Historical Institute of Sienese Resistance and Contemporary Age

The Historical Institute of Sienese Resistance and Contemporary Age (ISRSEC) was founded in 1990 in order to preserve and enhance the historical memory of the events of the Second World War and the Liberation of the Sienese territory.

It is part of a network of more than sixty centers, distributed throughout Italy and coordinated by the National Institute for the History of the Liberation Movement in Italy (INSMLI), which deal with documentation, research and teaching on the history of the twentieth century.

The ISRSEC, chaired by Pietro Clemente, has a documentation centre consisting of an archive of written and oral sources, a library, a photo library and a media library specialising in the periods of fascism, the Second World War and the Liberation. The agency has been responsible for the publication of numerous researches and historical testimonies and the production of documentaries and audiovisuals related to the resistance in the Sienese area.

ISRSEC seeks in particular to contribute to the development of awareness of contemporary history in schools. In addition to organising training and refresher courses for teachers, it manages the Laboratory for the Teaching of History of Casa Jubileo (Montemaggio), proposing to all schools (basic and high) of the province a series of educational paths based on “active” teaching and the direct use of sources. Since 2007, ISRSEC has been coordinating teaching activities and teacher training courses at the Stanze della Memoria, as well as guided tours of the museum on Siena’s history of the twentieth century.

As a member of INSMLI, ISRSEC has obtained the recognition of training agency, with ministerial decree of 25/05/2001, prot. n. 802 of 19/06/2001, renewed by decree prot. n. 10962 of 08/06/2005, and is included in the list of accredited entities.

President Pietro Clemente
Director Alessandro Orlandini