Not Just the Tudors – "Surviving Plague in Venice"

Host: Professor Suzannah Lipscomb
Guest: Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw
Release Date: December 15, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb explores a lesser-known aspect of Venetian history: the city’s pioneering response to the plague through the development of permanent quarantine institutions known as the lazaretti. Suzannah is joined by Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw, an expert in early modern Italian public health, whose research delves deep into the origins, operation, and societal impact of plague hospitals in Venice. Together, they examine how the unique environment and cosmopolitan nature of Venice made it vulnerable to repeated epidemics and how the city’s responses shaped public health policy across Europe.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Venice Was So Vulnerable to Plague

• Population and Cosmopolitanism:
  Venice was among the largest cities in Europe (~170,000 people in the late 16th century) with a high population density and high levels of transience, described as a "hotel for the people of the world." (05:23)
• Geographical Factors:
  Built on a lagoon, Venice’s maritime nature increased susceptibility to plague via incoming ships and perceived “corrupt” air.

  “If you had asked someone in the 16th century why Venice was predisposed to higher levels of plague, they would have said, well, it’s maritime, it’s a port. This is exactly where we know the risk of plague is higher, where you have higher levels of moisture in the air.” — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (05:40)

2. The Overlooked History of Plague Hospitals (Lazaretti)

• Peripheral Placement:
  The lazaretti were stationed on islands outside the urban core—neither central to Venetian urban histories nor part of the mainland.
  • This liminality is why their histories have been largely overlooked until recent scholarly interest in material culture and archaeology. (07:08)
• Sources and Fragmentary Evidence:
  Historical documentation is often patchy, with most surviving records related to official administration rather than personal testimony.

3. Venice as a Public Health Pioneer

• Early Quarantine Systems:
  Venice established some of the first permanent plague hospitals in Europe—beginning in 1423 with the Lazzaretto Vecchio. By 30 years later, a second institution was created, allowing separation of confirmed cases from the exposed/convalescing. (09:22)
• Comparison with Other European Models:
  Elsewhere in Europe, plague hospitals were usually temporary, set up during outbreaks, and often utilized religious or community buildings—or even wooden structures to be burned after outbreaks. (10:25)

4. Civic Authority and Religious Collaboration

• Who Ran the Hospitals?
  Unlike elsewhere in Europe where religious bodies were often central, in Venice hospitals were primarily managed and funded by the state, with spiritual care provided by appointed chaplains.

  “There is something distinct about the Venetian response, in that it’s this publicly funded permanent structure that is overseen directly by the government.” — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (12:58)

• Church and State:
  Still, close cooperation remained—public health orders were broadcast from the pulpit and charitable activities were intertwined with religious practices. (12:01)

5. The Symbolism and Practice of Quarantine (40 Days)

• Origins:
  40 days was chosen for its biblical and medical symbolism (purification, trial, renewal—the root of the term 'quarantine' from the Italian 'quaranta').

  • “Those ideas about symbolism are central to understanding the purpose of quarantine. But the practice...does come to be adapted to experience and circumstances.” — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (15:12; 16:10)

6. Everyday Life and Perceptions of the Lazaretti

• Architecture and Experience:
  Resembled monasteries or convents with central chapels, wells, open spaces, and significant compartmentalization for people and goods.
  • Overcrowding was common during epidemics. (17:02)
• Contemporary Attitudes:
  • Mixed feelings: some saw lazaretti as places of charity; others as hellish, overcrowded, and fearful.
  • Personal testimonies are rare; most surviving graffiti were administrative or mercantile rather than from patients. (19:02)
• Descriptions of the Plague’s Effect on the City:
  Reports of empty, overgrown streets and a chilling sense of suddenness in how plague struck.

  “There’s something about the suddenness of the plague that astounds people.” — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (23:11)

7. The Parallels with Modern Pandemics

• Lipcsomb draws a comparison to COVID-19, especially the destabilizing effect of deserted public spaces and the bewildering speed of death from plague. (24:07)

8. Intensity and Timing of Epidemics

• Mortality Levels:
  Plague becomes less frequent after the 15th century but much deadlier; e.g., 1575-7 outbreak killed nearly 50,000 of 170,000 Venetians (~30%). (24:45; 26:12)
• Expertise Versus Reality:
  Venice had robust, long-standing public health measures, yet still suffered catastrophic mortality—often due to delays in recognizing and implementing epidemic responses. (26:18)

  • “It’s not just having the measures, it’s the timing at which you implement them...The declaration of the epidemic matters, because that’s when you really mobilize the public health systems.” — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (27:40)

9. Bureaucracy and Enforcement of Quarantine

• Procedure:
  Infection reported at parish level, investigated by appointed officials, and logged centrally; decisions made on whether to quarantine households or move them to the islands. Quarantines could last for months. (31:35)
• Compliance and Resistance:
  Enforcement was challenging; incentives and punishments existed, but records may understate resistance or noncompliance.
  • Economic hardships often underlay breaches of quarantine. (34:59)

10. Staffing the Lazaretti

• Hospital Leadership:
  The prior (often from the city's middling classes) ran the hospital, sometimes passing the role within families. The job was relatively desirable in normal times but became very demanding during epidemics. (38:35)
• Gender Roles and Scandal:
  Early on, women sometimes held key roles, but a 15th-century scandal and broader European trends fostered male dominance in official positions. (41:02)
• Ordinary Workers:
  In peaceful times, staff were locals performing routine duties; during outbreaks, risk and turnover soared. Body clearers, critical but dangerous roles, were incentivized with money, better clothing, and even amnesties for minor criminals. (44:08)

11. Cures and Medical Innovation

• Medical Practice:
  Doctors and laymen offered cures and preservatives; the Venetian government encouraged innovation by granting patents and financial rewards for effective remedies. Some remedies were publicly distributed in pamphlets. (47:25)
  • Some cures were tested on hospitalized patients—outcomes determined state support. (48:05)

12. Survival Rates and Conditions During Epidemics

• Mortality in Lazaretti:
  Outside major outbreaks, most traders survived quarantine; during epidemics, ~70% died in the hospitals. The system was rapidly overwhelmed during surges. (49:33)
• Lazaretti Conditions:
  Severe overcrowding—patients sometimes three or four to a bed, high fevers, screams, insufficient medical and support staff. Distress was exacerbated by being surrounded by ill friends and neighbors. (51:16)

13. Practices After Death

• Body Removal & Disinfection:
  Special “body clearers” removed bodies and sanitized homes, sometimes burning goods or even using symbolic whitewashing for purification. Aromatic herbs might be burned to cleanse the air.
  • Returning survivors found homes altered, with many goods destroyed in disinfection efforts. (53:30)

14. The Spread of the Venetian Model

• Imitation Across Europe:
  While Venice’s system was pioneering and unusually permanent, versions of centralized plague hospitals and quarantine sites appeared throughout Europe—from Spain and France to England and Scandinavia. (56:18)

15. Early Modern Precedents and Modern Parallels

• Venetians were neither ignorant nor passive; they developed and refined practical, elaborate systems for epidemic management—a reminder not to patronize the early modern past. (57:32)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Venice at this period is one of the largest cities in Europe...described as a hotel for the people of the world.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (05:23)
• “The reality was probably somewhere in between—a place of genuine attempts at healing, but also places of fear, loss, and social control.”
  — Prof. Suzannah Lipscomb (03:02)
• “The ultimate cause of epidemic disease...was generally seen to be the wrath of the Christian God in Europe.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (12:30)
• “The declaration of the epidemic matters, because that’s when you really mobilize the public health systems properly.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (27:40)
• “You’re essentially saying, the government has the right to inhibit the liberty of an individual...for the benefit of the collective good.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (34:59)
• “It wasn’t unusual...to have to share a bed—three or four to a bed in these hospitals.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (51:19)
• “You can have a system there in principle, and it’s often to do with the practice...the timing with which you put a measure into place—those can be the things that make a difference.”
  — Dr. Jane Stevens Crawshaw (58:18)

Important Segments & Timestamps

• Introduction and context about Venice & the plague: 02:08–05:09
• Why plague hospitals were overlooked by historians: 06:46–09:05
• Development and uniqueness of Venetian Lazaretti: 09:22–11:50
• Role of civic vs. religious authorities: 11:50–15:04
• Quarantine and symbolism of 40 days: 15:04–17:00
• Lazaretto layout, patient experience, and public perception: 17:00–24:07
• Impact and intensity of 16th-century plague: 24:45–26:18
• Timing and management of epidemic responses: 26:18–29:14
• How cases were processed and enforced: 31:28–34:59
• Who ran the lazaretti and staff experiences: 38:27–44:08
• Cures, patents, and treatments: 47:25–49:29
• Mortality and conditions during outbreaks: 49:29–53:26
• Sanitation, handling the dead, and return home: 53:26–55:59
• Spread of Venetian quarantine model: 55:59–57:32
• Reflections on early modern preparedness: 57:32–59:05

Conclusion

This episode offers a richly detailed look at how Venice’s unique geography and social fabric shaped Europe’s earliest and most sophisticated public health responses to the plague. Through the lens of Dr. Crawshaw’s research, listeners gain a vivid sense of life, death, and resilience amid epidemic crisis—along with an appreciation of the complexity and agency of early modern societies in facing public health emergencies.