Romanian Travellers to Italy During the Risorgimento

The essay deals with the image of Italy during the first half of Nineteenth century in the travel writings of some of the most important Romanian authors who, for various reasons, visited the peninsula. The goal is to focus on how Italian culture has been perceived and, above all, how it has influenced the development of contemporary Romanian national identity in its formation phase. The analysis takes into consideration the major events in Romanian history of the time to place those works in their original context. For the Romanians of Nineteenth century, Italy, with its history, language, culture, above all meant the rediscovery of the nation’s ancient cultural roots. In addition to this, the Romanian perception of Italy, as can be read in the texts of the selected travellers, also contained the urge to find, in the places visited, concrete examples that could contribute to the initial development of Romanian lands and, finally, the admiration for the political action of the Kingdom of Sardinia in the process of Italian State formation.

Keywords: Romania, Italy, South-Eastern Europe, Risorgimento, Travel Writings, National Identity

Antonio D’Alessandri, Viaggiatori romeni in Italia durante il Risorgimento in "IL RISORGIMENTO" 1/2021, pp 96-116, DOI: 10.3280/RISO2021-001005