Susanna Agnelli

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Susanna Agnelli

OMRI
Susanna Agnelli.jpg
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
17 January 1995 – 17 May 1996
Prime MinisterLamberto Dini
Preceded byAntonio Martino
Succeeded byLamberto Dini
Personal details
Born(1922-04-24)24 April 1922
Turin, Italy
Died15 May 2009(2009-05-15) (aged 87)
Rome, Italy
NationalityItalian
Political partyItalian Republican Party
Spouse(s)Count Urbano Rattazzi, Jr. (1945–1975)
Children6 children

Susanna Agnelli, Contessa Rattazzi, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI[1] (24 April 1922 – 15 May 2009) was an Italian politician, businesswoman and writer. She was the first woman to be appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs in Italy.[2]

Early life[]

Born in Turin, she was the daughter of Edoardo Agnelli and Donna Virginia Bourbon del Monte, a daughter of the Prince di San Faustino and his Kentucky-born wife Jane Campbell. Her brother, Gianni Agnelli, was the head of Fiat until 1996; members of the Agnelli family are still the controlling shareholders of the company.[3] During the Second World War she worked at times as a nurse for the Red Cross, and when transport became unobtainable in the post-war chaos she used her connections with Fiat and the Allied military to establish for the Red Cross a fleet of five ambulances with ten drivers to transport injured and sick civilians.[4]

Politics[]

In 1974, Agnelli gained her first public appointment, when she became mayor of Monte Argentario. Her grandfather and great-grandfather had been mayors in their time. Agnelli served as mayor for a decade, from 1974-1984. The experience inspired her to enter national politics.

Agnelli was elected to the Italian Parliament in 1976 for the Italian Republican Party (PRI). In 1979, still for the PRI, she became an MEP in the European Parliament, from 1979-1981. In 1983, she returned to the Italian Parliament, becoming a senator.

The culmination of her political career was her appointment as Italy's first female Minister of Foreign Affairs, in 1995. She served for more than a year which, in the fragile politics of postwar Italy, makes her one of the most long-lasting holders of the office. It was not until 2013 that Emma Bonino became the next female incumbent of the post.

Family[]

In 1945 she married Count Urbano Rattazzi (1918-2012 with whom she had six children, the youngest of whom is photographer Priscilla Rattazzi. The marriage was dissolved in 1975. She divided her time between New York City and Italy and she was long a loyal fan of Robert Denning, of Denning & Fourcade, who designed over 15 homes for her in Manhattan, South America and Italy.[5]

Autobiography[]

Her autobiography Vestivamo alla marinara ("We always wore sailor suits", 1983) was a bestseller in Italy.

Works[]

  • Vestivamo alla marinara (1975)
  • Gente alla deriva (1980)
  • Ricordati Gualeguaychu (1982)
  • Addio, addio mio ultimo amore (1985)

References[]

  1. ^ quirinale.it
  2. ^ Donadio, Rachel (2009-05-16). "Susanna Agnelli, First Woman in Italy to Run Foreign Office, Dies at 87". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  3. ^ Donadio, Rachel (2009-05-16). "Susanna Agnelli, First Woman in Italy to Run Foreign Office, Dies at 87". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-07-22.
  4. ^ Agnelli, Susanna (1975). We Always Wore Sailor Suits (1 ed.). London: Corgi. pp. 197–211. ISBN 0552105309.
  5. ^ "Editorial Statement — Brushing Up Jason Epstein's Downtown Loft", by Judith Thurman, Architectural Digest March 1995, v. 52 #3, pp. 186-200

Further reading[]

  • Marco Ferrante, Casa Agnelli, Mondadori, 2007, ISBN 978-88-04-56673-1
  • Giancarlo Galli, Gli Agnelli, il tramonto di una dinastia, Mondadori, Edizione 2003, ISBN 88-04-51768-9
  • Alan Friedman, Agnelli and the network of italian power, Mandarin Paperback (Octopus Publishing Gr.), London, 1988, ISBN 0-7493-0093-0
  • Angiolo Silvio Ori, Storia di una dinastia - Gli Agnelli e la Fiat, Editori Riuniti, Roma, 1996 ISBN 88-359-4059-1
  • Marina Ripa di Meana e Gabriella Mecucci, Virginia Agnelli, Argelato (BO), Minerva Edizioni, 2010, ISBN 978-88-7381-307-1
  • Gigi Moncalvo, Agnelli segreti, Vallecchi, 2012, ISBN 978-88-8427-236-2

External links[]

Political offices
Preceded by
Antonio Martino 		Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs
1995–1996 		Succeeded by
Lamberto Dini
Italian Chamber of Deputies
Preceded by
Title jointly held 		Member of Parliament for Como
Legislatures: VII, VIII
1976–1983 		Succeeded by
Title jointly held
Italian Senate
Preceded by
Title jointly held 		Italian Senator
Legislatures: IX, X
1983–1992 		Succeeded by
Title jointly held
European Parliament
New parliament Member of European Parliament for Northwest Italy
Legislature: I
1979–1981 		Succeeded by
Title jointly held
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