The Pursuit of Italy: A History of a Land, its Regions and their Peoples

Did Garibaldi do Italy a disservice when he helped its disparate parts achieve unity? Was the goal of political unification a mistake? These questions are asked .
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Even at its height, Florence was unable to subsist on local produce for more than five months a year. Gilmour is at pains to dismiss the bucolic myth of the land of Capri and chianti, gondolas and gorgonzola. The Italy we want to imagine bears little relation to reality. Gilmour is incapable of writing a bad sentence and The Pursuit of Italy certainly offers a fluent and readable history. At every turn, the belief in a unified Italy is shown to be a mirage. When Cicero spoke of "the whole of Italy", his allegiance was really to Rome and his home in Arpinum. The great medieval communes had no concept of a nation, and are idealised somewhat by Gilmour as places where life was truly communal, with little "barrier between public and private lives".

There is a sparkling account of the Venetian Republic and its tragic surrender first to Napoleon, then the "aberration" of its incorporation into greater Italy. But Gilmour expends most of his ire on the chaotic, disorganised period of intense realpolitik that led to the creation of the Kingdom of Italy in and which set the scene for the rise of fascism and the country's weak and corrupt postwar governments. Gilmour insists that the Risorgimento was never inspired by a popular desire for national unity.

Myth after myth is stripped away: Verdi was no real nationalist, his music carrying "a whiff of the fairground"; Cavour was indifferent to "what was happening in the peninsula beyond Piedmont"; King Victor Emmanuel believed the Italians were unfit for parliamentary government and understood only rule "by bayonets and bribery".

Only Giuseppe Garibaldi escapes revisionism. Nevertheless, behind Gilmour's argument lie some peculiar assumptions about nationalism. He argues that the Italian nation never existed before the 19th century, and even then it was imposed on its subjects for all the wrong reasons. But all modern nation states lay claim to their antique roots, and their popular support is always questionable.

The Romans are understandably dealt with within the scope of a few pages something had to give and the early chapters pass by briskly before the post-unification meat - clearly Gilmour's main preoccupation even if the medieval chapters are critical in emphasizing that Italy is above all a loose collection of distinct regions and an uneasy whole. T A relatively snappy history of Italy written in an engaging style, this book could perhaps have provided greater coverage to certain eras and topics.

The risorgimento is very well described while Gilmour is cynical about the whole event and its protagonists, paving the way as they did for a century and a half of political n'er do wells Berlusconi among them. The inclusion of a whole chapter on opera seems subjective and self-indulgent - why not food or sport?

Indeed, the latter subject is particularly thinly served given that it has often been the one proper binding agent for this still young nation. Simon Martin's Sport Italia fills that gap though and this remains en engaging introduction to Italy and Italians. I was delighted with the first part of the book, covering the earlier history of the landmass that is now Italy and its diverse population and culture.

Gilmour is a great storyteller, tying together many threads and keeping it comlex and simple at the same time. However, the main part of this book deals with the "great men" of the 18th and 19th century - so countless invasions, revolts, conspiracies, soldiers and kings. I quickly lost interest, mainly because Gilmour's narrative became strangely I was delighted with the first part of the book, covering the earlier history of the landmass that is now Italy and its diverse population and culture.

I quickly lost interest, mainly because Gilmour's narrative became strangely disjointed and muddled. While this might actually be an accurate representation of Italy's progress towards building a nation, the sole focus on political and military action made me skim over many pages.

Unsure how this was even published, let alone how it received the fairly positive reviews it received. A claptrap of names and dates, hastily thrown together with no narrative or through line guiding any of it. Zero pizzazz or elan that can be found in other histories where the past sings and dances for the reader, becoming, for a moment while reading, the present.

Blind spots a mile wide and contradictions a mile long. Was this book deal a pay-off for the author? Did Gilmour black mail someone Unsure how this was even published, let alone how it received the fairly positive reviews it received. Did Gilmour black mail someone at Farrar, Straus and Giroux? Seriously left pondering not the book's content but its mere existence. Jan 19, Jane rated it liked it Shelves: This is not a "review" by any means.

I just have to share my astonishment at one fact I learned in reading this book. Having visited the picturesque and seemingly well preserved medieval town of San Gimignano in Tuscany several times, I could not have been more surprised to learn from the author that it was restored during the fascist period. If one can use the word restore to describe their agenda of promoting the country's medieval heritage for political purposes while attempting to remove all This is not a "review" by any means.

If one can use the word restore to describe their agenda of promoting the country's medieval heritage for political purposes while attempting to remove all things Baroque. I've tracked down an article so I can learn more about this well hidden history: Sep 04, Tom rated it really liked it. A great primer on the history of Italy, from pre-Roman times to the era of Berlusconi.

The pace is brisk, and flashes of wit makes the going easy. I particularly liked the discussion on the unification of Italy in the 19th centuries. It gave fascinating insight into the different forces that pulled at the people and the land and that continue to divide Italy today. Aug 16, Porchnyc rated it liked it.


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Started off well, with interesting ideas about the connection between geography and culture, but eventually became a litany of names and dates from the unification onward that wasn't particularly insightful. Apr 06, Matthew rated it really liked it Shelves: An excellent book, wide ranging and also well written.

For a complete beginner on Italian history this is probably the book to read. Gilmour is himself a British journalist who has worked internationally but also covered Italy at various times, for this book it seems like he dedicated some years of living and studying in Italy, in it's different regions. The book is born not of professional or academic interest but of personal interest, and reads at a good pace, with sufficient historical and po An excellent book, wide ranging and also well written.

The book is born not of professional or academic interest but of personal interest, and reads at a good pace, with sufficient historical and political context but not so much detail that it makes the text rigid as I found with Christ duggans otherwise authoritative political history and rather with a lot of colour and anecdote. In its various chapters he discusses Italy's fragmented geography, it's openness to invasion and the various reasons why the regions never united as a single political entity until the creation of modern Italy in In the process of the telling the history of the different regions he surfaces the argument, to me convincing, that the idea of Italy was a literary creation, unsupported by history or the realities of physical and cultural geography.

In the process Italy has suffered a history of irresponsible government for much of the last millennium. The first king of Italy, victor Emmanuel, comes of very badly as an incompetent and megalomaniac war monger, while even Cavour, the founding prime minister and creator of modern Italy, is rendered as unscrupulous and unsympathetic to the south, caring more about the idea of Italy than for the people living in its regions.

Mazzini, a writer who was early to invoke and create the idea of Italy, comes across somewhat better, though also too ideological, while garibaldi, the revolutionary general who helped lead and win guerilla battles, comes across as honarable and courageous but also politically naive. Following the annexation of the southern regions by the northern piedmontese kingdom, which created Italy, the leaders proceeded to invest in a military and attempt to throw its weight around despite having more urgent economic concerns especially in the newly claimed southern regions. Yet due to poor leadreship in its wars Italy consistently did very poorly, which was a big chip on the shoulder of its leaders.

Only post ww2 for a while did the leaders focus more on economic growth than military prestige, and in the aftermath of ww2 the country grew rapidly - but so did all of Europe. More recently the berlusconi government comes across as extremely corrupt - he entered govt only to protect and enlarge his monopoly of the broadcast media in Italy and has never even pretended to be interested in good government - at least by gilmours description. There is also some talk of the early roman empire and the geography of Italy which made it so susceptible to invasion and also meant that the north and south had economic links with their borders but not with each other.

However I think the dominant takeaway for me, as a Singaporean, is that the book gives a much fuller portrait of Italy than one has from the image of its cultural exports of food, wine, and designer goods. The history of the country is sad but you would never guess from the fuzzy feel good products that are it's reputation nor from the Italian restaurants and little Italy neighbourhoods around the world. Ironically Italy apperas to have represented exactly that - a soft, holiday makers land, a place to visit but not to live, a beautiful trophy wife - for much of its history and is the reason it has been invaded and exchanged, as a political entity, so much.

The book makes one increasingly conscious of the political entity and the national historical narrative as being a construct of the ruling or victorious state, which writes this history not only into the textbooks but as in Italy's case, into the art, architecture and street names of a place. Separately it is quite fascinating to consider the different political states that existed, the Venetian republic, the Milanese kingdom, the papal states, and other variations in Tuscany and elsewhere. The book doesn't go deeply into this topic but hints at it. The overall narrative is tragic but the author ends on a heartwarming note about the spirit of local community in Italy, which is what he considers the backbone of the country really is.

Anyone attempting to write a compact history of a place like Italy, covering a time period of years and doing a decent job already deserves a medal.

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David Gilmour doesn't hit it out of the park but without his book, my understanding of Italian history would certainly be a lot poorer. The book begins on a high note. I found the initial pages unputdownable although to my regret, first years get over in the first pages with the next getting remaining So if you are looking t Anyone attempting to write a compact history of a place like Italy, covering a time period of years and doing a decent job already deserves a medal.

So if you are looking to read more about the Roman period, you would need to pick up another book. As an Indian, it is not difficult to appreciate the point of Italian diversity that remains the central theme of the book though with the context of India, it may sound overstated. I could only wonder what David Gilmour thinks of India as a nation state. But the medieval city states and republics of Italy do seem to be more outward connected to the world compared to Indian princely states and thus with more differentiated external identities.

Based on what I told her about this book and what she told me about that one, it seems this book does present a fairly opinionated version of history. Which is not really surprising since history is after all an interpretation of facts. But it does mean that the advice given in How to Read a Book regarding reading history is applicable here: But alas, the dearth of time and options often make the advice infeasible. I planned to read this book during our holiday in Tuscany, Italy. It was well-timed and added to the experience. Mr Gilmour has an endearing style, although he does not bother sounding objective Cavour and king Victor Emmanuel are treated harshly, probably justifiably so.

He often sounds more like a gossiping friend than an academic, which definitely adds to the readability and the thrill factor. The book helped to appreciate the various Risorgimento museums and the beautiful renaissance bulwa I planned to read this book during our holiday in Tuscany, Italy. The book helped to appreciate the various Risorgimento museums and the beautiful renaissance bulwarks of Florence, Sienna and Lucca.

I would especially recommend this book if Italy is your destination. Jun 09, Fred Misurella rated it it was amazing.

Not as good as Hughes on Rome, but a very good, succinct and clear history of Italy from Pre-Roman times through Berlusconi. The basic thesis is that the Risorgimento when Italy became one nation instead of a collection of various countries' possessions emphasized Italian nationalism as opposed to local culture on the peninsula, and this opened the doors to Mussolini and the Fascists.

I'd heard things like that before, but Gilmour delivers an impressive, fact-filled argument that has me thinki Not as good as Hughes on Rome, but a very good, succinct and clear history of Italy from Pre-Roman times through Berlusconi. I'd heard things like that before, but Gilmour delivers an impressive, fact-filled argument that has me thinking he and others like him are right. Sep 05, Nadia rated it really liked it. Actually my brain hurts from reading but it's spectacular.

The Pursuit of Italy: A History of a Land, its Regions and their Peoples by David Gilmour – review

It's very engaging and explains the course of Italian history in a way of interest that many people could enjoy. Very powerful; I have a clearer understanding of the country and it's trials and tribulations. It questions whether Italy is in fact a unified state or indeed a bunch of alternative ones. David Gilmour is a great writer! Oct 04, Justin rated it liked it Shelves: This book is packed with information - found it hard going but ultimately rewarding, certainly know a lot more about Italy and its constituent parts than before.

Although Gilmour's book is more of a historical account.. First off, I won this through Goodreads' First Reads giveaway.

The Pursuit of Italy

I absolutely loved this book. It was a very in-depth one volume history of Italy. I loved how the author went into depth about how the Italian language was chosen. Italian history has always been fascinating and this book was a great read. I would highly recommend this to anyone who is interested in Italian history! Aug 21, Benjamin Gaiser rated it really liked it. This book is a real pursuit of a history being told and chanted but also being neglected and tweaked. Italy's way to unification was harder than for many other countries but it is due to her society.

This book entails not just the history of Italy but also the sociology of Italy's diversed culture and states. May 11, Paul Higbee rated it liked it. Not a true history, lots of opinion and editorial comments. A bit tough going but gives a really good general insight into Italian history - in other words, it does exactly what it says on the tin!

Jul 27, Carolynn rated it liked it. Sep 25, Gaetano rated it liked it. A better title may have been a very brief and general history of Italian history. Nov 09, Lee Wills rated it liked it. Packed full of information but a slow and rather boring read. Upon finishing up this book, Italy is now awaiting for a new government, presumably a coalition one due to fragmented party system as usual.

The Pursuit of Italy by David Gilmour

The seemingly different thing could be that an anti-establishment five-star movement could come into power, yet the cracking up of old party rivalries did already happen in Italy before, when Berlusconi became prime minister due to a series of scandals of ruling party Christian Democrat and the ever-losing appeal of Communist party after the dissolve of USS Upon finishing up this book, Italy is now awaiting for a new government, presumably a coalition one due to fragmented party system as usual.

The seemingly different thing could be that an anti-establishment five-star movement could come into power, yet the cracking up of old party rivalries did already happen in Italy before, when Berlusconi became prime minister due to a series of scandals of ruling party Christian Democrat and the ever-losing appeal of Communist party after the dissolve of USSR. One interesting trivia of this election is that One map showing the voting distribution of political party roughly resembles to the state boundary of Italy before its unification, suggesting that the tension between different parts of Italy may not only be out of economics, but with something to do with fundamental cultures of the regions where voters strong identified themselves into.

The central thesis of this book is simple yet provocative: Unification Risorgimento in Italian context of Italy brings more suffering to the Italians than its benefits.

Gilmour from time to time emphasized that, while ancient Italy may be subject to the governance from the foreign empires, the subjects at least are not unsatisfied with their rules and at best could develop their fantastic arts and cultures. Gilmour demystified the myths of Risorgimento. While praising Garibaldi's personal characters with the least of the writer's sarcasm, Gilmour is deeply suspicious of the motives of other important figures of Risorgimento, especially the King Victor Emmanuel who was described as having nothing much to do with the battles but captured Garibaldi's efforts by fighting with the Kingdom of Two Sicilies.

Italian rulers since then may have various ambitions to be a colonial power or axis of power, but their ambitions could never be matched with their inept military power and foreign policy. The post-war period, with large amount of subsidies from Marshall Plan and economic growth might be the redemption of a unified Italy, but Italians were soon disillusioned by a series of political scandals, destruction of environments Gilmour suggested that it might be a trade-off of not demolishing historical buildings within the city areas and the fear from gangs like Mafia in Sicily and Camorra in Naples.

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Overall, Gilmour's arguments to support his thesis are consistent and plausible, with the only doubt that whether fascism is inevitable if Italians were by that time not as vulnerable as Germans. Yet for now, breaking up the nation seems not to be an option than setting up a more 'federalist' Italy, especially to date even democratic states like Spain could make it most vigorous endeavor to crack down on independence movement in Catalonia. Or, maybe one day cities could have more importance than ever and then it could attenuate the functions of nation-state in international relations settings.


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    • By that time 'splitting or uniting' dichotomy may no longer be relevant. As a side note, it could have been more interesting if the book could compare the unification of Italy with Germany, as they happened in the similar period of time in the 19th century. Manche sind trocken geschrieben, aber das Buch von David Gilmour war kurzweilig und so interessant, dass ich es im Urlaub in jeder freien Minute gelesen habe.