Frontières régionales, nationales et historiographiques : bilan d’un programme de recherche italien et perspectives de recherche

The article focuses on the lively contemporary Italian historiography on boundaries, and presents a series of volumes published by the editor FrancoAngeli in Milan. These volumes constitute a collection of essays edited by different specialized scholars, and represent the result of the research project ‘Boundaries: classes, territories and cultures in early modern Italy’ which has been financed by the Ministry of University (2003-2007). Through different and multidisciplinary approaches, the border has been studied in all its geo-political, religious, military, economic and social aspects. Most of the essays concern Northern Italy, in particular the Alpine boundary and the so called “inner boundaries” (enclaves, separate jurisdictions…), but maritime borders are considered as well. A section of this paper provides insight into the duchy of Savoy with its complex borders, which had been apprehended over the long run. The last section deals with the border relationships between the State of Savoy and the princedom of Monaco: a case story that, thanks to the rich existing documentation, could be studied by a team of international scholars.