HS 317 - The Making of Modern Italy

(3.00 cr.)

Prerequisite: One HS 100-level course. Italy is now the seventh largest industrial power, but few people know that it has only been a country since 1861. Beginning with the fall of Rome, this course traces the story of Italy's development from a hodgepodge of kingdoms, fiefs, principalities, and oligarchic republics into a modern nation-state. Although it celebrates the achievements of Italy's civilization and culture, the course also takes a long look at some of the endemic problems of both the pre- and postunitary regimes. Particular attention is paid to the role of the Papacy in Italian affairs through the ages. The course ends with Italy's taking of Rome from the Papacy in 1870 and the attending opportunities and difficulties for the new nation. IC/II