The Seven and a Half Days Revolt (Sicilian: Rivorta dû 7 e menzu; Italian: Rivolta del sette e mezzo) was an uprising in Palermo, lasting from the 16 to 22 September 1866.
[1] Among the causes: the growing misery of the population; cholera and its 3,977 victims in the city and district; the chauvinism of Northern state officials, who considered "the people of Palermo almost barbarians"; and the heavy police measures and vexatious constraints placed on the populace.
Nearly 4,000 rebels attacked the prefecture and police headquarters, killing the inspector general of the Public Security Guard Corps.
[2] The Italian government decided to proclaim a state of siege and to institute harsh repression against the people of Palermo.
It had to re-deploy the army commanded by Raffaele Cadorna, while ships of the Royal Navy, with the King's flagship Re di Portogallo, bombed the city.