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The Italian Post-War Era to the Present Day

Hand in hand with the restoration of democracy, after putting the past behind it by signing the Paris Peace Treaty on 10 February 1947, Italy re-entered the international scene, overshadowed by the confrontation between the two superpowers of the time, the United States and the Soviet Union.

Under the skilful guidance of Christian Democrat leader Alcide De Gasperi, the country made a firm choice for the Western camp, with a series of important steps, such as adhering to the Marshall Plan in 1947, the Council of Europe and, above all, to NATO in 1949.
Italy was also one of the founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1951.

Becoming part of the United Nations in 1955, Italy was again among the most advanced countries on the way to European integration, which saw Italy at the centre of some of its major steps forward: from the Messina Conference in 1955 to the Venice Conference in 1956 and the historic signing of the Treaties of Rome on 25 March 1957, which instituted the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community.

At the end of the 1950s significant economic growth led to the so-called economic boom. Internal migration significantly replaced the emigration that had characterised the first half of the 20th century.

On the political front, 1948 to 1960 marked the years of 'centrism', or rather of governments run by the Christian Democrats with minor parties as allies (PSDI - Italian Social-Democrat Party, PRI - Italian Republican Party, PLI - Italian Liberal Party).

The entry of the Socialists into government occurred in the early 1960s, and more specifically in 1963, with the centre-left phase of government lasting until 1976.
The Italian Communist Party then formulated its policy of "historical compromise", for a government alliance containing all the democratic forces of the country.
This situation pushed the two main parties into closer dialogue, which resulted in the so-called "national solidarity" governments (1978-'79), all the more crucial during the Red Brigades crisis, which in those years peaked with the kidnapping and assassination of former Prime Minister and Christian Democrat Chairman Aldo Moro.

In the mid-1970s Italy joined the most industrialised nations of the world in the G7 group, whose members included the United States, Japan, Britain, France, Germany and Canada.
The 1980s were characterised by five-party coalition governments (1981-1991) and the arrival of non-Christian Democrats as heads of government.
During those years a new call for a European constitution came from Rome, with the launch of the Conference on Political and Monetary Union in 1990.
This culminated with the signing of a new treaty (Treaty for European Union) at Maastricht in December 1991.
New parties and new coalitions had entered the political scene.

During the elections of 1994, carried out with the new majority system, the old parties, although renewed in their symbols and names, were drastically downsized.
The Polo delle Libertà coalition (Forza Italia, Alleanza Nazionale and Lega Nord) was established and Forza Italia leader Silvio Berlusconi became Prime Minister.
After an interval of two "technical" governments and the 1996-2001 legislature, which saw the centre-left Olive Tree coalition in power, Berlusconi reclaimed the premiership in June 2001. At the beginning of 2002, the national currency - the lira - was replaced by the single European currency - the Euro.

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