Vincenzo Gioberti : the spokesman for moral primacy of Italy

Bibliogr. s. 26

The article presents the idea of moral and civic primacy of Italy, developed by Vincenzo Gioberti (1801-1852) in the years 1843-1851. Gioberti's political thought was based essentially on five assumptions: 1) the idea of the special role played by Italy in the development of European civilization, 2) the concept of Catholicism as the foundation of Italian civilization 3) the representative monarchy 4) the confederation, replaced by the idea of a united state under the rule of the House of Savoy, and 5) the fight against Jesuits. The concept of moral and civic primacy of Italy, which is the essence of Gioberti's thought, is based on a belief that over the centuries Italy played a crucial role in the history of European civilization, because of the genius of Italian artists, writers, philosophers, theologians and lawyers, the specific geographical location of the Apennine Peninsula, which is the capital of Christianity, and because of the Italian ability to "rebirth" after centuries of decline. Combining the idea of primacy with Catholicism, Gioberti noticed that Italy lost its cultural primacy when it moved away from the Christian faith. At the same time he was against imitating the French cultural and political patterns. Initially, he was convinced that Italy will be able to regain political independence by creating a federation of countries under the leadership of the Pope, basing on the military power of Piedmont. Around 1851, as a result of his disappointment with the effects of the first independence war with Austria, the attitude of Pope Pius IX and King Charles Albert, Gioberti changed his mind and became a supporter of the idea of establishing a united Italian state under the rule of the House of Savoy and tied his hopes to King Victor Emmanuel and Prime Minister Camillo Benso di Cavour.