Francesco De Martino

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Francesco de Martino (Naples, May 31, 1907 - Naples, November 18, 2002) was an Italian jurist, politician, lifetime senator (1991-2002) and former interim Vice President of the Italian Republic, and was considered to be the Democrat’s party conscience.

He graduated from the law school Federico II in Naples, and, under the guidance of Enrico De Nicola, emabarked on the study of law and economics and became a distinguished scholar of Roman law.

Emeritus Professor of law at the law school Federico II in Naples, he published several tomes, among which, the History of the Roman Constitution (in six tomes, which was compared for his monumental significance to the “Staatsrecht” by Theodor Mommsen) and the Economic History of Ancient Rome; his publications were translated in English, Spanish, German, French and Chinese.

He first joined the Action Party (an anti-fascist political party) in 1943, and then joined the reconstituted Socialist party in 1945.

At the first elections of the new Italian Republic in 1948, he was elected to Parliament with the Popular Front alliance of communists and socialists. He soon won the confidence of party leader Nenni, to whom he became vice secretary.

When, in 1963, Nenni became deputy prime minister in the first centre-left government of Aldo Moro, De Martino took over as party secretary.

Vice President of the Italian Republic, he was the Democrat’s candidate to the Presidential elections in 1971 and 1978. This time, however, his son Guido was kidnapped and the family had to pay a 1bn lire ransom for his release. The kidnappers were eventually captured, but those behind them were never discovered.

Nonetheless, he continued to be elected to the Parliament, and, in 1992, was appointed “life time senator” for outstanding patriotic merits in the social, scientific, artistic and literary fields.

He resumed his academic career at the law school Federico II, where his secular funeral was celebrated in the presence of Italy's President Ciampi.

He is survived by his sons, Armando, Guido, Antonino, Elisa and Laura.