Podesteria di Empoli
Item
Country
IT
Name of institution (English)
Historical Archives of the Municipality of Empoli
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
ita
Contact information: postal address
Via Torricelli 58/A, 50053 Empoli
Contact information: phone number
0039 0571757858
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
archivio.storico@comune.empoli.fi.it
Reference number
Podesteria di Empoli
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
Podesteria of Empoli
Title (official language of the state)
Podesteria di Empoli
Language of title
ita
Creator / accumulator
Podesteria di Empoli
Date(s)
1370/1772
Language(s)
ita
Extent
957 storage units
Type of material
Textual Material
Scope and content
The Podesteria di Empoli fonds comprises records produced by the Podestà since 1370. It is divided into two series: Atti civili (civil acts) and Atti criminali (criminal acts). The Atti civili includes documents from 1370 to 1772, with significant gaps in its earlier units (14th and early 15th centuries) and in those corresponding to a substantial part of the 17th century. The Atti criminali only begun in 1594, when the Podestà, in the exercise of its increasing functions in the criminal field, started to produce two distinct series of criminal records every six months: the "descritti" (described) and the "non descritti" (not described) in the "bande", i.e. the registers of the grand-ducal milicia. This distinction ended in 1752. The criminal records are arranged in separate files of "querele e denunzie" (complaints and denunciations), "atti criminali" (procedural documents), "lettere" (correspondence) and "sentenze e multe" (sentences and fines).
Since the late 15th century, Empoli became the destination of Portuguese and Spanish Jewish families banished from the Iberian kingdoms and of those who sought a refuge from the Iberian inquisitions and religious persecution. Despite the fact that it did not reach the numbers of other Tuscan cities, this movement finds expression in a few documents of this fonds. Here are two examples:
Atti Civili, n. 76, fol. 77v: Sansone ebreo, a Spanish Jew, requested the restitution of a small loan that he had granted to a Christian woman. November 13, 1497.
Atti Civili, n. 85, fol. 64: Salomone di Leon submitted to the Podesteria of Empoli a request on behalf of his brother-in-law regarding a credit that the latter had to Zaccaria di Isacco di Emanuele da San Miniato, a Jew resident in Empoli. August 28, 1505.
See Luzzati (2012) for more references to the Sephardic community of Empoli in the late 15th century and early 16th century in records of this fonds.
Since the late 15th century, Empoli became the destination of Portuguese and Spanish Jewish families banished from the Iberian kingdoms and of those who sought a refuge from the Iberian inquisitions and religious persecution. Despite the fact that it did not reach the numbers of other Tuscan cities, this movement finds expression in a few documents of this fonds. Here are two examples:
Atti Civili, n. 76, fol. 77v: Sansone ebreo, a Spanish Jew, requested the restitution of a small loan that he had granted to a Christian woman. November 13, 1497.
Atti Civili, n. 85, fol. 64: Salomone di Leon submitted to the Podesteria of Empoli a request on behalf of his brother-in-law regarding a credit that the latter had to Zaccaria di Isacco di Emanuele da San Miniato, a Jew resident in Empoli. August 28, 1505.
See Luzzati (2012) for more references to the Sephardic community of Empoli in the late 15th century and early 16th century in records of this fonds.
Archival history
The Podesteria di Empoli gathered documentation related to the civil and later criminal competencies of the Podestà. Until the last decade of the 15th century, most of the civil acts produced by the Podesteria concerned disputes resolved by agreement of both parties. From the early 16th century and especially during the Grand Ducal era, the typological differentiation of the documents increased due to the improvement of the administrative-fiscal system organisation. Simultaneously, the records tended to be arranged into notebooks with independent indexes. Only later were they gathered to form a file with a unitary numbering and a general index placed at the beginning. After 1594, the Podesteria gradually enlarged its jurisdiction to criminal justice matters. These new competencies were reflected in the records produced by this magistrature, which were distinct between "descritti" and "non descritti" (see above). This distinction lasted until 1753, when it was abolished, and the Podesteria started to produce a single series of criminal acts.
The Podesteria di Empoli is one of the original fonds of the Archivio Storico del Comune di Empoli. In 1979, the Amministrazione Comunale di Empoli published a catalogue of the archive, Gli inventari degli Archivi comunali di Empoli: 1355-1937, containing the summary inventory of the "Atti dei Giusdicenti" — the archival section that gathered the fonds before the Unification of Italy, in which the Podesteria di Empoli was included —, produced under the direction of Arnaldo D'Addario. More recently, Irene Fabii carried out a reorganisation and inventory of these pre-unification collections. The work was supervised by Vanna Arrighi, deputy director of the Archivio di Stato di Firenze and commissioned by the Soprintendenza Archivistica per la Toscana. The results of this intervention are available for consultation in both digital format in the Archivi Storici Toscani platform and a printed file available in the archive.
The Podesteria di Empoli is one of the original fonds of the Archivio Storico del Comune di Empoli. In 1979, the Amministrazione Comunale di Empoli published a catalogue of the archive, Gli inventari degli Archivi comunali di Empoli: 1355-1937, containing the summary inventory of the "Atti dei Giusdicenti" — the archival section that gathered the fonds before the Unification of Italy, in which the Podesteria di Empoli was included —, produced under the direction of Arnaldo D'Addario. More recently, Irene Fabii carried out a reorganisation and inventory of these pre-unification collections. The work was supervised by Vanna Arrighi, deputy director of the Archivio di Stato di Firenze and commissioned by the Soprintendenza Archivistica per la Toscana. The results of this intervention are available for consultation in both digital format in the Archivi Storici Toscani platform and a printed file available in the archive.
Administrative / Biographical history
The Podesteria di Empoli had judicial jurisdiction over the community and outskirts of Empoli. After 1424, following the reorganisation of the network of vicariates and "podesterie" in the Florentine territories, the Podesteria di Empoli also integrated Monterappoli and Pontorme.
Regarding the administration of criminal justice, the Podesteria di Empoli was dependent on the vicariate of Valdelsa, based in Certaldo. However, inclusively in the criminal field, its powers were extended following a provision on July 28, 1594. At the time, Empoli had increased its commercial relevance in the region, and the city had become a pole of reference and attraction for the surrounding communities. In 1772, the Podesteria of Empoli was transformed into a vicariate by the law on the new division of the courts of justice.
Regarding the administration of criminal justice, the Podesteria di Empoli was dependent on the vicariate of Valdelsa, based in Certaldo. However, inclusively in the criminal field, its powers were extended following a provision on July 28, 1594. At the time, Empoli had increased its commercial relevance in the region, and the city had become a pole of reference and attraction for the surrounding communities. In 1772, the Podesteria of Empoli was transformed into a vicariate by the law on the new division of the courts of justice.
Access points: locations
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
System of arrangement
The fonds is divided into two series: Atti civili and Atti criminali. Records are tendentially arranged by chronological order.
Finding aids
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2022
Linked resources
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| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Archivio di Stato di Firenze | Collections (official language of the state) | |
| Archivio Storico del Comune di Empoli | Collections (official language of the state) |