Upheavals, ruptures, discontinuities, risings

After the Venetian conquest at the beginning of the 13th century, a profound social, economic, artistic and territorial transformation took place in the so-called Regno di Candia, i.e. the island of Crete. The Serenissima ruled the island in continuity with the original Byzantine structure from several points of view, but more generally – in Candia more than elsewhere – tested the application of its administrative model and promoted a long phase of urban and architectural renewal. One of the most lasting effects of that period of political changes with respect to the past was the subdivision of urban and rural properties and the introduction of instruments for controlling and managing them, as well as for regulating relationships between the inhabitants and the Venetian government. A good example is that of the catastici: not a novelty at all for the Venetian State, but considering the references contained in the surviving documents, we can argue that production of them for Crete was continuous throughout the Venetian period. Some catastici have been published (Tsirpanlis 1985, Gasparis 2004 and 2008). This paper will deal with other unpublished ones for the town of Candia and its territory dating back to the 16th and 17th centuries – publication of which is forthcoming – and will focus on certain aspects of discontinuity in the official procedures linked to property transfers. These catastici are a precious source for reconstructing the appearance of the urban and rural space in a part of the island a short time before a key moment of political and military rupture – the Ottoman conquest.