Italian National Identity Before 1861
In the Middle Ages, the Italian peninsula was split into five large and small sovereign states that were subsequently subdivided into several smaller, semi-autonomous, mini-sates. In the mid 19th century, Napoleonic conquests resulted in French control over most of Italy.
This 14-year period of Napoleonic rule is substantial to Italian self-recognition, because the administration of the French influenced Italians into entertaining the idea of a constituted Italian nation state. The repressive nature of this era also acted to engender a new generation of Italian national revolutionaries. One of which was Giuseppe Mazzini, known as a founder of the Risorgimento. Mazzini saw Italian nationality as inclusive: “For Mazzini, all Italians, irrespective of class and property, were impoverished and oppressed, and all were therefore included in his noton of 'the people'”
Read more about this topic: History Of Italian Citizenship
Famous quotes containing the words italian, national and/or identity:
“Until recently the word fascist was considered shameful. Fortunately, that period has passed. In fact, there is now a reassessment of how much grandpa Benito did for Italy.”
—Alessandra Mussolini, Italian actor, politician, and medical student. As quoted in Newsweek magazine, p. 19 (February 17, 1992)
“But for the national welfare, it is urgent to realize that the minorities do think, and think about something other than the race problem.”
—Zora Neale Hurston (1891–1960)
“The “female culture” has shifted more rapidly than the “male culture”; the image of the go-get ‘em woman has yet to be fully matched by the image of the let’s take-care-of-the-kids- together man. More important, over the last thirty years, men’s underlying feelings about taking responsibility at home have changed much less than women’s feelings have changed about forging some kind of identity at work.”
—Arlie Hochschild (20th century)