StudySmarter - The all-in-one study app.
4.8 • +11k Ratings
More than 3 Million Downloads
Free
Since the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century, the contently divided Italian states watched as the rest of Europe (and Russia) unified into centralized political entities. The world was becoming populated with nations, and for years Italy acted as the playground for wars and political maneuvers between greater European powers. Enter Giuseppe Mazzini, a political activist referred to as "the beating heart of Italy". Once exiled from his own homeland, Mazzini fought for his dream of a unified nation of Italy, and beyond that, a unified Europe.
Giuseppe Mazzini was an Italian journalist, political activist, and spiritual founder of the Italian revolutionary movement for independence and unification. Not a battlefield commander by any means, Mazzini was a politically minded revolutionary, responsible for instilling a sense of nationalism and republicanism in his homeland of Italy.
Although Giuseppe Mazzini would not live to see his greater political ambitions reach fruition (by the time of his death, Italy had mostly found its independence, but under a monarchy rather than a democratic republic), the activist was successful in promoting his ideas of Italian nationalism into the mainstream. In 1946, three years after the fall of dictator Mussolini, Italy officially became a republic, fulfilling Mazzini's dream. As one of the first believers in a united Europe, the establishment of the European Union in 1949 met another of Mazzini's hopes.
Giuseppe Mazzini was born in June 1805 in Genoa. At the time, the Republic of Genoa was a political entity within the Ligurian Republic, a French republic established by Napoleon Bonaparte in Italy. From a young age, Mazzini revealed himself to be a prolific writer and scholar. He was accepted into the University of Genoa in 1819 and graduated with a law degree seven years later, at the young age of twenty-two.
After graduation, Mazzini worked as a lawyer and honed his craft as a writer, compiling articles, essays, and many letters. Already, many of his writings discussed liberation and unification for Italy. Unsatisfied with the individuality of his pursuits, Giuseppe Mazzini joined the Carbonari association in Tuscany in 1827. The secretive organization vowed to overthrow absolute monarchal rule in Italy. The dangers of belonging to such a society were real; in 1830, Mazzini was betrayed by a fellow Carbonari member to the police as the secret organization was dissolving. Mazzini was jailed for six months.
Giuseppe Mazzini Beliefs:
Politically speaking, Giuseppe Mazzini was a staunch Italian nationalist, even denouncing more liberal Western ideas as threatening to nationalism. At one point, Mazzini exchanged letters with Karl Marx, but soon disavowed the Marxist cause, partially because of his intense faith in God. Mazzini was not a Catholic or even a Christian (often being an opponent of the Catholic Pope), but he had a deep personal belief in God and thought it important in establishing a divine right to nationalism.
While in prison, Mazzini cultivated a greater sense of purpose in achieving Italian nationalism. As a condition of his freedom, Mazzini was exiled to Marseille, France. It would not be for another 18 years that Mazzini could return to his homeland, the country that he sought to revolutionize. While in France, Mazzini became a leader for other Italian exiles, forming the Young Italy political activist group. The goal of Young Italy: unify Italy and form an independent, singular, non-monarchial republic. The group swelled to over 60,000 members.
Love your country. Your country is the land where your parents sleep, where is spoken that language in which the chosen of your heart, blushing, whispered the first word of love; it is the home that God has given you that by striving to perfect yourselves therein you may prepare to ascend to him.
-Giuseppe Mazzini
Despite his rising popularity and influence, Giuseppe Mazzini failed in inspiring any meaningful insurrections within Italy. After traveling to Switzerland and England, his writings gaining even more attention, Mazzini was finally invited back to Italy in 1849. Seemingly, the political shape of Italy was turning in his favor: Rome and Tuscany had become republics. In Rome, Giuseppe Mazzini was elected Triumvir, effectively the leader of the government.
The Catholic Pope had different plans. Calling upon aid from Catholic armies across Europe, the short-lived republics in Tuscany and Rome were toppled. In the following years, Mazzini tried to organize more insurrections, each failing. Mazzini placed great blame on himself for the failure of the independence movements. In 1861, Italy almost achieved total unification, but unification under monarchal rule, the House of Savoy. Displeased, Mazzini fought against the shape of the new Italian government until he died in 1872.
No nation deserves freedom or can long retain it which does not win it for itself. Revolutions must be made by the people and for the people.
-Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini worked for his vision of Italy as an independent, republic nation. Mazzini was careful not to tread into ideas of socialism, as he ideologically disagreed with both Marx and the fundamental proposition of the German philosopher's movement.
Italian national flag adopted in 1861. Source: Wikimedia Commons.
Mazzini wished to bestow upon Italian citizens a sense of national pride and patriotism to inspire the creation of an independent nation. He argued, using his deeply religious beliefs, that God had placed each Italian citizen on their peninsula, in proximity to each other, for a reason. Mazzini further asserted that the shared Italian language and cultural heritage of the disparate city-states necessitated a movement towards establishing an Italian nation. Additionally, Mazzini was a supporter of women's rights in Italy, advocating for women to naturally share equal citizenship in a free and independent Italy.
Giuseppe Mazzini Importance:
Giuseppe Mazzini was important to the history of Italy's transition into a nation. Notably, his efforts were not direct (he was not a frontline revolutionary), but his works influenced many others. Italian revolutionaries such as Giuseppe Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel II, as well as hundreds of thousands of Italian citizens, were well acquainted with Mazzini's ideologies.
Throughout history, Giuseppe Mazzini has been regarded as both a hero and a failure in Italian history; Mazzini considered himself a failure, writing, "I thought I was awakening the soul of Italy, and I see only the corpse before me."
Statue of Giuseppe Mazzini in Italy. Source: Livioandronico2013, CC-BY-SA-4.0, Wikimedia Commons.
Giuseppe's political activism is responsible for putting Italy on its path to becoming an independent, modern nation. He did not live to see Italy become a free, independent republic, but historians credit Giuseppe's political ideologies with sparking a sense of national urgency in his country.
Giuseppe Mazzini was an Italian political activist and spiritual founder of the Italian revolutionary movement. He worked to establish Italy as a unified and independent democratic republic.
Giuseppe Mazzini was an influential writer and activist whose ideas of unification and national pride swept through Italy. Although he was not a frontline revolutionary, he attempted to start multiple insurrections that failed.
Giuseppe Mazzini (1805-1872) was an Italian political activist and spiritual founder of the Italian revolutionary movement. He worked to establish Italy as a unified and independent democratic republic.
Giuseppe Mazzini was an influential writer and activist whose ideas of unification and national pride swept through Italy. Although he was not a frontline revolutionary, he attempted to start multiple insurrections that failed.
Be perfectly prepared on time with an individual plan.
Test your knowledge with gamified quizzes.
Create and find flashcards in record time.
Create beautiful notes faster than ever before.
Have all your study materials in one place.
Upload unlimited documents and save them online.
Identify your study strength and weaknesses.
Set individual study goals and earn points reaching them.
Stop procrastinating with our study reminders.
Earn points, unlock badges and level up while studying.
Create flashcards in notes completely automatically.
Create the most beautiful study materials using our templates.
Sign up to highlight and take notes. It’s 100% free.