Author : Joanne M. Ferraro
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
ISBN 13 : 9780521531177
Total Pages : 282 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (311 download)
Book Synopsis Family and Public Life in Brescia, 1580-1650 by : Joanne M. Ferraro
Download or read book Family and Public Life in Brescia, 1580-1650 written by Joanne M. Ferraro and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2003-01-23 with total page 282 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book focuses on the behavior of the ruling families of Brescia, a rich and strategically vital city under Venetian rule, during the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century. The first part of the book conceptualizes the civic leadership of Brescia, with a profile of its origins and a brief history of the process of aristocratization. Further, it examines the relationship between family structure and the local socio-political structures. Size, wealth, education, and marriage ties were all pivotal factors which helped determine the family's position in public life. Its strength rested ultimately on its continuity over time. Women and women's property are given careful attention. The second part places the Brescian elite within the Venetian state. Besides controlling urban political institutions, the Brescians held strong economic links with the surrounding countryside, the basis of their power, and they enjoyed ample authority in the rural communities subject to the city.