Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter I Political opinions in Sicily: April–June 1860
- Chapter II Cavour and the diplomats: April–June
- Chapter III La Farina and Crispi: June
- Chapter IV Arguments for and against annexation
- Chapter V Arguments over ways and means
- Chapter VI Crispi loses the first round: June
- Chapter VII Cavour loses the second round: July
- Chapter VIII Cavour adjusts his policy: July
- Chapter IX Depretis begins his prodictatorship: July
- Chapter X Cavour plans a revolt at Naples: July
- Chapter XI Cavour fails at Naples: August
- Chapter XII Political differences in Sicily: August
- Chapter XIII Cavour forces Depretis to a choice: 1–8 September
- Chapter XIV Depretis fails to persuade Garibaldi: 8–14 September
- Chapter XV Garibaldi succeeds at Naples: 1–15 September
- Chapter XVI Cavour breaks with Garibaldi: September
- Chapter XVII The radicals at bay: September
- Chapter XVIII Mordini the new prodictator: 17–25 September
- Chapter XIX Further controversy over annexation: September–October
- Chapter XX Mordini summons an assembly: 5 October
- Chapter XXI Pallavicino fights for a plebiscite: 8 October
- Chapter XXII Parliament supports Cavour: October
- Chapter XXIII Mordini changes his mind: 9–13 October
- Chapter XXIV Garibaldi makes his decision: 9–13 October
- Chapter XXV The plebiscite in Sicily: October
- Chapter XXVI The doubtful significance of the vote: October–November
- Chapter XXVII Cavour's government in the south: November–December
- Chapter XXVIII Conclusion
- Index
Chapter III - La Farina and Crispi: June
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 30 October 2009
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Introduction
- Chapter I Political opinions in Sicily: April–June 1860
- Chapter II Cavour and the diplomats: April–June
- Chapter III La Farina and Crispi: June
- Chapter IV Arguments for and against annexation
- Chapter V Arguments over ways and means
- Chapter VI Crispi loses the first round: June
- Chapter VII Cavour loses the second round: July
- Chapter VIII Cavour adjusts his policy: July
- Chapter IX Depretis begins his prodictatorship: July
- Chapter X Cavour plans a revolt at Naples: July
- Chapter XI Cavour fails at Naples: August
- Chapter XII Political differences in Sicily: August
- Chapter XIII Cavour forces Depretis to a choice: 1–8 September
- Chapter XIV Depretis fails to persuade Garibaldi: 8–14 September
- Chapter XV Garibaldi succeeds at Naples: 1–15 September
- Chapter XVI Cavour breaks with Garibaldi: September
- Chapter XVII The radicals at bay: September
- Chapter XVIII Mordini the new prodictator: 17–25 September
- Chapter XIX Further controversy over annexation: September–October
- Chapter XX Mordini summons an assembly: 5 October
- Chapter XXI Pallavicino fights for a plebiscite: 8 October
- Chapter XXII Parliament supports Cavour: October
- Chapter XXIII Mordini changes his mind: 9–13 October
- Chapter XXIV Garibaldi makes his decision: 9–13 October
- Chapter XXV The plebiscite in Sicily: October
- Chapter XXVI The doubtful significance of the vote: October–November
- Chapter XXVII Cavour's government in the south: November–December
- Chapter XXVIII Conclusion
- Index
Summary
In the first week of June, Cavour's first envoy to Sicily, Giuseppe La Farina, landed at Palermo, and began actively to work for annexation. La Farina had long since abandoned his early sympathy for the radical Unitarians. He had been converted to the ‘artichoke’ policy, that is to say to Cavour's programme of peeling off the unredeemed provinces slowly and singly, instead of courting disaster by staking the whole process of unification on a single throw. From La Farina's point of view,
what distinguishes Mazzinianism is the mad policy of all or nothing, the policy which imagines you can achieve your end without thinking out convenient means, which ignores the necessity of alliances, which does not proportion forces to their object, and thinks enthusiasm enough for victory, which is perpetually deluded as to the efficacy of its own initiative, and would like to substitute its own adepts for the elected representatives of the nation.
It was on the whole a fair criticism; but in practice this ex-Mazzinian, like so many converts, had become surprisingly bitter against his late comrades. These differences of view were now a fundamental question in dispute between patriotic Italians. What was needed was someone to reconcile, not to aggravate, their disagreements.
Between 1857 and 1859 La Farina had effectively co-operated with Cavour in planning the consolidation of northern Italy, but his influence in Sicily during 1860 was less happy. This was the year of the ‘party of action’, from which La Farina was estranged. Garibaldi regarded as a positive hindrance people who believed that independence and unity were a Utopian condition which Italy could move towards but hardly hope to attain in the foreseeable future.
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- Cavour and Garibaldi 1860A Study in Political Conflict, pp. 37 - 46Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1985