War of Independence
The Second Italian War of Independence ran from April 26 to July 12, 1859. The Kingdom of Sardinia (Piedmont-Sardinia) and France fought the Austrian Empire. Felice Orsini’s failed attempt on the life of Napoleon III in January 1858 increased his support for the Italian cause, and he met Cavour in secret at Plombières in July 1858. The two signed an alliance in January 1859. In return for French help, Sardinia would give up Savoy and Nice. Cavour provoked Austria with military moves near the border, and on April 23 Austria demanded that Sardinia demobilize. Sardinia refused, so Austria began the war on April 26.
On May 27, 1859, Giuseppe Garibaldi and his volunteers, the Cacciatori delle Alpi (i.e., Hunters of the Alps), defeated the Austrians at San Fermo, near Como, and forced them to leave the city. Angelo Trezzini was one of those volunteers, and he painted the battle in 1862. A few days later, on May 30 and 31, the Franco-Piedmontese forces won the Battle of Palestro. The King of Sardinia-Piedmont, Victor Emmanuel II, was there, and he took part in the charge of the French 3rd Zouaves.
The main battle was at Magenta on June 4, 1859. It was another victory for the French and the Piedmontese. Two painters made the battle famous. Giovanni Fattori painted The Italian Camp at the Battle of Magenta in 1862, after he won a competition for paintings of the war’s battles. Gerolamo Induno painted The Battle of Magenta in 1861, and it is said to have been commissioned by the King.
The French broke through at Solferino on June 24, and then Napoleon III agreed to the Armistice of Villafranca. As a result, Lombardy went to France, which gave it to Sardinia (except Mantua and Legnago). Cavour resigned in protest, because Venetia stayed Austrian. The central Italian states were annexed by Sardinia in March 1860, and two days later Savoy and Nice went to France.
Note
The stamps on the second row of this album page commemorate Italy’s Second War of Independence. I’ve been to Magenta a few times, once with my daughter when they had a reenactment of the Battle of Magenta in the center of town. The participants dressed in uniforms of the time. You can see some of my photographs of that day on my personal site (Magenta photos).
Contains 12 spots: own 12 – 12 unused, 0 used.
Page is finished.
Album or Web Page Last changed Jan 1, 2023
Stamp Details
The table below lists information about the stamps shown on this page of Lighthouse’s stamp album. For more details about a particular stamp, click on its description. That will take you to the related web page of Colnect.
spot |
own |
catalog |
subject |
description |
comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
✓ |
871 |
Intl. Labour Organization |
25₤ (jul 1959) |
||
✓ |
872 |
Intl. Labour Organization |
60₤ (jul 1959) |
||
✓ |
866 |
15₤ (jun 1959) |
Second War of Independence
✓ |
868 |
35₤ (jun 1959) |
|||
✓ |
867 |
25₤ (jun 1959) |
|||
✓ |
870 |
110₤ (jun 1959) |
|||
✓ |
869 |
60₤ (jun 1959) |
Centenary of First Stamps
✓ |
875 |
25₤ (sep 1959) |
|||
✓ |
876 |
60₤ (sep 1959) |
|||
✓ |
877 |
25₤ (sep 1959) |
|||
✓ |
878 |
60₤ (sep 1959) |
Stamp Day
✓ |
879 |
15₤ (dec 1959) |
Footnotes
Spot refers to the postion of the stamp on the album page (e.g., 3.2 indicates row 3, position 2).
Amt. is an abbreviation for the face amount of the stamp.
Own indicates the stamp status: ✓ for unused; ✗ for used or canceled; ⭑ signifies I ordered one; ; ✨ indicates it was bought recently; ✠ means an auction bid is pending; and ◎ is used, and it costs too much for unused.
To search by catalog number, go to the search box and enter it in the catalog number box. However, it’s a bit broken; I need to fix it.
