The Risorgimento becomes epic narrative

"Not that it matters much, assuming Italy can be liberated, who or what is sacrificed. It is a lofty goal, it is the very poetry of politics. The thought is enough: a free Italy!!!": vibrant words, written not by an Italian patriot but by a protagonist of English Romanticism (and not only) such as George Byron, in his Ravenna Diary, 18 February 1821.

Affiliated with the Carboneria, he had provided arms and money for the revolutionary uprisings of 1820-21, believing in the Italian cause and trusting that the people of Romagna would unite with Naples. For this reason, the bridge between the Byron museum and the Risorgimento museum, in Palazzo Guiccioli, is a good idea: the museums talk to each other, the cross-references are different (Byron, by the way, stayed in five rooms of the building on the first floor, where the Risorgimento space is now set up), as are the interweavings between the various personalities and the territory.

One has the chance to retrace history from the Jacobin triennium (1796-1799) - and the hope it aroused, with the Tree of Liberty placed in the city in today's Piazza del Popolo in 1797 - to the unification of Italy, passing through the fundamental moments, between revolutionary afflations and disappointments, new uprisings and restorations. From room to room we follow the events of crucial years. There is Mazzini's appeal from the pages of 'Giovine Italia' to the people of Romagna in 1832, so that they would welcome the voices of their brothers and sisters and not be seduced by 'fatal divisions', but be united in the 'cry of union, independence and freedom'. It recalls the illusion of the Roman Republic, which also kindled spirits by proclaiming the Papacy 'de facto and de jure forfeited from the temporal government of the Roman State' and abolishing the Holy Office: an exciting but ephemeral experiment, less than a year old in 1849 with the Austrians - whom Pius IX had asked for help - already entering Ravenna (part of the Papal State) at the end of May. There follows the dramatic passage of Garibaldi fleeing towards Veneto in July of that year, with the people of Romagna taking part in rescuing the hero but nothing they can do for Anita: pregnant, bent by fatigue and malarial fever, she will die at the age of 28 on the Guiccioli farm, just outside Ravenna. And then the Statuto Albertino (a carved wooden specimen is on display), the subsequent wars of independence, Cavour's action, the Expedition of the Thousand up to the long-awaited moment of united Italy.

All of this is shown in a manner that favours words, storytelling through devices - developed by the multimedia research group Studio Azzurro - that recreate the scenes of the time, with sound effects (wind, bullets, the patter of horses, background noises), offer maps that come alive showing the places, lend voice to the writings of the protagonists. This is not to say that the museum does not offer objects, memorabilia, books, paintings, in other words, what one sees in similar, more traditional spaces. On the Garibaldi front, for example, precious relics are on display, such as the hat and cane donated to those who had helped him, the black cloak given to Ercole Saldini, who had acted as his guide during his escape. And then there are uniforms, flasks for gunpowder, small jars, no shortage of portraits, proclamations and coins. Individual personalities are also given importance, such as the patriot Luigi Carlo Farini and the room dedicated to him.

The museum's peculiarity, however, is precisely that of the prominence given to the texts, "to signify," emphasises director Alberta Fabbri, "that words and ideas can change the world", thus presenting the Risorgimento not as "a scholastic fulfilment to be fulfilled but as the premise of the freedom and rights we enjoy today". The key is also in the involvement of the public, who have at their disposal the explanatory panels in each room (all in Italian and English) and the text pills contained in small boxes that specify a subject, outline the contours of a character or add details on the economic and social situation. But visitors are called upon to do more: to interact, activating the devices. Which means, in front of a chessboard where pawns equivalent to the protagonists are arranged, taking the 'pawn' Mazzini and placing it in a certain box that triggers a video and a voice. Or it means opening a casket triggering a film, or taking a pen out of the inkwell and reading a piece of writing that is displayed (the contents have been selected and provided by the scientific committee). Whoever watches and goes from room to room is stimulated to know and listen, to observe and reflect on the roots of our democracy. He is then seized with astonishment if by chance he raises his eyes to the ceiling: Palazzo Guiccioli, already exquisite in itself in its majesty, in some rooms is surprising for the richness and finesse of its frescoes and decorations.