The University of Pavia (Italian: Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. It was founded in 1361 and is organized in 9 Faculties. The University of Pavia is one of the oldest universities in Europe. An edict issued by the Frankish king of Italy Lothar I (ruled 818-55) mentions the existence of a higher education institution at Pavia as early as AD 825. This institution, mainly devoted to ecclesiastical and civil law as well as to divinity studies, was then selected as the prime educational centre for northern Italy. Officially established as a studium generale by the Holy Roman emperor Charles IV (r. 1355-78) in 1361, the institution was enlarged and renovated by the duke of Milan, Gian Galeazzo Visconti (ruled 1385-1402), becoming the Duchy's sole university. In 1858, the University was the scene of intense student protests against Austrian rule in northern Italy (through the puppet kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia). The authorities responded by ordering the university's temporary closure.