Nationalism and the Creation of Italy

Nationalism had an enormous influence on world history. Nationalism is the love of your country, and your willingness to sacrifice for it. It is the loyalty and devotion you have for your country, to put your country above all else. Nationalism makes the basis of a country so much stronger. It can unite countries, as it did in Italy, or divide a country, like the Balkans during the 20th century. I am Nationalistic. How? I speak English; I know the National Anthem and Pledge of Allegiance by heart. I know quite a lot of U.S. history; I eat American food, listen to American music, and wear American styles. I know what’s going on in the news, and etc. I can say fairly, that I am proud of my country and am quite nationalistic.

During the 1800’s, the feelings of Nationalism erupted in many countries of Europe. France, during the regime of Napoleon, Germany, where unification was achieved, Russia, where modernization was occurring, the United States which underwent the Civil War, and Italy, where unification was also was achieved.

Italy was broken up into small provinces that were governed by foreign countries. Venetia and Lombardy were ruled by Austria, and the two Sicilies were ruled by Spain. The Italians eventually were fed up with other countries ruling them. Nationalistic feelings surfaced and Italians united, moving toward unification. Three great leaders rose to help; Guiseppe Mazzini, Count Camillo di Cavour, and Guiseppe Garibaldi. Mazzini started a group called Young Italy in 1831, which was a nationalistic movement that wanted to end foreign rule. Cavour was the prime minister of Sardinia, a large Italian state. He formed alliances with other powerful countries to end foreign rule. Garibaldi was a military leader who liberated most of Southern Italy with his Red Shirt army. In an election, Garibaldi was voted the right to be able to unite Southern Italy with the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia. Lastly, in 1870, Italy took over the last Papal States and chose Victor Emmanuel as their King. As you can see, Nationalism had a great part in this movement.

Simon Bolivar and Latin American Revolutions

In the history of the Western Hemisphere, the Latin American revolutions is said to be one of the most influential series of events. Latin America, which included South America, Central America, and the Caribbean, was being conquered by foreigners. Spain had built an entire empire there to control the natural resources, and export them back to themselves. Remember that at this time, Napoleon’s brother, Joseph Bonaparte was installed by Napoleon was king of Spain. The people in Latin American heard about the Enlightenment thinkers, and how the French and Americans revolutionized, and they thought about their own situation. They also wanted to equality and liberty that the French and the Americans had fought for, so they all started revolutionizing. Simón Bolivar set independence for many countries in South America including Columbia, Venezuela, Peru, and Ecuador. He was known as “the Liberator”, and is a idol to many South Americans.

Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar was born on July 24, 1783 in Caracas, Venezuela. He was born an aristocrat and received superb education. Thanks to his tutors, he learned of the Enlightenment and classical Greece and Rome. At the age of nine, his parents died and he was left in the care of his uncle and at the age of fifteen, he was sent to Spain to continue his education. In Spain, Bolívar met Maria Teresa Rodríguez del Toro y Alaysa and married her in 1802. Sadly, when they returned to Venezuela in 1803, she died of yellow fever. Bolívar was so deeply affected by her death; he vowed never to marry again. While he was in Europe, Bolívar saw the proclamation and coronation of Napoleon Bonaparte and, because Napoleon betrayed his republican ideas, lost all respect for him. However, it was while Bolívar was in Italy that he made his famous vow atop Mount Aventin to never rest until South America was free.

During that time, Napoleon had installed Joseph as King of Spain. Caracas declared its independence from Spain, and Bolívar was sent to Spain to deliver the message. Bolívar thought that New Granada should help free Venezuela, and that would help free New Granada, and he wrote exactly this to Cartagena Manifesto. Bolívar received the assistance he needed and invaded Venezuela. He was proclaimed the “the Liberator”. Bolívar captured Caracas on August 6th, and made it Venezuela’s republic.

Bolívar won many battles there after. It was during the Battle of Boyaca in August 7, 1819 that Bolívar had his greatest victory. That year, Bolívar created the Angostura Congress whom founded Gran Columbia. Gran Columbia was a alliance of Venezuela, Columbia, Panama, and Ecuador, and named Bolívar president. In 1823, Bolívar invaded Peru and with Sucre, defeated the Spanish army in Lima. Than in the Battle of Ayacucho, Sucre defeated the rest of the Spanish army. On August 6, 1825, Sucre called the Congress of Upper Peru and created the Republic of Bolivia, named after Bolívar. Bolívar personally wrote the Bolivian Constitution of 1826, which was never quite enacted.

Unfortunately, by 1827, due to the competition between the generals of the revolution, civil cars began everywhere which destroyed the unity of South America that Bolívar had fought got. El Libertador Simón Bolívar died on December 17, 1830 due to tuberculosis.