Answer:
We
will focus on the development of the German and Italian nation-states in the
19th century, considering the following points
(i) Political Fragmentation Till the middle of the 19th century,
the present-day states of Germany and Italy were fragmented into separate
regions and kingdoms ruled by different Princely Houses.
(ii) Revolutionary Uprisings 19th century Europe was
characterised by both popular uprisings of the masses and revolutions led by
the educated and liberal middle classes.
In the case of the German people, the middle classes
belonging to different German regions came together to form an all German
National
Assembly in 1848. However, on facing opposition from the
aristocracy and military and on losing its mass support base, it was forced to
disband.
In the Italian region, during the 1830s, revolutionaries
like Giuseppe Mazzini tried to establish an Italian Republic. However, the revolutionary
uprisings of 1831 and 1848 failed to unite Italy.
(iii) Unification with the Help of the Army After
the failure of the revolutions, the process of unification was pursued by the
aristocracy and the army in both these nations.
Germany was united by the Prussian Chief Minister Otto von
Bismarck with the help of the Prussian Army and bureaucracy. Prussia fought three
wars with Anotria, Denmark and France over seven years and won. It completed
the process of unification. Finally, the German empire was proclaimed in 1871.
The Italian state of Sardinia-Piedmont played the role of
uniting Italy, similar to that played by Prussia in the case of Germany. Count
Camilo de Cavour (the Chief Minister of Sardinia-Piedmont) led the movement to
unite the separate states of 19th century Italy with the help of the army and an
alliance with France.
The regions annexed by Giuseppe Garibaldi and his Red
Shirts joined with the Northern regions to form a united Italy in 1861. The
Papal states joined it in 1870.
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