In 1848 Europe rebelled against absolutism. And Milan invented the first smoke-strike, which ended in blood. LONDON - The idioms often have a historical background that justifies them: so today in Italian they say "success is a forty-eight" to indicate a sudden chaos, riot general of unexpected uproar. It is the same Mike Rapport, on the first page of his book 1848 The year … [Read more...] about 2011: Italy’s anniversary