and the French showed no willingness to force them to abide by the terms of the treaty. The Austrians were left to look on in frustration at the French failure to carry out the terms of the treaty. Austria had emerged triumphantly after the suppression of liberal movements in 1849, but its status as a great power on the European scene was now seriously challenged and its influence in Italy severely weakened. The next year, with French and British approval, the Central Italian states (Duchy of Parma, Duchy of Modena, Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the Papal States) were annexed by the Kingdom of Sardinia, and France would take its deferred rewards of Savoy and Nice. The last move was vehemently opposed by Italian national hero Garibaldi, a native of Nice, and directly led to Garibaldi's expedition to Sicily, which would complete the preliminary Unification of Italy. The annexation of Nice to France caused the Niçard exodus, or the emigration of a quarter of the Niçard Italians to Italy, and the Niçard Vespers. During the war, Prussia had also mobilised 132,000 men in 1859 but never joined the fighting. The weaknesses laid bare during the mobilisation caused the Prussian Army to initiate military reforms, which were the base for its superiority and rapid victories against Austria in 1866 and France in 1870-71, which led to a united Germany under Prussian dominance. Timeline 27 April: A peaceful revolution in Tuscany ousts Archduke Leopold II and installs a provisional government 20 May: French infantry and Sardinian cavalry defeat the Austrian army, which retreated, near Montebello. 26 May: Garibaldi's Hunters of the Alps confront Austrian forces led by Field Marshal-Lieutenant Carl Baron Urban at Varese. 27 May: Hunters of the Alps defeat Urban at San Fermo, entering Como. 30 May: French and Sardinian forces defeat the Austrian army at the Battle of Palestro. 4 June: In the Battle of Magenta, the French defeat Austrians. 21 June/24 June: In the Battle of Solferino, Sardinians and Napoleon III of France defeat an army commanded by Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria himself in northern Italy. The battle inspires Henri Dunant to found the Red Cross. 11 July: Franz Joseph, faced with the revolution in Hungary, meets Napoleon III at Villafranca, where they signed an armistice. References Further reading Blumberg, Arnold. A Carefully Planned Accident: The Italian War of 1859 (Susquehanna University Press. 1990). Pp. 238. Bossoli,