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Unlock This CourseIn the spring of 1860 Piedmont had just gained Lombardy and the Central States. The south was untouched. Sicily and the southern mainland, ruled from Naples, made up the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies. Its new king, Francis II, was only in his early twenties and had little experience. Giuseppe Garibaldi, Italy's most famous soldier, now decided to act. He had three main motives.
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Garibaldi wanted the same thing as Piedmont's leaders: a stronger Italy under Victor Emmanuel II. Yet he got on very differently with the two men at the top.
The two men disliked each other. Garibaldi never forgave Cavour for Nice. Cavour thought Garibaldi was reckless. He feared that an attack on Rome would mean war with France, whose soldiers guarded the Pope. He also feared that the radicals around Garibaldi might set up a republic in the south. So Cavour gave no open help. His government would not release the modern rifles that a public fund had bought for Garibaldi, and the Thousand sailed with old muskets.
Garibaldi was loyal to the king and trusted him far more than he trusted Cavour. The king, a soldier himself, admired Garibaldi's courage and quietly hoped he would succeed. Everything Garibaldi did in Sicily was done in the king's name. Even so, Victor Emmanuel II could not support him in public, because an attack on a peaceful neighbour would have angered the great powers.
Why did Cavour not stop him? Garibaldi was a national hero, and Cavour was already unpopular over Nice and Savoy. Arresting Garibaldi might have brought down the government, and the king would not have backed it. So Cavour let the expedition sail. If it failed, Piedmont could say it had nothing to do with it.
On the night of 5-6 May 1860 Garibaldi left Quarto, near Genoa, with two steamships. Most of the Thousand came from the towns of northern Italy. Many were students, lawyers and craftsmen, and few had been trained as soldiers.
They landed at Marsala, in western Sicily, on 11 May. They were lucky. Two British warships were in the harbour, and the Bourbon ships held their fire at first for fear of hitting them. On 14 May, at Salemi, Garibaldi declared himself dictator of Sicily in the name of Victor Emmanuel II.
The Thousand charged uphill against about 3,000 Bourbon soldiers and drove them back. Garibaldi is said to have told an officer, 'Here we make Italy, or we die.' The win was small, but it proved the Bourbon army could be beaten. Thousands of Sicilians now joined him.
Palermo was held by about 20,000 troops. Garibaldi pretended to retreat inland, then attacked at dawn. The people of the city rose to help him, and there were three days of street fighting while Bourbon guns shelled the city. On 30 May the Bourbon general asked for a truce. In June his army sailed away.
Thousands of new volunteers had arrived by sea from the north. With them, Garibaldi won a hard battle at Milazzo, in the north-east. By the end of July he held almost all of Sicily. Only the Strait of Messina lay between him and the mainland.
As dictator, Garibaldi tried to win over the peasants. He abolished the grist tax and promised land to those who fought for him. Many peasants expected much more. Some seized land and attacked landowners. Garibaldi needed order, and he needed the support of the landowners, so he had these risings put down. At Bronte, in August 1860, his officer Nino Bixio had five men shot. Many peasants felt let down.
Success also made the quarrel with Cavour worse. Cavour now wanted Sicily annexed to Piedmont at once, to take control away from Garibaldi. He sent Giuseppe La Farina to Palermo to press for this. Garibaldi refused. He needed Sicily as his base for the attack on the mainland, and in July he threw La Farina off the island. Cavour began to look for ways to stop Garibaldi before he reached Rome. You will see how in the lesson 'From Naples to Teano: Garibaldi, Cavour and the Papal States'.
Explain two effects of Garibaldi's expedition of 1860 on Sicily. [8 marks]
One effect was that Bourbon rule in Sicily came to an end. Garibaldi landed at Marsala on 11 May 1860 with about 1,000 volunteers and beat a Bourbon force at Calatafimi on 15 May. This showed that the royal army could be beaten, so thousands of Sicilians joined him. With their help he attacked Palermo on 27 May, and after three days of street fighting the garrison of about 20,000 asked for a truce and later sailed away. After his victory at Milazzo on 20 July he held almost all of the island. As a result, Sicily was no longer ruled from Naples but by Garibaldi, as dictator in the name of Victor Emmanuel II.
A second effect was that the hopes of Sicilian peasants were raised and then disappointed. To win their support, Garibaldi abolished the hated grist tax and promised land to those who fought for him. This led many peasants to believe that the expedition would end their poverty, so some seized land and attacked landowners. However, Garibaldi needed order and the backing of the landowners to carry on his campaign, so he had the risings crushed. At Bronte in August 1860 Nino Bixio had five men shot. As a result, many peasants felt that the new rulers were no better for them than the old ones.
What lifts it to the top level: each paragraph names one effect, backs it with exact dates, places and numbers, and uses linking words ('this showed', 'this led', 'as a result') to show how the expedition caused the effect.
One effect alone cannot score more than 4 of the 8 marks, however well you explain it. Look at the last word of the question too. This one asks for effects on Sicily, so effects on Cavour or on Naples would not earn marks. For more help, see the Exam Skills lesson 'Paper 1 Question (b): Explain Two Effects'.