Closure of foundling wheels in Italy – 1865

In Italy, following the open debate in France, the increasing number of foundlings, which had reached astonishing levels, began to be taken into consideration. About 40,000 babies were abandoned each year in Italy at that time and this was too many for the country’s orphanages and homes to handle. This number, combined with the belief that the introduction of foundling wheels had legitimized and made it too easy to abandon infants, led to the passing of a new law in 1865 to abolish them. Provinces introduced the law according to different timescales.