"Insegnare la patria": in Trieste Luca G. Manenti explores the Lega Nazionale through education, language and identity

Full house at the Libreria Antiquaria Umberto Saba for the presentation of the new book by the historian and Head of Research at the Manlio Cecovini Study Society.

The role of women in promoting patriotic values, language as a fundamental element in shaping identity, the relationship between leading figures of the Lega Nazionale and the municipal authorities in Trieste and, above all, an extensive network of schools, nursery schools and recreational centres through which generations of Italians living under Austrian rule were educated. These were among the topics discussed yesterday evening at the Libreria Antiquaria Umberto Saba in Trieste, where a packed audience attended the presentation of Insegnare la patria. Strategie educative della Lega Nazionale nella Venezia Giulia (1891–1929) (Teaching the Fatherland. Educational Strategies of the Lega Nazionale in Venezia Giulia, 1891–1929), the new book by historian Luca G. Manenti, Head of Research at the Manlio Cecovini Study Society, published by Biblion Edizioni.

The event was opened by Paolo Sardos Albertini, President of the Lega Nazionale, who placed Manenti’s work within a longstanding tradition of research into the association, which continues to shed new and significant light not only on its history but also on the history of Trieste itself.

The discussion with the author was led by writer and journalist Pietro Spirito, whose questions provided an opportunity to explore some of the key themes of Manenti’s research. In particular, Manenti focused on the role played by women in promoting patriotic values, the close relationship between leading figures of the Lega Nazionale and the municipal authorities, and the importance of language in shaping and transmitting national identity.

Considerable attention was also devoted to the educational network established by the Lega Nazionale, in close cooperation with the Liberal-National Party, which governed the Municipality of Trieste. Across Trieste, Istria and Dalmatia, nursery schools, primary schools and recreational centres were established, contributing to the cultural education and development of a national consciousness among generations of Italians living within the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The discussion thus highlighted the complexity of the Lega Nazionale, founded in 1891, placing its educational and welfare activities in the broader context of the society, politics and institutional dynamics of the period. This perspective allows Manenti, in his book, to reconstruct not only the association’s organisation and strategies, but also the cultural and social profile of the Italian bourgeoisie in Venezia Giulia between the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

The evening concluded with numerous questions from the audience, rounding off a highly attended event and confirming the continuing interest in a chapter of history that still offers new perspectives from which to understand Trieste and Venezia Giulia during that period.

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