150º Anniversario dell'Unità d'Italia (Dec. 2011)

L'Italia in Campidoglio, from S576.a.88.1. Click on the image to enlarge.

The year 2011 marked the 150th anniversary of Italian Unification. "Italian Collections" at Cambridge University Library would like to pay tribute to this historic milestone.

Here you will find news on interesting rare items published in Italy at that time and held in the Library, and search tips on how to browse our collections and find material related to the Risorgimento and Italian Unification.

Rare items

Cambridge University Library holds a rich collection of rare books published in the peninsula at the time of the Risorgimento and Unification.

Among them are letters and works by Giuseppe Mazzini, an item by Nicomede Bianchi, later a senator in the XIV Legislatura (1881), regarding Mazzinianismo, and a letter from Francesco Crispi to Mazzini.

"Gli scritti che io diffusi nel corso di trenta anni in Italia e fuori costituiscono innegabilmente un documento storico di qualche importanza e rappresentano il primo periodo del moto italiano. Parlai, quando tutti tacevano."

From a letter from Mazzini to the editor of Scritti editi e inediti, dated March 5th 1861, in Acton.d.51.316.

• Bianchi, Nicomede. Vicende del Mazzinianismo politico e religioso dal 1832 al 1854. Savona: Dai tipi di Luigi Sambolino, 1854. Acton.d.28.116
• Mazzini, Giuseppe. Scritti editi e inediti. Milano: G. Daelli, 1861-91. Acton.d.51.316
• Crispi, Francesco. Repubblica e monarchia. A Giuseppe Mazzini. Lettera. Torino, 1865. 8576.d.32
• Mazzini, Giuseppe. Duecento lettere inedite di Giuseppe Mazzini. Torino: L. Roux e C., 1887. S.35.4
• Mazzini, Giuseppe. Lettre inedite di G. M. ed alcune de' suoi compagni d'esiglio. Torino, 1898. OA.66.30

In addition to Mazzini material, the Library also holds pre-1899 items relating to Giuseppe Garibaldi, including his posthumous memories.

• Boggio, Pier Carlo. Da Montevideo a Palermo : vita de Giuseppe Garibaldi. Torino: S. Franco, 1860. 8576.d.3
• Vecchj, Candido Augusto. Garibaldi e Caprera. Napoli: Stamperia e cartiere del fibreno, 1862. Acton.d.28.571
• Guerzoni, Giuseppe. Garibaldi. Firenze: G. Barbera, 1882. XXVII.116.73
• Mario, Jessie White. Garibaldi e i suoi tempi. Milano: Fratelli Treves, 1884. LE.12.108
• Garibaldi, Giuseppe. Memorie autobiografiche. Firenze, 1888. OA.17.28

Our holdings of rare books relating to Camillo Benso, Conte di Cavour are numerous and include writings, letters, speeches and commemorative publications issued on the occasion of his untimely death.

Camillo di Cavour, from 576.85.c.85.6. Click on the image to enlarge.

• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Ouvrages politiques-économiques. . Coni, 1855-57. . Acton.d.48.601
• Perez, Francisco. Orazione in morte del conte Cavour. Palermo, 1861. Oo.40.30
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Discorsi parlamentari del conte Camillo di Cavour, raccolti e pubblicati per ordine della Camera dei deputati. Torino : Per gli eredi Botta, 1863-72. Acton.b.28.131
• Bianchi, Nicomede. Conte Camillo di Cavour; documenti editi e inediti. Torino, Unione tipografico-editrice, 1863. 576:85.c.85.6
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Conte di Cavour in Parlamento. Firenze : G. Barbera, 1868. LN.24.10
• Vera, Augusto. Cavour et l'église libre dans l'état libre. . Naples : Lib. Detken et Rocholl, 1874. Acton.c.28.390
• Bonghi, Ruggiero. Ritratti contemporanei: Cavour--Bismarck--Thiers. Milano: Fratelli Treves, 1879. Acton.d.23.1394
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Lettere edite ed inedite di Camillo Cavour. Torino: Roux e Favale, 1884-1887. XXI.48.49-54
• Minghetti, Marco. Solenne commemorazione del conte Camillo di Cavour : discorso. Torino: E. Botta, 1886. Acton.c.28.501
• Minghetti, Marco. Commemorazione del conte Camillo di Cavour: letta a Torino il 21 giugno 1886. Bologna: Nicola Zanichelli, 1886. 8576.d.25
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Nouvelles lettres inédites. Rome: L. Roux, 1889. 576:85.c.85.3
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Scritti del conte di Cavour. Bologna: Ditta N. Zanichelli, 1892. RD.86.17-18
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Comte de Cavour et la Comtesse de Circourt: Lettres inédites . Turin: L. Roux, 1894. S.31.61
• Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di. Nuove lettere inedite del conte Camillo di Cavour. Torino-Roma: L. Roux e c., 1895. RD.31.15

Also of note are our holdings of rare material concerning Vittorio Emanuele II, all published after his death:

• Bersezio, Vittorio. Regno di Vittorio Emanuele II: trent'anni di vita italiana . Torino: Roux e Favale, 1878-1895. RD.31.19-26
• Minghetti, Marco. Commemorazione di Vittorio Emanuele II. Roma: Tip. del Senato, 1879. Acton.c.28.501
• Commemorazione solenne della morte di Re Vittorio Emanuele II celebrata in Perugia li IX gennaio MDCCCLXXXI. Perugia: Tip. G. Boncompagni e c., 1881. Acton.b.28.151
• Puccianti, Giuseppe. Vittorio Emanuele e il risorgimento d'Italia, 1815-1878. Milano: fratelli Treves, [1887]. 8500.d.159

Book purchased by Basil Edward Hammond (Fellow of Trinity College, 1867-1916), see 8500.d.159. Click on the image to enlarge.

Also noteworthy are documents on the early legislation of the new kingdom (click on the title to see the LibrarySearch records): Codice Civile del Regno d'Italia (Milano, 1865), Prima legislatura del Regno d'Italia: studi e ricordi (Firenze, 1865), Riforma dello statuto italiano (Torino, 1881).

For titles specifically related to the Risorgimento, see:

• Mariano, Raffaele. Risorgimento italiano: secondo i principii della filosofia della storia. Firenze : G. Civelli, 1866. Acton.d.28.631
• Fiorentino, Francesco, 1834-1884. Bernardino Telesio : ossia, Studi storici su l'idea della natura nel risorgimento italiano. Firenze: Successori Le Monnier, 1872-74. Acton.d.47.271
• Bertolini, Francesco. Memorie storico-critiche del risorgimento italiano. Milano, 1889. 8500.d.167
• Bertolini, Francesco. Storia del risorgimento italiano. Milano: Fratelli Treves, 1889. S576.a.88.1
• Orsi, Pietro. Come fu fatta l'Italia : conferenze popolari sulla storia del nostro risorgimento. Torino: L. Roux e C., 1891. 8500.d.167

For the relationship between the Papal States and the forces for Unification, the so-called questione romana, click on the classmarks of the following: Acton.c.28.507, Acton.d.7.267 , Acton.b.1.45, Acton.d.7.261, Acton.d.1.269.

Search tips

This year, Italy has seen thousands of cultural initiatives to commemorate the Unification. The Italian government has created a special logo that aims to bring them all together. This official logo and its title (150. Anniversario Unità d'Italia) also appears in many new publications and in some cases would be described in a note in our catalogue records.

It's important to bear in mind that the Library of Congress doesn't use specific subject headings such as "Risorgimento" or "Italian Unification". Material is described using the following main categories, which can also be entered as keywords when searching in our catalogues:

Italy - History - 1815-1870

Italy - History - 1849-1870

Italy - History - War of 1859

Italy - History - War of 1860-1861

These can be further subdivided into other smaller categories, for example:

Italy - History - 1815-1870 - Historiography

Italy - History - 1815-1870 - Bibliography

Italy - History - 1815-1870 - Exhibitions

To find material related to the history of this special period in specific Italian regions, the same logic applies, but attention needs to be given to the different time frames and geographic names. See for example:

Naples (Kingdom) - History - 1735-1861

Sicily (Italy) - History - 1815-1870

Papal States - History - 1815-1870

Piedmont (Italy) - History - 19th century

Other useful established subject headings are:

Carbonari

Italy - History - Revolution of 1848

Italy - History - War of 1859 - Campaigns

Magenta, Battle of, Magenta, Italy, 1859

Montebello, Battle of, Montebello della Battaglia, Italy, 1859

San Martino, Battle of, San Martino della Battaglia, Italy, 1859

Solferino, Battle of, Solferino, Italy, 1859

Castelfidardo, Battle of, Castelfidardo, Italy, 1860

Italy - History - War of 1860-1861 - Campaigns

Expedition of the Thousand, Italy, 1860

Gaeta (Italy) - History - Siege, 1860-1861

Milazzo, Battle of, Milazzo, Italy, 1860

Volturno, Battle of the, Italy, 1860-1861

Regarding established forms of names, here are the most important:

Cavour, Camillo Benso, conte di, 1810-1861

Garibaldi, Giuseppe, 1807-1882

Mazzini, Giuseppe, 1805-1872

Victor Emmanuel II, King of Italy, 1820-1878

Material in open access related to these topics is shelved in North Front, Floor 5. Classmarks are: 576:83 (for biography of 19th century), 576:85 (for Risorgimento and Garibaldi), 576:87 (for the Austro-Sardinian War) and 576:9 (for the Unification of Italy and the Kingdom of Italy). Material not on the open shelves but on closed access (of which there is also a great deal) can be identified by author, title and the above subject headings.