Il Risorgimento: Creating A United Italy

(please note the new date for this lecture)

In this multimedia presentation we discuss the factors which contributed to the Italian uprising, the Italian patriots who shaped the course of the revolution, and Italy as a united nation. As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, join us as we explore the Italian revolution for the Unification of Italy.

Alfred R. Crudale is a native Rhode Islander who grew up in the Knightsville section of Cranston. He has been an educator in Rhode Island for over forty years and earned his Ph.D. in Italian literature from the University of Connecticut. He is a lecturer in the Italian departments at the University of Rhode Island and Bridgewater State University in Massachusetts.

In 2021 Bordighera Press published Crudale’s book THE VOICES OF ITALY: ITALIAN LANGUAGE NEWSPAPERS AND RADIO PROGRAMS IN RHODE ISLAND. He is also the author of three children’s books, A New Home for Salvatore, released in May of 2024, Buon Natale, Salvatore, released in October of 2024, and Good Morning, Catbird, released in May of 2025. Crudale’s poetry and short stories have been published in The Association of Rhode Island Authors Annual Anthology, and in the Rhode Island Bards Poetry Anthology. He and his wife Barbara live on their small farm in West Kingston, RI, where they raise chickens and goats.

Note: Unless specifically noted as being streamed or recorded, the lectures in the lecture series hosted by the Dante Society of Westerly are live events only and are not recorded. They are neither streamed online nor available afterwards as recordings.

Lectures are free and open to the public.