Cisalpine Republic
Encyclopedia
The Cisalpine Republic was a French client republic
in Northern Italy
that lasted from 1797 to 1802.
in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte
proceeded to organize two states: one to the south of the Po River
, the Cispadane Republic
, and one to the north, the Transpadane Republic
. On May 19, 1797, Napoleon transferred the territories of the former Duchy of Modena to Transpadania and, on Messidor 12 (June 29), he decreed the birth of the Cisalpine Republic, creating a Directory for the republic and appointing its ministers. France published the constitution of the new republic on Messidor 20 (July 7), establishing the division of the territory into eleven departments: Adda (Lodi
), Alpi Apuane (Massa
), Crostolo (Reggio
), Lario (Como
), Montagna (Lecco
), Olona (Milan
), Panaro (Modena
), Po (Cremona
), Serio (Bergamo
), Ticino (Pavia
), and Verbano (Varese
).
The rest of Cispadania was merged into the Cisalpine Republic on July 27, with the capital of the unified state being Milan
. On Brumaire 1 (October 22) Bonaparte announced the union of Valtelline with the republic, after its secession from the Swiss Three Grey Leagues
. Austria
acknowledged the new entity in the Treaty of Campoformio of October 17, gaining in exchange what remained of the Venetian Republic. On Brumaire 25 (November 15) the full international recognition and legality of the new state was ratified by the law governing the final annexation of the conquered territories.
The parliament, composed of two chambers (the Great Council and the Council of the Seniors), was appointed directly by Napoleon on Frimaire 1 (November 21). He justified this undemocratic action as a necessity of war. New departments joined the 11 original ones and Valtelline in the following months: Benaco (Desenzano) on Ventose 11 (March 1, 1798), Mella (Brescia
) on Floreal 13 (May 2), Mincio (Mantua
) on Prairial 7 (May 26), and five departments of Emilia. The structural phase of the republic was terminated on Fructidor 14 (August 31), when France dismissed all the authorities of the republic, replacing them by a stronger executive power under a new constitution.
. The territory was divided into departments which elected the judges of peace, the magistrates and the electors, one for every 200 people having the right to vote. The latter elected two councils: the Consiglio dei Seniori ("Council of the Seniors") and the Gran Consiglio ("Great Council"). The first was initially composed of 40 to 60 members and approved the laws and modifications to the Constitutional Chart. The second initially had from 80 to 120 members and proposed the laws. Both councils discussed treaties, the choice of a Directory, and the determination of tributes. The legislative corps included men like Pietro Verri
, Giuseppe Parini
and the scientist Alessandro Volta
. The electors had to be landowners or wealthy.
The Directory was composed of five directors and represented the executive power: leaders were local politicians like Gian Galeazzo Serbelloni, the first president. The Directory chose its secretary, and appointed the six ministers: for justice, war, foreign affairs, internal affairs, police, and finance. The supreme authority, however, was the commander of the French troops. The republic also adopted the French Republican Calendar
.
Each department had its own local directory of five members, as did communes between 3,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. The biggest communes were divided into municipalities, with a central joint commission to handle the general affairs of the cities. The smallest communes were united in districts with a single municipality, with each commune having its own municipal agent.
The first constitution did not have a long life. On Fructidor 14, year VI (August 31, 1798), the French ambassador Claude-Joseph Trouvé (who was only thirty years old) dismissed the Directory, and the next day he promulgated a new constitution with a stronger executive power.
The departments numbered eleven again, now covering larger geographical areas: Olona (Milan
), Alto Po (Cremona
), Serio (Bergamo
), Adda and Oglio (Morbegno
), Mella (Brescia
), Mincio (Mantua
), Panaro (Modena
), Crostolo (Reggio
), Reno (Bologna
), Basso Po (Ferrara
), Rubicone (Forlì). The membership of the local directories was reduced to three, and the municipalities for communes between 3,000 and 10,000 inhabitants were disbanded.
Trouvé appointed the new Directory, which had stronger powers, and a new parliament composed of two councils: the Anziani ("Elders") and the Giuniori ("Youngers"). The first was composed of 40 elected members together with the former directors. The second had 80 members.
A new coup d'état, attempted by French general Guillaume Marie Anne Brune
the next autumn, was disavowed by the French Directory on Frimaire 17 (December 7).
The second Directory of the Republic was appointed by Trouvé the same day as the proclamation of the second constitution, on Fructidor 14, year VI (August 31, 1798).
On Germinal 21, year VII (April 10, 1799) the Directory received special powers to meet the Austria
n and Russia
n invasions after the formation of the Second Coalition. The next day, a Military Committee, a Finance Committee and a Public Health Committee were established. On Floreal 7 (April 26) an order was given to evacuate the Legislative Council. On April 29, 1799, Austrian rule was restored and the Directory abolished.
, but the treaty of alliance established the effective subalternity of the new republic to France. The French in fact had control over the local police, and left an army consisting of 25,000 Frenchmen, financed by the republic. The Cisalpines also to form another army of 35,000 of their own men to take part in French campaigns.
On March 4, 1798, the Directory presented this treaty to the Great Council for ratification. The council did not agree with the terms, and delayed taking a decision, but in the end the French general Berthier
compelled acceptance by the members. The Seniors however refused it from the very beginning, as the new state was unable to finance the requested institutions. Berthier threatened to impose a military government, but was later replaced by general Brune. The latter, after replacing some Seniors and Juniors, achieved the signing of the treaty on June 8.
, which included Italian-speaking areas south of the Alps
. On October 10, 1797, the French supported a revolt in Valtelline. The Cisalpine Republic ended up taking control of Campione d'Italia
and the Valtellina from Grisons
and joined the republic. A Cisalpine attempt to conquer Lugano
by surprise failed in 1797.
Russian
and Austrian
forces, which appointed a provisional administration led by the Imperial Commission of the Mantuan Count Luigi Cocastelli. They departed only on May 30, 1800, just few days before Napoleon won the Battle of Marengo.
The Cisalpine Republic was restored by Napoleon on Prairial 15, year VIII (June 4, 1800). On Prairial 28 (June 17) the First Consul appointed an Extraordinary Commission of Government of nine members, and a legislative Consulta: the final list of the executive and legislative institutions was published on Messidor 5 (June 24). On Messidor 16 (July 6) all the acts issued during the Austrian occupation were annulled, and afterwards the tricolour flag was restored.
Napoleon's new victories gave him the possibility to stabilize the political situation in all of northern Italy. On Vendemiaire 3, year IX (September 25), the powers of the Extraordinary Commission were concentrated in the hands of a more restricted Committee of Government, composed of three members: Giovan Battista Sommariva, Sigismondo Ruga and Francesco Visconti, reflecting the institution of the French Consulate
. On Vendemiaire 21 (October 13), owing to the refusal of the escaped King Charles Emmanuel IV of Savoy
to sign a treaty of peace settling the situation of the occupied Piedmont
, Napoleon ordered the annexation of Novara
to the republic, shifting its western border from Ticino
to the Sesia River
. After the surrender of Austria and the signing of the Treaty of Lunéville
on February 9, 1801, the territory of the republic was extended on the eastern side as well, placing the frontier with the Holy Roman Empire on the Adige River without the exceptions agreed in Campo Formio. On Floreal 23 (May 13), the territory of the republic was divided into 12 departments, adding Agogna (Novara
), restoring Lario and abolishing Adda-e-Oglio.
On Brumaire 21, year X (November 12) an Extraordinary Cisalpine Consulta was summoned in Lyon
. In January 1802, the Consulta decided to change the name of the State to the Italian Republic
, when Napoleon had himself elected president, on January 24, on the advice of Talleyrand. Two days later, in a scene officially commemorated by Monsiau, Bonaparte appeared in the Collège de la Trinité of Lyon
, attended by Murat
, Berthier
, Louis Bonaparte
, Hortense and Joséphine de Beauharnais, and heard the assembled notables proclaim the Italian Republic. On Pluviose 21 (February 10) the new constitutional government was proclaimed in Milan by Sommariva and Ruga. The same day, the Gregorian calendar
was restored.
French client republic
During its occupation of neighboring parts of Europe during the French Revolutionary Wars, France established republican regimes in these territories...
in Northern 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...
that lasted from 1797 to 1802.
Birth
After the Battle of LodiBattle of Lodi
The Battle of Lodi was fought on May 10, 1796 between French forces under General Napoleon Bonaparte and an Austrian rear guard led by Karl Philipp Sebottendorf at Lodi, Lombardy...
in May 1796, Napoleon Bonaparte
Napoleon I of France
Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
proceeded to organize two states: one to the south of the Po River
Po River
The Po |Ligurian]]: Bodincus or Bodencus) is a river that flows either or – considering the length of the Maira, a right bank tributary – eastward across northern Italy, from a spring seeping from a stony hillside at Pian del Re, a flat place at the head of the Val Po under the northwest face...
, the Cispadane Republic
Cispadane Republic
The Cispadane Republic was a short-lived republic located in Northern Italy, founded in 1796 with the protection of the French army, led by Napoleon Bonaparte. In the following year, it was merged into the Cisalpine Republic....
, and one to the north, the Transpadane Republic
Transpadane Republic
The Transpadane Republic was a revolutionary, provisional and internationally unrecognized government established in Milan by General Napoleon Bonaparte....
. On May 19, 1797, Napoleon transferred the territories of the former Duchy of Modena to Transpadania and, on Messidor 12 (June 29), he decreed the birth of the Cisalpine Republic, creating a Directory for the republic and appointing its ministers. France published the constitution of the new republic on Messidor 20 (July 7), establishing the division of the territory into eleven departments: Adda (Lodi
Province of Lodi
The Province of Lodi is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lodi.It has an area of 782 km², and a total population of 209,874 . There are 61 comuni in the province . As of May 31, 2005, the main comuni by population are:- External links :...
), Alpi Apuane (Massa
Province of Massa-Carrara
The Province of Massa and Carrara , until 2009 Province of Massa-Carrara, is a province in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is named after the two main towns in its territory: Carrara and Massa, its capital.-History:...
), Crostolo (Reggio
Province of Reggio Emilia
The Province of Reggio Emilia is one of the eight provinces of the Italian Region of Emilia-Romagna. The capital city, which is the most densely populated comune in the Province, is Reggio Emilia....
), Lario (Como
Province of Como
The Province of Como is a province in the north of the Lombardy region of Italy and borders the Swiss cantons of Ticino and Grigioni to the North, the Italian provinces of Sondrio and Lecco to the East, the Province of Milan to the south and the Province of Varese to the West...
), Montagna (Lecco
Province of Lecco
The Province of Lecco is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Lecco.On 1 January 2001 the province had a population of 311,452 on a surface of 816 km² divided in 90 communes...
), Olona (Milan
Province of Milan
The Province of Milan : /) is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Milan. The provincial territory is highly urbanized, resulting in the third highest population density among the Italian provinces with more than 2,000 inhabitants/km2, just behind the provinces of...
), Panaro (Modena
Province of Modena
The Province of Modena is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Modena.It has an area of 2,689 km², and a total population of 659,925 . There are 48 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Modena.At May 31, 2005, the main comuni by population...
), Po (Cremona
Province of Cremona
The Province of Cremona is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Cremona.The province has an area of 1,771 km² and in 2008 census, had a population of 358,628. There are 115 comuni...
), Serio (Bergamo
Province of Bergamo
The Province of Bergamo is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. It has a population of 1,098,740 , an area of 2,722.86 square km, and contains 244 comuni...
), Ticino (Pavia
Province of Pavia
The Province of Pavia is a province in the region of Lombardy in northern Italy. Pavia is the capital.It has an area of 2,965 km², and a total population of 493,753...
), and Verbano (Varese
Province of Varese
The Province of Varese is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Varese but its largest city is Busto Arsizio....
).
The rest of Cispadania was merged into the Cisalpine Republic on July 27, with the capital of the unified state being Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
. On Brumaire 1 (October 22) Bonaparte announced the union of Valtelline with the republic, after its secession from the Swiss Three Grey Leagues
Three Leagues
The Three Leagues was the alliance of 1471 of the League of God's House, the League of the Ten Jurisdictions and the Grey League, leading eventually to the formation of the Swiss canton of Graubünden. Most of the lands of Graubünden were part of the Roman province Raetia in 15 BC...
. Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
acknowledged the new entity in the Treaty of Campoformio of October 17, gaining in exchange what remained of the Venetian Republic. On Brumaire 25 (November 15) the full international recognition and legality of the new state was ratified by the law governing the final annexation of the conquered territories.
The parliament, composed of two chambers (the Great Council and the Council of the Seniors), was appointed directly by Napoleon on Frimaire 1 (November 21). He justified this undemocratic action as a necessity of war. New departments joined the 11 original ones and Valtelline in the following months: Benaco (Desenzano) on Ventose 11 (March 1, 1798), Mella (Brescia
Province of Brescia
The Province of Brescia is a Province in Lombardy, Italy. It borders with the province of Sondrio in the N and NW, the province of Bergamo in the W, province of Cremona in the SW and S, the province of Mantova to the S, and to the east, the province of Verona and Trentino .Source for statistical...
) on Floreal 13 (May 2), Mincio (Mantua
Province of Mantua
The Province of Mantua is a province in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Mantua.-Communes:It includes 70 comuni , ranging in area from Viadana, with 102.19 km², to Mariana Mantovana, with 8.81 km²....
) on Prairial 7 (May 26), and five departments of Emilia. The structural phase of the republic was terminated on Fructidor 14 (August 31), when France dismissed all the authorities of the republic, replacing them by a stronger executive power under a new constitution.
Institutional form
The institutions of the new republic were very similar to those of FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The territory was divided into departments which elected the judges of peace, the magistrates and the electors, one for every 200 people having the right to vote. The latter elected two councils: the Consiglio dei Seniori ("Council of the Seniors") and the Gran Consiglio ("Great Council"). The first was initially composed of 40 to 60 members and approved the laws and modifications to the Constitutional Chart. The second initially had from 80 to 120 members and proposed the laws. Both councils discussed treaties, the choice of a Directory, and the determination of tributes. The legislative corps included men like Pietro Verri
Pietro Verri
Pietro Verri was an Italian philosopher, economist, historian and writer.-Biography:Born in Milan, then under Austrian rule, to a conservative noble family, he received a strongly religious education, from which he began to rebel when he reached his twenties...
, Giuseppe Parini
Giuseppe Parini
Giuseppe Parini was an Italian Enlightenment satirist and poet of the neoclassic period.-Biography:Parini was born in Bosisio in Brianza, Lombardy...
and the scientist Alessandro Volta
Alessandro Volta
Count Alessandro Giuseppe Antonio Anastasio Gerolamo Umberto Volta was a Lombard physicist known especially for the invention of the battery in 1800.-Early life and works:...
. The electors had to be landowners or wealthy.
The Directory was composed of five directors and represented the executive power: leaders were local politicians like Gian Galeazzo Serbelloni, the first president. The Directory chose its secretary, and appointed the six ministers: for justice, war, foreign affairs, internal affairs, police, and finance. The supreme authority, however, was the commander of the French troops. The republic also adopted the French Republican Calendar
French Republican Calendar
The French Republican Calendar or French Revolutionary Calendar was a calendar created and implemented during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793 to 1805, and for 18 days by the Paris Commune in 1871...
.
Each department had its own local directory of five members, as did communes between 3,000 and 100,000 inhabitants. The biggest communes were divided into municipalities, with a central joint commission to handle the general affairs of the cities. The smallest communes were united in districts with a single municipality, with each commune having its own municipal agent.
Second constitution
The departments numbered eleven again, now covering larger geographical areas: Olona (Milan
Province of Milan
The Province of Milan : /) is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Milan. The provincial territory is highly urbanized, resulting in the third highest population density among the Italian provinces with more than 2,000 inhabitants/km2, just behind the provinces of...
), Alto Po (Cremona
Province of Cremona
The Province of Cremona is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Cremona.The province has an area of 1,771 km² and in 2008 census, had a population of 358,628. There are 115 comuni...
), Serio (Bergamo
Province of Bergamo
The Province of Bergamo is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. It has a population of 1,098,740 , an area of 2,722.86 square km, and contains 244 comuni...
), Adda and Oglio (Morbegno
Province of Sondrio
The Province of Sondrio is in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the town of Sondrio.It has an area of 3,212 km², and a total population of 176,856...
), Mella (Brescia
Province of Brescia
The Province of Brescia is a Province in Lombardy, Italy. It borders with the province of Sondrio in the N and NW, the province of Bergamo in the W, province of Cremona in the SW and S, the province of Mantova to the S, and to the east, the province of Verona and Trentino .Source for statistical...
), Mincio (Mantua
Province of Mantua
The Province of Mantua is a province in the Lombardy region of northern Italy. Its capital is the city of Mantua.-Communes:It includes 70 comuni , ranging in area from Viadana, with 102.19 km², to Mariana Mantovana, with 8.81 km²....
), Panaro (Modena
Province of Modena
The Province of Modena is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Modena.It has an area of 2,689 km², and a total population of 659,925 . There are 48 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Modena.At May 31, 2005, the main comuni by population...
), Crostolo (Reggio
Province of Reggio Emilia
The Province of Reggio Emilia is one of the eight provinces of the Italian Region of Emilia-Romagna. The capital city, which is the most densely populated comune in the Province, is Reggio Emilia....
), Reno (Bologna
Province of Bologna
The Province of Bologna is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Bologna.-Geography:It has an area of 3,702 km², and a total population of 991,647 . There are 60 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Bologna...
), Basso Po (Ferrara
Province of Ferrara
The Province of Ferrara is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Ferrara.It has an area of 2,632 km², about two thirds of the area of the U.S. State of Rhode Island, and a total population of about 350,000 . There are 26 comuni in the province , see...
), Rubicone (Forlì). The membership of the local directories was reduced to three, and the municipalities for communes between 3,000 and 10,000 inhabitants were disbanded.
Trouvé appointed the new Directory, which had stronger powers, and a new parliament composed of two councils: the Anziani ("Elders") and the Giuniori ("Youngers"). The first was composed of 40 elected members together with the former directors. The second had 80 members.
A new coup d'état, attempted by French general Guillaume Marie Anne Brune
Guillaume Marie Anne Brune
Guillaume Marie Anne Brune, 1st Comte Brune was a French soldier and political figure who rose to Marshal of France....
the next autumn, was disavowed by the French Directory on Frimaire 17 (December 7).
Directors
The first Directory of the republic was appointed by Napoleon the same day as the proclamation of the birth of the State, on Messidor 12, year V (June 29, 1797).- Giovanni Galeazzo Serbelloni (resigned)
- Marco Alessandri
- Giovanni Costabili
- Pietro Moscati (resigned)
- Giovanni Paradisi (resigned)
- Giovanni Battista Savoldi (substituted for Serbelloni from November 23, 1797)
- Jacopo Lamberti (substituted for Moscati from April 16, 1798)
- Carlo Testi (substituted for Paradisi from April 16, 1798)
The second Directory of the Republic was appointed by Trouvé the same day as the proclamation of the second constitution, on Fructidor 14, year VI (August 31, 1798).
- Girolamo Adelasio (dismissed by General Brune on October 17, restored by France on December 14)
- Marco Alessandri (2nd term) (resigned)
- Jacopo Lamberti (2nd term)
- Giuseppe Luosi (dismissed by General Brune on October 17, restored by France on December 14)
- Fedele Sopransi (dismissed by General Brune on October 17, restored by France on December 14)
- Antonio Sabbati (under Brune's nomination from October 17 to December 14)
- Antonio Smancini (under Brune's nomination from October 17 to December 14)
- Vincenzo Brunetti (under Brune's nomination from October 17 to December 14)
- Ferdinando Marescalchi (substituted for Alessandri from March 20, 1799)
- Fedele Vertemate Franchi
On Germinal 21, year VII (April 10, 1799) the Directory received special powers to meet the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n invasions after the formation of the Second Coalition. The next day, a Military Committee, a Finance Committee and a Public Health Committee were established. On Floreal 7 (April 26) an order was given to evacuate the Legislative Council. On April 29, 1799, Austrian rule was restored and the Directory abolished.
The treaty of alliance
Formally, the Cisalpine Republic was an independent state allied with FranceFrance
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, but the treaty of alliance established the effective subalternity of the new republic to France. The French in fact had control over the local police, and left an army consisting of 25,000 Frenchmen, financed by the republic. The Cisalpines also to form another army of 35,000 of their own men to take part in French campaigns.
On March 4, 1798, the Directory presented this treaty to the Great Council for ratification. The council did not agree with the terms, and delayed taking a decision, but in the end the French general Berthier
Louis Alexandre Berthier
Louis Alexandre Berthier, 1st Prince de Wagram, 1st Duc de Valangin, 1st Sovereign Prince de Neuchâtel , was a Marshal of France, Vice-Constable of France beginning in 1808, and Chief of Staff under Napoleon.-Early life:Alexandre was born at Versailles to Lieutenant-Colonel Jean Baptiste Berthier ,...
compelled acceptance by the members. The Seniors however refused it from the very beginning, as the new state was unable to finance the requested institutions. Berthier threatened to impose a military government, but was later replaced by general Brune. The latter, after replacing some Seniors and Juniors, achieved the signing of the treaty on June 8.
Relations with Switzerland
The new government aimed to unite all Italian lands into a single state. This fact created tensions with SwitzerlandSwitzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, which included Italian-speaking areas south of the Alps
Alps
The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
. On October 10, 1797, the French supported a revolt in Valtelline. The Cisalpine Republic ended up taking control of Campione d'Italia
Campione d'Italia
Campione d'Italia is an Italian comune of the Province of Como in the Lombardy region, occupying an enclave within the Swiss canton of Ticino, separated from the rest of Italy by Lake Lugano and mountains...
and the Valtellina from Grisons
Graubünden
Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...
and joined the republic. A Cisalpine attempt to conquer Lugano
Lugano
Lugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy...
by surprise failed in 1797.
The second republic
The republic was dissolved after the defeat of France by the Second Coalition in April 1799. It was occupied by General Suvurov'sSuvorov's Italian and Swiss expedition
The Italian and Swiss expeditions of 1799 and 1800 were undertaken by the Russian commander Alexander Suvorov against French forces in Piedmont and Switzerland as part of the Italian campaigns of the French Revolutionary Wars in general and the War of the Second Coalition in particular.-Italian...
Russian
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
and Austrian
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
forces, which appointed a provisional administration led by the Imperial Commission of the Mantuan Count Luigi Cocastelli. They departed only on May 30, 1800, just few days before Napoleon won the Battle of Marengo.
The Cisalpine Republic was restored by Napoleon on Prairial 15, year VIII (June 4, 1800). On Prairial 28 (June 17) the First Consul appointed an Extraordinary Commission of Government of nine members, and a legislative Consulta: the final list of the executive and legislative institutions was published on Messidor 5 (June 24). On Messidor 16 (July 6) all the acts issued during the Austrian occupation were annulled, and afterwards the tricolour flag was restored.
Napoleon's new victories gave him the possibility to stabilize the political situation in all of northern Italy. On Vendemiaire 3, year IX (September 25), the powers of the Extraordinary Commission were concentrated in the hands of a more restricted Committee of Government, composed of three members: Giovan Battista Sommariva, Sigismondo Ruga and Francesco Visconti, reflecting the institution of the French Consulate
French Consulate
The Consulate was the government of France between the fall of the Directory in the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799 until the start of the Napoleonic Empire in 1804...
. On Vendemiaire 21 (October 13), owing to the refusal of the escaped King Charles Emmanuel IV of Savoy
Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia
Charles Emmanuel IV was King of Sardinia from 1796 to 1802. He abdicated in favour of his brother Victor Emmanuel I...
to sign a treaty of peace settling the situation of the occupied 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...
, Napoleon ordered the annexation of Novara
Novara
Novara is the capital city of the province of Novara in the Piedmont region in northwest Italy, to the west of Milan. With c. 105,000 inhabitants, it is the second most populous city in Piedmont after Turin. It is an important crossroads for commercial traffic along the routes from Milan to Turin...
to the republic, shifting its western border from Ticino
Ticino River
The river Ticino is a left-bank tributary of the Po River. It has given its name to the Swiss canton through which its upper portion flows.-The course:...
to the Sesia River
Sesia River
The Sesia is a river in north-western Italy, tributary to the Po. Its sources are the glaciers of Monte Rosa at the border with Switzerland. It flows through the Alpine valley Valsesia and the towns Varallo Sesia, Quarona, Borgosesia and Vercelli...
. After the surrender of Austria and the signing of the Treaty of Lunéville
Treaty of Lunéville
The Treaty of Lunéville was signed on 9 February 1801 between the French Republic and the Holy Roman Emperor Francis II, negotiating both on behalf of his own domains and of the Holy Roman Empire...
on February 9, 1801, the territory of the republic was extended on the eastern side as well, placing the frontier with the Holy Roman Empire on the Adige River without the exceptions agreed in Campo Formio. On Floreal 23 (May 13), the territory of the republic was divided into 12 departments, adding Agogna (Novara
Province of Novara
Novara is a province in the Piedmont region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Novara.It has an area of 1,339 km², and a total population of 365.156 . There are 88 communes in the province.-External links:*...
), restoring Lario and abolishing Adda-e-Oglio.
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. In January 1802, the Consulta decided to change the name of the State to the Italian Republic
Italian Republic (Napoleonic)
The Italian Republic was a short-lived republic located in Northern Italy. It was a vassal state of the First French Republic of Napoleon.-The republic:...
, when Napoleon had himself elected president, on January 24, on the advice of Talleyrand. Two days later, in a scene officially commemorated by Monsiau, Bonaparte appeared in the Collège de la Trinité of Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, attended by Murat
Murat
Murat is a male Turkish name, spelled as Murad during the Ottoman period. Its meaning can be translated roughly into Reached Desire or Accomplished Goal...
, Berthier
Berthier
Berthier may refer to:Berthier, a member of the Black Moon Clan, the primary villains in the Sailor Moon R manga and anime seriesIn places:* Berthier , in Quebec, Canada*Berthier...
, Louis Bonaparte
Louis Bonaparte
Louis Napoléon Bonaparte, Prince Français, Comte de Saint-Leu , King of Holland , was the fifth surviving child and the fourth surviving son of Carlo Buonaparte and Letizia Ramolino...
, Hortense and Joséphine de Beauharnais, and heard the assembled notables proclaim the Italian Republic. On Pluviose 21 (February 10) the new constitutional government was proclaimed in Milan by Sommariva and Ruga. The same day, the Gregorian calendar
Gregorian calendar
The Gregorian calendar, also known as the Western calendar, or Christian calendar, is the internationally accepted civil calendar. It was introduced by Pope Gregory XIII, after whom the calendar was named, by a decree signed on 24 February 1582, a papal bull known by its opening words Inter...
was restored.
Sources
See also
- French client republicFrench client republicDuring its occupation of neighboring parts of Europe during the French Revolutionary Wars, France established republican regimes in these territories...
- Cisalpine GaulCisalpine GaulCisalpine Gaul, in Latin: Gallia Cisalpina or Citerior, also called Gallia Togata, was a Roman province until 41 BC when it was merged into Roman Italy.It bore the name Gallia, because the great body of its inhabitants, after the expulsion of the Etruscans, consisted of Gauls or Celts...
- Italian Republic