‘Britain, Ireland and the Italian Risorgimento’
A one-day conference at the Italian Cultural Institute, London
Friday, October 28, 2011
Keynote Speaker: Professor Lucy Riall (Birbeck, University of London)
To mark the 150th anniversary of Italian unification, the Italian Cultural Institute in London, in conjunction with the University of Wales, Newport, and the Association for the Study of Modern Italy, will host a one-day conference on the theme of ‘Britain, Ireland and the Italian Risorgimento’ on Friday 28 October 2011. The purpose of the conference is to allow for a critical examination of old assumptions and interpretations regarding British and Irish responses to the Risorgimento, and to map out new ways of understanding the impact of the ‘Italian Question’ on UK politics, society, commerce and culture (broadly defined). The conference will also examine the British-Irish influence on mid-century Italian politics, society, commerce and culture.
Themes that participants may wish to address include:
- The Irish and Italian Questions compared
- Irish nationalism and the Risorgimento
- The Risorgimento in Scotland and/or Wales
- Religion and the Risorgimento
- Class and the Risorgimento
- Gender and the Risorgimento
- The idea of Italy in the British/Irish literary imagination
- The Grand Tour and the Risorgimento
- Romanticism and the Risorgimento
- Trade and the Risorgimento
- Art and the Risorgimento
- Radicalism and the Risorgimento
- Liberalism and the Risorgimento
- Conservative responses to the Risorgimento
- Britain and/or Ireland as seen from Italy
- Italian exiles in Britain and Ireland
The focus of the conference is on the period 1848-1861. However, papers that cover subjects outside of these dates will be considered. Interested parties should send proposals of no more than 300 words to the conference organiser Dr Nick Carter at nick.carter@newport.ac.uk. The deadline for proposal submissions is Monday 20 June 2011.
