What really happened in Italy during the “Years of Lead”? Often reduced to terrorist attacks, the “strategy of tension,” and armed struggle, the 1970s were, in fact, a far more complex period. They were also a time of profound political and social reforms, the expansion of rights, powerful collective mobilizations, and a remarkable cultural renewal. 

By placing the violence within its political, social, and international context, this lecture aims to move beyond common misconceptions to understand how conflicts, democratic aspirations, and societal transformations intertwined during a decisive decade whose legacies continue to fuel debates and memories in contemporary Italy.