POLITICA E GIUSTIZIA ALL¿OMBRA DI VENEZIA. I GIUDICI ASSESSORI NEL SISTEMA DI POTERE VENETO DI ETÀ MODERNA (LA TERRAFERMA, 1550-1600)

This dissertation examines the role played by the "giudici assessori" (judicial assessors) in the Venetian "Terraferma" between 1550 and 1600, highlighting their position as a key element within the power structure of the Republic of Venice. Over the course of the sixteenth century, the assessor class underwent a process of transformation, gradually reaching a degree of equilibrium and definition toward the end of the century. Through a historical-institutional approach, the study investigates the political and administrative dynamics that characterized Venetian governance, emphasizing how justice functioned as a tool of control and legitimization for central authority, channeled specifically through the figure of the assessors who accompanied the Venetian nobles appointed as "rettori" in the "Terraferma" territories. Although they played a crucial role in mediating between the center and the periphery, the "giudici assessori", upon closer examination, emerge as a fragile yet essential component of the Venetian institutional framework, often subject to conflicting pressures from both local communities and the central government. The research reveals that the assessor class underwent significant evolution during the second half of the sixteenth century, reflecting the broader transformations of the Venetian state and its only partially effective strategies for integrating provincial elites.