So, in the early 14th century Florence was beset by  violence, civil disorder, and power struggles.  Suffice to say the Florentin people were not huge fans of The Medici, and not reticent in their opinions.  From this mayhem the Otto Di Guardia (or The Eight) emerged, tasked with curbing public chaos, enforcing laws, and protecting the government (ie The Medici) from the locals.

By the 1450s, The Otto’s résumé expanded to include crimes from murder and theft, to fraud and unlicensed sword-carrying— AND when swords evolved (devolved?) into muskets and blunderbusses these too were licenced. (See Country-Which-Will-Remain-Nameless… the Italians have had stringent gun laws since 1543).

The Otto also had jurisdiction over religious offenses and tracking down traitors – effectively keeping an eye on everyone’s opinions and allegiances when it came to heresey and treason, and punishing those who caused upset…  and you thought social media moderators were a new idea… 

By 1537, the Otto decided that sharing was caring, so they split jurisdiction with a few other legal entities:

• Conservatori delle Leggi: Specialists in giving banditi a second chance and cracking down on sodomy (no fun allowed).
• Abbondanza (Grascia): Keeping hoarders and food smugglers from cornering the black-market cheese trade.
• Capitano della Parte Guelfa: Mediators for property disputes because none of us are good at boundaries and who doesn’t like arguing over whose goat got into which field?
• Zecca: Florence’s anti-counterfeiting squad, because fake florins caused coin-sternation and coin-troversy.
• Onestà: Keeping tabs on prostitution – because Florentin ladies-of-the-night got to service grubby field-hands AND had to pay taxes for the privilege.

The Medici Grand Dukes kept an eye on their subjects through their segretario, who reported every morning on the shenanigans which had unfolded overnight. Much like waking up to a daily crime podcast, only with fewer ads.

Palazzo del Podestà and the Bargello

The Otto’s HQ was in the Palazzo del Podestà, right next to the Bargello prison.

The prison’s entrance was on Via della Giustizia (Justice Street – subtle, no) and it led into a courtyard surrounded by cells where detainees moaned, wailed, rattled their chains and pondered their life choices.

Much like today, the courtroom was divided into a judges bar (not the boozy kind) and a double set of barriers that separated the court officials from the public.  There were also desks for the court notary to sit and record proceedings.

Adjacent to the courtroom was a cancelleria, where the admin of the court was carried out, and where documents were stored.

The Bargello also contained a sala delle esamine (examination room) where suspects and witnesses were interrogated. The most commonly used “interrogation technique” was the Strappado (or corda). The victim was tied by the wrists behind the back with a very long rope and then by means of a pulley attached to the ceiling he was dragged upward so that the body weight was all on the shoulders.

Nice.

Important political prisoners were held in cells in a secret section of the palace.  Not sure if this was good for them or bad?

Anyhoo…

Key People

• Segretario (Principal Chancellor): The Grand Dibber-Dobber who had the Grand Duke’s ear. From 1603 to 1614, Messer Taddeo Orselli held the job, balancing justice, politics, and the occasional interrogation with typical Early Modern flair.
• Provveditore: The money guy, responsible for collecting court fees, for example a 100-scudi fine for stealing silk (crimes against fashion were taken seriously in Renaissance Florence). After 1562, they outsourced this role to the Depositorio Fiscale.
• Cancellieri: Paperwork wizards who kept the system running. With families like the Rofia and Corboli holding these posts for generations, nepotism was basically the family heirloom.
• Tavolaccino: The unsung heroes who earned a grand total of six scudi a year for managing fines, debts, and criminal evidence. Basically, the Renaissance equivalent of the low paid admin staff who actually knew what was going on and got stuff done.