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Narrative Interlude #2: What dreams may come...
Narrative Interlude: What dreams may come…

“To die, to sleep – to sleep, perchance to dream – ay, there’s the rub, for in this sleep of death what dreams may come…”
Charles Albert could not help but repeating to himself those immortal words while he could not get himself to sleep. Villa Pindemonte, his son’s makeshift headquarters nearby Verona(1), was bursting with night activity, mainly couriers coming in and out, but this had nothing to do with his insomnia, which was about…everything. Goito. Goito. Goito. He had read the reports, listened avidly to the accounts of his son and heir, of his son-in-law, of the other officers, and yet… It had to be true: he had met with Radetzki, after all. But how did it come to happen? This question burned down deep within his soul. This question he had asked to his son, and not just one time, during their long afternoon meeting. Ferdinand, with his usual clarity of mind, had brilliantly explained his tactic, his gamble, his reasons, his plans for the future, but yet… He guessed that one must live some realities to grasp them, and not depend on someone else’s account. But aspects of this new reality were there for everyone to see. A king, one of those kings from the tales of ancient times, the kings whose touch could heal and whose sword could summon spring in the middle of winter, had taken his beloved son’s place. Was this what victors looked like? Or was this an after-effect of bravery? No, it could not be just that. In his own life, he had been a coward Regent and a brave soldier (2), and the latter had hardly made up for the former. Be as it may, the real problems lay ahead. What would come next? Ferdinand seemed to have clear goals in mind. Some he could agree with, some others he could barely understand, one or two were utterly alien. He sent several silent prayers to the Almighty, for guidance, for a sign. And then, as in answer to his prayers, a voice in his head started to whisper. “Abdicate… or not to abdicate, that is the question.”(3) He could feel a reproach in this whisper, but also see the truth in it. There was a kind of flash… and suddenly he was on a battlefield, sitting on his horse, impatient. Why were his orders not being carried out as swiftly as he wished? They needed to break the Austrian line! And then… the charge of the Carabinieri, and he with his general staff joining, victory shining in the faces of everyone, the Austrians retreating, breaking, fleeing, and then… he could hear himself saying “Enough for today.”(4) No, you fool! Dare! Pursue… Do not hesitate. But he would not listen to himself. Defeat after defeat, unavoidable abdication, a bitter departure for exile. He summoned his son and heir, but… Who was this young man? Short, slightly plump, a slightly vacuous yet ferocious expression in his eyes….This was not Ferdinand! Another flash, and suddenly fire broke out, consuming the man who said he was his son… Another shift, another change of place: it was a nursery now. A cradle, a healthy baby sleeping under the curtains, breathing regularly, peacefully. Charles Albert went to look at him. A handsome toddler, a boy, ripe with potential, full of expectations ,of happiness. He could be anything, become anything… And then the fire flared up, again. Charles Albert screamed, reaching for the boy, trying to save him. He grasped him with his left arm, and suddenly he felt pain. In his arm, in his chest… The smoke would not let him breathe. He went, looking for a door, but no door was to be found, nor a window. Filled with desperation, he sat on the floor, hugging the boy, trying to protect him from the heat, the flames, the smoke…. They were doomed. He had failed. He closed his eyes, kissing the child’s front. And then… A fresh touch on his left shoulder. A hand! He opened his eyes, and he saw Ferdinand in front of him, his usual shy half-smile on his face. Ferdinand touched his arm, and the pain eased. His arm… the child! The boy had disappeared. He was lost for words. Ferdinand took his hand and helped him to stand. Never before had they been so close. Silently, Ferdinand lead Charles Albert out of the room, through a door which had just appeared out of nowhere, and they were… Where? It looked like the Garden of Eden, or maybe the Arcadia of the ancient pagan poets. Beautiful trees, the greenest grass he had ever seen, the bluest sky on earth, birds singing. On and on would Ferdinand lead, until finally they reached a crossroad. From there, three roads would depart. “Where do we go, son?” he finally managed to ask. Smiling, Ferdinand would not respond: instead, he pointed to the middle road. Suddenly a lion roared not far away, but for some reason there was no threat, no challenge: it was a welcome, a greeting, a promise for the future. Everything became clear, all at once, and finally Charles Albert understood. Without further hesitation, he stepped on the middle road, murmuring “So be it”.
He woke up soaked in cold sweat, his arm and chest sore with pain. But he knew what to do now. He called for a doctor and his confessor. He prayed and confessed for over an hour, and only then called for his son. Ferdinand rushed to his side, worry evident on his face. Charles Albert asked him to kneel beside his bed. Ferdinand obeyed, a strange, knowing look in his eyes.
“Now rise, Ferdinand of House Savoy, Lieutenant of the Kingdom and Supreme Commander of the Army”.
Ferdinand arose, and stood at attention, before giving his father a crisp military salute and replying: “Obbedisco”. (5)

Footnotes
  1. A beautiful residence in Isola della Scala, nearby Verona
  2. A reference to his courageous behavior at the battle of Trocadero in 1823
  3. Yes, we are taking the “Italian Hamlet” thing this far
  4. This part of the dream is a short account of OTL charge of Pastrengo, after which the charge of the Carabinieri and Henri in TTL Goito is modeled
  5. Wouldn’t be an Italian TL without this reference, would it?
OOC disclaimer: Chapter Written four-handed by Tarabas and @LordKalvan
 
I guess the war is practically over, then?
Well, Goito was a devastating blow to the Austrians: the bulk of their presence in Lombardy-Venetia is now effectively reduced to the garrisons of the fortresses of the Quadrilatero, and Radetzki is a (well-treated) prisoner in Sardinia hands. Metternich has resigned on March the 15th (as OTL), so the only hopes of an Imperial comeback rely on Nugent, which barely has had the time to think. We will cover the situation in Veneto partially in the next chapter and more thoroughly in the chapter coming after the next. Another thing to note is that, with CA out of the picture, Ferdinand has the prestige, the wit and the will to win the peace. So, to answer your question, I would say: the war is sort of practically over, but some surprises are coming...
 
They need to press the advantage and force the issue on Austria, before Russia arrive;
Yes, definitely. TTL is going much faster than OTL, and most of the players (Austria chief among them) have been caught unawares. Goito is a great capital Ferdinand has earned, but it is not enough.
 
Narrative Interlude #3: A child no more
25 March 1848, Turin
Maria Cristina of Savoy-Carignano, duchess of Genova, was eagerly reading all newspapers she could find which gave detailed accounts of the battle of Goito. She was a bit disheveled, her slim fingers smeared with ink, her face and neck flushed, and, surprisingly enough for anyone who knew her, there was a glint of moisture in her eyes. She was filled with pride, no doubt about that: pride for the achievements of her brother, pride for the courage demonstrated by her beloved Henri, the French dashing knight who had appeared at the court of Turin 4 years ago to sweep her of her feet and teach her the meaning of love. There was also worry, though, eating away at the edges of her pride: everything had gone well at Goito, Ferdinand and Henry had crushed the Austrian army, and both of them had come out of the battle unscathed, but there would be other battles and other dangers. Maria Cristina took a deep breath, her decision was made: "Letizia (1), I am tired to be stuck in Turin while everyone else is away working marvels. I want to go to Goito, see my husband and my brother, visit the soldiers who have been wounded in the battle. I want to be in the center of things! Please talk to my majordomo and ask him to make all necessary arrangements" in haste: I want to leave tomorrow, and without a large retinue. We have to travel as quickly as my brother did!"
She felt better now that she had reached a decision. After wiping her ink-stained fingers with a wet cloth, she lighted a cigarette and started to write: a letter to Henri and another one to Ferdinand; her father too deserved a letter of praise, but she wouldn't say anything about her decision to travel: father was quite often unwilling to accept that she was no more a child.

(1) Letizia Taffini, countess of Savigliano and Acceglio. Best friend and chief lady-in-waiting for Maria Cristina

Made in @LordKalvan
 
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Narrative Interlude #4: Faber homo quisque fortunae suae
Narrative Interlude: Faber homo quisque fortunae suae

April 3rd, 1848, Villa Pindemonte, Isola Della Scala (outskirts of Verona)

Ferdinand was sitting at his desk, concentrated on the mechanics' problem on the paper in front of him. He was pleased with his solution: it was rather elegant, beautiful because it was simple. Many problems, in mathematics or real life, appeared like conundrums, and most people seemed to believe that complicated problems required complicated solutions. Ferdinando had a different approach: complicated problems admitted simple solutions. It was only a matter to look at a problem in the right way, that was the complicated part.
A knock on his office’s door woke him from his mathematical divertissement. “Let him in”, he said. A slightly portly, well-dressed man , some ten years his elder, entered the room, bowed somewhat clumsily, and said: “Your Supremacycy.”
Ferdinand burst into laughter, a rare thing to see.
“Camillo, I have been missing your sharp tongue so much.” He could not help but think that he was one of the three people in the world with whom he could still be Ferdinand. Not the Crown Prince, the hero of Goito, the new Scipio, the Italian David, the Prince of the Italians, the eagle-slayer, or whatever the pen of the journalists or the people’s imagination would call him; simply Ferdinand, a twenty-five-years old who loved mathematics, his wife, and all his children, alive or not.(1)
Camillo smiled in return; without being invited, he took a seat.
“My earnest apologies; I was unsure of the etiquette. “Your Highness” did not seem enough, “Your Majesty” premature, so…”
“I guess “Ferdinand” will do for this meeting, my friend. Have you seen Augusto?”
“I have. I am so proud of my nephew, he hardly seems to be my brother’s offspring. He’s so young, so eager, so brave… I asked him why he left his position to take part in the charge. He simply said: “I wanted to do my part, Uncle”(2)
“And sure he did. Besides, I promoted him to full lieutenant, awarded him a citation and made him one of my aides for his service at Goito.”
“Thank you. He is most happy about this, but feels that it is too much for just doing his duty.”
“So, my dearest Count of Cavour, what brings you to Isola Della Scala, besides your nephew?”
“A rather dull question from the smartest person I know. I want to do my part too, it should be obvious. As far as daring cavalry charges or genius tactical moves go, I might be of little use, but…”
Ferdinand smiled again. It was so like Camillo to make a stingy remark followed by a compliment like that, always with a hint of irony when he was trying hard to be gentle. God bless that Grand Tour in London who had permitted their friendship, away from Father’s dislike for Camillo, whose fault had been to be… honest. Rudely honest, maybe, but truly those page uniforms made the poor youngsters who had to wear them look like lobsters, after all. (3) He had had the same thought, but never dared to speak his mind. A two-edged sword, but a sword he was more than eager to yield: he could always rely on Camillo to give good advice, but also to sharply point out any blunder he might be commit in the future.
“Do not worry about that. The war is as good as over, but the road to the peace is still murky: I need to win the peace now and for that I need you to be my very own Bersagliere, armed with the heart of a lion and the cunning of a fox.”
“Your Lieutenancy flatters me. It is an honor; I am yours to command.”
“As though if anyone could believe that.”
“You know me too well, but I guarantee you will not be displeased by the results I will get in Paris and London.”
This was one the best things about Camillo, Ferdinand thought: he was always one or two steps ahead. Still, he decided to play a little game.
“What makes you think I want you there?” He donned his usual half-smile. Camillo stood up and started to talk while slowly pacing around.
“It is just an educated guess based on the current situation, but I am quite confident in my analysis.” A dramatic pause, before continuing. Ferdinand did not say anything; he simply nodded, curious to see if his friend’s analysis agreed with his own.
“This war has three fronts, and you are currently in full control of only one of those: the military. If my appraisal is correct, you are blockading Verona, the only fortress with some meaningful Austrian forces to speak of, and you sent Alfonso Lamarmora with a mixed force of regulars and volunteers towards Trento, and beyond if it is feasible. I am not confident enough of my information on the situation in Veneto: I understand that all the main cities have successfully insurrected, and there are no significant Austrian forces in the field. I guess you will press your advantage further. As far as you can, and even a little more, I would say.”
“That is correct. I will tell you more about the situation in Veneto, and beyond: my visit to Venice has produced unexpected but very welcome results. Go on with your analysis.”
“On to the political theatre then: the hands of the Austrians are tied, and they have plenty internal troubles of their own: Metternich has resigned, Vienna and Prague are still controlled by the insurgents. Then there are the.. Italians. There are Provisional Governments in the duchies and the rulers of Parma and Modena have left their states. Piacenza has already petitioned the king for annexation to Sardinia. The Legations are stable for now, the Cardinal Legate is a canny man, who has not antagonized the liberals, although there are reports of unrest in Romagna. The Pope has sent troops to help in the war, they should be in Ferrara by now, but I had a confidential report from a friend in Rome: there may be trouble there pretty soon, and the interests of the Pope may not be well aligned with ours. The Grand Duke of Tuscany is a canny old fox, or maybe he simply has not yet decided where to jump: I'd go as far as to say that after Goito he has to make a decision, just straddling the fence is no more of an option for him. Ferdinand of Two Sicilies is a fat snake with a forked tongue: I understand that there are no news of the arrival of the Neapolitan troops he promised, and I'd not be surprised if their departure hasn't happened yet. Good riddance, I never had any confidence in him. The real problem is that rising in rebellion to get rid of the Austrians and to obtain a constitution is fine and dandy, but what shall they do when the dust settles? Be annexed by the Kingdom of Sardinia? Become part of a Confederation led by the Pope, as that fool Gioberti dreams? Heck, there are even some crazy radical republicans who would get rid of all of us to create a federal republic! (4)”
“And wouldn’t you be of use to solve this conundrum?”
“Oh, I would and I will. But before that, there is the third front: the international stage. We need to win allies there before even dreaming of deciding what to do with… whatever this peninsula may become. The German states are a hot mess, Prussia has plenty of its own problems, Russia is too far away, and Spain is just… Spain. This leaves us with France, which is likely to become a republic again, and Great Britain, the only one who seems untouched by unrest or revolution. These two might help us, more the latter than the former, I would say. But things change by the week if not by the day in our modern times. I will need to gather information in Geneva, before going to Paris and London. I love to gamble, most of the time I win, but sometimes I lose. This is going to be a game with very high stakes, not at all a game I intend to loose”
Ferdinand rose, and almost clapped his hands in admiration. That was just perfect, as he expected.
“And loose you will not, but I’d rather have you stay awhile here before leaving for foreign countries. We need to choose one of a hundred different plans.”
“And be ready to tear it apart and improvise if need be.”
“Let’s just hope we won’t need to improvise too much. I have been a gambler only once in my life, and I was lucky; it is statistically unlikely I will be so lucky twice. Pour us some brandy, Camillo"
“What are toasting to, my Prince?”
“To perfect planning and to intelligent improvisation.”
“And, if I may, to Fortune, who helps the daring ones.”
Fortuna audaces iuvat, Ferdinand thought, but above all, wasn’t “Faber homo quisque Fortunae suae?”(5)

Footnotes
  1. As of 1848, Ferdinand has had Umberto (b. 1841), Vittoria (b. 1843), Maria Cristina (b. 1845) and Margherita (1847, died in childbirth)
  2. OTL, Augusto Cavour said these words to his grand-grandmother when asked why he was so eager to go to war
  3. This is OTL
  4. A reference to the Milanese patriot and writer Carlo Cattaneo
  5. Latin for “each man is the maker of his fortune”
Made in Tarabas & @LordKalvan
 
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A reference to the Milanese patriot and writer Carlo Cattaneo

...that would've been content to keep being a Habsburg subject, if only Vienna hadn't been so completely opposed to any kind of autonomy or democracy. If Ferdinand will be able to address Cattaneo's main worries (namely, the thought of having the relatively liberal and very wealthy Lombardy ruled by people he thought were just a step above the Bourbons and a step below the Habsburgs) I think he could eventually turn into a key member of his government.

His Milanese peer Giuseppe Ferrari might be a bit too radical for the political scene of a constitutional monarchy, and Pisacane is not going to spend the last years of his life in Rome, either, but that'd be a start. :p
 
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...that would've been content to keep being a Habsburg subject, if only Vienna hadn't been so completely opposed to any kind of autonomy or democracy, If Ferdinand will be able to address Cattaneo's main worries (namely, the thought of having the relatively liberal and very wealthy Lombardy ruled by people he thought were just a step above the Bourbons and a step below the Habsburgs) I think he could eventually turn into a key member of his government.

His Milanese peer Giuseppe Ferrari might be a bit too radical for the political scene of a constitutional monarchy, and Pisacane is not going to spend the last years of his life in Rome, either, but that'd be a start. :p
Thanks for your comment! It is really spot on. TTL events have already started to give Cattaneo a different view of Ferdinand, if not of the Savoy family as a whole. After all, there have been substantial Piedmontese help in the 5 days of Milan, and Ferdinand has not asked for anything in return (different from the bargaining CA did in OTL),; instead, he rushed off to beat Radetzki. Without spoiling too much, let's just say that the "visit to Venice" Ferdinand mentions in the last update (and that will be covered in the next one) will change Cattaneo's views even more. ;)
 
...that would've been content to keep being a Habsburg subject, if only Vienna hadn't been so completely opposed to any kind of autonomy or democracy, If Ferdinand will be able to address Cattaneo's main worries (namely, the thought of having the relatively liberal and very wealthy Lombardy ruled by people he thought were just a step above the Bourbons and a step below the Habsburgs) I think he could eventually turn into a key member of his government.

His Milanese peer Giuseppe Ferrari might be a bit too radical for the political scene of a constitutional monarchy, and Pisacane is not going to spend the last years of his life in Rome, either, but that'd be a start. :p
I would point out that Cattaneo's idea of paradise would have been a world where Lombardy was part of the Swiss Confederation, but that was a dream which might never eventuate.
The delusion that the Habsburg monarchy might reform was a fallacy which infected quite a number of the Italian patriots (Daniele Manin with his "revolution within the law" was another subscriber to this fallacy). In the real world, the kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia was the fiscal cash-cow of the Habsburgs, as well as a captive market, and their behavior between the Congress of Vienna and the 2nd War of Italian Independence was always coherent with this assumption. Even when an almost decent viceroy (archduke Rainier) tried to convince Vienna to relent and to allow measures to improve the economy of the kingdom, his suggestions were always turned down (it was a pretty myopic policy, since a prosperous Lombardy-Venetia would have been more beneficial to the empire, but then post-Napoleonic Austria had a kind of unofficial motto: "the empire stands on four pillars: standing army of soldiers, a sitting army of bureaucrats, a kneeling army of priests, and a sneaking army of snitches", there was no mention of entrepreneurs, artisans or peasants).

This said, I've always been ready to point out that the Savoia never produced great rulers, in particular in modern times, and that the idea of turning all of Italy into a Greater Piedmont proved their complete ignorance of reality, but that is a horse of another colour, and has nothing to do with this specific TL.
Respecting Tarabas's unwillingness to anticipate the development of this story, I will not go into details: suffice to say that in TTL both Cattaneo and Ferrari are likely to be happier campers (for a given value of "happier", mind ;) )
 
I would point out that Cattaneo's idea of paradise would have been a world where Lombardy was part of the Swiss Confederation, but that was a dream which might never eventuate.
The delusion that the Habsburg monarchy might reform was a fallacy which infected quite a number of the Italian patriots (Daniele Manin with his "revolution within the law" was another subscriber to this fallacy). In the real world, the kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia was the fiscal cash-cow of the Habsburgs, as well as a captive market, and their behavior between the Congress of Vienna and the 2nd War of Italian Independence was always coherent with this assumption. Even when an almost decent viceroy (archduke Rainier) tried to convince Vienna to relent and to allow measures to improve the economy of the kingdom, his suggestions were always turned down (it was a pretty myopic policy, since a prosperous Lombardy-Venetia would have been more beneficial to the empire, but then post-Napoleonic Austria had a kind of unofficial motto: "the empire stands on four pillars: standing army of soldiers, a sitting army of bureaucrats, a kneeling army of priests, and a sneaking army of snitches", there was no mention of entrepreneurs, artisans or peasants).

This said, I've always been ready to point out that the Savoia never produced great rulers, in particular in modern times, and that the idea of turning all of Italy into a Greater Piedmont proved their complete ignorance of reality, but that is a horse of another colour, and has nothing to do with this specific TL.
Respecting Tarabas's unwillingness to anticipate the development of this story, I will not go into details: suffice to say that in TTL both Cattaneo and Ferrari are likely to be happier campers (for a given value of "happier", mind ;) )
Agreed. Just to keep on the "won't spoil too much policiy", let me just say that one of the aspects of this TL which were not prominent at the beginning but are becoming more important by the chapters (as I always like to say, a story gets a life of its own) is to give a greater role to people that OTL had a great potential but relatively small impact on the Risorgimento.
 
@Tarabas I just found out this amazing story, and I can just say that you (with help of @LordKalvan) have create a TL that I, as an Italian, just can't help but love!!! Outstanding job man!!! I can't wait for the next chapter 😆😆😆
 
@Tarabas I just found out this amazing story, and I can just say that you (with help of @LordKalvan) have create a TL that I, as an Italian, just can't help but love!!! Outstanding job man!!! I can't wait for the next chapter 😆😆😆
Thank you so much for your comment! Glad you like our story. So, from a fellow Italian to another, "Benvenuto a bordo!" Any comment, question, remark, insight, criticism of yours is most welcome!
 
Narrative Interlude #5: A regular Prime Minister's Tuesday
Interlude
Torino, 29 March 1848


Count Cesare Balbo, Prime Minister of the kingdom of Sardinia, rubbed his tired eyes and sighed: the days of a prime minister were always busy, but today had broken all previous records. Truth to be told, records did not last long those days. His thirteen-day-long tenure as PM had seen nothing but insurrections all over Italy, Goito... And now, the day had opened with the news that the Duchess of Genova had suddenly decided she had to go to Isola della Scala: it would have been a reasonable request in normal times, after all her father, her brother and her husband were there. However, there was a war in progress, and Verona was still held by Austrian troops. The duchess had not been receptive to any advice: she had to go to "the center of the things", as she put it, and the prime minister could not change her mind in any way. In the end, he was forced to agree: he couldn't have her arrested, could he? She would have found a way to escape anyway, probably convincing the ones sent to arrest her to escort her to Isola. Princesses and Princes of these modern times were made of a strange stuff, no doubt about it. Then there was the appointment with the French charge' d'affaires (the French Provisional Government had not yet appointed a new minister at Turin): the French diplomat wanted to deliver a letter from La Martine, the French minister for Foreign Affairs. Stripped of diplomatic niceties, the letter was just stating that France was friendly, and would the kingdom of Sardinia please tell us which are their goals in the war against Austria? An hour wasted for no result.
Count Cesare had barely the time to start sorting his latest correspondence, when came the request of the British Minister in Turin for an urgent meeting. The Hon. Ralph Abercromby was a polished career diplomat, had been in Turin for 8 years and had generally been quite friendly, so time had to be made for him. When the minister arrived, his request was a curious one: he wanted to travel to the war front, and appraise himself of the situation. Why would an ambassador make such a strange request? If he wanted first hand information, he could well send his military attache' rather than travelling for 200 km himself. Still, asking for an explanation would have been very gauche. He had to agree, but he could take back something for his side by suggesting that the ambassador could travel with the retinue of the duchess of Genova, who was departing for Isola della Scala on that very same day. The ambassador looked very pleased, and was quick to accept. The Prime Minister couldn't but think that something else was afoot: which was the real reason for this extended trip?
After the departure of the British minister, Count Cesare had a couple of hours to read most of the dispatches on his desk: the war was going good, more supplies were required for the army (another headache, the treasury was not as full as it should have been), prince Ferdinand had left for Venice (a very bold move, but was it truly necessary? Wasn't, say, Milan a far more pressing issue?) and the king asked him to appoint someone to travel to the duchies of Parma and Modena, and produce a report on the situation there. Now, Balbo was pretty in agreement with this last directive: according to his information, the duke of Modena had bolted like a hare as soon as the news of Milan's insurrection had reached Modena, and by this time he was probably in Austria; the situation in the duchy of Parma was somehow more confused, though. Apparently, both Piacenza and Parma had gone up in insurrection, Charles III had appointed a council of regency, but it had folded in a couple of days. There was a provisional government in Parma, while Piacenza had petitioned for annexation to the kingdom of Sardinia: this was good news, Piacenza had been a goal of the Savoy for quite a long time. Curiously, the duke was still in Parma, although he was stripped of all power, but his son and heir had left Parma with a retinue of 500 lancers "to go to the war". The Prime Minister couldn't refrain from asking himself: "On which side?". Sending someone to assess the situation first hand was a very good idea, and he knew exactly who should be sent: General Menabrea, a reliable and practical man who could be relied upon not to indulge to flight of fancy,and a close and estimeed collaborator of Prince Ferdinand. He paused to admit to himself that he would not have cared that much about Menabrea's latter quality a mere three days ago; things were escalating fast, really fast. As if all the events of the day had not been enough, Count Balbo had not yet finished congratulating himself for finding a good solution to a reasonable problem that a page entered his room:
"Your Excellency, the Apostolic Nuncio has requested an urgent meeting"
"Did he suggest a time and date?"
"Your Excellency, he is just outside, waiting to enter."

Count Balbo paled a bit: why such an urgent meeting? What might have happened? Bishop Antonucci was as a rule quite a reasonable and pleasant man, barring only his close friendship with Count Solaro della Margarita (1).
"Ask him to enter, I am at his immediate disposal".

Count Balbo rose from his chair and went toward the door to greet the Apostolic Nuncio, bending to kiss his proffered ring.
"How can I be of service, Your Eminence?"
The Nuncio's face was pinched, and a mixture of worry and anger lurked in his eyes. He sat on a chair, before answering the Prime Minister:
"Count Balbo, I've been instructed to signify to you the concern of His Holiness and the Curia with the current events in Northern Italy.
The Pope has been greatly saddened by the news of the bloody battle which happened at Goito just a few days ago. Cardinal Antonelli (2) has, with much regret, decided to resign from his position as Secretary of State, feeling he cannot in good conscience condone the slaughter of Catholic soldiers by equally catholic soldiers, the more so since this is not simply a war between secular rulers, but it is becoming more and more a vicious attack against Throne and Altar. His Holiness is praying and fasting, asking God for guidance. The Secretary of State ad interim, card. Orioli, has instructed general Durando not to cross into Veneto for the time being."
"Your Eminence, that is dire news for my kingdom. His Holiness blessed himself the troops departing Rome for northern Italy and my own king went to war for Italian freedoms comforted by His Holiness support. The war is not yet over, and I know that my king is relying on the support of other Italian states, and most of all on the blessing and the benevolence of His Holiness to bring the war to a successful conclusion."
"Your King... and your Prince, will have to wait with patience for His Holiness to come to a deliberation. I'm afraid there is more, though, Mr. Prime Minister: we have information that a Sardinian subject, Massimo d'Azeglio (3), has travelled to Romagna, in order to foment again unholy rebellion against the rule of the Holy Father. Do you have any knowledge of this?
"Your Eminence, Massimo d'Azeglio has been fighting against the Austrians, he was at Goito."
"That is as it may be, Prime Minister. I will come back to visit you soon. In the meantime remember that His Holiness is the spiritual father of all the Catholics."

After the departure of the Nuncio, the Count sat at his desk for a few minutes, thinking about these late developments. The Nuncio had certainly received instructions from Rome to deliver a clear message: the Pope was reconsidering his support to the Italian cause, and strong pressures from Austria were certain to be behind this wavering. Politics, not faith or horror for the bloodshed were behind it: Cesare Balbo was a good catholic, but he had also to live for the last 15 years in a Piedmont were the Societa' dell'Amicizia Cattolica (4) had been a power to be very wary of. Luckily the Societa' had lost the support of the king 3 years ago, and count Solaro della Margarita (the great and good friend of the Nuncio) had lost his dominant position in the cabinet, and had been forced to retire, but they were still a significant player in the political game, and Solaro was their public face, a magnet for all the reactionaries of the deepest die. The king and prince Ferdinand had to be forewarned immediately of this development, the prince more than the king; there was something in the way the Nuncio had said the word "Prince" that gave the Count a weird feeling. "The Altar is in no position to lecture the Throne" would have been a fit answer, but of course he had to bit that back. Wearily, Count Balbo started writing a precis of today's events, then he called his confidential secretary: "Put this in code, and send it by telegraph. Maximum priority, for the eyes of the king and the prince only. Send also a footman to gen. Menabrea: I need to see him immediately".
Waiting for the general, Cesare Balbo allowed himself a little smile: his denial to know anything about the presence or not of d'Azeglio in Romagna had been perfectly parsed. The only annoying thing was that he truly had no idea why the British Minister wanted to go to Veneto.

Footnotes
  1. Count Clemente Solaro della Margarita was a reactionary aristocrat with some very strong character traits: intolerance for opinions which were not in agreement with his own, absolute fealty to the Catholic church, both in spiritual and temporal terms, confidence in knowing the only and one truth, absolute rigidity in judgments. He had been Sardinian minister in Spain during the civil war against the Carlists (whom he obviously favored), and he had always (although unofficially) taken care of the interests of the Holy See, even when they were at cross purposes with the Sardinian interests. He was recalled from Spain in 1837, to avoid a humiliating diplomatic incident with the Spanish loyalist government, but instead of being disciplined he was appointed to the king's cabinet as minister for foreign affairs and soon became the dominant voice in the government and openly supported the Carlists in Spain and the conservative cantons in the Swiss civil war, not just diplomatically but also with money and weapons. He also gained control of internal censorship, and set up a secret police to investigate potential "dissidents" (among those, were Cesare Balbo, Massimo d'Azeglio and Cesare Alfieri). His power started to wane after loosing the king's support, and after the election of Pius IX was forced to retire. He remained however the public face and the outspoken advocate of clerical and reactionary interests until his death.
  2. Cardinal Deacon Antonelli (who never took holy orders) was appointed Secretary of State on 10 March 1848. IOTL he resigned on 4 May 1848, and was replaced by the cardinal Orioli mentioned here; ITTL his first tenure is even shorter (Austrian pressures and the battle of Goito fired up earlier the dissent in the Curia between liberals and conservatives) and his resignation is a political statement, not a moral one. IOTL, Antonelli was again appointed as Secretary of State on 29 November 1848, and served Pius IX uninterruptedly until his own death on 6 November 1876. Who knows what will be his future ITTL.
  3. Massimo d'Azeglio was another Piedmontese aristocrat, who for the first part of his adult life lived in Rome, Tuscany and Lombardy. A prolific and popular writer (quite a prolific author, his bestseller was the historical novel "The Challenge of Barletta" in the 1830s), married a daughter of Alessandro Manzoni. In 1845 he was in Romagna, when the insurrection of Rimini happened, and returning to Piedmont he wrote a pamphlet "What happened in Rimini" which had an enormous success among the liberals. In 1848 he enrolled in the army for the war: ITTL he does the same, fights at Goito with Ferdinand (but is not wounded like IOTL) and is then sent to Romagna to assess the political situation there
  4. The Societa' di Amicizia Cattolica (Catholic Friendship Society) was a secret society of hardliner Catholics established in Piedmont in 1817, under the overall control of the Jesuits. The aims of the society were to defend the Catholic faith, defend the interests and the privileges of the Church, defend the sanctity of the Throne and the Altar against liberals and Jacobins (and obviously support the members of the society in whatever open or covert way possible)
Made in @LordKalvan and Tarabas​
 
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I would point out that Cattaneo's idea of paradise would have been a world where Lombardy was part of the Swiss Confederation, but that was a dream which might never eventuate.

To be honest, that's a world many of us would find appealing today. :p

Still, when the subject territories of the Grisons in what is now the Province of Sondrio tried to ask for annexation into the Three Leagues as a fourth constituent league, their request was refused on the grounds that a Valtellina-based league would be as populous as the other three leagues put together, and the exact same scenario would probably play out with Lombardy and Switzerland as a whole.
Agreed. Just to keep on the "won't spoil too much policiy", let me just say that one of the aspects of this TL which were not prominent at the beginning but are becoming more important by the chapters (as I always like to say, a story gets a life of its own) is to give a greater role to people that OTL had a great potential but relatively small impact on the Risorgimento.
It's a damn shame, that out of the many possible ways the Risorgimento could've gone, we were stuck with the worst one - because the Savoyards ended up being even more inept, in some places, than the old monarchs, and the blatant favouritism of the upper classes towards the northwestern corner of the new country was not even an open secret, it was basically a fact.
 
It's a damn shame, that out of the many possible ways the Risorgimento could've gone, we were stuck with the worst one - because the Savoyards ended up being even more inept, in some places, than the old monarchs, and the blatant favouritism of the upper classes towards the northwestern corner of the new country was not even an open secret, it was basically a fact.
Yes, OTL history of the Risorgimento can be utterly frustrating, with so many "oh, nearly..." that make things evens worse. OTL First War of Independence had been nearly won, after all, and that per se would have been a huge boon to the Italian cause. The Second one is somehow even worse, with yhe most important players changing their mind on a dayly basis (yes, Nappy III, I am talking about you), no unity of intents (Cavour had an agenda, VEII another one, NIII had several)... Well, I will not talk about the Third and the Fourth (as sometimes the Great War is regarded) because then we enter the realm of utter incompetence and epic fails at having a functional chain of command. And this is just about the military part.
 
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