For this episode we’re going to do something different. We’re working on the episodes covering the revolutions of 1848, and as I warned last episode, it’s taking a little longer than usual. So, I thought it might be useful to take this opportunity to review what has happened up to this point in the story. This episode is going to be divided into two parts. In the first half I am going to give a lighting fast recap of the story thus far. Then I’m going to review the state of Italy in 1847, including the current political map of Italy. Download Episode 25

The final character we have to introduce is Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, usually just called Cavour.  He was the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Piedmont Sardinia from 1852 to 1861, when he became the first Prime Minister of a united Italy, though he would only hold that position for a mere two and a half months before his untimely death. Cavour was the man pulling the strings behind the eventual Italian unification - he made the secret deals with France and cooked up the excuses that led to war with Austria. His particular brand of liberal conservatism would dominate the early Italian state. Download Episode 24