On Thursday, March 20, the U.S. Consul General in Naples, Tracy Roberts-Pounds, visited the Gaetano Filangieri Civic Museum, accompanied by Antonella Di Vaio and Beatrice Pelli of the Public Diplomacy Section of the U.S. Consulate General.

She was welcomed by Paolo Jorio, Director of the Filangieri Museum; Riccardo Imperiali di Francavilla, representative of the Filangieri family; and by the author of this piece, as professor at the University of Naples Federico II and scientific advisor to the Accademia Filangieri di Partenope, a Naples-based non-profit promoting the legacy of the Neapolitan Enlightenment and its transatlantic connections.

During the visit, Director Jorio highlighted the architectural and artistic features of the museum, housed in the historic Palazzo Como. The focus then shifted to a remarkable episode of transatlantic intellectual exchange: the correspondence between Gaetano Filangieri and Benjamin Franklin.

That exchange was sparked by a letter from the Neapolitan diplomat Luigi Pio, who informed Filangieri that Franklin had taken an interest in his treatise The Science of Legislation, urging him to write the forthcoming volumes in good ink”—with bold, clear strokes—as his ideas could prove useful “for an entire nation” across the Atlantic. Shortly thereafter, a dialogue began that bridged continents and traditions—Naples’ reformist spirit meeting Philadelphia’s revolutionary vision.

This connection between Naples and the United States was further explored during the visit by recalling the shared ideals of the Neapolitan and American Enlightenments—first and foremost, the pursuit of happiness. Enshrined as an inalienable right in the U.S. Declaration of Independence, this principle inspired Filangieri to envision an entire legal system grounded in “public happiness” as its “supreme law.”

Another deeply shared value was freedom of expression. Franklin witnessed firsthand the consequences of its absence when his brother, the editor of the New-England Courant, was jailed for criticizing the British authorities. In response, Franklin published excerpts from a London Journal essay defending press freedom. Filangieri, for his part, believed that a court of public opinion existed in every nation, and that for it to function properly, freedom of the press was essential—which he regarded as a natural right.

The visit also featured Eleonora Mascolo and Mattia Manfredi, two young jurists recently awarded the Gaetano Filangieri Prize, conferred annually by the Accademia Filangieri di Partenope to recent law graduates who successfully demonstrate how their theses engage with Filangieri’s Enlightenment ideals.

At the end of the event, Consul General Roberts-Pounds was presented with a copy of the recently published volume Citizen of All Places, Contemporary of All Times: The Universality of Gaetano Filangieri’s Thought (available in open access at: https://bit.ly/VolumeFilangieri), which includes sixteen contributions on various aspects of Filangieri’s legacy, as well as the transcription of the Filangieri-Franklin correspondence from the original letters preserved in Philadelphia and Naples. 

Consul General Roberts-Pounds remarked: “It was a true pleasure to visit the Filangieri Civic Museum and delve into such a fascinating chapter of Neapolitan history. The correspondence between Gaetano Filangieri and Benjamin Franklin is a remarkable testament to the deep ties that already existed over two centuries ago between Naples and the United States. I am grateful to Director Jorio, Professor Arena, and Attorney Imperiali for the engaging visit, and I hope more Americans will discover this jewel of Neapolitan culture.”

Riccardo Imperiali di Francavilla added: “Since her arrival in Naples, Consul General Tracy Roberts-Pounds has shown exceptional harmony with the city and its people. Yesterday’s visit sealed this friendship before a distinguished witness—Gaetano Filangieri—who had forged a bond with a great American statesman long before us.”

As Director Jorio concluded: “The Filangieri Museum, with its legacy and its family’s history, will always be an intellectual landmark of Naples. The visit by the U.S. Consul General is both a confirmation of that role and a testament to the enduring and far-reaching connections between Naples and the United States.”