Since I had lived in a city where the plague had struck almost 700 years before, it was always interesting to me how life kept moving in a city that lost so much. Jane, you always brought up that point, that we were walking in a city where thousands of people died, but the walls and buildings were still alive. I wanted to argue that the reason Siena is still a medieval city (design wise) was because of the plague. Enjoy :)
Frozen in Time: Siena
When we think of human catastrophe, one of the first events in history that comes to mind is the Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Plague. This Plague originated in China and spread throughout Asia and Europe through rats and fleas. The disease is caused by one of three types of bacterial infections caused by Yersinia pestis. This results in flu-like symptoms followed by internal and external bleeding, and blackening of the tissue (“Plague”). The symptoms of this plague weren’t only physical, but also affected the future of people and cities, such as Siena, Italy. The Black Plague changed Siena’s cultural and economic history forever, which made the city suffer tremendously, and left the beautiful medieval city frozen in time.
In this time period, Italy was broken into city-states, which were governed by independent oligarchies, mainly wealthy aristocrats. Also, Tuscany was the economic capital of the world with flourishing cities such as Florence and Siena. Milan, Florence, and Siena were prosperous by controlling eastern trade and taxing a broad range of its citizens. Many scholars claim this region was the origin of the free-market economy. People traded as they pleased and the governments made profit from each transaction. Each city was exceptionally urbanized regarding the period, which was fuel for the fire of the Black Plague. Because these cities were so industrialized they began developing cultural aspects and attracting artists, philosophers, and the like, particularly Florence. Petrarch, Dante, and Boccaccio developed the humanistic style; and a rivalry between the cities stirred and they competed in any way possible, battling with their own cultural traditions. Siena was planning to enhance their Duomo to become a considerable cathedral, and the economy was booming (Davis).
Unfortunately, in 1348 this all changed when the plague raided the urbanized cities without pity. Siena lost over 50% of its population, which didn’t fully recover until the 20th century. Although this plague hit hard, Florence and Milan would eventually recover; but Siena, a previously blossoming metropolis in 1340, would never fully rebound to its previous state. Siena’s Duomo never completed its expansion, her economy never attained her previous triumph, and she never reemerged as her neighboring cities did. Siena suffered more than any other Tuscan city and was trumped by Florence’s economic and cultural aspects. Before this traumatizing plague, Siena was governed by the Nine who controlled taxes, laws, and disputes. The economy was based on the trading of goods and crops from outside the city center. City records indicate that Siena was experiencing extreme economic growth at the time right before the Black Death. New citizens were moving in, new houses were being built, and the walls being expanded; but Siena could not recover after much of its urban population was killed by this violent disease (Davis).
This is because “geographical restraints” did not feed any incentives for population growth afterwards. First, the city is far inland with no port, making trade difficult; and with no key transport route connecting it to the north or south. Siena had little to no surface water such as rivers or lakes, and relied on well water they collected through the Bottini: this made it hard to support a large urban population. Siena also lacked efficient infrastructure for survival from the plague, which led people to more docile cities. Disputes with Florence also held back the government from accumulating enough wealth to drive the community. Other surrounding, flourishing cities contained amenable resources to manage expanding populations after the plague died down. The economic changes, such as taxation and labor, Siena endured had the most lasting effects on the city. The first summer of the Bubonic Plague, labor was dwindling as many poverty-stricken, working peasants died in their indecent environment that was plague-ridden with fleas and rats. Other citizens fled to attempt and outrun the vastly spreading disease. The Government of the Nine even retreated in the countryside. The government, trade, and business were halted and labor, taxes, and laws ceased to exist between the end of May that year to the end of August. This halt of the economy led to an absence of affluence, and Siena died and could not resurrect (Davis). Eventually, Siena was conquered by the Medici family of Florence and up until the Italian Unification, its name could not avoid from being attached to that of Florence (Bowsky).
Some critics argue that Siena was frozen in time due to the political strife occurring in the city during the 13th century until the early 14th century. Most of Siena had been on the side of the Emperor during the imperial cause, the Ghibelline. After the Pope had succeeded in a battle of power between himself and the Emperor, he imposed sanctions to make the Ghibelline merchants suffer. People who owed the Ghibelline, or families that were on the side of the Emperor, any money from loans they had taken out, no longer had to repay them. Therefore, these wealthy merchants were exiled from Siena and left their medieval estates behind. These critics claim, “struggles for power between factions of nobles, merchants, and the people replaced the strife between Guelfs and Ghibellines but did little to give Siena internal stability” (Encyclopædia Britannica). Although this might have some impact on why Siena was frozen in time, it does not account for all of it. Like stated earlier, city records prove Siena was experiencing extreme economic growth at the time: infrastructure was rapidly expanding. If Siena was truly in economic and political conflict, there could not have been room for improvement; and that would mean Siena was not frozen in time, since new things were being built, and walls being expanded. It wasn’t until the plague struck until the city was truly frozen.
After the plague perished, the social and political structure of Siena changed forever. Many citizens no longer had a family, and some were left with little to nothing. Some stooped to stealing, while others who inherited assets become wealthy. This new social class intruded Siena’s society, overlooked the government rule, and took roles in public office. Other citizens started ignoring the IX’s orders, such as artisans and literates who commanded large summations for their work, but there was sustainable economic growth. Even so, the government had little money to keep the public’s support. The Nine were eventually overthrown in 1355 and the social structure of Siena was eternally changed. Siena did not only lose out economically, but culturally as well. Since artists lived off commission, it was hard to keep their career booming since the aristocracy had less money to spend after the plague (Bowsky). This made it hard for artists and craftsmen to survive in an economy like Siena’s. Like the city itself, Sienese art could not compete with Florentine’s prestigious and prominent art (Davis).
“Out of the rubble of human catastrophe,” Siena is a pure example of how history and society can be altered by natural events (Davis). This infamous Black Plague limited Siena’s economic development, cultural progress, and martial resistance. Before this pestilence, Siena was renowned throughout Europe as a cultural and economic hotspot, but as of 1450 it was merely a part of Florence. Siena today, still frozen in time with its medieval architecture, “was modernized slowly, with grace, and its beauty rests in its inability to recover from the plague 650 years ago” (Davis).
Works Cited
Bowsky, William. M. 1964. The Impact of the Black Death upon Sienese Government and Society. Speculum. 39:1-34. 11 Apr. 2017.
Davis, Ryan S. "The Lasting Consequences of Plague in Siena." Montana State University. Montana State University: Mountains and Minds, n.d. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Siena." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 04 Feb. 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
N.a. "Plague." Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 14 Sept. 2015. Web. 11 Apr. 2017.
