The Carbonari - After Napoleon’s defeat in 1814, the European powers had to decide what to do with the territory that he’d ruled as part of the First French Empire. The borders of Europe were redrawn at the Congress of Vienna, mainly decided by Great Britain, Russia, Prussia, and Austria.
Napoleon had conquered Italy in 1805, and when the Congress signed their Final Act in June 1815, Italy had been nicely carved up. Austria got a chunk of the north, while the rest was splintered into a number of small states.The Carbonari formed during the decade of turmoil, but their exact origins are unclear—the society took the “secret” part quite seriously. They may have been imported from France.
They could have been a homegrown offshoot of freemasonry; they had initiation ceremonies, symbols, and hierarchies similar to that famous secret group. The Carbonari, with as many as 60,000 members, was by far the largest of several secret societies on the Italian peninsula at the time. Though they didn’t form with the goal of unifying Italy, they were responsible for setting everything in motion.
The largest pre-unification state was the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which comprised Sicily and Naples. It was ruled by King Ferdinand, who operated mainly as an Austrian pawn. In 1820, the Carbonari led a revolution that forced Ferdinand to give up power and create a constitution for the country. Austria ultimately marched into Naples and tore the constitution up because they wanted their man in charge. However, this act of rebellion created the widespread movement for Italians to rise up and unify, a movement that succeeded in 1861.
Napoleon had conquered Italy in 1805, and when the Congress signed their Final Act in June 1815, Italy had been nicely carved up. Austria got a chunk of the north, while the rest was splintered into a number of small states.The Carbonari formed during the decade of turmoil, but their exact origins are unclear—the society took the “secret” part quite seriously. They may have been imported from France.
They could have been a homegrown offshoot of freemasonry; they had initiation ceremonies, symbols, and hierarchies similar to that famous secret group. The Carbonari, with as many as 60,000 members, was by far the largest of several secret societies on the Italian peninsula at the time. Though they didn’t form with the goal of unifying Italy, they were responsible for setting everything in motion.
The largest pre-unification state was the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, which comprised Sicily and Naples. It was ruled by King Ferdinand, who operated mainly as an Austrian pawn. In 1820, the Carbonari led a revolution that forced Ferdinand to give up power and create a constitution for the country. Austria ultimately marched into Naples and tore the constitution up because they wanted their man in charge. However, this act of rebellion created the widespread movement for Italians to rise up and unify, a movement that succeeded in 1861.
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