Colonial Dynamics and Napoleonic policies in Italy: an European perspective

The Napoleonic occupation of Italy (1800 -1815) can be read as an early exercise in development policies. French administrators, imbued with a sense of civilizing mission (mission civilisatrice) employed vast amounts of energy to enact programs meant to encourage the Italians to become better organized, less corrupt – as the French saw it – and more efficient. The question was, and is: how are the concepts development/underdevelopment generated? An examination of the relationship between French administrators and their Italian administrés in the early 1800’s will contribute to current discussions by opening a window into the history of the discourse of development.