Marriage Wars in Late Renaissance Venice

by Joanne M. Ferraro

Based on a fascinating body of previously unexamined archival material, this book brings to life the lost voices of ordinary Venetians during the age of Catholic revival. Looking at scripts that were brought to the city's ecclesiastical courts by spouses seeking to annul their marriage vows, this book opens up the emotional world of intimacy and conflict, sexuality, and living arrangements that did not fit normative models of marriage.

Genres: History, Renaissance, Italy

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Cairo · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I said yes with my voice but not with my heart."

I read this book for my women's history class, and I thoroughly enjoyed it! The author takes a case study approach-- the book is divided into six sections, and each section discusses and analyzes the court procedures of certain women's cases-- battered women, women who entered marriages as children, prostitutes and courtesans, and women with larger dowries.

All of the court records the book was based on have to do with failed marriages that took place in Venice, Italy, between 1563 to 1650. That being said, this specific setting and location may not generalize to other contexts, even within the overall time period. However, the role of the Catholic church's teachings, the ecclesiastical church court, and court procedures were probably similar in many European countries of this time.

To really understand the book, one of the things you have to know is that before the Council of Trent came along, the Catholic Church only had two requirements for the validity of marriage: the couple had to exchange vows, whether by themselves or in the presence of others, and then the marriage was consummated.

That's it! Two steps and then you're married-- well, until the two of you start fighting in court and then nobody knows whether you've actually consummated or not or whether or not you truly meant your vows. You can imagine the chaos and instability that could ensue.

I appreciate this book because it dispels of a few common myths we've commonly accepted.

#1: Once married, there was no way to get out of it without the option of divorce.
Not true! This is the focus of the book-- the vagueness of the requirements for marriage was frequently exploited, resulting in a lot of controversy. Divorce was certainly not an option for these devoutly religious societies, but the ecclesiastical courts provided two options to formally end a marriage: annulment, which invalidated the marriage based on a failed requirement of one of the two components of marriage, and formal separation, which allowed couples to separate while not invalidating the legitimacy of any children born within the marriage.

#2: Women (and men) could legally be forced into marriages.
As seen by the quote I used to open this review, women who made a strong enough case that their parents forced them into marriage (often under threat of disinheritance, violence, or even death) were allowed to have their marriages annulled, especially if witnesses stated that they had seen the coercion that took place. There are even a few cases of parents forcing a daughter into marriage and later regretting it, confessing to the court. However, the priests performing the ceremony did not tend to check whether everyone was eagerly consenting (from what I've seen), so it wasn't a requirement for a valid marriage, exactly, but it was something that could be later used to invalidate one.

#3: Women had few benefits to expect from marriage.
This was probably the most shocking one to me-- women had the right to expect to be provided for, loyalty from their husbands, to be treated well, and even to have satisfying sex! Most importantly, this was supported by the courts. Unfortunately, it wasn't expected for their own benefit-- the held belief at the time was that a baby could not be conceived without both the man and the woman reaching orgasm.

#4: The only women who could fight their marriages in court were elite women.
It was actually easier for lower- and middle-class women to get their marriages annulled-- with more money at stake, it was a lot harder and more embarrassing for the elite to do the same. They also had more options outside of the courts-- perhaps they separated in every way but legally, living in separate houses and having different partners.

#5: Society and the courts were not sympathetic to the plight of battered women or women who were forced into marriages.
Time and time again, neighbors, family members, and servants stood up for battered women and testified in court against their abusers. The courts were usually sympathetic to women who presented a clear case. Were things perfectly just? Absolutely not. But things were more fair than I had believed.

I do need to point out that this book has some heavy subject matter regarding abuse and assault, but I think it's important to not gloss over it and recognize the brutality of some practices within marriage. It's great that a lot of abusive marriages were annulled, but it's terrible that they were allowed to get to that point and sometimes forced to get to that point before help could be given. Some were never annulled, and no restitution was provided to the victim.

This is an excellent book, and I highly recommend it to anyone wishing to learn more about what marriage was like in the Middle Ages. 4.5 stars!

[Adelais · Rating 4 out of 5]

Гарна розвідка про те, як в ренесансній Венеції жінки виходили заміж, розлучалися, судилися і взагалі намагалися відстоювати власні права. Звичайно, далеко не завжди їм це вдавалося, і перед нами проходить ціла вервечка судових справ, де жінки намагалися розлучитися через примус до шлюбу чи важкі стосунки (як правило, важкі чи через погану поведінку чоловіка або родини, фінансову чи то емоційну), а чи навпаки - визнати свої права як співмешканки, бо женитися на низькородній патрицію було часто зась, а от співмешкання, при чому досить довге, траплялося. Єдине, чого мені не вистачило тут - то якогось завершення, бо про долю багатьох жінок після їх згадки в судових рішеннях ми можемо тільки щось припустити.

[Daria]

È un saggio molto interessante che sfata alcuni luoghi comuni

[Cherie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really, really interesting.