Alessandro Manzoni

Alessandro Francesco Tommaso Antonio Manzoni (UK: , US: , Italian: [alesˈsandro manˈdzoːni]; 7 March 1785 – 22 May 1873) was an Italian philosopher, poet, playwright, and novelist. He is best known for the novel The Betrothed (Italian: I promessi sposi), generally ranked among the masterpieces of world literature. The novel, published in 1827, is a symbol of the Italian Risorgimento for its patriotic message, and also because it was a fundamental milestone in the development of the modern and unified Italian language.

Manzoni contributed to the stabilization of the modern Italian language and helped to ensure linguistic unity throughout Italy. He was an influential proponent of Liberal Catholicism in Italy. He is also considered one of the three crowns of Romanticism in Italy, along with Ugo Foscolo and Giacomo Leopardi, despite their differences. He is often associated as the moral and cultural leader of the Italian unification with his younger contemporary Leopardi, although his work and thinking often contrast with the latter.