The paper deals with the issue of measures for the protection of cultural heritage in Italy. Some legislative measuresalready existed in the first half of the 19th century in the different States into which pre-unification Italy was divided. After unification there was little progress in this field. The reason for this lack of interest and legislation is explained by the prevailing liberal ideology which considered heritage protection to be undue state interference with private ownership. In 1939 the Minister of Education introduced the so-called 'Bottai reforms', influenced by the aesthetic philosophy of Benedetto Croce. After the Second World War, the 1948 Constitution recognised that 'the Republic promotes the development of culture, scientific research and the conservation of the landscape and of the historical and artistic heritage of the Nation'. The shift in responsability to the regions has not been matched by adequate regional legislation. The transition from policies of constraint to a more flexible and active planning approach to conservation has been only partly successful in combining preservation with the management of heritage as a development resource.