“Squatting” in Seventeenth-­Century Rome. Some notes on non-­standard dwelling practices in Early Modern Cities

Journal title SOCIETÀ E STORIA
Author/s Lorenzo Coccoli
Publishing Year 2025 Issue 2025/190
Language Italian Pages 27 P. 759-785 File size 243 KB
DOI 10.3280/SS2025-190001
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Surprisingly, and with a few notable exceptions, early modern historians have paid little attention to nonstandard housing practices in ancien régime societies. Even when the housing conditions of the poorer segments of the resident population are addressed, most scholars tend to assume that even the most destitute had access to some form of lodging, whether through a semi--formal arrangement such as subletting or accommodation in a public hospice. This article argues that this was not always the case. In some instances, poverty could be so acute that even the cheapest solutions were out of reach;; and when individuals lacked access to social resources such as credit, charity, or neighbourhood support, nonstandard practices often became the only viable option. Drawing on some seventeenth--century Roman sources, this article seeks to bring these practices into the field of scholarly inquiry, while offering some methodological reflections on the challenges involved in studying them.

Keywords: Dwelling Practices, Informality, Survival Strategies, Property Regimes, Urban Poverty, Social History of Space.

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Lorenzo Coccoli, “Squatting” in Seventeenth-­Century Rome. Some Notes on Nonstandard Dwelling Practices in Early Modern Cities in "SOCIETÀ E STORIA " 190/2025, pp 759-785, DOI: 10.3280/SS2025-190001