born June 22, 1805, Genoa
died March 10, 1872, Pisa, Italy
Italian patriot and a major figure in the making of modern Italy.
A lawyer, he joined the secret independence group Carbonari . After he was imprisoned for its activities, he moved to Marseille (1831), where he founded the patriotic movement Young Italy . He later expanded his plan for a world republican federation and in Switzerland founded Young Europe. In London (1837) he continued his revolutionary activities by correspondence with agents worldwide. He founded the People's International League (1847) and received support from English liberals. In 1848 he returned to Italy to help govern the short-lived Republic of Rome, but returned to England after the pope reestablished control in Rome. Mazzini founded the Friends of Italy (1851) and backed unsuccessful uprisings in Milan, Mantua, and Genoa. An uncompromising republican, he disapproved of the new united Kingdom of Italy (1861). See also Risorgimento .