Archive and Library Theory and Management

The course is dedicated to the history of public administration in Italy and has mainly a chronological structure. In the first part of the course, the following will be illustrated as an introduction: the principles of public and administrative law; the language of the administration and other institutions in Italian history; the evolution of Italian public administration in relation to the main European experiences. The second part will focus on the different phases: Cavour Law of 1853 and the European framework; the birth of the Italian Administration; the Prefects and the center-periphery relationship; the Crispi’s Reforms; the Administrative “decollo” (start); the Giolitti Era; the Public Bodies; Fascism and Bureaucracy; the Antifascist Purge; the Constitution; the Centrist Governments and the Administration; the Center-left and the Bureaucratic Reform; the Rapporto Giannini; the Reform of the Public Management in the 1970s; the Changes from the 1980s to the 2000s; Towards a New Public Administration? The third part will include practical exercises at the Archivio centrale dello Stato or other public Archives.

A basic knowledge of Contemporary History is helpful.

G. Melis, Storia dell’amministrazione italiana 1861-2018, Bologna, Il Mulino, ed. 2020.

Attendance is optional but recommended. ,

At the end of the course, the final evaluation will be based on an oral exam with open answer. The exam will evaluate the full ownership of language; the full command of the scientific vocabulary used in the field; the ability to contextualise the distinct phases of the history of Italian public administration; the ability to analyze the specific archival sources. Attendance and active participation in the classroom lessons and in the workshops, including the writing of reports, will contribute to the overall evaluation. Grades will correspond to the evaluation of all the above aspects.

The course will be structured in classroom lessons, enriched by some workshops to bring students closer to the specific archival and sources. Seminars of high-profile experts will present original research in the field. There will also be visits to important archives of public institutions.