Maria Pellegrina Amoretti (12 May 1756 – 12 November 1787), was an Italian lawyer. She is referred to as the first woman to graduate in law in Italy, and the third woman to earn a degree.

Biography

Amoretti was born on 12 May 1756 in

Oneglia Oneglia ( lij, Inêia or ) is a former town in northern Italy on the Ligurian coast, in 1923 joined to Porto Maurizio to form the Comune of Imperia. The name is still used for the suburb.Roy Palmer Domenico, ''The regions of Italy: a reference gu ...

. She was the nice of

Carlo Amoretti Carlo Amoretti (born 16 March 1741 in Oneglia, now part of Imperia – died 23 March 1816) was an ecclesiastic, scholar, writer, and scientist. He entered the Augustinian order in 1757. To further his studies, he went to Pavia and Parma where ...

. When she was 20 (in 1777), she became a

Doctor of Laws A Doctor of Law is a degree in law. The application of the term varies from country to country and includes degrees such as the Doctor of Juridical Science (J.S.D. or S.J.D), Juris Doctor (J.D.), Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.), and Legum Doctor (LL. ...

, at the

University of Pavia The University of Pavia ( it, Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; la, Alma Ticinensis Universitas) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it one ...

, where

Columbus Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to: * Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer * Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio Columbus may also refer to: Places ...

was educated. She also received a degree in philosophy from the university. Amoretti initially applied to the

University of Turin The University of Turin (Italian: ''Università degli Studi di Torino'', UNITO) is a public research university in the city of Turin, in the Piedmont region of Italy. It is one of the oldest universities in Europe and continues to play an impo ...

, but was rejected because she was a woman, and her graduation from the University of Pavia in 1777 is considered by historian Giulio Natali to be the “most famous graduation of the eighteenth century.” Though Amoretti died at the age of thirty, she left a manuscript on dowry laws, specifically on marriage in Roman law, which was published posthumously in 1788 by a relative, Carlo Amoretti. She died on 12 November 1787 in Oneglia.

Published works

References

Bibliography

* 1756 births 1787 deaths University of Pavia alumni 18th-century Italian lawyers Italian women lawyers 18th-century Italian women {{Italy-law-bio-stub