Falecius mentions Francesco Crispi, and I think he bears a large part of the blame for the comparative weakness of Italy in the late 19th century.
Why? Well Crispi's obsessive Francophobia crippled Italy's economy at precisely the worst time, by destroying his relationship with his nation's largest trading partner. By secretly joining the Triple Alliance, he ensured that the French would be furious when the news inevitably leaked out- worse, it did so during the negotiations over a renewal of the Franco-Italian trade treaty, which he subsequently walked away from. Crispi's subsequent escalation of the crisis into a full-scale trade war, which lasted a decade, was catastrophic, and essentially destroyed all realistic hope Italy had of being a 'proper' Great Power.
In 1886, almost half of Italy's exports went to France, and the French were also the single largest importer. This trade relationship was destroyed practically overnight, and did not recover until after WW2- in 1913, the equivalent export figure is only 9%. The value of trade between France and Italy fell from 444m lire in 1887 to 165m lire in 1888.
This not only helped spur Italian emigration to the US (and for that matter, France), but it gutted the armed forces. In the 1880s, the Italians had a very modern and well-trained navy that was the equal of the French Mediterranean force if not slightly more powerful; by 1893 sailors were going without pay and the fleet was effectively left to rust. Lack of funds also contributed to the Adowa debacle.
Thanks to Crispi's demagogic, brutally ‘frank’ speeches, and his annual habit of orchstrating war scares, it was virtually impossible for the French Government to make concessions while he remained in power, even though he made some half-hearted efforts in that direction; he clung to office for just long enough to ensure the damage to Italy was permanent.
Why? Well Crispi's obsessive Francophobia crippled Italy's economy at precisely the worst time, by destroying his relationship with his nation's largest trading partner. By secretly joining the Triple Alliance, he ensured that the French would be furious when the news inevitably leaked out- worse, it did so during the negotiations over a renewal of the Franco-Italian trade treaty, which he subsequently walked away from. Crispi's subsequent escalation of the crisis into a full-scale trade war, which lasted a decade, was catastrophic, and essentially destroyed all realistic hope Italy had of being a 'proper' Great Power.
In 1886, almost half of Italy's exports went to France, and the French were also the single largest importer. This trade relationship was destroyed practically overnight, and did not recover until after WW2- in 1913, the equivalent export figure is only 9%. The value of trade between France and Italy fell from 444m lire in 1887 to 165m lire in 1888.
This not only helped spur Italian emigration to the US (and for that matter, France), but it gutted the armed forces. In the 1880s, the Italians had a very modern and well-trained navy that was the equal of the French Mediterranean force if not slightly more powerful; by 1893 sailors were going without pay and the fleet was effectively left to rust. Lack of funds also contributed to the Adowa debacle.
Thanks to Crispi's demagogic, brutally ‘frank’ speeches, and his annual habit of orchstrating war scares, it was virtually impossible for the French Government to make concessions while he remained in power, even though he made some half-hearted efforts in that direction; he clung to office for just long enough to ensure the damage to Italy was permanent.