Niçard Vespers
 Giuseppe Garibaldi, a prominent Niçard Italian, who led the Niçard Vespers | |
| Date | from 8 to 10 February 1871 |
|---|---|
| Location | Nice,  France |
| Cause | annexation of the County of Nice to France and consequent policy of Francization of the territory and its inhabitants |
| Participants | Local ethnic Italians (Niçard Italians). |
| Outcome | defeat of the insurgents |
The Niçard Vespers (Italian: Vespri nizzardi [ˈvɛspri nitˈtsardi]) were three days of popular uprising of the inhabitants of Nice in 1871, promoted by Giuseppe Garibaldi in favor of the union of the County of Nice with the Kingdom of Italy.[1]
History
The part of the Niçard Italians who decided to stay was subjected to a strong attempt at Francization - rejected in those years by the Niçard Italians - which caused much resentment against the French. The Italian irredentists in Nice made themselves the spokesman for this rejection through their leader, Giuseppe Garibaldi from Nice.
[...] The professor Angelo Fenochio, former editor of the newspaper Il Nizzardo' published an indignant pamphlet, I Nizzardi e l'Italia, which stated that "the whole history of Nice is a protest against our separation from Italy, against our incorporation into France" and underlined the numerous manifestations of Italianness from Nice following the transfer. [...][2]
In 1871, with the proclamation of the French Third Republic, in the political elections held on 8 February, Giuseppe Garibaldi was elected to the National Assembly of Bordeaux, together with Luigi Piccon and Costantino Bergondi from Nice, with the specific mandate to abrogate the Treaty of Turin of 1860 with which the County of Nice had been ceded to Napoleon III.
In the political elections, the pro-Italian lists received 26,534 votes out of 29,428 votes cast.
[...] As soon as the result of the vote was known, an immense crowd left the town hall and with the cry of Viva Nizza, Viva Garibaldi, crossed the Ponte Nuovo, stopped in Piazza Massena, took Via Gioffredo, and stayed for a while in front of the Italian consulate and, retracing her steps, stood under the windows of the candidates who harangued the people, and were enthusiastically applauded. Around half past midnight the multitude, drunk with joy and enthusiasm for the victory obtained, was still walking the streets. [...][2]
In response, the French Republican government sent an army of 10,000 soldiers to Nice. They shut down the pro-Italian newspaper Il diritto and jailed many Italian irredentists in Nice.
Immediately the population of Nice reacted and from 8 to 10 February they rose up, but had the worst against the French army which appeased the revolt in blood. Many were imprisoned and wounded, according to the historian Giulio Vignoli. On February 13, 1871, the deputy Garibaldi was prevented from speaking before the National Assembly and presented his resignation.[3] The story of the Niçard Vespers of 1871 was told by Enrico Sappia in his book Nizza contemporanea, published in London and banned in France.[4]
[...] Enrico Sappia will remember that among the immense crowd that sang and praised Italy, there were those who carried a flag with the inscription INRI which meant "The Niçards will return Italians". While the crowd continued to shout: "Down with France! Long live Italy!", the gendarmes arrived and were unable to disperse it. The crowd shouting "Long live Italy" and "Long live Garibaldi" also tried to storm the prefecture whose windows were broken with stone throwing. Many arrests were made that same evening and the following morning. The publication of the newspaper La Voce di Nizza which had taken the place of Il Diritto di Nizza, suppressed by the French authorities, was prohibited. On February 19, a new newspaper Il Pensiero di Nizza came out which took over the political legacy of the first two. The riots of 8, 9 and 10 February, the three bellicose days, provided valid arguments and solid reasons for those who advocated a return of Nice to Italy, because they had good game in supporting the arbitrariness of French power . The Italian separatists took risks in the squares and streets of Nice to assert their ideas, taking many risks in the riots and challenging the authorities. [...][2]
After the Niçard Vespers of 1871, the irredentists who supported the Italian unification were expelled from Nice, completing the Niçard exodus. The most illustrious was Luciano Mereu, who was expelled from Nice with three other renowned Garibaldini from Nice: Adriano Gilli, Carlo Perino, and Alberto Cougnet.[5] Even the famous writer and art critic Giuseppe Bres was exiled by the French for a few years because of his participation at Niçard Vespers.
Subsequently and until the end of the century, in addition to the expulsion of various citizens of Nice who were moderately favorable to Italy and its unification, there was a further strong strengthening of the process of Frenchisation in all of the former County of Nice, with the closure of all the newspapers in Italian (such as the renowned La Voce di Nizza) and with the complete Frenchization of the toponyms of the County of Nice.
See also
References
- ^ Vespri Nizzardi, di Giuseppe Andre'
- ^ "Les troubles de fevrier 1871 à Nice" (in French). Retrieved 14 January 2023.
- ^ "Video with references to the Niçard Vespers and Enrico Sappia" (in Italian). Retrieved 14 January 2023.
- ^ Letter from Alberto Cougnet to Giuseppe Garibaldi, Genoa, December 7, 1867, Garibaldi Archive, Milan, C 2582