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Love it 🤩🤩🤩 a really nice peak in the live of our Princess. Great job @Tarabas !!! I wonder what the English ambassador has been ordered to say/do 🤔
Unfortunately, this is not a paperback, where you can turn a few pages and take a peek to satisfy your curiosity ;)
A little patience, and everything will be revealed (or at least, some of it)
What a magnificent bastard.

Maria Cristina and Henri would be very dangerous, were they less inclined to respect the political conventions of their age - had they been born even just a century earlier, in the era of absolute monarchies... fuck.
OTOH, the mid-19th century is the age of romanticism, as well as of absolute confidence in social and scientific progress (at least in some circles ;)).
It is a very dangerous mixture, since it provides a leverage that the absolute rulers of the previous centuries could only yearn for.
Maria Cristina and Henri will play their part: if there actions will make them dangerous or beneficial only time will tell (although my uneducated guess would be a bit of both)
 
Unfortunately, this is not a paperback, where you can turn a few pages and take a peek to satisfy your curiosity ;)
A little patience, and everything will be revealed
Ok, I will try...and as @Tarabas has say: “give to Caesar what it's to Caesar” I give you my most sincere thanks for all the effort you put into this amazing story. Your insights on the deeper and often forgotten details of this time period,are really appreciate and help us readers gain a deeper understanding of this often overlooked time period. Great job!!!
 
Unfortunately, this is not a paperback, where you can turn a few pages and take a peek to satisfy your curiosity ;)
A little patience, and everything will be revealed (or at least, some of it)

OTOH, the mid-19th century is the age of romanticism, as well as of absolute confidence in social and scientific progress (at least in some circles ;)).
It is a very dangerous mixture, since it provides a leverage that the absolute rulers of the previous centuries could only yearn for.
Maria Cristina and Henri will play their part: if there actions will make them dangerous or beneficial only time will tell (although my uneducated guess would be a bit of both)

Speaking of absolute confidence in social and scientific progress, Ferdinando's unshakeable faith in them might end up creating more than a few issues down the line: he, as a 19th century royal, might not be aware of the negative consequences of breakneck industrialization, but his descendants and the descendants of his subjects will be very much aware of them.

On the other hand, Maria Cristina's unorthodox ways may be making Henri and us root for her, but - even though there is plenty of historical precedents, when it comes to female royals being less than feminine - the forces of reaction will be quick to turn her into a scapegoat, for the same reasons. And with time, the relationship between Italy and France might grow colder, for geopolitical reasons.
 
Speaking of absolute confidence in social and scientific progress, Ferdinando's unshakeable faith in them might end up creating more than a few issues down the line: he, as a 19th century royal, might not be aware of the negative consequences of breakneck industrialization, but his descendants and the descendants of his subjects will be very much aware of them.
Uhm...do you think that the people around him: Cavour, Maria Cristina, Henry...and others people that for now we haven't see yet, could help him mitigate the negative consequences you have mentioned? Or as you said Ferdinando faith in industrialization will blind him to the truth?
 
The Risorgimento has not been overlooked, at least in Italy (it is the founding myth of the nation), but it has been almost always used as a political tool , both before and after 1945 (which is the other defining year for Italian history): the result is that the history of Risorgimento taught at school is a mishmash of platitudes and stereotypes, which have just a nodding acquaintance with historical events and even more so with historical personages .
What @Tarabas and I are trying to do here is to build up a different (and hopefully better) approach to the last 170 years of Italian history, by looking at the problems which are still plaguing Italy even now, and building up different ways forward.
The foundation event of this TL is a different outcome of the insurrections and the war of 1848: of course to get that result it was necessary to have an earlier POD (killing off Vittorio Emanuele as an infant - which almost happened IOTL, the fire break out in the nursery is historical - and replacing him with a better heir to the throne, Ferdinand).
From the POD in 1822 until the day that Ferdinand start making his real entry in the world (the Grand Tour of 1837) the butterflies have had quite a limited effect: the birth of a Savoy princess would have impacted the court in Turin (and her future marital prospects would have been considered in the other European courts), but frankly speaking the kingdom of Sardinia was not the center of Europe.
From 1837 onward, things have started to change, slowly, and we have tried to build up a logical explanation behind these changes: Ferdinand's trip to London is an opportunity to meet prince Albert (and it makes sense that they would be sympathetic to each other, with Albert playing the role of an elder brother to young Ferdinand), as well as to become more and more interested in scientific progress and meeting interesting people (ironically, the biggest gain for the kingdom of Sardinia - and ultimately for Italy - came out from one of the few indulgences that Ferdinand allowed himself: buying a posh hunting rifle, and being shown a prototype Minie' bullet. Sheer happenstance, but it might have happened).
Things started to change in a big way in 1848, but again there had been signs in the air for some time (the bad harvests of 1846 and 1847 had resulted in price gouging, famines and unrest among the poorest classes). The insurrection of Palermo in early January (and the unrelated unrest in Milan at the same time, repressed by Austria with a heavy hand) were quite obvious warning bells, and it is not surprising but still damning that no one in Turin had the wit to consider what these events might lead up to. Even more damning that the insurrection of Paris and the end of the Orleans monarchy did not produce any immediate activity in Turin.
ITTL these warning signs were recognized as such, and the world is starting to change quickly, and earlier than it happened IOTL. These means an opportunity for some people who were relegated to the margins of the scene in our history, or who failed because they had been dealt too bad a hand of cards, and couldn't do better, and obviously a loss of opportunity for some people who OTL played a significant role, even in defeat, but ITTL will arrive late on the scene, and will be relegated to the shadows.
 
Blame the Salic law of the kingdom of Sardinia: a princess could never inherit the crown.
However, things are moving very fast, the world is being turned upside down and the British ambassador can only have a limited picture of the future ;)
What? She's not married to Ferdinand (by queen I read queen consort)? I thought she was about to get murdered.
 
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Speaking of absolute confidence in social and scientific progress, Ferdinando's unshakeable faith in them might end up creating more than a few issues down the line: he, as a 19th century royal, might not be aware of the negative consequences of breakneck industrialization, but his descendants and the descendants of his subjects will be very much aware of them.

On the other hand, Maria Cristina's unorthodox ways may be making Henri and us root for her, but - even though there is plenty of historical precedents, when it comes to female royals being less than feminine - the forces of reaction will be quick to turn her into a scapegoat, for the same reasons. And with time, the relationship between Italy and France might grow colder, for geopolitical reasons.
An industrial revolution developed with due consideration to social and environmental issues is an oxymoron. The twin forces of greed and opportunity will take the reins of industrialization, and drive it at breakneck speed anyway.
Would it be better if Italy remained an agricultural backwater? I wouldn't like to live in a reactionary Arcadia, where happy peasants work singing in the field.
Great Britain, Belgium, France, the NE USA are already industrialized, or making great strides towards it. Industrialization in the Rhineland is also well up.
It might be argued that the problems evidenced by breakneck industrialization should be already evident, but this would not be credible in 1850. To my knowledge, all the countries who experienced a late industrialization failed to take heed from the mistakes that already industrialised countries made earlier: if any, they added some new ones of their own.
Ferdinand's descendants will have to deal with the unforeseen consequences of industrialization, and hopefully the social changes which might mitigate the worst features of industrialization will come earlier TTL

Maria Cristina is already anything but the darling of reactionary circles: Solaro della Margarita and his ultra-catholic friends foam at the mouth hearing her name.
 
What? She's not married to Ferdinand (by queen I read queen consort)? I thought she was about to get murdered.
She will not be murdered, I can give this tip without problems.
And anyway the ambassador was talking of her becoming a reigning queen, like Victoria is in Great Britain

edit: and by the way, she has been married to Henri d'Orleans since early 1845 and has a daughter (Ferdinand is her brother)
 
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Maria Cristina is already anything but the darling of reactionary circles: Solaro della Margarita and his ultra-catholic friends foam at the mouth hearing her name.

My heart bleed knowing that della Margarita don't really like Maria Cristina, maybe he can be assigned in a far far away place so to not be near such sinners...maybe giving him a diplomatic post in Australia will make him more happy
 
My heart bleed knowing that della Margarita don't really like Maria Cristina, maybe he can be assigned in a far far away place so to not be near such sinners...maybe giving him a diplomatic post in Australia will make him more happy
Naaah, I'm thinking the North pole 🤔😈
 
My heart bleed knowing that della Margarita don't really like Maria Cristina, maybe he can be assigned in a far far away place so to not be near such sinners...maybe giving him a diplomatic post in Australia will make him more happy
I would say that the best punishment for that kind of people is to see the world they want being changed into something completely different, and to them abhorrent
 
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The Risorgimento has not been overlooked, at least in Italy (it is the founding myth of the nation), but it has been almost always used as a political tool , both before and after 1945 (which is the other defining year for Italian history): the result is that the history of Risorgimento taught at school is a mishmash of platitudes and stereotypes, which have just a nodding acquaintance with historical events and even more so with historical personages .
What @Tarabas and I are trying to do here is to build up a different (and hopefully better) approach to the last 170 years of Italian history, by looking at the problems which are still plaguing Italy even now, and building up different ways forward.
The foundation event of this TL is a different outcome of the insurrections and the war of 1848: of course to get that result it was necessary to have an earlier POD (killing off Vittorio Emanuele as an infant - which almost happened IOTL, the fire break out in the nursery is historical - and replacing him with a better heir to the throne, Ferdinand).
From the POD in 1822 until the day that Ferdinand start making his real entry in the world (the Grand Tour of 1837) the butterflies have had quite a limited effect: the birth of a Savoy princess would have impacted the court in Turin (and her future marital prospects would have been considered in the other European courts), but frankly speaking the kingdom of Sardinia was not the center of Europe.
From 1837 onward, things have started to change, slowly, and we have tried to build up a logical explanation behind these changes: Ferdinand's trip to London is an opportunity to meet prince Albert (and it makes sense that they would be sympathetic to each other, with Albert playing the role of an elder brother to young Ferdinand), as well as to become more and more interested in scientific progress and meeting interesting people (ironically, the biggest gain for the kingdom of Sardinia - and ultimately for Italy - came out from one of the few indulgences that Ferdinand allowed himself: buying a posh hunting rifle, and being shown a prototype Minie' bullet. Sheer happenstance, but it might have happened).
Things started to change in a big way in 1848, but again there had been signs in the air for some time (the bad harvests of 1846 and 1847 had resulted in price gouging, famines and unrest among the poorest classes). The insurrection of Palermo in early January (and the unrelated unrest in Milan at the same time, repressed by Austria with a heavy hand) were quite obvious warning bells, and it is not surprising but still damning that no one in Turin had the wit to consider what these events might lead up to. Even more damning that the insurrection of Paris and the end of the Orleans monarchy did not produce any immediate activity in Turin.
ITTL these warning signs were recognized as such, and the world is starting to change quickly, and earlier than it happened IOTL. These means an opportunity for some people who were relegated to the margins of the scene in our history, or who failed because they had been dealt too bad a hand of cards, and couldn't do better, and obviously a loss of opportunity for some people who OTL played a significant role, even in defeat, but ITTL will arrive late on the scene, and will be relegated to the shadows.
When thinking of the way I was taught the Risorgimento back in my schooldays, I cannot help but telling to myself in Brazilian portugues: "Eis uma historia mal contada", literally "here's a badly told story" . THis can be said in a variety of contexts, but usually refers to a story where things do not really add up. Granted, this is to be expected from a founding myth, but really it seemed too much. So, the more I studied the subject, the more I got frustrated by the number of things that almost happened, the number of people with a lot of potential who almost played an important role in our history... One can say that the original intuition of the TL was really born out of frustration. One of the aspects that impressed me the most were also the bad personal relationships between some of the protagonists (like VE and Cavour), and how this affected things. Currently, one of the things that believe are giving us fun when writing is building the relationships between our protagonists, twisting them, and seeing the results. History is made by people, after all. This is why our narrative interludes are growing so much, in length, number, and relevance: our protagonists are taking a life of their own, and we cannot help but giving them voice.
 
Ok, I will try...and as @Tarabas has say: “give to Caesar what it's to Caesar” I give you my most sincere thanks for all the effort you put into this amazing story. Your insights on the deeper and often forgotten details of this time period,are really appreciate and help us readers gain a deeper understanding of this often overlooked time period. Great job!!!
Thank you very much! It is so good for us to receive such a feedback. We are trying to give a "vision" of this ALT-world that is as thorough as possible, delving deep into many apsects: political, philosophical, military, technological... with a special attention to the personal sphere of our protagonists, which maybe has become of the distinctive marks of FoI. In a senso, the journey is more important than the destination... Although, as @LordKalvan pointed out, the latter would be a different, better Italy, most importantly, a feasibly better Italy.
 
When thinking of the way I was taught the Risorgimento back in my schooldays, I cannot help but telling to myself in Brazilian portugues: "Eis uma historia mal contada", literally "here's a badly told story" . THis can be said in a variety of contexts, but usually refers to a story where things do not really add up. Granted, this is to be expected from a founding myth, but really it seemed too much. So, the more I studied the subject, the more I got frustrated by the number of things that almost happened, the number of people with a lot of potential who almost played an important role in our history... One can say that the original intuition of the TL was really born out of frustration. One of the aspects that impressed me the most were also the bad personal relationships between some of the protagonists (like VE and Cavour), and how this affected things. Currently, one of the things that believe are giving us fun when writing is building the relationships between our protagonists, twisting them, and seeing the results. History is made by people, after all. This is why our narrative interludes are growing so much, in length, number, and relevance: our protagonists are taking a life of their own, and we cannot help but giving them voice.
Wait, you're Brazilian?!
 
Don't worry, we're all neck deep in shit right now due to the whole Covid-19 mess. :p
Yes, there is no better way to put it XD. Literally, I would add.
Wait, you're Brazilian?!
No, I am Italian, but I have been living in Brazil for some time now, so... I have "absorbed" quite a few things, Brazilian expressions and "gírias" being one of those (besides, I am told I have a pretty good accent). And I find many of this expressions so fit, so right on the spot that I have to use them even when speaking another language (remarkably, even Italian with my family) :)
 
And I find many of this expressions so fit, so right on the spot that I have to use them even when speaking another language (remarkably, even Italian with my family
Not surprising, considering how many Italians came here. Plus, our languages are pretty similar (it's not Spanish, but it's closer to Portuguese than French is), so there's that.
 
Not surprising, considering how many Italians came here. Plus, our languages are pretty similar (it's not Spanish, but it's closer to Portuguese than French is), so there's that.
Yes, definitely. I had some phonetic problems at the beginning (chiefly the "ã" sound, which lead to some funny moments as you can easily imagine) but my previous study of Latin helped me sorting out differences and similarities, so to speak. I would say both are enough for a native Italian speaker to speak a good Brazilian Portuguese: it is close enough that it doesn't take too long to grow a vocabulary, but it is different enough to lead one to make the necessary effort to actually learn. The latter does not happen with Spanish more often than not (many Italians seem to think of this as "Italian words + s at the end). Speaking of Brazil... This TL will be Italo-centric, but of course the situation in Italy will affect the world. I had a particular consequence for Brazil in mind...
 
Yes, definitely. I had some phonetic problems at the beginning (chiefly the "ã" sound, which lead to some funny moments as you can easily imagine) but my previous study of Latin helped me sorting out differences and similarities, so to speak. I would say both are enough for a native Italian speaker to speak a good Brazilian Portuguese: it is close enough that it doesn't take too long to grow a vocabulary, but it is different enough to lead one to make the necessary effort to actually learn. The latter does not happen with Spanish more often than not (many Italians seem to think of this as "Italian words + s at the end). Speaking of Brazil... This TL will be Italo-centric, but of course the situation in Italy will affect the world. I had a particular consequence for Brazil in mind...
Oh, me likey! I hope Francesco Matarazzo or someone similar shows up.
 
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