The Revolution of 1848-1849 in the Papal Region

In 1846, Pius IX entered the papal throne, declaring an amnesty for political prisoners, abolishing censorship and promising to introduce a constitution in the papal region. It was precisely by these first measures that he was adopted as a liberal, so members of Young Italy, bourgeois liberals, and other sections of the population associated their hopes with him, and Mazzini even suggested that he lead Risorgimento. The leader of “ Young Italy ” tried to convince the high priest that the words “Lord and revolution” should become “a beautiful and bright harmony in order to govern the destinies of peoples”. After the uprisings in Sicily , the revolution that began in France , and then the unrest and the introduction of a constitution in Piedmont, Pope Pius IX announced the introduction of a constitution in the Papal States.

By 1848, Italy consisted of 8 states with monarchical rule. All of them, with the exception of the Sardinian kingdom , were dependent on the Austrian empire . Italian patriots advocated the expulsion of Austrian troops, the destruction of pro-Austrian-minded monarchies and the unification of all Italian states around Piedmont, headed by Carl Albert. Under pressure from the people and partly from personal ambitions, on March 24, 1848, Karl Albert declared war on Austria . Fearing that all the fruits of victory would fall into the hands of the Piedmontese and Lombard , the Neapolitan king and the Tuscan duke hastened to enter the war against Austria, sending 16 and 7000 troops respectively. Pope Pius IX , who did not dare to officially declare war on Austria, nevertheless sent 7,000 of his fighters to fight against the Austrians. However, in truth, they mainly provided the rear and practically did not take part in the battles.

On April 29, 1848, in a solemn speech , Pius IX refused to command his troops, recalled them back, and generally abandoned the war with Austria . By this time, he was in a really difficult situation under the pressure of most Catholic countries and was afraid of a possible split between Italian and Austrian Catholics. The speech made obvious the contradictory position of the Pope as the head of the Catholic Church and at the same time the head of one of the Italian states, that is, between his spiritual and secular authorities. Such a hasty exit from the war caused the discontent of the Romans, which became one of the reasons for the revolution.

Despite the initiative lost by the rebels and the Austrian offensive, restoration of the power of the dukes of the Habsburg dynasty in Modena and Parma , unrest did not subside in any part of the country. The atmosphere in Rome was also heated. Dissatisfaction with the pope, "betraying Italy on the battlefield", his unwillingness to fight the invaders grew.

On November 15, 1848, the leader of the papal policy, Count Pellegrino Rossi , an active opponent of the struggle against the Austrians, was very unpopular among the people, was killed by an unknown person. The next day, the inhabitants of Rome filled the streets, where they defiantly demanded a democratic government, social reforms and a declaration of war on the Austrian Empire . The pope, unable to suppress the unrest with the help of the Swiss mercenaries loyal to him, was forced to introduce bourgeois democrats into the government, but on November 24 he fled from Rome under the guise of an ordinary priest to the Gaetu fortress under the protection of the Sicilian Bourbons .

The uprising was widening; Garibaldi and his volunteers arrived in the Papal Region to help the rebels. It was at his suggestion that a republic was proclaimed in Rome on February 9, 1849 . Created at the same time, the Constituent Assembly of Rome announced the deprivation of pope secular power. All church property was nationalized; large property was taxed.

Piedmont's failures in the war with Austria quickly echoed in other regions of the country. By May 15, 1849, Ferdinand II suppressed the uprising and completely subjugated Sicily. By this time, the Tuscan duke Leopold managed to regain power with the support of the Austrians, having eliminated the Florentine Republic on April 11, 1849. Pope Pius IX also hastened to restore his power. February 10, he appealed to the Catholic governments of France , Austria and Spain with a request to provide him with military assistance.

French President Louis Napoleon Bonaparte immediately responded to the call. Having already landed the 10,000th army on April 24 in Civitavecchia , the French went to Rome and began its shelling. From the south, Rome was attacked by Ferdinand II, from the north - the Radetsky Austrian Corps, which occupied Bologna in May. And in the port of Terracina , a Spanish expeditionary force landed soon.

Being in the ring of fire of the fronts, the Roman Republic was experiencing serious internal problems. The Republic was ruled by a triumvirate composed of Carlo Armellini , Giuseppe Mazzini and Aurelio Saffi . In the difficult situation of the war, they delayed the implementation of agrarian reform, while the peasants demanded that they immediately give them confiscated land. Soon the lower classes joined the peasants, demanding higher wages. The confused triumphs were limited only by decrees, speeches, and warnings against illegal land seizures. Garibaldi offered his help, demanding, however, to grant him dictatorial powers and begin arming the peasants. As a result of fierce disputes with Mazzini, he was appointed commander in chief of the armed forces of the Republic, but not a dictator, but Mazzini strongly opposed the arming of the peasants. He rightly feared that they would use it for unauthorized confiscation of land. This decision predetermined defeat. Small regular troops, even with the Garibaldi detachment, could not resist the armies of Sicilians, Austrians, French and Spaniards with a total number of 40 thousand people.

While friends sorted out the relationship, the French troops broke through to Rome on July 3 . When the Roman National Assembly found it impossible to further defense and invited the triumvirs to enter into negotiations with the French General Charles Oudinot On the surrender of Rome, Mazzini, together with his comrades, resigned and emigrated to London. On July 4, the National Assembly admitted defeat and announced the transfer of power to Pope Pius IX.

Leaving with his squad to the south, Garibaldi turned to his volunteers: “Soldiers! For those of you who want to follow me, I offer hunger, cold, and heat; no rewards, no barracks and supplies, but forced marches and bayonet attacks. In a word, who loves the Motherland and glory, let him come with me! ”They managed to leave the sea, in the hope that they could join the Venetians, but the Austrian fleet blocked their way to the still battling Venice. Retreating, Garibaldi was able to break into Piedmont, was arrested there and emigrated to the United States on the urgent recommendation of King Victor Emanuel II .

• Vodovozov V.V. , -. The revolution of 1848 // Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary : in 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.