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University of Modena and Reggio Emilia

HISTORY

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

DIDACTIC HISTORY

GREAT EVENTS

PLACES TO VISIT

History

From the origin to Francesco III’s reform

From the Reform of Francesco III to the Unification of Italy

Post Union Period

From the origin to Francesco III's reform

In 1175, the old Law’s Study was founded in Modena; it is famous because it was not only the first study born from the glorious Study from Bologna, but it also hold a undeniable record: it’s the prototype of the municipal University. In 1126, in the fact,  the city-state was established after the death of the Countess Matilde of Tuscany (1115). Another feature of the Study of Modena was that it had a political colour: it was a school of Guelph ideas.

In 1175, the illustrious Pillio da Medicina, professor at the Bologna University, was called to run lessons in Modena against a generous remuneration; he moved and stayed there till his death. Accepting this charge, he defied the severe sanctions against who abandoned the Study of Bologna in favour of other schools.

The old origin of the Study of Modena, in opinion of Taddei, seems to be confirmed from the presence of a capital in the Ghirlandina Tower which states the existence  of a law study in Modena (Taddei 2008, pg. 23). 

The formal recognition (the Studium denomination) occurred with a ‘breve’ from Onorio III pope; in 1224, with this document, the jurisdiction over the students was given to the Bishop of Modena.

The Study continued to bloom in the century later, so to compete with the near Bologna University.

Starting from 1283, began a period of fights among the noble families divided between Guelph and Ghibelline. In 1288, the Guelph faction, in order to win the battle, offered the sovereignty of Modena to Obizzo II of Este, marquis of Ferrara.

The first period of Este domination was fatal for the Study, because of the economical condition of the Modena commune and the foundation of the Ferrara University in 1391, made from the marquis Alberto V of Este under concession of Bonifacio IX pope. All the Este subjects were forced to graduate in that University. In 1485, Ercole I ordered a sanction of 300 gold ducats for the subjects that graduated in other cities.

From 1338 until the first years of XVII century, the public readings of “Instituta” (law), Humanities and Logical-Medicine went on even though with suspensions and restarting, thanks to the financings of the Commune and private citizens.

After 1598, year of “devolution” of Ferrara to the Papal States, in Modena, new capital of Dukedom, a project of reopening of the Studium materialized. In that period, the Este Court was seen with suspicious because the citizens feared an interference in the cultural and educational activities. In 1606, indeed, the Commune rejected a petition of the students regarding the proposal of the institution of free lessons run by Giambattista Laderchi from Imola, well-known jurist moved to Modena  with the Duke. The Commune decision was due to the fear that the Study would become ducal letting however the expenses charged to the community.

In 1607, even though the many requests, first of all the one of chevalier  Ercole Fontana, the Commune didn’t open the Study again.

In 1626, the Count Paolo Boschetti founded a congregation of priests for the education of poor people and nobles: the San Carlo College.

On the 5^th of November 1678, thanks to the perseverance of the Commune and the donations of private citizens, in particular the one of the priest Cristoforo Borghi, the old Study opened in the houses of San Carlo Congregation again, located in the area of the current Palace of Rectorship.

In 1682, the university convention between the San Carlo congregation and the Commune was signed with the protection of the duke Francesco II of Este and, in December of the same year, the renewed University was solemnly inaugurated at the presence of Francesco II with an academic speech of Bernardino Ramazzini . 

Between the end of XVII century and during XVIII century other donations arrived. Among those we remember two legacies of the jurist and State Secretary Giuseppe Maria Bondigli : with the first one, in 1757, was created the chair of criminal Institutions; with the second one, in 1768, was created the chair of Public law and People law inaugurated from jurist Bartolomeo Valdrighi, one of the authors of Este Code in 1771.

In 1685, the Commune didn’t hesitate to pay one hundred gold doubles to the emperor Leopoldo I to have the privilege to award the doctoral degree; privilege that was confirmed by the papal bulls of Benedetto XIII and Clemente XIV. In the same year, the duke Francesco II, without financing the initiative, emitted the statutes considered necessary to give to the public Study the status of University, in other words institution capable to provide a graduation recognized also over the small dukedom. The new statutes remained in forced, more or less, until 1772, year of the reform of his successor.

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From the Reform of Francesco III to the Unification of Italy

On the 13^th of September 1772, the duke Francesco III realized an important university reform: he increased the number of chairs from twelve to thirty splitting them in four Faculties: Theology, Law, Medicine, Philosophy and Arts. He created a expert men Council so to prepare the Constitutions for the University of Modena; he furthermore founded a Reformer Magistrate of the studies, composed of authoritative people (among them two ministers of State, Gherardo Rangone and Vincenzo Frosini; archpriest Camillo Tori; the man of letters and poet Giuliano Graziani as secretary that soon gave up his seat to Luigi Cerretti) with the task of the direction of public education; he moved the University in a palace built for this purpose, equipping it with instruments, machines, all the necessary for the education and with a library (the University Library was founded with a decree on the 25^th of October 1772 and in 1892, the Royal Este Library was annexed to it); he facilitated the access of the foreign students; he increased the university patrimony donating a favour of it the goods belonged to Jesus Company, suppressed with papal bull dated 13^th of August 1773.

In that year were created the botanical garden, made out from the ducal gardens (1758), the Anatomical Theatre directed by Antonio Scarpa by the Big Hospital (1773-75) and the natural history Museum (1786).  

The University palace (current Rectorship Palace) was erected on the area occupied by the buildings that had held the public Study inaugurated in 1682 and on the adjacent area where Bellincini house was located.

The coming up of the Napoleonic invasion, led the duke Ercole III of Este (son of Francesco III) to leave Modena on the evening of the 7^th of May 1796. During this period, started with the French takeover on the 6^th of October 1796, after some events the University was declared Gymnasium. 

In 1814 with the Vienna Congress the Este came back to Modena. On the 15^th of July 1815 Francesco IV, son of Ferdinando of Asburg-Este and Maria Beatrice of Este, daughter of Ercole III of Este, gave instructions for the reopening of the University, making enter into force again, even though not totally, the university constitutions of Francesco III.

One of the news of the new system of 1815 was the appointment of the Rector, decision reserved to the duke: in 1822, at the death of Paolo Ruffini last university professor, a Delegate of the Ministry was appointed Rector.

In 1820, when the first students’ revolts of Carbonaro origin started, Francesco IV decided to limit the number of students of the Law Faculty, selecting them basing on a comparative test. In that period, the degrees were awarded more for good conduct than for merit and many students were excluded. The following disorders caused the division of the Faculty in four boarding schools (Modena, Reggio, Mirandola, Fanano). This system was then applied to the Medicine Faculty too, with an unique boarding school in Modena and to the one of Mathematics. The students of this last course, that wanted to attend the one of Engineering were forced to enter in the Cadets boarding school that was added to the Royal Pioneers Corps.

In that years, the Anatomical Museum, the Physics Museum, the botanical Garden, the Natural history Museum were enriched and the astronomical observatory and zootomic Museum were built.

In 1839, “in order to satisfy the increasing needs of the different Buildings collected in the Royal University of Study” the management of the Studies Patrimony presented to duke Francesco IV a report, dated 31^st of October, with the proposal to buy the house of Count Tommaso Frignani, that was inherited from the Sacristy of the church of S. Carlo following his death (1831). The purchase was approved by Francesco IV of Austria Este on the 8^th of January 1840.

During the Second War of Independence, on the 11^th of June 1859, Francesco V left Modena forever. Declined the Este power, the rectorship was given to university professors again. The first professor that had again the charge was   Francesco Selmi , chief of the Modena emigration to Turin.

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Post Union Period

In 1862, after the Italy’s Unification, the minister Matteucci because of a number of universities superior than the needs of population, and of a big financial problem due to the unification of the different local universities, decided to reduce them.

The law dated 31^st of July 1862 established a distinction among main universities (Bologna, Naples, Palermo, Pisa, Pavia, Turin) and minor ones (Cagliari, Catania, Genoa, Messina, Modena, Parma, Siena). To the minor universities were granted a smaller subvention and a lower salary for professors.

In 1876, a Consortium between Province, Commune and Saving Banks was established and approved with Royal Decree of the 12^th September 1877. Later the Chamber of Commerce and Arts, the Charity Congregation and S. Carlo College joined the Consortium with a Convention in order to reach the equalizing of the Universities; the convention was approved with law on the 14^th of July 1887, n. 4745. The memory of this conquest is handed on with a tablet placed at the entrance of the University Palace .

The rector Giuseppe Cesari did his best for finding a seat to the scientific Institutes that didn’t have it. In 1895, after long and demanding negotiations he succeeded to obtain from the Ministry of War the cession of the big Sant'Eufemia building of its property, that was transformed to hold new laboratories. In 1907, the institutions without seat moved there and, to commemorate the event, Giuseppe Cesari affixed two memorial tablets.

This period of reorganization was interrupted from the first world war of 1915-18.

To some universities was given a management autonomy thanks to the Gentile Reform dated 1923. The Modena University was one of those and enjoyed of a decade of autonomy from 1924 to 1934, during which there were initiatives aimed to highlight the traditions of the Modena University:

• In 1927, the use of a new seal was allowed: in the Ministry intentions, it had to represent a heraldic coat of arms which included the history of the single universities. Modena took inspiration from the seal of public Study of XVII century, that was not other than the Sigillum magnum of the Modena community;
• The emblem of the Law Faculty, the academicals  insignia, the Rectorship gold necklace as blazon of the charge and the university chapel (1928) were re-established; the degree was renewed (1926); the principal entrance hall of the University was reorganized with the adding of new seats and tablets dedicated to Giambattista Venturi, Antonio Scarpa, Bernardino Ramazzini, Giambattista Amici, Lazzaro Spallanzani, Francesco Torti, Contardo Ferrini, Paolo Rossini, Giuseppe Triani, Paolo Ferrari, Francesco Anselmi, Bartolomeo Valdrighi.

The second world war had repercussions on the activities of the  Modena University. The professors and students’ participation to these events had its recognition  when the Gonfalon of the Modena University was decorated with a Silver Medal for Civil Valour .

After the war and with the birth of the Republic, the Modena University faced a deep process of restructuring and relaunch; protagonists of that were personalities of high intellectual level as  Giuseppe Dossetti engaged with the drawing up of the Republican Chart and professor of Canon Law in Modena. We can remember, regarding this matter, the creation of the Forensic application Institute in 1948, the institution of the degree course in Geological Science in 1958, the one of Biological Science the year later, the constitution of Policlinico (General Hospital) in 1963, and in 1968, of the Economy and Commerce Faculty.

In the Seventies years, the Modena University could count on five faculties (Law, Medicine and Surgery, Mathematical Physical and Natural Science, Pharmacy, Economy and Commerce) and twenty specialization Schools by the Medicine Faculty, without considering the activity of the different specialized centers, such as Obstetrics School, the school for technicians of Cardiology, the complementary course of practical Hygiene, the Oncological Centre by the Radiology Institute. In 1990, the sixth faculty was inaugurated, the one of Engineering, to complete the propaedeutical biennium already active.

In 1998, the Modena University was named University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, organizing itself using a “net of seats” model, that has few examples in Italy. This model is characterized by the project of complementary development, unitary management, equal dignity of academic poles. In the meanwhile, in Reggio Emilia have been inaugurated the faculties of Communication Science, Agriculture and the second faculty of Engineering, while in Modena the one of Letters and Philosophy.

More and significant modifications were done in compliance with the law n. 240 dated 30^th of December 2010, the Gelmini Reform that, among the other news, put an end to Faculties, giving birth to a net of Universities splitted in Departments and Schools.

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HISTORY  RESEARCH ACTIVITY  DIDACTIC HISTORY  GREAT EVENTS  PLACES TO VISIT