From Scotland and great britian to Rome, Italy...Why tho?

[lyn1982]

What would possibly cause somebody to immigrate from Scotland and Great Britian in the 1800s to Rome, Italy?

These two likely ancestors of mine here:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161 ... y-caldwell

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/161 ... h-caldwell

did so.

I am just wondering what their reasoning could have possibly been. It seems such a far place to immigrate to and I assume they wouldn't have known the language either, so why? There must be some good reason. Anyone have any ideas?

Since they married in Florenc in 1837 my thinking is maybe she was fleeing from an arranged marriage to marry the man she really loved? I mean, they surely must have known each other before they both arrived in italy, right? But, why choose Italy of all places, considering they would have had to learn a whole new language. The US, Canada or Australia would have all made more sense.

[suanj]

If I remember correctly, in the 1800s in Florence there was a conspicuous community of people from the United Kingdom. I believe they moved to Rome for business reasons ... or if they had any relatives in Rome with whom they wanted to get together. It is not uncommon for people from the United Kingdom to come to Italy. They love it for the climate, especially Tuscany. Language is not a barrier, as it is not for Italians in the UK ... it is learned.
suanj

[lyn1982]

Thank you for the information, very interesting!