History

As a geographic entity, Italy dates back to the Etruscan time, but discords and divisions have hindered the unit for a long time. The Country was only united under the Romans (III sec. a.c.), that subdued all the Italian civilizations. Rome imposed its language, laws, calendar, religion and placed the Pope at the head of the catholic church. In the Middle Ages the papacy relied on the Franks in order to defeat the Longobards and Carlo Magno turned into Emperor of the Sacred Roman Empire (800d.c.). Five centuries of fights between popes and emperors followed. Meanwhile the invaders Normans, Angevins and Aragoneses conquered Sicily and the South. In the North the independent city-states were created, with the powerful Venice at the head thanks to its trade exchanges with the East. An extraordinary fervour of studies and arts made of Italy the greatest cultural centre of Europe, and Florence the "crib" of the Renaissance. But the small independent states did not have the force to contrast the Spanish and the Austrians invaders. Only the reign of Piedmont remained independent until 1796, when, during the war between Austria and France, it surrendered to Napoleon. The Renaissance fights and the wars of independence brought to the unification of Italy under the Savoia's guide, that used also the backing of the democratic groups led by Mazzini and Garibaldi. The Reign of Italy was proclaimed on 17th March 1861 and the unification was completed in 1866 with the annexation of Veneto and in 1870 with the conquest of Rome.