Cosmpolitan Italy in the Age of Nations. Transnational Visions from the Eighteenth to the Twentieth Century

The period of Italian history from the eighteenth to the mid-twentieth century has been treated by mainstream historiography as primarily a phase of nation-building and state-building. There have been differing perspectives on how this construction effort has or has not achieved its goals, especially when compared to the objectives achieved by other European realities that before or at the same time as Italy initiated and completed this same process. “Risorgimento” (rebirth) and “patria” were the concepts most suited to articulate the narrative of this evolvement and replaced, for example, that of “Italian revolution,” which was disturbing to the ruling classes, to define the unification process, despite the reassuring reflections of Alessandro Manzoni.