Tra autonomia e privilegio: le istituzioni collettive negli spazi alpini occidentali durante il XVIII secolo

This essay focuses on alpine institutions in the Sesia valley (Valsesia) and the Briançon region (the Briançonnais) in the early modern era. From the fourteenth century onwards, the western Alps were characterized by the emergence of valley federations, which obtained from the territorial ruler statutes and privileges that guaranteed wide-ranging autonomy as regards political, fiscal and resource management. The particular status gained under these statutes contributed decisively to the organization and administration of alpine spaces. Throughout the course of the ancien régime, the autonomy pacts were renewed by the principle actors involved, thereby confirming the spatial organization of these regions located on the state borders. After the War of Spanish Succession (1701–1714), the Valsesia and the Italian side of the Briançonnais came into the possession of the House of Savoy. During the Enlightenment, a new class of lawmen serving the king implemented reforms that re-defined the relationship between central and local institutions. The administrative reorganization of the Savoy territories moved towards greater control by the central state power, thus bringing about conflict with the customs and statutes of the alpine regions and causing a gradual weakening of local institutions.