Italy’s Decline and the Crisis of European Integration

This book offers a historically grounded and theoretically ambitious interpretation of Italy’s long-term economic, social and political decline within the framework of European integration. Combining political economy, the history of economic thought, and political and philosophical theory, the book argues that the euro and the institutional architecture of the EU have acted as structural constraints on Italy’s development, eroding its productive base, limiting democratic sovereignty, and amplifying inequality. Amidst the current economic and geopolitical crisis facing the Continent, moreover, this book argues that the roots of today’s European crisis lie in the very process of integration launched with the Maastricht Treaty. While it initially harmed certain countries—those on the periphery relative to the core—it is now extending its effects to other nations as well, making a rethinking of the approach to common policies increasingly necessary. Thus, the book challenges the mainstream narrative that attributes Italy’s stagnation to national mismanagement and instead situates the country’s trajectory within broader contradictions of the EU’s economic governance. Drawing on both heterodox and institutionalist literatures —as well as on extensive descriptive data— the analysis engages critically with the Maastricht Treaty, the “external constraint” strategy, the technocratic role of the European Central Bank, and the political theology underpinning the euro as a secular promise of salvation. By reconstructing key turning points—from the 1992 crisis to the sovereign debt turmoil, and from constitutional reforms to ideological transformations—the book shows how European monetary integration has redefined Italian statehood and weakened the post-war democratic and social contract. The final chapter explores alternative scenarios and argues for a broader cultural and political reorientation capable of reimagining Europe beyond its current institutional form. Targeted at scholars in European studies, political economy, economic history and political theory, the book offers a bold and timely contribution to core debates on the EU, sovereignty, and the crisis of European capitalism.

Gabriele Guzzi is an Adjunct Professor and Research Fellow at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio. His research focuses on the philosophy of economics and on the relationship between European integration, Italy’s economic decline, and democratic sovereignty. He served as an economic advisor to the Italian government (2019–2022).