Portrait of Leopold II

Leopold II (October 3, 1797 – January 29, 1870), of Habsburg-Lorraine, Grand Duke of Tuscany, Prince Imperial and Archduke of Austria, Prince Royal of Hungary and Bohemia. Image File history File links Leopoldo_II.jpg‎ Leopoldo II dAsburgo Lorena File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany ... Image File history File links Leopoldo_II.jpg‎ Leopoldo II dAsburgo Lorena File links The following pages on the English Wikipedia link to this file (pages on other projects are not listed): Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1797 (MDCCXCVII) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Wednesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... January 29 is the 29th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. ... 1870 (MDCCCLXX) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar or a common year starting on Monday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar. ... The title of Grand Duke (Latin, Magnus Dux; German, Großherzog, Russian, Великий князь) used in Slavic, Baltic, and Germanic countries, is ranked in honour below King but higher than a sovereign Duke (Herzog) or Prince (Fürst). ... A flowered corn field in Tuscany. ...

Biography

Born in Florence, Leopold II was the son of the grand-duke Ferdinand III of Tuscany, whom he succeeded in 1824. During the first twenty years of his reign he devoted himself to the internal development of the state. His was the mildest and least reactionary of all the Italian despotisms of the day, and although always subject to Austrian influence he refused to adopt the Austrian methods of government, allowed a fair measure of liberty to the press, and permitted many political exiles from other states to dwell in Tuscany undisturbed. Florences skyline Florence (Italian: ) is the capital city of the region of Tuscany, Italy. ... Ferdinand III, Grand Duke of Tuscany, or, more fully, His Imperial and Royal Highness Ferdinando III Giuseppe Giovanni Baptista Grand Duke of Tuscany, Archduke of Austria, Prince of Hungary and Bohemia, (May 6, 1769 - June 18, 1824; born and died in Florence, Italy), was the son of Leopold II of... 1824 was a leap year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ...

But when in the early 1840s a feeling of unrest spread throughout Italy, even in Tuscany demands for a constitution and other political reforms were advanced; in 1845 and 1846 riots broke out in various parts of the country, and Leopold granted a number of administrative reforms. But Austrian influence prevented him from going further, even had he wished to do so. The election of Pope Pius IX gave fresh impulse to the Liberal movement, and on the September 4, 1847 Leopold instituted the National Guard - a first step towards the constitution; shortly after the marchese Cosimo Ridolfi was appointed prime minister. The granting of the Neapolitan and Piedmontese constitutions was followed (February 17, 1848) by that of Tuscany, drawn up by Gino Capponi. Pius IX, born Giovanni Maria Mastai-Ferretti (May 13, 1792 – February 7, 1878), was Pope for a record pontificate (not counting the Apostle St. ... Marquis Gino Capponi (September 13, 1792 - February 3, 1876) was an Italian statesman and historian. ...

The revolution in Milan and Vienna aroused a fever of patriotic enthusiasm in Tuscany, where war against Austria was demanded; Leopold, giving way to popular pressure, sent a force of regulars and volunteers to co-operate with Piedmont in the Lombard campaign. His speech on their departure was uncompromisingly Italian and Liberal. "Soldiers," he said, " the holy cause of Italian freedom is being decided to-day on the fields of Lombardy. Already the citizens of Milan have purchased their liberty with their blood and with a heroism of which history offers few examples. . . . Honour to the arms of Italy! Long live Italian independence!" The Tuscan contingent fought bravely, if unsuccessfully, at Curtatone and Montanara. Image File history File links Imperial Crown of Austria License:from German language version of Wikipedia. ... A style of office, or honorific, is a form of address which by tradition or law precedes a reference to a person who holds a title or post, or to the political office itself. ... Imperial and Royal Highness (in German:Kaiserliche und königliche Hoheit) is a style possessed by someone who either through birth or marriage holds two individual styles, Imperial Highness and Royal Highness. ... Milan (Italian: Milano; Milanese: Milán (listen)) is the main city of northern Italy, located in the plains of Lombardy. ... Inhabitants according to official census figures: 1800 to 2005 Vienna in 1858 UN complex in Vienna, with the non-affiliated Austria Center Vienna in front - picture taken from Danube Tower in nearby Danube Park. ...

On June 26 the first Tuscan parliament assembled but the disturbances consequent on the failure of the campaign in Lombardy led to the resignation of the Ridolfi ministry, which was succeeded by that of Gino Capponi. The riots continued, especially at Livorno, which was a prey to actual civil war, and the democratic party of which FD Guerrazzi and G Montanelli were leading lights became every day more influential. Capponi resigned, and Leopold reluctantly agreed to a Montanelli-Guerrazzi ministry, which in its turn had to fight against the extreme republican party. Livorno, sometimes in English Leghorn, (population 170,000) is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. ... Francesco Domenico Guerrazzi (1804 - September 25, 1873), was an Italian writer and politician. ... Giuseppe Montanelli (1813-1862), Italian statesman and author, was born at Fucecchio in Tuscany, and in 1840 was appointed law professor at Pisa. ...

New elections in the autumn of 1848 returned a constitutional majority, but it ended by voting in favour of a constituent assembly. There was talk of instituting a central Italian kingdom with Leopold as king, to form part of a larger Italian federation, but in the meanwhile the grand-duke, alarmed at the revolutionary and republican agitations in Tuscany and encouraged by the success of the Austrian arms, was, according to Montanelli, negotiating with Field-Marshal Radetzky and with Pius IX, who had now abandoned his liberal tendencies, and fled to Gaeta. Leopold had left Florence for Siena, and eventually for Porto San Stefano, leaving a letter to Guerrazzi in which, on account of a protest from the pope, he declared that he could not agree to the proposed constituent assembly. The utmost confusion prevailed in Florence and other parts of Tuscany. Josef Graf von Radetzky Johann Josef Wenzel Graf Radetzky von Radetz (en: Count John Joseph Wenceslaus Radetzky von Radetz, in Czech: Jan Josef Václav hrabě Radecký z Radče) (November 2, 1766 – January 5, 1858) was a Bohemian nobleman and soldier, immortalised by Johann Strauss Is Radetzky March. ... Gaeta (ancient Latin name Caieta) is a city in Province of Latina, in Lazio, Italy. ... Siena is a city in Tuscany, Italy. ...

On February 9, 1849 the republic was proclaimed, largely as a result of Mazzini's exhortations, and on the 18th Leopold sailed for Gaeta. A third parliament was elected and Guerrazzi appointed dictator. But there was great discontent, and the defeat of Charles Albert at Novara caused consternation among the Liberals. The majority, while fearing an Austrian invasion, desired the return of the grand-duke who had never been unpopular, and in April 1849 the municipal council usurped the powers of the assembly and invited him to return, "to save us by means of the restoration of the constitutional monarchy surrounded by popular institutions, from the shame and ruin of a foreign invasion." Leopold accepted, although he said nothing about the foreign invasion, and on May 1 sent Count Luigi Serristori to Tuscany with full powers. February 9 is the 40th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... Giuseppe Mazzini (June 22, 1805 – March 10, 1872) was an Italian writer and politician whose efforts helped bring about the modern Italian state, rather than the medley of separate states, many dominated by foreign powers, that existed in the nineteenth century. ... 1849 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ...

But at the same time the Austrians occupied Lucca and Livorno, and although Leopold simulated surprise at their action it has since been proved, as the Austrian general d'Aspre declared at the time, that Austrian intervention was due to the request of the grand-duke. On May 24 the latter appointed G Baldasseroni prime minister, on the 25th the Austrians entered Florence and on July 28 Leopold himself returned. In April 1850 he concluded a treaty with Austria sanctioning the continuation for an indefinite period of the Austrian occupation with 10,000 men; in September he dismissed parliament, and the following year established a concordat with the Church of a very clerical character. He feebly asked Austria if he might maintain the constitution, and the Austrian premier, Prince Schwarzenberg, advised him to consult the pope, the king of Naples and the dukes of Parma and Modena. Lucca is a city in Tuscany, northern central Italy, situated on the river Serchio in a fertile plain near (but not on) the Ligurian Sea. ... Livorno, sometimes in English Leghorn, (population 170,000) is a port city on the Tyrrhenian Sea on the western edge of Tuscany, Italy. ... May 24 is the 144th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (145th in leap years). ... Florences skyline Florence (Italian: ) is the capital city of the region of Tuscany, Italy. ... July 28 is the 209th day (210th in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 156 days remaining. ... Schwarzenberg Monument at Schwarzenbergplatz, Vienna Karl Philipp Fürst zu Schwarzenberg (or Prince Charles Philip of Schwarzenberg (April 18, 1771 – October 15, 1820), Austrian Feldmarshall, was born at Vienna. ...

On their advice he formally revoked the constitution (1852). Political trials were held, Guerrazzi and many others being condemned to long terms of imprisonment, and although in 1855 the Austrian troops left Tuscany, Leopold's popularity was gone. A part of the Liberals, however, still believed in the possibility of a constitutional grand-duke who could be induced for a second time to join Piedmont in a war against Austria, whereas the popular party headed by F. Bartolommei and G. Dolfi realized that only by the expulsion of Leopold could the national aspirations be realized. When in 1859 France and Piedmont made war on Austria, Leopold's government failed to prevent numbers of young Tuscan volunteers from joining the Franco-Piedmontese forces. Finally an agreement was arrived at between the aristocratic constitutionalists and the popular party, as a result of which the grand-duke's participation in the war was formally demanded. Piedmont is a region of northwestern Italy. ...

Leopold at first gave way, and entrusted Don Neri Corsini with the formation of a ministry. The popular demands presented by Corsini were for the abdication of Leopold in favour of his son, an alliance with Piedmont and the reorganization of Tuscany in accordance with the eventual and definite reorganization of Italy. Leopold hesitated and finally rejected the proposals as derogatory to his dignity. On April 27 there was great excitement in Florence, Italian colours appeared everywhere, but order was maintained, and the grand-duke and his family departed for Bologna undisturbed. Thus the revolution was accomplished without a drop of blood being shed, and after a period of provisional government Tuscany was incorporated in the kingdom of Italy. On July 21 Leopold abdicated in favour of his son Ferdinand IV of Tuscany, who never reigned, but issued a protest from Dresden (March 26, 1860). He spent his last years in Austria, and died in Rome. April 27 is the 117th day of the year (118th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 248 days remaining. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... July 21 is the 202nd day (203rd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 163 days remaining. ... Ferdinand IV von Österreich, (titled Ferdinando IV, Granduca di Toscana) (10 June 1835 - 17 January 1908) was crowned Grand Duke of Tuscany in 1859 and abdicated in 1860. ... Dresden (Sorbian: Drježdźany; etymologically from Old Sorbian Drežďany, meaning people of the riverside forest) is the capital city of the German Federal Free State of Saxony and situated in a valley on the River Elbe. ... March 26 is the 85th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (86th in leap years). ... 1860 is the leap year starting on Sunday. ... Nickname: The Eternal City Location of the city of Rome (yellow) within the Province of Rome (red) and region of Lazio (grey) Coordinates: Region Lazio Province Province of Rome Founded 8th century BC Mayor Walter Veltroni Area    - City 1,285 km²  (496. ...

Leopold of Tuscany was a well-meaning, not unkindly man, and fonder of his subjects than were the other Italian despots, but he was weak, and too closely bound by family ties and Habsburg traditions ever to become a real Liberal. Had he not joined the conclave of autocrats at Gaeta, and, above all, had he not summoned Austrian assistance while denying that he had done so, in 1849, he might yet have preserved his throne, and even changed the whole course of Italian history. At the same time his rule, if not harsh, was enervating and demoralizing. Flag of the Habsburg Monarchy; also used as the flag of the Austrian Empire until the Ausgleich of 1867. ...

See G Baldasseroni, Leopoldo II (Florence, 1871), useful but reactionary in tendency, the author having been Leopold's minister, G Montanelli, Memorie sull'Italia (Turin, 1853); FD Guerrazzi, Memorie (Leghorn, 1848); Zobi, Storia civile della Toscana, vols. iv.-v. (Florence, 1850-1852); A von Reumont, Geschichte Toscanas (2 vols., Gotha, 1876-1877); M Bartolommei-Gioli, Il Rivoleimento Toscano e l'azione popolare (Florence, 1905); C Tivaroni, L'Italia durante il dominio Austriaco, vol. i. (Turin, 1892), and L'Italia degli Italiani, vol. i. (Turin, 1895). Alfred von Reumont (August 15, 1808 _ April 27, 1887), German scholar and diplomatist, the son of Gerhard Reumont (1765-1829), was named Alfred after the English king, Alfred the Great. ...

References

• This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.