Giovanni Gentile (1875-1944), academic, historian of ideas, and politician, is considered the last great Italian philosopher of his era. He played a central role in the epochal school reform of 1923 and founded several institutions that contributed to the development of a ruling class in Italy comparable to that of the great European national powers. His support for Fascism, however, came at great personal cost. His writings covered a wide range of disciplines, including systematic, historical, and philosophical-political works, totaling 55 volumes.