Abstract

The paper presents a review of research conducted in Europe on events that left their mark on universities during the final stages and the aftermath of the Second World War. Having noted the lack of circulation in Italy of much of the research that appeared in Germany and in France, the paper contains a comparative study of historiographies on the purging of professors caught up in dictatorial regimes. It highlights both common and contrasting features of the studies, with German research being the benchmark for its quality and quantity. The paper then proposes certain lines of research following the identification of archival material that until now has not been utilized to its full potential