Republic of San Marco
Encyclopedia
The Republic of San Marco was an Italian revolutionary state
existing for 17 months in 1848–49. Based on the Venetian Lagoon
, it extended into most of Venetia
, or the Terraferma
territory of the Venetian Republic
, suppressed 51 years before in the French Revolutionary Wars
. After declaring independence
from the Habsburg Austrian Empire
, the republic later joined the Kingdom of Sardinia
, in an attempt, led by the latter, to unite northern Italy
against foreign (mainly Austrian but also, historically, French
and Imperial
) domination. After the failure of the war, the Republic was reconquered by Austrian troops on 28 August 1849 following a long siege.
in the Mediterranean for most of that time, the Republic of Venice
surrendered to Napoleon during the French Revolutionary Wars in 1797 and was ceded to the Austrian Empire (as the kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia) by the Treaty of Campo Formio
a few months later. This was confirmed by the 1815 Congress of Vienna
.
Austrian rule, after realising that mutually-agreeable home rule
would not be possible, exploited Venetian resources, economically and politically, favouring Trieste
as the imperial seaport. Within 50 years of their acquisition of the former republic, Austria had taken 45 million Austrian lire
more from the region than had been spent there and Venetian capitalism had been stifled by a reluctance on the part of the slow, bureaucratic Habsburg régime to grant credit
to Venetian entrepreneur
s. By the end of the 1840s, a collection of intellectual
s, urban manufacturers, bankers, merchants and agrarian inhabitants of the terra ferma were clamouring for political change and greater economic opportunity, albeit only by non-violent means.
Across Italy, discomfort with foreign domination and with absolute monarchy
had led to all Italian states (apart from Lombardy–Venetia
) becoming parliamentary monarchies with much of the reform led by Pope Pius IX
. Heavy-handed policing in response to an economic boycott
of state monopolies in Austrian-held Milan
led to the popular expulsion of the Austrian garrison
in the city for five days in March 1848, contemporaneous with the beginnings of Venetian independence; see Five Days of Milan
.
A few days after the independence of Milan and Venice and their affiliation to the Kingdom of Piedmont–Sardinia, the Piedmontese army crossed into Lombardy
on 24 March 1848, with the Austrian commander, Field Marshal Radetzky
pulling back to the Quadrilatero
, a chain of defensive fortresses between Milan and Venice. Two days previously, Daniele Manin
entered the Venetian Arsenal
with "a number of public-spirited Venetians", in a direct challenge to Austrian rule. As the Arsenalotti detested the Austrian overseers and the Italians in Austrian military service were pro-Venetian, Manin and his supporters moved about at will, unharmed. Believing that the timing was favourable, Manin led his followers out of the compound with the cry Viva San Marco! (Long Live St. Mark!)—the motto of the defunct Republic of Venice. Venetians, if not Austrian officials, accepted this to mean restoration of the old republic. With the exception of Verona
, garrisoned as part of the Quadrilatero, the cities of Venetia — in particular Belluno
, Padua
, Rovigo
, Treviso
, Udine
and Vicenza
—immediately sided with the lagoon and rejected Austrian rule, proclaiming Manin president of the Republic of San Marco and investing him with dictator
ial powers during the state of emergency
. Manin's leadership was supported by the middle class
es, revealing a permanent change in power from the mercantile patricians of the old republic, and his support of the lower classes, combined with promises of law and order
to the bourgeoisie
, meant his leadership was popular. Unfortunately, however, Manin did not have the leadership qualities that might have led to enduring independence.
After bringing his army in to protect the Kingdom of Sardinia, King Charles Albert of Piedmont–Sardinia chose to seek plebiscites in the territories gaining his protection, rather than concentrating on pursuing the Austrian retreat, despite popular support in the Papal States
, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
for reinforcement of and support for the Piedmontese troops.
Despite enthusiastic support from the revolutionary republics, such as the Republic of San Marco and Giuseppe Mazzini
's Milan
ese volunteers, the Austrians started to regain ground but, with both the Vienna Rebellion and the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
, along with other Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas
, Radetzky was instructed to seek a truce, an order he ignored.
Militarily, misreadings of the fluctuating political status in northern Italy—combined with Manin's indecision and ill-health, which confined the revolutionary to bed at critical moments—led to several damaging poor judgements. The Imperial fleet were allowed to remain in the Istria
n port of Pola
, despite Venice having enough sympathy and support in the formerly-Venetian city to steal the fleet from the empire. Similarly, had the Venetians encouraged the desertion of Italian soldiers under imperial command, the trained and disciplined troops might have been able to provide defensive strength to the nascent republic; whilst revolutionary reform was generating popular support for the new régime, the revolutionaries failed to recruit troops from the Venetian mainland who might have joined the 2000 Papal guards and Neapolitan soldiers under General Pepe
, who had ignored orders to retreat in favour of supporting the infant republics. While Austria was pressed on every front, the Italians allowed her time to regroup and to reconquer Venice and the other troubled areas of the empire one by one.
After an Italian rout at the Battle of Custoza
, Charles Albert abandoned Milan, which lost half its population when Radetzky offered its citizens free passage from the city, and signed an armistice with the Austrians that restored the Piedmontese border at the Ticino river
. At the same time, the Piedmontese navy abandoned its support of Venice. The following year, Charles Albert's forces resumed their fight against the Austrian Empire, being defeated again at the Battle of Novara
and costing Charles Albert his throne, in favour of his son Victor Emmanuel
, who went on to become the first king of a reunified Italy
.
Meanwhile, Manin retreated from his republican fervour, for fear of offending the monarch Charles Albert; this move was, however, both transparent and ineffectual. He also relied on reinforcement from Piedmontese and Papal troops, not understanding that a Piedmontese-Sardinian kingdom would inevitably be concerned by a powerful republican neighbour—particularly at a time when monarchies were under threat across Europe
—and that Pope Pius IX
could not continue to support war between two Catholic monarchs practically on his border.
A further failure on the part of the Venetian revolutionaries was their inability properly to incorporate the terra ferma into the lagoon-based republic; mainlanders were mistrustful of Venetian power, probably as a result of old assumptions about the earlier Mariner Republic combined with the inevitable destruction of countryside that comes with warfare, a situation that might have been avoided had the revolutionaries recruited across terra ferma. When General Durando
led a Piedmontese force to defend Verona
, Venice could only supply a few volunteers, later joined by Colonel Ferrari
's Papal regulars, without avail, as General Nugent's march met up with Radetzky's forces.
On 5 August 1848, the Venetian assembly voted 127–6 to approve Manin's subsumption into the Piedmontese-led Kingdom of Sardinia
, which lasted only five days, as a result of a Piedmontese armistice with Austria. Three months later, Manin's desire not to offend the Piedmontese king led him to suppress Giuseppe Mazzini
's supporters, who wished to demonstrate their republicanism in a fashion that might force the French Second Republic
to aid Venice, hoping to convert the city into a centre of Italian liberation and inspire Garibaldi
into an anti-Austrian crusade. When Vincenzo Gioberti
, the Prime Minister of Piedmont–Sardinia invited Venice to send delegates to a federal congress in Turin
on 12 October 1848, the Venetians declined. The revolutionary authorities' reaction to Piedmont's declaration on Austria illustrated their failure to grasp realities — the Venetians recessed for two weeks.
,_monumento_a_vittorio_emanuele_ii_(1887)_-_foto_giovanni_dallorto,_12-aug-2007_-_27.jpg)
The crushing defeat of Italian forces at the Battle of Novara
(23 March 1849) sounded a death knell for Italian independence from the Austrians. To avoid an occupation of Piedmont, Charles Albert abdicated in favour of his son Victor Emmanuel II
, whose treaty with Austria required the complete removal of the Sardinian navy from Venetian waters. Manin addressed the Venetian assembly on 2 April 1849 and they voted to continue their struggle against the Austrians, despite an Austrian blockade
of the city. On 4 May 1849, Radetzky started his attack on the Venetian fort of Marghera
, held by 2500 troops under the Neapolitan command of Girolamo Ulloa. Bombardment of the lagoon and city started at the same time and, over the next three weeks alone, were dispatched towards Venice. The fort at Marghera held out until 26 May, when Ulloa ordered its evacuation; an offer of surrender from Radetzky was rejected at this time.
By August, with famine
and cholera
sweeping the city, Manin proposed that the assembly vote for surrender, threatening to resign if the assembly votes to fight to the last. The assembly, however, agreed, and provided the president with authority to seek terms, which were agreed on 22 August. Radetzky's entrance to Venice on 28 August marked the complete surrender of Venice to the Austrian Empire, restoring the status quo ante bellum
and causing Manin to flee Italy, with his family and 39 fellow-revolutionaries, into exile. Manin's wife died of cholera within hours of their departure for Paris.
Revolutions of 1848 in the Italian states
The 1848 revolutions in the Italian states were organized revolts in the states of Italy led by intellectuals and agitators who desired a liberal government. As Italian nationalists they sought to eliminate reactionary Austrian control...
existing for 17 months in 1848–49. Based on the Venetian Lagoon
Venetian Lagoon
The Venetian Lagoon is the enclosed bay of the Adriatic Sea in which the city of Venice is situated. Its name in the Venetian language, Laguna Veneta— cognate of Latin lacus, "lake"— has provided the international name for an enclosed, shallow embayment of saltwater, a lagoon.The Venetian Lagoon...
, it extended into most of Venetia
Venetia
Venetia is a name used mostly in a historical context for the area of Northeast Italy, corresponding approximately to the present-day Italian administrative regions of the Veneto and Friuli-Venezia Giulia...
, or the Terraferma
Domini di Terraferma
The Domini di Terraferma or Stato da Tera was the name given to the territories of the Republic of Venice conquered in the Padano–Veneto hinterland....
territory of the Venetian Republic
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
, suppressed 51 years before in the French Revolutionary Wars
French Revolutionary Wars
The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts, from 1792 until 1802, fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states...
. After declaring independence
Declaration of independence
A declaration of independence is an assertion of the independence of an aspiring state or states. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the territory of another nation or failed nation, or are breakaway territories from within the larger state...
from the Habsburg Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
, the republic later joined the Kingdom of Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
, in an attempt, led by the latter, to unite northern Italy
Northern Italy
Northern Italy is a wide cultural, historical and geographical definition, without any administrative usage, used to indicate the northern part of the Italian state, also referred as Settentrione or Alta Italia...
against foreign (mainly Austrian but also, historically, French
Early Modern France
Kingdom of France is the early modern period of French history from the end of the 15th century to the end of the 18th century...
and Imperial
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
) domination. After the failure of the war, the Republic was reconquered by Austrian troops on 28 August 1849 following a long siege.
Background
After existing as an independent maritime republic for nearly 1400 years and a leading naval powerThalassocracy
The term thalassocracy refers to a state with primarily maritime realms—an empire at sea, such as Athens or the Phoenician network of merchant cities...
in the Mediterranean for most of that time, the Republic of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
surrendered to Napoleon during the French Revolutionary Wars in 1797 and was ceded to the Austrian Empire (as the kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia) by the Treaty of Campo Formio
Treaty of Campo Formio
The Treaty of Campo Formio was signed on 18 October 1797 by Napoleon Bonaparte and Count Philipp von Cobenzl as representatives of revolutionary France and the Austrian monarchy...
a few months later. This was confirmed by the 1815 Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
.
Austrian rule, after realising that mutually-agreeable home rule
Home rule
Home rule is the power of a constituent part of a state to exercise such of the state's powers of governance within its own administrative area that have been devolved to it by the central government....
would not be possible, exploited Venetian resources, economically and politically, favouring Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
as the imperial seaport. Within 50 years of their acquisition of the former republic, Austria had taken 45 million Austrian lire
Venetian lira
The lira was the distinct currency of the Venice until 1807. It was subdivided into 20 soldi, each of 12 denari. The ducato was equal to 124 soldi, whilst the tallero was equal to 7 lire...
more from the region than had been spent there and Venetian capitalism had been stifled by a reluctance on the part of the slow, bureaucratic Habsburg régime to grant credit
Credit (finance)
Credit is the trust which allows one party to provide resources to another party where that second party does not reimburse the first party immediately , but instead arranges either to repay or return those resources at a later date. The resources provided may be financial Credit is the trust...
to Venetian entrepreneur
Entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative.The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to...
s. By the end of the 1840s, a collection of intellectual
Intellectual
An intellectual is a person who uses intelligence and critical or analytical reasoning in either a professional or a personal capacity.- Terminology and endeavours :"Intellectual" can denote four types of persons:...
s, urban manufacturers, bankers, merchants and agrarian inhabitants of the terra ferma were clamouring for political change and greater economic opportunity, albeit only by non-violent means.
Across Italy, discomfort with foreign domination and with absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government in which the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, his or her power not being limited by a constitution or by the law. An absolute monarch thus wields unrestricted political power over the...
had led to all Italian states (apart from Lombardy–Venetia
Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia
The Kingdom of Lombardy–Venetia was created at the Congress of Vienna, which recognised the House of Habsburg's rights to Lombardy and Venetia after the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed by Napoleon in 1805, had collapsed...
) becoming parliamentary monarchies with much of the reform led by Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX
Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was the longest-reigning elected Pope in the history of the Catholic Church, serving from 16 June 1846 until his death, a period of nearly 32 years. During his pontificate, he convened the First Vatican Council in 1869, which decreed papal...
. Heavy-handed policing in response to an economic boycott
Boycott
A boycott is an act of voluntarily abstaining from using, buying, or dealing with a person, organization, or country as an expression of protest, usually for political reasons...
of state monopolies in Austrian-held Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
led to the popular expulsion of the Austrian garrison
Garrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
in the city for five days in March 1848, contemporaneous with the beginnings of Venetian independence; see Five Days of Milan
Five Days of Milan
The Five Days of Milan was a major event in the Revolutionary Year of 1848 and the start of the First Italian War of Independence. On March 18th, the city of Milan, rose, and in five days of street fighting drove Marshal Radetzky and his men from the city....
.
Insurrection and independence
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
on 24 March 1848, with the Austrian commander, Field Marshal Radetzky
Joseph Radetzky von Radetz
Johann Josef Wenzel Graf Radetzky von Radetz was a Czech nobleman and Austrian general, immortalised by Johann Strauss I's Radetzky March...
pulling back to the Quadrilatero
Quadrilatero
The Quadrilatero is the traditional name of a defensive system of the Austrian Empire in the Lombardy-Venetia, which connected the fortresses of Peschiera, Mantua, Legnago and Verona between the Mincio, the Po and Adige Rivers...
, a chain of defensive fortresses between Milan and Venice. Two days previously, Daniele Manin
Daniele Manin
Daniele Manin was an Italian patriot and statesman from Venice. He is a hero of Italian unification .-Early life:...
entered the Venetian Arsenal
Venetian Arsenal
The Venetian Arsenal was a complex of state-owned shipyards and armories clustered together in Venice in northern Italy. It was responsible for the bulk of Venice's naval power during the middle part of the second millennium AD...
with "a number of public-spirited Venetians", in a direct challenge to Austrian rule. As the Arsenalotti detested the Austrian overseers and the Italians in Austrian military service were pro-Venetian, Manin and his supporters moved about at will, unharmed. Believing that the timing was favourable, Manin led his followers out of the compound with the cry Viva San Marco! (Long Live St. Mark!)—the motto of the defunct Republic of Venice. Venetians, if not Austrian officials, accepted this to mean restoration of the old republic. With the exception of Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, garrisoned as part of the Quadrilatero, the cities of Venetia — in particular Belluno
Belluno
Belluno , is a town and province in the Veneto region of northern Italy. Located about 100 kilometres north of Venice, Belluno is the capital of the province of Belluno and the most important city in the Eastern Dolomiti's region. With its roughly 37,000 inhabitants, it the largest populated area...
, Padua
Padua
Padua is a city and comune in the Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Padua and the economic and communications hub of the area. Padua's population is 212,500 . The city is sometimes included, with Venice and Treviso, in the Padua-Treviso-Venice Metropolitan Area, having...
, Rovigo
Rovigo
Rovigo is a town and comune in the Veneto region of North-Eastern Italy, the capital of the eponymous province. -Geography:...
, Treviso
Treviso
Treviso is a city and comune in Veneto, northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 82,854 inhabitants : some 3,000 live within the Venetian walls or in the historical and monumental center, some 80,000 live in the urban center proper, while the city...
, Udine
Udine
Udine is a city and comune in northeastern Italy, in the middle of Friuli-Venezia Giulia region, between the Adriatic sea and the Alps , less than 40 km from the Slovenian border. Its population was 99,439 in 2009, and that of its urban area was 175,000.- History :Udine is the historical...
and Vicenza
Vicenza
Vicenza , a city in north-eastern Italy, is the capital of the eponymous province in the Veneto region, at the northern base of the Monte Berico, straddling the Bacchiglione...
—immediately sided with the lagoon and rejected Austrian rule, proclaiming Manin president of the Republic of San Marco and investing him with dictator
Dictator
A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship...
ial powers during the state of emergency
State of emergency
A state of emergency is a governmental declaration that may suspend some normal functions of the executive, legislative and judicial powers, alert citizens to change their normal behaviours, or order government agencies to implement emergency preparedness plans. It can also be used as a rationale...
. Manin's leadership was supported by the middle class
Middle class
The middle class is any class of people in the middle of a societal hierarchy. In Weberian socio-economic terms, the middle class is the broad group of people in contemporary society who fall socio-economically between the working class and upper class....
es, revealing a permanent change in power from the mercantile patricians of the old republic, and his support of the lower classes, combined with promises of law and order
Law and order (politics)
In politics, law and order refers to demands for a strict criminal justice system, especially in relation to violent and property crime, through harsher criminal penalties...
to the bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
, meant his leadership was popular. Unfortunately, however, Manin did not have the leadership qualities that might have led to enduring independence.
Maintaining independence
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany
Grand Duchy of Tuscany
The Grand Duchy of Tuscany was a central Italian monarchy that existed, with interruptions, from 1569 to 1859, replacing the Duchy of Florence. The grand duchy's capital was Florence...
and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, commonly known as the Two Sicilies even before formally coming into being, was the largest and wealthiest of the Italian states before Italian unification...
for reinforcement of and support for the Piedmontese troops.
Despite enthusiastic support from the revolutionary republics, such as the Republic of San Marco and Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini , nicknamed Soul of Italy, was an Italian politician, journalist and activist for the unification of Italy. His efforts helped bring about the independent and unified Italy in place of the several separate states, many dominated by foreign powers, that existed until the 19th century...
's Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
ese volunteers, the Austrians started to regain ground but, with both the Vienna Rebellion and the Hungarian Revolution of 1848
Hungarian Revolution of 1848
The Hungarian Revolution of 1848 was one of many of the European Revolutions of 1848 and closely linked to other revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas...
, along with other Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas
Revolutions of 1848 in the Habsburg areas
From March 1848 through July 1849, the Habsburg Austrian Empire was threatened by revolutionary movements. Much of the revolutionary activity was of a nationalist character: the empire, ruled from Vienna, included Austrian Germans, Hungarians, Slovenes, Poles, Czechs, Slovaks, Ruthenians,...
, Radetzky was instructed to seek a truce, an order he ignored.
Militarily, misreadings of the fluctuating political status in northern Italy—combined with Manin's indecision and ill-health, which confined the revolutionary to bed at critical moments—led to several damaging poor judgements. The Imperial fleet were allowed to remain in the Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
n port of Pola
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
, despite Venice having enough sympathy and support in the formerly-Venetian city to steal the fleet from the empire. Similarly, had the Venetians encouraged the desertion of Italian soldiers under imperial command, the trained and disciplined troops might have been able to provide defensive strength to the nascent republic; whilst revolutionary reform was generating popular support for the new régime, the revolutionaries failed to recruit troops from the Venetian mainland who might have joined the 2000 Papal guards and Neapolitan soldiers under General Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe
Guglielmo Pepe was an Italian general and patriot. He was brother to Florestano Pepe and cousin to Gabriele Pepe. He married to Marianne Coventry, a Scottish woman.-Biography:Pepe was born at Squillace in Calabria....
, who had ignored orders to retreat in favour of supporting the infant republics. While Austria was pressed on every front, the Italians allowed her time to regroup and to reconquer Venice and the other troubled areas of the empire one by one.
After an Italian rout at the Battle of Custoza
Battle of Custoza (1848)
The Battle of Custoza was fought on July 24 and 25 1848 during the first Italian War of Independence between the armies of the Austrian Empire, led by Field Marshal Radetzky, and of the Kingdom of Sardinia, led by King Charles Albert of Piedmont....
, Charles Albert abandoned Milan, which lost half its population when Radetzky offered its citizens free passage from the city, and signed an armistice with the Austrians that restored the Piedmontese border at the Ticino river
Ticino River
The river Ticino is a left-bank tributary of the Po River. It has given its name to the Swiss canton through which its upper portion flows.-The course:...
. At the same time, the Piedmontese navy abandoned its support of Venice. The following year, Charles Albert's forces resumed their fight against the Austrian Empire, being defeated again at the Battle of Novara
Battle of Novara (1849)
The Battle of Novara or Battle of Bicocca was one of the battles fought between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia during the First Italian War of Independence, within the era of Italian unification...
and costing Charles Albert his throne, in favour of his son Victor Emmanuel
Victor Emmanuel II of Italy
Victor Emanuel II was king of Sardinia from 1849 and, on 17 March 1861, he assumed the title King of Italy to become the first king of a united Italy since the 6th century, a title he held until his death in 1878...
, who went on to become the first king of a reunified Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
.
Meanwhile, Manin retreated from his republican fervour, for fear of offending the monarch Charles Albert; this move was, however, both transparent and ineffectual. He also relied on reinforcement from Piedmontese and Papal troops, not understanding that a Piedmontese-Sardinian kingdom would inevitably be concerned by a powerful republican neighbour—particularly at a time when monarchies were under threat across Europe
Revolutions of 1848
The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations, Springtime of the Peoples or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe in 1848. It was the first Europe-wide collapse of traditional authority, but within a year reactionary...
—and that Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX
Blessed Pope Pius IX , born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti, was the longest-reigning elected Pope in the history of the Catholic Church, serving from 16 June 1846 until his death, a period of nearly 32 years. During his pontificate, he convened the First Vatican Council in 1869, which decreed papal...
could not continue to support war between two Catholic monarchs practically on his border.
A further failure on the part of the Venetian revolutionaries was their inability properly to incorporate the terra ferma into the lagoon-based republic; mainlanders were mistrustful of Venetian power, probably as a result of old assumptions about the earlier Mariner Republic combined with the inevitable destruction of countryside that comes with warfare, a situation that might have been avoided had the revolutionaries recruited across terra ferma. When General Durando
Giovanni Durando
Giovanni Durando was an Italian general and politician.-Biography:Born at Mondovì, in what is now the province of Cuneo, he entered the Royal Guard corps of the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1822...
led a Piedmontese force to defend Verona
Verona
Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, Venice could only supply a few volunteers, later joined by Colonel Ferrari
Andrea Ferrari
Andrea Ferrari is an Italian football goalkeeper. Despite having been designated the number 1 shirt, he is still the third choice goalkeeper at Atalanta B.C.. In the season 2007/08, he went on loan at Monza.-References:...
's Papal regulars, without avail, as General Nugent's march met up with Radetzky's forces.
On 5 August 1848, the Venetian assembly voted 127–6 to approve Manin's subsumption into the Piedmontese-led Kingdom of Sardinia
Kingdom of Sardinia
The Kingdom of Sardinia consisted of the island of Sardinia first as a part of the Crown of Aragon and subsequently the Spanish Empire , and second as a part of the composite state of the House of Savoy . Its capital was originally Cagliari, in the south of the island, and later Turin, on the...
, which lasted only five days, as a result of a Piedmontese armistice with Austria. Three months later, Manin's desire not to offend the Piedmontese king led him to suppress Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini
Giuseppe Mazzini , nicknamed Soul of Italy, was an Italian politician, journalist and activist for the unification of Italy. His efforts helped bring about the independent and unified Italy in place of the several separate states, many dominated by foreign powers, that existed until the 19th century...
's supporters, who wished to demonstrate their republicanism in a fashion that might force the French Second Republic
French Second Republic
The French Second Republic was the republican government of France between the 1848 Revolution and the coup by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte which initiated the Second Empire. It officially adopted the motto Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité...
to aid Venice, hoping to convert the city into a centre of Italian liberation and inspire Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi
Giuseppe Garibaldi was an Italian military and political figure. In his twenties, he joined the Carbonari Italian patriot revolutionaries, and fled Italy after a failed insurrection. Garibaldi took part in the War of the Farrapos and the Uruguayan Civil War leading the Italian Legion, and...
into an anti-Austrian crusade. When Vincenzo Gioberti
Vincenzo Gioberti
thumb|250px|Vincenzo Gioberti.Vincenzo Gioberti was an Italian philosopher, publicist and politician.-Biography:Gioberti was born in Turin....
, the Prime Minister of Piedmont–Sardinia invited Venice to send delegates to a federal congress in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
on 12 October 1848, the Venetians declined. The revolutionary authorities' reaction to Piedmont's declaration on Austria illustrated their failure to grasp realities — the Venetians recessed for two weeks.
Return to Austrian control
Battle of Novara (1849)
The Battle of Novara or Battle of Bicocca was one of the battles fought between the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Sardinia during the First Italian War of Independence, within the era of Italian unification...
(23 March 1849) sounded a death knell for Italian independence from the Austrians. To avoid an occupation of Piedmont, Charles Albert abdicated in favour of his son Victor Emmanuel II
Victor Emmanuel II of Italy
Victor Emanuel II was king of Sardinia from 1849 and, on 17 March 1861, he assumed the title King of Italy to become the first king of a united Italy since the 6th century, a title he held until his death in 1878...
, whose treaty with Austria required the complete removal of the Sardinian navy from Venetian waters. Manin addressed the Venetian assembly on 2 April 1849 and they voted to continue their struggle against the Austrians, despite an Austrian blockade
Blockade
A blockade is an effort to cut off food, supplies, war material or communications from a particular area by force, either in part or totally. A blockade should not be confused with an embargo or sanctions, which are legal barriers to trade, and is distinct from a siege in that a blockade is usually...
of the city. On 4 May 1849, Radetzky started his attack on the Venetian fort of Marghera
Marghera
Marghera is a frazione of the comune of Venice, Italy. It includes the industrial area known as Porto Marghera or Venezia Porto Marghera....
, held by 2500 troops under the Neapolitan command of Girolamo Ulloa. Bombardment of the lagoon and city started at the same time and, over the next three weeks alone, were dispatched towards Venice. The fort at Marghera held out until 26 May, when Ulloa ordered its evacuation; an offer of surrender from Radetzky was rejected at this time.
By August, with famine
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...
and cholera
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
sweeping the city, Manin proposed that the assembly vote for surrender, threatening to resign if the assembly votes to fight to the last. The assembly, however, agreed, and provided the president with authority to seek terms, which were agreed on 22 August. Radetzky's entrance to Venice on 28 August marked the complete surrender of Venice to the Austrian Empire, restoring the status quo ante bellum
Status quo ante bellum
The term status quo ante bellum is Latin, meaning literally "the state in which things were before the war".The term was originally used in treaties to refer to the withdrawal of enemy troops and the restoration of prewar leadership. When used as such, it means that no side gains or loses...
and causing Manin to flee Italy, with his family and 39 fellow-revolutionaries, into exile. Manin's wife died of cholera within hours of their departure for Paris.
Leadership
Leadership was effectively provided by Daniele Manin throughout the republic's brief existence, but the following heads of state were in place during the 17 months:| From | To | Officeholder(s) | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| March 1848 | March 1848 | Giovanni Francesco Avesani | President of the Provisional Government Provisional government A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government. The early provisional governments were created to prepare for the return of royal rule... |
| March 1848 | July 1848 | Daniele Manin Daniele Manin Daniele Manin was an Italian patriot and statesman from Venice. He is a hero of Italian unification .-Early life:... |
Chief executive |
| July 1848 | August 1848 | Jacopo Castelli | President of the Provisional Government |
| August 1848 | August 1848 | Daniele Manin | Dictator Dictator A dictator is a ruler who assumes sole and absolute power but without hereditary ascension such as an absolute monarch. When other states call the head of state of a particular state a dictator, that state is called a dictatorship... |
| August 1848 | March 1849 | Daniele Manin | Triumvirate Triumvirate A triumvirate is a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals, each a triumvir . The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case... |
| CA Leone Graziani | |||
| Col Giambattista Cavedalis | |||
| March 1849 | August 1849 | Daniele Manin | President of the Executive Power |