MONT DE PIE'TE' ( MONTE DI PIETA', in Italian), a benevolent insti tution which originated in Italy in the fifteenth century, the object of which was to lend money to necessitous people at a moderate interest. The Jews, who were the great money-lenders in that age, ex acted an enormous interest, and as much as 20L to 25/. per cent. The papal go vernment and other Italian governments established a kind of bank, which lent money upon pledges, for a fixed term, at a low rate of interest, intended chiefly to defray the unavoidable expenses of the establishment; at the expiration of which term, if the capital lent and interest were not repaid, the pledges were sold, and the surplus money, after paying the debt in curred, was restored to the owners. In most instances, however, the term might be renewed by merely paying the interest. The difference between these establish ments and those of the ordinary brokers seems to have been that they were intended mainly for the benefit of the borrowers, and not for the profit of the lenders, and that every reasonable fkcility was afforded to the former. The admi nistration of the Monte di Pieta was therefore conducted upon economical and strictly equitable principles, and it was under the inspection of the govern ment as a public benevolent institution. This at least was the original principle, although it may occasionally have been deviated from in after-times, in conse quence of the cupidity or necessities of the governments themselves. In times when capital was more scarce or less ge nerally diffused than it is now, and when loans of money were difficult to be got, the Monte di Pie& was a most useful in stitution. Leo X., some say Paul III., sanctioned the first establishment of a Monte di Pie& at Rome, which was under the direction of a society of wealthy per sons, who, having contributed the neces sary funds, lent upon pledges small sums not exceeding thirty Roman scudi, a little more than six pounds sterling, to each person. The money was lent for a term
of eighteen months. The establishment was under the inspection of the treasurer of the Apostolic Chamber. Large store houses were annexed to the office, which stood in the district della Regola, near the banks of the Tiber. (Richard, Descrip tion de l' Italie, vol. v.) Other estab lishments of a similar nature existed at Milan, Florence, Naples, and most other towns of Italy. That of Padua is one of the oldest on record, having been estab lished in 1491, when the Jewish banks, which lent at usurious interest, were shut up. (Scardeoni, De atatiqsitate Urbis Patanii) This institution was introduced into other countries, especially into the Ne therlands, and Monts de Piete were es tablished at Brussels, Antwerp, Ghent, and other places. In Spain there were also similar establishments at Madrid and some other large towns, but in no country were they so generally spread as in Italy, the original country of benevolent insti tutions during the middle am.
When the French under Bonaparte in vaded Italy in 1796-7, they plundered the Monti di Pieta of Milan, Modena, Parma, and most other towns. At Rome, Pope Pins VI., being pressed by the French to pay an enormous sum for war contribu tions, was obliged to seize upon the richer pledges in the Monte di Pieta, for the re payment of which he gave bonds ; but these bonds lost all value in the subse quent invasion of Rome by the French in 1798. The Monti di Pieth have been re established in most Italian cities.
The Monti Frumentarii, in several parts of Italy, are storehouses of corn, which is lent to poor cultivators on the same principle as money is by the Monti di Pieta.