Keywords

• In this contribution the author partially revises her readings
• presented on previous occasions
• of Giuliano Procacci's works on early modern history. She identifies as a specific feature of Procacci's scholarly profile the co-existence of a two-pronged interest: on the one hand (especially at the beginning of his career) towards Italy and Europe in early modern times
• and
• on the other &ndash
• and with the passage of time
• this becomes prevalent &ndash
• towards contemporary history. As concerns Procacci the «modernist»
• the author examines his works on Machiavelli and the first part of his Storia degli italiani
• in the overall development of the latter
• she underscores Procacci's attention to the long term historical processes which characterise the life of nations