A HISTORY OF BOOK III CHAPTER I THE MAKING OF ITALY manuel II. On the night of the disastrous defeat at Novara, Friday, March Accession of 23rd, 1849, Charles Albert resigned his crown in favour of his Victor Emson, Victor Emmanuel II., then twenty-nine years old. He was known as the Re Galant'uomo-" King Honest Man "-from the uprightness of his character and the fact that he sturdily refused to recall or impair the Constitution which had once been given to his country. On the following day he held a conference with Radetzky, the conqueror, and, on March 25th, accepted the onerous conditions of the armistice. The Piedmontese agreed to retire from the area bounded by the Po, the Sesia, and the Ticino, to allow the fortress of Alessandria to be occupied by a mixed garrison of Austrians and Piedmontese till the conclusion of peace, to evacuate the Duchies immediately, to recall the fleet from the Adriatic, to disband the Lombard volunteers, and to pay the expenses of the war. Next night the King returned to Turin, accepted the resignation of the Ratazzi Ministry, and established de Launay in his place. On March 29th Victor Emmanuel swore fidelity to the Constitution in the presence of the two Chambers. He was coldly received, as the armistice was unpopular. Indeed, the Chambers declared it to be unconstitutional, and a revolt at Genoa, under the influence of Mazzini, was put down by La Marmora. Austria demanded a war indemnity of nearly £10,000,000, and, since it was impossible to pay this, the country had to submit to the indignity of a part occupation of Alessandria. However, by the mediation of France and Great Britain, Alessandria was evacuated, the indemnity was reduced to £3,000,000, and peace was signed on August 6th, 1849, by which time Massimo d'Azeglio had become The Leggi Siccardiani. Cavour's Turningpoint. Prime Minister. The King had great difficulty in inducing the Chamber to approve of this treaty. It met on July 30th, 1849, with a determination not to ratify the treaty or to recognise its terms, and, on November 11th, passed a resolution to suspend its operation. There was nothing to do but to dissolve the House, and the new Parliament accepted the treaty by a very large majority on January 19th, 1850. D'Azeglio, being anxious to abolish the exclusive privileges of the Ecclesiastical Courts, appointed Siccardi to the office corresponding to the British Lord Chancellorship, having first sent him as ambassador to Pius IX., to endeavour to induce the Pope to accept his views. Siccardi introduced a Bill for the abolition of the Ecclesiastical Courts and their special jurisdiction. He also attempted to abolish mortmain, or the holding of land by corporations without the consent of the Government, and to regulate marriage as a civil contract. These measures were embodied in three laws known as the Leggi Siccardiani, which were carried by both Chambers, their acceptance by the Senate, which was supposed to be Conservative, causing great astonishment. These laws were warmly supported by Cavour in one of the best speeches he ever made-one, in fact, which was the turningpoint in his career. He supported them on the broad ground that, the Constitution having been granted to the country by Charles Albert, with the view of establishing liberal institutions, it was the duty of a wise Ministry to carry out these principles by legislation in the same direction, and, the quieter and more peaceful the condition of the country, the more seasonable was the time for doing so. He enforced his arguments by the examples of the Duke of Wellington consenting to the emancipation of the Catholics, Lord Grey carrying the Reform Bill, and Sir Robert Peel avowing his conversion to the principles of Free Trade. He concluded with these words: "See, gentlemen, how reforms, made in time, strengthen authority instead of weakening it, and, instead of increasing the strength of the revolutionary spirit, reduce it to impotence. Imitate boldly the spirit of the Duke of Wellington, Lord Grey and Sir Robert Peel, whom history will declare to be the first statesmen of our time. Go forward generously in the path of reform; do not be afraid if measures are declared inopportune; do not be afraid to weaken the power of the Constitutional Throne, which is entrusted to your hands, because you will really strengthen it. You will really place the Throne on such a secure basis that, when the storm of revolution bursts against it, it will not only be able to resist it, but, by summon |