In 1848, "Italy" was a geographical expression. By 1871, it was a country. The Risorgimento ("Resurgence") is the most important chapter of modern Italian history.
Plan a history trip →Mazzini: the idealist (wanted a democratic republic). Garibaldi: the fighter (conquered the south with 1,089 men). Cavour: the politician (engineered alliances with France). Vittorio Emanuele II: the king (House of Savoy, became first King of Italy).
1848: revolutions across Italy (all fail). 1859: France + Piedmont defeat Austria (Battle of Solferino — so brutal it inspired the Red Cross). 1860: Garibaldi’s Expedition of the Thousand conquers Sicily and Naples. March 17, 1861: Kingdom of Italy proclaimed (capital: Turin, then Florence 1865, then Rome 1871). 1866: Veneto acquired. 1870: Rome conquered from the Pope (Porta Pia). 1871: Rome becomes capital.
Turin: Museo del Risorgimento (€10, inside Palazzo Carignano — where the first Italian parliament met). The most important political museum in Italy. Rome: Gianicolo Hill (Garibaldi equestrian statue, free panorama), Altare della Patria/Vittoriano (free, Piazza Venezia). Genova: birthplace of Mazzini (Museo del Risorgimento, €6). Quarto dei Mille, Genova: where Garibaldi’s Thousand sailed from (monument on the beach).