Metadata: Gonzaga Archive, Legislation and Govern Structure, Decrees' Books
Collection
- Country:
- Italy
- Holding institution:
- Mantua State Archive
- Holding institution (official language):
- Archivio di Stato di Mantova
- Postal address:
- via Roberto Ardigò 11, 46100 Mantova
- Phone number:
- +39 376324441
- Web address:
- http://www.asmantova.beniculturali.it
- Email:
- as-mn@beniculturali.it
- Reference number:
- Inventario Luzio e Torelli, F.II.10
- Title:
- Gonzaga Archive, Legislation and Govern Structure, Decrees' Books
- Title (official language):
- Archivio Gonzaga. Legislazione e sistemazione del governo, Libri dei decreti
- Creator/accumulator:
- Gonzaga family
- Date(s):
- 1407-1756
- Language:
- Italian
- Latin
- German
- Extent:
- 67 boxes
- Type of material:
- Textual material
- Physical condition:
- good
- Scope and content:
- This fonds comprises documents that express the will of the rulers of Mantua (the Gonzaga family before 1707; after 1707, when Mantua became part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the House of Habsburg) and gives an account of the administrative life. They cover a wide variety of items, from royal or papal investiture to peace treaties, from the description of a holiday to providing a dowry or confiscating private belongings. Skimming the indexes, one may find several references to the Jewish presence in Mantua. For example, in the years 1429-1430 alone five decrees have some connections to the Jews, as can be deduced from volume no. 4: from “Agnolo, formerly a Jew, physician”, to “Calimano Jew from Germany” and his “pawnshop”, through “Salomone Jew”, “Bonvino Jew” and “Angiolo de Pisis Jew”. Taking one of the volumes as an example, such as no. 33 (1502-1512), there are multiple references to the Jews, from the confirmation of the “capitoli” (contracts) made with “Emanuel”, a Jew from Revere, to his heirs (13 January 1504), and the permission granted to the Jew Isach Bonaventura da Fano to purchase a house (25 January 1504) to the absolution of all the crimes the Jews might have committed while lending money to the Christians (12 September 1511).
- Administrative/biographical history:
-
The Gonzaga Family ruled Mantua and the province of Mantua from 1328 to 1708. The "Archivio Gonzaga" is the old, so called "secret" Archive of the Marchesato (Marquisate, 1433-1587), later Ducato ( Duchy, 1531-1708) of the Gonzaga Family in Mantua. It includes papers dated before the coming to power of the family in 1328 and later than the date of their fall in 1708. Important sections of the archive were destroyed during two fires in 1413 and 1448.
In 1785 the entire archive of the Gonzagas was concentrated in the lower rooms of the castle of San Giorgio, where it took the name of "Archivio governativo" (Archive of Government). In 1865 the Archivio governativo was delivered to the Municipality of Mantua and in 1883 it was moved to the Palazzo degli Studi - now State Archive of Mantua - where it is currently located.
The "Archivio Gonzaga" is one of the seven archives included in the macro-area named "Antichi Regimi - Periodo Gonzaga" (Ancient regimes - Gonzaga Period) into which the State Archive of Mantua is organised. It also includes Archivio del Monferrato (1155-1605); Magistrato ducale (1573-1736), Gridario del magistrato ducale (1578-1787); Archivio degli instrumenti (1345-1770); Magistrature di sanità (1555-1817).
A detailed description of this archive was supplied by Pietro Torelli in 1920. This inventory is still the only available complete finding aid. The "Guida generale degli Archivi di Stato", published in Rome in 1966-1969 - now also available online (http://www.guidageneralearchivistato.beniculturali.it/) - provides information about the Gonzaga Archive, the inventory edited by Pietro Torelli and bibliographic information. For historical information about the holding institution, the State Archive of Mantua, see http://guidagenerale.maas.ccr.it/document.aspx?uri=/istituticonservatori/IC0460022101
- Access points: locations:
- Mantua
- Subject terms:
- Financial matters
- Financial matters--Moneylending
- Legal matters
- Finding aids:
- Guida Generale degli Archivi di Stato. Archivio di Stato di Mantova
- Yerusha Network member:
- Contemporary Jewish Documentation Center - Milan
- Author of the description:
- Samuela Marconcini; Centro di documentazione ebraica contemporanea; 2017