University of Bologna

Timeline

1. 1088–1150Bologna · BolognaLaw teachers and students in Bologna formed an autonomous guild (universitas), regulating the rights and obligations of both through collective contracts, creating the earliest university-type scholarly organization in the West and attracting students from across Europe to study Roman law.
2. 1158–1200Bologna · BolognaHoly Roman Emperor Frederick I issued the Authentica Habita, guaranteeing scholars' personal safety and freedom of movement; the university's autonomy received imperial legal backing, becoming an important precedent for later academic privileges.
3. c. 1200–1350Bologna · BolognaBologna became the undisputed center of Roman and canon law study in Europe; the glossators developed systematic legal teaching and degree examination systems there, and their model was imitated by newer universities such as Paris and Oxford.
4. 1800Bologna · BolognaAfter Napoleon's reforms it was incorporated into the national higher-education system; the 1888 tercentenary established the title 'Alma mater studiorum' (Mother of Studies); today it remains a leading Italian public research university, continuing a teaching tradition of over nine hundred years.