Giulia Civita Franceschi

Giulia Civita Franceschi (Naples, 1870 – 27 October 1957) was an Italian educator. She directed from 1913 to 1923 kindergarten ship Caracciolo where 750 scugnizzi (underclass Neapolitan street children) were rescued and educated with her own method,[1] becoming "citizens".[2]

Giulia Civita Franceschi on kindergarten ship Caracciolo, in Naples port

Her experience, before being shut down by fascism,[3] was studied worldwide, including a visit from a Japan state delegation in the twenties; she's also called "the Montessori of the sea".[1] An exhibition was opened on her story at the Sea Museum of Naples in 2009.[4]

The Caracciolo was a corvette built in 1869 and donated by the Italian navy in 1913.[5]

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