Il processo di unificazione del Regno d'Italia e l'armonizzazione dei preesistenti sistemi contabili

Abstract

This paper focuses on harmonization of government accounting in historical perspective. The study explores the case of Italian Unification and sheds light on how the first accounting system for the Kingdom of Italy was regulated by combining the accounting systems of seven pre-unitary States. Evidence shows that accounting harmonization was not a leading priority among government reforms. Several urgent issues required government response such as public debt consolidation and harmonization of the fiscal system. This circumstances accelerated the decision to extend the Kingdom of Sardinia’s accounting system to the entire Kingdom of Italy. Furthermore, the scarcity of accounting techniques and methods among the other pre-unitary States further propelled the extension of this model throughout the newly unified Italian Kingdom. From this point of view, the influence on accounting practices of a specific cultural tradition seems to be directly connected with its own permanence and establishment in a specific context.