Posted on 05 December 2013
The Historical Archives of the European Union in collaboration with the Istituto Sturzo in Rome and with the Department of History and Civilisation of the European University Institute organised a day of reflection on the European and Italian politics of Piero Malvestiti which was held on the 29 November 2013 at Villa Salviati (Florence), the seat of the Historical Archives.
The day was organised to mark the occasion of the opening to the public of the private archives of Piero Malvestiti, following the production of a detailed inventory to the fonds drawn up by the Sturzo Institute, depositor of the papers, in cooperation with the HAEU, a task that took nearly a year to complete. This fonds which remains on the whole unpublished, is of extraordinary historical interest. The documents mirror the important contribution of Malvestiti to the political spheres in both Italy and Europe.
During the Fascist regime, Piero Malvestiti (1899-1964) was politically persecuted but despite this he co-founded the Movimento guelfo d’Azione; he contributed to the expansion of “Programma di Milano”, the ideological platform which sanctioned the union between popular movements with that of the neo-guelfe which culminated in the conception of the Democrazia Cristiana. In the aftermath of the Resistence, in which he participated as a Christian Democrat representative in the CLNAI (Comitato di liberazione nazionale Alta Italia), Malvestiti was a deputy of the Constitutional Assembly, under-Secretary at the Exchequer and later Minister for Transport and Minister for Industry and Commerce. An atypical Christian Democrat in the history of the Italian Republic not just for the role he played in the Resistance but also for his liberal approach in the field of economics. After his departure from Italian political life he dedicated himself to European integration, a process in which he was a true believer. After the De Gasperi Presidency in the Common Assembly, he was the first Italian to cover the most prominent positions at European level, such as Vice President of the EEC (1958-1959) and President of the ECSC (1959-1963).
The Day of Reflection was inaugurated with a speech by the President of the European University Institute, Joseph Weiler who welcomed the participants and commemorated the whole generation of European politicians like Piero Malvestiti who participated in the initial phase of integration and the ECSC experience. The HAEU is the keeper of the memories of many of these personalities, a real and valuable treasure for the EUI and for the scientific community in general, which until now has not been adequately exploited. The event is the first step in the process whereby the Historical Archives of the EU becomes part of the scientific, academic and intellectual life of the EUI. Giuseppe Sangiorgi, Secretary-General of the Istituto Sturzo took the floor to remember Malvestiti as one of the salient figures in the contribution of Catholic politicians to the history of Twentieth Century Italy: antifascism and Europeanism. The European Deputies, Doris Pack, Chair of the EU Committee on Culture and Education and Carlo Casini, Chair of the European Parliament’s Committee on Constitutional Affairs bore testimony to the fundamental role of the Historical Archives of the EU as a place of history and memory thanks to the personal commitment for the modification of the EU regulation for the Archives which consolidated the financial foundations and the mission of the Historical Archives.
The Day began in earnest with a presentation of the work involved in the inventorying of the fonds by the archivists, Andrea Becherucci and Gherardo Bonini, responsible for the organisation of Malvestiti’s papers. In the first session of the day, introduced by Antonio Varsori, Mauve Carbonell, Lorenzo Mechi, and Ruggero Ranieri dealt with the European dimension and the political works of Malvestiti. The second session, moderated by Giuseppe Sangiori heard the personal tributes of the former Minister for Internal Affairs, for Defence and Justice Virginio Rognoni, the daughter of Malvestiti, Mila and his son-in-law Flavio Mondello on Malvestiti the political figure and his human side. The last session which was introduced by Federico Romero, explored Malvestiti’s contribution to Italian politics and to the Italian economy, thanks to the interventions of Carlo Spagnolo, Francesco Petrini and Daniela Preda. Dieter Schlenker, Director of the Historical Archives, closed the Day of Reflection by stressing the relevance of the tight connection between the archival work and historical research. The wealth of information emerged during the day of reflection have opened new horizons of research for the scientific community.
The Piero Malvestiti Fonds will be soon available at the following link.