Why did the revolutions break about out in 1820s and why did they fail?

In 1820 there were revolutionary outbursts in a number of Italian states. Naples, Sicily and Piedmont were all involved in the revolutions, which were caused for many different reasons but all ended in the same outcome, failure.

The first revolution began in Naples. The church was given extra powers in 1818, which angered professional middle classes because it made freedom of expression impossible. The church was given authority to censor any publications with which it disagreed with. Funds were also limited and the government lacked public expenditure. Ferdinand had to cut back on roads and harbours and reduced educational provisions. Everywhere there was poverty and corruption with a lack of personal freedom.

The main aims in Sicily were obtaining separation with Naples. Naples had also been forced to join with Sicily, which was very unpopular. The government in Naples had taken little notice of Sicilian feelings and paid little attention to Sicilian needs. Also agricultural prices had fallen dramatically and the economy of Sicily was poor. Most social classes were affected but peasants were hit the worst. There was also a large number of Carbonari (secret society) in Sicily.

There was another area of revolutions in Piedmont. Piedmont was an absolute monarchy and remained so despite pressure from middle class social groups. The restored monarchy had destroyed nearly all evidence of the years of French occupation including the French legal system. Equality before the law was abandoned and the right to a free and open trial had been abolished. The royal edict declared that the rules had been laid down and should not be changed.

But with every cause there is an effect, and the effect of the revolutions was failure. In 1821 the King of Naples was ...

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But with every cause there is an effect, and the effect of the revolutions was failure. In 1821 the King of Naples was invited to attend congress at Laibach to discuss affairs of the kingdom. While he was away he asked for Austrian intervention. The request pleased Metternich and Austrian troops arrived by 1821. Austrian troops were sent to Southern Italy and defeated the rebels at Rieti. But Naples felt the backlash and arrests, imprisonments, and executions followed. Even Metternich was shocked by the savagery of the police to the revolutionaries that threatened Naples.

In Sicily the rebels in Naples wished to suppress the revolution and therefore reinforced troops. The newly elected revolutionaries of Naples met for the first time they discussed the events in Sicily. They decided to reinforce the government’s troops on the island to restore Neapolitan authority and to suppress the revolutionaries, which they considered being far more radical then themselves. They viewed the excesses behaviour with suspicion and horror. They had no intention of allowing Sicily to declare independence. They reinforced the government to restore the authority in Sicily.

In the case of Piedmont it was a complex string of events that led to the failures of the revolutions. By 1821 the royal family was in a shambles. Whilst Charles Felix was absent from Piedmont on a visit to Modena. Charles Albert therefore took control and appointed a new government. But Charles Felix quickly denounced Charles Albert as rebel and refused to accept any change. Charles Albert realised the threat and fled to Turin. The liberals that were left prepared to fight but Charles Felix appealed for help from Metternich for Austrian intervention. Austrian troops once more suppressed the revolutionaries with help from Charles Felix loyal troops. Hundreds of revolutionaries went into exile.

To conclude there were many reasons that were the catalyst for the revolutionaries in the 1820s. Causes included the activities of the secret societies such as the Carbonari, the birth of Italian nationalism and dislike of Austria’s domination of the peninsula. But the main cause was dislike of restored autocratic rulers and wanting the independence govern themselves without a dictatorship. The reasons for failure are also differ, which include the weakness in the secret societies and the revolutionaries not sticking together. But the most overwhelmingly most important hindrance of the revolutions was the Austrian intervention. As soon as the revolution became to strong for the Kings to handle they always had the power to ask for help from the dominant Austria, which was therefore the foremost facto for the failures of the revolutions.

Mark Strachan 12.6