Workshop on Italian Economic History and Central Banking History

On 18 October 2022 the Bank of Italy hosted the workshop 'Research on central banking history and on Italian economic history: where do we stand and where are we heading?'. This workshop gathered prominent economic historians, who analysed and discussed the state of the art of central banking and Italian economic history, the main advancements and the future challenges. The first session, chaired by Vera Zamagni (University of Bologna), was entitled 'Economic development since Italian unification: recent answers and new questions for future research'. In his introductory lecture, Giovanni Federico (NYU Abu Dhabi) described the process of the integration of Italian economic history into international debate (starting in 1936 with the foundation of the 'Rivista di Storia Economica' by Luigi Einaudi), which was mainly shaped by the Cliometric revolution. The second session was chaired by Gianni Toniolo (Luiss, Duke University) and entitled 'Central banks and major shocks: what do we know from history?'. Stefano Ugolini (Université de Toulouse) traced the evolution of the research on central banking history, advocating the strengthening of a long-term approach going beyond traditional studies focused on the control of the money supply, towards a more comprehensive understanding of the broader role performed by central banks, including in the management of major banking and financial crises. Both sessions were followed by discussions animated by leading academics who suggested promising future research paths.