This study analyzes an unpublished manuscript written prior to 1859, just before the unification of Italy. The document spans 42 handwritten pages, each containing approximately 14 lines. Authored by a politician identified as Chihatchef—likely of French origin, though his nationality is not explicitly mentioned—it focuses on two central geopolitical questions: the future of Italy and the fate of the Ottoman Empire. The manuscript reflects the author’s particular admiration for Italy, highlighting its deep historical legacy, even suggesting that Byzantium, the foundation of the Ottoman state, had previously belonged to the Italian historical sphere. Through its detailed commentary, the manuscript offers a valuable lens into the European political and intellectual climate of the mid-19th century. It reveals three key ideological currents shaping the zeitgeist of 1859: the rise of nationalism and the consequent decline of imperial governance; entrenched East/West binaries, marked by colonialist discourses such as the “white man’s burden” and orientalist portrayals of Muslim societies as stagnant; and an emerging consciousness of the need to separate religion from state power—seen both in critiques of the Ottoman system and reflections on the papacy’s role in Italian unification. This manuscript thus serves as a rich primary source for understanding the intersection of European political thought, orientalist discourse, and the evolving status of empires on the eve of major transformation