Damaging though it is, the lack of substantiation for gianduia’s early nineteenth century invention might not be fatal to the theory. (Absence of evidence is not evidence of absence.) However, several strong circumstantial arguments also militate against that dating.
This week, we return to the myth of the early nineteenth century invention of gianduia. The setting of the story—the Continental System and its impact on industry and individuals—can be easily established. Yet there are no known contemporary sources describing gianduia or a gianduia-like substance in Piedmont during the six years between the Berlin Decree and the de facto collapse of the Continental System in the summer of 1812 when Russia and England made peace with the Treaty of Örebro.
On November 21, 1806—barely a month after the crushing defeat of the Prussian army at Jena and Auerstedt—the 37-year-old Emperor of the French and King of Italy dictated orders from the palace of Berlin. With the “Berlin Decree,” Napoleon instituted the Continental System, a trade policy that many have described as the genesis of gianduia.
Since the word “gianduia” will appear repeatedly in this series, let’s shoehorn some brief comments on spelling and pronunciation before moving forward.
On March 17, 1861, Vittorio Emanuele II was proclaimed king of the newly united Kingdom of Italy. This year, 2011, marks the sesquicentennial of Italian unification in Turin—the ancestral home of the House of Savoy, capital of Piedmont, capital of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the first capital of Italy. In commemoration, we will spend some time examining a delicacy that has been historically identified with Turin, Piedmont, and the Risorgimento itself: gianduia.
