How Widespread Was Nationalism in Italy Between 1815 and 1847?

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Nationalism is a belief that nation states should be formed by people with a shared identity and culture. In Italy in 1815, there were few nationalists; however the amount of nationalists grew throughout the 19th century. Nationalism spread across Italy due to influential people like Gioberti, Mazzini and Balbo, other factors such as a new pope and Verdi also contributed to the spread of nationalist ideas. Young Italy was founded in 1831 by Giuseppe Mazzini, a nationalist who believed in the equality of humans. The organisation was accompanied by a journal called ‘Young Italy’. This journal was important in spreading nationalism, as many of Mazzini’s ideas were explained and encouraged. These ideas included Mazzini’s republican views; he wanted a united Italian republic with Charles Albert, the king of Piedmont, at the head of the movement. Mazzini differed to other patriots because he envisaged a union of all Italian-speaking provinces, including the south (Sicily and Sardinia). The ideas of Young Italy were to spread from Marseilles in France, which was Mazzini’s base, to Piedmont, the Papal States and Tuscany. In Piedmont the journal, ‘Young Italy’ was widely read and many readers supported the idea of a national revolution, however, the attempts at revolutions failed. Although Young Italy failed in some aspects, nationalist feelings had spread across Italy, therefore encouraging other nationalists to stand up. Young Italy was a failure, as all the national revolutions which were supposed to unify Italy never happened. In 1833 the proposed army coup was detected before it began, however Charles Albert was enraged by the intended revolution, and 12 members of Young Italy were executed, and 67 members were arrested. A year later two uprisings ended before they began in Genoa and Piedmont. Such failures occurred because the organisation was poorly organised and
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