by InTrieste
A new book examining the historical forces that shaped Trieste will be presented on Thursday, Feb. 19, at 6 p.m. at the Libreria Ubik in Galleria Tergesteo.
The author, Maurizio Marzi Wildauer, will discuss his latest work, Il genio di Trieste. Nascita e destino di una città cosmopolita, published by Rubbettino. The event will be introduced by the journalist Roberto Srelz.
The book explores the historical foundations of Trieste’s civic identity, asking what ultimately gives stability to a society — whether legal structures, economic exchange and tolerance, or a shared sense of belonging rooted in collective memory and attachment to place.
Drawing on historical research spanning from 1719 to the end of World War I, Mr. Marzi Wildauer traces how the city was steered toward modernity under Habsburg rule in the 18th century. He argues that the same processes that fostered Trieste’s cosmopolitan character also contained the seeds of the ethnic tensions that later destabilized the region along Italy’s northeastern border.
The study also draws parallels between the diverse, outward-looking Trieste of the early 20th century and contemporary Europe, presenting the port city’s past as a lens through which to examine present-day questions of identity, coexistence and political change.
