Roman Republic: The Utopia Of Revolutionary 1849

The Roman Republic was a significant, if shortlived, experiment in constitutional and democratic governance: it abolished the death penalty, guaranteed freedom of worship and freedom of association and banned censorship. It also introduced universal (male) suffrage, a landmark in the history of Italy.

In 1848 liberal ideas were sweeping Europe and the Papal States, of which Rome was the capital, was notorious for corruption, a stunted economy, a huge and politicized police force, and a political apparatus open only to members of the Catholic clergy: it was a medieval anachronism.

In November 1848 Piedmont declared war against Austria and Pope Pius IX, that had previously given his blessing to the Italian Risorgimento, announced that his troops would not join the Italian patriots as he could not wage war against Catholic Austria.
The assassination of the papal diplomat Pellegrino Rossi led Pius IX to flee Rome, fearing a bloody revolution and appealing to all Catholic countries to come to his rescue against the revolutionaries.

In Rome a new Constitutional Assembly was elected on 9 February 1849, the revolutionaries entrusted the Roman Republic to the one patriot able to steer it: Mazzini’s vision for the Republican Rome would be that of a beacon for the rest of Italy and a model for liberals everywhere.
The conservative press throughout Europe was alarmed, reporting of revolutionaries waving red flags and looting: with no formal recognition from European governments, the Roman Republic was doomed.

By April 1849, the first 10,000 French troops had landed and were marching on Rome, expecting to be hailed as liberators. The Roman garrison, commanded by the guerrilla leader Garibaldi, was a mixture of volunteers from across Italy, as well as papal troops who had joined the revolution; it numbered just 7,000, but the men were determined to fight.
The French were shocked to come under cannon fire as they approached the city. After Garibaldi defeated them at the San Pancrazio gate on April 30, the French retreated.

The siege of the city began in earnest on June 1, when hostilities were renewed, the Romans neglected to warn outlying positions, and the crucial position at Villa Pamphili was surprised and overwhelmed. A truce was negotiated on July 1, and a day after Garibaldi withdrew from the city with several thousand volunteers and took refuge in San Marino.
Despite the battles raging on the city’s perimeters, the Assembly continued to discuss the provisions of the constitution and on July 1 approved it. Written by the only Italian assembly elected by universal suffrage in 1848-49, the Roman charter was truly the people’s constitution.
At noon on July 3 it was solemnly proclaimed in the Campidoglio, Rome’s city hall.
That same day French troops took control of the city: the short-lived Roman Republic had only lasted 5 months.