FRQ 3/18

Contrast the political views, methods, successes, and failures of Cavour and Metternich.

Count Cavour, and Metternich were heroes of two fragmented nations. Cavour was instrumental in unifying Italy with an approach to make alliances with the strong, and to win by any means necessary. Metternich was a strong believer of equality, and realism making him a stereo-typical realpolitik. Realpolitiks based many of their ideas on the balance of power, and equality. Even though both men had reasonable policies, Count Cavour has to be seen as a better leader because of his unorthodox tactics, and the results that followed.

Count Cavour was appointed prime minister by Victor Immanuel. His job was to aid Victor in the unification of Italy. Before this, Italy was a fragmented nation that was controlled by the papacy. Italy had been divided by social barriers, the south being very poor, and the north being very wealthy. Victor Immanuel, the king of Piedmont had other ideas. He appointed Cavour to aid him in the unification. Cavour united most of the northern and middle states in Italy, but was encountered with other revolutionaries. He went to Austria for help, and Austria quelled the revolutionaries. However, Austria occupied Northern Italy. He appealed to France to fight Austria for them, and they won the northern provinces with the exception of Venitia. The southern territories were still shaky, so he brought back his former enemy, Garibaldi, to help him with southern Italy. Garibaldi united the south, and Sicily in the name of Victor Immanuel. Last, he ousted the French who had occupied Rome for years, and made Rome the capital.

Metternich preferred realism over ambition. Also, he based everything on equal rights. Metternich would not fight for a cause unless it involved equal rights for every citizen. Metternich's greatest success was the Congress of Vienna. He was a major diplomatic figure in the negotiations at the gathering. When he first started his career, the Napoleonic wars had just about ended. All that was left were the terms of defeat, which he negotiated. He was successful in ousting Napoleon from Europe, and quelling that threat from ever happening again, however he failed in preventing France from becoming that strong militarily again.

The political views of both men are similar, but different. Cavour wants the best for his people, however he still looks out for himself. Metternich's highest priority is equal rights and equal representation for his people. In the game of political advancement, Cavour played perfectly. He made alliances with strong countries in order to obtain that which he desired. He would stop at nothing, even appealing to his former enemies for help. Metternich had a realpolitik approach. He believed that republics and democracies were the best policies. He believed in a country run by representatives of the people, not a country with representatives for the people.

Both men had approaches that were acceptable for their situations. Cavour was the man responsible for the unification of Italy, stopping at nothing in order to do so. Metternich was a key figure in ending the reign of Napoleon Bonaparte, but failed to see that France would never rise to their previous military strength again. In the end, Cavour's policies were better. He achieved every goal he had if he had not exceeded them. He united Italy, and made some important alliances. Metternich made key alliances, but failed to see his goals fulfilled. The alliances made by both of these men would be very influential in World War I, as these alliances determined which side the future combatants would fight for.