Risorgimento · 1848-1871

Italy united: Cavour, Garibaldi and the Risorgimento

In 1848 Italy is a patchwork of kingdoms, duchies and Austrian provinces. By 1871 it is one kingdom with Rome as its capital. Students follow Cavour's diplomacy, Garibaldi's Thousand and the popular votes that made Italy.

Teach it live New Open on the map
Length
50 minutes
Ages
12–15
On the map
3 steps, AD 1848 to AD 1860
Live lesson
7 rounds, 3 on the map
Worksheet
Two A4 pages, with Classroom
You need
A projector; phones for live

Live lesson · new in Classroom

Teach it live. The class answers on their phones.

Put the board on the projector. Students join with a six-digit code, no account needed, and tap the map: where was the frontier, where did the grain come from. Their pins drop in together when you reveal, and the closest student takes the round.

€19 per month: every lesson live, every worksheet, cancel anytime. Rome at its height runs live for free.

A live lesson on the projector: the class's pins on the map around Alexandria, the closest students listed beside it A student's phone: the question and a map to tap
7 rounds
3 places to find on the map, quiz questions, a class vote and a one-line answer.
About 15 minutes
Run it as the map step, or to open the discussion. You move on with the space bar.
A report
Every answer, per student and per round, to read back or print after the lesson.
1

Introduction

5 min

Read aloud

In 1848 Italy is a patchwork of kingdoms, duchies and Austrian provinces. By 1871 it is one kingdom with Rome as its capital. Students follow Cavour's diplomacy, Garibaldi's Thousand and the popular votes that made Italy.

By the end of the lesson, students can

  • Compare the map of Italy in 1848 and 1880 and name the states that disappeared.
  • Explain the roles of Cavour, Garibaldi, Mazzini and King Victor Emmanuel II.
  • Explain how war, diplomacy and popular votes combined to unite Italy.
2

Explore the map

15 min

Project the map, or let students follow on their own devices. Each step opens the map at the right year and place.

a

AD 1848

Italy before unification

Open the map in 1848 and zoom in on Italy. Count the states. Which parts of northern Italy belonged to Austria?

Open this view on the map
b

AD 1880

Italy united

Drag the slider to 1880. Which states have disappeared? Which Italian-speaking areas in the north-east are still outside Italy?

Open this view on the map
c

AD 1860

The road of the Thousand

Open the map in 1860 and zoom out over the Tyrrhenian Sea. Follow Garibaldi's route: from near Genoa by sea to Marsala in Sicily, then to Palermo and on to Naples.

Open this view on the map
3

Class discussion

15 min

Pick two or three. They run from what happened to why it mattered.

  1. In 1848 most Italians spoke a local dialect, and many had never left their region. What could unite them?
  2. Cavour sent troops to the Crimean War, far from Italy. Why would that help Italian unification?
  3. Garibaldi conquered the south, then handed it to a king. Why did he not rule it himself?
  4. Popular votes approved joining the new kingdom. How fair do you think these votes were?
  5. Many people in the south felt conquered rather than freed. Why might unification look different in Naples and in Turin?
4

Game round

10 min

Play Rule History as Napoleon Bonaparte. He crowned himself king of Italy in 1805 and brought much of Italy under French rule. Discuss: how might Napoleon's rule have given Italians the idea of one country?

Open Rule History
5

Worksheet

5 min

This worksheet comes with Classroom

€19 per month unlocks every worksheet, every live lesson and the class workspace. The free lesson prints without a subscription.