ABSTRACT
Attempts at reconstructing a picture of a typical eighteenth-century Italian midwife and her place in society are beset with a multitude of problems. In addition to a fundamental difference between the towns and the countryside that obtained throughout the peninsula, political fragmentation complicated the picture since, at that time, Italy consisted of numerous states. This lack of unity resulted in different policies regarding the populace and the adoption of varied demographic strategies and medical regulations. As a consequence, midwifery practice too was subjected to a multitude of laws and decrees. In such a varied and fragmented society, the figure of the midwife emerges in many different and sometimes contradictory guises.
