Much current philosophical debate seems to ignore the historical dimension of philosophy or consider the past of the discipline as nothing more than a toolbox. The value of the historical study of philosophy risks being equally misunderstood by philosophers and historians, the philosophy of history having exhausted all its attractions, the Italian tradition, strongly characterized by the intertwining of philosophy and history, appearing provincial. Things were quite different after World War II, when the reflection on the history of philosophy and the consequent historiographical practice fulfilled a healthy function of rejuvenating the national philosophical panorama. Questioning about the current reasons for the crisis of historical thought, overcoming certain self-referential specialism, rediscovering the importance of a lucid identification of the historiographical issues to be addressed and the role of the historical dimension of knowledge within increasingly composite and potentially conflictual societies such as those on which criticism has to practice today and where there is a need for a shared memory of the past, it seems to be the way to escape marginalization and decadence.