>>507617009
Centuries of being a hundred different small nations with bitter rivalities did not help the Italian population achieve the ancient dreams of Rome.
That's exactly what happened.
The greatest extents of influence the peninsula has managed to achieve were with the Genoa and Venetian maritime empires, the Renaissance, and giving birth to countless explorers, conquerors, military tacticians (at least pre-WW1) and artists.
As much as I hate this country, only brown people would deny the influence Italy and Italians had on the western world.