In Educating the Catholic People, David Salomoni reconstructs the complex educational landscape that arose in sixteenth-century Italy and lasted until the French Revolution. Over three centuries, various religious orders, both male and female, took on the educational needs of cities and states on the Italian peninsula, renewing the traditional humanist pedagogy. Historians, however, have not attempted to produce a synthesis on this topic, focusing mainly on the pedagogical activities of the Jesuits and neglecting the contributions and innovations of other groups. This book addresses this historiographical gap, providing a new chapter in the comparative study of pre-modern education.
Introduction
â1âState of Research and Historiographical Problems
1âEducating the Modern Catholics?: Roots of Catholic Schools in Renaissance Italy (15thâ16th cc.)
â1âThe Last Phase of Communal Education in Italy
ââ1.1âComplexity of the Renaissance Communal School System
ââ1.2âWeaknesses of the Renaissance Communal School System
â2âThe Catholicization of Italian Education
2âHistorical Paths: The Definition of Pedagogical Identities (16thâ17th cc.)
â1âMale Religious Orders
ââ1.1âAn Educational Benchmark: The Jesuits
ââ1.2âThe Barnabites
ââ1.3âThe Somascans
ââ1.4âThe Piarists
ââ1.5âThe Theatines and the Servites
â2âFemale Religious Orders
ââ2.1âThe Ursulines
ââ2.2âThe Angelic Sisters and the Guastalla College
ââ2.3âRosa Venerini and Lucia Filippini: The Pious Teachers
3âSchools and Colleges: Processes of Settlement in Italy and Contiguous Areas
â1âFrom Lombardy to the Kingdom of France
â2âSchools for Northern Italy and Small Towns
â3âA Congregation for the Large Cities
â4âBetween Central, Southern and Eastern Europe
â5âThe Franciscans between Continuity and Rupture
4âDifferent Types of Schools Operated by Religious Orders
â1âPublic Education Entrusted to Religious Orders and Secular Priests
ââ1.1âUdine and the Barnabites: On the Outskirts of the Peninsula
ââ1.2âJesuits and Piarists in the Duchy of Modena: A Competition between Local Networks
ââ1.3âGuastalla: A Multi-layered Religious Education for the Community
â2âEpiscopal Requests
ââ2.1âThe Somascans Between Schools and Diocesan Seminaries
â3âOther Types of Schools Operated by Religious Orders
ââ3.1âBarnabite Schools Established by Notables and Aristocrats
ââ3.2âThe Religious as Private Teachers
ââ3.3âWomen, Nuns, Teachers: The âEducandatoâ of Saint Charles
5âThe End of an Educational Season: The Schools of Religious Orders between Scientific and Political Revolutions (17thâ18th cc.)
â1âThe Scientific Culture: Religious Orders on the Eve of Modernity
ââ1.1âFamiano Michelini and the Galilean Piarists
ââ1.2âBaranzano Redento
â2âSchool Reforms in the Age of Enlightenment
ââ2.1âThe European Situation
ââ2.2âThe Situation in Italy: The Italian States and the Religious Orders
â3âConclusion
Bibliography Index
All interested in the history of education, culture, and religion in early modern Italy.