Luigi Luzzatti (11 March 1841 – 29 March 1927) was an Italian financier, political economist, social philosopher, and jurist. He served as the 20th prime minister of Italy between 1910 and 1911.
Luzzatti came from a wealthy and cultured Jewish family and built a reputation as a social reformer dedicated to raise the working classes from ignorance and poverty.[1] He is remembered being the founder of the Italian credit union movement and for his book Dio nella libertà (God in Freedom), in which he advocates religious tolerance.[2] This provoked an exchange of correspondence between him and Benedetto Croce.
Early life
Luzzatti was born to Jewish parents in Venice on 11 March 1841.[3] After completing his studies in law at the University of Padua, he attracted the attention of the Austrian police by his lectures on political economy, and was obliged to emigrate after starting a mutual aid society among gondoliers.[3]