State-Accounting Innovations in pre-unification Italy

The paper presents a comparative analysis of the governmental accounting systems deployed in the main Italian states between 1815 and 1861. The accounting practices of the pre-unification states are described and the main accounting innovations are discussed. The study emphasizes the relationships between the regime type, political structures and the development of state accounting systems. It is suggested that the imposition of the accounting model of the Kingdom of Sardinia throughout Italy, following unification, resulted in the loss of some important accounting innovations developed by other pre-unification states. Parallels between accounting unification in nineteenth-century Italy and the current accounting standardization process advocated by the International Public Sector Accounting Standards are made.