Cabinet promotion to Minister of Finance by working against his colleague from inside the Cabinet in a somewhat disreputable takeover, though it was to Piedmont's advantage through his many economic reforms. This allowed Cavour to begin his vast railway expansion program, giving Piedmont 800 kilometres of track by the year 1860, one third of the railways in Italy at the time.
of Piedmont
on 4 November 1852. Cavour was generally liberal and believed in free trade
, public right of opinion, and secular rule, but was still an enemy of the republicans and revolutionaries inside Piedmont, attempting to balance their needs. Cavour is criticised for a number of controversial methods he used while prime minister, including excessive use of emergency powers, employing friends, bribing newspapers while suppressing others, and rigging elections, though these things were fairly common for the time. Still, Cavour's career as prime minister can be considered one of the most successful of all time, given that when he took up the post, Piedmont had just suffered a horrible loss to Austria, and when Cavour died, Victor Emmanuel II ruled a state five times as large, now ranking among Europe's great power
s.
Cavour in fact radically increased the wealth and growth of Piedmont. In twelve years wealth had increased to 725 million liras. Piedmont had 20% of the Italian population but held 27% of the exports. Piedmont, under Cavour, was the most powerful state.
__pierson,_pierre_louis_(1822-1913)_-_camillo_benso_di_cavour_(1861).jpg)
In early 1853, the Crimean War
broke out, pitting Great Britain, France, and the Ottomans against Russia. The allied powers of Britain and France asked Piedmont to enter the war partially in order to encourage Austria to enter, which they would not do unless they were certain that Piedmontese troops were not available to fight in Italy. Cavour, who hoped that support for the western allies would lead to their support for Sardinia's ambitions in Italy, agreed as soon as his colleagues' support would allow, and entered the war on France and Britain's side on January 10, 1855, too late to truly distinguish themselves militarily, yet the entry turned out to be a useful political move for Piedmont's future. Their 18 thousand man contingent did manage to earn Piedmont a position at the Peace Congress in Paris.
In January 1858, the Italian Felice Orsini
's attempt at murdering Napoleon III paradoxically opened up a new possibility at diplomacy between France and Italy. While in jail awaiting trial, Orsini wrote a publicly published letter to the Emperor of the French, ending with "Remember that, so long as Italy is not independent, the peace of Europe and Your Majesty is but an empty dream... Set my country free, and the blessings of twenty-five million people will follow you everywhere and forever." Orsini would still be executed, but Napoleon III would begin to explore the possibility of joint operation with Piedmont against Austria. Cavour and Napoleon would meet in July 1858 at Plombières-les-Bains
, and the two agreed that Piedmont would attempt to enter war by engineering a conflict with the Duchy of Modena, obliging Austria to enter, and France would come to aid Piedmont. Cavour also reluctantly agreed to cede Savoy
(the seat of the Piedmontese royal family
) and Nice
to France if aid was given in war. A royal marriage was proposed and carried out between Princess Clotilde and Prince Napoleon to seal the agreement, surprisingly made without Victor Emmanuel's consent.
Cavour in the same year sent his cousin, the famous beauty, photographic artist and secret agent Virginia Oldoïni, to further the interests of Italian unification with the emperor by what ever means possible, by all accounts she succeeded.
Both France and Piedmont began to prepare for war, but diplomatic support for the war appeared to be diminishing rapidly. Napoleon III was quickly souring on the idea, and Britain, Prussia, and Russia were proposing an international congress, with one point likely to be the disarmament of Piedmont. Piedmont was saved from this situation by Austria's sending an ultimatum on April 23, demanding that Piedmont disarm itself, and casting Austria as an aggressor. France immediately mobilised its army and slowly began to enter Italy, but Piedmont would need to defend itself for a short period. Rainstorms and Austrian indecision under Ferencz Graf Gyulai allowed France time to enter position.
The following battles of Magenta
and Solferino
managed to give the Franco-Piedmontese forces control over Lombardy and a victorious position, though the Austrians remained confident in defending their "fortress quadrilateral" area, with four fortresses in Verona
, Legnano
, Peschiera
, and Mantua
. These defenses, the horrors of the Battle of Solferino, the possibility of German entry into the war, and the potential for an overly strong Piedmontese state convinced Napoleon to sign a separate peace with Austria in the Treaty of Villafranca on July 11, 1859, ending the Second Italian War of Independence
. Cavour was so infuriated after reading the terms of the treaty that he tendered his resignation to Victor Emmanuel, who was accepting peace due to Piedmont's inability to fight Austria alone. Cavour would quickly regain confidence, as several of the terms, such as the restoration to power of the rulers of Tuscany
and Modena
, would not actually be carried out. For now, General La Marmora
succeeded Cavour's post and insisted on following Villafranca, even sending a letter to Tuscany asking that they restore their Grand Duke. Bettino Ricasoli
, virtual dictator of Tuscany at the time, wrote about this appeal to his brother, saying "Tell General La Marmora that I have torn his letter into a thousand pieces." France would continue direct talks with Piedmont on the destiny of the central Italian states, as all of them at the time were ruled by dictators supporting merging with Piedmont, but were restrained from doing so by the treaty, which called for them to return to their old governments.
Cavour had retired to his estate at Leri
, closely monitoring events during his short absence from power, but soon became impatient with government proceedings and actively entered politics again, immediately forcing La Marmora to resign due to Cavour's control of the chamber. Victor Emmanuel was very reluctant to assign Cavour to be prime minister, due both to their quarrel over Villafranca and Cavour's success in restricting the king from marrying his mistress after the queen's death. Cavour was however sent for on January 20, 1860 to again take over the government.
Cavour immediately negotiated with Napoleon, agreeing to finally cede Savoy and Nice in order to annex Tuscany and Emilia
. Plebiscites in Tuscany and Emilia came out as huge majorities in favor of unification, though still with a number of abstentions supporting the old government. Garibaldi was furious at finding that his birthplace, Nice, had become a French city, but Cavour managed to convince most that uniting Italy would make up for these small territorial losses. With this, the first stage of unification was completed, and it would be Garibaldi's turn to bring southern Italy into Piedmont's control.
Garibaldi, still fuming at the loss of his hometown to France, wished to recapture the city, but a popular insurrection in Palermo on April 4, 1860 diverted him from pursuing that cause. Garibaldi requested a brigade from the Piedmontese army to take Sicily from the Bourbon
Neapolitans who ruled it at the time, but was immediately refused one by Cavour. A band of volunteers was instead brought together, who would come to be known as I Mille, or the Thousand. This small group of redshirts landed at Marsala
in Sicily on May 11, later to fight the battles of Calatafimi
and Milazzo
, consolidating Sicily in Garibaldi's power. Cavour attempted to immediately annex Sicily to the Piedmontese, but Garibaldi and his accomplice Francesco Crispi
would not allow it.
Cavour persuaded Victor Emmanuel II to write a letter to Garibaldi requesting that he not invade the mainland; the letter was indeed sent, but Victor Emmanuel secretly wished for Garibaldi to invade, having written another letter asking him to go ahead which was apparently never sent. Cavour realized these efforts were fruitless, and attempted to stir up a liberal revolution in Naples
, but the populace was not receptive. Garibaldi invaded the mainland anyway, attempting to reach Naples quickly before Cavour found a way to stop him. On September 7, Garibaldi successfully entered Naples, at that time the largest city in Italy. Southern Italy and Sicily were now under Garibaldi, who ruled with dictatorial powers. Garibaldi also publicly demanded that Cavour be removed from his post as prime minister, alienating him slightly from Victor Emmanuel II.
Garibaldi was not willing to stop at this point, however, and planned for an immediate invasion of the Papal States
and Rome. Cavour knew that France may declare war if such an invasion happened, and would successfully stop Garibaldi from initiating his attack. Garibaldi had been weakened by the Battle of Volturno
, so Cavour quickly invaded the Papal regions of Umbria
and the Marches
. This linked the territories owned by Piedmont with those taken by Garibaldi, and the king met Garibaldi halfway at Naples, where Garibaldi handed over power of southern Italy and Sicily, uniting Italy.
The relationship between Cavour and Garibaldi was always fractious: Cavour likened Garibaldi to "a savage" while Garibaldi
memorably called Cavour "a low intriguer".
, making Cavour officially prime minister of Italy. Cavour had many stressful topics that all needed consideration, including how to create a national military, which legal institutions should be kept for where, the future of Rome, which most still believed must be capital of a united Italy, and any number of other concerns. Cavour believed that Rome should remain "a free church in a free state", allowed to maintain its independence though forced to give up temporal power. Still Austrian Venetia was also a problem. Cavour recognized that Venice
must be an integral part of Italy, but refused to take a stance on how to achieve it, saying "Will the deliverance of Venice come by arms or diplomacy? I do not know. It is the secret of providence." A motion approving of his foreign policy passed by a huge majority, basically only opposed by both left and right-wing extremist groups.
Creating Italy was no easy task, but ruling it proved a worse strain on the Prime Minister. In 1861, at the peak of his career, months of long days coupled with insomnia and constant worry took their toll on Cavour. He fell ill, presumably of malaria, and to make matters worse, insisted upon being bled. His regular doctor would have refused, but he was not available, so Cavour was bled several times until it was nearly impossible to draw any blood from him. He died on June 6 of a stroke
, fifty years old. His last words were reportedly L'Italia è fatta, tutto è a posto ("Italy is made. All is safe.") This quote was surprisingly optimistic compared to how most Europeans were greeting the unification of Italy, as Napoleon III said upon hearing of Cavour's death, "The driver has fallen from the box; now we must see if the horses will bolt or go back to the stable". Massimo d'Azeglio, the prime minister of Piedmont before Cavour, asked "Who now is going to be the counterweight to Mazzini and Garibaldi? Who now can keep the revolution safe indoors like some domesticated hyena
?" Despite these comments, Italy would gain Venice in 1866 through the Austro-Prussian War
and Rome on 20 September 1870 after the capture of Rome
, during the reign of Pope Pius IX, and France's defeat at Sedan
, completing the unification that few thought could be finished without Cavour.
, Trieste
, Rome, Florence
and Naples
have important streets or squares named for him. The new Marina Militare
aircraft carrier Cavour is also named in his honour. This unit was preceded by the famous battleship Conte di Cavour
, which fought both in World War I and World War II, and a clipper ship, Camille Cavour
.
In 1865 a leading Liceo classico
in Turin
, the oldest high school
in the city (founded 1568) and one among the oldest and most prominent ones in Italy
, was named after him, and became Liceo classico Cavour
. The whole (actual) name is Liceo Ginnasio statale "Camillo Benso di Cavour". It was formerly the College of Nobility
, and the Royal College of Education of the Duchy of Savoy
and of the Kingdom of Sardinia
.
Isolabella
Isolabella is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 25 km southeast of Turin.Isolabella borders the following municipalities: Villanova d'Asti, Poirino, Valfenera, and Cellarengo....
and of Leri (kaˌmilːo kaˈvuːr; 1810–1861) was a leading figure in the movement toward Italian unification
Italian unification
Italian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
. He was the founder of the original Italian Liberal Party
Italian Liberal Party
The Italian Liberal Party was a liberal political party in Italy.-Origins:The origins of liberalism in Italy came from the so-called "Historical Right", a parliamentary group formed by Camillo Benso di Cavour in the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia following the 1848 revolution...
and Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia, a position he maintained (except for a six-month resignation) throughout the Second Italian War of Independence
Second Italian War of Independence
The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, Austro-Sardinian War, or Austro-Piedmontese War , was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859...
and Garibaldi's
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian military and political figure. In his twenties, he joined the Carbonari Italian patriot revolutionaries, and fled Italy after a failed insurrection. Garibaldi took part in the War of the Farrapos and the Uruguayan Civil War leading the Italian Legion, and...
campaigns to unite Italy. Cavour died only three months after the declaration of a united Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
, and thus did not live to see Venetia or Rome as part of the new Italian nation.
Cavour, as he is usually called, put forth several economic reforms in his native region of Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
in his earlier years, and founded the political newspaper Il Risorgimento
Il Risorgimento
Il Risorgimento was a liberal, nationalist newspaper founded in Turin 15 December 1847 by Count Camillo Benso di Cavour and Cesare Balbo, who was a backbone of the "neo-Guelph" party that saw in future a rejuvenated Italy under a republican government with a papal presidency—ideas with which...
. After being elected to the Chamber of Deputies
Italian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
, he quickly rose in rank through the Piedmontese government, coming to dominate the Chamber of Deputies through a union of left-center and right-center politicians. After a large rail system expansion program, Cavour became prime minister in 1852. As prime minister, Cavour successfully negotiated Piedmont's way through the Crimean War
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
, Second Italian War of Independence
Second Italian War of Independence
The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, Austro-Sardinian War, or Austro-Piedmontese War , was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859...
, and Garibaldi's expeditions
Expedition of the Thousand
The Expedition of the Thousand was a military campaign led by the revolutionary general Giuseppe Garibaldi in 1860. A force of volunteers defeated the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, leading to its dissolution and annexation by the Kingdom of Sardinia, an important step in the creation of a newly...
, managing to maneuver Piedmont diplomatically to become a new great power
Great power
A great power is a nation or state that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength and diplomatic and cultural influence which may cause small powers to consider the opinions of great powers before taking actions...
in Europe, controlling a nearly united Italy that was five times as large as Piedmont had been before he came to power.
Early life
Camillo Benso was born in TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
during Napoleonic
Napoleonic Era
The Napoleonic Era is a period in the history of France and Europe. It is generally classified as including the fourth and final stage of the French Revolution, the first being the National Assembly, the second being the Legislative Assembly, and the third being the Directory...
rule, into a family that had gained a fair amount of land during the French occupation
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
. He was the second of two sons of Michele Giuseppe Francesco Antonio Benso, 5th Marquess of Cavour
Cavour (commune)
Cavour is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 40 km southwest of Turin.Cavour borders the following municipalities: Macello, Vigone, Bricherasio, Garzigliana, Villafranca Piemonte, Campiglione-Fenile, Bibiana, Bagnolo Piemonte, Barge.-History:Its...
and Count of Isolabella
Isolabella
Isolabella is a comune in the Province of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 25 km southeast of Turin.Isolabella borders the following municipalities: Villanova d'Asti, Poirino, Valfenera, and Cellarengo....
, Baron of the French Empire
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
(1781 – 1850) and his wife Adélaïde (Adèle) Suzanne, Marchioness of Sellon (1780 – 1846), herself of French
French people
The French are a nation that share a common French culture and speak the French language as a mother tongue. Historically, the French population are descended from peoples of Celtic, Latin and Germanic origin, and are today a mixture of several ethnic groups...
origin.
Military engineer
In military science, engineering refers to the practice of designing, building, maintaining and dismantling military works, including offensive, defensive and logistical structures, to shape the physical operating environment in war...
in the Piedmontese-Sardinian
Piedmont-Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia or Sardinia, also Piedmont-Sardinia, Sardinia-Piedmont or Piemonte, refers to the states of the House of Savoy from 1720 or 1723 onwards, following the award of the crown of Sardinia to King Victor Amadeus II of Savoy under the Treaty of The Hague...
army in 1827. While in the army, he studied the English language as well as the works of Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham was an English jurist, philosopher, and legal and social reformer. He became a leading theorist in Anglo-American philosophy of law, and a political radical whose ideas influenced the development of welfarism...
and Benjamin Constant
Benjamin Constant
Henri-Benjamin Constant de Rebecque was a Swiss-born French nobleman, thinker, writer and politician.-Biography:...
, developing liberal
Classical liberalism
Classical liberalism is the philosophy committed to the ideal of limited government, constitutionalism, rule of law, due process, and liberty of individuals including freedom of religion, speech, press, assembly, and free markets....
tendencies which made him suspect to police forces at the time. He resigned his commission in the army in November 1831, both because of boredom with military life and because of his dislike of the reactionary policies of the new ruler of Piedmont, Charles Albert.
Cavour then spent his time in Switzerland, along with his Protestant
Protestantism
Protestantism is one of the three major groupings within Christianity. It is a movement that began in Germany in the early 16th century as a reaction against medieval Roman Catholic doctrines and practices, especially in regards to salvation, justification, and ecclesiology.The doctrines of the...
relatives in Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
. He grew acquainted with Calvinist
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
teachings, and for a short while he converted from a form of unorthodox Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
, only to go back later. A Reformed
Reformed churches
The Reformed churches are a group of Protestant denominations characterized by Calvinist doctrines. They are descended from the Swiss Reformation inaugurated by Huldrych Zwingli but developed more coherently by Martin Bucer, Heinrich Bullinger and especially John Calvin...
pastor, Alexandre Vinet
Alexandre Vinet
Alexandre Rodolphe Vinet , was a Swiss critic and theologian.-Life:He was born near Lausanne in Switzerland.Educated for the Protestant ministry, he was ordained in 1819, when already teacher of the French language and literature in the gymnasium at Basel; and throughout his life he was as much a...
, impressed upon Cavour the need for the separation of church and state
Separation of church and state
The concept of the separation of church and state refers to the distance in the relationship between organized religion and the nation state....
, a doctrine Cavour followed for the remainder of his life. He then traveled to Paris where he was impressed by parliamentary debates, especially those of François Guizot
François Guizot
François Pierre Guillaume Guizot was a French historian, orator, and statesman. Guizot was a dominant figure in French politics prior to the Revolution of 1848, a conservative liberal who opposed the attempt by King Charles X to usurp legislative power, and worked to sustain a constitutional...
and Adolphe Thiers
Adolphe Thiers
Marie Joseph Louis Adolphe Thiers was a French politician and historian. was a prime minister under King Louis-Philippe of France. Following the overthrow of the Second Empire he again came to prominence as the French leader who suppressed the revolutionary Paris Commune of 1871...
, confirming his devotion to a political career. Afterwards, he left for London, where he was much more disappointed by their politics, though continuing to tour the country, heading to Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
, Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, Chester
Chester
Chester is a city in Cheshire, England. Lying on the River Dee, close to the border with Wales, it is home to 77,040 inhabitants, and is the largest and most populous settlement of the wider unitary authority area of Cheshire West and Chester, which had a population of 328,100 according to the...
, Nottingham
Nottingham
Nottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire and represents one of eight members of the English Core Cities Group...
, and Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
. A quicker tour through the Netherlands, Germany, and Switzerland (German part and Lake of Geneva) eventually landed him back in Turin.
Between 1838 and 1842 Cavour began several initiatives in attempts to solve economic problems in his area. Firstly he experimented with different agricultural techniques on his estate, such as the use of sugar beet
Sugar beet
Sugar beet, a cultivated plant of Beta vulgaris, is a plant whose tuber contains a high concentration of sucrose. It is grown commercially for sugar production. Sugar beets and other B...
, and was one of the first Italian landowners to use chemical fertilizers. He also founded the Piedmontese Agricultural Society. Cavour was a heavy supporter of transportation by steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
, sponsoring the building of many railroads and canals. In his spare time, he again traveled extensively, mostly in France and the UK.
Political career
Pope Pius IX
Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was the longest-reigning elected Pope in the history of the Catholic Church, serving from 16 June 1846 until his death, a period of nearly 32 years. During his pontificate, he convened the First Vatican Council in 1869, which decreed papal...
and the political upheavals of 1848
Revolutions of 1848
The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations, Springtime of the Peoples or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe in 1848. It was the first Europe-wide collapse of traditional authority, but within a year reactionary...
spawned a new movement of Italian liberalism, allowing Cavour to enter the political arena, no longer in fear of the police. He then gave a speech in front of numerous journalists in favor of a constitution for Piedmont, which was eventually granted. Cavour, unlike several other political thinkers, was not at first offered a position in the new Chamber of Deputies
Italian Chamber of Deputies
The Italian Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Parliament of Italy. It has 630 seats, a plurality of which is controlled presently by liberal-conservative party People of Freedom. Twelve deputies represent Italian citizens outside of Italy. Deputies meet in the Palazzo Montecitorio. A...
, as he was still a somewhat suspicious character to many.
Cavour never planned for the establishment of a united country, and even later during his Premiership his objective was to expand Piedmont with the annexation of Lombardy and Venetia, rather than a unified Italy. For example, during the conservative period, he gained a reputation as a non-revolutionary progressive
Liberal conservatism
Liberal conservatism also known as progressive conservatism is a variant of political conservatism which incorporates liberal elements. As "conservatism" and "liberalism" have had different meanings over time and across countries, the term "liberal conservatism" has been used in quite different...
. He had trouble publicly speaking as he tended to speak French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
privately but preferred to attempt speaking in Italian in Parliament. Cavour then lost the next election, while the Piedmontese army was destroyed at the Battle of Novara
Battle of Novara (1849)
The Battle of Novara or Battle of Bicocca was one of the battles fought between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia during the First Italian War of Independence, within the era of Italian unification...
, leading Charles Albert to abdicate, leaving his son, Victor Emmanuel II
Victor Emmanuel II of Italy
Victor Emanuel II was king of Sardinia from 1849 and, on 17 March 1861, he assumed the title King of Italy to become the first king of a united Italy since the 6th century, a title he held until his death in 1878...
in charge.
Cavour was then brought back into Parliament by the voters, where he was much more successful. His knowledge of European markets and modern economy earned him the position as Minister of Agriculture, Commerce and the Navy in 1850. Cavour soon came to dominate the cabinet and united the Right Center and the Left Center in the chamber to show dominance there as well. In 1851, Cavour gained a Cabinet promotion to Minister of Finance by working against his colleague from inside the Cabinet in a somewhat disreputable takeover, though it was to Piedmont's advantage through his many economic reforms. This allowed Cavour to begin his vast railway expansion program, giving Piedmont 800 kilometres of track by the year 1860, one third of the railways in Italy at the time.
Prime minister of Piedmont-Sardinia
These moves eventually earned him the title of Prime MinisterPrime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
of Piedmont
Piedmont
Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.4 million. The capital of Piedmont is Turin. The main local language is Piedmontese. Occitan is also spoken by a minority in the Occitan Valleys situated in the Provinces of...
on 4 November 1852. Cavour was generally liberal and believed in free trade
Free trade
Under a free trade policy, prices emerge from supply and demand, and are the sole determinant of resource allocation. 'Free' trade differs from other forms of trade policy where the allocation of goods and services among trading countries are determined by price strategies that may differ from...
, public right of opinion, and secular rule, but was still an enemy of the republicans and revolutionaries inside Piedmont, attempting to balance their needs. Cavour is criticised for a number of controversial methods he used while prime minister, including excessive use of emergency powers, employing friends, bribing newspapers while suppressing others, and rigging elections, though these things were fairly common for the time. Still, Cavour's career as prime minister can be considered one of the most successful of all time, given that when he took up the post, Piedmont had just suffered a horrible loss to Austria, and when Cavour died, Victor Emmanuel II ruled a state five times as large, now ranking among Europe's great power
Great power
A great power is a nation or state that has the ability to exert its influence on a global scale. Great powers characteristically possess military and economic strength and diplomatic and cultural influence which may cause small powers to consider the opinions of great powers before taking actions...
s.
Cavour in fact radically increased the wealth and growth of Piedmont. In twelve years wealth had increased to 725 million liras. Piedmont had 20% of the Italian population but held 27% of the exports. Piedmont, under Cavour, was the most powerful state.
Crimean War
The Crimean War was a conflict fought between the Russian Empire and an alliance of the French Empire, the British Empire, the Ottoman Empire, and the Kingdom of Sardinia. The war was part of a long-running contest between the major European powers for influence over territories of the declining...
broke out, pitting Great Britain, France, and the Ottomans against Russia. The allied powers of Britain and France asked Piedmont to enter the war partially in order to encourage Austria to enter, which they would not do unless they were certain that Piedmontese troops were not available to fight in Italy. Cavour, who hoped that support for the western allies would lead to their support for Sardinia's ambitions in Italy, agreed as soon as his colleagues' support would allow, and entered the war on France and Britain's side on January 10, 1855, too late to truly distinguish themselves militarily, yet the entry turned out to be a useful political move for Piedmont's future. Their 18 thousand man contingent did manage to earn Piedmont a position at the Peace Congress in Paris.
In January 1858, the Italian Felice Orsini
Felice Orsini
Felice Orsini was an Italian revolutionary and leader of the Carbonari who tried to assassinate Napoleon III, Emperor of the French.-Early:Felice Orsini was born at Meldola in Romagna, then part of the Papal States....
's attempt at murdering Napoleon III paradoxically opened up a new possibility at diplomacy between France and Italy. While in jail awaiting trial, Orsini wrote a publicly published letter to the Emperor of the French, ending with "Remember that, so long as Italy is not independent, the peace of Europe and Your Majesty is but an empty dream... Set my country free, and the blessings of twenty-five million people will follow you everywhere and forever." Orsini would still be executed, but Napoleon III would begin to explore the possibility of joint operation with Piedmont against Austria. Cavour and Napoleon would meet in July 1858 at Plombières-les-Bains
Plombières-les-Bains
Plombières-les-Bains is a commune in the Vosges department in Lorraine in northeastern France.Les bains refers to the hot springs in the area, whose properties were first discovered by the Romans...
, and the two agreed that Piedmont would attempt to enter war by engineering a conflict with the Duchy of Modena, obliging Austria to enter, and France would come to aid Piedmont. Cavour also reluctantly agreed to cede Savoy
Savoy
Savoy is a region of France. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps situated between Lake Geneva in the north and Monaco and the Mediterranean coast in the south....
(the seat of the Piedmontese royal family
House of Savoy
The House of Savoy was formed in the early 11th century in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to eventually rule the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until the end of World War II, king of Croatia and King of Armenia...
) and Nice
Nice
Nice is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of more than 955,000 on an area of...
to France if aid was given in war. A royal marriage was proposed and carried out between Princess Clotilde and Prince Napoleon to seal the agreement, surprisingly made without Victor Emmanuel's consent.
Cavour in the same year sent his cousin, the famous beauty, photographic artist and secret agent Virginia Oldoïni, to further the interests of Italian unification with the emperor by what ever means possible, by all accounts she succeeded.
Both France and Piedmont began to prepare for war, but diplomatic support for the war appeared to be diminishing rapidly. Napoleon III was quickly souring on the idea, and Britain, Prussia, and Russia were proposing an international congress, with one point likely to be the disarmament of Piedmont. Piedmont was saved from this situation by Austria's sending an ultimatum on April 23, demanding that Piedmont disarm itself, and casting Austria as an aggressor. France immediately mobilised its army and slowly began to enter Italy, but Piedmont would need to defend itself for a short period. Rainstorms and Austrian indecision under Ferencz Graf Gyulai allowed France time to enter position.
Battle of Magenta
The Battle of Magenta was fought on June 4, 1859 during the Second Italian War of Independence, resulting in a French-Sardinian victory under Napoleon III against the Austrians under Marshal Ferencz Gyulai....
and Solferino
Battle of Solferino
The Battle of Solferino, , was fought on June 24, 1859 and resulted in the victory of the allied French Army under Napoleon III and Sardinian Army under Victor Emmanuel II against the Austrian Army under Emperor Franz Joseph I; it was the last major battle in world...
managed to give the Franco-Piedmontese forces control over Lombardy and a victorious position, though the Austrians remained confident in defending their "fortress quadrilateral" area, with four fortresses in Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, Legnano
Legnano
Legnano is an Italian town and comune with 59.147 inhabitants in the province of Milan, about from Milan.It's crossed by the river Olona, and it's the 13th town for inhabitants in Lombardy....
, Peschiera
Peschiera del Garda
Peschiera del Garda , is a town and comune in the province of Verona, in Veneto, Italy. When Lombardy-Venetia was under Austrian rule, Peschiera was the northwest anchor of the four fortified towns constituting the so-called Quadrilatero...
, and Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
. These defenses, the horrors of the Battle of Solferino, the possibility of German entry into the war, and the potential for an overly strong Piedmontese state convinced Napoleon to sign a separate peace with Austria in the Treaty of Villafranca on July 11, 1859, ending the Second Italian War of Independence
Second Italian War of Independence
The Second War of Italian Independence, Franco-Austrian War, Austro-Sardinian War, or Austro-Piedmontese War , was fought by Napoleon III of France and the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia against the Austrian Empire in 1859...
. Cavour was so infuriated after reading the terms of the treaty that he tendered his resignation to Victor Emmanuel, who was accepting peace due to Piedmont's inability to fight Austria alone. Cavour would quickly regain confidence, as several of the terms, such as the restoration to power of the rulers of Tuscany
Tuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
and Modena
Modena
Modena is a city and comune on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy....
, would not actually be carried out. For now, General La Marmora
Alfonso Ferrero La Marmora
Alfonso Ferrero, Cavaliere La Màrmora was an Italian general and statesman. His brother Alessandro La Marmora founded the branch of the Italian army now called the Bersaglieri.-Biography:...
succeeded Cavour's post and insisted on following Villafranca, even sending a letter to Tuscany asking that they restore their Grand Duke. Bettino Ricasoli
Bettino Ricasoli
Bettino Ricàsoli, 1.º Barone Ricàsoli, 1.º Conte di Brolio was an Italian statesman.-Biography:...
, virtual dictator of Tuscany at the time, wrote about this appeal to his brother, saying "Tell General La Marmora that I have torn his letter into a thousand pieces." France would continue direct talks with Piedmont on the destiny of the central Italian states, as all of them at the time were ruled by dictators supporting merging with Piedmont, but were restrained from doing so by the treaty, which called for them to return to their old governments.
Cavour had retired to his estate at Leri
Trino
Trino is a comune in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 50 km northeast of Turin and about 15 km southwest of Vercelli, at the foot of the Montferrat hills....
, closely monitoring events during his short absence from power, but soon became impatient with government proceedings and actively entered politics again, immediately forcing La Marmora to resign due to Cavour's control of the chamber. Victor Emmanuel was very reluctant to assign Cavour to be prime minister, due both to their quarrel over Villafranca and Cavour's success in restricting the king from marrying his mistress after the queen's death. Cavour was however sent for on January 20, 1860 to again take over the government.
Emilia-Romagna
Emilia–Romagna is an administrative region of Northern Italy comprising the two historic regions of Emilia and Romagna. The capital is Bologna; it has an area of and about 4.4 million inhabitants....
. Plebiscites in Tuscany and Emilia came out as huge majorities in favor of unification, though still with a number of abstentions supporting the old government. Garibaldi was furious at finding that his birthplace, Nice, had become a French city, but Cavour managed to convince most that uniting Italy would make up for these small territorial losses. With this, the first stage of unification was completed, and it would be Garibaldi's turn to bring southern Italy into Piedmont's control.
Garibaldi, still fuming at the loss of his hometown to France, wished to recapture the city, but a popular insurrection in Palermo on April 4, 1860 diverted him from pursuing that cause. Garibaldi requested a brigade from the Piedmontese army to take Sicily from the Bourbon
House of Bourbon
The House of Bourbon is a European royal house, a branch of the Capetian dynasty . Bourbon kings first ruled Navarre and France in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Bourbon dynasty also held thrones in Spain, Naples, Sicily, and Parma...
Neapolitans who ruled it at the time, but was immediately refused one by Cavour. A band of volunteers was instead brought together, who would come to be known as I Mille, or the Thousand. This small group of redshirts landed at Marsala
Marsala
Marsala is a seaport city located in the Province of Trapani on the island of Sicily in Italy. The low coast on which it is situated is the westernmost point of the island...
in Sicily on May 11, later to fight the battles of Calatafimi
Battle of Calatafimi
The Battle of Calatafimi was fought on May 15, 1860 between Giuseppe Garibaldi's volunteers and Hungarians veterans and the troops of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies at Calatafimi, Sicily, as part of the Expedition of the Thousand ....
and Milazzo
Battle of Milazzo (1860)
The Battle of Milazzo was fought on 17–24 July 1860 between Giuseppe Garibaldi's volunteers with Hungarian veterans and the troops of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies at Milazzo, Sicily, then part of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies....
, consolidating Sicily in Garibaldi's power. Cavour attempted to immediately annex Sicily to the Piedmontese, but Garibaldi and his accomplice Francesco Crispi
Francesco Crispi
Francesco Crispi was a 19th-century Italian politician of Arbëreshë ancestry. He was instrumental in the unification of Italy and was its 17th and 20th Prime Minister from 1887 until 1891 and again from 1893 until 1896.-Sicily:Crispi’s paternal family came originally from the small agricultural...
would not allow it.
Cavour persuaded Victor Emmanuel II to write a letter to Garibaldi requesting that he not invade the mainland; the letter was indeed sent, but Victor Emmanuel secretly wished for Garibaldi to invade, having written another letter asking him to go ahead which was apparently never sent. Cavour realized these efforts were fruitless, and attempted to stir up a liberal revolution in Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, but the populace was not receptive. Garibaldi invaded the mainland anyway, attempting to reach Naples quickly before Cavour found a way to stop him. On September 7, Garibaldi successfully entered Naples, at that time the largest city in Italy. Southern Italy and Sicily were now under Garibaldi, who ruled with dictatorial powers. Garibaldi also publicly demanded that Cavour be removed from his post as prime minister, alienating him slightly from Victor Emmanuel II.
Garibaldi was not willing to stop at this point, however, and planned for an immediate invasion of the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
and Rome. Cavour knew that France may declare war if such an invasion happened, and would successfully stop Garibaldi from initiating his attack. Garibaldi had been weakened by the Battle of Volturno
Battle of Volturnus (1860)
The Battle of Volturnus or Volturno refers to a series of military clashes between Giuseppe Garibaldi's volunteers and the troops of the Kingdom of Two Sicilies occurred around the river Volturno, in northern Campania, in September and October 1860...
, so Cavour quickly invaded the Papal regions of Umbria
Umbria
Umbria is a region of modern central Italy. It is one of the smallest Italian regions and the only peninsular region that is landlocked.Its capital is Perugia.Assisi and Norcia are historical towns associated with St. Francis of Assisi, and St...
and the Marches
Marches
A march or mark refers to a border region similar to a frontier, such as the Welsh Marches, the borderland between England and Wales. During the Frankish Carolingian Dynasty, the word spread throughout Europe....
. This linked the territories owned by Piedmont with those taken by Garibaldi, and the king met Garibaldi halfway at Naples, where Garibaldi handed over power of southern Italy and Sicily, uniting Italy.
The relationship between Cavour and Garibaldi was always fractious: Cavour likened Garibaldi to "a savage" while Garibaldi
memorably called Cavour "a low intriguer".
Prime Minister of Italy
In 1861, Victor Emmanuel II declared the Kingdom of ItalyKingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
, making Cavour officially prime minister of Italy. Cavour had many stressful topics that all needed consideration, including how to create a national military, which legal institutions should be kept for where, the future of Rome, which most still believed must be capital of a united Italy, and any number of other concerns. Cavour believed that Rome should remain "a free church in a free state", allowed to maintain its independence though forced to give up temporal power. Still Austrian Venetia was also a problem. Cavour recognized that Venice
Venice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
must be an integral part of Italy, but refused to take a stance on how to achieve it, saying "Will the deliverance of Venice come by arms or diplomacy? I do not know. It is the secret of providence." A motion approving of his foreign policy passed by a huge majority, basically only opposed by both left and right-wing extremist groups.
Creating Italy was no easy task, but ruling it proved a worse strain on the Prime Minister. In 1861, at the peak of his career, months of long days coupled with insomnia and constant worry took their toll on Cavour. He fell ill, presumably of malaria, and to make matters worse, insisted upon being bled. His regular doctor would have refused, but he was not available, so Cavour was bled several times until it was nearly impossible to draw any blood from him. He died on June 6 of a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
, fifty years old. His last words were reportedly L'Italia è fatta, tutto è a posto ("Italy is made. All is safe.") This quote was surprisingly optimistic compared to how most Europeans were greeting the unification of Italy, as Napoleon III said upon hearing of Cavour's death, "The driver has fallen from the box; now we must see if the horses will bolt or go back to the stable". Massimo d'Azeglio, the prime minister of Piedmont before Cavour, asked "Who now is going to be the counterweight to Mazzini and Garibaldi? Who now can keep the revolution safe indoors like some domesticated hyena
Hyena
Hyenas or Hyaenas are the animals of the family Hyaenidae of suborder feliforms of the Carnivora. It is the fourth smallest biological family in the Carnivora , and one of the smallest in the mammalia...
?" Despite these comments, Italy would gain Venice in 1866 through the Austro-Prussian War
Austro-Prussian War
The Austro-Prussian War was a war fought in 1866 between the German Confederation under the leadership of the Austrian Empire and its German allies on one side and the Kingdom of Prussia with its German allies and Italy on the...
and Rome on 20 September 1870 after the capture of Rome
Capture of Rome
The Capture of Rome was the final event of the long process of Italian unification known as the Risorgimento, which finally unified the Italian peninsula under King Victor Emmanuel II of the House of Savoy...
, during the reign of Pope Pius IX, and France's defeat at Sedan
Battle of Sedan
The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War on 1 September 1870. It resulted in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and large numbers of his troops and for all intents and purposes decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, though fighting continued under a new French...
, completing the unification that few thought could be finished without Cavour.
Legacy
Today, many Italian cities like TurinTurin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, Rome, Florence
Florence
Florence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
and Naples
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
have important streets or squares named for him. The new Marina Militare
Marina Militare
The Italian Navy is the navy of the Italian Republic. It is one of the four branches of military forces of Italy; formed in 1946, from what remained of the Regia Marina . As of 2008, the Italian Navy had 35,200 active personnel with 180 commissioned ships, 19 Floating Docks, and 123 aircraft...
aircraft carrier Cavour is also named in his honour. This unit was preceded by the famous battleship Conte di Cavour
Italian battleship Conte di Cavour
Conte di Cavour was an Conte di Cavour class battleship, that served in the Regia Marina during World War I and World War II. It was named after the Italian statesman Count Camillo Benso di Cavour.-Construction and first years:...
, which fought both in World War I and World War II, and a clipper ship, Camille Cavour
Challenger (1853 clipper)
The Challenger was an extreme clipper ship built in East Boston in 1853. She sailed in the San Francisco trade, and later in the guano trade in Peru.-Voyages:...
.
In 1865 a leading Liceo classico
Liceo classico
Liceo classico is a secondary school type in Italy. The educational curriculum lasts five years, and students are generally about 14 to 19 years of age....
in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
, the oldest high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
in the city (founded 1568) and one among the oldest and most prominent ones in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, was named after him, and became Liceo classico Cavour
Liceo classico Cavour
Liceo Ginnasio statale "Camillo Benso di Cavour" is the oldest Liceo classico in Turin and one among the oldest and most prominent high schools in Italy, for boys aged 14 to 19. It was transferred to its present location in 1931.-History:...
. The whole (actual) name is Liceo Ginnasio statale "Camillo Benso di Cavour". It was formerly the College of Nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
, and the Royal College of Education of the Duchy of Savoy
Duchy of Savoy
From 1416 to 1847, the House of Savoy ruled the eponymous Duchy of Savoy . The Duchy was a state in the northern part of the Italian Peninsula, with some territories that are now in France. It was a continuation of the County of Savoy...
and of the Kingdom of Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
.
See also
- History of Italy as a monarchy and in the World WarsHistory of Italy as a monarchy and in the World WarsThis articles covers the history of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars.-Italian unification :Modern Italy became a nation-state during the Risorgimento on March 17, 1861 when most of the states of the Italian Peninsula and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies were united under king Victor...
- Unification of Italy
- Italian Wars of Independence