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Orphans and Ladies: The Venetian Conservatoires (1680–1790)
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 January 1962
Extract
The Peacefulness and longevity of the Venetian Republic prove that it had solved one of its greatest problems—that of poverty. Not that it was rid of its poor even in times of prosperity: but at least they were cared for by a wealth of charitable organisations, and that desperation which leads to civil insurrection never gained a hold. The chronically sick, the girls having no dowry, the orphans and the beggars were each helped by various confraternities which were supported by the more fortunate. Some of these were specifically for members of a trade who had fallen on difficult times, like that founded in 1340 by a German cobbler called Henry, who left money to help infirm and needy shoemakers. Others, looked after ‘widows without male issue’; and old people attracted a great deal of money to provide homes for them.
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References
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