This paper takes sides with a series of studies dedicated to the notable in the liberal era (Banti, Camurri, Musella, Pignotti, Pombeni). In recent years, historiography has reevaluated the notable, overcoming the essentially negative interpretation that the social sciences had built. The case of Sardinia is considered here in the light of the new historiographic trend. The author distinguishes between the village notable, the notable of the city and the notable parliamentary or man of the government with a national profile. The notable of the village usually had low noble status, he was a landowner and he often did not have a high level of education. Instead the city notable had a university education and a cultural level far above the average population; his prestige often went beyond the borders of Sardinia. With the advent of the former combatants movement, mainly composed of military officers and soldiers of the First World War, the system that had dominated during the liberal era came into crisis.
Keywords: Notable, Italy, change, solidarity, village, city.