The Florios of Sicily by Stefania Auci

Author:Stefania Auci
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2020-02-20T00:00:00+00:00

Part Five

Lace

July 1837 to May 1849

Unn’ è u’ piso và a balanza.

The scales go where the load is.

—SICILIAN PROVERB

In June 1837, the cholera epidemic that is sweeping across Europe reaches Sicily. The appalling hygiene conditions in which the majority of people live encourage the spread of the disease, which is eradicated only by early October. Contemporary testimonies mention 23,000 dead in Palermo alone.

The years between 1838 and 1847 are relatively quiet, and yet, from as early as 1847, various protests take place in Sicily, fomented by poverty, the constant surge for independence, and social conflicts. The repressive attitude of Ferdinand II stokes emotions and, on January 12, 1848, in Palermo, Giuseppe La Masa and Rosolino Pilo lead an insurrection against the Bourbons: Palermo is the first large city in Italy to declare its independence from the central power. The head of the revolutionary government is Admiral Ruggero Settimo, who, with the aid of aristocrats and the bourgeoisie, tries to involve the people in the decision-making process. Ferdinand grants the constitution, and almost all the other Italian states follow suit: on March 4, Carlo Alberto concedes the Albertine Statute; on March 17 it is the turn of Venice to rebel, and the following day, of Milan. Soon, this revolutionary momentum crosses the whole of Europe, including the Papal State: on November 24, Pope Pius IX is forced to flee to Gaeta. On February 9, 1849, the Roman Republic is born, ruled by a triumvirate (Carlo Armellini, Giuseppe Mazzini, and Aurelio Saffi).

Once again, however, all revolutionary movements are repressed. The fragmented nature of Sicilian politics soon becomes evident (Messina and Palermo are bitter enemies, for instance), as is the incompatibility of the sides at the root of the rebellion: while the aristocracy and the bourgeoisie wish to become wealthy (by taking over the property of the Church), the people hope for a redistribution of the land. In May 1849, weakened and pursued by Bourbon troops, the revolutionary administration decides to surrender. Ferdinand II shows mercy: he does not sentence the leaders of the revolt to death but, instead, sends them into exile. Moreover, he grants a royal pardon to supporters of the rebellion.

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