Edexcel IGCSE History: Unification of Italy, 1848–70 — Practice Questions

These are original questions written for Marlbridge, for revision and practice on this content. They are not reproduced past-paper questions, and they do not replicate the exam’s exact structure, question count or mark tariffs — examination boards hold copyright in their own papers. Use these alongside the official past papers available free from your board. The extracts below are entirely invented for this exercise — none is a real historian’s work, and none should be treated or cited as one.

Related: Italy revision notes | Italy study guide

These questions follow the three-part Depth Study pattern of Pearson Edexcel International GCSE History 4HI1 Paper 1 — an extract impression question (6), an “explain two effects” question (8) and a “how far do you agree” essay (16) — across all five key topics of the unification of Italy, 1848–70. Full answer guidance follows.

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Question 1 — 1848 and Piedmont, 1848–54

Extract A (invented for this exercise).

“Out of the wreckage of 1848 one state emerged with something to show: Piedmont had lost two battles and a king, but it had kept its constitution, and with it the trust of Italian liberals.”

1(a) What impression does the author give about Piedmont after the 1848 revolutions? You must use Extract A to explain your answer. [6]

1(b) Explain two effects of Cavour’s domestic and economic reforms in Piedmont in the 1850s. [8]

1(c) “Austrian military strength was the main reason for the failure of the 1848 revolutions in Italy.” How far do you agree? [16]

You may use the following in your answer:

• the battles of Custoza and Novara
• the role of Pope Pius IX

You must also use information of your own.

Question 2 — the defeat of Austria and Garibaldi, 1854–61

Extract B (invented for this exercise).

“At Plombières Cavour bought a war. The price — Nice and Savoy — was paid in full; the goods were delivered only in part.”

2(a) What impression does the author give about the Pact of Plombières? You must use Extract B to explain your answer. [6]

2(b) Explain two effects of the armistice of Villafranca (1859). [8]

2(c) “Garibaldi was more important than Cavour in creating the Kingdom of Italy by 1861.” How far do you agree? [16]

You may use the following in your answer:

• the Expedition of the Thousand
• the war of 1859

You must also use information of your own.

Question 3 — Venice, Rome and unity by 1870

3(b) Explain two effects of “Piedmontisation” on Italy after 1861. [8]

3(c) “Italy was united in 1870 mainly because of the actions of foreign powers.” How far do you agree? [16]

You may use the following in your answer:

• the Austro-Prussian War (1866)
• Garibaldi’s attempts to take Rome

You must also use information of your own.

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Answers and mark guidance

1(a) [6]

The author suggests that Piedmont came out of defeat with a moral victory. “Wreckage” stresses the general failure of 1848, while “something to show” and “kept its constitution” single Piedmont out as the exception. The final clause links the Statuto to the trust of liberals, implying it became the natural leader of the national cause. Top answers explain how these word choices build the impression.

1(b) [8]

• Economic strength: railway building, free-trade treaties and banking reform made Piedmont the most modern Italian economy, giving it the resources to fight Austria in 1859.
• Leadership of the national movement: liberal government and reduced Church privileges (the Siccardi Laws and the 1855 law on religious houses) made Piedmont attractive to exiles and moderates elsewhere in Italy — though they angered the papacy.

1(c) [16]

Agree: Radetzky’s army defeated Piedmont at Custoza (1848) and Novara (1849), reconquered Lombardy and forced Venice to surrender in 1849; without beating Austria no lasting change was possible.

Other factors: Pius IX’s refusal to fight Austria (April 1848) and later flight split the national movement; French troops, not Austrian, crushed the Roman Republic; divisions between monarchists, moderates and republicans such as Mazzini; little peasant support; no foreign ally.

Judgement: Austria’s strength was decisive in the north, but Italian division and the intervention of France explain why revolutionaries could not combine to resist it.

2(a) [6]

The author presents Plombières as a bargain in which Piedmont paid more than it received. The language of trade (“bought”, “price”, “goods delivered”) suggests a cold transaction; “paid in full” versus “only in part” contrasts the loss of Nice and Savoy with Villafranca, where Venetia stayed Austrian.

2(b) [8]

• Cavour resigned, feeling betrayed by Napoleon III, which briefly removed Piedmont’s leading statesman (he returned in January 1860).
• Venetia remained Austrian, so unification stayed incomplete and nationalist anger grew; at the same time, the central states took the chance to vote to join Piedmont in 1860.

2(c) [16]

Agree: Garibaldi conquered Sicily and Naples in 1860 with about a thousand volunteers, adding the largest Italian state; at Teano he handed it to Victor Emmanuel, making a kingdom of Italy possible.

Disagree: Cavour’s Crimean diplomacy and Plombières brought the French army that defeated Austria at Magenta and Solferino; he secured the central states; he sent the Piedmontese army through the Papal States in 1860, stopping Garibaldi from attacking Rome and provoking France.

Judgement: a balanced answer may argue that Cavour created the northern kingdom and the conditions for 1860, while Garibaldi turned a northern kingdom into an Italian one — and that each needed the other.

3(b) [8]

• Resentment in the south: Piedmont’s taxes, conscription and officials provoked armed resistance (brigandage), which required a large army to suppress.
• A centralised state: one set of laws, currency and institutions was created, strengthening national government but deepening the sense that the south had been conquered rather than united.

3(c) [16]

Agree: Venetia came because Prussia defeated Austria in 1866, while Italy lost at Custoza and Lissa; Rome came only when the Franco-Prussian War forced France to withdraw its garrison in 1870; earlier, France’s army had won the 1859 war.

Disagree: Italian initiative mattered — Cavour’s diplomacy, Garibaldi’s 1860 campaign, the plebiscites and the decision to ally with Prussia; Italian troops took Rome in September 1870. Garibaldi’s failures at Aspromonte (1862) and Mentana (1867) show that Italian action alone could not succeed.

Judgement: foreign wars were the decisive opportunities for 1866 and 1870, but Italian leaders created the state that could take advantage of them.

Where marks are usually lost

• Writing about causes when the question asks for effects.
• Not using the bullet points, or using only them; the top level needs own knowledge as well.
• Confusing the 1848 and 1866 battles of Custoza.

Source: question patterns modelled on the Pearson Edexcel International GCSE History (4HI1) specification, Issue 5, February 2026, Paper 1.

Frequently asked questions

How is each Paper 1 depth study question structured? Each 4HI1 Paper 1 question has three parts: (a) what impression an extract gives (6 marks), (b) explain two effects (8 marks) and (c) a ‘how far do you agree’ essay (16 marks), with bullet prompts and your own knowledge.

What was agreed at Plombières? In 1858 Cavour secured Napoleon III’s support for a war against Austria, in return for Nice and Savoy.

What does the top level of the essay need? Use of the bullet prompts plus your own knowledge, and a supported judgement on ‘how far’.

Are these real Edexcel past-paper questions? No. They are original questions written in the style of Pearson Edexcel International GCSE History 4HI1; use them alongside the official past papers and mark schemes.