L’adozione tra medio evo ed età moderna: un istituto al tramonto?

The paper follows the evolution of juridical « adoption », from the high Middle Ages to the late Modern Era, and its use over time according to the society’s needs. In particular, the paper covers some scholarship works and documents dating back to the high Middle Ages in which adoption is sparsely dealt with - in part consistently with Roman law and in part following the trail of the Franc and Longobard law - and in which the aim was to ensure the possibility to have a son to whomever lacked one (imitatio naturae) or to choose a specific heir. In the lower Middle Ages, the interest for the matter is sparse. Nonetheless, one could find many contributions that helped changing the outline of a juridical figure that, over a long time, has hardly been applied : the scholars of the time dealt with the matter following the scheme and the discipline outlined by Roman Law, but also acknowledged the possibility for a different implementation of the same in the Middle Ages life and tried to facilitate, particularly with the consilia, a wider usage of adoption in order to provide, on one hand, for the necessities of the orphans in need and, on the other hand, for the desire of those willing to take care after a child in need or of those in need of a heir for dynasty purposes. In the Modern Era, one can find a similar development, even bigger than the prior beliefs suggested. In fact, at the time, the life of adoption as a juridical figure (although not really widespread) went silently on, prior to its evident resurgence (in different guises) during the French Revolution, in a new conception of family and society, based on more egalitarian principles and, with less success, in the Napoleon Era (as well as in the Code civil). The following centuries attested the necessity of the recourse to adoption, that nowadays finds its reason of being in « natural » grounds.