Explain the role of nationalism in the unification of Italy and Germany in one paragraph

Nationalism was important because both countries consisted of numerous smaller states where the people of same ethnicity lived except in different states. That meant that foreign forces could easily ally themselves with one against the others. What they all had was that they all shared ethnicity and religion which was enough to give them an idea of a country for all Germans or all Italians, which is what they did and they gave up their smaller states for the idea of one grand nation.