External powers were influential in Italy's move towards unification.

Mark scheme

Marking points from the official mark scheme (Oct/Nov 2022). The mark or mark type is shown in brackets.

1. [1] (a) The Austrians controlled Lombardy and Venetia.
2. [1] (a) The Habsburgs had married into the royal families of many central Italian states, such as Parma and Modena.
3. [1] (a) Prince Metternich opposed all forms of liberal and nationalistic expression.
4. [1] (a) Secret police hunted down opponents.
5. [1] (a) Newspapers were censored.
6. [1] (b) The war gained Piedmont international friends.
7. [1] (b) Cavour built up a relationship with Napoleon.
8. [1] (b) Piedmont went to the peace conference.
9. [1] (b) Piedmont felt it was owed a favour for supporting France.
10. [5] (b) The war enabled Cavour to work closely with Napoleon III and build up a relationship. Cavour hoped that France would help the Italian states to remove the Austrians from Italian land. The peace conference gave Cavour a seat at the table. It enabled him to hint that Piedmont deserved a reward for its support of the alliance.
11. [1] (c) The Austrians had a more professional army.
12. [1] (c) Radetzky was a very able commander.
13. [1] (c) The Austrian troops defected during the siege of Milan.
14. [1] (c) The Austrians were beaten at the Battle of Solferino.
15. [1] (c) Austria was defeated in the Austro-Prussian War and lost Venetia.
16. [1] (c) The truce agreed in 1859 breached what was agreed secretly by Napoleon III and Cavour at Plombières.
17. [1] (c) France helped to reduce Austrian influence.
18. [5] (c) Austria was a threat to unification since the Austrian forces were very professional and could call upon large numbers from their reserves held behind the Quadrilateral. The Austrian army was also well led by Radetzky, as shown at Custoza and Novara. However, the weakness of the Austrian army was seen in 1859 when they were defeated at the Battle of Solferino and this showed Austria was less of a threat. The combined armies of Piedmont and France ensured that Austria was forced to negotiate, allowing Lombardy to be annexed by Piedmont.
19. [5] (c) France could be seen as a threat to unification. Cavour felt he had been badly let down in 1859. He was also furious that he had not been consulted by Napoleon III over the ending of the war. He disliked the fact that Austria still controlled Venetia and was angry about arrangements in Tuscany, Modena and Parma where provisional governments had been set up. However, France had helped to reduce the influence of Austria in Italy. France also kept an army in Rome to protect the Pope's control over the Papal States.
20. [10] (c) Explanation of both sides (Level 4, 7-9 marks) with evaluation of 'how far' (Level 5, 10 marks).