Chapter Lo studium nel XIV e nel XV secolo

Overview & Synopsis

The contribution overturns the narrative of the origins of the Florentine studium as a substantial 'failure'. Its events did not represent a particular case: as in other European cities of the late Middle Ages, the university experienced refoundations and movings of headquarters. The specificity of the Florentine studium must be identified in some characteristics of the evolution of Florentine society: a metropolis of international standing bent by the demographic crisis, an economy oriented towards trade but burdened by a growing public debt, a continuous state of warfare which allowed the subjugation of other cities, a literate society supported by private patronage. This context explains the events of the first two centuries of the history of the studium and the decision to move the headquarters elsewhere.