Franca Pilla | |
---|---|
![]() Pilla in 2001 | |
Companion of the President of Italy | |
In role 18 May 1999 –15 May 2006 | |
President | Carlo Azeglio Ciampi |
Preceded by | Marianna Scalfaro |
Succeeded by | Clio Maria Bittoni |
Personal details | |
Born | Reggio Emilia,Kingdom of Italy | 18 December 1920
Spouse | |
Children | 2 |
Residence(s) | Rome, Lazio, Italy |
Franca Pilla (or Franca Ciampi; born 18 December 1920) is a former first lady of Italy, serving during Carlo Azeglio Ciampi's presidency.
Pilla was born in Reggio Emilia on 18 December 1920. [1] At the age of 18, she met her future husband, Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, at the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa. They met at a "dancing tea" which at the time was a respectable way for youth to meet. The tea was organised by mothers, and boys and girls would be allowed to practise dancing with each other. [2]
After World War II, in which Ciampi had been a soldier and then a resistance fighter, they had a year's engagement and then married in Bologna when she was 25. They spent over seventy years together, [1] during which time her husband was prime minister, leader of Italy's central bank, minister of finance, and later president. [3]
During a tour of Naples, in the south of Italy, she was quoted as saying that the Italians in the south were better and more intelligent. [1] She was known for her openness, giving the pope advice when they met. She encouraged people to read and to ignore the TV. [1]
Pilla and Ciampi were married until his death on 16 September 2016. [3]
Media related to Franca Pilla at Wikimedia Commons
Italian Wikiquote has quotations related to: Franca Pilla