The First Movement for Nature Protection in Italy, 1880–1934

Luigi Piccioni (translated by James Sievert)

Between 1880 and the outbreak of World War One, a large movement for landscape and nature protection flourished in Europe, driven primarily by a nationalist culture, but also featuring a strong international outlook. In contrast to the post-World War Two period, the lines in the movement’s objectives between wilderness, landscape and cultural and artistic heritage were very blurred, and scientific and humanistic knowledge both played an equally important role. In Italy, a network of associations and institutions was built up and then eventually faded between 1885 and the beginning of the 1930s. Although this network did not succeed in deeply influencing the scientific and civic culture of the country, it achieved important successes and placed Italy at the forefront of Europe in terms of environmental and landscape protection. Among the most significant results of this mobilisation was the law of 1923 for the defence of natural beauty, which later formed the basis of Article 9 of the Constitution of 1948, and the creation of the national parks of Gran Paradiso and Abruzzo, among the first to be established in Europe. This book analytically reconstructs the events of the nature protection movement, contextualising them in the cultural and political-institutional climate of the time; highlights the movement’s full inclusion in contemporary European protectionist initiatives; and attempts to take stock of its significance and historical legacy. Read more.