Cesare Correnti (January 3, 1815 – October 4, 1888) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

revolutionary and politician.

Life

He was born in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city ...

of a poor but noble family. While employed in the public debt administration, he flooded

Lombardy (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...

with revolutionary pamphlets designed to excite hatred against the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

ns, and in 1848 proposed the general abstention of the Milanese from

smoking Smoking is a practice in which a substance is burned and the resulting smoke is typically breathed in to be tasted and absorbed into the bloodstream. Most commonly, the substance used is the dried leaves of the tobacco plant, which have b ...

, which gave rise to the insurrection known as the Five Days. During the revolt, he was one of the leading spirits of the operations of the insurgents. Until the reoccupation of Milan by the Austrians, he was secretary-general of the provisional government, but afterwards, he fled to

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, whence he again distributed his revolutionary pamphlets throughout Lombardy, earning a precarious livelihood by journalism. Elected deputy in 1849, he worked strenuously for the national cause, supporting Cavour in his

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a p ...

n policy, although he belonged to the

political Left Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

. After the annexation of Lombardy he was made commissioner for the liquidation of the Lombardo-

Venetian Venetian often means from or related to: * Venice, a city in Italy * Veneto, a region of Italy * Republic of Venice (697–1797), a historical nation in that area Venetian and the like may also refer to: * Venetian language, a Romance language s ...

debt, in 1860 was appointed councillor of state, and received various other public positions, especially in connection with the railway and financial administration. He veered round to the political Right, and in 1867 and again in 1869 he held the portfolio of education; he played an important part in the events consequent upon the occupation of Rome by Italy and helped to draft the Law of Guarantees. Cesare Correnti grave Milan 2015

As minister of education, he suppressed the theological faculties in the Italian universities, but eventually resigned office and allied himself with the Left again on account of conservative opposition to his reforms. His defection from the Right ultimately assured the advent of the Left to power in 1876; and while declining office, he remained chief adviser of

Agostino Depretis Agostino Depretis (31 January 181329 July 1887) was an Italian statesman and politician. He served as Prime Minister of Italy for several stretches between 1876 and 1887, and was leader of the Historical Left parliamentary group for more than a de ...

until the latter's death. On several occasions — notably in connection with the redemption of the Italian railways and the Paris Exhibition of 1878 — he acted as representative of the government. In 1877 he was given the lucrative appointment of Secretary of the

Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus The Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus ( it, Ordine dei Santi Maurizio e Lazzaro) (abbreviated OSSML) is a Roman Catholic dynastic order of knighthood bestowed by the royal House of Savoy. It is the second-oldest order of knighthood in the ...

by Depretis, and in 1886 was made

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. He died in Rome, leaving a considerable body of writings on a variety of subjects, none of which is of exceptional merit.

References

Attribution: * {{DEFAULTSORT:Correnti, Cesare 19th-century Italian people Italian politicians 1815 births 1888 deaths