French Rule in the States of Parma, 1796-1814

Book excerpt: This book addresses the interplay between collaboration and resistance during the Revolutionary/Napoleonic era in the Duchies of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla, renamed States of Parma in 1802 and Department of Taro in 1808. Considered no more than a docile backwater in 1796, the country exploded in violent rebellion at the end of 1805, to the astonishment of the French imperial establishment and of Napoleon himself. Yet, the insurgency – duly suppressed by the French military – did not beget further confrontation. French administrators determined to demonstrate that the empire was a force for good and local citizens compelled to reassess their circumstances realistically settled for cooperation in the form of protracted give and take arrangements. In recounting the events, this book highlights local agency and the myriad ways Parma’s population harnessed the power of empire to shape what eventually became the Napoleonic legacy in the region.