HISTORY
The commercial prosperity
of northern and central Italian cities, beginning in the 11th
century, and the influence of the Renaissance mitigated somewhat
the effects of these medieval political rivalries. Although Italy
declined after the 16th century, the Renaissance had strengthened
the idea of a single Italian nationality. By the early 19th century,
a nationalist movement developed and led to the reunification
of Italy--except for Rome--in the 1860s. In 1861, Victor Emmanuel
II of the House of Savoy was proclaimed King of Italy. Rome was
incorporated in 1870. From 1870 until 1922, Italy was a constitutional
monarchy with a parliament elected under limited suffrage.
20th-Century
History
During World War I, Italy renounced its standing alliance with
Germany and Austria-Hungary and, in 1915, entered the war on the
side of the Allies. Under the postwar settlement, Italy received
some former Austrian territory along the northeast frontier. In
1922, Benito Mussolini came to power and, over the next few years,
eliminated political parties, curtailed personal liberties, and
installed a fascist dictatorship termed the Corporate State. The
king, with little or no effective power, remained titular head
of state.
Italy allied with Germany
and declared war on the United Kingdom and France in 1940. In
1941, Italy--with the other Axis powers, Germany and Japan--declared
war on the United States and the Soviet Union. Following the Allied
invasion of Sicily in 1943, the King dismissed Mussolini and appointed
Marshal Pietro Badoglio as Premier. The Badoglio government declared
war on Germany, which quickly occupied most of the country and
freed Mussolini, who led a brief-lived regime in the north. An
anti-fascist popular resistance movement grew during the last
2 years of the war, harassing German forces before they were driven
out in April 1945. A 1946 plebiscite ended the monarchy, and a
constituent assembly was elected to draw up plans for the republic.
Under the 1947 peace treaty,
minor adjustments were made in Italy's frontier with France, the
eastern border area was transferred to Yugoslavia, and the area
around the city of Trieste was designated a free territory. In
1954, the free territory, which had remained under the administration
of U.S.-U.K. forces (Zone A, including the city of Trieste) and
Yugoslav forces (Zone B), was divided between Italy and Yugoslavia,
principally along the zonal boundary. This arrangement was made
permanent by the Italian-Yugoslav Treaty of Osimo, ratified in
1977 (currently being discussed by Italy, Slovenia, and Croatia).
Under the 1947 peace treaty, Italy also relinquished its overseas
territories and certain Mediterranean islands.
The Roman Catholic Church's
status in Italy has been determined, since its temporal powers
ended in 1870, by a series of accords with the Italian Government.
Under the Lateran Pacts of 1929, which were confirmed by the present
constitution, the state of Vatican City is recognized by Italy
as an independent, sovereign entity. While preserving that recognition,
in 1984, Italy and the Vatican updated several provisions of the
1929 accords. Included was the end of Roman Catholicism as Italy's
formal state religion.
Italy's Cultural Contributions
Europe's Renaissance period began in Italy during the 14th and
15th centuries. Literary achievements--such as the poetry of Petrarch,
Tasso, and Ariosto and the prose of Boccaccio, Machiavelli, and
Castiglione--exerted a tremendous and lasting influence on the
subsequent development of Western civilization, as did the painting,
sculpture, and architecture contributed by giants such as da Vinci,
Raphael, Botticelli, Fra Angelico, and Michelangelo.
The musical influence of Italian
composers Monteverdi, Palestrina, and Vivaldi proved epochal;
in the 19th century, Italian romantic opera flourished under composers
Gioacchino Rossini, Giuseppe Verdi, and Giacomo Puccini. Contemporary
Italian artists, writers, filmmakers, architects, composers, and
designers contribute significantly to Western culture.
