385] THE REVIVAL OF THE PLEBISCITE IN ITALY 87 



government, strengthened her troops on the Piedmontese 

 frontier and sent an ultimatum demanding immediate dis- 

 armament. The Piedmontese reply was followed by a 

 declaration of war from Austria. The Italians under Em- 

 manuel and their French allies under Napoleon had won 

 decisive victories at Magenta, Melegnano, Solferino, and 

 San Martino, when, on the 8th of July, Napoleon met 

 Francis Joseph and, three days later, signed, unknown to 

 Cavour, the preliminaries of peace at Villaf ranca.-° " Aus- 

 tria was to cede Lombardy to Napoleon who was to relegate 

 it to Piedmont ; the Italian states were to be amalgamated 

 into a confederation under the presidency of the Pope, but 

 Venice, though forming part of this same confederation, 

 was to remain under Austrian rule."^^ Cavour opposed 

 these terms and resigned when Emmanuel affixed his name 

 to the treaty. 



Napoleon's sudden desertion of the Piedmontese cause 

 was due to his realization that the Italian states not only 

 desired to free themselves from Austrian interference and 

 sovereignty, but that they wanted unity under the House of 

 Savoy. This he desired to forestall — but in reality could 

 no longer do. " They had already decided to summon a 

 representative Assembly in each state [convened in August 

 and September], and the elections on a restricted franchise 

 in Tuscany and Romagna, on manhood suffrage in Modena 

 and Parma, had everywhere resulted in the triumph of the 

 nationalists. By unanimous votes (only three deputies were 

 absent in Tuscany and one in Romagna) the Assemblies 

 pronounced the downfall of the old governments and the 

 annexation of their states to the kingdom of Victor Em- 

 manuel. "^^ Even the final signing of the Treaty of Ziirich 

 on November lO of the same year (1859) between Pied- 

 mont and Austria, confirming Napoleon's scheme, did not 



2»0rsi, p. 263; Hertslet, vol. ii, pp. I374-I375- See also final 

 Peace Treaty of Zurich, Nov. 10, Hertslet, vol. ii, pp. 1380-1413. 



-'• Orsi, p. 263. 



-- Kiiij?, vol. ii, pp. 96-97; F. A. P. Diipanloup, La soiivcraiiiete 

 pontificalf, Paris, i860, pp. 370, 377-384; l-rcudeiitlial, pp. 9-H ; 

 Stoerk, pp. 125-IJ6. 



