150 Years of Italian National Unity | (dot)history
(dot)history | A space by MANUEL D’ELIA
On the morning of September 20, 1870, the Royal Italian Army’s artillery broke through the millennial Aurelian Wall, erected for protection of the Eternal City, a medieval symbol of inviolability of the Papacy. Consequent upon the defeat of Napoleon III at the battle of Sedan, the Pontifical State lost French protection that had allowed the continuance of Papal power over Rome, despite the birth of the Kingdom of Italy in 1861. Eventually, Pope’s temporal power ended and Rome became the capital of Italy. The “Roman Question”, which represented the opposition of Italian Catholics due to the offences against the Papacy, would have affected the political life of the young Kingdom until 1929, when the Lateran Treaties fostered by the Fascist regime allowed the resumption of friendly relations between the Kingdom of Italy and the Holy See.
