Two marital separations in the Pamphilj household during the early modern period

CYCLE: Nobles in Rome
SPEAKER: Benedetta Borello
DATE: Thursday, November 26, 6:00 PM

In the second half of the 17th century and the early years of the 18th century, respectively, Olimpia Aldobrandini and Teresa Grillo left their marital homes and their husbands to seek better financial settlements and, more broadly, improved living conditions. These two cases illustrate the possibilities and limits of female agency, as well as an acute awareness of their own property rights.

Benedetta Borello is Associate Professor of Modern History at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio. She has taught at numerous Italian universities and has been a fellow at the European University Institute in Florence, the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies at Columbia University, and the MIAS (Madrid Institute for Advanced Studies). Her research focuses on the history of elites, the history of the family, gender history, network analysis, and the study of opinion and the public sphere, particularly during the early modern period.