Why was rome the last country to unify with italy

A Dream to be Completed

The dream of a unified Italy seemed hopeless. All the efforts of the Carbonari, all the battles fought and the desire that the citizens had of living in a stable andunified nation were not enough; Rome was not part of Italy. Rome belonged to France, and the French Army was always supporting and protecting it. It was a very desired territory; it had the Vatican, thecoliseum, and other things of great value. If Rome was so important to Italy, why was it the last country to unify? And most importantly: How did the revolutionaries managed to do it?

As mentionedabove, the unification movement set its gaze on Rome. There were obstacles, though. The catholics did not like the possible attack against the pope’s territory, and French troops were stationed in Rome.Victor Emmanuel, king of Piedmont, was cautious of the possible international conflicts for attacking the Papal States, so he decided not to participate in battles.

Garibaldi, a nationalistrevolutionary hero, did not give up on conquering Rome and joined people to fight together. Garibaldi's force landed at Melito on August 14, and marched into the Calabrian mountains. The Italian government(Victor Emmanuel) disaproved, and the two forces met in the Aspromonte to fight. Meanwhile, Victor Emmanuel negotiated the removal of the French troops from Rome through a treaty with Napoleon III inSeptember 1864. The emperor agreed to take away the army in two years. The pope was to expand his own army during that time so as to be self-sufficient. In December 1866, the last of the French troopsdeparted from Rome. Italy was freed from the presence of foreign soldiers for the first time probably in a thousand years.

In 1870 the Franco-Prussian war started, and the French emperor NapoleonIII had to take his army out of Rome to fight leaving the Papal State unprotected. The pope did not want the Italian army inside Rome, the Italian army lead by Raffaele Cadorna, General of the army...